OPA!!!! From Melina to Miss Piggy - Everybody's Singing Manos Hadjidakis' Never on Sunday

 The Muppets singing Never on Sunday - Bouzouki and all!

Dedicated to all those our friends who love Greek music and who are fans of Manos Hadjidakis' world famous Never on Sunday or Ta Paidia tou Piraia!...

A musical end to a difficult week to wish you all a wonderful weekend! Thanks Stathis M - NZ for the link on  Facebook  which inspired this post!

The video clips that follow are great versions of Never on Sunday, either in Greek or in English! Note that this song has been recorded in French, in Italian, in Czech, in Serbian, in Spanish, in German, in Dutch in Croatian and even in Cantonese and Mandarin..(for the Chinese version please see link posted by Vera in the comments section ...Thanks Vera!)

The original, of course, was Melina Mercouri's Academy Award winning version in Jules Dassin's film of the same name!

Take your pick! Listen to them all and leave a comment below telling us which one you prefer! 

Enjoy!

The Muppets sing Never on Sunday

In the 1960's everybody recorded it....Doris Day, Petula Clark,The Chordettes and Connie Francis...

Nana Mouskouri and the Athenians' version from her BBC Series...

 and of course recently... Sakis Rouvas!

but nothing can beat the original -  sung in Melina Mercouri's inimitable manner...

For all those who were there and for those who watched from afar, the last video clip shows us one of the Athens 2004 Olympic Closing Ceremony's most moving moments... When the familiar sound of the opening chords of the bouzouki flooded the packed Olympic Stadium, the crowd went wild... 

Anna Vissi, Antonis Remos, Alkistis Protopsalti, Mihalis Hatzigiannis, Eleftheria Arvanitaki and Dionysis Savopoulos in a unique rendition of Greece's signature tune... 

incidentally, it was a full moon that night, 29 August 2004, and the August full moon in Greece is absolutely awesome....

Have a great weekend everyone! 

OPA! 

and just to prove how truly international it is, there's also 

Dalida's Spanish Version
Los Ninos del Pireo 





Dalida's French version 
Les Enfants du Piree


Milva's Italian Version 
Uno a te, uno a me



and last but not least
the Chinese version

Demis Roussos at The Theatre of Herodus Atticus - The Herodeion - Friday, 25 June 2010

 
'I would like to tell a very beautiful story now, a story about myself and a very old friend of mine, the Wind.... you know, everytime I go back to Greece and climb up to the small hill which is outside of Athens, I meet my friend the Wind and he's telling me beautiful stories, sad stories and happy stories, and then, as the time is passing by with the sound of the bouzoukis coming through Athens....'

With this introduction,  our internationally acclaimed Global Greek performer, Demis Roussos, launches into an unusual version of, yes you guessed it, My Friend the Wind, at his concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London , at the height of his career in 1974.

Interspersed with words such as Agape Mou, (Αγάπη μου), Manoula Mou, (Μανούλα μου)  and Eleni Mou (Ελένη μου), the song became an international hit and the sound of the bouzouki could be heard everywhere... a sound which would make it instantly recognisable.

My Friend the Wind, a song which would speak straight to the heart of Greeks no matter where they were in the world and which 36 years later still manages to travel us back to the sunny and carefree days of the endless Greek summer...

Demis was born Artemios  Ventouris Roussos on June 15, 1946 to 2nd generation Greek parents George and Olga, and raised in Alexandria, the heart of Egypt's wealthy and prosperous Greek Community.

When the Suez Crisis  blew up, his family was one of the many families  who were effectively expelled, leaving all their property and assets behind and forced to go to back to their homeland, Greece.

In Greece, Demis, who had a sound musical education, and exposure to many musical influences, Byzantine, Greek and Arabic,  participated in various musical bands beginning with The Idols when he was 17, the We Five and others.

In 1968 Demis, Vangelis (Papathanassiou) and Lucas Sideras, all former schoolmates at Athens' prestigious Leontios Lykeion, formed Aphrodite's Child, a group which would gain international success with songs such as and It's 5 O'Clock and Rain and Tears 


Even though Aphrodite's Child soon disbanded and each of them began solo careers, their friendship didn't end and Demis and Vangelis continued to record together occasionally.  
Their most successful collaboration was "Race to the End", a vocal adaptation of the musical theme from the Oscar winning film Chariots of Fire, also sung in Spanish as "Tu Libertad", whilst Demis also guested on the soundtrack to Blade Runner (1982) in the song Tales of the Future.)

Demis' solo career began with the song "We Shall Dance" but he released many successful songs, with wonderful melodies.

His single, "Forever and Ever", topped the charts in several countries in the mid 70's and  "My Friend the Wind" was one of his many international hits. 

Other hits with their special Greek flavour which became well known internationally and are still very popular today include

"Velvet Mornings"

"Goodbye, My Love, Goodbye",

and "Lovely Lady of Arcadia".




He appeared on various TV shows throughout Europe, and his guest slots on The Nana Mouskouri show in the UK, were among the most popular. 

Here our two Global Greeks duet on a very catchy traditional Greek song, To Gelekaki..  (Το Γελεκάκι)



On another of her shows, Nana and Demi sing a duet version of his hit single "Happy To Be On An Island In The Sun".




Based primarily in Athens, where his son, Cyril, went to school, Demis travelled extensively between London, (we remember meeting him at the Christmas Day service in 1984 at London's Aghia Sophia), Paris and many other cities in the following years. Demis continued to record many new songs but also recorded some of his hits in other languages. 

In 1985 as a passenger on a TWA flight with his wife, he had a life-changing experience when the flight was hijacked on departure  from Athens and on surviving this ordeal, he felt like he was given a new lease on life. Apparently the hijackers were so impressed that they had a celebrity of Demis' stature on the flight that they even celebrated his upcoming birthday together...

After 1985 he made a comeback releasing new songs which became widely popular and has made a lot of personal appearances, including tours and concerts in Russia, Dubai, Germany, Holland and other European countries.


We are really looking forward to seeing and listening to Demi's unique voice as he performs old favourites and new at his much-awaited concert on 25 June 2010, at 9 pm, kicking off his world tour at the  Herodus Atticus Theatre under Athens' magnificent Parthenon. 

Demis, we thank you for all the wonderful music you have given us. We are really looking forward to your concert... we are really looking forward to hearing the music we loved and the songs we sang along to as we were growing up in the various Greek Communities  around the world. These beautiful nostalgic songs and melodies from one of Greece's most talented ambassadors, helped made Greek music so popular around the world.  

If you want to go, click here, but bear in mind that the tickets went on sale on 4th of June  and sold like hot ....souvlakia!

See you there!

Global Greek Solidarity: Liz Inreich-Papadopoulou Pledges her Pension of 538 Euro to the Greek Solidarity Fund! Bravo!

 Liz Inreich-Papadopoulou, with her family

Source: Ta Nea

I'm not rich, my pension is only 538 euro, but I believe that we mustn't let Greece sink! 

«Δεν είμαι καμιά πλούσια, η σύνταξή μου είναι μόλις 538 ευρώ, αλλά πιστεύω ότι δεν θα πρέπει να αφήσουμε τη χώρα να βουλιάξει»

These are the words, words that are noble in their simplicity, of  Mrs Liz Inreich-Papadopoulou, who, following Nana Mouskouri's example, has pledged her monthly pension of 538 euro to the Solidarity Fund set up to pay off Greece's huge external debt as reported in today's issue of Ta Nea (in Greek).

Unlike Nana however, she is not a world famous singer with a long and illustrious international career, so her pledge is even more touching. Mrs Papadopoulou is what we would call an honorary Greek, a Greek at heart. She is a Danish national married to a Greek and resident of Greece for the last 33 years, a woman who like many thousand others, loves Greece and has adopted it as her home.

Mrs Inreich-Papadopoulou believes that everyone should contribute so that Greece gets out of this difficult economic crisis. To that end, she is prepared to donate her pension and make personal sacrifices to help the country she lives in and loves, and whose army her two sons have served faithfully. Her husband Mihalis and her sons Demokritos and George are right behind her in this pledge.

'George Papandreou is fighting a very tough battle abroad and each and every one of us should stand next to him, contributing in every way we can to avoid financial disaster'

We agree, Mrs Inreich-Papdopoulou, and we thank you for your overwhelming generosity

We at Global Greek World  thank you for your wonderful gesture and hope that your example is a shining beacon and a guiding light for many of our compatriots.

Greece has always been fortunate in that respect, because there are many rich and famous Greeks who have been major benefactors of Greece over the years out of their love for their homeland.

Perhaps it is time for all of us, wherever in the world we are, to see what we too can do to help, each in our own small way, in our communities all over the world.

On the eve of the 25th March, the anniversary of Greece's uprising against the Turkish occupier in 1821, and after 400 years of slavery, perhaps it is once again time for another kind of Filiki Etaireia, led by Global Greeks from all over the world to band together once more and show their solidarity and support for the Greece that we all love and want to see survive.

Think about it!

Bravo Nana! Global Greek Nana Mouskouri Elects Not To Receive Her Euro Parliamentary Pension

In a gesture which shows the nobility and largesse of this wonderful lady's character, Global Greek  Nana Mouskouri has written to the Greek Minister of Finance and has asked that she not receive the Euro Parliament Pension that she is entitled to as a former Euro Parliament MP (1994-1999), so as not to burden our country's budget, until these difficult times are over.

Nana Mouskouri's Letter to Minister Papakonstantinou

Source : Madata.gr

To our beautiful Nana, from all of us in the Global Greek World, we can only say, BRAVO! 

We wish that there were more like you and we hope that others follow your example and elect to take some of the burden off that oh-so beleaguered Hellenic State Budget! 

Nana, like all of us,  is upset by the negative way Greece has been portrayed around the world, and  as she said to one of Greece's daily newspapers, Eleftherotypia,

"I do not want Greece to be treated like a cancer"   - or like a beggar or a leper, we would add... the people of Greece do not deserve it!

Nana, like many of our famous Global Greeks,  has spent a major part of her life, bringing the best and most positive aspects of Greece to the world. She, again like many others, has always been there when her country has needed her and helped out with other causes such as the New Acropolis Museum or the catastrophic fires of 2007.

We, the Greeks of the Diaspora, spend much of our time and effort, mostly on a voluntary basis and usually at great personal cost,  to keep Greece's image untarnished in the world at large, through our own communities and associations. 

Like Nana, we are upset that we have attracted so much negative and somewhat undeserved criticism in the last few weeks. 

We are also angry however, that successive Greek Governments through their own incompetence and laissez-faire attitude have  brought Greece to this point. 

We are angry that instead of bringing in measures to control the damage and limit it by ourselves, we need to be told to do it by the European Union... or else! 

Where is our sense of National Pride?

It is now up to the elected Greek Government and each  of us in our own small way, to take the initiative and do what we can to put an end to all this. 

It is time to take the bull by the horns and say ENOUGH! 

Each and every person must do his or her bit to help end this economic and morally corrupt downward spiral, and especially those who for years have been milking the State coffers, illegally and immorally, thus depriving our children of a financially secure and stable environment. 

Corruption and the para-economy in Greece are almost a fact of life. Anyone who has been to the bouzoukia, to night clubs or had dealings with the tax offices, public institutions, hospitals, or municipal authorities can tell you that. 

How many of us though have aided and abetted this tax evasion or avoidance by not asking for a receipt for services provided or by paying something under the counter to help our case along?

Let's start with ourselves then. 

Let's ensure we do our bit. Let's pay our taxes so that we can then demand a high level of public services. That means all of us, from highly paid but undertaxed performers, doctors and lawyers to taxi drivers, plumbers and car mechanics to name just a few.

Let's make sure we demand control mechanisms be put in place primarily to enforce the existing laws in the same way for all, to impose fair and just taxes for all, to collect all taxes and payments which are due, and so very necessary for the healthy functioning of the State,  in order to get Greece off to a new start.

Let's start today!
 

To read relevant article in Greek about Nana Mouskouri in Madata.GR , Click Here

To listen to Nana speak to Richard Quest on CNN Click Here  

Wonderful Nana Mouskouri - The Most Global of our Global Greeks!!!

This post is a tribute to the most globally acclaimed of our Global Greek performers, UNESCO Ambassador, Nana Mouskouri, and simply features some of our favourite videos of her songs available on You Tube.

Wonderful foot tapping melodies, a few duets with some of our other Global Greeks, all aimed at getting you out of your chair and eager to start dancing, !!! OPA!!! ENJOY!

With George Chakiris - Plaisir d' Amour

 

An incredible video with Harry Belafonte and Danny Kaye... Opa Ni Na Nai - Siko Horepse Koukli Mou (ΣΗΚΟ ΧΟΡΕΨΕ ΚΟΥΚΛΙ ΜΟΥ)

Her magnificent Athena (ΑΘΗΝΑ)



Ximeroni ( ΞΗΜΕΡΩΝΕΙ) - Never on Sunday Medley with Demis Roussos



With Demis Roussos - To Yelekaki


and last but not least a beautiful ballad with Julio Inglesias - La Paloma

Our write up on Nana will come later...but in the meantime you may like to see how one of our Greek-Somethings, Greek New Zealander Sophia Economou writing in her New Zealanders in Greece blog, describes Nana's last concert under the Parthenon at the Herodus Atticus Theatre in July of 2008...

How does one describe a feeling? It’s hard unless you are a poet! Well, I would have loved to have been one on Wednesday 23 July as we sat in the ancient Herodes Atticus theatre or the Herodeion as we call it, waiting for Nana Mouskouri to start what was to be her final concert after 50 years of enchanting audiences all over the world.

There, below a gleaming Parthenon set against a brilliant blue sky which slowly acquired dusky hews we watched thousands of people streaming into this magnificent ancient theatre to take their places. It was a wonderful sight - people of all ages happily assembling to pay tribute to one of Greece's best known ambassadors. The younger generation of singers and artists like Maria Farandouri, Nikos Aliagas and Sakis Rouvas were also there to pay tribute to this great lady.

Just after 9 pm it was time for the concert to start and the screens which had been set up above the stage came to life, projecting scenes from Nana's life - pictures from childhood on, with people she loved and who loved her. Symbolic in a way because it was in the outdoor cinema where her father worked as a projectionist, as she told us later, close by in the suburb of Koukaki, that she began dreaming...dreams that would take her around the world and into millions of homes and hearts over the years ahead. One of those homes was ours...

As Nana's voice filled the theatre, memories came flooding back...

Memories of our Mt Victoria home, loving memories of the whole family, Mum, Dad, my sister Pagona and myself, with some of the usual visitors to our house sitting in front of the television to watch her BBC show every week as she sang and danced with her many and varied guests, from George Chakiris to Shari Lewis, Julio Inglesias and Marinella!

Our father adored her and had every disc he could get hold of in his record collection, and my sister and I inherited that adoration. Somehow we managed to pass it on to my 8 year old daughter, so here we all were with our good friend Maria, also from Wellington, sitting in this magnificent ancient theatre below a now illuminated Parthenon waiting for the concert to begin. (July is a month of sad memories in our household... it is the month that our father left this world, so we decided that our 'memorial service' to him and our mother this year would be to go to Nana's farewell concert.)

Those weekly 'concerts' in our living room were in both our thoughts as we sat and listened to this amazing lady give her last performance...

Read more at New Zealanders in Greece.