"He tried to escape by tram
...
a fighting robin."
The song begins with the description of an elderly man fleeing from a fog-enshrouded Milan, a deliberately stereotypical and banal image. "Baggina" is the slang name for the Pio Albergo Trivulzio, a large nursing home that has always been at the center of controversies (even today). The nickname derives from its location along the road that goes from Milan to Baggio (which was once a separate town and is now a neighborhood of the city). The man is headed to Trento, but he cannot make it there because he is brutally killed.
Faber imagined a horrible end for the elderly poet, burned alive in his sleep, as unfortunately happened to some homeless people.
At the University of Trento, Renato Curcio studied, the founder of the Red Brigades, who reappears later in the song. A small bird, insignificant yet not defenseless, flies out from his beard...
"In the sunny homeland prison
...
the carbonaro."
Renato Curcio was one of the founders of the Red Brigades; he spent more than 20 years in prison without ever dissociating himself from armed struggle. The guards who agree to "amputate the leg," announced through all means, could actually be tasked with doing worse. The amputation of a leg can be an extreme therapy or a brutal mutilation, depending on the circumstances. The fact that Faber considers Curcio a "carbonaro" implies a certain benevolence towards him.
"the minister of storms
...
and hands on the balls."
Nothing is more useless than a minister of storms, or earthquakes, things that cannot be predicted or controlled; the minister knows this, and while he talks about democracy, secretly makes incantations to ensure the situation remains as it is.
"I want to live in a city
...
or detergent."
This line alludes to the photo of a mafia victim murdered in Palermo, where a woman was seen washing the victim's blood with a bucket of water and detergent. I vaguely remember it too, but I couldn't track it down.
"Late at night, my illustrious cousin De Andrade and I
...
because we had a cannon in the yard."
Oswald De Andrade was a Brazilian poet much loved by De André, who died in 1954. In reality, they were not related, although Faber would probably have liked that. The "cannon in the yard," which guarantees freedom for both, is likely a metaphor for being poets and prophets. In other words, their status ensures their liberty.
"You who have sung on stilts and on your knees
...
suitable for a vaffanculo."
This part struck me greatly because, according to Pagani, De Andrè was very disappointed with his fellow singer-songwriters, to whom he recognized a "powerful voice" (today we would call it visibility) that could have been used to change society; instead, it was "wasted" on causes he didn’t agree with and to fill stadiums and arenas. Pagani hoped that...
...
a fighting robin."
The song begins with the description of an elderly man fleeing from a fog-enshrouded Milan, a deliberately stereotypical and banal image. "Baggina" is the slang name for the Pio Albergo Trivulzio, a large nursing home that has always been at the center of controversies (even today). The nickname derives from its location along the road that goes from Milan to Baggio (which was once a separate town and is now a neighborhood of the city). The man is headed to Trento, but he cannot make it there because he is brutally killed.
Faber imagined a horrible end for the elderly poet, burned alive in his sleep, as unfortunately happened to some homeless people.
At the University of Trento, Renato Curcio studied, the founder of the Red Brigades, who reappears later in the song. A small bird, insignificant yet not defenseless, flies out from his beard...
"In the sunny homeland prison
...
the carbonaro."
Renato Curcio was one of the founders of the Red Brigades; he spent more than 20 years in prison without ever dissociating himself from armed struggle. The guards who agree to "amputate the leg," announced through all means, could actually be tasked with doing worse. The amputation of a leg can be an extreme therapy or a brutal mutilation, depending on the circumstances. The fact that Faber considers Curcio a "carbonaro" implies a certain benevolence towards him.
"the minister of storms
...
and hands on the balls."
Nothing is more useless than a minister of storms, or earthquakes, things that cannot be predicted or controlled; the minister knows this, and while he talks about democracy, secretly makes incantations to ensure the situation remains as it is.
"I want to live in a city
...
or detergent."
This line alludes to the photo of a mafia victim murdered in Palermo, where a woman was seen washing the victim's blood with a bucket of water and detergent. I vaguely remember it too, but I couldn't track it down.
"Late at night, my illustrious cousin De Andrade and I
...
because we had a cannon in the yard."
Oswald De Andrade was a Brazilian poet much loved by De André, who died in 1954. In reality, they were not related, although Faber would probably have liked that. The "cannon in the yard," which guarantees freedom for both, is likely a metaphor for being poets and prophets. In other words, their status ensures their liberty.
"You who have sung on stilts and on your knees
...
suitable for a vaffanculo."
This part struck me greatly because, according to Pagani, De Andrè was very disappointed with his fellow singer-songwriters, to whom he recognized a "powerful voice" (today we would call it visibility) that could have been used to change society; instead, it was "wasted" on causes he didn’t agree with and to fill stadiums and arenas. Pagani hoped that...
iside
22 jan 21
DeRank ™: 16,01
Loading comments slowly
