Buffalo Bill [English translation]

The town was very young,

The cavalry was its defense.

The bright green colour of the plains

Was glaring proof of the existence of God,

The God that plans the frontier and builds the railroad.

At the time I was a boy

Who played rummy and cat-called women.

Naive and romantic, with a moustache like a man.

If I could have chosen between life and death,

between life and death, I'd have chosen America.

The difference between buffalo and locomotive is evident:

The locomotive has a predetermined path,

The buffalo can swerve to one side and fall.

That established the buffalo's fate,

The future of my moustache and my job.

Now, I want to say: some kill to steal,

Some kill for love,

A hunter always kills for fun,

I used to kill to be the best.

My father was a cowboy,

My mother was a farmer.

I was an only child, almost as blond as Jesus,

I had few years, and twenty years seem few,

Then you turn around to look and you can't find them anymore.

And, in fact, I remember a sad afternoon,

I was with my friend Rubberbutt, a famous mechanic,

At the edge of a road, contemplating America,

Decrease of horses, increase of optimism.

They introduced me to my fifty years

And to a contract with the Pacebbene Circus, touring Europe.

And I signed, with my name I did sign,

And my name was Buffalo Bill.

• Artist:Francesco De Gregori
• Album:Bufalo Bill (1976)