Rembetiko vs Fado

As a follow up to my previous post, the similarities between the “genuinely Greek” rembetiko and this Portuguese fado are striking, don’t you think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_vvDGkbblc

Let’s do a bit of reasearch..

Fado (“destiny, fate”) is a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Portugal

Fate, a Greek concept; 1820s, the year of the Greek war of independence against the Ottoman Turks; the naval battle of Navarino in 1827, a decisive battle in the war.. A seemingly unrelated Fado song about “meu amor marinhero” (sailor my love)..

More proof? Take a look at the similarities between the Portuguese guitar and the Greek bouzouki

   

Coincidence??? I don’t think so!!

Genuinely Greek

I recently encountered this comment on a traditional Greek song

Αυτη ειναι η Ελλαδα, η γνησια, η μπεσαλιδικη, η ντομπρα.

Which roughly translates to “This is Greece, genuine, troublesome, candid”.

How ironic that the words troublesome (μπεσαλιδικη), is borrowed from the Turkish belalı, and the word candid (ντομπρα) from the Slavic добро, meaning good.

Isn’t it time that we Greeks started living in the present?

Feeling epic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLQnRFKHZR8

Well I was rollin’ down the road in some cold blue steel,
I had a bluesman in the back, and a beautician at the wheel.
We’re going downtown in the middle of the night
We was laughing and I’m jokin’ and we feelin’ alright.
Oh I’m bad, I’m nationwide.
Yes I’m bad, I’m nationwide.

Riding my bike in the English summer breeze, in the middle of the night, feeling epic 🙂