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ROCCO GRANATA

Son of Italian immigrants in Belgium, Rocco Granata didn't want to go to work in the mine-pits but prefers making music with his friends. They tour the province with sentimental Italian songs and cheerful accordion-music The success-number is "Manuela". When a dance-club owner suddenly gives Rocco the chance to record on vinyl, he hastily pens down a song : "Marina".

 
Songs
 

"Marina"
71,0 sec. - 139 Kb.
song : Rocco Granata
Year : 1959
Procuded : Rocco Granata
Record co. : Granata Music

"Marina 120 BPM"
49,7 sec. - 98 Kb.
song : Rocco Granata
Produced : Serge Ramaekers.
Year : 1989
Record co. : Cardinal Records

 
   
 

40 years later the balance stands at more than 100,000,000 copies of that song sold at the counter of the music stores. The song has become an "evergreen". About a thousand artists have made a cover-version (among who are the likes of Dalida and Louis Armstrong).

In 1989 he lets Serge Ramaekers (the Dee-jay of the Club Confetti's and the man behind the new-beat band with the same name) make a remix of his "Marina". The successful new-beat producer takes it all the way to number 1 in Belgium again, over 30 years after the original. The remixed song also becomes a monster-hit again in Italy (12 weeks on the n° 1 spot) and Germany (over 2.000.000 copies sold).

Although he has continued to make music ever since and has sold many copies of his other songs (altogether he made it 9 times to the top 10 of the Belgian hitparades), the enormity of the success of "Marina" basically has reduced Rocco to a "one-hit wonder".

 

Rocco Granata also became a well-established music producer. He had his own record labels (Cardinal Records and Granata Records) and did music productions for the likes of Marva, Louis Neefs, Miel Cools, De Elegasten ...). In the book "Big in Belgium" by Jan Delvaux it is even revealed that Rocco Granata discovered the talent of Sarah Bettens : Rocco's daughter was a friend of Sarah and let her father listen to a tape. Rocco heard it, smelled the talent and brought her to Double T-music. From there on, Sarah would start with K's Choice.

Rocco Granata still performs and records to this day, and is a often seen guest on the Flemish TV. In 1998 he even got quite a bit of media-attention with a special Christmas-show which he did at the Ancienne Belgique.

In March 2000, Rocco Granata received the "Zamu Lifetime Achievement Award" (from the belgian music industry) for his entire career (a title he shares with Will Tura, Wannes Vandevelde, Roland, Toots Thielemans & Arno). Later on in the same year, his "Marina" was honoured in the "eregallerij van het Vlaamse lied", where he found himself again in the company of Tura & Toots, and also of La Esterella and Bobbejaan Schoepen.

Hitsingles in Belgium (source : Robert Collin "Het Belgisch Hitboek 1959-1989) :
- Marina (1959, hoogste : 1, 10 maanden)
- Oh oh Rosi (1959, hoogste : 20, 1 maand)
- La bella (1960, hoogste : 4, 4 maanden)
- Julia / Rocco cha cha (1960, hoogste : 14, 2 maanden)
- Germanina (1960, hoogste : 16, 2 maanden)
- Carolina dai (1961, hoogste : 11, 2 maanden)
- Sunday box EP (1961, hoogste : 17, 1 maand)
- Buona notte bambina (1963, hoogste : 4, 4 maanden)
- Du schwarzer zigeuner (1964, hoogste : 5, 3 maanden)
- Dreh' dich noch einmal um (1964, hoogste : 10, 2 maanden)
- Molte grazie (1964, hoogste : 12, 1 maand)
- Noordzeestrand (1964, hoogste : 9, 4 maanden)
- Melancholie (1965, hoogste : 18, 1 maand)
- Hello buona sera (1967, hoogste : 3, 13 weken)
- Sarah (1970, hoogste : 4, 11 weken)
- Jessica (1971, hoogste : 5, 15 weken)
- Zomersproetjes (1972, hoogste : 4, 9 weken)
- Dansen op de daken (1973, hoogste : 19, 1 week)
- Marina 120 BPM (1989, hoogste : 1, 14 weken)

Buy CD's of this band at proxis

Albums :
- ...
- La Fotografia / Italian Classics (2CD met Best of + nieuwe songs in het Italiaans, Go!Music, 1999)

Websites :
- lyrics & tab of"Marina"
- Rocco's programme"Buena Sera" with which he toured in 1999.
- a short interview with"Wablieft" (dutch)

Forum :
- Read the messages/questions about Rocco Granata
- Add your message, question, cd- or concertreview ... about Rocco Granata

 

   
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