C'è la luna mezzo mare

"Luna mezz'o mare" (Moon amid the sea) is a comic Neapolitan song with worldwide popularity, traditionally styled as a brisk 6/8 tarantella, based on an earlier version from Sicily. The song portrays a mother-daughter "coming of age" exchange consisting of various comic, and sometimes sexual, innuendos. It is frequently performed at Italian-American wedding receptions and other festive occasions. Hit versions have included "Oh! Ma-Ma! (The Butcher Boy)" by Rudy Vallée and "Lazy Mary (Luna Mezzo Mare)" by Lou Monte.

"Luna mezz'o mare"
Wedding scene from The Godfather (1972)
Song by Paolo Citorello
LanguageNeapolitan
English titleMoon amid the sea
Released1927 (1927)
Recorded1927
GenreTarantella

Origin

Related music and lyrics appeared as early as 1835, in the art song "La Danza" (Tarantella Napoletana) by Gioachino Rossini and Carlo Pepoli. By 1871 in Italy, bawdier versions were circulating. In 1927, New York City's Italian Book Company arranged and recorded a version by Sicilian sailor Paolo Citorello (sometimes spelled Citarella), and an American court upheld their copyright in 1928.[1][2]

Popularity

Since the first recording in 1927, the song has proliferated with different titles and lyrics, both in English and in several variants of Italian.[2][3] Hit recordings in the United States have included "Oh! Ma-Ma!" by Rudy Vallée (1938, peaked at #8)[4] and "Lazy Mary" by Lou Monte (1958, peaked at #12).[5] Monte's version was initially banned from British broadcasts for undesirable innuendo,[6] but has been played to a family-filled baseball stadium at almost every New York Mets home game since the mid-1990s, as the result of a fan survey. The humorous lyrics center around a young woman wondering about marriage with various tradesmen (butcher, fisherman, fireman, etc.), ensuring the song's sustained popularity at Italian wedding receptions, including the opening scene of The Godfather (1972).[2][3]

Notable recordings

The song has been notably recorded with the following performers and titles:[2][3][7]

  • 1927: Paolo Citorello, "Luna mezzo mare" – original copyrighted version
  • 1929: Paolo Citorello, "Mamma a cu m'addari"
  • 1930: Paolo Citorello, "Mi vulissi maritari"
  • 1930s: Paolo Dones, "A luna 'mmenzu 'u mari"
  • 1928: Rosina Trubia Gioiosa, "Mi vogghiu maritari"(Brunswick E26617-E26618 10-in. 2/23/1928 Mi vogghiu maritari Rosina Trubia Gioiosa Female vocal solo, with orchestra.
  • 1930s: Silvia Coruzzolo, "A luna mezzo o mare"
  • 1930s: I Diavoli, "La luna in mezzo al mare (A luna mmezzu 'u mari)"
  • 1938: Rudy Vallée, "Oh! Ma-Ma! (The Butcher Boy)" – #8 U.S. peak in Your Hit Parade; not to be confused with the folk ballad, "The Butcher's Boy"
  • 1938: Dick Robertson, "Oh, Ma, Ma (The Butcher Boy)"
  • 1938: George Hall, "Oh! Ma Ma (The Butcher Boy)"
  • 1938: Gracie Fields, "Oh! Ma-Ma! (The Butcher Boy)"
  • 1938: The Andrews Sisters, "Oh! Ma-Ma! (The Butcher Boy)"
  • 1938: Glenn Miller, "Oh! Ma-Ma! (The Butcher Boy) / Marie"
  • 1940: Trio Lescano, "La luna in mezzo al mare"
  • 1951: Louis Prima, "Zooma Zooma"
  • 1951: Dean Martin, "Luna mezzo mare"
  • 1958: Lou Monte, "Lazy Mary (Luna mezzo mare)" – #12 U.S. peak in Billboard; not to be confused with the nursery rhyme "Lazy Mary, Will You Get Up"
  • 1960: The Mills Brothers, "Oh! Ma-Ma! (The Butcher Boy)"
  • 1972: Louis Prima, "Che la luna"
  • 1973: Salix Alba, "Oh Mama"
  • 1983: The Star Sisters, "Oh, ma-ma! (The butcher boy)"
  • 1999: Frank Simms, "Luna mezzo mare"
  • 2005: Patrizio Buanne, "Luna mezz'o mare"
  • 2015: Famiglia Amica Valenza, "C'e la luna mezz'o mare"

References
  1. Italian Book Company v. Rossi, 27 F. 2d 1014 (S.D.N.Y. 1928).
  2. Shannon, Bob; Javna, John (1986). Behind the Hits: Inside Stories of Classic Pop and Rock and Roll. Warner Books. ISBN 978-0446381710. Archived from the original on March 28, 2010.
  3. Rypens, Arnold (2010). The Originals: Prequel of the Hits. EPO. ISBN 978-9090256832. Archived from the original on June 7, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  4. "Your Hit Parade (USA) Weekly Single Charts From 1938". Hits of All Decades. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  5. "Billboard Magazine (USA) Weekly Single Charts For 1958". Hits of All Decades. Retrieved January 10, 2016.
  6. Leigh, Spencer (2008). This Record Is Not to Be Broadcast, Vol. 2: 50 More Records Banned by the BBC (liner notes). Fantastic Voyage. FVDD038. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  7. "Famiglia Amica Valenza: Canzone Napoletana". MTV. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
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