“L'italiano” (the Italian) is Toto Cutugno's portrait of ordinary Italian life, sung at the 1983 Sanremo Festival. He lists little things that make up the country — a morning espresso, spaghetti al dente, a small car, the partisans, the canary at the window, football on TV on Sunday — with affection and a touch of irony. And in the chorus: let me sing, guitar in hand, I'm Italian, a real one.
It didn't win Sanremo, but it became one of the most famous Italian songs in the world, a favourite of Italians abroad and of tourists in every trattoria.
It's slow, clear and full of everyday nouns — food, objects, places — that make perfect beginner vocabulary. The imperative “lasciatemi” (let me) is the key to the chorus.