Edoardo Bennato & Bo Diddley - Attento Joe (video) - 1992.
Hey, you who want to be a rebel
Hey, you who want to be a hero
Sooner or later, whether you like it or not
You have to pay a price, pay, yes
Yes, pay
And just to give you an example
If you want to go on the news
You have to pass under those Caudine Forks
Of San Martino, you have to pass, pass
Yes, pass
Careful Joe, watch what you do, do
Do, do
Don't pull the string too tight, or you'll regret it - rai
-Rai, -rai

In the album "Il paese dei balocchi" from 1992, released by Edoardo Bennato just after the album under his alter ego Joe Sarnataro "È asciuto pazzo 'o padrone" (which I’ve been discussing on the site lately), also from 1992, there’s this song, "Attento Joe," sung in duet no less than with Bo Diddley. This piece, dedicated to Joe Sarnataro himself, criticizes the power of Rai and its executives who, to allow a spot on their national broadcasts, impose the choice of certain locations for concerts. In particular, Bennato refers to journalist Gianni Raviele and his Rassegna di Spettacolo e Cultura San Martino Arte that took place in his hometown, San Martino Valle Caudina. As a "punishment," following the release of this piece, Bennato was not invited to the TV show "Prisma."
«And just to give you an example, if you want to go on the news, you have to pass under those Caudine Forks of San Martino...»
Bennato himself, "masked" as Joe Sarnataro, had indeed performed in this location, along with other Italian artists who were then at the peak of their careers.
«Careful Joe, watch what you do, do, don’t pull the string too tight, or you’ll regret it - rai!» (That "rai" is definitely not random, as you may have guessed).
Now, you can think what you want, of course, like that here Edoardo was at the end of his rope and had already shot his best shots earlier, especially in the '70s (even though for me, the album under Joe Sarnataro’s name is a masterpiece), but there is a fact: his two immediately previous singles, "Viva la mamma" from 1989 and "Un'estate italiana" aka "Notti magiche" sung in duet with Gianna Nannini from 1990, and his two previous albums, "Ok Italia" from 1987 and "Abbi dubbi" from 1989, sold tremendously well.
From here on out, however, he wouldn’t sell (almost) anything anymore: a coincidence? Who knows...
 
Edoardo Bennato (Joe Sarnataro) - Nisciuno! (live 1992)
Those who don’t want to line up
Those who are behind the bars
Those who pass with the red light
Those who stop at the yellow light
Those who are in the thousands
Those who sell the nuts
The big ones, the little ones, the ladies, the poor folks
The old ones, the children, the good ones, the wicked ones
No one
No one is saved
No one, no one
In this city, no one is saved!
Those who steal the stereo
Those who sell the ships
Those who sell their daughters, teachers, shoes
Doctors, barbers, soups, blind folks, transgenders
Nuns, honey sellers, butchers
No one!
No one is saved
No one, no one
In this city, no one is saved!
The daddy's girls
Those who cry misery
Those who lend money with interest
Those who send gifts from Befana
The old ladies, the postmen, the taxi drivers, the tram drivers, the young ladies
The good families, the prison guards
The railway workers, the pork sellers, the crooks, the divers
All from the same dough, judges, accountants
No one!
No one is saved
No one, no one
In this city, no one is saved!
Those who talk about justice
Those who wash their hands
Those who make the invoices, those who never stray
Those from the post office, those from taxes
The carriers, the vegetable sellers, ministers, the unemployed, the caretakers, the milkmen
The machine guards, the bodyguards, the gas station attendants
The soap sellers, the single ladies, the Red Cross members, the priests, the whores
No one!
No one is saved
No one, no one
In this city, no one is saved!
Those who take the north
Those who, out of spite, cheer for Juventus
Those who have nothing to lose
Those who write on the
The newspapers, the one from Vasto, the one from Furia, the one from Vomero, from Succavo
From Furcella, from Quartieri, those from Rione Traiano
Those from via Petrarca, from Sanità, from Pallunetto to Santa Lucia
Those at the top of via Manzoni, those down by the railway
The junkies, the nurses, the lawyers, the social workers
The bakers, the tax men, the hairdressers, the clueless
The builders, the scams, those who do the tricks
In the middle of the street, the city council advisors, the cops
No one!
No one is saved
No one, no one
In this city, no one is saved
No one!
No one!
"Hey, and you? Why you?"
"Hey, I don't!"
No one!
 
Joe Sarnataro (Edoardo Bennato) - Comme Aggia Fà
How am I supposed to do it, how am I supposed to do it with you
How am I supposed to do it, how am I supposed to do it with you
if you are the most beautiful in the world
and I have to pretend I don’t know it!