"Gente di mare" ("People of the sea") was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1987, performed in ItalianbyUmberto Tozzi & Raf.
 "Gente di mare" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Eurovision Song Contest 1987 entry | |
| Country | |
| Artist(s) | |
| As | Umberto Tozzi & Raf |
| Language | |
| Composer(s) | |
| Lyricist(s) |
|
| Conductor | Gianfranco Lombardi |
| Finals performance | |
| Final result | 3rd |
| Final points | 103 |
| Entry chronology | |
| ◄ "Magic Oh Magic" (1985) | |
| "Vivo (Ti scrivo)" (1988) ► | |
The song is a blues-influenced ballad, in which the singers describe the qualities of the "people of the sea". They describe themselves as "people of the plain", who are "prisoners of this city", while contrasting that with the freedom of the people of the sea "who leave [things] behind".
The song was performed seventh on the night, following Sweden's Lotta Engberg with "Boogaloo" and preceding Portugal's Nevada with "Neste barco à vela". At the close of voting, it had received 103 points, placing 3rd in a field of 22.
While not winning the contest, the song achieved considerable popularity, becoming a Top 10 hit in most parts of Continental Europe and Scandinavia in the summer of 1987 (#7 in Switzerland, #8 in Austria, #6 in Sweden)[1] and was included on the compilations of Winners and Classics produced to coincide with the Congratulations special in late 2005.
It was succeeded as Italian representative at the 1988 contestbyLuca Barbarossa with "Vivo (Ti scrivo)".
Dutch satirists Henk Spaan and Harry Vermeegen performed the song in 1988 on their successful TV show Verona as "Ach, laat maar waaien". A Dutch reworked version, called "Alles kwijt" was done by Marco Borsato.
| Chart (1987) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[2] | 8 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[3] | 5 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[4] | 20 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[5] | 21 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[6] | 6 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[7] | 7 |
| Italy (FIMI)[8] | 3 |
| West Germany (Official German Charts)[9] | 39 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Italy (FIMI)[10] Sales and streaming since 2009 |
Gold | 50,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
"Gente di mare" audio on YouTube