Rina Ketty & Orchestre Marcel Cariven - J`attendrai (1938) (Pathe PA 1477 mtx CPT 3838) (78rpm)

Rina Ketty (1 March 1911 – 23 December 1996), whose real name was Cesarina Picchetto, was an Italian singer, notably of the legendary song J'attendrai. The song reached superstatus during World War II and was appreciated by Allied soldiers and Axis soldiers alike (equalled only by Lale Andersen's Lili Marleen and perhaps by Vera Lynn's We'll Meet Again).

In 1938 Rina Ketty recorded that famous song "J'attendrai" ("I will wait"), which is actually a translation of the Italian song "Tornerai" (music by Dino Olivieri and text by Nino Rastelli); it had been a huge hit for Carlo Buti in Italy the year before. The French text was written by Louis Poterat. Rina Ketty's version of "J'attendrai" was released by Pathé Records and from the very start became an enormous success. Later it became an emblem of World War II, not in the least because the text of the song expresses in a brilliant manner the longing of so many French women anxiously awaiting the safe return of their sons and husbands from the war. Rina Ketty's Italian accent highlighting the French text of the song, worked wonderfully on the radio of those days, but also on various subsequent recorded versions. Several composers wrote songs for Rina with her charming accent in mind.

Rina Ketty & Orchestre Marcel Cariven - J`attendrai