I mentioned already on another thread the famous song: Torna a Surriento and its versions in other languages but on the same melody.

But there are a lot...for instance:



https://findwords.info/term/j'attendrai

And "Tornerai" seems to have been first...



Perhaps the "humming chorus" of "Madame Butterfly"?



I knew an old guy in the last days that he lived in the hospital singing nearly each hour "j'attendrai"... memories from his time during WWII in Belgium...


Or for instance: "O solo mio"



and Elvis Presley



Or is it this one?



Or was it already before WWII a question of marketing? Borrowing the great successes of another country for the reknown singer of the own country?...Or just a question of earning money?...

PS: And I see now that I already was busy with the subject more than eight years ago overhere...
https://reshistorica.forumotion.com/t400-opera-operette-bel-canto-folk-singers-cafe-chantant-and-their-connections

Of course, it needs an accurate translation of the original lyrics, otherwise "the lion" (M'bube in Zulu) becomes "Wimoweh" which seems to mean nothing in any current language. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrrQT4WkbNE

Gil, yes you are right. I put translation in the original title and as you proved it can be misleading...

And even in my first paragraph it is even not yet correct:
"I mentioned already on another thread the famous song: Torna a Surriento and its versions in other languages but on the same melody."

I had perhaps better said: other lyrics in other languages, but on the same melody...
In the meantime for what it is worth I edited the title to "other language"...

And another example of what I meant is "La Mer" from "Charles Trenet"



And its adaptation on the same "tune?" music?
Beyond The Sea



And as I already mentioned for Elvis Presley, it was many times big business for a famous singer to let him sing a melody become known allover the world...

Kind regards, Paul.

Return to Sorrento (3rd class)

"I must go down to the sea again,
To the lonely sea and the sky;
I left my vest and socks there -
I wonder if they're dry."

Sorry for the (sometimes) shortcomings of my 70-something memory. I haven't found it anywhere but my searches aren't always effective.  Did we already discuss The D-Day Dodgers (song originating from a gaff of Lady Astor's) having the same tune as Lily Marlene?

Gilgamesh!

it remembers me about our search (if I recall it well LiR was also involved) about a church in ? I have forgotten the name...(I see that LiR came in too for the moment))

https://books.google.be/books?id=l0BS7qRWLbwC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
...page 90...

and by all that searching  I came to Harry Secombe
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0781183/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm

And from that to:



PS: And LiR...he did it again...
PPS: Perhaps it is all too difficult for the average reader...and with all these URLs, I wonder if it for the average reader to open all those links to learn more?...
PPPS: but perhaps was Gilgamesh (father of Ur-Nungal) right again as most times our Irishman from the North...

Paul :
I'm not entirely clear - do you mean to refer to straight translations, or to tunes re-used with wholly different words?
This, for example, is a straight translation (as far as I can tell as a non-Italian speaker). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kiYRu1jH8s

Whereas this is just the tune of "O Sole mio" (aka "Just one cornetto"*)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkMVscR5YOo

* an advertising jingle, Paul. see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c54DL0DxZVA

When the late Queen Mother was on a visit to Venice and riding in a gondola, a British press man got alongside and presented her with an ice cream, to the puzzlement of the Italian press. She appeared to be highly
amused.

Green George wrote:

Paul :
I'm not entirely clear - do you mean to refer to straight translations, or to tunes re-used with wholly different words?
This, for example, is a straight translation (as far as I can tell as a non-Italian speaker). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kiYRu1jH8s

Gil:
yes perhaps with my deficient english, I have given not the most understandable description...
Yes "tunes" re-used with wholly different words and mostly in another language... as I mentioned:
the anti war song (first WW) in Dutch with completely other words, but on the tune of Torna a Surriento...



And yes perhaps also the "cornetto song" as you mentioned...

And there seems to have been  big business battles, question of money, if I recall it well...for copying what i see as a part of a tune into another song if I recall it well from Doctor Zhivago (Lara's theme)...not the following examples that are allowed ones I think...



And by Al Martino
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Martino



And Ivan Rebroff even in Russian...



PS and now I see why all that fuss about money and competition...from the wiki..yes i know gil for what it is worth:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lara%27s_Theme

Here's a couple of drinking songs for you, Paul

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=le6uFnLwqYU

And the Breton original (the song of cider)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLMwFOeQH68

"Gil, just lost my one hour work about "street songs" from my father's time on great tunes..."

Edited, while I now see that I only lost the second part of my former message...excuses for the mess...

I remove from this message, what I had already mentioned in my former message of some hour before...

..........

But the original intention of my thread was about street songs on the tune of great melodies...

As on the famous "Valencia": the "normal" one...



And our local "the voice of Flanders"...but not yet a street song

   

But it was about my father's street song on the tune of Valencia...
On the mighty google I found only one reference
http://www.streetmattress.com/sm.php/sm.php?mattress=18676
From the link:
"My mother always sang: València, valència, 't is te danken aan de banken dat de frank zo lege staat!"

But my father's song was not only that song on the tune of Valencia but more a critical street song and even with an erotic connotation...
"Valencia, z'hed a roze, z'hed a bloase, z'hed a gat van chocola..."
"'Valencia, t is te danken aan de banken, dat de frank zo lege stoat..."
Hmm...thinking...no... better to not translate the first sentence as I don't know the "appropriate!" words in English for it...
Second line:
't is te danken aan de banken dat de frank zo lege staat
(it is to thank to the banks that the frank so low stays)
"frank" the Belgian money of the Thirties...
And the sentence an allusion on the worldwide money crisis of begin the Thirties...

Green George wrote:

Here's a couple of drinking songs for you, Paul

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=le6uFnLwqYU

And the Breton original (the song of cider)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLMwFOeQH68

Gil, that is exactly what I meant with my thread. And yes I found this song in Dutch always having a great tune (melody?) and see it now...that tune is from a Breton song...and thanks for that splendid example...

Paul : It also exists in German (prettyy close to the Dutch text) and seems to have been appropriated by extreme right groups https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEZJB3Fe6WQ