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Graphic Literature

From “Rébétiko (la mauvaise herbe)”

By David Prudhomme
Translated from French by Edward Gauvin
MARKOS VAMVAKARIS !

STOW THE BAGLAMAS !

THERE YOU ARE !

WARDEN WANTS YOU IN HIS OFFICE RIGHT AWAY !

COMING , SIR , COMING .

LITTLE BREAK WAS WORTH IT . RIGHT ?

WASN'T BAD

TIME TO SHAKE A LEG!
Mate!

TONIGHT I KISSED AMONG THE VINES

TWO TALL GIRLS WITH GREAT BLACK EYES

TODAY AT NOON AMONG THE VINES

I KISSED SOMEBODY ELSE'S Wife

OHTHIS YEAR

THIS

YEAR

THE SALAD WILL BE SWEET

AN OLIVE

Α ΤΟΜΑΤΟ

KERKRKRI KRI

THOUGHT IT WAS THE COPS FOR A SEC BUT THOSE SCREECHY VOICES GAVE YOU AWAY , GUYS !

DOG'S NOT WITH YOU ?

NO LYRE ?

DOG'S STUCK BETWEEN A CHAIR AND A HOOKAH Hee Hee Hee

YOU NAILED HIS VOICE ! FINE BY Me !

AS FOR MY LYRE - HAD THE BRIGHT IDEA NOT TO BRING IT . THEN I GOT INTO A FIGHT !

WELL ! LET'S GO GET MARKOS !

SING IT'LL G0 FASTER .
SIT DOWN . MARKOS .

WELL . WARDEN ?

UH .

YOU GET RELEASED TODAY . MARKOS .

I KEPT A BOUZOUKI SAFE . YOU'LL SING ME ONE LAST REBETIKO , OKAY ?

HOW MUCH TIME HAVE YOU SPENT INSIDE ? SIX MONTHS , RIGHT ?

LOTS OF THINGS HAVE CHANGED OUTSIDE YOU'LL SEE - EH ? WHAT'S THAT . SOUND ?
PROBABLY YOUR FRIENDS COME TO WAIT FOR YOU . How BRAVE !

YOU KNOW WHO GENERAL METAXAS is ?

HE DEGREED MARTIAL LAW AFTER THE COMMUNIST STRIKES ON AUGUST 4TH HE TOOK POWER . AND MADE THIS COUNTRY A DICTATORSHIP

He's A FASCIST , YOU KNOW . ONE OF THOSE MEN WHO LIKE WHAT HITLER'S UP TO IN GERMANY , MUSSOLINI IN ITALY . AND FRANCO IN SPAIN .

THAT WHOLE GANG

METAXAS CONDEMNS THE WEAKENED MORALS OF OUR SO - CALLED DECADENT SOCIETY .....

HIS PROPAGANDA POINTS OUT THOSE GUILTY OF THIS ALLEGED IMMORALITY .

AND ATTRIBUTES IT TO THE ORIENTAL IN US. ALL SAYS HE WILL RID GREECE OF ALL TURKISH INFLUENCE

DO YOU REALIZE WHAT THIS MEANS ? NO . ME NEITHER. THERE'S BEEN ORIENT MIXED UP IN US FOREVER .

OUR ORIGINS ARE INTERMINGLED

BUT AS YOU WELL KNOW . REBETIS , YOU ARE ALL SYMBOLS .

YOU'LL BE HIS FIRST TARGETS . IDEAL SCAPEGOATS .

NO ONE WILL Miss YOU .

YOU AND YOUR SMUGGLING YOU . THE VOICE OF THE TURKISH (?)
OH!

(?)

RUN !

GUILTY OF UNITING EAST AND WEST IN HYPNOTIC SONG .

You EVEN CALL YOURSELVES DERVISHES !

YOUR MUSIC RINGS OUT LIKE THE ACH OF THE GREAT CATASTROPHE 1922

INTOLERABLE . FOR THE FASCISTS

THAT SUCH DEFEAT SHOULD GIVE BIRTH

.... TO A SONG !

MY POOR BOUZOUKI

THEY WISH TO SETTLE ACCOUNTS FOR THIS FAILURE .

SO THEY START BY STIFLING A SONG


* The Greeks lost Smyrna and the illusion of a great empire sebors . After this bitter defeat , 1.5 million Orthodox Creek Chints who had lived in Turkey for generations had to emigrate to Conece and lived there in miserable conditions . The slums at the gates of the great cites housed skillful musicians from Turkey whose styles melded with that of ancients from Piraeus . Rebetiko was born
STOP ! STOP !

THE PRE KNEELING BY THE ONE MY BOUZOUKI KNOCKED OUT .

MY POOR BOUZOUKI ...

BEHIND You !

MY BOUZO

MOURN LATER . FOR NOW , RUN ! AH , HILL !

THEY'RE BACK ! Let's SCRAM
THEY'RE SHUTTING DOWN THE Tekes ONE BY ONE , USING FIGHTS AS AN EXCUSE BANNING SONGS ABOUT DRUGS AND CRIME .

EVERY WHERE THY DENGRATE REBETIKA SAV NEW IT'S MELODies TWIST AND WIND

SAP AND WEAKEN WHAT'S MORE OWNING A SOUZOUKI OR A BABLAMASIS ILLEGAL COPS SMASH THEM . WESTWARD WE DRIFT !

IT SEEMS IDIOTIC IN THIS LAND . THE CRADLE OF DEMOCRACY . BUT

DIONYSUS IS LONG DEAD

AND THE PEOPLE ACCEPT iT

DON'T KID YOURSELF IT'LL BE A BLOODY SUPPRESSION , Like A BLOW FROM A CUDGEL .

YOU'RE ONE OF THE BEST .

YOU'LL BE A HANDSOME PRIZE .

FLEE ATHENS . OR YOUR MUSIC WILL LAND YOU BACK HERE !

SAH ALL POWER IS A DISASTER

YOU WANT M TO PLAY OR NOT ?

YES : PLAY ME " SOUZOUKI , JOY OF THE WORLD "

SPLIT UP !

мест UP AT MARKOS

TOO DAN OUROUS

HA HA LOST " al

MY BAUENKI

OH , MY LUNGS ARE FIT TO BURSTI

AND MY FEET JELLY LET'S GO TO MY STORE . I'LL FIND YOU A BOUZOUKI
YOU THINK ARTIMIS GOT AWAY ?

WHAT A STUPID . QUESTION www .


CAN'T THINK ANYMORE MY BRAIN is being SQUEEZED BY THESE GOD DAMN
shoes !

OF CHRIST

TORTURE'S OVER !

HEY STAVROS HOW ABOUT A STICK ?

I've SUFFERED ENOUGH , SNEAKING THEM AROUND IN REALS I DESERVE

AH SMUGGLING, WHAT A SPORT

LET'S SEE.. A HANDSOME ONE FOR YOU

NOT BAD . EH?

FOOT TASTE

MAKE DO HERE TRY THIS ONE
IT ALONE WILL MAKE YOU FORGET THE OTHER ONE .

A GEM . CH ?

YeAll

YOU'LL SHINE TONIGHT !

YOUR FINGERS WILL FLY OVER iT ! THEY'LL FIND THEIR WAY THEMSELVES

CATCHI

DON'T HAVE THE SCRATCH FOR SUCH STYLE .

CH ? I'M GIVING IT TO YOU , BUDDY

ZERO !

GRATIS !

[ FREE !

THIS BOUZOUKIS VOICE

WILL AVENE US IN THE COPS THE JERKS PUR MISURY .

AND IF YOU MANAGE TO SEDUCE THE SINGER FROM CAFE AMANI INVITED TO JOIN US TONIGHT WITH IT

YOU ASKED HER ? WILL

SHE SURE IS PRETTY , CHP OLD SCOUNDREL

PRETTY ? OH , PAL

TAKE THE BOUZOUKI

From Rébétiko (la mauvaise herbe). Published 2009 by Futuropolis. Copyright 2009 by Futuropolis. By arrangement with the publisher. Rights arranged through Nicolas Grivel for the Sylvain Coissard Agency, France. Translation copyright 2011 by Edward Gauvin. All rights reserved.

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