Grande, grande, grande

"Grande, grande, grande"
Single by Mina
from the album Mina
LanguageItalian
B-side"Non ho parlato mai"
ReleasedJanuary 1972 (1972-01)
Recorded1971
GenrePop
Length3:57
LabelPDU
Songwriters
Mina singles chronology
"Uomo"
(1971)		 "Grande, grande, grande"
(1972)		 "Parole parole"
(1972)

"Grande, grande, grande" (English: "Great, Great, Great") is a 1972 Italian song written and composed by Alberto Testa and Tony Renis. It was a number-one hit for Mina in Italy, and for Shirley Bassey in the United Kingdom, United States, and Australia, where it was released under the title "Never Never Never". The 1973 Shirley Bassey single achieved sales of over 50,000 copies in Australia, making it eligible for a Gold Disc certification.[1]

Mina version

"Grande, grande, grande" was a number-one hit on the Italian singles chart for Mina in 1972, serving as the lead track from her number-one self-titled studio album. Released in early 1972, the single entered the top ten during the week of 26 February 1972.[2]

... it was thanks to the work of a young bass guitar player, Pino Presti, who offered a more modern musical arrangement, that finally made Mina agree to performing it.

— Hit Parade Italia[3]

Following a steady ascent to number two—behind John Lennon's "Imagine"—on 11 March, the song temporarily dropped two places to number four due to competing hits by Delirium, Nicola Di Bari, and Nada. By 1 April, the song returned to its peak position at number two, where it remained throughout April before reaching number one on 29 April.

"Grande, grande, grande", which featured an arrangement by Pino Presti,[4] topped the charts for the first three weeks of May. It was displaced from the top spot during the week of 27 May by "I giardini di marzo", a track by her frequent collaborator Lucio Battisti, alongside her own concurrent hit "Parole parole", dropping the song to number three. "Grande, grande, grande" remained within the top ten until the week of 8 July, frequently alternating chart positions with "Parole parole". By the end of the year, only "Il Padrino" by Santo & Johnny had spent more time on the charts, leaving "Grande, grande, grande" as the second biggest-selling hit of 1972 on the Italian singles chart.

Mina also recorded the song in both English and Spanish. A French-language cover version, featuring lyrics penned by Charles Aznavour, was recorded in 1974 by Mireille Mathieu.

Personnel

Mina and Pino Presti

Charts

Original label (1972)

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Grande, grande, grande"
Chart (1972) Peak
position
Italy (Discografia internazionale)[6] 1
Italy (Musica e dischi)[7] 1

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for "Grande, grande, grande"
Chart (1972) Position
Italy (Cash Box)[8] 2
Italy (Musica e dischi)[9] 1

Certifications and sales

Certifications for "Grande, grande, grande"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Italy (FIMI)[10]
Sales from 2009 		Gold 50,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Shirley Bassey version

"Never Never Never"
Cover art for Dutch release
Single by Shirley Bassey
from the album Never Never Never
B-side"Day By Day"
ReleasedFebruary 1973 (1973-02)
GenrePop
Length3:35
LabelUnited Artists
Songwriters
ProducerNoel Rogers
Shirley Bassey singles chronology
"Jezahel"
(1973)		 "Never Never Never"
(1973)		 "Make the World a Little Younge"
(1973)
Official audio
"Never, Never, Never (Grande, Grande, Grande)" on YouTube

Shirley Bassey achieved a number-eight hit on the UK Singles Chart with "Never Never Never", an English-language version featuring lyrics penned by Norman Newell. The single reached number one in Australia, number two in South Africa, and number three in Singapore. It also became her only single to appear on three distinct charts in the United States, peaking at number 48 on the Billboard Hot 100, number eight on the Adult Contemporary chart, and number 67 on the R&B chart.

Charts

Chart performance for "Never Never Never"
Chart (1973) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12]29
Ireland (IRMA)[13]12
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[14]15
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15]13
Singapore (Rediffusion)[16] 3
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[16] 2
UK Singles (Official Charts)[17]8
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[18]8
US Billboard Hot 100[19]48
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[20]67
West Germany (GfK)[21]48

Other cover versions

References

  1. ↑ Whelan, Jeff (2018). The Go-Set Chart Book: Australia's First National Charts. p. 12. ISBN 978-1-387-71246-5.
  2. ↑ Charat, Stefano. "Grande, grande, grande". Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "Mina: Grande grande grande". Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  4. ↑ "Mina (1971)". Mina Mazzini – Sito Ufficiale. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Mina: Grande, grande, grande / No, ma la canzone è bellissima". Discografia Nazionale della Canzone Italiana (in Italian). Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  6. ↑ "Hits of the World – Italy". Billboard. Vol. 84, no. 20. 13 May 1972. p. 60. ISSN 0006-2510.
  7. ↑ Racca, Guido (2019). M&D Borsa Singoli 1960–2019 (in Italian). Independently Published. ISBN 978-1-09326-490-6.
  8. ↑ "Italy's Top 50 Singles 1972" (PDF). Cashbox. Vol. 34, no. 28. 30 December 1972. p. 9 (141). ISSN 0008-7289. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 March 2022.
  9. ↑ Racca, Guido (2019). M&D Top 100 Year-End: Singoli & Album 1960–2018 (in Italian). Amazon Digital Services LLC – Kdp Print Us. ISBN 978-1-980329-12-1.
  10. ↑ "Italian single certifications – Mina – Grande, grande, grande" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  11. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 28. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  12. ↑ "Shirley Bassey – Never, Never, Never" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  13. ↑ "Shirley Bassey | IRMA". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  14. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Shirley Bassey" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  15. ↑ "Shirley Bassey – Never, Never, Never" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  16. 1 2 "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 24. 16 June 1973. p. 83. ISSN 0006-2510.
  17. ↑ "Official Singles Chart on 1/4/1973 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  18. ↑ "Shirley Bassey Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  19. ↑ "Shirley Bassey Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  20. ↑ "Shirley Bassey Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  21. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts (West Germany)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see the peak chart position, click 'TITEL VON', followed by the artist's name. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  22. ↑ "Explore Releases on Discogs". Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
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