Search - Boris Grebenshikov :: Russian Songwriter

Russian genius

Joe Sixpack -- Slipcue.com | 02/24/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For any Russian, Boris Grebenschikov (BG) will need no introdution: As the governing genius behind the category-defying Russian rock-reggae-blues-folk collective Aquarium (Akvarium), he's been a dominant figure on the Russian music scene for nearly 30 years. For Americans, however--who will probably only be familiar with BG as the "perestroika poster-boy" who released one quickly-forgotten English language album in the U.S. in the late1980's (the Dave Stewart-produced arena-rock travesty "Radio Silence"; easily the worst album in BG's entire, enormous discography)--this new compilation provides a good introduction to Russia's finest songwriter. The tracks on this album (culled from a half dozen albums released during the early-to-mid 1990's) have been chosen to showcase Grebenschikov's riffs on the Russian folk and bardic traditions, and include a handful covers of some of his influences from earlier eras of Russian music, such as Bulat Okudzhava and Alexander Vertinskii. Although the tracks chosen present only one facet of a multi-faceted talent--as adept at blistering rock-n-roll as he is at the mellower, folk-tinged tunes on display here--it's still a great place for neophytes to discover one of Russia's treasures, and the songs chosen are consistent enough in sound that those not in-the-know would never guess that it's a compilation of previously released material from various sources. Liner notes in four languages (Russian, English, French and German) provide guidance for those who don't know Russian: They don't begin to capture the poetry of the Russian originals, but at least they capture the general sense of classics such as "The Fastest Airplane, " "Dubrovskii," and the (awkward-sounding in English) "Mares of Reckless Abandon." Kudos to Naxos for putting BG in print in the U.S. after all these years!"

One of Russia's best-known post-1960s pop musicians

Joe Sixpack -- Slipcue.com | ...in Middle America | 03/18/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This fellow is hailed as a Russian Bob Dylan and more generally as one of his country's great rock-pop heroes... However, this collection showcase his later work as a sensitive singer-songwriter type, more of a Jacques Brel-styled, soft-orchestral pop crooner. At any rate, this is is a nice collection by one of Russia's most prominent pop stars of the '70s and '80s, a generously programmed set in which Slavic syllables never sounded so sweet."

Long Overdue

Daniel Collier | Washington, DC | 02/19/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"No single collection can capture the wide range of styles through which Grebenshikov has romped in the past twenty years, so the NAXOS WORLD folks have wisely chosen songs which emphasize the "World Music" side of things. RUSSIAN SONGWRITER brings together a selection of Grebenshikov/Akvarium's post-Soviet work, including a few non-Grebenshikov songs of the particularly Russian "Guitar Poet" genre. The album is mellow and beautiful, built around Boris's voice, acoustic guitars, accordions, and a host of other instruments. For the ill-informed and Russian-challenged, it includes liner notes along with lyrics in Russian, English, German and French. If you don't know Grebenshikov's work, this is a great place to start."