Weekend

Petr & Pavel ORM - Víkend [sample]
from album "Discofil", 1979, Panton 81130080
produced by ORM & Svatoslav Rychlý


original LP sleeve

Petr & Pavel Orm are by no means brothers. The keyboarder and the guitarist are known as Petr Dvořák and Pavel Růžička, respectively. Originally they were members of the Jan Václavík orchestra, a.k.a. Golem, who used to back the controversial pop singer Josef Laufer, among others. In the late seventies the multi-instrumental duo started to record for the Panton label as ORM.

Their first album Discofil (The Discophile) is a compactly sounding collection of twelve rather short disco tracks. Some of them are pretty cheesy, usually the vocal ones. Others may even come quite funky when lots of Fender Rhodes piano was used, like in Peklo and Riviera. The tracks are not overproduced, only seven of them were recorded with the help from Golem drummer Vladimír Grunt (ex-Atlantis) and the Framus 5 bass player Michal Bláha. An uncredited female choir appears here and there, too. The credits mention the use of an "ORM rytmic computer", what ever that was; Czechs are quite known for their creative home-made inventions. The influence of European electro-disco becomes clear by inclusion of the only cover version, Magic Fly by Space, which is neither much better nor much worse than the original (depending on your actual opinion on the original in the first place).

In the eighties ORM were the team behind the popular female disco duo Kamélie, producing synth-pop crap en masse. But in any case they definitely belong to the pioneers of electronic pop music in Czechoslovakia, along with Alexander Goldscheider (a.k.a. Odysseus) and Alojz Bouda.

By the way, Víkend is a Czech word that has been adopted directly from the English language and means, you guessed it, "weekend". Have a nice one...

A day in the life

Peter Lipa & the Blues Five - A Day In The Life [sample]
from compilation "Beatová horúčka 1965-70", 1989, Opus 90132113


original 1989 compilation LP sleeve

Last November I've promised you another track from the Slovak compilation Beatová horúčka 1965-70 (Beat Fever) and here it is. A well known Beatles song that originally closes their Sgt. Pepper album; yes, the one with the never ending final chord.

Now, on to the Blues Five version from 1969. It seems that obviously everyone else who has ever covered this song - including such experienced funksters like War, Brian Auger or Peter Herbolzheimer - didn't dare to go too far beyond the original psychedelic arrangement, let alone the given chord progressions. On the other hand, Peter Lipa and his gang turned the song upside down and all around, digging so much funk out of the Blackburn, Lancashire potholes that you could not only fill the Royal Albert Hall with it, but the Gherkin as well. From the first crispy snare hit on, the song keeps on rolling, the Hammond keeps on boiling and Lipa is singing his ass off. Interestingly, according to an online interview with Lipa (in Polish!) they were actually reworking a Wes Montgomery version, while another source (a Slovak article by Fedor Frešo about Marián Varga) points out that it was only a "rip-off" of Brian Auger's live arrangement he played on his Slovakia gig in 1968... Whose nose, as my wife would say.

Whatever it was, I won't go much into further trivia. You can learn a lot about Lipa directly from the English section of his official web site. Just a few interesting highlights: Lipa's long discography includes many Bratislava Jazz Days live compilations, he is also one of the festival initiators. In the 1980s he worked intensively with ex-Energit and ex-Framus Five guitarist Luboš Andršt whom we already met on this blog. And in 2002 Lipa recorded a nice blues-jazz album full of Beatles songs, albeit without A Day In The Life.

The Beatová horúčka compilation occasionally pops up on eBay and it's still available overthere. CDs by Peter Lipa are available online and on eBay, too. A Day In The Life also appeared on the out-of-print Bonton CD compilation Bigbít 1968-1969, however that was most likely the live version from the 2nd Czechoslovak Beat Festival in December 1968 in Prague which was originally released on a Panton EP. On cojeco.cz you can listen to a short snippet of it. Last but not least, I have the rare double LP compilation Bratislava Jazz Days 1981 for sale, with Lipa singing the Ray Charles standard Tell All The World About You.

Without her

Helena Vondráčková & TOČR - Jsem bůh i ďábel (Without Her) [sample]
from album "Ostrov Heleny", 1970, Supraphon 1130839
produced by Bohuslav Ondráček & Vladimír Popelka
Václav Týfa & Konstelace Josefa Vobruby - Bez ní (Without Her) [sample]
from album "Václav Týfa", 1975, Supraphon 1131599
produced by Oskar Jelínek, arranged by Vladimír Popelka


original LP sleeves (Vondráčková/Týfa)

Here is a "double feature" with a "triple connection": both tracks were conducted by the TOČR leader Josef Vobruba (1932-1982), co-produced by arranger Vladimír Popelka and both are cover versions of the same song, Without Her by Harry Nilsson. Nilsson's original from 1967 is a very minimalistic version with its cello accompaniment, other mostly softly arranged renditions have been recorded for example by Blood Sweat & Tears, George Benson or Glen Campbell. Besides of his songwriting, Nilsson also became quite "famous" as John Lennon's drinking buddy in the mid seventies.

Regular readers will surely remember my Vondráčková entry from last December when we dived deep into her jazz-rock phase. Jsem bůh i ďábel (I'm The God As Well As The Devil) is not nearly as funky as that. It's pure easy listening pop with a very light touch of bossa nova. The "funkiness" lies more in tiny details as well as in the atmosphere. I like in particular the brilliant dynamic arrangement which precisely illustrates the excellent original Czech lyrics by old maestro Zdeněk Borovec. The story is a confession of a seductress. At one moment she's soft and lovely, the next second she burns you with passion. She's the god and the devil, Cain and Abel in one person and she promises you both heaven and hell at the same time. Yeah guys, there's definitely no hypocrisy on the lady's part since you've been warned. This here is the hottest version of Without Her that I know.

Jsem bůh i ďábel comes from Helena Vondráčková's second solo LP Ostrov Heleny (The Island Of Helena, not to be confused with her English export album The Isle Of Helena), recorded between 1969 and 1970. It's the album's only track that has been produced with the TOČR (a.k.a. JOČR) orchestra. All other songs are credited to the Golden Kids Orchestra & Chorus - which of course includes Marta Kubišová and Václav Neckář, for more info on them check out my first Marta Kubišová post (and more is about to come later this year). Ostrov Heleny is a much softer album than Kubišová's classic Songy a balady or both Golden Kids LPs, however. You can buy a CD online including 9 singles only bonus tracks or get the vinyl from a Czech auction site. Some singles are still available in my web shop, too, if you search there for "vondr".

~

The trumpet player Václav Týfa (1943) oscillates between pop and jazz. His career started in 1962 in the Karel Vlach Orchestra. In the early 1970s he switched to the backing band of Karel Gott, the Ladislav Štaidl Orchestra. At the same time he also worked with Josef Vobruba's TOČR/JOČR. In 1974 Vobruba set up and conducted an all-star album project named Konstelace (The Constellation). The member list on this first effort is indeed stellar: besides of Týfa there are Radim Hladík (Blue Effect, ex-Matadors) and Petr Janda (Olympic) on guitars, Jiří Urbánek (Flamingo) on bass, Rudolf Rokl (Štaidl Orchestra) on Hammond organ, JOČR members Zdeněk Dvořák on guitar, Karel Růžička on piano and drummer Josef Vejvoda, Miroslav Kokoška (Czech TV Orchestra) on marimba, the flutist Jiří Válek (who got to record his own Konstelace solo album two years later) as well as jazzmen Ivan Dominák and Jiří Kysilka on percussions and Karel Velebný on vibes. Obviously the original concept of the project was to produce a series of albums that would feature exceptional soloists who were working in contemporary Czech pop/jazz orchestras at that time. But as far as I know, no other Konstelace albums besides of Týfa's and Válek's have ever been released.

Although Týfa later recorded lots of solo tunes for radio, TV or for movie soundtracks, this LP actually remains his only solo record to this day. He blows his trumpet in many shades, using lots of overdubs and sound effects, even a wah-wah pedal on some tracks. Side one is an original jazz-rock suite in six parts, Loutna česká (The Czech Lute), written by the arranger and co-producer Vladimír Popelka. On side two Popelka selected and re-arranged six tunes from the Blood Sweat & Tears repertoire like Mama Gets High, So Long Dixie, or the obligate Spinning Wheel which fortunately received an unusual jazzy treatment in 6/8. Without Her on the other hand has been funked up a lot, although I could live fine without the cheesy vocal parts since all other tracks sound fine without them, too...

These days Týfa works again with the Czech Radio Big Band or with the Vlach Orchestra and he can be heard on various CDs, too. The Konstelace vinyl album is really tough to find online, unless you are willing to pay real BIG bucks to these Japanese guys. But while the record may be "über-rare" in Japan, in Prague I've seen it many times for a Euro or two.

Rosemary

Hana & Petr Ulrychovi - Rozmarýn [sample]

from album "13 HP", 1971, Supraphon 1130888
produced by Michael Prostějovský, arranged by Ota Petřina, conducted by Josef Vobruba


original LP sleeve

Sixties stuff seems to be quite popular among you, dear readers, so here's another one. Sure, I know that this album has been released in 1971. But it was recorded one year earlier which still puts it mathematically into the 1960s, doesn't it. (You do know that, don't you? Or were you one of those fools who were celebrating the 3rd millennium one year too early...?!) And even then, due to technical and political circumstances we used to be behind a few years anyway, so don't be too picky about the exact recording dates here...

Petr Ulrych (1944) from Brno and his five years younger sister Hana were already experienced performers when the debut album 13 HP finally came out. With their group Atlantis (not to be confused with the mid 70s German soul-rock group of the same name) they have recorded a couple of successful single sides in the late 60s. Petr's songs were at the top of the unofficial Czech radio charts. Unfortunately, the planned very first long player, the ambitious folk-jazz-rock opera Odyssea from 1969 (recorded only a few months later than the world's first "official" rock opera, Tommy by The Who!) didn't pass the 1970 communist censorship anymore and it has never been released until 1990!

13 HP is mainly a folk-rock album with influences from soul and Moravian ethnic folk. It has been produced in collaboration with the ex-Golden Kids guitarist, arranger and songwriter Ota Petřina and the Dance/Jazz Orchestra of the Czechoslovak Radio (TOČR/JOČR). Only four out of ten songs were written by Ulrych, the producers probably wanted to be on the safe side regarding their previous experience with the raging censors. But that certainly doesn't make it a bad LP at all.

Rozmarýn (Rosemary - the herb) is one of the original Ulrych tracks, a driving rock song with loud drums, swirling Hammond organ and Petřina's screaming lead guitar, peppered with a precise horn section and dramatic strings. The lyrics talk about the upcoming spring time that might heal open wounds from the past, but the mood remains melancholic, not to say highly pessimistic. After all, the Prague Spring was over and everybody knew it. I really wonder how Ulrych's lyrics managed to pass the censorship this time.

As a matter of fact, Hana Ulrychová doesn't seem to be featured on this song at all. But don't despair, dear fan of singin'n'swingin' sixties girls. Her time on Funky Czech-In is going to come too, perhaps with my other favorite tune from the album, the up-tempo soul song A co má bejt (So What). In other words: the Ulrych/Atlantis legend is going to be continued.

Rozmarýn has been included on the Ulrychs' recent best-of-compilation, but be aware that the double CD logically focuses on their later Moravian world music works; so perhaps you might want to check out a few samples first. Some vinyl is usually available on eBay, but if you'd like to own this particular album you'd better google and buy from Czech sellers. You can also buy two nice 45s from my own online record store, just search there for "ulrych" (items no. 1219 and 1232).