"Al di là" ("Beyond") is a song written by Italian composer Carlo Donida and lyricist Mogol, and recorded by

Betty Curtis Roberta Corti (21 March 1936 – 15 June 2006), better known by her stage name Betty Curtis, was an Italian singer active from 1957 to 2004. Curtis grew up in the Zone 8 of Milan's borough Cagnola. She started singing in night clubs at an early a ...

. The English lyrics were written by

Ervin Drake Ervin Drake (born Ervin Maurice Druckman; April 3, 1919 – January 15, 2015) was an American songwriter whose works include such American Songbook standards as " I Believe" and " It Was a Very Good Year". He wrote in a variety of styles and his ...

. The song was the entry in the

Eurovision Song Contest 1961 The Eurovision Song Contest 1961 was the 6th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, held on 18 March 1961 in the in Cannes, France. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster (RTF), and originally known as the () ...

, performed in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

by Curtis at the Palais des Festivals in

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, on 18 March 1961, after Curtis had won the Sanremo Music Festival 1961 on 2 February. Donida is best known in America for writing "Uno dei tanti", or "

I (Who Have Nothing) "I (Who Have Nothing)" (sometimes billed as "I Who Have Nothing") is an English-language cover of the Italian song "''Uno dei tanti''" (English: "One of Many"), with music by Carlo Donida and lyrics by Giulio "Mogol" Rapetti. The original vers ...

". English lyricist Drake also wrote the lyrics for such songs as "

Quando, quando, quando "Quando quando quando" (or "Quando, Quando, Quando", ; "When, When, When") is an Italian popular music, Italian pop song from 1962, in the bossa nova style, with music written by Tony Renis and lyrics by Alberto Testa (lyricist), Alberto Testa. T ...

" and "

Good Morning Heartache "Good Morning Heartache" is a song written by Irene Higginbotham, Ervin Drake, and Dan Fisher. It was recorded by jazz singer Billie Holiday on January 22, 1946. Personnel Bill Stegmeyer and his Orchestra (Decca Session No. 54) New York City, Ja ...

", and both the music and lyrics for " It Was a Very Good Year".

Cover versions

*In the United States,

Emilio Pericoli Emilio Pericoli (7 January 1928 – 9 April 2013) was an Italian singer. He was born in Cesenatico, Romagna, Italy. Pericoli's success was closely tied to the Sanremo Festival. He recorded a cover version of the song, " Al di là", by festiva ...

is the artist most associated with the song. He sang "Al di là" in a nightclub, with a small combo, in the popular 1962 film ''

Rome Adventure ''Rome Adventure'', also known as ''Lovers Must Learn'', is a 1962 American romantic drama film, based on the 1932 novel ''Lovers Must Learn'' by Irving Fineman. It was directed by Delmer Daves and stars Troy Donahue, Angie Dickinson, and Suzan ...

'', starring

Troy Donahue Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr., January 27, 1936 – September 2, 2001) was an American film and television actor, best known for his role as Johnny Hunter in the film '' A Summer Place''. He was a popular sex symbol in the 1950s and ...

and

Suzanne Pleshette Suzanne Pleshette (January 31, 1937 – January 19, 2008) was an American actress. Pleshette was known for her roles in theatre, film, and television. She was nominated for three Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. For her role as Emily Hart ...

, and his single that year on

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...

reached number six on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s pop chart and number three on the easy-listening chart. Pericoli's version ranked #48 on ''Billboards 1962 Year-End chart. Pericoli's album version of the song is not the same as in the film. It is much slower and recorded with a full orchestra. (In the film, Donahue's character interprets the song's title as meaning "Beyond the Beyond".) In the UK Singles Chart, Pericoli's version peaked only at number 30, but spent 14 weeks in the Record Retailer Top 50, beginning on 30 June 1962. *It was also recorded by Italian-American singer

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero ( ; born December 12, 1937), known as Connie Francis, is a retired American Pop music, pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She is estimated to have sold more th ...

in Italian in 1962 and in a bilingual version later during the same year, with Connie writing the English lyrics instead of using Ervin Drake's. *

Willy Alberti Carel Verbrugge (14 October 1926 – 18 February 1985), known as Willy Alberti, was a Dutch singer, who sang in Dutch and Italian. He was also an actor and a radio and TV personality. Alberti was born in Amsterdam as the third of eight childre ...

released a version in 1962 and on his 1973 album, ''Van levenslied tot opera''. *

Al Hirt Alois Maxwell "Al" Hirt (November 7, 1922 – April 27, 1999) was an American trumpeter and bandleader. He is best remembered for his million-selling recordings of "Java (instrumental), Java" and the accompanying album ''Honey in the Horn (album ...

also appears in ''

'' and plays the song in a nightclub scene. He released a version on his 1963 album, ''

Honey in the Horn ''Honey in the Horn'' is a 1935 in literature, 1935 debut novel by Harold L. Davis. The novel received the Harper Prize for best first novel of 1935 and won the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1936. The title of the book is from a line in a squ ...

''. *

Jerry Vale Jerry Vale (born Gennaro Louis Vitaliano; July 8, 1930 – May 18, 2014) was an American traditional pop singer. During the 1950s and 1960s, he reached the top of the pop charts with his interpretations of romantic ballads, including a cover of E ...

released a version on his 1963 album, ''Arrivederci, Roma''. This version was also part of the soundtrack of the 2019 film ''

The Irishman ''The Irishman'' (also known as ''I Heard You Paint Houses'') is a 2019 American epic gangster film directed and produced by Martin Scorsese from a screenplay by Steven Zaillian, based on the 2004 book '' I Heard You Paint Houses'' by Charl ...

''. *The

Ray Charles Singers Ray Charles (born Charles Raymond Offenberg; September 13, 1918April 6, 2015) was an American musician, singer, songwriter, vocal arranger and conductor who was best known as organizer and leader of the Ray Charles Singers, who accompanied Pe ...

scored a 1964 hit, peaking at #29 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart with their cover of the song. *

Al Martino Jasper Cini (October 7, 1927 – October 13, 2009), known professionally as Al Martino, was an American traditional pop and standards singer. He had his greatest success as a singer between the early 1950s and mid-1970s, being described as "one o ...

, who would later play the fictional crooner Johnny Fontaine in the 1972 film ''

The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...

'', recorded "Al di là" in Italian on his 1963 ''The Italian Voices of Al Martino'' album (

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

). *In 1966

Don Cornell Don Cornell (born Luigi Francisco Varlaro; April 21, 1919 – February 23, 2004) was an American singer. Early years Born to an Italian family in The Bronx, New York, Cornell attended Roosevelt High School in the Bronx. Career In his teens he p ...

recorded a cover of the song for the album ''Andiamo - Let's go with Don Cornell'', orchestra directed by Joe Guercio (

ABC-Paramount ABC Records was an American record label founded in New York City in 1955. It originated as the main popular music label operated by the Am-Par Record Corporation. Am-Par also created the Impulse! Records, Impulse! jazz label in 1960. It acquire ...

- ABCS 537). *

Sergio Franchi Sergio Franchi ( , ; born Sergio Franci Galli; April 6, 1926 – May 1, 1990) was an Italian-American tenor and actor who enjoyed success in the United States and internationally after gaining notice in Britain in the early 1960s. In 1962, RCA ...

is another Italian-American singer associated with this popular song. He recorded on his 1968 RCA Victor album, ''Wine and Song.'' Franchi also sang the song on the 26 December 1964, broadcast of

The Hollywood Palace ''The Hollywood Palace'' was an hourlong American television variety show broadcast Saturday nights (except September 1967 to January 1968, when it aired on Tuesday nights) on ABC from January 4, 1964, to February 7, 1970. Titled ''The Satur ...

. * In 1994 Délcio Tavares recorded a cover for the Brazilian market on the ''Italianíssimo II'' album (ACIT, 60062250). * Patrizio Buanne recorded on his 2015

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

album '' Viva la Dolce Vita'' singing in English and Italian. *Other notable recording include

Milva Maria Ilva Biolcati, (; 17 July 1939 – 23 April 2021), known as Milva (), was an Italian singer, stage and film actress, and television personality. She was also known as ''La Rossa'' (Italian for "The Redhead"), due to the characteristic co ...

(1961),Al di là
SecondHandSongs

Ace Cannon John Henry "Ace" Cannon (May 5, 1934 – December 6, 2018) was an American tenor and alto saxophonist. He played and toured with Hi Records stablemate Bill Black's Combo, and started a solo career with his record "Tuff" in 1961, using the Blac ...

– ''Sweet and Tough'' (1966), Jerry Adriani (1996). *Janice Harper, Capitol Records, 1961.

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Al Di La Eurovision songs of Italy Eurovision songs of 1961 Connie Francis songs Emilio Pericoli songs MGM Records singles Sanremo Music Festival songs of 1961 Songs written by Mogol (lyricist) Songs written by Carlo Donida 1961 songs Number-one singles in Mexico