Vamvakaris recorded Frangosyriani

Vamvakaris wrote and recorded Frangosyriani. He recounted the inspiration for the song: "The whole of Syros loved me very much because I too was Syrian and the Syrians were proud of it. Every summer, they awaited me to go to Syros and play and have Syros enjoy with me. In 1935 I took Batis, my younger brother, and the pianist Rovertakis and went to Syros again, almost twenty years since I left the island. Well, I first played in a place at the beach, the whole world came to see me. Every night people filled the place, and I stayed there for about two months. When I was playing and singing, I always looked down at the floor; I couldn't look at the people, I was too shy. One night, as I was playing, I raised my head for a moment and saw a beautiful girl. Her eyes were black. I never raised my head again, but that night I kept thinking about her and thinking about her... So, I took a pencil and wrote off the top of my head: A fluster, a flame is in my heart as if you've enchanted me, sweet Frangosyriani... I never knew her name, and she never knew that the song talked about her. When I returned to Piraeus, I wrote the song Frangosyriani."