Blues Section: ‘Hey Hey Hey’ (1967)
Finnish youth celebrating May Day 1967 in Helsinki. Footage taken from Mikko Niskanen’s film Lapualaismorsian.
Eero Raittinen & Help: ‘Lost Woman’ (1970)
Eero Raittinen (b. 1944) is the younger brother of Jussi Raittinen (b. 1943), known in Finland from their band Eero, Jussi & The Boys and also as a solo artist in his own right. This version of The Yardbirds song (off Roger The Engineer, 1966) comes from Eero’s 1970 solo album Blues From The North.
Eero Raittinen: vocals
Jukka Tolonen: guitar
Heikki Virtanen: bass
Hillel Tokazier: keyboards
Vesa Aaltonen: drums
Karelia: ‘Kerimäki Beat’ (1971)
Preceding world music boom, Karelia was a Finnish “superband” who played rock arrangements of local folk songs. The band members were Seppo “Paroni” Paakkunainen (who had adopted for this project the stage name Armas Nukarainen), Edward Vesala (here as Iivana Nyhtänköljä), Ilpo “Ilja” Saastamoinen (as Aslak Nunnu) and Pekka Sarmanto (as Pedri Sirmakka). Karelia’s 1971 debut album Suomi Pop (with bonus tracks from their singles) was re-released in 2012 on CD by Rocket Records label.
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Karelia+Group
http://mutant-sounds.blogspot.com/2007/12/karelia-suomi-pop1970suomi-pop.html
Blues Section: ‘Semi-Circle Solitude’ (footage from short film Eläköön nuoruus, 1968)
Blues Section hailed from Helsinki, Finland. The band was formed in 1967 in the aftermath of May’s Jimi Hendrix gig at Kulttuuritalo, Helsinki, when a group of local musicians who despite their young age were already seasoned veterans from other Finnish bands, more or less successful, decided that also Finland would need a credible blues-rock band in the spirit of Hendrix, Cream, Yardbirds or John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.
Formed around the songwriting skills and vocals of British expatriate Jim Pembroke, the other members were Hasse Walli (guitar), Måns Groundstroem (bass), Eero Koivistoinen (saxophone), and Ronnie Österberg (drums). Following summer’s extensive gigs, late 1967 saw the debut single ‘Call Me On Your Telephone’ and eponymous album, both on newly-founded Love Records label, getting also excellent reviews.
Blues Section’s music went far beyond mere blues-rock and Pembroke’s style of writing was influenced by the best British pop of the day and the sardonic wit of John Lennon and Ray Davies, not to mention the obligatory psychedelic trappings and jazz influences brought on to the band by Koivistoinen and also producer/musical mentor Otto Donner, a celebrated jazz musician and composer in his own right.
The following year saw bass player Groundstroem leave the band, to be replaced by Pekka Sarmanto. Some more singles and also compilation appearances were to follow but apparently Blues Section was starting to run out of steam, when also the vocalist-songwriter Pembroke decided to leave. The remaining members still carried on for awhile with another British expat vocalist, Frank Robson (who’s heard on ‘Faye’ b/w ‘Sun of Love’ single, also 1968), but as Walli, Koivistoinen and other members were increasingly getting involved with extracurricular projects, by the end of the year Blues Section was history.
Hasse Walli went on playing in the Otto Donner Treatment, Österberg and Koivistoinen in The Boys, and Sarmanto later in the jazz circles. Robson left for England, returning in 1969 to join Tasavallan Presidentti, founded by Groundstroem. Pembroke worked at Love’s office till early 1969, then joined Wigwam who had been founded by Österberg. In the 70s Wigwam and Tasavallan Presidentti became two biggest progressive rock bands in Finland, Eero Koivistoinen one of the internationally best known Finnish jazz musicians; Hasse Walli would also gain some renown with folk-prog outfit Piirpauke and different world music projects, and Pekka Sarmanto was no unknown in the world of jazz, either. But that’s very much another story.
‘Semi-Circle Solitude’, a bittersweet ballad penned by Jim Pembroke for a 1968 single and heard also in Jaakko Pakkasvirta’s short film Eläköön nuoruus (“Viva Youth”) in the same year, could arguably be called Blues Section’s finest moment, with Dylan-inspired lyrics reflecting the vulnerability of one caught in the turbulent, changing times of the late 1960s; perhaps even undergoing a bad trip brought on by chemicals or just feeling helpless facing the inevitability of change in life. “Yesterday has come and gone / You’ve got to try to carry on.”
Line-up:
Jim Pembroke, vocals
Hasse Walli, guitar
Pekka Sarmanto, bass
Ronnie Österberg, drums
+
Otto Donner, Hammond
Release: ‘Semi-Circle Solitude’ b/w ‘Cherry Cup-Cake Twist’ (7”), Love Records LRS 1014, 1968
Studio: Finnvox, Helsinki
Producer: Otto Donner
Engineer: Erkki Hyvönen
—-
“I’m slipping in your words and eyes
You reach too far out to the skies
Trying to catch those clouds that flow to hide
The wind is dragging in behind
Clock is ticking at your time
Only sitting, waiting for that star to shine
Can I do something to help you
Can I get something to help you
When you’re feeling pretty rough
And you think you’ve had enough, you know that
You don’t have a thing to hide
From me or anyone outside
Yesterday has come and gone
You’ve got to try to carry on
Bringing you up and then bringing you down
Into your semi-circle solitude
Semi-circle solitude
You’ve put the room like in a cell
You know you aren’t the one to tell
Magic clown he owns the key but he don’t want to sell
He wants to take you for a ride
Run or crawl or creep and hide
Make it quick and don’t look back
Tryin’ to keep your pride
Can I do something to help you
Can I get something to help you
When you’re feeling pretty rough
And you feel you’ve had enough, you know that
You don’t have a thing to hide…”
Danny: ‘Voyage Au Pays Des Vivants’ / ‘Questions’ / ‘Paint It Black’ (Finnish TV, 1970)
Finnish singer Danny (born as Ilkka Lipsanen in 1942) started in 1966 his hugely popular and spectacular “Danny Shows” which toured around Finland every summer, with a different theme every year and an entourage of other well-known singers and entertainers.
This video clip from “Superdanny” TV special is part of “Danny 70 Systeemi” summer show in Kalajoki, 1970, where Danny was accompanied by Explosion Brass, consisting of Kaj Backlund, Markku Johansson, Paavo Heikura, Esa Kotilainen, Ilkka Willman, Juhani Aalto and Lyly Rajala. The songs are ‘Voyage au pays des vivants’, originally by Johnny Hallyday, ‘Questions’ by Cliff Richard and ‘Paint It Black’ by The Rolling Stones.
Danny studied carefully the show antics of the most popular stage performers of the day, from Elvis to Tom Jones and his greatest idol, Johnny Hallyday of France, and the Danny Shows were known for their theatrical and dramatic elements, often sensationalist and verging on controversy. The theme of this lurid one-man mini-rock opera is “Danny presents a play in six parts about the possibilities of a young drug addict to solve the problem of depency” where, among all, the leather-clad protagonist vows “never to use hashisch and LSD again”, reveals that he only needs that special someone, goes through a purgatory of public confessional, a reading of Lord’s Prayer, simulated crucifixion and nervous breakdown, and so on. It’s all in the best possible taste, of course.
Anssi Pethman & The Beat Mongols: ‘Mad Mongol’ (1965)
Finnish jazz drummer Anssi Pethman (1939 - 1993) played in many ensembles together with his big brother Esa Pethman, also for the bands of Carola Standertsköljd and Pentti Metsärinne. Furthermore, Anssi Pethman released two solo singles during the 1960s; this track being taken from the first of them, released on Star label in 1965 (Star SW 1005) with ‘Shake Beat’ as flipside.
It’s a peculiar blend of jazz, surf instrumental and 60s beat, having even a kind of Balkans flavour, and the sort of rolling toms sound Keith Moon or Ginger Baker would have been proud of. In fact, this wouldn’t have sounded out of place at all on any Graham Bond Organisation album.
Raya & Apostolit - Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In (1971)
Playback (?) performance filmed for Finnish television in glorious black & white. Check out the lightshow & the backup dancers. Afterglow of the first psychedelic era.
http://yle.fi/elavaarkisto/artikkelit/raya_ja_apostolit_aquariuslet_the_sunshine_in_21797.html
