Interpretation of “Sophie” (The wild crowd) by Vasilis Papakonstantinou
Vasilis Papakonstantinou (Βασίλης Παπακωνσταντίνου) is probably my favourite singer. His body of work spans literally hundreds of memorable interpretations of songs from some of Greece’s finest songwriters. Here is Vasilis in what appears to be his seventh (?) decade as a youngster, performing Sophie live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neRpCmlP_PM. What a legend!
The performance by Vasilis and the accompanying musicians is a thing of beauty, though here I am interested in the main theme I can discern in this song. Below are the lyrics in Greek, my translation of them, and subsequent commentary:
Σόφη (Τ' άγριο πλήθος)
Ερμηνεία: Βασίλης Παπακωνσταντίνου
Στίχοι: Σταμάτης Μεσημέρης
Μουσική: Σταμάτης Μεσημέρης
Σ' είδα πάλι αργά χτες το βράδυ
να τρέχεις στους δρόμους
σαν πρώτα με μάτια κλαμένα
Είχε απλώσει η νύχτα τη δόση
στα πόδια σου χύμα
όπως τότε σκουπίδια αναμμένα
Είχε βρέξει, δε μ' είχες προσέξει
δυο τρόλεϊ στη στάση ανάποδα
και πάλι καμμένα
Βήμα βήμα πέφτει σύρμα
υπόγειο Σίνα και Σόλωνος
να φύγει το ρεύμα
Ένα θύμα κι άλλο θύμα
δυο ανύποπτα μαύρα μπουφάν
το φιλί ως το τέρμα
Σαν ταινία η πορεία
θυμάμαι ακόμα τα χρώματα
στο πρώτο σου βλέμμα
Κι εγώ που ξέρεις πως φοβάμαι το άγριο πλήθος
έμεινα πίσω κολλημένος στη στροφή
κι εσύ ξεμάκρυνες κι απόμεινε ένας τοίχος
να γράφει "Σόφη κάπου έχουμε χαθεί"
Σ' είδα πάλι χτες τι βράδυ
λυμένα μαλλιά κατακόκκινα
πάνω στους ώμους
Μαύρη στάχτη πλάι στο κράχτη
μυρίζουν τα λάστιχα ύποπτα στους αστυνόμους
Τρεις και δέκα, χρόνια δέκα
κλειστό φερμουάρ, παγωνιά
και σκισμένο φουλάρι
Ξένη πόλη, ξένοι όλοι
κι εσύ σαν ελπίδα αδέσποτη
στο ίδιο φανάρι
Ένα θύμα κι άλλο θύμα
δυο ανύποπτα μαύρα μπουφάν
το φιλί ως το τέρμα
Σαν ταινία η πορεία
θυμάμαι ακόμα τα χρώματα
στο πρώτο σου βλέμμα
Κι εγώ που ξέρεις πως φοβάμαι το άγριο πλήθος
έμεινα πίσω κολλημένος στη στροφή
κι εσύ ξεμάκρυνες κι απόμεινε ένας τοίχος
να γράφει "Σόφη κάπου έχουμε χαθεί"
Sophie (The wild crowd)
Performance: Vasilis Papakonstantinou
Lyrics: Stamatis Mesimeris
Music: Stamatis Mesimeris
I saw you again yesternight
running on the streets as before with crying eyes
The night had spread out the dose
in bulk at your feet
like then rubbish aflame
It had rained, you had not noticed me
two trolleys flipped at the station
burnt again
Step by step spreads the message
underground of Sina and Solonos
for the current to leave
One victim and another victim
two unassuming black jackets
the kiss to the max
Like a movie the demonstration
I still recall the colours
in your first sight
And I, who you know fears the wild crowd,
stayed behind attached to the curve
and you fell behind and a wall remained
to write "Sophie, we have been lost somewhere"
I saw you yesternight
untied hair all red
on the shoulders
Black ash next to the megaphone
the tires smell suspiciously to the police officers
Ten past three, years ten
closed zipper, cold
and shredded scarf
Alien town, all aliens
and you like stray hope
on the same traffic light
One victim and another victim
two unassuming black jackets
the kiss to the max
Like a movie the demonstration
I still recall the colours
in your first sight
And I, who you know fears the wild crowd,
stayed behind attached to the curve
and you fell behind and a wall remained
to write "Sophie, we have been lost somewhere"
What impresses me with this song is that we are presented with a chaotic transition between phantasmagorical scenes of violence, desperation, rebellion, lawlessness, immiseration, and oppression. This is not the prettified version of quotidian life we find in romantic art, but the repulsive face of a social order that routinely pushes misfits to the margins, leaving them behind to fend for themselves.
My translation is faithful to the original style. Already with its formal features, Sophie captures the abruptness of life at the fringes of the law. There is no continuity here, no longer-term plans and poetic daydreaming, no “happily ever after”, no pretences of grandeur. Things are ugly yet noble and heroic at times where one struggles for control.
To survive in these conditions it is necessary to let go of the notion that promises are inviolable. Circumstances change rapidly. What once was is no more. What is stands in contradiction to what was. The self is a variable for it is a function of the interplay between ever-changing factors. Promises are the privilege of those who live in the security of apparent predictability and constancy. The precariat cannot access such a world. It subsists in the ever-evolving present.
A life at the margins of legality demands ruthlessness in how one eliminates fancies from their conduct. Practicality is not simply about achieving decent results. It is a matter of life and death. To entertain fairytale notions of human relations is tantamount to capital punishment.
The titular Sophie is the character that reminds us of the truth inherent to such an unwelcoming milieu: we are lost. Yet implicit in those words in the realisation that there is no place to be found, no land to host us, no xenial lord to blithely welcome us. Whatever path we find, is the one we clear ourselves, with hair soaked in blood.
Some stay behind, others take a detour. Drugs, fire, and tears. Friends are no more whenever their expectations undo them. It is sad, albeit natural. Sophie, which may be a reference to the original meaning of Sophia (Σοφία) as “wisdom”, reminds us to recognise what the constitution of the case is. Do not dwell on the past. Do not apologise for who you are and what the prevailing conditions make you do in your attempt to assume agency. Dithering will lead to your demise. Push forward in hope of finding a modicum of stability. And make the most out of every kiss, for it may be your last.
“But you promised…”, I hear you say. That was always with the proviso of ceteris paribus. Yet here we are in a life of unknowns where factors cannot be held constant. No-one lied to you, dear. You simply did not heed Sophie’s words, longing for luxuries that do not exist.