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.
Die Bouzouki
Demis Roussos Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
da sah ich dich beim Kerzenschein
und nach dem ersten Tanz mit dir hat sich die Welt gedreht mit mir.
Die Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein
ja
Als die andern schon alle gegangen
schien der Mond nur für uns ganz allein.
Die Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein
brachten uns dazu
einander nah zu sein
als das Lied von der Liebe sie sangen
die Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein.
Die letzten Kerzen gingen aus
da gingen wir verliebt nach Haus
und jeder hat dabei gespürt
daß dieses Lied nie enden wird.
Die Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein
. . .
The lyrics to Demis Roussos's song Die Bouzouki describe the singer's experience of falling in love in a tavern. The singer describes seeing his love interest by candlelight and being swept off his feet during their first dance. The bouzouki, a traditional Greek stringed instrument played in the background, creates a romantic and magical atmosphere. As the night goes on, and the others in the tavern leave, the couple remain together, feeling like they are the only people in the world. The singer attributes their closeness to the power of the bouzouki, the night, and the wine, which brought them together as the song of love played.
The lyrics also capture the feelings of the couple as they leave the tavern, and the candles are extinguished. Despite the night being over, they feel that the song they have just shared will never end, and they have a sense of hope and possibility for their future together. The use of the bouzouki throughout the song gives it a traditional Greek sound and feel, adding a unique depth and emotion to the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
In der Taverne kehrt' ich ein
I entered the tavern
da sah ich dich beim Kerzenschein
where I saw you in candlelight
und nach dem ersten Tanz mit dir hat sich die Welt gedreht mit mir.
After dancing with you for the first time, my whole world began to spin
Die Bouzouki
The Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein
The night and the wine
ja, sie Iäuteten für uns die Liebe ein.
Yes, they announced the beginning of love for us
Als die andern schon alle gegangen
When the others had already left
schien der Mond nur für uns ganz allein.
The moon seemed to shine only for us
Die Bouzouki
The Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein
The night and the wine
brachten uns dazu, einander nah zu sein
Brought us closer together
als das Lied von der Liebe sie sangen
When the song of love was sung
die Bouzouki, die Nacht und der Wein.
The Bouzouki, the night, and the wine
Die letzten Kerzen gingen aus
The last candles went out
da gingen wir verliebt nach Haus
And we left for home in love
und jeder hat dabei gespürt,
And everyone felt
daß dieses Lied nie enden wird.
That this song will never end
Die Bouzouki
The Bouzouki
die Nacht und der Wein
The night and the wine
Contributed by Muhammad Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Isa Buenaventura
Escuchar tu voz y tus melodías es estar cerca del Paraíso oyendo el timbe angelical de la voz de Demis Roussos..!!! 😚❤🌷👏
Ramona Weiß
Er bleibt für immer unvergessen. Bei seinen Lieder kann man so gut runter kommen und danach fühlt man sich super.💖💖💖
Rosi Da silva
Como um cantor grego cantava tão bem em alemão alguém sabe me dizer ele tem descendentes alemães muito lindo pois eu falo alemão sou do Brasil Santa Catarina adoro as músicas dele
Maria Lins
Simples, Deus deu um dom maravilhoso de voz para ele e uma inteligência fora do comum, inteligentissimo por demais....voz de ANJO...
Fina Cayuela Padilla
!!!!Increíble,cuanta belleza,preciosa voz,siempre vivo en nuestro corazón.Gracias por compartir.Saludos,España.
Luciene Almeida
Inesquecível, Maravilhoso, Único ,sempre em nossas lembranças e corações Amor Além da Vida
Angel Eizaguirre
dios lo tenga en su gloria excelente cantante un saludo.
Zinaida Fjodorova
Спасибо Демис, что был, пел и радовал нас своим творчеством!!!! Помним!!! Любим!!!!! ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
Conepcion Ventura Pesas
Mi corazón siempre tiene un rincón para mí cantante griego,al que adoro❤❤❤❤🌷🌷🌷🌷
Forever And Ever Demis Roussos.
Barçelona
Eleni Theodoridou
ΥΠΕΡΟΧΟΣ ΑΞΕΧΑΣΤΟΣ WE WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER BIG GREEK DEMI.💙🌿🇬🇷💐💙