"Cara Mia" is a popular song published in 1954 that became a UK number 1, and US number 10 hit and Gold record for English singer David Whitfield in 1954, and a number 4 hit for the American rock group Jay and the Americans in 1965. The title means "my beloved" in Italian.

Background

The English singer David Whitfield first recorded the song with the Mantovani Orchestra in 1954. It made the charts in the United States, and in the UK was the first record to spend ten consecutive weeks at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart. Whitfield's version was one of the biggest selling British records in the pre-rock days. It sold more than three and a half million copies worldwide and was a Top 10 hit in America.

Writers

Authorship of the song was credited to Tulio Trapani (the pen name of the song's co-writer and arranger Mantovani) and Lee Lange (Bunny Lewis, Whitfield's producer).

Jay and the Americans cover

Jay and the Americans recorded "Cara Mia" on their 1965 LP Blockbusters. It became an international Top 5 hit, reaching number 1 in Canada. Their version was re-released in 1980, and went into the charts in the Netherlands.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other notable remakes