Steven Wagner - Stevan Vagner, Podrum COLLEGIUM MELODIUM, World music museum in Belgrade, PEDJA and LJUBICA JOVICEVIC, present The Fabulous song * MARINA * from Rocco Granata (born 16 August 1938) a Belgian singer, songwriter, and accordionist. <br />Granata was born in Figline Vegliaturo, Calabria, southern Italy; but his parents immigrated to Belgium when he was aged ten. Rocco's father was a coal miner, but Granata pursued music instead. He played accordion and toured Belgium with his band, 'The International Quintet'. He then released the songs "Manuela" / "Marina" as a single in 1959; the B-side became an international hit, reaching #1 in Belgium and in Germany as well as charting across Europe and in the United States. It sold over one million copies in Germany alone, and was awarded a gold disc. It has been covered many times by artists such as Marino Marini, Ilham al-Madfai, Dalida and Louis Armstrong. <br />After the success of "Marina", Granata toured the world, including dates at Carnegie Hall. A feature film entitled Marina was released in 1960, which set the stage for a string of German hits. He also appeared in Italy at the Sanremo Festival in 1961. <br />Granata later became a successful record producer. He owned the record labels Cardinal Records and Granata Records, and has produced Marva, Louis Neefs, Miel Cools, and De Elegasten. <br />In 1989, Granata commissioned a dance remix of "Marina", which again topped the Belgian charts as well as those of Italy and Germany. He has appeared regularly on Belgian television, and served as a jury member for the 2002 Flemish preliminaries for the Eurovision Song Contest. In March 2000 he was awarded the ZAMU Lifetime Achievement Award by the Belgian music industry. <br />Granata has released some 65 albums over the course of his career. <br />In 2013 his early life was captured in another movie named 'Marina'
