SOME WORDS ABOUT OUR STORY. HOW WE BEGAN.

by JOHNNY STAX. ( John Fragoulis )

Sorry for my bad English. This happens because.... ahmmm.... because i don't speak it so well.

To see a dream it is very common, almost all people on this planet can see dreams.

But to select which of your dreams it worth for you to make it to be a... real reality, THIS is the real difficulty. It is good to be a dreamer, but first we must to step well on the ground of this planet. If we want to fly on the skies, we must to dress a flying machine on our shoulder, except if we believe that all of us we are the "Superman". Sure in the final we shall "eat" dust and ground.

So, i had a dream.

Not to be a Famous, not to be a POP Star, not to be any God for anybody. Just to write lyrics and music, my own style music that it comes through my soul. To show my very deep feelings about humanity and freedom and to change the blind way of people's thinking. This is not the real life. The real life is this that we have in our deep mind. But we do not dare to believe in it, or to our power.

And because i am a Greek and Greece is the land of philosophy, let me try to show you the answer of my words that you read in the above lines, using my own philosophy. The same kind of philosophy I use in my songs:

"UTOPIA" no means just "NO-PLACE", namely Place Nonexistent, but a great "NO", this one that you say all day to yourself, so you cannot create the site. (the place)

UTOPIA, is not what do not exists, but this what YOU do not let it be. Because somebody said you that you cannot to do. Do you know what in reality happened??? He/She taught you that you cannot to do this that they cannot to do. And they forced you to believe it. And you did it. There will be never Prosperity, if you do not believe in the power of your voice, your willpower, the strength of justice that has native "Greece". Because the translation of the word "Greece", is: "Land of the Light". (Hellas)

I just gave you a little bit of the thoughts that gave me the power to do what I have done and to create what i have created. I believed in me. I did nod needed any kind of God or any kind of religion to teach me what I have to "NOT to DO". So, looking myself in the mirror, I saw and I knew what "I HAVE TO DO".

I had to teach and to be taught. So, I created students to... teach me. Students to teach their teacher. Isn't that fool??? Yes, it is fool. But only fool people like me they can to survive on this “real fool planet”.

I grew up in a closed family who they tried to remain faithful to their traditions. Someday I escaped. Because it was looking like a jail with irons of glass and I was desperately needed to break those glass irons, to free all of us, to show to them that if in this life you’ll don’t do what you like to do, this means that someone haves you prisoner-jailed of your own approval. That is a great stupidity. And then, I started to be a Rebel.

And a summer, an after midnight hour, on my bed in my veranda:

“…What all those F@%#%ing singers they sing all those years? “I love you, I love you, I love you….”.

I hate it. Until now, NOBODY has sung: “MAYBE I love you”. That’s a good idea. I’ll do it”.

And I did it. Yes, I did it. I wrote the lyrics on my bed, in almost 15 minutes. And then, I said to myself: “And now, just for the history, I want to try to know how is the feeling to be a POP Star. I will be a POP Star for some months”.

And in a land that POP music it was mocked of the majority of the population, and for a Pop - Rock musician to make a music record (from Vinyl) it was looking like an untouchable dream, let alone to be a famous POP Star, I took those 2 dreams, I connected it in only one, and I catch the reality.

Next day I found some friends, musicians, and I said to them: “Hey guys, I have a song and I will pay the expenses of the studio. Let’s go to record it and I believe that this song it will be our ticket to paradise. We shall make a record to Music Box record’s company”. They didn’t believed me, they laugh but they agree to come in a studio to record the song. I gave the melody to them and we started the recording.

In 2 days, yes, in 2 only days (normally 6-7 studio hours) the song it was ready and remixed. Nikitas, our guitarist has put his soul in the song. Only some small parts it was for guitar, but he did it to appear like the best of sweets. I recorded it in a tape, we started to go in the recording company for approval of our song and when we were standing out of the company’s door I was saying: “And now guys, look how we shall catch the Taurus from its balls. Are you ready to be in Pop Star’s life???”

They laugh again, doing their black jokes: “John please stop to be a stupid. We are coming with you inside to the office, only for you, so when you’ll be ridiculous, to have a company to not feel alone. Shut up and come inside to the office”.

IN THE OFFICE OF MUSIC BOX LABEL:

“….I said you, we cannot to hear your song right now because we have an audition’s meeting”.

--- “Ok, we also have a meeting, but with.... DESTINY. So, you’ll hear the song right here, right now, because your secretary said to us to come today and not any other day, so we shall not lost our day”.

--- “How do you dare to speak like that to........”

--- “I dare to speak like that, because we are "CAMOUFLAGE", because WE ARE NOT like those common musicians or music composers that right now you hear their tapes, and because, and first of all, WE ARE YOUR MONEY of your pocket and you need us. Other way, as I told you, right here right now, we shall depart to give our song, your beloved money, to your most evil competitor. The CBS records company”.

--- “You are so cheeky-audacious. Put the cassette in the tape machine”.

Then I inserted the cassette in the tape machine, (as you remember we had not the CD technology in 1986) I pumped up the volume, departed, giving my card with my phone to the owner, saying: “Thanks for the show. Call me tomorrow when it meets from what you’ll hear”.

We closed the door of the office, stunned leaving 9 men inside, hearing our music ready to break their windows because of the volume's loudness and we departed laughing.

“---Oh, fuck you John, now we have not any hope for success. You did it Higgledy – Piggledy”.

--- “Don’t worry, tomorrow is a bright day. The members of the office they will be asleep tonight.

Just trust me”.

And the…. “tomorrow” it came. The phone of my home rings:

“Who the fuck are you??? You did so much noise and then you departed leaving 9 people alone in the office in nonstop dancing??? Brake and bring your… asshole and come here with your band to sign the music contract to our Label. We shall make Europe to talk only for your band. Your song it will be a Hit from the first week…… etc, etc, etc”.

After some minutes I transferred the good news in my band. They didn’t believed, thinking that I am kidding to them. But when we came again to the Music Box Label, they believed it, having on their mouth an expression of an unbelievable miracle. Something like: “AAA??? AAA???”

But the owner of "Music Box" Label he was a.... liar.

We didn’t become a Hit from the first week of the publication of our record.

We become a Hit, just….. 2 weeks BEFORE the record to be published to the stores. All the radio stations they play our song many times daily.

The POP STAR’s NIGHTMARE HAS JUST BEGAN.

THE BEGINNING. ( also a short fan’s story )

In “Music Box” Label they were so excited about us. Sure they had many successful musicians, but nobody has our music style, nobody has our way of thinking the melodies. They simply stepping onto the old musical footsteps of other foreign musicians and they didn’t dared to make their own originality in their music.

For all the parties and fiestas or for anything, the owners of Discotheques they were just calling to Music Box Label for asking our band to play in their Disco’s. It was not only a miracle for us, but something more than a miracle. We had drop down from the Top, the most “expensive” bands and solo musicians. Almost once or twice a week we had to appear somewhere. The last of 1986 and all the year of 1987 was belonged to us. It was an untouchable world for us but now we were living into it. I remember some friends when they saw in our gig 5.700 fans in 15 February 1987, to say me when I came down of the stage:

“---Oh…. F#&%ck… I don’t believed it. People screaming for you, like you were a POP Star. “Camouflage – Camouflage”. Hear them…. watch… hear. I still can’t believe it. I had Pop Star friends but I didn’t knew it ???

“---But, my friend, (I answered to him) WE ARE Pop Stars, because WE BELIEVED in it. And you didn’t knew it because we are simple people, we do not use to act like fools to pay the attention of TV or Music Magazines on our faces. This what it have to be loved is the music, lyrics and the feeling what our music gives. Not our faces. Music is forever young and lives in eternity, but our faces will change. Everything is a dream. If you can make your dream to be a reality, you shall be the “driver” of it and only YOU can drive it. If you’ll leave the dream to drives you, certainly you will have not a good ending.

“---John… are you a philosopher? You has not show me something like that before. You surprised me”.

“---No, I don’t think that I’m a philosopher, I am just a “Dream’s Fighter”. I shall proof it to you right now. Look around of you, look at all of them. They are still screaming for us. In 5-10 minutes I have to come up to the stage again. If you’ll be standing right here and have a good view, you’ll see my dream. All those people are my own “dream”. I am out of it but I can see them all. But they don’t know that I am out, they are thinking that I am in it. Normally, “THEY” are living in a dream, and they need an IDOL to worship. So, now because I am an idol, this means that I am a God too. It is up to my hands, to be a good or a bad God for all those fans. If I shall use nice and “deep meaning” lyrics, I’ll sure change their way of life to better. If I’ll use dark lyrics, I will kill their inner world. I came into their dream to teach them, so when they shall wake up to be ready for the real life. Do you see that beautiful girl in this corner that she is secretly looking at me like she hates me? Watch her. Do you know what happened before 40 minutes?

I was dressed my tie costume, I saw her and I dared to talk to her. She rejected me like I was a tramp.

In the first break of the gig, that I was dressed with different clothes, these that right now you see on me, my black beret, black glasses, blue scarf, etc. She didn’t know my face, she didn’t know that me I was the man who was trying to talk to her before some minutes and she rejected him.

She came straight to me, kissing me and giving me this secret love letter. This is. Read it.

(And the letter it wrote: I am in love with you from the first time I heard your song and saw you in TV.

I’ve buy the movie that you play in the beginning, watching it almost all the day. I’m waiting you in the…. toilet. This is my phone number, call me anyway ).

“---Do you know what I did??? I was also rejected her. I ripped her letter front of her eyes, I put out my black beret and the black glasses and I said to her that I am the man who before some minutes he was trying to talk to her. That’s why my dear friend I prefer to be dressed with this kind of artistic clothes, even if I appear like a clown, but I’ll have my personality in peace. That's why i also use a different, a fault name than my real name. If someone wants me, must to want me for this what I am and not for this what I show that I am. Her dream it was to make sex with a famous musician. What me I did? I just wake up her, nothing more or nothing less. Because as I told you, I am standing on my window watching the way of my dream goes, I am its driver and I know when to press its brakes or when to turn its steering. And this POP STAR’s life, it is not the real life, it is Fake. It is a very dark dream for those who they do not know the way to drive it. You cannot to come into a car without brakes when you are also informed about it.

THE.... END

In the last of 1986, beginning of 1987, our record it was No.1 in radio ratings and also No.1 in the Greek TOP 10. We had to say to ourselves that we won the most powerful music monsters of 80’s.

Even for only 1 or 2 months. But we did it. Someday, a fan from our Fan Club of Czechoslovakia informed us that we are No.4 there in radio’s ratings. Some other times somebody confused our band’s name with the same named band of Germany. But our name it was randomly in luck the same, we didn’t know about that band of Germany yet.

( In 2011 a friend Dj informed me that our record it was also in Germany’s TOP 10 in 1987, the TOP 10 of discotheque’s songs list, but until 2011 we didn’t have any idea about it. I found this info in luck, when I saw in internet someone who has posted the cover of our record, writing in this post:

“Hooray !!!! A Greek Electro POP band F@#%cks the Germany’s Top 10 in Discos”. )

This made me understand that we were something different and unusual for GREEK music data.

I knew, we were good, but I did not expect such great acceptance by the people. And then I felt scary, saying to myself:

“Oh, my God, I would to create a famous song but I created a monster”.

Something “Bad” happened in our band but we kept it away of people.

A member he was very “high nose” he never came again to studio to record our new songs, because he was busy with his…. “girlfriends”. As we understood later, he plays to our band only to have women around of his. Do not care about creation, do not care for anything except…. pussy. (sorry, but THIS is exactly the real word).

I don’t use his name here, but sure I have not include him in our Band’s Reunion of 2013.

In the final of 1987 we had to be again to studio to record 8 songs this time, because our first record it was a Maxi Single and not a LP. Our contract with “Music Box” Label should ended in three months.

We were begging him to come in the studio but he was veeeeery busy. We could not to throw him out of the band, because of the contract. We had to wait 3 months until the contract to be ended.

Then, we should find another. And that was the difficulty, to find someone and to say to him what you want from him to play. We found someone, we said to him what exactly to play because WE were the band and only WE know about our personal style. He didn’t like to follow our suggestions and he did what he like to do. I said that this style of sound that he uses and the style of the rhythmic chords are not for our own people, also is negative for our personal sound too. He continue to not follow our suggestions. He was acting like the band belonged to his. All of us, except that idiot, we knew that the end is coming. Our backup musician he was a soldier until more of nine months and we couldn’t use him. So, we started to go and give the new Demo songs, only 2 songs this time, in the Label. We shouldn’t waiting to be any miracle this time, because the miracles becomes true just only when you believe in these. And in this particular miracle, we didn’t believed. We knew, we are going straight to our death. Because of an old idiot and a new idiot.

We felt very lucky because the owner of “Music Box” has retired and another was on his chair.

And also lucky because we delayed ONE MONTH of our music contract and it has finished.

So, the new owner said that they cannot to renew the contract because they have stopped to accept POP bands, they promote only traditional music, and because if we were in the Label even one only week earlier before our contract finish, we should have make this record.

Because the contract is a “Law Paper” and on to this paper it is written that we can do 2 records in one year. I was feeling like a happy crazy.

I was feeling happy because…. I should not make one more record. YeeeeeHaaaaa !!!! I’m a fool.

We throw that new idiot musician veeeeery far away of us and we found 2 very good foreign musicians.

But this time we did not recorded anything in any studio. We just did European gigs, only gigs, very successful gigs. For 2 years we did only this. Until the day that we decided to make a contract with a foreign recording company who they liked us.

So, the 2 new members they were one from Germany and one from America. They started to go to Germany to buy new music electronic stuff, they stay there for 2 weeks and then they…. died in a car’s accident sliding on the snow, falling on a wall at night time.

After then, CAMOUFLAGE band was decided to stop of playing music.

For years, more than 15 years, we didn’t touch our instruments. Because of the memory of that fatal accident of our new and so happy members. And also because no one of Greek music magazines wrote about this black event of us. NO ONE FUCKING MUSIC GREEK MAGAZINE !!!!!!

They only liked to write about the pussy of……… let’s stop here because my words will be very HOT.

Each one of us, continued our life keeping only memories, nothing else.

We didn’t try to meet each other for almost 17 years. Because we knew it very well that we shall start to cry and sometimes the results of a soul’s cry are not so…. white and bright.

And you know,… we are men. And a man’s cry it is very painful.

That was only a little bit of our story, so now you can have an idea.

I have to thank our beloved fans that they supported us from 1986-1992 and they did not stopped to remember us. Thank you again, because without you, we should not have put our DOT on the wall of fame. You were our pencil to write our names, but normally YOU are the one who make us to write your own names on that wall of fame. And this wall writes on:

“ FROM HERE IT CAME THE GREEK GENERATION OF ELECTRONIC POP OF 80’s !!!! ”

* CAMOUFLAGE *

* THE REUNION OF THE BAND in 2013 *

By clicking on this papyrus button, it refers to more info about this article.

Maybe you will be surprised about what can be happens in a human’s life, a simple thing in a simple and common day just because of a simple internet’s searching and a fault typed letter on YouTube. For this story, just click on the button on the left after the reading of this article.

In summer of 2010, due the economic crisis, I mean…. due the FAKE economic crisis in Greece, because our robbers and gangsters politicians (the best word is: Family Killers) I met a member of the band in the concentration of indignant Greek citizens in Athens. We were more than 150.000 people but the destiny is unpredictable. We were near each other scaring of the sudden surprise at first glance after so many years, but then we began the hugs and the shouts of joy. Some people they were so surprised looking at us, so they stopped for a little to blaspheme our president and they wonder: “What the fucking hell it happens here???”

But… no. The only fucking here, it was our beloved president, “George Fucking Papandreou”.

Just watch the music video here and you will understand everything:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkGojA_yiQw

Shortly after, our…. veeeery beloved president escaped for one more time with a Helicopter from the Congress, so we decided to go for a coffee to talk about our lives, how it was all those lost years that we didn’t met each other. Next day we phoned to the other 2 members of the band and we had a meeting in my recording studio. ( That is one more of my dreams that I did it to be a reality. )

This time we didn’t lose our communication, we met each other very often until the final of 2012 but we had try to play music only twice. And this, only into my studio.

November 2012 I show to them my new personal compositions, as a surprise. They didn’t believed in their ears, saying:

“---If we had those songs in our music years, now the whole planet should talk about our band. They are very diachronic”. And I answered:

“---I had those songs earlier than our years. I was ready to start it with you, but you know the happenings with that idiot “*****” and I stored them in the drawer without to have any power to touch it again. And suddenly a day it happened something to me, it liberated my soul and all my feelings. I was feeling like an alive-dead, I resurrected and start to compose, play and write music again. I was feeling like a newborn child.

Then I started to explain the story that you will read by clicking the appropriate button and I asked to them:

“---Do you have the power to play music together again? To make people of all the ages to dance like a crazy on our beats like before? To give them our own beats, our personal lyrics and melodies and to do the world to be again Higgledy – Piggledy???

“---But… John…. We don’t like to do anything in Greece. This land eats her children. We cannot to create anything here, only abroad”.

“---Yes, you are right. The creation here in Greece it looks like a criminal offence and if the creator cannot to create he will die. We shall not do anything here. We shall do it abroad. To Philippines.

As you know, my wife she is a Filipina. I have start to ask for a buyer for my house, I sale it, and I shall emigrate to Philippines. To there, I shall use the money that I will gain selling this home, to build another in 600 sq.m. Lot, also 2 floors with each floor 200 sq.m. Downstairs it will be the recording studio.

Do you like to participate? The music that we play in 80’s – 90’s, they play it right now, but we still have better melodies and beats. If you want to come, I’ll be waiting for all of you there.

And the answer it was:

“---Before some years we trusted a crazy man who said to us: “Let’s go to be Pop Stars right here right now”. And we became. So dear John, let’s try it for one more time, but I don’t think that this time we want to be Pop Stars again. Just to play and enjoy with people. Let’s try it. With you, we will even go to the edge of the world. And the world belongs to “serious” fool people. I think we are something like that.

We started to record the guitars, synthesizers and everything that the songs were needed, we fixed the sound in some music parts and now we are ready for a new beginning.

The only that we are waiting is my move in Philippines in 2013. After then, we shall give our songs to a good and very well known Philippine music Label and we shall start the gigs to whole Asia, sure beginning from Philippines.

We also decided to include in our steady members of the band, 2 or 3 good looking and good voiced Filipinas, age 19-29, as first vocalists/singers in co-operation with our singer.

The girls it is also necessary to know a little bit about dancing, just for the music show.

We are still seeking for them. If anybody knows, let’s inform me in the above email. More info you’ll find In the button to the left: “Wanted Philippine Singers”.

Also one more keyboardist should have be useful if…… etc, etc, etc.

We are waiting for you, to move the earth with our beats.

CAMOUFLAGE  ----  January 2013.

Follow @johnnystax        Tweet