"Poppa Piccolino" was a song recorded by

Diana Decker Isabella Charlotte Diana Decker (9 January 1925 – 4 January 2019) was an American-born British actress, singer, and television personality, who was popular from the 1940s to the early 1960s. Early life Decker was born to an American father and ...

which reached number 2 on the UK singles chart in December 1953. It was the only UK hit single for this British-based American-born singer and actress. It was later also recorded by

Petula Clark Sally "Petula" Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and songwriter. She started her professional career as a child actor, child performer and has had the longest career of any British entertainer, spanning more than 85 y ...

Mantovani Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (; 15 November 1905 – 30 March 1980) was an Italian British conductor, composer and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature. The book '' British Hit Singles & Albums'' ...

and

David Whitfield David Whitfield (2 February 1925 – 15 January 1980) was a popular British male tenor vocalist from Hull. In November 1953 he became the first British male artist to have a number one single in the UK with " Answer Me" (Lita Roza having had a ...

(with the first verse of ""). The original 1952 Italian lyrics had the title "" (translating to "Poppies and Goslings") and were written by

Mario Panzeri Mario Panzeri (11 October 1911 – 19 May 1991) was an Italian lyricist and composer. He is well known for his composed songs that include "" "", "", and "", which won the first edition of the Sanremo Music Festival in 1951. Panzeri was the c ...

and Giuseppe Rastelli with music by Vittorio Mascheroni. The cheerful lyrics hide a political satire about inequalities between rich ("poppies") and poor ("goslings"). The song was an Italian hit for singer

Nilla Pizzi Adionilla Pizzi (; 16 April 1919 – 12 March 2011), known by her stage name Nilla Pizzi, was an Italian singer and actress. Born in Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy, she was particularly famous in Italy during the 1950s and 1960s. She is well know ...

, who came in second place with it at the

Sanremo Music Festival 1952 The Sanremo Music Festival 1952 (), officially the 2nd Italian Song Festival (), was the second annual Sanremo Music Festival, held at the Sanremo Casino in Sanremo between 28 and 30 January 1952, and broadcast by (RAI). The show was presented b ...

. It went on to be a worldwide hit, has been translated into forty languages, and inspired the title of a movie with

Walter Chiari Walter Annicchiarico (8 March 1924 – 20 December 1991), known as Walter Chiari , was an Italian stage and screen actor, mostly in comedy roles. Biography Walter Annicchiarico was born in Verona, Italy on 8 March 1924 to a family originall ...

.Papaveri e Papere
at L'enciclopedia di Sanremo: 55 anni di storia del festival dalla A alla Z, Gremese Editore, 2005 pages 92, 75, 116, 129, 229, 165, 154, 251, 156, 121 English lyrics were by Bob Musel and the song was published by Chappell's of London. The lyrics lose the original meaning, changing the piece into a song about a wandering musician. They tell the story of a much loved Italian

concertina A concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It consists of expanding and contracting bellows, with buttons (or keys) usually on both ends, unlike accordion buttons, which are on the front. The ...

-playing vagabond who wanders from town to town with a monkey who collects money from the audience. One day he loses his concertina and becomes very sad. His little monkey finds it and joy is restored to all.

References

1953 songs 1953 singles Songs with lyrics by Robert Musel Songs written by Mario Panzeri Sanremo Music Festival songs of 1952 Songs about Italy {{1950s-single-stub