Γεια σας! After a week of sneaking around your lines, getting more and more amazed and excited that I've found some people like me, I've finally made up my mind that I should drop by to say 'κι εγώ είμαι εδώ'. I can't exactly remember when and why and how I took to Greek music and Greek language. I guess that all started almost two decades ago when my parents brought a couple of cassettes for me from Greece. There was no such thing as CD back then!!! I remember how I enjoyed that soulful music of Vamvakaris, Tsitsanis, Kaldaras and many other rebets. The smoky tones, the bitter joy in rebetiko just grabbed my soul and haven’t let go ever since. Then time went by, CD was invented, and so was the Internet which is still a mystery to me, and I got more and more fascinated by Greek music, language and culture.
In fact, there's nothing to be surprised about that. I mean, Greek music is no stranger to Turkish ears and neither are Greek language and culture. Similar words, similar music and dances, similar dishes, similar appetite for life with all its joy and tragedy. I have a couple of Turkish friends who live in the States. Unfortunately, there are no Turkish restaurants or bars where they live. So whenever they are homesick and in the mood for “κέφι” and desperately in need of some ‘raki’ and ‘meze’, they run to the nearest Greek tavern, offer a bottle of ‘ούζο’ and some ‘μεζεδάκια’ and as they hum the familiar melody that is being played, they say, they feel like ‘Thank God! It feels so much like home!’. It quite ironic though, considering all those unpleasent issues between the two countries ( Not worth mentioning a word of it! All is in the past!), that a Greek restaurant is the perfect place to alleviate the homesickness of a Turkish person!!
Anyway, I’ve gone far beyond my intentions to write this post. Enough of peace talk! Let’s get to business..So it seems that you guys have a large repertoire of Greek songs. Frankly, I’m not that familiar with the more POP ones. I have no idea what is going on in the Top 10 lists in Greece or in Turkiye or in any other countries. Forgive me for that..I guess that’s all because I’m an old woman…very close to “the half of the road”, as a Turkish poet says. OK, here comes my request..There’s this song, an old rebetiko, όταν πέσεις σ’άλλα χέρια and it’s sung by ΓΙΩΤΑ ΛΥΔΙΑ. It’s been my favourite for so long...Giota Lidia’s voice and the song itself just cheer me up and lighten up my day but I really want to know the lyrics and also what she’s talking about .( whether there’s anything to cheer about really!!) So I would be so grateful if someone out there could send me the lyrics and the translation. I can read the Greek alphabet so no need for Latin letters. Thanks a lot in advance.