You've probably heard plenty of people doing impressions of other languages, speaking gibberish that sounds vaguely Chinese, French, or German. However problematic and offensive those impressions might sometimes be, it speaks to the fact that every language leans on certain sounds, cadences, and vocal inflections that help define it. Even if we can't speak or even understand those languages, we often inherently understand those key markings.
But have you ever wondered what it might sound like if someone were to speak in gibberish that sounded kind of like English? Even better, what if someone sang a whole song that sounded like a jazzy, upbeat American bop — without using any actual English words? If so, you're in luck!
Apparently, a song many of us have never heard of shot to the top of the charts in Italy in 1972 for the most intriguing reason. The song, written and performed by Adriano Celentano and is called "Prisencolinensinainciusol" which means...well, nothing. It's gibberish. In fact, the entire song is nonsense lyrics made to sound like English, and oddly, it does.
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Occasionally, you can hear what sounds like a real word or phrase here and there—"eyes" and "color balls died" and "alright" a few times, for example—but it mostly just sounds like English without actually being English. It's like an auditory illusion and it does some super trippy things to your brain to listen to it. It sounds like fast rap or a heavily-stylized singing where you just can't quite pick out the words.
Here, Celentano performs the song in all of its glory, in a bizarre but passionate display. You just have to watch and listen to fully appreciate the artistry on display here:
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Wow, right? In a 2012 interview on NPR's All Things Considered, Celentano explained how the silly pop song came about.
"Ever since I started singing, I was very influenced by American music and everything Americans did," he told Guy Raz, through interpreter Sim Smiley.
"So at a certain point, because I like American slang—which, for a singer, is much easier to sing than Italian—I thought that I would write a song which would only have as its theme the inability to communicate," he said. "And to do this, I had to write a song where the lyrics didn't mean anything."
In fact, Celentano didn't even write down any lyrics for the song at first, but just improvised the sounds. And people didn't appear to care. "Prisencolinensinainciusol" reached number one on the charts not only in Italy, but also in France, Germany, and Belgium.
Though the words of the song were made up, that doesn't mean the song had no meaning. Celentano says he wrote the song out of frustration. ""I sang it with an angry tone because the theme was important. It was an anger born out of resignation. I brought to light the fact that people don't communicate."
Some experts say the song proved the viability of English songs in foreign markets like Italy and helped paved the way for breaking down musical barriers internationally. Surely he never imagined that his entirely improvised, gibberish song would be a chart-topper that had such a long-lasting impact.
A young Adriano Celentano singing on stage By Collezione Biblioteca Comunale G.D. Romagnosi, Salsomaggiore Terme, Public Domain,
Celentano is known for a lot more than just his English gibberish. He's been an incredibly unique and innovative talent in the Italian music scene, credited with bringing new moves and flavors of dancing and also introducing rock and roll to Italy. He's also a renowned actor, having appeared in dozens of comedy films. If you watch the performance above, you'll see how his physical, goofball style could fit right into a slapstick movie.
He's also a serious musicians, quite often considered one of the most prolific and influential artists in Italian history.
Celentano's ability to sound like he's singing in English without actually saying anything in English is pretty impressive. Especially when you hear him sing in Italian, like this.
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Despite his beautiful Italian, he admits to liking English better, calling it easier to sing than his native language.
Adriano Celentano is still alive and well as of this writing, kicking around at the ripe age of 87. A fun fact to consider after watching his brilliant English gibberish: Celentano can not actually speak English! In a 2009 interview he admits to trying to learn the language but finding it extremely difficult (same, honestly). But his deep study did lead to his absolutely incredible mimicry of the sounds and cadences of English.
Languages are fun. And funky. And frustrating when you don't understand them. Celentano was purposefully making a point with "Prisencolinensinainciusol" to break down language barriers and inspire people to communicate more. Whether he succeeded in doing that or not, it sure is entertaining to see him try.
This article originally appeared five years ago. It has been updated.
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