PHOTO CREDIT: Above photo by John Rickman Photography, San Jose, California. |
By Panayiota Bakis MohieddinTable of Contents
Introduction
Beginnings
Legends in the Making: |
Theodotos DemetriadesTheodotos Demetriades, nicknamed Tetos, was a rebetiko singer, the original artist to record "Misirlou", which he did in 1927. It's unclear exactly when Demetriades was born. Estimates range from 1897 to 1901. He was born in Constantinople (the Greek name for Istanbul). He moved to the United States in 1921, which is where he was living at the time he recorded "Misirlou." He died in New Jersey in 1971 from throat cancer. ABOUT THE PHOTO: This photo is of Tetos Demetriades. | |
Nicholas (Nikos) RoubanisNicholas (Nikos) Roubanis was born in 1880. At age 25, he went to Egypt to work as a music conductor, in the service of its king. In 1925, he relocated to the U.S. and became a professor at Columbia University in New York. Roubanis also composed liturgical music for the Greek Orthodox church in America. In 1965, he retired to Greece, where he died three years later. ABOUT THE PHOTO: This photo shows Nicholas Roubanis. | |
Mike PatrinosMichalis (Mike) Patrinos, a rebetiko singer, was originally from Smyrna (the former name of Izmir, Turkey). He sang his version of "Misirlou" in the accent of that area, so that it sounds like "Mousourlou". He recorded his version of "Misirlou" in Athens, Greece in 1930, and in New York City in 1931. His LifeMike Harris Patrinos was born in Mani Lakonia (southern Greece), in 1890. His birth name was Konstantinos Kalogeras. In the early 1900's, he worked in Dexameni, Athens, then moved to the U.S. and lived there from 1914 to 1929. When Patrinos moved back to Greece, he settled in Patra, which is how he earned the nick name of Patrinos. He also was known by the nickname of “Amerikanos” because usually any Greek who had lived in the U.S. would also be called “The American”. He decided to take on the new stage name of Dino Theodoropoulou. The names he used in America were Mike (Mihali) Harris Patrinos and Dino Theodoropoulos. ABOUT THE PHOTO: This photo shows Michalis Patrinos as a young man in 1914, holding a Karagiozi shadow theater puppet. | |
Patrinos' Shadow Theater LegacyPatrinos is famous internationally for his contributions to the song "Misirlou" (which he pronounced "Mousourlou" due to his regional accent). However, in Greece he was a famous actor in Karagiozi, which is a shadow theater popular and Greece and Turkey, and this is the legacy that Greeks remember him for. In the Karagiozi circuit, Patrinos wrote his own plays and compositions. He also mentored countless rising stars. Patrinos was the first to take advantage of a microphone in presenting Karagiozi performances, and he played music on the gramophone. His only daughter, Sophia Kalogera, is remembered as the first and only female Karagiozi performer. Today, the family home in Patras, Greece is a museum known as “Karagiozi House”. ABOUT THE IMAGE: The drawing shows a sample character from Greek Karagiozi shadow theater. |
Some of the Greek Versions
Many Greek recording artists have released their own versions of this song. Here is a partial list.
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Around the World
English lyrics for "Misirlou" were created in 1940 by Bob Russell, Fred Wise and Milton Leeds, and recorded in 1941 by Mitchell Ayres. These lyrics were entirely different in their meaning from the originals. Other versions of the song were recorded in other languages. Some, such as the French version by Dario Moreno, remained more faithful to the original meaning of the song. The 1962 release of a surfer guitar version by Dick Dale and the Del-Tones opened a new chapter in the popularity of this song. Dale's father and uncles had been Lebanese musicians. Dale saw his father playing "Misirlou" on one string of an oud (a Middle Eastern lute), and he decided to try it on a guitar, but with a surf rock flavor. Soon, other surfer bands and rock bands were creating their own versions as well. Dick Dale's version of "Misirlou" was given new life when the 1994 movie Pulp Fiction used it on the soundtrack. ABOUT THE PHOTO: This photo shows Mitchell Ayres, the first vocalist to release a recording of "Misirlou" with English lyrics by Russell, Wise, and Leeds. | |
Instrumental VersionsAs of January 2017, a search of eMusic (one of the commercial music download sites) revealed 601 versions of this song to choose from! Here is a sampling of some of the musicians from around the world who have recorded it:
ABOUT THE PHOTO: Harry Saroyan is one of the musicians who has recorded a version of "Misirlou" for use by belly dancers. | ![]() |
Languages Other Than Greek
Musician | Language | Year |
Mitchell Ayres | English | 1941 |
Woody Herman Big Band | English | 1941 |
Miriam Kressyn | Yiddish | 1943 |
Clovis el-Hajj | Arabic | 1944 |
Dario Moreno | French | 1953, 1958 |
Chubby Checker | English | 1962 |
Connie Francis | English | 1965 |
Edo Lubich | Croatian | ? |
Reuben and Vart Sarkisian, under the song title "Ine Orre", lyrics by Reuben Sarkisian | Armenian | 1950's |
The Devil's Anvil, lyrics by Gail Collins are different from most English versions | English | 1967 |
Gino Cudsi e Dorine, under the song title "Missirlù" | Italian | 1967 |
Zeki Müren, under the song title "Yaralı Gönül", lyrics by Suat Sayın | Turkish | 1971 |
Paul Baghdadlian, uses Reuben Sarkisian's lyrics, but released under the song title "Anoush Yar" | Armenian | 1970's |
Staniša Stošić, under the song title "Lela Vranjanka" | Serbian | 1972 |
By Musicians Who Recorded for Belly Dancers
Musician | Album Title |
John Bilezikjian | Dream of Scheherazde |
George Abdo | The Art of Belly Dancing |
Harry Saroyan (in English and Spanish) | Saroyan Sings Cairo |
Pangia | Pangia, Volume 1 |
Scott Wilson | Live at Jebon |
Desert Wind | Gaia, Earth Goddess |
Dancing to It
There are three types of dances that can be done to "Misirlou", depending on what kind of underlying rhythm is used with it:
Tsifteteli (Belly Dance)"Misirlou" has long been a favorite song among tsifteteli dancers (often referred to in English as belly dancers) in North America. In particular, versions of "Misirlou" played slowly have been popular since the 1970's in North America for dancing with a large piece of sheer fabric often known as "peplo" in Greek or a "veil" (in English). Dancers will make an entrance to fast music with the fabric wrapped around their bodies. They will then use a slower song such as "Misirlou" to bring a quieter energy into their performance, remove the peplo, and dance with it. This segment of the performance often includes sinuous movements such as undulations, hip circles, and infinity (figure 8) movements. ABOUT THE PHOTO: Panayiota does a belly dance performance. | |
ZeibekikoThis is a solo urban Greek improvisational dance. Zeibekiko dance used to be a men’s dance, although in the last few decades women have also begun to dance to it. It was brought to the Greek mainland by refugees from Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) in the 1920's. There is a specific 9/8 musical rhythm associated with the zeibekiko, and sometimes the song "Misirlou" is played with that rhythm. When it is, then it would be appropriate to dance the zeibekiko to it. ABOUT THE PHOTO: The man in the photo is Mike Patrinos in 1924, also sometimes known by the stage name Dino Theodoropoulos. He was one of the singers that many Greeks associate with this song. His version is often referred to as "Mousourlou" because of his accent. The "Folk Dance"In North America, the song "Misirlou" is used for a fakelore line or circle dance that is popular with folk dance clubs. The dance itself is also typically called "Misirlou" as well. The dance was invented in 1945, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The detailed story behind this made-in-the-U.S. "folk dance" appears elsewhere on this web site. There's no harm in doing this dance recreationally, so long as you understand it does not accurately represent Greek dance and probably wouldn't be the right choice for an event that celebrates Greek culture. |
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About the Author
This page was contributed by Panayiota Bakis, who is happy to share her culture and music she grew up with! Here's how Panayiota describes her background:
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