HARTINI POLITIA

[sarantiis 5]

Here is something very interesting that i heard from a reliable source,a freind about a few months back..This may suprise some of you..The story goes like this..During the junta(dictatorship)there was an album released of Georgo Dalaras.The title was either "Xartines Polities" or " Xartini Politia" or something very close to this..The album was released but soon after, within 12 hours was rounded up from any stores and banned..It was censored from anyone buying it..There was talk about the album but not enough people had the chance to buy it so it was brushed under the rug ,never to be heard from ever again..After the junta fall, the journalist Papastephanou in his radio program released a song or two from the album.The lyrics were by Lefteris Papadopoulos and the music was i believe either Kaldaras or Kougioumtzis?? Anyway,the lyrics of the two songs released were metaphorical and about Karagiozis and Xadzitzakis(theatro skion)and therelives and troubles.Basically it was talking about the avarage Greek person,his life and torubles...

There are not many people that know any facts about this "unknown album"...Minos never claimed it existed or would say much about it..Probably only a few people know anything about it,unless you were living in Athens at the time and maybe saw it on the store shelves for the short time it was available....

Does anyone here know anything about it or have ever seen this "unknown album"....or ever heard a song from this album?

[Geske 37]

Or are they the same?

This would be something to ask Dalaras about...

[Christo 9]

Hi Sarantiss,

I never even knew this existed not to mention now to find out there are

two cds out that were banned.

Melissa which one is this Expectations?

Never heard of either one of them and I thought I was proud to own all the cds of Dalaras.

Perhaps he can re-release this now as were in a new century & of course a new millineum.

And yes times have changed and dictatorship in Greeceis long gone and les forgotten,

And let us not forget, that the cd-book, "Asevi-Tropari" had featured slang words in some of the lyrics of those songs written back in the days of the Rebetiko era.

They were banned and censored in the time they were first recorded and only got to be published now just a couple yrs ago. So there is no need to hide Dalaras unknown cd any longer.

[Olga Fendrych 0]

Melissa, which biography of GD do you mean? Te only one I have is stiill too difficult for me; from the "Mousiko kouti"....

I can then hardly imagine, how the life in Greece must have been these times, if they banned Karangiozis and other figures of the shadows' theatre....

[Christo 9]

Hi Melissa

Do you have the cd of GD yet called "Tragoudia Gia ton 45 Strofes?

This was a special cd burned from the releases Dalaras only recorded way back in the '70s from the 45 RPM Lp's.

And on this CD there is one song on there that he 1st recorded in the studio back in 1967. It has a long greek Title starting with the letter P.

Can anyone else help?

Anyhow, if you have or soon acquire this rare & priceless Cd,

it may well be that very song you mentioned,

'Expectations'.

BTW, his voice sounds totally differnet back then as de does now

kind of like a nasal kid crying sorry to say,

He improved for the best though,

That without a doubt.

[aldebaran 7]

Christo, the song is called ''Prosmoni''.A musician-called Michalis Architektonidis ,I think - gave to the young George Dalaras two songs.The one was an erotic and the other a sosial-political song and told him to choose one of these.Even though he was only 17 years old he chose -of course-the second one.His voice in this song was very different.If I am mistaken please corect me.

[Olga Fendrych 0]

Well, the voice on the CD is not GD's best, even in these years (compare 1969 and "Na'tane to 21). BUt, let's think about the years we had not a digital recording possibilities or sth like that. THe voice must have been a little changed then. Doesn't matter for me, you would have to hear the first recordings of Greek music my parents made so about 1978... But I learned to love Greek music even with that terrible sound quality from that time...

But, Christo and others: I adore this whole mentioned album, every one song sung there. Because of these older days, you know.

It was a little challenge: it means, I change now "Na tane to 21" with "Gia ta tragoudia...." Giorgos' voice with a cold? Never mind.

Κανω φτερα τοτε.... Η μουσικη με περιμεινει...

[aldebaran 7]

Melissa ,yes the song is called ''mana mou then se akousa''.There is in the album ''o stamoulis o loxias''-1970 or 1971.The most famous song of this album is ''o stamoulis o loxias''with Yiannis Kalatzis' voice.

From the cd ''gia ta tragoudia ki egw ftew'' I like the song ''Avrio prwi'' but the first song of GD that became great [[heat]] is ''stin epohi tou Pagalou'' I think from 1968.

[Olga Fendrych 0]

Melissa, I am sooo glad I helped you to come back to this treasure of old jewels. And "Mana mou, den se akousa" is one of my most liked songs of that album.

Well, I've never enough of the music of that period. The music which has the aroma of childhood coming into the more adult years.

Let me guess more: Kiparissia (Nr 20) and Rodakinia ksanthi?

[Christo 9]

Hi there Aldebaran,

and yes thank you that is the name of that song starting with the letter P.

For some odd reason I thought it was a longer word then Prosmoni.

A pity though the CD '45 strofes' couldn't feature the other one you mentioned to which sounds alot as you described like a love ballad as opposed to that of a zembekiko we now have already heard.

[Odyseus3 0]

The CD "Tragoudia apo ths 45 strofes" has as the title:

"Gia ta tragoudia kai egw ftaiw"

Here it is and Prosmoni is track 18, (hope it is still readable)

Front and back follow next

[Odyseus3 0]

front cover with a nice picture from the old times

[Odyseus3 0]

Back cover

[christos-regnis 57]

Dalaras in army: He was drafted on April 25th 1969, in Sparta:

[nikolas 86]

Thanks Christos-Regnis. I wonder if GD held his gun as his guitar.

I am not sure about how he held it, I am sure though that he couldn't use it as well as the guitar. Anyway.

As aldebaran said, the song from P is Prosmoni and Melissa, it has been released so we don't expect the Expectation, which was just a song and not a CD. Besides, there were no CDs that time

Saranti, is there any chance that the Hartini Politia album was a 45" disc containing two songs? I say this, because many of the songs in Dalaras' first albums were first recorded as 45" discs and then were put in big LPs. Good examples of such albums with songs that had previously been released in 45" are his first personal album and also the album Metoikos. Now, you could ask 'in which album were these songs included later?". Well, as you say something about karagkiozi and xatzatzari, I remember that the album named 'Zei' which was released in 1971 with songs of Mimis Plessas and the participation of Dalaras, contains songs exactly as you describe them, about the life of everydya people, and with obvious reference to Karagkiozi (the title of one song is Karagkiozis) and all the heroes we meet in the shadows theatre.

I don't know...but maybe!

[sarantiis 5]

Nikola, im not sure if it was a 45 only.My source tells me that it was a complete album...I will find out before the year is up..I will speak with Georgo later this year before the year is up.He will be here in the US before the end of the year and i plan to ask him as i am curious about this album..Also,i know that Minos Matsas the son of the owner of Minos EMI lives here in New York.He is a close freind of my koumbaros so i will ask him as well.He is young but should know or be able to find out info on the mistirious album..So, between Dalaras and Minos i will find out something.....BTW,Minos has written many good songs that Dalaras a few other musicians have recorded.He is very talented and studying music....