Caruso Lyrics in English Lucio Dalla

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Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Caruso by Lucio Dalla from Italian to English.

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Verse 1

Here where the sea shines

This song by Lucio is dedicated to Caruso, who was an acclaimed Italian operatic singer

And the wind blows hard

Lucio Dalla stayed some time in the same hotel where Caruso spent some time before dying

On an old terrace

A few years before he died, Caruso met and wed a woman 20 years his junior, Dorothy, whom Lucio Dalla describes in this song. He had a daughter with her named Gloria

In front of the Gulf of Sorrento

Sorrento (Surriento in the Neapolitan language) is a town overlooking the Bay of Naples in Southern Italy, where this song was written

A man hugs a girl

After she had cried

Then he clears his throat

Lit: And then he clears his voice

And recommences the song

Or: And starts to sing again

Chorus 1

I love you so much

Lit: I wish you well. Also, this is using Neapolitan dialect, as standard Italian would be: 'ti voglio bene'

But so so much you know

It's a chain now

That melts the blood inside your veins you know

Verse 2

He saw the lights in the middle of the sea

He thought of the nights there in America

Caruso had problems with Italian opera houses, but gained more fame and success in the United States, which is why we see mentions of America in this song

But they were only fishing lights

And the white wake of a propeller

He felt the pain in the music

He got up from the piano

But when he saw the moon come out of a cloud

Even death seemed sweet to him

He looked into the girl's eyes

Those eyes green like the sea

Then suddenly a tear came out

Or: Then suddenly a tear fell

And he thought he drowned

Chorus 2

I love you so much

In Italian, I love you said with 'Ti voglio bene' is generally not used in a romantic context. However, in Neapolitan, where this song originates, it's often used romantically

But so so much you know

Or: But very very much, you know

It's a chain now

That melts the blood inside your veins you know

Verse 3

The power of the lyric

Or: The power of opera

Where every drama is a fake

That with a little makeup and with mimicry

Or: With a little make-up and facial expressions

You can become another

Or: You can become someone else

But two eyes that look at you

So close and true

It makes you forget the words

They confuse thoughts

So everything becomes small

Even the nights there in America

You turn around and see your life

Like the wake of a propeller

But yes, it's life that ends

But he didn't think about it much

Rather he already felt happy

And he recommenced his song

Chorus 3

I love you so much

Usually in Italian, 'ti amo' is reserved for romantic love, while 'ti voglio bene' is used in a non-romantic context, such as family and friends

But so so much you know

It's a chain now

That melts the blood inside your veins you know

Chorus 4

I love you so much

But so so much you know

It's a chain now

That dissolves the blood in the veins

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Lyrics © ACE Music, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Lucio Dalla

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SONG MEANING

Close your eyes and picture this: a windswept terrace above the sparkling Gulf of Sorrento, where the legendary tenor Enrico Caruso spends one of his final evenings. Lucio Dalla’s Caruso turns that image into a cinematic mini-opera. The lyrics move between tender embraces and sweeping memories of nights in America, fusing personal nostalgia with the irresistible pull of the sea. When Caruso sings “Te voglio bene assaje” (“I love you so very much”), love feels like a chain that melts in the bloodstream, freeing every emotion at once.

Beyond the romantic surface, the song is also a meditation on the sheer power of music. Dalla contrasts the carefully staged drama of opera with the raw honesty of two green eyes staring back at you — the moment when words fail and feelings take over. In those seconds the world shrinks, pain softens, and even death seems sweet, so the tenor starts singing again, happier than before. Caruso is both a love letter to Italy’s most famous voice and a reminder that, when melody meets true emotion, time, distance, and even life’s end fade into the background.

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Lucio Dalla Caruso Lyrics