La mamma (song)
| "La mamma" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Charles Aznavour | |
| from the album La mamma | |
| Released | 1963 |
| Genre | Chanson |
| Length | 3.43 |
| Label | Barclay |
| Songwriter(s) | Charles Aznavour, Robert Gall |
La mamma is a song written in 1962 by French lyricist Robert Gall and Armenian-French artist Charles Aznavour.
History
Charles Aznavour first recorded "La mamma" for a 1962 EP with his version serving as title cut for his 1963 album release. The first single release was by Les Compagnons de la chanson which reached #80 on the French charts in late 1963: the Aznavour version was then issued as a single to reach #1 in France in February 1964. "La mamma" also afforded Aznavour a hit on the Dutch charts of Belgium and, rendered in Italian, was a hit in Italy for both Aznavour (#13) and also Domenico Modugno (#36). "La mamma" became Aznavour's first million seller.[1]
An English-language rendering of "La mamma" by lyricist Don Black entitled "For Mama" was recorded by Matt Monro and released in December 1964 in the UK where it had a chart peak of #36.[2] "For Mama" became a minor US hit in 1965 for both Connie Francis and Jerry Vale whose versions debuted on the Hot 100 in Billboard magazine dated March 6, 1965 at #86 (Francis) and #88 (Vale): in the previous issue of Billboard, that dated February 27, 1965, the Matt Monro version of "For Mama" had appeared in the "Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles" chart at #135 along with the Jerry Vale and Connie Francis versions, respectively #121 and #127, but Monro's version did not subsequently advance into the Hot 100. The Connie Francis and Jerry Vale versions of "For Mama" rose to respective Hot 100 peaks of #48 (Francis) and #54 (Vale) on the Hot 100 dated April 3, 1965 with each disc charting for one subsequent week for a total Hot 100 tenure of seven weeks. Vic Damone also recorded a cover version of "For Mama" which failed to chart.
Adaptations
- La mamma, written by Nelly Byl (Dutch)
- La mamma, written by Gerrit den Braber (Dutch)
- Mamãe, written by Nazareno de Brito (Portuguese)
- For Mama, written by Don Black (English)
- Mama, written by Dragutin Britvić (Croatian)
- La mamma, written by Mogol (Italian)
- La mamma, written by Charly Niessen (German)
- Den bompa, written by Leo Rozenstraten (Brabantian dialect of Antwerp)
- Ya yemma, written by Lili Boniche (Algerian Arabic)
Cover versions
- Dalida
- Matt Monro (For Mama)
- De Strangers (Den bompa)
- Anna German
- Ray Charles (For Mama "La Mamma")
- Lisa del Bo
- Domenico Modugno
- Marla Glen (Our World album, 1997)
- Agnaldo Timóteo
- Jean Vallée
- Demis Roussos
- Corry Brokken
- Will Tura
- Chico & The Gypsies (La mama)
- Elvina Makaryan
- Isabelle Boulay (2002)
- Yoyoy Villame (parody in Cebuano titled "Mamay Maliya")[3]
- Heino La mamma (clip)
- Sandro La mamma (clip)
References
- ^ Million selling records from the 1900s to the 1980s: an illustrated directory, by Joseph Murrells. Batsford, 1984, p. 170
- ^ The Penguin encyclopedia of popular music, by Donald Clarke, Penguin Books, 1990, p. 56
- ^ "Yoyoy Villame - Mamay Maliya (HD)". Retrieved 25 March 2014.
