Singer Manolis Lidakis died at the age of 64.
Manolis Lidakis was born in 1960 in Heraklion, Crete and was involved in music from a very young age. At the age of nine he began his musical studies in guitar, wind instruments and music theory. From 1970 to 1977 he participated in the Heraklion Philharmonic, playing euphonium and trumpet.
In 1982 he moved to Athens, where he took part in the television show "Na Ι Efkairia" and signed his first recording contract. From then on, he began his professional career in singing, although he had already appeared in small music venues, taverns and nightclubs, both in Crete and Athens, but also in Serres with his brother.
As he himself stated, he started singing in a small shop in Crete at the request of the owners. Although he initially intended to sing for a few days, the collaboration was extended, as he was offered higher fees. This chain of events led him to Athens, where he signed a contract with Minos and appeared on the television show, in the presence of Lefteris Papadopoulos and Giorgos Katsaros.
The same year, his first album, Meta Apo Sena, was released, with music by Giorgos Katsaros, while he also participated in the album Mila Mou Apla with Eleni Dimou and Yiannis Parios, as well as in Yiannis Markopoulos' Reportage with Giorgos Dalaras.
In 1988, he signed a contract with Sony Music, which contributed to his increasing popularity, especially with the release of the album Ute Pou Rotisa in 1990. This was followed by a series of successful collaborations and record deals, which established him as one of the most important representatives of art and folk songs. At the same time, he also dabbled in Cretan music, covering old rizitika and other traditional songs, such as on the album Kokkino Akrogiali.
Lidakis had mentioned that his musical influences included Nikos Xylouris, Manolis Baxevanis, Chronis Aidonidis, Stelios Kazantzidis, Grigoris Bithikotsis, as well as important female performers such as Vicky Moscholiou, Charoula Alexiou and Dimitra Galani.
In June 2001, he released the album "Material of Dreams", where he collaborated with Giorgos Andreou, Lakis Lazopoulos, Kostas Livadas, Sokratis Malamas and Alkis Alkaios. The album's title came from a duet with Eleni Tsaligopoulou, inspired by Shakespeare's The Tempest. The two collaborated again in 2002 in live performances at Sfendona.
In 2007, he participated in a series of musical performances with Alkinoos Ioannidis, in a tribute to the work of Manos Hadjidakis. This collaboration led to the release of the album 4 Theatrical Myths, which included music that Hadjidakis had composed for performances, such as Lorca's Bloody Wedding, Kampanelli's Tale Without a Name, Kazantzakis' Captain Michael and Brecht's Chalk Circle.
In 2008, he signed a contract with the record label Legend and in the same year he collaborated with Dimitris Mitropanos and Babis Stokas in live performances in the Athens Center.
His last album was released in 2009, titled Don't Destroy My Dream, where he collaborated with Pantelis Thalassinos.
Source: protothema.gr
