The band's first two albums, End of the World and It's Five O'Clock, combined a very '60s sounding Euro-pop-rock with Greek folk music elements. The former album featured the song "Rain and Tears", a reworking of Pachelbel's Canon in D major. The song was a minor hit in the United Kingdom, but did far better in France, where the band was based, as well as the rest of Europe. Other European hits included "Marie Jolie", "I Want to Live", and "Spring, Summer, Winter, and Fall" from 1969 and 1970 respectively.
The band began to record their crowning achievement in 1970: a musical adaptation of the biblical Book of Revelations, entitled 666 - The Apocalypse of St. John. Relations between Roussos, Vangelis and Sideras were not good at the time, and continued to worsen before the album's creation. However, the group was contractually obligated to release a third album, and went into the studio in 1970 to create 666.
Essentially, 666 was Vangelis' concept, created with an outside lyricist, Costas Ferris. The music that Vangelis was creating for 666 was much more psychedelic and progressive rock oriented than anything the band had done before. This did not sit well with the other band members, who wished to continue in the pop direction that had brought them success. Further, Roussos was being groomed for a solo career, and pressure from the record company for the band to produce another hit single did not help. In essence, the band broke up during the completion of 666. Vangelis finished the album primarily on his own with assistance from studio musicians.
Immediately afterwards, Vangelis engaged in a long fight with Mercury over the content of the album. The record company, in particular, objected to the song "∞" (infinity), which consisted of actress Irene Papas chanting the words "I was, I am, I am to come" in various stages of orgiastic ecstasy, while Vangelis accompanied her on percussion. However, the double-album length of 666 and the musical experimentation, as well as the subject matter, also exacerbated Mercury's ire. After Roussos and Sideras had already embarked on solo careers, Mercury finally agreed to release 666 two years after its completion, and it came out in 1972.
Strangely enough, 666 was the only Aphrodite's Child album to make any impact in America. The blood-red cover with the letters 666 prominently displayed in black and white was striking, and brought immediate accusations of occultism from various quarters. Any suspicions of occultism could be dispersed by simply reading the lyrics, which were fairly faithfully based around the Book of Revelations, but the accusations undoubtedly helped sell the album in the United States. The album met with less controversy overseas and sold reasonably well on its own merits.
The music itself was an impressive display of Vangelis' abilities, combining psychedelic and progressive rock with ethnic instruments, choral chanting, recitations, and very advanced use of synthesizers and keyboards for the time. In time the album became recognized as one of the most important early progressive rock works, and a defining example of the concept album. 666 also made Vangelis an underground name to watch, and earned him an offer from Jon Anderson to join Yes. Vangelis turned down the offer in order to concentrate on a solo career. However, he and Anderson later created several duet albums in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
After the band split, both Vangelis and Demis Roussos pursued successful solo careers, Roussos as a pop singer and Vangelis as one of the pioneers in progressive electronic music. Kolouris worked with both on occasion. Lucas Sideras pursued a less successful solo career, releasing the single "Rising Sun" after the break-up.
Discography
End of the World (1968)
It's Five O'Clock (1969)
666 (The Apocalypse Of John,13/18) (1971)
Best Of Aphrodite's Child (1980)
Aphrodite's Child's Greatest Hits (1995)
The Complete Collection (Aphrodite's Child) (1996)
Babylon the Great (2002)
Song Highlights:
"Four Horsemen", from the album 666, was a minor hit on FM radio in the United States, receiving AOR airplay to this day. "Babylon", from the same album, was released as a single, and found similar acceptance on AOR radio in the 1970's. "Hic and Nunc" and "Break", from the same album, were also tried out as singles but did not chart well at the time.
"Spring, Summer, Winter and Fall" - the final single before the release of 666 and the last of the band's singles to chart significantly in their European home base.
"Rain and Tears" - based on Pachelbel's Canon in D major, this song was probably their biggest hit as a single release.
"It's Five o Clock" and "Such a Funny Night" also charted in Europe. All of the above songs can be found on various compilation/greatest hits discs. The band's singles were aimed squarely at the pop market, and do not bear any significant resemblance to the music on 666.
Annabella
Aphrodite's Child Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The wind is flowing through my mind
Flocking waves the sea arise again
A vision calling from the sea
I see a clogging-up to me
I feel a strange force
Pulling me off of you
Annabella it's you
And when we dance again
Up in the velvet sky
The moon is rise and high
We have to say goodbye
Ah yeah
The dawn is rising from the east
And seabirds call me back to be
Alone without your memories once more
The sand is warm beneath my feet
To stay again and I must live the time
The time I am forced to spent without you
Annabella
Annabella
Without you
And now you're gonna dream
I kissed and touched your hair
And that our love is shared
Before we say goodbye
Ah yeah
When the sun has gone to sleep
And seabirds rest their weary wings
Fairy nights with candle light and stars
Melt the skies, a deeper blue
I am here, but where are you?
Can't you hear me calling you on the sea?
Annabella
Annabella
Come to me.
The lyrics of "Annabella" by Aphrodite's Child tell a beautiful and poetic story of longing, separation, and the power of nature. When the stars begin to shine and the wind flows through the singer's mind, they are transported back to a vision of Annabella calling from the sea. In this moment, the singer feels a strong force pulling them away from Annabella, as if nature itself is conspiring to keep them apart.
The song uses striking imagery to convey the depth of the singer's feelings. When they dance in the velvet sky, the moon is high and they have to say goodbye. The dawn rises from the east and seabirds call the singer back to a life without Annabella. The sand is warm beneath their feet, but they must live a life without her.
The final verse of the song doubles down on the idea that nature is a powerful force that can either bring people together or tear them apart. The singer longs for Annabella to come to them on the sea, hoping that the "fairy nights with candle light and stars" will melt the skies and make their reunion possible. Overall, "Annabella" uses beautiful language and haunting imagery to convey a sense of longing that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt the sting of separation from someone they love.
Line by Line Meaning
When the stars begin to shine
As darkness falls, the beauty of the sky begins to show itself.
The wind is flowing through my mind
The wind touches everything around and inside me, causing me to feel its presence.
Flocking waves the sea arise again
The waves of the sea come to life, like a flock of birds descending upon the shore.
A vision calling from the sea
A mystical image summons me from the ocean depths.
I see a clogging-up to me
Something appears in front of me, catching my eye.
I feel a strange force
I experience an unusual power that is beyond my control.
Pulling me off of you
It separates me from the person next to me.
Annabella
The name of the person who the song is dedicated to.
Annabella it's you
The focus of the song is the person named Annabella.
And when we dance again
In memories, when we were close and moved together.
Up in the velvet sky
As if we were dancing among the constellations and cosmic darkness.
The moon is rise and high
The gentle light of the moon guides us forward.
We have to say goodbye
But such happiness has to come to an end, and we must depart.
Ah yeah
An exclamation of either joy, sorrow, or both presumably.
The dawn is rising from the east
The light of day arrives from the horizon.
And seabirds call me back to be
The sound of birds hearkens me to consciousness.
Alone without your memories once more
I feel isolated again without my cherished reminiscences of you.
The sand is warm beneath my feet
The ground beneath me is cozy and pleasant.
To stay again and I must live the time
I'll have to wait again and endure this feeling for a while.
The time I am forced to spend without you
The time without you feels like an indescribable eternity.
And now you're gonna dream
You will fall asleep and dream.
I kissed and touched your hair
In your dreams, I kiss you and caress your hair.
And that our love is shared
Our love is something that we have a connection with.
Before we say goodbye
Before we part ways again.
When the sun has gone to sleep
When the sky is dark, and the sun has set.
And seabirds rest their weary wings
The birds settle down for the night after a full day of activity.
Fairy nights with candle light and stars
A night that's like something out of a fairy tale, where candles light the way, and the stars are bright.
Melt the skies, a deeper blue
The sky becomes an even darker shade of blue.
I am here, but where are you?
I am present at this moment, but you are somewhere else.
Can't you hear me calling you on the sea?
I cry out to you across the vast expanse of the ocean.
Annabella
Again, the name of the person who the song is dedicated to.
Annabella
The final call out to the person being addressed.
Come to me.
An urgent plea to this person to be together again.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@akaroui9227
What a wonderful song! Annabella came to me, we were very young. We both were very lucky, we lived for each other and for our kids. Fifty years later, Annabella and I sat down with our grandchildren and listened to the breeze caressing the sea and sending waves on the beach. The opening of this masterpiece followed by episodes of call for love is sublime. However people see their love, and however they live it, Annabella and I made it pure and eternal. This song was one of the sources of my inspirations, immense love and dedication to the girl who has become my wife. I still admire it and almost all Aphrodite's Child’s records. They still move my feelings and bring back souvenirs after souvenirs.
@Mimi-qr2xl
Ce son est juste une merveille ✨
@dinotrincas9620
Very nice track...the b-side of the single "it's five o'clock...Demis superb voice!!
@danielbouju1688
"Now the sky is deepen blue".
@fiutare1
It still hurts so much. I was so in love then. :´-(
@LoupHoucine
inoubliable... éternelle.... merveilleuse et si touchante.....
@sinvalalencar5700
MAGNÍFICO!!!
@kakhak
How anyone managed to wrote, arrange, play and sing this insane masterpiece? Brilliant.
@markriva4259
That mythical Greek wine.
@innosanto
This song is great!!