From the recording Ionian EP3
In the summer of 1975 I was travelling through Greece doing island-hopping. Tourism was well-developed by then, but you could still travel around with very little money and find places off the beaten track. The Greeks were so friendly and welcoming, and you felt as though you were in some kind of paradise. Travellers would exchange stories and give each other tips, and this is how I got to find this special place. I am not saying exactly where it is, but it is all there in the lyrics. I felt that I really grew up on that beach over two summers - met so many people from so many different places and had this absolute freedom which is hard to find any more in the age of the Internet and the mobile phone. Of course you wanted it to stay the same, but that could not be and it did not take long for them to build a road - and suddenly it became a tourist resort. This must be the case for so many special places around the world.
Lyrics
Summer nineteen seventy five
Seems so long ago
No mobile phone, no internet
A time of travelling slow
Didn’t have much money
No problem. We found a way
With tips from others like us
Find a special place to stay
We want the best
What do you suggest?
Somewhere hard to reach
With a great beach
Just a cafe or two
A wonderful view
You can sleep for free
On the sand or under a tree
“Take the eleven bus to Pelekas
Edge of the village a well-used trail
That winds down the mountainside
From the gate with the rusty nail
Past cypress trees and olive groves
A ruined farmhouse, a blackened tree
Arrive in paradise. The beach. The warm emerald sea”
Was even better than expected
Sunny days, warm nights, new friends.
A community in this special place
Sharing secrets. No regrets.
Body surfing, chilling, ouzo
Daytime sun, moonlit sky
No traffic, just cicadas
The perfect natural high
Cannot stay forever
Summer always ends
Beach is almost empty
Time for family and friends
Next year it will call again
Next summer got to go back
Nothing stays the same forever
Something will change
Break the spell
Close the wishing well
The beach for us was paradise
And we treated it as our own
Didn’t think about the locals
In the backyard of their home
Every May to September
I guess they earned some cash
Rewards low, price was high
End of season clearing trash
Cannot stay forever
Summer always ends
Beach is almost empty
Time for family and friends
Next year it will call again
Next summer got to go back
Nothing stays the same forever
Something will change
Break the spell
Close the wishing well