Vecchio frac [English translation]

«At night, when everybody is asleep, only a man is walking on the street. It’s a man in a tailcoat.»

Midnight has come,

every sound is dying down,

the sign of that last café

has been turned off too.

The streets are deserted,

deserted and quiet,

one last carriage

is going away, creaking.

The river is flowing slowly,

swishing under the bridges,

the moon is shining in the sky,

the whole city is sleeping,

a man in a tailcoat is passing by, alone.

He’s wearing a top hat,

two diamonds as cufflinks,

a crystal walking stick,

a gardenia in his buttonhole,

and, on his pure-white waistcoat, a bow tie,

a blue silk bow tie.

He’s approaching slowly,

in a solemn gait,

he has a dreamy,

melancholy, absent-minded look,

and no one knows where he’s coming from

or where he’s going.

Who will it be

that man in a tailcoat?

«Bonne nuit, bonne nuit, bonne nuit, goodnight»

he’s saying to everything,

to the lit up street lamps,

to a wandering,

enamoured alley cat.

The day is already breaking,

the street lamps are turning off,

the whole city

is waking up little by little;

the moon has been enchanted,

surprised and pale,

it will slowly fade,

disappearing in the sky.

A window is yawning

on the silent river,

and in the white light,

here they go, floating away,

a top hat, a flower and a tailcoat.

Floating softly,

cradled by the water,

he’s flowing down slowly,

under the bridges, towards the sea,

he’s going towards the sea.

Who will it be

that man in a tailcoat?

Adieu, adieu, adieu, adieu, farewell to the world,

to the memories of the past,

to a dream never dreamt,

to a instant of love

that will never come back.

La la la la...

• Artist:Domenico Modugno