Search - Eduardo di Capua, Paolo Tosti, Enrico Cannio :: O Sole Mio: Favorite Neapolitan Songs

A Thoroughly Enjoyable, Tastefully Produced Delight

Don Hoyt | Atlanta, GA USA | 03/16/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Even people who care nothing for opera will be won over by the graceful performances of popular Neapolitan songs on this disk. Many of the tunes, from the title O Sole Mio to Funiculi Funicula, are part of even non-Italian-descent American culture, and they are all sung with an easy grace and charm and gusto. It is easy to forget (!!) that Pavarotti is an international opera star when listening to this disk; he sounds so natural it's almost as if a good friend (who happens to have a magnificent voice) were entertaining you after a few glasses of chianti. By comparison, Mario Lanza's renditions of these songs sound artificial and mannered. The orchestrations are excellent, too. Pointed, lively, and well balanced with the soloist. This is an album recorded in Pavarotti's prime, in the 1970's, before he became one of "The Three Tenors.""

A magnificent voice, but not the best in Neapolitan song

Sabad One | 09/08/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The world will miss Luciano Pavarotti, truly one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. This is a nice collection of songs that will easily remind you why he was so popular.



But, Luciano was from Modena, not from Naples, and anyone who knows Italian dialects and accents will find something somewhat "fake-sounding" in these songs. This is not Pavarotti's fault, of course. Accents are extremely hard to mimic. If you are not Italian and you like Neapolitan songs, chances are you will love this compilation. But if you are looking for a true marvelous Neapolitan singer performing traditional Neapolitan songs, my advice to you is to go for Sergio Bruni. Bruni's voice is not as outstanding, but his songs are equally marvelous and ring so much more true.



If you want to hear the "true" Pavarotti, listen, for instance, to his 70s and 80s recordings of Puccini's arias, when he really was at his peak. Then you will see, in case you need reminding, why Luciano Pavarotti made this a better world, and we should all be thankful for what he has left us."

Breathtaking

Sabad One | 01/09/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Absolutely incredible. Pavarotti is breathtaking!! As he performs these Italian classic favorites he draws the listener in.. allowing them to feel the emotion that he feels with each note."