Following our recent trip to Genova, which we described in our last blog, I felt inspired to listen to some music by Genova’s most famous singer songwriter, Fabrizio De Andrè. The name of the song Via del Campo is taken from an old cobbled street in the Genova’s historical centre, not far from il Porto Vecchio. At the time when De Andrè wrote the song (1967) Via del Campo was frequented by smugglers and prostitutes, and De Andrè used to go there to visit Gianni Tassio’s music shop which, after De Andrè’s death in 1999, became a museum dedicated to the singer. Here are the lyrics, followed my translation into English:

Click on the photo above to listen to Via del Campo

Via del Campo

Via del Campo c’è una graziosa
gli occhi grandi color di foglia
tutta notte sta sulla soglia
vende a tutti la stessa rosa.

Via del Campo c’è una bambina
con le labbra color rugiada
gli occhi grigi come la strada
nascon fiori dove cammina.

Via del Campo c’è una puttana
gli occhi grandi color di foglia
se di amarla ti vien la voglia
basta prenderla per la mano

e ti sembra di andar lontano
lei ti guarda con un sorriso
non credevi che il paradiso
fosse solo lì al primo piano.

Via del Campo ci va un illuso
a pregarla di maritare
a vederla salir le scale
fino a quando il balcone è chiuso.

Ama e ridi se amor risponde
piangi forte se non ti sente
dai diamanti non nasce niente
dal letame nascono i fior
dai diamanti non nasce niente
dal letame nascono i fior

Via del campo

In Via del Campo there’s a pretty one 
big eyes the colour of the leaves
all night she sits on the doorstep
and sells the same rose the everyone.

In Via del Campo there’s a girl
with lips the colour of dew
her eyes as grey as the street
flowers grow wherever she walks.

In Via del campo there’s a whore
big eyes the colour of the leaves
if you are taken by the desire to love her 
simply take her by hand

and you feel as if you’re going far away
she looks at you with a smile
you wouldn’t believe that paradise
was right there on the first floor.

In Via del Campo a dreamer goes
to beg her to marry him
to watch her going up the stairs
until the balcony is closed

Love and laugh if love answers back
cry loud if it doesn’t hear you 
nothing grows from diamonds
flowers grow from the muck
nothing grows from diamonds 
flowers grow the muck.