Teaching Italian with Popoff: A Zecchino d’Oro Pacifist Tale
This is a children’s song from 1967, winner of the 9th edition of the Zecchino d’Oro, performed by Walter Brugiolo (5 years old, from San Venanzio di Galliera). The lyrics were written by Anna Benassi, while the music was composed by Paolo Gualdi and Mario Pagano.
The song humorously tells the story of an imaginary Cossack, called Popoff, who served the Tsar. Because Popoff was fat and clumsy, he couldn’t march through the snow with the other Cossacks toward the River Don and got stuck, but then he caught up and even overtook his companions by sliding on his big belly through the snow and rolling like a ball.
The young performer Walter Brugiolo later enjoyed some success in advertising and TV fiction, and as an adult, he returned several times to the Zecchino d’Oro as a guest.
In 1999, an animated music video was created for the song and was included in the first volume of I cartoni dello Zecchino d’Oro (2000), as well as in the second edition of the same series (2008).
In December 2007, Enrico Ruggeri performed his own version of Popoff during the Gran galà dello Zecchino d’Oro. That rendition was later included in the second CD of the triple album All in – L’ultima follia di Enrico Ruggeri (2009).
In 2017, on the occasion of 60 Zecchini, the song was performed by Nino Frassica and reached 3rd place.
In popular culture, the song has been referenced and paid homage to several times: in 2003, the character of Popoff was mentioned in the song Olga la tata del Volga, which competed in the 46th Zecchino d’Oro, ranking second, and in Caparezza’s song Pimpami la storia.
The opening lines of the lyrics (“Nella steppa sconfinata, a quaranta sotto zero, se ne infischiano del gelo i cosacchi dello Zar”) were quoted by Marco Paolini in his theatrical monologue Il sergente.
Lyrics
Nella steppa sconfinata
A quaranta sotto zero
Se ne infischiano del gelo
I cosacchi dello Zar
Col colbacco e gli stivali
Camminando tutti in fila
Con la neve a mezza gamba
Vanno verso il fiume Don
Ma Popoff
Sbuffa, sbuffa e dopo un po’
Gli si affonda lo stivale
Nella neve e resta li
Ma Popoff del cosacco che cos’ha?
Ha il colbacco e gli stivali
Ma non possono bastar
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
I cosacchi lunghi e fieri
Con i baffi volti in su
Nella neve vanno alteri
Ma Popoff non c’è più
È rimasto senza fiato
Sulla pancia accovacciato
Che cosacco sfortunato
Questo povero Popoff
Ma Popoff non si arrende e dopo un po’
Scivolando sulla pancia
Fila verso il fiume Don
Ehi, Popoff così proprio non si può
Non cammina in questo modo
Un cosacco dello zar
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
I cosacchi sono stanchi
Non si vede il fiume Don
Con i baffi congelati
Più non vogliono marciar
Nella steppa sconfinata
A quaranta sottozero
Sono fermi in mezzo al gelo
I cosacchi dello zar
Ma Popoff così tondo che farà
Rotolando nella neve
Fino al fiume arriverà
Ma Popoff così tondo che farà
Rotolando nella neve
Fino al fiume arriverà
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
Lyrics
In the endless steppe,
At forty below zero,
They don’t care about the cold,
The Cossacks of the Tsar.
With their fur hats and tall boots,
Walking all in line,
With the snow up to their knees,
They march towards the river Don.
But Popoff—
He huffs and puffs, and after a while,
His boot sinks in the snow,
And he gets stuck there.
But Popoff, what kind of Cossack is he?
He’s got the hat and the boots,
But that’s not nearly enough.
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
The tall and proud Cossacks,
With their moustaches pointing up,
Stride proudly through the snow,
But Popoff is gone.
Out of breath,
Collapsed on his belly,
What an unlucky Cossack,
This poor Popoff!
But Popoff won’t give up, and after a while,
Sliding on his stomach,
He heads for the river Don.
Hey, Popoff, that’s not the way to go!
A Cossack of the Tsar
Can’t march like that.
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
The Cossacks are exhausted,
They can’t see the river Don.
With frozen moustaches,
They don’t want to march anymore.
In the endless steppe,
At forty below zero,
Stuck there in the freezing cold,
The Cossacks of the Tsar.
But Popoff—so round, what will he do?
Rolling in the snow,
He’ll reach the river at last!
But Popoff—so round, what will he do?
Rolling in the snow,
He’ll reach the river at last!
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
Source: Wikipedia
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