Beautiful Italy

Beautiful Italy, to your sweet praise
Wonderful Italy, my glass I raise
Mother of beauty, mother of wine
Mother of music, mother of mine
Mother of all that matters most a glass of wine!

Fill it again! To you, immortal art
Queen of the Mind, I drink with all my heart
Mistress and wife, I give you my life
While I can hold a fiddle and bow
Humbly I swear that I will serve you so.

Gentlemen all, whatever your trade is
Glass number three must go to the ladies
‘Must', I say, for that's the trouble about ‘em
Where's the man would not be better without ‘em?

Women who make this world a Heaven or Hell
When we're in wine we can't help wishing ‘em well!

Gentlemen all, take care!
Look at ‘em waiting there
Nevertheless, joy and success follow the fair!

But what is more than women and wine?
The happy land of music is mine
And all is always well
Where the music makers dwell
And the soul is free and fearless and fine.

Fate cannot fright us, we starve and sing
We suffer, still we sing
We break our foolish heart and sing
Let the world do its worst, on the darkest day
I take my bow and play the world away
Play it away, play it away, play it away!