A welcome return to Barga for Joel Piacentini.
He was last here for a well received concert in the piazza in August of last year (article here), today it was a far quieter and cooler affair as the piazza was almost deserted as he played “Vincent”- the song by Don McLean written as a tribute to Vincent van Gogh in 1971 after he had read a book about the life of the artist.
Also known by its opening line, “Starry Starry Night”, a reference to Van Gogh’s painting The Starry Night, the song describes different paintings by the artist. It was created on the 100th anniversary of the midpoint of Van Gogh’s life.
Click on the video below and enjoy the peace and quiet of an autumn piazza and a beautiful rendition of the song by Joel Piacentini .. with even the arrival of a FIAT 500 across the piazza in the middle of the song adding to the poetry of the moment.
Starry, starry night
Paint your palette blue and grey
Look out on a summer’s day
With eyes that know the darkness in my soul
Shadows on the hills
Sketch the trees and the daffodils
Catch the breeze and the winter chills
In colors on the snowy linen land
Now I understand what you tried to say to me
How you suffered for your sanity
How you tried to set them free
They would not listen, they did not know how
Perhaps they’ll listen now
Starry, starry night
Flaming flowers that brightly blaze
Swirling clouds in violet haze
Reflect in Vincent’s eyes of china blue
Colors changing hue, morning fields of amber grain
Weathered faces lined in pain,
Are soothed beneath the artist’s loving hand
Now I understand what you tried to say to me
How you suffered for your sanity
How you tried to set them free
They would not listen, they did not know how
Perhaps they’ll listen now
For they could not love you
But still your love was true
And when no hope was left in sight
On that starry, starry night
You took your life, as lovers often do
But I could have told you, Vincent
This world was never meant for one
As beautiful as you
Starry, starry night
Portraits hung in empty halls
Frameless head on nameless walls
With eyes that watch the world and can’t forget
Like the strangers that you’ve met
The ragged men in the ragged clothes
The silver thorn of bloody rose
Lie crushed and broken on the virgin snow
Now I think I know what you tried to say to me
How you suffered for your sanity
How you tried to set them free
They would not listen, they’re not listening still
Perhaps they never will …