At the beginning of the 20th century, Europe is living in peace and prosperity. The “Belle Époque” is an outgrowth of previous important historical events and developments. The networks that are created and which evolve funnel both people and their products, tangible and intangible. It is within this multi-layered world that sound recording and sound reproduction is invented. Early record labels send mobile crews literally all over the world to record local musicians. The range of the repertoire is endless. Cosmopolitanism in large urban centers favors polystylisms and polymorphisms. Colonialism, revolutions, conflicts, refugee flows; the theater, cinema, radio, photography, orchestras’ tours, but also circulations in all kinds of commercial channels in a world that evolves dynamically and anisotropically, form a complex network of “centers” and “peripheries” in alternating roles setting musical idioms in motion, both literally and figuratively. The networks in which the Greek-speaking musics participate, constantly conversing with their co-tenants, are magnificent. Discography has already provided important tools in understanding the relationships that developed between “national” repertoires. The result of this ongoing research is “Cosmopolitanism in Greek Historical Discography”.

Naturally, in the large urban centers of the Ottoman Empire around the Mediterranean Sea, the “conversations” of the Greek-speakers with their Turkish-speaking Muslim “co-tenants”, the Catholic Greek-speakers, the Armenians, the Sepharadi and Ashkenazi Jews, the Levantine Protestants, and the Europeans and the Americans, were more than intense. Very often, the scope of this network extends to the Balkans, to Eastern and even to a part of Central Europe. Especially regarding relations between Orthodox and Muslims, the relevant evidence demonstrates the musical exchanges between them and elucidate an ecumene where everyone contributed to the great musical “melting-pot”, and where everyone may draw from it, as well as redeposit it, in a new form, with a reformulated text and its meaning, with sometimes clear and sometimes blurred references to its pre-text, until someone else pulls it out again, through the “melting-pot”, so that it becomes clear that there is no end in this recreational and dynamic process where fluidity prevails. A case that comes from such repertoires is this recording.

In Greek-speaking discography, apart from the present cover, the tune was also recorded under the title "Tha pethano mana" by Lefteris Menemenlis [Beslemedakis], in Athens, in 1927 (Polydor 4625 ar – V 45116).

However, the melody of the chorus can be found in other repertoires that were recorded in the USA three decades later. In 1957 the Armenian-American group Armenian Jazz Sextet recorded the instrumental song "Harem dance" (Kapp records H9-OB-4240 – K-181) by Melkonian – Beducci. The group consisted of Armenian-born musicians Eddie Arvanigian, Aram Manougian, Arthur Melkonian, Berge Minisian, Tom Minisian, Cory Tosoian (see here).

The melody of the chorus seems to also "communicate" with the instrumental song "Shish-kebab" by David Carroll and George Stone. It was recorded in 1957 in New York by the Italian-American trumpeter Ralph Marterie and his orchestra (Mercury YW15237 – 71092). The two recordings, which were released almost simultaneously and have significant similarities, were a hit and entered the Billboard Hot 100 (see here) on April 29, 1957 (see here on page 46 the songs nos. 86 and 89).

"Shish-kebab", in particular, was a worldwide success, was covered and recorded many times, in various locations and formats, especially in 45 and 33 rpm discography (see for example here and here).

In Greek historical discography, it was recorded by Giota Lydia in Athens, in 1959, under the title "Shish-kebab (Sis kempab)" (Columbia C.G. 3716-1 – D.G. 7360), by Bempa Kyriakidou (Athens, 1959, Parlophone Go 5588 – B. 74446-I), by Eva Styl and the Brilante Trio under the title "Siskempap" (Athens, 1958, Liberty 296-A).

The Greek musical score of the song, with lyrics by Aimilios Savvidis, was published in Athens, in 1957, by Michalis Gaitanos.

Of the performances in 45 and 33 rpm discography, we single out that of the Greek-Israeli Aris San (Aristides Seisanas) and Meri Kozaku (see here) in Tel Aviv, in 1960 (45 rpm record, "Greek popular songs", Olympia E.P. 5414) by Yacobian & Company (see here), with Giannis Stamatiou (or Sporos) on the bouzouki (USA, 1963, LP "The Glorius Greeks", Crescendo GNPS-89).

America, where most of the aforementioned recordings took place, was a microcosm of the globe: a "successful Babel". Naturally, a unique syncretism also dominated in the field of music. The birth, on the other hand, of discography, built a condition that favored debates and osmosis between the innumerable ethno-cultural groups that made up the population. These processes led to the re-imagining, the update and the renewal of old musical trends arriving in the United States and, at the same time, to their re-exportation to the "old worlds", thus setting up a uniquely multi-layered network. "National" repertoires live a new, parallel life, largely molded by discography, which attended to and "tuned" the overlapping relationships that had already developed in the "Old World". Repertoires communicated with each other once again; a familiar and already dynamic condition in Europe. The circulation of music was already a reality before the 20th century with theatrical and musical performances tours, but also with the networks of music publishing houses. Discography is not only embedded in this context, but also plays a key role in its transformation.

Research and text: Leonardos Kounadis and Nikos Ordoulidis