Hi, people! Here's a short story and a few questions... ;-) The first time I ever came to Prague it was back in 1996. I didn't know much about the city back then and I didn't know what to expect. I was curious and a little suspicious too. That was not my first time in a former communist country in Eastern Europe as I had already been to Poland 5 years before just when things had started to change in that country. I had spent some ten days visiting friends in a small town in the Krakow area. I was really struck by how things were different to what I was used to in my country, Italy, that is. I remember one particular afternoon in the summer of 1991 spent searching for a good record store in the center of Krakow and only finding a small retailer with really not much to offer. In 1996 Krakow had changed for better, much better in more than one way. Buildings had been restored, the cafes on the main square were really appealing and the whole of the old town was an open invitation for tourists. This time finding a good record store was no problem. There was a big one right in the center of town. Whatever was in the charts back in those days could be easily found there and if you felt like going back to rock n roll roots all you had to do was take those old records off the shelf But let's go back to Prague as I said I came to the Mother of Towns for the first time in 1996. I was hooked. Prague stood there in all her splendor! I'm a rock n roll fan and I like buying records but what would have I found in Prague, had I been there in 1991 or 1988 or maybe 1968? Yes, right back in the 60s when the likes of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the Who were rocking the West. Was Prague beating to rhythm of a different drum? I have heard some stories about life in Prague and Czechoslovakia in the times of communism but I really don't know anything about the rock scene in those years. I have the impression that in a country like the Soviet Union, which seems to me, has always valued its isolation it could be likely that young people were totally unaware of what was going on over the curtain but it's hard to believe you could have the same situation in a country like Czechoslovakia or Poland. The Woodstock generation was sending out a signal to the whole world, London and its radio was not that far and I believe Hendrix's guitar could also be heard in Prague as it was in bordering Germany. The Soviets had to send their tanks but I don't think the roaring of their engines could drown out the sound of drums and guitars It can't have been easy to get hands on a record from the US or the UK but something must have leaked through I have no documentation and I can only suppose this and this is really intriguing to me. Did anyone here experience all that first hand? Was rock n roll, music from the West, really totally banned from the Czechoslovakian radio? When did people become aware of rock n roll acts like Elvis Presley or Jerry Lee Lewis? Or was Jazz music always more popular? Did any American or British rock band ever play in Prague before 1989? I know the Rolling Stones' concert at the Strahovsky stadion in Prague in 1990 drew a huge crowd and people came from as far as the Ukraine. I really wonder what it was like in the 70s with hard rock bands breaking through or the early 80s when making a copy of a record or tape became a play for kids. Were people allowed to own duplicating tape recorders or photocopiers? Were rock musicians pointed at as examples of the decaying Western society? Were young people allowed to gather together to play some music? Were there any recording rock bands from Czechoslovakia in those times? Does anyone remember of any rock musician from the West that rose to stardom in the times of Czechoslovakia? Elder brothers or young uncles are usually the ones that pass the good records down to the younger generations and their legacy creates a link between bands and fans. Do you think this legacy made it to the days of the free Czech Republic? I'd really like to read something from someone who was through that! Thank you Lorenzo
Alright, alright none of you people out there is old enough to have gone through that I guess Anyway, a few weeks ago I was on a bus on my way to Prague and I was sitting next to this Czech woman. She looked to be in her late 40s and we started talking. She was really kind and I could practice my Czech with her. She told me a bit about her life in former Czechoslovakia and how life was back in those days when she was younger. I asked her about "the music scene" and if she would get any records from the West at all. She told me about some kind of "black market" held somewhere close to Havelské Namesti ever heard of that by the way? And how she would listen to Radio Luxembourg at night but the signal was always jammed by a Soviet military base... so that's what it was like for her... I'd still like to learn more about this so I'll be waiting for your posts Lorenzo
Hi Lorenzo! I was in my teens when communism came to an end in Czechoslovakia and at that time I was very much into music and was obssessed with the Beatles thanks to the film A Hard Days Night which was shown in the movie theaters in Czechoslovakia in 1984. As far as I remember, not all western music was inaccessible and the real old classics like Elvis Presley or Buddy Holly were known to people and were played on the radio some. It was possible to buy records by Elvis or Elton John if you were lucky to be there when the records came in. Rarely, one or two of the old Beatles songs would appear on the radio or an old record of theirs (the "harmless", early stuff) would pop up in a store. The 1960s was a big decade in Czechoslovakia as far music goes. The rock musical "Starci na chmelu" was made then and was a huge success. Czech pop singers of that time would also record Czech versions of many of the old-timers. So I'd say Czechs knew a lot of the classic rock'n'roll from the 1960s. As far as other music goes, I remember I was aware of bands like the Rolling Stones, the Doors, the Who but didn't really know their music because it wasn't normally played on the radio. It was hard but not impossible to find "banned" music from people who somehow got their hands on it. E.g. I was able to get almost all the Beatles records in the mid-1980s from a person who was selling them recorded on cassette tapes. One radio station, the Vltava, had an hour-long program every Monday in the 1980s that was done by two D.J.s who were somehow able to play current foreign music from the West. Not many people knew about the program but I listened religiously and recorded songs by the Foreigner, Clash, Bruce Springsteen, etc. I also listened to Radio Luxembourg some but the reception was really bad. I hope this helps shed some light on the topic for you!
Hi Dana and thank you for your contribution! What you wrote has given me an interesting picture of what things were like in Czechoslovakia in the times of communism as long as the music scene was concerned. I'm glad to learn that rock music found a way to break through (even though with some obstacles) the iron curtain and reach your eager ears It seems to me you're a big fan too, aren't you? I think that listening to songs by folks like the Clash and, specially, Bruce Springsteen with his songs about America and life there could give an idea of what was going on in the West. Most of Springsteen's songs are written about working class people and their every day life, dreams and disillusions. It also helped me get a bit of an insight view of what life is really like for many people in America. Things you hardly in the news. Do you think rock music and songs from artists like Springsteen or Bob Dylan or other singer-songwriters of this kind (if their music ever made it to the Czech air or black market cassette music dealers) could have any kind of eye-opening effect on Czech people as maybe some books from the West had? I hope I made the point of my questioning clear Lorenzo
This doesn't answer your question, really at all, but I thought I'd comment anyway. I'm married to a Czech 5 years my junior (I'm 32 this weekend) so he was very young during the end of Communism in CR. Where we live there is a large concentration of Czechs, mostly here to make money and then go back home. So I know ALOT of Czechs, my age, and mostly younger. I have been involved in the music business in my area since the age of 15 (when I worked the door at a punk rock club) and most of my friends are musicians or are artists of some kind. So my new Czech friends' interest in music has been interesting to me. One HUGE trend I see is that the Czechs I know, no matter where in CR they are from, if they like heavy music, is is almost ALL what was to us Americans, 80's metal...such as Iron Maiden, Helloween, and AC/DC are big ones. As far as more modern metal, they tend to like bands that have that similar 80's style and I"m yet to find a Czech male who doesn't LOVE Metallica. I've never gotten my husband to branch out much; he still loves the old music. I am now very, very good friends with the guitairist of a metal band from Olomouc, Calibos, which was my husband's favorite, as for our first Christmas together I tried to get their music online and ended up contacting their website manager, who didn't speak English, and he forwarded my mail on to Marek Andrejsi, the guitarist, and we have been mailing and calling ever since and have become good friends (over 2 years now ) Something I also found interesting were the "village parties" as my husband calls them in English. These were held mostly in the country, and one band alone may play in 30 minutes at a stretch, then take breaks, and play all night. 100's would show up apparently (I have pictures of these "village parties" that have been in the past 4 years and TONS of kids seem to show up to them)...sometimes a small stage built...and it was just a big party. Most of the bands of course, were not "label bands", although some of them have put out many, many cds and still play today (Calibos has 6 cds I believe, tapes before that, and are still playing large shows in villages now and even amphitheater shows as well). Apparently Arakain, Kabat, and Alkehol are bands that got signed and out of this loop; lucky lads, eh? Also, something else I have also noticed, is that Czechs like dance music at their parties...which is either a weaker sound of house/techno or a disco sound to me. Alot of dancing! This is unusual here, really, in people my age, especially, and younger. Americans, younger, white Americans, don't normally have a whole lot of dancing at parties. So it is unusual to see. We do most of our dancing in clubs. It is fun though, and there isn't a Czech party I haven't attended, ever, in 4 years, that I didn't have a blast) When I ask my husband about certain bands I am SHOCKED that he doesn't know who they are. He did not know who Jimi Hendrix was. He did not know who Jim Morrison was. He had never even heard of Woodstock. I would have thought that the American hippie culture, which spread world wide, didn't find it's way better into CR. I find it SO odd that Iron Maiden filtered in so well, apparently, (even if they are FROM Europe), when these American artists were just as popular in Britian and Germany even. Unusual, indeed.
Hi boohiss13 and thank you for your input! You have surely painted an interesting picture of what it's like as long as rock music is concerned! You seem to be into the Czech rock seen I'm also amazed someone doesn't know musicians the likes of Jimi Hendrix or Jim Morrison... I was thinking of getting a good Czech record next time I'm in Prague. I'd turn up the volume enjoy a good groove and practice Czech while reading the lyrics Any suggestions? Lorenzo
Well, being here in America, I'm mostly familiar with the bigger bands for the most part, so the ones I'll mention are the more well known ones and should be really easy to find online or in the hudba shops around town in Prague. Mind you, again, most of them have an 80's feel. 1) Arakain (my opinion of CR's answer to Metallica; very talented musically and tons of cds out over the years) 2) Kabat 3) Alkehol 4) Citron Those are harder bands. For a lighter side, kind of what an American my equate of "college music", try Lucia; they're very popular there. There is also a female singer whose name is escaping me at the moment...is Bila in it? Hmmm....a Czech person here could tell you. Good site to visit to purchase Czech music online, and they have Czech and English sites (www.albumcity.com ...this is the English site).......the webmaster and owners are SO nice and when I was first buying for my husband they spoke with my personally via email to help me out. It was nice. Cau Nanc
The band's name is Lucie and the equally popular female singer's name is, coincidentally, also Lucie, last name Bílá. Check out our Czech music links to get to their and other singers' websites: http://www.myczechrepublic.com/links/arts/music.html
THAT's her name! Thanks, that was buggin me! Oh, and one to add, which is actually from Slovakia, but plays frequently in CR....it's a doom metal band....Galadriel. Pretty damn good, if you ask me, and the lyrics are in English as far as I've seen/heard.
I´m completely surprised that there´re people who don´t know anything about artists like Hendrix, Morrison etc.Yes there was an information block but the news were always able to find it´s ways. The 1960s were absolutly the best decade of communistic era in CR.Prague was visited by such persons as Luis Armstrong and Allen Ginsberg and the rock culture grew.Among the best known bands there were The Plastic People of the Universe and Primitive groups.In 1970s rock bands were often persecuted by the government so they chose to exist in underground.1980s was the time of metal and punk movement.Bands like Arakain, Citron, Visací zámek, Plexis became true cult. Now it is 2003 and i proUdly say that metal is still alive in CR.In fact it´s one of the most prefered genre and also I live for metal.Some bands were mentioned there but I am shocked no one mentioned the true gods of Czech metal.The absolut cult in CZ, SVK, Scandinavia, GER and other countries.The legend.Ambasadors of darkness.Keepers of the lost wisdom.The darkest and the best.ROOT!!!
Lorenzo: to learn czech to music, one album i would suggest would be the Rok Dabla soundtrack. It's the soundtrack to an excellent film, in which most of the main charcters are musicians. from the website www.rokdabla.cz you can print out t...tice there, Karel Kryl. Good Luck! :wink:
You said that the 60's was the best era in czech history. were the jazz musicians performing at events their in earlier decades? Did the rave scene of the 90's not happen in CR? Would the CR be a good place to go looking for work as a DJ playing house/techno/hardcore rave/ambient/drum 'n' bass? 8)
