Jakša Fiamengo, the man responsible for writing the lyrics to more than 60 songs for Oliver Dragojević, passed away on Thursday.
At 73, exactly five months after the death of the legendary Oliver Dragojević, Jakša Fiamengo, the lyricist of many unforgettable Oliver hits, has died in Split, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on December 27, 2018.
Fiamengo was known as one of the last pillars of Dalmatian poetry and a composer of chansons. He was a journalist, a poet, and an academician.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=p-tux8rkphI
Born in Komiža in 1946, Fiamengo lived in Split where he wrote for the cultural section of Slobodna Dalmacija. His poetry and other texts have been published in magazines and journals since 1966. He was the editor of Vidik, and the editor of the Contemporary Writers’ Library. Among his many awards is the Porin for Lifetime Achievement.
Fiamengo published fifteen books of poems, and also participated in the creation of a series of poetry and art maps.
From the end of the 1970s, his poetry was transformed into songs, and Jakša Fiamengo became an indispensable individual to Dalmatian chansons and the klapa scene, especially at the festivals in Split and Omiš, for which he received fifty awards.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=wGs4EATVS6g
Jakša’s songs will always be a part of the Dalmatian soul, most of which were set to the music of Zdenko Runjić and sung by Oliver Dragojević.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=ZFhCQplOJnQ
Here are just a few you may know: Karoca, Ništa nova, Evo mene među moje, Rojena valo, Piva klapa ispo volta, Dubrovačka jesen, A vitar puše, Laku noć Luigi, laku noć Bepina, Sutra će te ponit, Nokturno, Anđele moj, Nadalina, Luce mala, Infiša san u te, Lastavica, Ostavljam te samu, U prolazu, and many more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=ChsYpakzYP4
Fiamengo wrote over 60 songs for Oliver, and claims he wrote the verses imagining how Oliver would sing them.
After Oliver’s passing, Fiamengo was asked if he could pick one of the favorite songs he had written for Oliver.
“It is Karoca. Karoca is a song that describes both his, and mine, and yours and everybody’s life. A Koraca is a carriage which hurts and no one knows where to stop, and we’re just in it, just passing by time. I’m glad I spent that time with him,” Jakša said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=-WMkUJn3pxo
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