"The Hidden Messages in Rino Gaetano's: a cryptic denunciation of occult power in 1970s Italy" by Caro Coppola
By Carlo Coppola
For years, researchers have explored the hypothesis that beneath the apparent lightness of Rino Gaetano's nonsensical lyrics lies a sophisticated system of cryptic references. According to this interpretative framework, his songs were not mere divertissements but potentially constituted a systematic denunciation of occult power structures in 1970s Italy. In particular, "Mio Fratello è Figlio Unico" (My Brother is an Only Child) may be interpreted as a multi-layered text alluding to Freemasonry, lodge dynamics, and the fragility of Italian democracy during the Years of Lead.
The Paradoxical Title: A Structural Reference to Masonic Brotherhood
Beginning with the title itself, certain scholars—most notably attorney Bruno Mautone, author of three groundbreaking studies on Gaetano: Chi ha ucciso Rino Gaetano? Il coraggio di raccontare: un'indagine tra massoneria, servizi segreti e poteri economici (Who Killed Rino Gaetano? The Courage to Tell: An Investigation into Freemasonry, Secret Services, and Economic Powers, 2025), Rino Gaetano, segreti e misteri della sua morte: l'ombra dei servizi segreti dietro (Rino Gaetano, Secrets and Mysteries of His Death: The Shadow of Secret Services Behind, 2020), and Rino Gaetano. La tragica scomparsa di un eroe (Rino Gaetano: The Tragic Disappearance of a Hero, 2013)—identify a possible structural reference to Masonic fraternities.
If the quintessential "brother" is the lodge member, defining him as an "only child" creates a deliberate paradox that may underscore the protagonist's isolation or atypical status vis-à-vis certain circles. The obsessive repetition of "mentre io aspettavo" (while I was waiting) might transcend mere romantic melancholy: according to Mautone's thesis, it could describe the condition of the profane awaiting admission to the mysteries—the waiting of one who stands outside the temple, perhaps in that chamber of reflection where the fate of the "knocker" is decided.
The Historical Figures: A Gallery of Masonic and Political Power
The selection of historical figures cited appears far from casual when read through an esoteric lens. Lafayette, a high-degree Mason to whom "the revolution and a new hat matter," may reference the Phrygian cap—an iconic symbol not only of revolution but also of Masonic symbology. Mautone suggests a possible hall of mirrors between the "Nove Sorelle" (Nine Sisters) and the celebrated Parisian lodge Les Neuf Sœurs, as well as the "Seven Sisters" oil companies—a theme dear to Gaetano's broader critique of economic power.
Bismarck would represent Realpolitik connected to Prussian lodges—power that "annexes half of Europe" through diplomatic and military machinations. Mameli and Novaro, with their anthem "still in vogue," might embody a nationalism perceived as artificial construction, linked to the para-Masonic structure of Mazzini's Young Italy movement.
Visible Power versus Real Power: Democratic Illusions
The passage "si lavora e si produce, si amministra lo stato, il comune, si promette e si mantiene a volte" (one works and produces, administers the state, the municipality, promises and sometimes keeps them) appears to suggest a distinction between visible power—that of public administration—and actual power. The doubt that Gaetano intended to indicate that true power resides elsewhere seems legitimate: while the citizen waits, promises are kept only "sometimes."
Esoteric Symbolism: Light, Flowers, and the Perverse Night
Natural symbolism also lends itself to alternative readings. The sun that "burned, burned, burned" could evoke esoteric Light—a knowledge that dazzles or scorches those unprepared for it. The violets, with their blooming and withering, would recall the cycles of death and rebirth typical of initiatory rites.
The "perverse night" that offers "three occasions" could allude to the three Masonic degrees: Apprentice, Fellow Craft, Master. The adjective "perverse" is central to Mautone's thesis, as Gaetano may have been referring to the degeneration of certain environments, with a possible veiled reference to covert lodges such as the notorious P2 (Propaganda Due).
Nonsense as Survival Strategy: Speaking in Code
It is plausible that Rino Gaetano employed nonsense as a genuine survival strategy. In an era of intense political tensions—marked by terrorism, state violence, and the deep state's shadow activities—hiding uncomfortable truths behind the absurd would have allowed him to speak to those possessing the tools to decode the message, while leaving others with the surface of a catchy song.
As Bruno Mautone's research synthesizes, Rino Gaetano used names and surnames when others remained silent. Perhaps his was a language for the few initiated, for those who knew how to read between the lines of a politics that was changing face beneath the surface of Italian democracy.
The Tragic Coincidence: Death and the P2 Scandal
The doubt surrounding his tragic death in 1981—occurring precisely during the days of the P2 scandal's exposure—remains fueled by coincidences that many, Mautone foremost among them, struggle to dismiss as mere chance. Although definitive proof remains elusive, the sensation persists that Gaetano's texts, reread today, may represent one of the most lucid and dangerous denunciations of the invisible powers that have marked Italian history.
Whether Gaetano deliberately encoded these references or whether they represent a retrospective projection of Italy's traumatic political history onto his work remains an open question. What is undeniable is that his songs continue to resonate with layers of meaning that transcend their apparent levity, inviting each generation to decipher anew the enigmas he left behind.
Carlo Coppola
