Hark, the anguished cries of the angry and horrified masses, drowning in the toxic sludge of American politics. The human mind requires a change of scenery in order to remain active in developing solutions and creative problem solving. It's a kind of crop rotation of grey matter.
So it was with delight that I discovered this video of "Funiculi, Funicula" on my Facebook feed this morning:
Like so many others, I'd always loved the joyful tune, and wondered what the lyrics meant. My research today revealed that the song was written in 1880 to commemorate the opening of Mount Vesuvius' first funicular cable car. There is suspicion that the song was written as a joke in response to a dare, and its subsequent wild popularity was apparently a surprise to eveyone involved.
The term "funicular" references a cable railroad, particularly one built on a mountainside, in which ascending and descending cars are balanced against each other.
An eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 1944 destroyed the railway, but not before an Englishman wrote his own lyrics to the tune, titling it "A Merry Life."
Who knew an Englishman could ever out-bliss the Italians? Lyrics and youtube video of two lovely ladies singing the English version follow:
A Merry Life
Music: Luigi Denza
Lyrics Edward Oxenford
Some think the world is made for fun and frolic,
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