FLAMENGO - "KUŘE V HODINKÁCH" (1972)

Singer and multi-instrumentalist Vladimír Mišík is one of the most important figures of Czech music. After having left Blue Effect, he joined Flamengo, who were formed in 1966 by guitar and bass player Pavel Fořt. 

Despite having released some singles before, this is their first and only album. By the time of its sessions, rock music was stricktly forbidden in Czechoslovakia, but Flamengo managed to use a professional studio to record these songs, with the help of Josef Kainar, poet and member of the communist party. 
Kainar was by all means involved in the project, as he wrote seven lyrics out of eight. Four songs were composed by Jan Kubik (who played flute, sax, and clarinet), three by Mišík himself, and two collectively. Fořt arranged most of the album.
Mišík is the main vocalist, except on "Stále dál", which is sung by keyboard player Ivan Khunt.

"Kuře v hodinkách" (lit. "The Chicken in the Wristwatch") was released in limited edition at the time, as its audacious lyrics didn't get approved by the government. It was finally reissued in 1990, after the end of the Soviet regime.

Flamengo disbanded in 1973, but they played some reunion shows in recent years. Many regard their album as the pinnacle of rock music from Czechoslovakia. It is indeed a progressive rock classic.

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BLUE EFFECT - "Edice Mikrofóra" (EP, 1969) + "Slunečný hrob" (Single, 1969)

The history of Blue Effect is a good example of how musicians in Czechoslovakia were coping with the ban of rock music.
The first single of the band, "Slunečný hrob" (transl. "Sunlit grave"), was a huge hit in 1969, but their existence as a mainstream act was a short term thing. After a couple of years they were forced to change their style into a mostly instrumental form of jazz-rock, for two good reasons.
First, the Soviets went extremely harsh with the censorship, forbidding politically conscious lyrics and basically every word about freedom. Second, the oppressors enstabilished a professional musician license, which was refused to every rock band who didn't compromise with the governement requests. The only chance to make professional music without being labelled as "one of them", was the instrumental way (that explain why jazz-rock and instrumental progressive rock was widespread there at the time). 

I have hereby uploaded the first single and the first EP of the band, with Vladimír Mišík on vocals. He left them in 1970, to join Flamengo, while guitar player Radim Hladík went on, releasing experimental albums throughout the Seventies.
"Slunečný hrob" is a wonderful, tragic ballad, reminding me of Scott Walker, David Bowie, and Procol Harum. "Sen není věčný" is a pop gem that mixes baroque pop, samba influences, and science fiction elements. The remaining tracks, sung in English, are not as brilliant.

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