Whatever Happened to Santo Farina ?

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 5 Jun 2015 11:16 am

Does anyone have any idea what happened to Santo Farina after he moved to Italy?

As a longterm fan of his I would love to know if he's still active.

Doug Clark · Post by **Doug Clark** » 5 Jun 2015 1:50 pm

Googling around, I found mentions of Santo in a lot of places (even the Internet Movie Data Base), but not much more. He'd be 77 now. (Born in October 1937.)

Johnny apparently has a Website, santoandjohnny.com, but there seems to be scant mention of Santo (by name) on there, including the "bio" page. I apparently can't post links yet, but that page tells how their father, in the Army at the time, wanted the boys to learn how to play steel.

I've always liked "Sleep Walk." If I ever make myself a "Great Instrumentals" CD, that song would absolutely have to be on there.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 5 Jun 2015 3:31 pm

Yes, I've read that website. By the way, I also like the Betsy Brye vocal version of Sleep Walk, and I'm thinking of recording it myself, combining best parts of the vocal and instrumental versions.

Doug Clark · Post by **Doug Clark** » 5 Jun 2015 7:07 pm

I did see a mention of Betsy Brye (Bette Anne Steele) somewhere, probably on Wikipedia, but was so busy looking for external links, etc., about Santo that it didn't register with me at the time about there being a vocal version.

I just listened to it on YouTube. Good stuff.

Mitch Drumm · Post by **Mitch Drumm** » 6 Jun 2015 4:07 am

Alan:

Re Betsy Brye's version:

What does she sing at 20 seconds in, immediately after "Sleep Walk"??

It may be "Yet as dreaming", but I can't make it out. My mp3 may be defective (?).

I was perplexed enough by that to email Betsy's son, but never got a response.

The Supremes supposedly did a vocal on the song too, but I haven't heard it. I did an online lyric search and they supposedly sing "'Stead of dreaming", which would make more sense.

Caterina Valente did a cool version in French, as "Nuit Bleue" in early 1960 (after Betsy?)--full orchestra, with steel. I don't parley voo, so I don't know the lyric translation.

Don Sulesky · Post by **Don Sulesky** » 6 Jun 2015 8:06 am

Here are the lyrics under Sleepwalk lyric Betsy Bye.

https://www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/Betsy-Brye/Sleep-Walk

Mitch Drumm · Post by **Mitch Drumm** » 6 Jun 2015 8:59 am

Don:

I'm aware of those alleged lyrics.

Listen here and tell me what she sings at 20 in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pCUR0gMXDc

Yet a dream when?

That's what it sound like to me.

Maybe those lyrics you posted are from The Supremes version, unheard by me.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 6 Jun 2015 9:53 am

"Sleepwalk. Instead of dreaming I sleepwalk..."

Check out these previous discussions on the subject...
http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... k&start=25
http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... =sleepwalk

Mitch Drumm · Post by **Mitch Drumm** » 6 Jun 2015 11:44 am

Alan:

I read both of those threads at the time and just went over both again.

I see very little discussion of the lyrics per se. Just a cut and paste of what someone found on the net.

Are you going on record as saying "instead of dreaming" is what you in fact personally hear when you listen to the link I posted above?

If so, English may not be my first language and I've been deceived all these years.

Or I may have an ongoing aneurysm that prevents me from hearing properly anymore. Possible.

Don Sulesky · Post by **Don Sulesky** » 6 Jun 2015 1:42 pm

I hear "yet I dream and I sleep walk" at the :20 mark

Jim Cohen · Post by **Jim Cohen** » 6 Jun 2015 1:52 pm

I guess nobody knows what became of Santo after he retired to Italy.

Meanwhile, for your listening and dancing pleasure, I give you Catarina Valente...

https://youtu.be/cUc1Ygw_qCE

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 6 Jun 2015 2:54 pm

Mitch Drumm wrote:...Are you going on record as saying "instead of dreaming" is what you in fact personally hear when you listen to the link I posted above?...

Well that's what it sounds like to me. Maybe my hearing is deteriorating as I slip into old age.

Betsy Brye is still performing, I believe, now in her 90s, and her most requested song is Sleep Walk. Maybe someone should ask her what she sang sixty years ago. After all, she's been singing it a lot since then.

Maybe that's why everyone plays it as an instrumental... ...no-one is sure what the words are.

Joachim Kettner · Post by **Joachim Kettner** » 6 Jun 2015 11:16 pm

This is the German version of "Sleepwalk" sung by Caterina Valente:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHKvgBbe8QY
She lived not far away from us in a little village in the sixties. My parents had a few singles.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 7 Jun 2015 10:02 am

Maybe the words are: "Streetwalk. Every night I just streetwalk..."

It would put a whole new light on the song.

Brint Hannay · Post by **Brint Hannay** » 7 Jun 2015 11:47 am

I hear " 'stead of dreamin' I sleepwalk " at 0:20 of the Betsy Brye version. I've got pretty good computer speakers (Bose) and I definitely hear the "st-" at the start of the first syllable.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 7 Jun 2015 3:26 pm

That's exactly what I hear, Brint.

Jack Aldrich · Post by **Jack Aldrich** » 8 Jun 2015 10:00 am

Johnny played at Scotty's convention last year. I talked with Alan Akaka, who was there. He said that Santo had passed a few years ago, but Johnny played the T8 Fender at the convention that was used on the recording.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 8 Jun 2015 11:04 am

I heard a similar thing. I would be interested to know about his career after he moved to Italy, and whether he continued to record for an Italian record company.

I would love to have a conversation with Johnny. I'm sure he knows everything if someone could talk to him about it.

Jack Aldrich · Post by **Jack Aldrich** » 9 Jun 2015 8:53 am

Alan Brookes wrote:I heard a similar thing. I would be interested to know about his career after he moved to Italy, and whether he continued to record for an Italian record company.

I would love to have a conversation with Johnny. I'm sure he knows everything if someone could talk to him about it.

Since he played at Scotty's conveention, I'd try contactiong them.

Ken Byng · Post by **Ken Byng** » 13 Jun 2015 9:26 am

Doug Clark wrote:Googling around, I found mentions of Santo in a lot of places (even the Internet Movie Data Base), but not much more. He'd be 77 now. (Born in October 1937.)

Johnny apparently has a Website, santoandjohnny.com, but there seems to be scant mention of Santo (by name) on there, including the "bio" page.........

Little wonder as Johnny Farina now purports to be "The sound of Santo and Johnny".

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 14 Jun 2015 9:17 am

That's the barrier I'm trying to get through, Ken. Maybe someone who is fluent in Italian will have more luck on the internet. After all, if he performed in public in Italy, there must be some mention of him somewhere.

Ken Byng · Post by **Ken Byng** » 14 Jun 2015 11:52 am

Alan - I have spent hours trawling on the internet for info on Santo. Zilch, or next to it. Johnny's carefully worded bio page on his website doesn't credit Santo as the original steel guitarist in the duo, and in fact on the pictures section just 3 out of 18 photos contain Santo. That says it all really, and is evidence that Johnny Farina is trying to airbrush his brother out of the fact that it was he who was the sound of S&J. He needs to credit Santo, otherwise a whole generation of people could end up under the impression that it was Johnny who played steel on all of those classic recordings. Johnny is just a 3rd rate imitation of his brother unfortunately.

Don Sulesky · Post by **Don Sulesky** » 14 Jun 2015 2:10 pm

I agree Ken.
I saw them live in 1960 and have their 1st C/A album in mono. Santo was on steel and I talked to them after the concert.

Doug Clark · Post by **Doug Clark** » 15 Jun 2015 8:24 am

Ken Byng wrote:That says it all really, and is evidence that Johnny Farina is trying to airbrush his brother out of the fact that it was he who was the sound of S&J. He needs to credit Santo, otherwise a whole generation of people could end up under the impression that it was Johnny who played steel on all of those classic recordings.

That was the impression I got, too. ("Airbrush" is a good analogy.)

Ann Farina gets credit on IMDB and elsewhere as a co-writer, but otherwise receives even less mention than Santo does. I think I've seen one source that said Ann was their mother, but others say she was their sister.

Barry Blackwood · Post by **Barry Blackwood** » 15 Jun 2015 8:45 am

He needs to credit Santo, otherwise a whole generation of people could end up under the impression that it was Johnny who played steel on all of those classic recordings. Johnny is just a 3rd rate imitation of his brother unfortunately.

Well said, Ken.