Throughout his childhood he was influenced by the musics that were coexisting in Egypt. The sound of Arabic music entered into his life at that time and has continued until today as one of his biggest influences. At the age of ten, he was intrigued by Jazz and learnt to play the trumpet. As a young boy he also attended the choir of the Greek Byzantine church of Alexandria and sang for five years as a soloist.
However, when Artemios reached the age of fifteen, his life changed. It was the time of the Suez Canal crisis. His family left Egypt and immigrated to their homeland Greece. Artemios then had to work to support his family. During the day he attended school and, at night, he played the trumpet in various clubs in Athens. Two years later, his first band, "The Idols" was formed. Artemios played the Bass Guitar and sang backing vocals as well. One day, as the lead singer needed to rest, he asked Artemios to replace him for a few songs. That night, when Artemios sang "The House Of The Rising Sun" and "When A Man Loves A Woman" the audience was amazed. From then on Artemios was asked to sing again and again.
Within a short period, Artemios was making a sound reputation. It was at this time that he met the man who would later become one of his most successful composer, Lakis Vlavianos. From that meeting a new band was born, the "We Five", with Artemios as the lead singer.
In 1968 Artemios’s journey crossed the road of two other top Greek musicians, Vangelis Papatanassiou and Loukas Sideras. Their associationbecame one of the biggest musical events of the seventies in the form of "Aphrodite’s Child". This ambitious band decided to travel to the United Kingdom for better commercial prospects. Artemios--who had now shortened his name to Demis--would be the singer and the bass player, Vangelis the main composer as well as the keyboard player, and Loukas would play the drums.
However, they were refused entry to the United Kingdom for lack of a work permit. Instead, Aphrodite's Child travelled to Paris, arriving just as the city was going through the May 68 revolution. After a few concerts in some trendy Parisian clubs, a major company offered to record a song of theirs, one that was inspired by Pachelbel‘s canon called "Rain And Tears". This first album of Aphrodite’s Child sold over a million copies in France alone.
Nine months later, as Demis first daughter, Emily, was born, "Rain And Tears" was the top single all over Europe and a top 20 single in the United Kingdom. The band experienced a huge success for three years.
They then released their legendary last album “666”, after which, for various reasons, Aphrodite's Child decided to split up.
Since Demis was one of the main elements of the band, the record company offered him a chance to recorded his first solo single, "We Shall Dance", which was released on the album "On the Greek Side of My Mind". This album and the single jumped into the top five of all the national hit parades of Italy, Spain, France, Holland, Germany and Scandinavia.
Some months later, Demis met with his old friend of the "We Five", Lakis Vlavianos. Lakis was then going through an inspired period and wrote many songs which Demis recorded; these turned into a string of number one hits all over the world, including: "Forever And Ever", "My Friend the Wind", and "Velvet Morning".
After his second child, Cyril, was born in 1975, Demis toured the globe for eight years with his second wife and child. In Brazil, he packed a stadium of 150 000 people--an event that was achieved in that particular stadium twice only. (The other previous artist was Frank Sinatra.) In fact, Demis sold enough records to gain a name in the Guinness Book of records among the personalities of show business in the 70’s and the eighties. He was awarded more than a hundred golden, platinum, and diamond albums and cassettes.
His unique dressing style was often considered eccentric but Demis was following his instinct which told him that the music he was performing should match with the combination of looks between the glorious Byzantine Empire and the Arabic Caftan.
In 1978 his instinct told him again that he should retire for a while, thinking of new things concerning his career and life. And so he took his family to an area of the world where he was unknown, Malibu Beach, California. There, Demis lost over 50 kilograms. He returned to Europe and lived a quieter life between England and Greece, alone with his son, Cyril.
On June 14 1985, wile he was travelling from Athens to Rome, a decisive event occurred. Demis’s TWA airplane was hijacked by terrorists. After two days in that plane praying, Demis was held three days in the prison of Beyrouth with his third wife. Like many other survivors, he went through the shock of a traumatic experience. After that, Demis said he had never understood so well the importance of the nations living in peace and how precious life is when you see death so close. He felt more than ever that his contribution for a better tomorrow could be via music and so decided to return to the recording and performance scene.
He recorded twenty songs and compiled an album called "The story of Demis Roussos". With this album, Demis started to world tour again and found a nostalgic audience who had missed his magic voice. In 1986 Demis toured the USSR for three weeks and was invited to join important scientists, writers and artists at the forum for peace and disarmament in Moscow, during February 1987.
Later that year, during a tight TV schedule in Chile, Demis insisted on fitting in a visit to the Earth summit in Rio to get a clearer picture of the environmental problems, which were a main concern for Demis.
Since then Demis had been a regular visitor of the charts with singles such as "Quand je t’aime" and "On écrit sur les murs", and albums such as "Voice and Vision" and "Immortel".
Since 2008, Demis had been living in Greece by the sea. After being one of the most talented singers of his century, Demis was still working on more magical offerings, with the blessing of music and God.
He died aged 68, on the Hygeia Hospital in Athens on January 25, 2015.
Amazing Grace
Demis Roussos Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
The world shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun refuse to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Shall be forever mine.
When we've been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we'd first begun
The song Amazing Grace by Demis Roussos is a rendition of one of the most popular hymns in history, written by John Newton in the late 18th century. The opening verse "Amazing grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!" is powerful and speaks of the grace of God in saving a sinner who was otherwise lost. The song speaks of the transformative power of faith in one's life, and how discovering the love of God can help us overcome our fears and achieve true peace.
The second verse "Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved; how precious did that grace appear, the hour I first believed" speaks of how the realization of our own sinfulness can be a frightening experience, but the grace of God brings relief and comfort. The sense of peace that comes with faith is emphasized in verse 3, which states that it is through grace that we have made it through life's many struggles and challenges.
The hymn goes on to say that the promise of eternal life is secured through faith in God, and that even in the face of mortality, we can have hope and joy. The song ends on a triumphant note, with a vision of a life beyond this world, where we will be able to sing God's praise forevermore.
Line by Line Meaning
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
The grace that saved me is truly amazing, and the very sound of it has a sweetness unlike anything else.
That saved a wretch like me!
This grace has rescued me, a person who was undeserving and pitiful.
I once was lost, but now am found;
In the past, I was wandering aimlessly without purpose, but now I have direction and meaning.
Was blind, but now I see.
Before grace came into my life, I was oblivious to the truth and reality of things, but now I have wisdom and understanding.
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
It was through grace that I came to a realization of the terrible consequences of my past and present actions.
And grace my fears relieved;
At the same time, grace also lifted the burden of fear and guilt from my heart.
How precious did that grace appear
The value of this grace is so rare and precious that it cannot be described in words.
The hour I first believed.
That special moment when I first accepted and believed in this grace is something I will never forget.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
Despite facing many obstacles and pitfalls in life, I have persevered thanks to the help of grace.
'Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
It is this grace that has protected me and enabled me to come this far in life.
And grace will lead me home.
This grace will continue to guide and direct me towards my ultimate destination and purpose in life.
The Lord has promised good to me,
I have faith that the Lord will fulfill His promises to me and provide for me in every way.
His word my hope secures;
It is through His word that I find my hope and assurance, knowing that He will always be with me.
He will my shield and portion be,
The Lord will protect and provide for me as a loving father does for his children.
As long as life endures.
This promise of protection and provision will be mine as long as I live.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
Even when my physical body and heart give out, I know that my spirit will endure thanks to the grace of the Lord.
And mortal life shall cease,
When this life on earth ends, I can be confident that my eternal life is secure thanks to the grace of the Lord.
I shall possess, within the veil,
In the afterlife, I will have a new, spiritual existence where I am in full communion with the Lord, and this is a wonderful prospect that I can look forward to.
A life of joy and peace.
This new existence will be one of pure joy and peace, free from the pain and suffering of this world.
The world shall soon dissolve like snow,
This world and all of its troubles and worries will pass away, but what awaits me in the afterlife is far more precious and enduring.
The sun refuse to shine;
Even if everything in this world were to fall apart and disappear, I can count on the fact that the Lord will always be there for me, shining His light into the darkness.
But God, who called me here below,
I know that it is the Lord who called me into this life, and that He has a purpose and a plan for me that I can trust in.
Shall be forever mine.
Even though I am undeserving of His grace, the Lord has promised that I will be His forever and that He will always love and care for me.
When we've been there ten thousand years,
When I have spent thousands upon thousands of years in the afterlife, I will still be praising and glorifying the Lord, because His grace is worth celebrating for eternity.
Bright shining as the sun,
In the afterlife, I will be radiant like the sun, filled with the light and joy of the Lord's presence.
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Even though eternity is a long time, I will never tire of praising and worshiping the Lord, because His grace is always new and exciting.
Than when we'd first begun.
Even after spending thousands of years in the afterlife, the wonder and awe of the Lord's grace will always be as fresh and new to me as when I first became a believer.
Contributed by Penelope D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
songtsai kuo
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
奇異恩典， 何等甘甜，
That saved a wretch like me.
救我慘淡殘年。
I once was lost but now I'm found,
平生飄零， 今獲恩庇，
Was blind but now I see.
心盲終能洞見。
T'was grace that taught my heart to fear
恩典授我， 胸懷敬畏，
And grace my fears relieved
而今坦然無悔。
How precious did that grace appear,
慈恩浩蕩， 尊榮巍巍，
The hour I first believed.
我心一信不回。
Through many dangers, toils and snares
歷經險阻， 陷阱諸苦，
I have already come
我今已然安渡。
T'was grace that brought me safe thus far
恩典惠我， 身心安泰，
And grace will lead me home.
更將導我歸途。
When we've been there ten thousand years
奇異恩典， 光耀萬年，
Bright shining as the sun;
璀璨如日在天。
we've no less days to sing god's praise
我心欽仰， 歌詠讚嘆，
Than when we first begun.
一如初信當年。
María Jesús Castaño Ballesteros
Lo mejor de lo mejor 🙂.Lo más lindo que ven mis ojos todos los días 🌅. Gracias corazón ❤️.
Fiona navidad
This song always makes me cry,but with his voice is just breathtaking.
Fiona navidad
This song always makes me cry,but with his voice is just breathtaking.
Val Hanton
Amazing ARTEMIOS ✝️
Isa Buenaventura
😚❤🌷👏🥁🎺🎻🎵🎶🎷📯
DEMIS ROUSSOS ÚNICO Y ETERNO!!
MrKathyJane
Une merveilleuse interprétation par Demis Roussos de cette sublime chanson ! Les photos sont toujours magnifiques ! Thank you very much joscott10 !
désiré ntahomereye
Comment puis je télécharger cette chanson
Elisabete Silva
Amei TD vcs TDS estão de parabéns fico perfeito
Brigitte Mustapha
C'est la plus belle version de cette chanson que j'adore depuis si longtemps. Merci Demis.
songtsai kuo
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
奇異恩典， 何等甘甜，
That saved a wretch like me.
救我慘淡殘年。
I once was lost but now I'm found,
平生飄零， 今獲恩庇，
Was blind but now I see.
心盲終能洞見。
T'was grace that taught my heart to fear
恩典授我， 胸懷敬畏，
And grace my fears relieved
而今坦然無悔。
How precious did that grace appear,
慈恩浩蕩， 尊榮巍巍，
The hour I first believed.
我心一信不回。
Through many dangers, toils and snares
歷經險阻， 陷阱諸苦，
I have already come
我今已然安渡。
T'was grace that brought me safe thus far
恩典惠我， 身心安泰，
And grace will lead me home.
更將導我歸途。
When we've been there ten thousand years
奇異恩典， 光耀萬年，
Bright shining as the sun;
璀璨如日在天。
we've no less days to sing god's praise
我心欽仰， 歌詠讚嘆，
Than when we first begun.
一如初信當年。