If you haven’t heard of Matteo Bocelli, his famous father Andrea has a lot to do with it. If you do know of Matteo, the chances are that you first heard Fall on Me, his duet with his father. This apparent paradox is a symptom of a loving and caring relationship between a superstar father and his son. When Fall on Me was released in November 2018, Andrea Bocelli spoke to People magazine about his mixed feelings.
Andrea said, “He was not in my plans — I actually didn’t want him to participate in the recordings because I believe he needs to finish his studies at the conservatory. But we had a great opportunity, and we took it because it was a great song. But it doesn’t mean in any way that he’s arrived!” Bocelli explained that as much as he wanted his son to have a stellar career, he was more concerned that Matteo remains grounded. Let’s listen to Fall on Me:
No doubt about it, Matteo can sing. Even so, the song really kicks up a gear when Andrea’s luxurious, sonorous voice starts singing in Italian, building to a peak when father and son weave their voices together. Classic FM writes that “Andrea delivers a beautiful descant … as Matteo sings ‘Fly like a cannonball …’” before they blow us away with the chorus. Mark Lester Catunga comments on YouTube, “I cried right at the moment Andrea smiled after hearing his son sing”.
Norma Huff wrote in mid-2023: “After 60 years of playing cello professionally, my last concert was in Miami on Valentines Day with Bocelli and his son. They sang this song. As I drove back to Orlando, I played this song over and over and over. I never get tired of it. It was quite a moment.” What a compliment! Lauri School Marm says: “The eyes can so often deceive, but the love on Andrea’s face when his son began to sing is unmistakable and heartbreakingly beautiful.” Let’s hear from Matteo:
As Matteo Bocelli tells it, the recording of Fall on Me was an accident. He recorded a demo to attempt to convince his father to tackle a pop-type song. His father’s producer, Bob Ezrin, heard the demo and suggested that instead of doing the song as a love duet, as it was written, it could be a dialogue between a father and his son. Ezrin said that the son is seeking guidance and the father reassures him. “It was an experiment; it could have been terrible, but it came out great. From the moment that they sang together, I knew that this was a beautiful, perfect record.”
At the time, Andrea Bocelli was more reticent. “My hope for him especially is that he stays who he is, that he remains anchored to the values that he grew up with in our family and does not fall into the traps that many have fallen into. I would never forgive myself for this debut if that happened. You have to stay modest and humble.”
Fall On Me appeared on Andrea Bocelli’s album, Sì (2018). The song also played over the end credits of the movie The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. Matteo released his debut single, Solo, a pop song in September 2021. Two years later, in September 2023, Matteo released his first, eponymous album. In the build up to the release, Matteo released several singles, including Chasing Stars, a song written by Ed & Matthew Sheeran about their father, “and how he was supportive to us when we were younger with our music”. Let’s give it a listen.
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