Umberto Bindi (May 12, 1932 - May 24, 2002) was an Italian singer-songwriter. He is especially known for the popular song he co-wrote with Gino Paoli, Il Mio Mondo (You're My World), which he recorded in Italian in 1963. It was later performed by singers in English and other languages.
Bindi was born in Bogliasco (Province of Genoa), Italy, and was classically trained. He wrote his first song,T’ho perduto (I’ve Lost You), in 1950. He made his professional debut in Italian popular music in 1959 with his composition Arrivederci. The song was recorded by Marino Barreto Jr. and soon became the best-selling single in Italy for that year.[1] A remarkable cover was recorded by Chet Baker in 1960 for the Italian movie Urlatori alla sbarra.
Bindi's first LP, Umberto Bindi e le sue canzoni, was released in 1960. Bindi also wrote and recorded a number of songs that would make him known to a larger public in Italy. A few of these became classic hits there: Il Nostro Concerto (Our Concert), 1960, number 2 on Italy's best-selling singles list for the year),[2] Riviera (1961), and Il Mio Mondo. The latter was recorded in English in 1964 by the British pop singer Cilla Black, and remained number 1 on the British pop charts for five weeks.
Umberto Bindi's earthy and passionate voice was unique and instantly recognizable. However, his singing career in Italy stalled, and he and music critics long attributed this to the Italian media's discomfort in the 1960s with Bindi's homosexuality. The singer nevertheless made a few concert appearances.
Bindi died at a Rome hospital from heart disease at the age of 70.
Albums Umberto Bindi e le sue canzoni (1960) Umberto Bindi (1961) Con il passare del tempo (1972) Io e il mare (1976) D'ora in poi (1982; re-issued as Le voci della sera in 1996) Bindi (1985) Di coraggio non si muore (1996)
Arrivederci/Odio (Ricordi) (1959) Amare te/Nuvola per due (Ricordi) (1959) Girotondo per i grandi/Basta una volta (Ricordi) (1959) Tu/Non so (Ricordi) (1959) Un giorno, un mese, un anno/Lasciatemi sognare (Ricordi) (1960) Appuntamento a Madrid/Il confine (Ricordi) (1960) È vero/Luna nuova sul Fuji-Yama (Ricordi) (1960) Il nostro concerto/Un giorno, un mese, un anno (Ricordi) (1960) Se ci sei/Chiedimi l'impossibile (Ricordi) (1960) Un paradiso da vendere/Marie Claire (Ricordi) (1960) Non mi dire chi sei/Amare te (Ricordi) (1961) Riviera/Vento di mare (Ricordi) (1961) Noi due/Appuntamento a Madrid (Ricordi) (1961) Ninna nanna/Girotondo per i grandi (Ricordi) (1961) Jane/Carnevale a Rio (Ricordi) (1962) Un ricordo d'amore/Vacanze (RCA) (1962) Il mio mondo/Vieni, andiamo (RCA) (1963) Ave Maria/Un uomo che ti ama (RCA) (1964) Quello che c’èra un giorno/Il giorno della verità (RCA) (1964) Per vivere/Storia al mare (Ariston) (1968) Mare/Ma perché (Variety) (1969) Io e il mare/Flash (Durium) (1976) L'alba/Bogliasco notturno (Durium) (1976) Letti (con i New Trolls)/Chiara / Miracolo miracolo (solo New Trolls) (Fonopoli Stage) (1976)
