A Cure for the Blues, in Greece and Britain; Miroloi

Feeling down in the dumps (almost literally) about the situation on Corfu, in Greece and in the UK - and for other reasons- I am reminded of something I wrote in an article for The Anglo-Hellenic Review (Spring 2006) and in my book, Corfu Blues (Ars Interpres, 2006, page 191):

"So play me a miroloi (lament) of exile and infinite sadness, of that deep lonely yearning for a distant home and much-missed loved ones. Let the sound of the clarinet rise and fall as the player improvises a taximi-theme like a shepherd playing to settle his flocks - and his own soul- as night falls on the mountains!"

The passage was also quoted in this beautifully-edited book, "Greece, Senses and Sensitivity, a photographic journey alongside poets and travellers":

PS Bessie Smith was down in the dumps for other reasons.