TASHY HEARS

ONLY LOVE

Someone who has followed these has just written to me and asked why I have to find a meaning in everything. Why not just listen to a song for what it is; a piece of music. My answer is very simple. If it has no meaning it isn't anything. I need to understand and then identify. As I have said a few times I may have identified a meaning that the writer had not intended. No matter, it means something to me.

And so it is with this song. I'm a bit surprised to see it got to No.2 in the UK charts but it would appear there were some romantics around at that time. It is a very beautiful love song, about love, and sung by an incredibly beautiful voice. It goes through the various stages that love can bring, all now within the singer's remembrance. It ends with the singer saying that her heart became free as she was part of her lover and they were all of her. For some, that may still be wishful thinking but something to aim for ultimately.

Nana Mouskouri had an interesting career. She was born in Crete, moved to Athens when she was 3 in 1937 and moved to France in 1960. She represented Luxembourg in the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest, coming eigth, and gradually made a name for herself in Europe. Between 1994 and 1999 she was a member of the European Parliament. She officially retired in 2008 but has done a few concerts since then. Her farewell concert was at the Herodes Atticus Theatre in Athens. Google it. If you can think of a better place for a Greek superstar to retire please tell me.

In 2010, during the Greek financial crisis, she gave up her pension saying "Everywhere I see stories about my country going bankrupt. And people are aggressive about it. It's frightening. And it's painful for me. Nobody wants their country to be treated badly. It's frustrating and very sad.” A very special song, a very special voice and a very special lady.