Complesso del primo maggio [English translation]

And this is the song of the 1st of May band1

that usually performs under the sun in the afternoon

with an out-of-tune acoustic guitar, the pitch's too low

shirtless dancers can't even hear it.

A guy runs into the community center2

A policeman runs to catch him

A metalworker runs wielding a piston rod

A pierced girl runs and she's not very beautiful

1st of May band,

1st of May band,

you have a fair amount of courage, I'll give you that.

1st of May band,

1st of May band,

when I hear you, I feel I am feeling uneasy.

And suddenly, a song in the style of Bregovic... Bregovic!

Balkan music busts my chops

It's nice and everything but in the long run, it busts one's chops.

Surely, I'd have a very different opinion about it

if I was from the Balkans, if I was a balcony

But since I am not Croatian, nor a Balkan balcony

I don't understand why everyone insists

on playing this shitty music,

but anyway... Before you sing a Balkan-ey song

remember to do one thing:

crack into a rant against capitalism!

"Hey, we'd like to dedicate this song against capitalism, because. It's time to say stop to a job market that exploits everyone. They have to understand that the ruling class pissed us off, because the working class... Hey, I can't hear you! Let me hear it from you! There's so many of you!"

A guy runs into the community center

A policeman runs to catch him

A metalworker runs wielding a piston rod

A pierced girl runs and she's not that beautiful

1st of May band

with two lead singers

and both of them would like to be alone on the stage

I am not referring exclusively to Linea 773

but Linea 77 is an excellent example.

And suddenly, a song in the style of Linea 77:

"I'll sing!" "Nooo, I'll sing"

"It's my turn, you have sung already" "That was a shorter refrain!"

"Don't stand in front of me! Don't sing when I am singing!" "I suggest you leave"

"I respect your decision to step aside" "Nooo I'll step aside"

And here is the band that promotes their home region

they learn four chords and build a repertoire on them

and without good reason, there's a Ghanian percussionist

who has been reassigned to a band from Apulia.

And suddenly, there's song in the style of Van de Sfroos4

"The master's daughter wanted to make love

with three laid-off workers on the dresser5

But the master cooked an omelette

and doesn't share it with the laid-off workers6

From his nice white trousers he digs out no money for them7"

But before you sing a Vandesfroos-ey song

remember to say one thing:

"The 1st of May is full of joy, but also of boredom"

"Excuse me, sir, we are a very poor band

go to Piazza San Giovanni for the 1st of May concert

of course, take part in the concert,

we'll go to your place, rob your house and shit on your bed,

thanks, everyone!"

Band from Southern Italy, band from Southern Italy8

you'll find that on the 1st of May you'll perform around noon

Bregovic-style band, Bregovic-style band

you'll find that on the 1st of May you'll perform in the early afternoon

Band with two lead singers, such as Linea 77,

sing one at a time and everyone wins

Home region band, home region band,

learn another four chords and you'll double your repertoire.

More influential bands of the 1st of May [concert],

such as Negramaro and Jovanotti,

rest assured that you are the big fish

and little fish perform before you do.

1. on May 1 (International Workers' Day), a large concert organised by labour unions is held in Rome in Piazza San Giovanni 2. Reference to "Curre curre guaglio'" by 99 posse 3. Italian nu metal band: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linea_77 4. Davide Van De Sfroos, whose songs are written in western Lombard dialect 5. A rhyme used to play eenie meenie miny moe. The original text has "three owls on a dresser that want to make love with the doctor's daughter" 6. "Crapapelada", a folk song from the Milan area: http://lyricstranslate.com/en/crapa-pelada-crapa-pelada.html 7. "Sciur padrun da li beli braghi bianchi", a folk song from Piedmont/Lombardy. It was sung by (mostly female) workers in the paddy fields. The refrain (in the local dialect) is: "Master, sir, with your nice white trousers, dig out the money because we want to go home"8. in Italian, "Mezzogiorno" means noon but is also used to indicate the southern part of the Italian peninsula

• Artist:Elio e le Storie Tese
• Album:album biango