PADRINO
PADRINO
Life imitates the game of chess
You can be the rook or the pawn
But if you have the strategy that's
best
You can be the King
or in this case the Don
.....(and this is the result
when you combine the King and the Don)
It's easy to get knocked out of the
game
Depending on which way you want to
play
You've got to have eyes on the back
of your head
Now that we have that out of the way
CHORUS:
Rev up the Lincoln
And let's get to drinking some caffeino
Let's go to Nicolletis
Cause he makes a mean spaghetti sauce
I'm a connoisseur of the finer things
in life
I'll take any flick with Al Pacino
I'm a man of respect and I prefer
to be addressed as Padrino
If you're the type that likes to spill
the beans
You could be a stone in someone's
shoe
You'll receive a kiss on each cheek
And then you'll know that pretty soon
the stone will be removed
Everyone knows that crime doesn't
pay
It doesn't pay the taxes away
You've got to be slick if you don't
want it to stick
Now that we have that out of the way
I know it's not a wise thing to do
Writing funny songs about the mob
But if it's all the same to you
I don't see it as a gang but a club
Where men sit like gentlemen
Plotting their events about
Things I shouldn't understand, comprehend
or care
Like...oh, I don't know maybe I shouldn't
go there
After all it is a family affair
Stay out of the papers
Don't get caught
Leave the singing to Sinatra and always
keep your big trap shut
Capice?
The underworld is like an undertow
- If you don't respect it
It will surely bring you down - When
you least expect it -
Hey expect it from all sides
Once you're in it it's for life
Don't be famous be infamous and you
will live to see another day
Be wise about with whom you discuss
Now that we have that out of the way
Listening to the first 30 seconds of this song, you’re not quite sure if it’s going to be some Mexican-inspired song or (if the title didn’t give anything away as it is) if it’s going to be an Italian-inspired tune. Well, ya guessed correctly on that latter part. And boy this is such a wonderful song. I am just so amazed at how the ska sound is incorporated perfectly to this old world beat.
“The Fonz” and “Padrino” are quite
complementary together since they both deal with images embedded in the
Italian and even the American psyche. For some reason--and this is just
me--I keep visualizing the film SWINGERS
(1) whenever I hear “Padrino.” You figure I’d think about SCARFACE 
,
THE GODFATHER,
or GOOD FELLAS, huh? No. I just have to be all Fonzirelli-like and think
“SWINGERS!”
Anyways, the song is plain fun. It pokes fun at organized crime while at the same time respects the institution because of the familial bonds among the members. Perhaps the mafia is a perfect analogy of having close friends. Using that analogy, SMASH MOUTH is a mafia whereas the “stone[s]” in their shoes would be the whiny neighbor and the girlfriend who would say those pet names. So how do they deal with these stones? No kisses on each cheek, but rather writing a song about them! In that case, it’s worse than death! Humiliation recorded on an album forever.....
And if you listen to the entire song,
it is basically a message about “respect.” Plain and simple. Most people
may not be like the Fonz, but they sure can emulate being a Padrino.
footnotes:
(1) if you download the "reservoir
redux" pic on this link, you'll see why i think of this movie whenever
i hear this song. (a)
don's notes:
(a)
speaking of the glamourous violence we often see in films and movies (hey,
i dig that stuff!), check out this twisted rendition of an alternate
scene from "the godfather trilogy."