"A lot of happy faces gather, where Garyfallos says. "He tells them his own and when it is over, people laugh or cry", say some of the lyrics of the legendary -now- song, "Garyfallle, Garyfallle". While a little below he states: "He does not know how to write and yet he gives wonderful lectures to the people… Carnation, Carnation, none of us knows who you are".
And this is a truth that hides the song, since the first day of its release by them Peloma Bokiou A mystery was created around the protagonist of the first Greek song by a rock band. "Is he or is he not a real person" he wondered at the time about the creation of Giannis Kiourtsoglou. And if he was a real person, did he have in his life this mystery that the lyrics left around him?
The truth is that "Garyfallos" carries an incredible story, while among other things, it is a song sealed by the exuberant Vlassi Bonazzo, who did not actually sing it in his original performance. And it is an information that probably not many people know.
The true identity of Kolonakiotis "Garyfallos"
The legendary "Garyfallos" was a completely real person, who inspired the creator of the song, Giannis Kiourtsoglou. Although in reality, the real "Carnation" was not as described in the lyrics.
His life was not covered by any veil of mystery, he did not give lectures in the neighborhood, nor did a crowd gather around him to laugh or cry. Although people gathered around the real "Garyfallos" and they were none other than the children in the neighborhoods of Kolonaki.
He was, therefore, an old man -80 years old- always well-dressed who was circulating in Kolonaki and had candies in his pockets that he distributed to the children. He was also a neighbor of Kiourtsoglou, who "borrowed" his name, since it was four syllables and stuck with the meter.
This was "Garyfallos", who was to remain in the musical history of the place. And to imagine that the song was initially rejected and remained for months in the drawers of the record company Lyra.
It was written overnight
It was in the early 70's, when Lyra asked Giannis Kiourtsoglou if he had a rock song written in Greek lyrics, which did not exist until then. He, realizing that he is given a huge professional opportunity, responds positively, with the company asking him to give them the song the very next day!
And here was the problem, since in fact Kiourtsoglou did not have any song ready. But he did not lose his temper. He returned home and within a night he wrote "Garyfallos", having borrowed the name of his neighbor Kolonakiotis.
The song describes the story of the "crazy village", who used to speak to the audience, dividing the crowds and creating mixed emotions, as some laugh and others cry. The years go by, the protagonist dies and then he goes to paradise and converses with the angels.
The story of the hero was simply written. And the next day he gave the song to the company, he saw the owner Aleko Patsifa, not impressed with the final result. And "Garyfallos" went into the drawer and stayed there for almost a year. And when he came out again, he went to meet Peloma Bokiou, writing history together!
The birth of Peloma Bokiou
Shortly after the rejection and specifically in April 1970, Giannis Kiourktsoglou decides to form a rock band, without having in mind a future plan with duration. Rather, the original purpose of the creation was a limited number of appearances.
Thus, little by little, Peloma Boykiou was formed, which from the beginning caused a sensation with their name. The audience was trying to guess what it meant and the versions they gave were many and some, unlikely. But in reality, the name was nothing more than syllables from the names or surnames of the band members.
Nikos Da (PE) ris, Nikos (LO) gothetis, Takis (MA) rinakis, Vlasis (MPO) natsos and Giannis (KIOU) rtkoglou were the founding members of Peloma Bokiou, who were to write their own history in Greek rock music .
First, however, was the sudden phone call from Lyra, who had taken "Carnation" out of the drawer. So, they suggested to Kiourtsoglou to give the piece to Popi Asteriadou. He, however, explained to them that he now had his own band and so they suggested that they record it with his band.
His original performance is not with Vlassi Bonazzo
The truth is that when you say "Carnation" the voice of the late Vlasi Bonatsou comes to everyone's mind. But in reality, it was not Bonatsos who entered the studio for the original recording of the song, but Nikos Daperis. However, Vlassis interpreted it in the band's live and so he managed to "seal" it with his exuberant and abundant talent.
In fact, Bonatsos first entered the studio to record "Garyfallos" many years later, with Goin 'Through and specifically in 1995, while he was released by FM Records.