Ta paidia tou Piraia - Never on Sunday

The Greek school chose the Song ’Ta paidia tou Piraia’ - Never on Sunday, for the German students to sing.

This song (Greek: Τα Παιδιά του Πειραιά; English: The Children of Piraeus) was written by Manos Hadjidakis. A vocal version was also released in a movie which has the same name and was directed by Jules Dassin and starring Melina Mercouri, who also sang the vocal version.

Watch and listen to the song on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCFX...

In 1960 the song won the ’Acadamy Award for Best Original Song’.

The song tells a story of the main female character, in the same-titled movie. Ilya is a jolly woman, who enjoys life, the town and the people of her native town Piraeus. Although she earns her money as a prostitute, she longs to meet a man someday who is just as full of joy of life as she is herself.

The song has been covered in a number of languages since its release. Here is a German version of the song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYxc...

Click for the live performance and CD recording