“Italian Summer” is Track 12 on In Your Dreams (2011), Stevie Nicks‘ seventh solo album. It follows “You May Be the One” and precedes “Cheaper Than Free” in the track order.
About the Song
“Italian Summer” is inspired by Stevie’s trip to the Amalfi Coast in southern Italy. Some footage of this trip was included in the In Your Dreams documentary (2013).
“You can be walking down the street, and see someone that catches your eye, and say, ‘Gosh! That was a gorgeous man,’ and something touches you, and you might go home and write a poem about that, you know? Or you go to Italy, which I did on the Fleetwood Mac tour (in 2009). I was there for four weeks, and I wrote the song ‘Italian Summer,’ and it sounds like I wrote it about a big love affair, but I didn’t. I wrote it about Italy, walking around on the cobblestone streets and feeling free and feeling safe. So you can be inspired by anything.” (Riff City, 2011)
Lyrics
The rose stood out
Red against the golden wall
The sun comes up through the silken drapes
The room begins to glow
All in cream-colored ivories
And soft yellows
You say hello
Put down that guitar
And handed me a rose
At the end of the Italian summer
It rains fast and it rains hard
The wind blows through you
It tears you apart
Ooh, it’s so romantic
Hey, it’s so soulful
The rain falls down
And the thunder rolls
The sun fades out
And the mountains grow tall
The mists rush in and they take it all
From the islands you see
Li Galli and Capri
I remember it all
Love was everywhere
You just had to fall
At the end of the Italian summer
It rains fast and it rains hard
The wind blows through you
It tears you apart
Ooh, it’s so romantic
Hey, it’s so soulful
The rain falls down
And the thunder rolls
At the end of the Italian summer
It rains fast and it rains hard
The wind blows through you
It tears you apart
Oh, it’s so romantic
Hey, it’s so soulful
The rain falls down
And the thunder rolls
At the end of the Italian summer
It rains fast and it rains hard
The wind blows through you
It tears you apart
Oh, it’s so romantic
Hey, it’s so soulful
The rain falls down
And the thunder rolls
The sun fades out
And the mountains grow tall
Then the mists rush in and they take it all
From the islands you see
Li Galli and Capri
I remember it all
You just had to…fall
(Stevie Nicks/Dave Stewart) © 2011 Welsh Witch Music (BMI) Admin. by Sony/ATV Songs LLC (BMI) / Fab World Music (BMI). All administrated worldwide by songs of Kobalt Music Publishing.
Reference
Riff City (2011, June 29). Stevie Nicks on inspiration, collaboration, and her new dreams. Thirteen.
