One of Lithuania's allegedly most eligible bachelors has just performed the impressive feat of going platinum for his recently released album "Pasveikinkit vieni kitus" (Greeting Each Other).
While Marijonas could clearly benefit from a better album cover designer (yes, that's a reindeer in the background), it seems that he can do no wrong to his army of Lithuanian fans. "Pasveikinkit vieni kitus," which is Marijonas' debut album, has just cleared the 20,000 sales mark, which is no easy thing in a country with notoriously poor CD sales. The album contains 17 songs, which were all recorded over the last 10 years. In addition to some of Marijonas' most popular solo songs, there are also duets with Lithuanian jazz stars and pieces from rock operas. The album also includes two versions of the de facto national basketball anthem "Trys milijonai" (Three million), so the sudden surge in sales hardly comes as a surprise. Marijonas wrote "Trys milijonai" four years ago as the official song for the Sydney Olympic Games and ever since then it has become a hugely popular sports' anthem. Every time this basketball-obsessed nation wins a game, thousands of fans raise their hands and sing the refrain: "Don't agonize over a medal." How very prophetic when you consider the misery the country endured after crashing out of the Athens Olympics this summer.
