This CD contains 12 songs composed by Francesco Pennino, Francis’s maternal grandfather; sung by F. Rocco Ruggiero and played by Bill Keck on piano.

Francesco Pennino (1880-1952) was a prolific composer. He composed hundreds of songs, many of which became “grandi successi” records, and were sung in concert halls, theaters, and in Italian-American homes all over the country. These songs vividly depict the life and spirit of the early Italian immigrants to America — full of heartfelt longing for home and family left behind, of love lost and found, and of the desire to create a better life in the new world.