Monday, August 20, 2007

Prúdy - Zvoňte zvonky (1969)

Here is the first CD of music from Czechoslovakia, as current Slovakia and Czech republic used to be called back in 60-80s. It is one of the first and best pop/art/prog rock albums released in the late 60s (recorded in 1968). Zvonky Zvonte (Ring Bells, Ring) by Prudy (Currents) was a milestone in Slovak rock music. Personnel: Pavol Hammel - guitar, lead vocals; Marian Varga - piano, organ; Fedor Freso - bass, vocals; Peter Seller - guitar; Vlado Mally - drums.This is what "Scented Gardens of the Mind" has to say abount the album:"Prudy's album was a Slovakian response to Sgt. Pepper, an album full of charming pop songs with harmony vocals, lush orchestration and a hint of psychedelia. The best songs were written by Marian Varga who soon went on to form Colloseum Musicum. His characteristic keyboard ornaments are already recognisable at this early stage. A historic Czechoslovakian album full of period charm. Hammel later recorded many albums with new version of Prudy. This is rather forgetable pop. More interesting are the various Varga and Hammel collaborations".Not much to add to this review - this really is a charming, mellow, even poetic album. The atmosphere may be soft overall but there are some welcome fuzz guitar breaks and you have to love Varga's harpsichord. And the music and the lyrics are great.I disagree about the latter statements as Hammel's first few solo albums are actually pretty good; admittably with some more commercial fluff thrown in.

Enjoy,
Marian



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9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks so much Lisa, I've heard this is a really good record so I'm glad I can finally hear it.
-Lhasa Crawler

dave_ said...

Thank you very much, this is a great album!

Anonymous said...

Here's the track list, just in case anyone needs it:

01. Zvonky zvoňte
02. Pred výkladom s hračkami
03. Balada o smutnom Jánovi
04. Jesenné litánie
05. Strašidlo
06. Keď odchádza kapela
07. Poď so mnou
08. Možno, že ma rada máš
09. Možno
10. S rukami vo vreckách
11. Dám ti lampu
12. Čierna ruža

Oh...and...Thank you for the music!
:-)

Anonymous said...

Can you post more from Marian Varga and his group Collegim Musicum?
Thanks for sharing.

We're Late For Class said...

Hi,

We are WE’RE LATE FOR CLASS, an independent improv band that gives away our music. We’ve just released our 20th post, A Collection, and it features our best work from the last year.

We’re writing you in hopes that you might post our new album on your fine blog. It would mean a lot to us to reach your wider audience... and to just be acknowledged by other bloggers like yourself would be a treat. Here’s a link to get all of the codes for the cool animated cover and full album MP3 player, should you like to post them for your readers...

http://werelateforclass.blogspot.com/2007/06/codes.html

And you can see how all this looks on our own blog...
http://werelateforclass.blogspot.com/

Of course... there’s nothing in this for you, except a “thanks.” We will, of course, be thrilled to include you in our blog’s link list, “Bloggers Kind Enough To Promote Us Even Though There's Zilch In It For Them.” And, we’ll even love you for it, too. Heck... maybe even some of your readers might appreciate something out of the ordinary. So you’re fully aware, however, we are also contacting a few other friends and blogs to get as much exposure as we can. Since we’re not profiting from this venture, we can only hope the blogging community will help out one of their own with much needed promotion. And... the cool animated gif (which works perfectly in Blogger) will look great on your page and draw plenty of attention. Even if you don’t want to make the space, a link would be most welcomed (and drop us a comment so we can reciprocate). Should you need anything else, just let us know.

We’re Late For Class is all improv and pro-herb, so an altered state of mind is highly recommend for optimum listening pleasure. You never know... you might even like us. We can be reached at werelateforclass@hotmail.com. Please feel free to tell us what you think. We’ve got thick skins and would love the feedback. Above all, thanks for taking the time to read and consider us. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DELETE ALL THIS CRAP FROM YOUR COMMENTS!
All the best...
WLFC

MondoMatt & JosieTown said...

Wow. This is the best thing I've heard in a while, and I'd never heard of it. Thanks so much.

Anonymous said...

Awesome!! Great blog!

Anonymous said...

This is a great album, been wanting to hear for a long time- so Thanks for the great sounds! Enjoying your site very much.

Anonymous said...

Providence led me here immediately after viewing this awesome video of Prudy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=632PT-S21eA

Viva the Prague Spring!