George Dalaras Video Showcase

George Dalaras (29 September 1949— ), also possibly spelled as Yorgos or Giorgos Ntalaras, is one of the most renowned contemporary Greek singers.

He is of international fame and has recently been selected as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Refugee Agency.

He was born in Nea Kokinia, Piraeus. His father was Loukas Daralas, a famous singer of rebetiko.

Dalaras' first song, "Expectation", was recorded in 1967. The single never reached any popular status in fact, was barely released. Dalaras even had to struggle to get into the studio, as ironically the day he began his studio career was the day that the Greek military junta had taken over the streets of Athens, and the roads were littered with tanks.

After several appearances on various recordings as a "bonus/token" singer, his debut album was released in early 1969, a self titled album released under the MINOS label. The recording included many compositions by Stavros Koujioumtzis, who in the early years proved a fountain of help toward helping Dalaras succeed musically. As Dalaras has said in various interviews, he owes the fact that he became a singer to Koujioumtzis, who composed Dalaras' first songs. His relation with Koujioumtzis remained friendly until the sudden death of the composer due to a heart attack in March 2005.

The biggest hit of the record, "Poune ta hronia", is still sung today, and is regarded as a mainstay in Dalaras' large repertoire. In 1970, he released the album Natane to 21 ("If only it were '21", that is, 1821, a reference to the Greek War of Independence).

The album was immediately more successful than his debut LP and included hits such as "Natane to 21", "Kapou nihtoni", and an instrumental version of "Poune ta hronia". The album was made up entirely of a compositions by Stavros Koujioumtzis.

The songs were mainly secondary releases, as was common in the late 60's for new Greek singers; however, not all the songs on first release (most of them on the smaller yet more distinctive LYRA label) had proved successful, and in many instances, even now, many people in Greece believe that the Dalaras songs are original and not cover versions. Source: Wikipedia - George Dalaras

Photo author: amihai from flickr.com