One of the most enigmatic of all recording projects in Estonia is Laulud by well-known keyboardist and composer Olav Ehala. The two sides of the LP is like two sides of contemporary music in itself. The first side are short pieces, partly used as soundtrack for a film. The second half, depending on who you ask, is either a strange burst of off-beat songs or a progressive rock masterpiece. It is in this second side that we have five parts from the long-lost prog epic work "Johnny."

However, this Viis stseeni rock-ooperist "Johnny"(Five Scenes from the Rock Opera "Johnny") is one of the most important parts of Estonian prog. The history of this epic goes back to the days of Ruja and the strange era of the 1980s, when Ehala himself proposed the "Johnny" project to Ruja. Parts of it are quite sketchy in detail, but we know that it was banned by authorities after 10 shows. Most of it was lost until the recent Ruja boxed set release, but a decade ago Ehala brought a group of prog musicians to play on five parts of the epic, resulting in side B of this LP. From what songs we know, it appears Ehala recorded the parts of the epic, to which he had written the music.

The excerpts begin with "Ma mustas öös..." (I...In the Black Night), which is a upbeat, piano-driven song with a nice pace -- strengthened by the unmistakable voice of Tõnis Mägi. The guitar work of Ain Varts (also of Kaseke) brings an extra sound to the piano-driven tune. Nice start.

Then it goes to the second part of these excerpts, "Laul võimalusest" (A Song About Possibilities), which has a classic guitar line by Varts. Again the voice of Mägi brings an interesting sound to the song, with a perfect sounding choir backing him up. Perhaps not totally "prog" but it has its moments. It works in the whole scheme of things. Varts does add a very good guitar solo near the end of the piece, rounding off with Mägi and the chorus.

The third part, "Laul surnud linnast" (A Song about a Dead Bird), is a poppy little bit in the middle of this whole series. Before you shudder at it, epics like "The Lamb" and "The Wall" also had its "less-than-prog" moments. It's the balance that makes it work as an epic. But the song is quite nice, with Mägi displaying his best singing -- again with a nice choir background. It's just a cool pop/rock song really, with a nice Estonian touch to it.

Then the really proggy bits begin with part four, "Mind ei huvita" (I'm Not Interested), which begins aggressively already with a rather adventurous rhythm. The music is absolutely challenging, especially the phrasing for singer Mägi. The syncopation is absolutely imaginative and enrapturing, with some themes from "Ma Mustas Öös" being reprised here and there. One of the coolest Estonian prog songs around!

Finally we come to the end, "Parve ja Johnny dialoog" (The Flock and Johnny's Dialogue). This at times seems like a crazy mix-and-match as styles and sections change radically. It starts out with a synth bass thing, with a chorus taking over the lead singing. It has a "rock opera" sound about it, even with a screeching female voice imbedded in the strange passage. The music is definitely adventurous from part to part, with dramatic bits all over the place. Even a bit of Estonian folk thrown in for good measure! Then Mägi emerges from the choral singing in the middle of the song and proceeds to a skilfully jazzy section that must be a nightmare if ever played live. It finished off with a reprise again of the main theme in "Ma Mustas Öös" and ends with Mägi screaming "vabadus" (freedom). No wonder it was banned by the Soviet authorities then.

Overall, there are very mixed reactions to this piece. Some think it's not even prog enough to be called "prog" if there's a way to define that word at all. Yet others love this. I admit as a big fan of Tõnis Mägi it certainly influences my thinking. His voice is tremendous and has a unique character to it. Before learning of this recording I always wondered why Mägi never did anything prog-related. Imagine my happy surprise when this was shown to me! Anyway, this is one of the rarest LPs in Estonia, so chances are finding it is scant. Well, thank goodness Ruja unveiled some of it in the boxed set, the original versions with the original singing by Urmas Alender. Both versions, I must say, are wonderful.

Mel Huang
Tallinn, Estonia
22 September 1999 (updated 25 December 1999)

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