Farewell to Peppino di Capri: the voice of "Champagne" passes away on his island at 87.

Capri – He passed away in the silence of his Villa Castiglione, overlooking the gulf that for nearly seventy years lulled his melodies. Peppino di Capri, born Giuseppe Faiella, passed away today at the age of 87 after a long battle with a serious illness.

At his side, until the very end, was the affection of his children: Nico, born from his first marriage to Roberta Stampa, and Edoardo and Daria, born from the deep and unforgettable bond with his second wife Giuliana Gagliardi, who passed away in 2019. With his death, not only has a voice been extinguished, but the curtain falls on an entire era of Italian music, one capable of blending the carefree nature of the twist with the elegance of the great Neapolitan tradition.

From the piano of “The Rockers” to the stage of the Beatles

Born in Capri on July 27, 1939, into a musical family (his father Bernardo ran a record store and played several instruments), young Giuseppe demonstrated a precocious talent for the piano from an early age. At just four years old, he was already performing for the American troops stationed on the island during World War II. His classical training, under the guidance of Maestro Severino, soon collided with the wave of rock 'n' roll arriving from overseas.

The turning point came in 1956, when, together with his friend Lello di Francia, he founded the duo "I Capri Boys," which would later become the historic band Peppino di Capri ei suoi Rockers. Their 1958 recording debut was a meteoric rise: songs like "Malattia" and "Voce 'e notte" reinterpreted classic Neapolitan songs with modern, upbeat arrangements, in tune with the sensibilities of the youth of the time. It was the birth of a unique style.

Peppino quickly became a nightclub idol and the symbol of Capri's nascent "Dolce Vita." An anecdote perfectly captures the extent of his status during those years: in 1965, when the Beatles arrived in Italy for their historic and only Italian tour, it was Peppino di Capri, with his Rockers, who supported them at their concerts in Milan, Genoa, and Rome, competing with the Liverpool Four for the applause of the audience.

The Twist era, “Roberta” and the triumphs of Sanremo

The 60s established Di Capri as the undisputed king of dance rhythms. He introduced the twist to Italy with Let's Twist Again (a cover of the Chubby Checker song) and wrote timeless hits like Saint Tropez Twist (1962). But Peppino wasn't just rhythm: he was a master melodist. In 1963, he released "Roberta," a poignant ballad dedicated to his first wife, Roberta Stampa, which quickly became an international hit and one of the most danced slow songs in the history of Italian music.

After a period of decline at the end of the decade, due to the advent of beat music and youth protests, the Capri-born artist reinvented himself in the 70s by founding his own record label, Splash. It was the beginning of a second artistic youth that definitively established him on the stage of the Sanremo Music Festival.
Di Capri holds an extraordinary record of participations in the Ligurian festival (15 times), which he won on two occasions: in 1973 with Un grande amore e niente più and in 1976 with Non lo faccio più.

The myth of “Champagne” and the last years

If his Sanremo victories confirmed his institutional status, it was a 1973 song that consecrated him to eternity: "Champagne." Written by Depsa, Jodice, and Di Capri, the song immediately became an ode to the melancholy of love, a global hit translated into dozens of languages ​​and beloved especially in South America. The nostalgic toast "to toast a meeting" became his trademark, a piece of pop culture that has spanned generations.

Over the past decades, Peppino di Capri has never stopped performing, alternating major world tours with intimate evenings on his island, from which he has never wanted to permanently separate. In 2023, on the stage of the Ariston Theatre, he received the City of Sanremo Lifetime Achievement Award, a fitting tribute before a moving standing ovation from the audience and his colleagues.

Today Capri mourns its most illustrious citizen, the man who brought the Faraglioni and the Piazzetta to theaters around the world, leaving behind a legacy of repertoire that will forever remain a soundtrack to our collective memory. The funeral will be held in the coming days in the former Cathedral of Santo Stefano, just steps from the very square where his legend began.