Tenor Luciano Pavarotti dead at 71

I’m deeply saddened by his passing. It was apparent the end was near with the amount of time he’s spent in the hospital but it still puts a sour note on the morning. I never saw him sing live, which is a mistake I’ll regret for a long time to come. It’s just one of those things…

Anyway, let’s celebrate his immense talent with the help of Youtube. None of those bullshit pop star duets here. I’m going to honor his passing with a duet with Dame Joan Sutherland.

This is a real standard so it might be familiar to even opera averse ears. What might not be common knowledge is the fact that this is a drinking song. It is, just check out the words- Libiamo ne’ lieti calici.

Famed opera tenor Luciano Pavarotti, who appeared on stage with singers as varied as opera star Dame Joan Sutherland, U2’s Bono and Liza Minnelli, died Thursday in Italy after suffering from pancreatic cancer, manager Terri Robson said in a statement. He was 71.

Tenor Luciano Pavarotti dead at 71 – CNN.com