Enrico Caruso 'Dreams Of Long Ago' Victor 6015 (April 18, 1912) lyrics by Earl Carroll

Recorded April 18, 1912.

Enrico Caruso sings "Dreams Of Long Ago"

The music was composed by Enrico Caruso.

Lyrics are by Earl Carroll.

Shadows are falling and I sit alone
My heart recalling
Memories when you were my own

Once more you press me
two lips I adore
Once more caress me
As they did before

Dreams, just dreams of long ago
Dreams of days that we both know
Time can never change the past
Your mine in dreams until the last

Summer's gone and life grows cold
Still in dreams you're mine of old
Hearts may break, but you can't take
Those golden dreams of long ago

Fond recollections paint you vividly,
Youth's wild affections bring you in fancy to me
My arms enfold you, once again you're mine
Once more I hold you, close to love's own shrine

Dreams, just dreams of long ago
Dreams of days that we both know
Times can never change the past
You're mine in dreams until the last

Summer's gone and life grows cold
Still in dreams you're mine of old
Hearts may break, but you can't take
Those golden dreams of long ago

Caruso lived from February 25, 1873, to August 2, 1921.

He was born in Naples, and at the end of his life he returned to Naples, hoping to recover from illness but instead dying there. He did not live in Naples during his adult life. Caruso purchased the Villa Bellosguardo, a palatial country house near Florence, in 1904. Caruso's real home during his years of greatest fame was a suite at Manhattan's Knickerbocker Hotel.

The tenor made more than 260 recordings for the Victor Talking Machine Company. A sensation in opera houses and on concert stages, he is still famous because his records were incredibly popular during his own life and remained popular long after the tenor's death. Many singers of the twentieth century said they learned much while listening to Caruso's voice.

He was loved as the lead tenor in "warhorse" works--that is, in operas that stand the test of time, being produced often. But he also took risks, gambling on newly created roles (with no guarantee that the new opera would succeed) and also helping revive forgotten operas. He excelled in Italian and French role. His voice was not suited for Mozart or Wagner.

He created interesting roles--that is, he was first to sing those roles in new operas. On December 10, 1910, Caruso created the role of Dick Johnson in the world premiere of La fanciulla del West. Puccini, the composer, wrote with Caruso's voice specifically in mind.

Earlier, Caruso created the role of Loris in Umberto Giordano's Fedora, at the Teatro Lirico, Milan, on November 17, 1898. At that same theater, on November 6, 1902, he created the role of Maurizio in Francesco Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur.

In March 1902, he created the main tenor part in Germania by Alberto Franchetti.

A month later, on April 11, 1902, Caruso was paid by the Gramophone & Typewriter Company's Fred Gaisberg to sing ten numbers into a recording horn in a Milan hotel room. The fee was 100 pounds sterling. The tenor sang to piano accompaniment. Gaisberg (either Fred or his brother Will) wrote "Carusso" on early wax blanks.

As time passed, people looked back and viewed this session as giving birth to a new era.

Before 1902, opera recordings aroused little enthusiasm since voices on discs and cylinders were distant, often drowned out by surface noise. Early opera recordings gave little satisfaction.

Caruso helped make the gramophone respected because his voice--a superb one--recorded well. Before 1902, recording officials had difficulty convincing celebrities to make records since the final product was crude. Some celebrities did make recordings in 1902 (they include Plançon, Van Rooy, Calvé, Scotti, Bispham, and Renaud)--partly to earn large fees for little work, partly to satisfy curiosity about how they sound. But Caruso's success inspired many others.

With the first Caruso discs available in the summer of 1902, the gramophone was clearly more than a toy--that is one way to view Caruso's contribution to the infant industry. Lovers of great singing realized that recording devices could capture and preserve great singing. Caruso's voice on his early discs came across clearly enough to be satisfying, Caruso's interpretations compelling.

Caruso had other Milan sessions. The next one (again for the Gramophone & Typewriter Company) was on November 30, 1902, with some titles recorded a day or two later (in December 1902).

Enrico Caruso "Dreams Of Long Ago" Victor 6015 (April 18, 1912) lyrics by Earl Carroll, music by Caruso

[gordonbitting]

Thank you for this record. My old granny used to sing this to me as a child. I am 89 years old now but still remember and got a copy of record as soon as I could when in teens