Rakvere has long been my kind of town. Friendly, and full of history. More so these days, when Andres Jaadla, its young, energetic mayor is doing all that he can to bring the centre of Western Virumaa back onto the list of must-visit places in Estonia. Restoration work and providing increased accessibility to the ruins of the local Teutonic fortress is one of Jaadla's achievements; culturally we must also consider his open-doors invite and subsequent hosting of the Arvo Pärt festival in Rakvere this September, marking our greatest composer's 70th birthday.
Jaadla also likes popular music. As constituents read from his end-of-year wrap-up last December chronicling local achievements, Jaadla is one of the biggest boosters of actor Andrus Albrecht, a big man whose nom de chanson is Bonzo. Bonzo's name, perhaps more than that of any other popular musician of today is directly associated with Rakvere, according to the local newspaper Virumaa Teataja. His appearance on the music scene last year was a great success, considering the intense degree of competition in the small market of Estonia. This CD with the wonderful title "Teisipidi tegelikkus" (An otherwise [or different] reality) rapidly passed the 5,000 mark in sales - an achievement indeed, and the first pressing is hard to find. Good news, though - I'm told that that the Toronto estore was successful in sourcing this recording and that it will soon be available there.
Recorded in "The city of good thoughts" (Tartu) last year, the recording features some of Estonia's best sidemen. Among them are luminaries such as Meelis Unt on clarinet and saxophone and Viktor Vassiljev on guitar. Long-time friend Tõnu Timm - known perhaps best by his stage name of Tõun - contributes guitar, ukulele and vocals. Producer Alari Piispea also appears on bass, Bonzo supports his own lead singing strumming the kalimba and guitar.
Most of the compositions are Bonzo's own, at times the lyrics are his as well. The only notable cover being the French language version (with Toomas Lunge supporting on vocal) of Dylan's "If you gotta go, go now", originally so recorded by Fairport Convention as "Si tu dois partir." As is often the case, the singer would be better off sticking to Estonian, the French pronunciation is strained, and inflections are off.
The other 10 cuts on this disc, however, more than make up for this slight slip. Bonzo's vocal range and abilities are comforting, just right for the material. He can be sensitive and gentle, as confirmed by the superb ballads - as he does in the one Russian language selection, "Gorod" (city). A great tune, perhaps included here as a concession to the fact that many in Virumaa these days are more at home in that tongue. His influences range from blues to Neil Young and folk, with that latter category best defining the majority of the tunes.
What singles this album out from other, similar Estonian pop/folk/jazz recordings is the quality of not only the musical compositions, but the beauty of the lyrics. Many lyricists/poets fall victim to the stresses of rhythm and rhyme, often falling out of cadence with thought and emotion. That is hardly the case here, every song demands to be listened to, the words understood. A splendid example is the dolorous yet not miserable bluesy Bonzo original "Melanhoolsete pisarate maagia" that never falls victim to disheartened pessimism or defeatism, but sees the magical promise held within melancholy tears. "Leningradi küpsis", also entirely a Bonzo original, holds a honeyed hope for the future.
This recording has plenty of variety and musical originality. Bonzo's musical sensitivity and the quality of all of his sidemen make this a very enjoyable listen. Lauri Liivak's arrangements using trumpet and cello, saxophone and trombone to great effect complementing the standard pop guitar/keyboard/bass/percussion quartet need to be praised as well. The word is out that a new Bonzo platter can be expected to hit the market soon. Yet another reason to return to Rakvere for a dose of otherwise reality, Bonzo style.