Laki Pingvini ( sr-Cyrl, Лаки Пингвини; transl. ''The Easy Penguins'') were a

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...

n and Yugoslav rock band formed in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...

in 1979. Initially a part of the Yugoslav new wave scene, the band later turned towards

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

and

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, ear ...

sound. They released two studio albums and had several hit songs before disbanding in 1986. The band's vocalist Đorđe Dragojlović reformed Laki Pingivni in 1995, the band releasing their third studio album and disbanding shortly after. The band's original lineup reunited in 2006 for two live performances.

History

Formation, prominence, breakup (1979-1989)

The band was formed in 1979 and had their first public appearance on November 29 (celebrated in

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

as the Republic Day), at a punk costume party held at the Pinki club in

Zemun Zemun ( sr-cyrl, Земун, ; hu, Zimony) is a municipality in the city of Belgrade. Zemun was a separate town that was absorbed into Belgrade in 1934. It lies on the right bank of the Danube river, upstream from downtown Belgrade. The developme ...

. At the time, the band had four vocalists and no regular lineup, but as time passed, the lineup featuring Đorđe Dragojlović (vocals), Časlav Stanković (guitar), Srđan Đurić (bass guitar), Aleksandar Rodić (keyboards, formerly of the bands Kako and

Piloti Pilotis, or piers, are supports such as columns, pillars, or stilts that lift a building above ground or water. They are traditionally found in stilt and pole dwellings such as fishermen's huts in Asia and Scandinavia using wood, and in elev ...

) and Milan Bubalo (drums, formerly of

Beograd Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 million ...

) became the default one. The band started working more consistently in September 1982, and in the following summer released their debut EP, ''Šizika'' (''Crazy Girl''). The EP, beside the title track, featured two more tracks, "Devojka iz svemira" ("A Girl from Outer Space") and "Možda, možda" ("Maybe, Maybe"), and was produced by

Saša Habić Aleksandar "Saša" Habić (Serbian Cyrillic: Саша Хабић; born 17 March 1956) is a Serbian and former Yugoslav musician, record producer and composer. During his career as a producer he worked with artists like Piloti, Divlji Anđeli, U � ...

. The title track and "Možda, možda" would become the band's first hits. A demo version of the song "Možda, možda" also appeared on the prominent '' Ventilator 202 Demo Top 10'' compilation. In 1984, the band released their debut album, ''Muzika za mlade'' (''Music for the Young Ones''), produced by Slobodan Marković. The album brought hits "Ne, nisam tvoj heroj" ("No, I'm Not Your Hero"), which was a cover of

John Paul Young John Inglis Young, OAM (born 21 June 1950), known professionally as John Paul Young, is a Scottish-born Australian pop singer who had his 1978 worldwide hit with " Love Is in the Air". His career was boosted by regular appearances as a perform ...

's song "

Yesterday's Hero ''Yesterday's Hero'' is a 1979 British drama film directed by Neil Leifer and starring Ian McShane, Suzanne Somers, Adam Faith, Paul Nicholas and Cary Elwes (in his film debut). It also features Glynis Barber and Emma Samms in their early per ...

", and "Moja devojka" ("My Girlfriend"). The track "Baby" featured sampled

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a ree ...

and

car engine An internal combustion engine (ICE or IC engine) is a heat engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the working fluid flow circuit. In an internal combust ...

sounds, and the whole album featured an analog drum machine. Having released the album, the band performed at the

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, entertai ...

Music Festival with the song "Ja sam mornar" ("I'm a Sailor") and a cover version of

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", " Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and "(You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

's "Love Me Warm and Tender", with lyrics in

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia an ...

and entitled "Voli me" ("Love Me"), which appeared on the festival's official album ''Split '84''. The following album, ''Striptiz'' (''

Striptease A striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner. The person who performs a striptease is commonly known as a "stripper" or an "exo ...

''), released in 1985, featured the hit "Blago morskih dubina" ("Treasure of the Sea-Depths"), but the public did not show much interest for the rest of the album. The song also appeared as the B-side of the "Cry, Baby, Cry" single, released during the same year. After the album release, the band ended their activity, and vocalist Đorđe Dragojlović started a short-lasting solo career under the alias Super Đoka. He appeared at the MESAM festival in 1986 with the song "Pokreni me" ("Start Me Up"), the song appearing on the festival album ''MESAM 1986''.

1994 reunion, 1995 reformation and 2006 reunion

In January 1994, the band reunited to perform at the

unplugged Unplugged may refer to: *Acoustic music, music not produced through electronic means * "Unplugged" (B.A.P song), 2014 * "Unplugged" (''Modern Family''), a 2010 episode of ''Modern Family'' Albums and EPs * ''Unplugged'' (5'nizza album), 2002 * '' ...

festival at

Sava Centar Sava Centar ( sr, Сава центар) is an international congress, cultural and business centre of various multi-functional activities located in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is the largest audience hall in the country and entire forme ...

in Belgrade, and the acoustic version of "Šizika", recorded at the festival, was released on the various artists live album '' Bez struje'' (''Unlugged''). The following year, Dragojlović reformed the band in a new lineup, featuring

Galija Galija ( sr-cyr, Галија; ) is a Serbian and Yugoslav rock band formed in Niš in 1977. The central figures of the band are brothers Nenad Milosavljević (vocals, acoustic guitar and harmonica) and Predrag Milosavljević (vocals). A larg ...

guitarist Dragutin Jakovljević, bass guitarist Rade Bulatović, keyboardist Ivan Aleksijević and former

drummer Zoran Obradović "Ćera". The new incarnation of the band released the comeback album ''Stereo''. The album featured newly recorded versions of "Blago morskih dubina", "Kraj" ("The End") and "Pokreni me". The album also featured cover versions of

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he hel ...

's "

Cantaloupe Island "Cantaloupe Island" is a jazz standard composed by Herbie Hancock and recorded for his 1964 album ''Empyrean Isles'' during his early years as one of the members of Miles Davis' 1960s quintet. Hancock later recorded a jazz-funk fusion version o ...

", entitled "Šta bi dao bre" ("What Would I Give"),

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop a ...

and

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, singer, songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various sty ...

's "Empty Frame", entitled "Dragan, Marko i Violeta" ("Dragan, Marko and Violeta") and

Pro Arte Pro is an abbreviation meaning "professional". Pro, PRO or variants thereof may also refer to: People * Miguel Pro (1891–1927), Mexican priest * Pro Hart (1928–2006), Australian painter * Mlungisi Mdluli (born 1980), South African retired ...

's "Lola". The album was produced by the band themselves. After the album release, the band split up once again. During 1995, Dragojlović appeared as guest on the cover version of "Šizika", recorded by the

band Ruž on their album ''Kao nekada...'' (''Like It Used to Be...''). In 2006, the original lineup reunited to perform as guests at a Delča i Sklekovi concert, held in the

Belgrade Youth Center Belgrade Youth Center ( sr, Dom omladine Beograda; abbr. DOB) is a cultural center in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, dedicated primarily to youth. History At the corner of the ''Dečanska'' and ''Makedonska'' streets, where the youth cente ...

on 10 March. On 17 October of the same year, the band had their last live performance, appearing as the opening act on

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger Taylor the following year the band we ...

concert at Belgrade Fair.

Legacy

In 1995, Serbian and Yugoslav pop rock band Ruž covered the song "Šizika" on their album ''Kao nekada...'', with Dragojlović making a guest appearance on the song. In 2011, at the

Mixer festival, the Serbian

post-rock Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation w ...

band

Petrol Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic c ...

performed the album ''Muzika za mlade'' in its entirety. In 2014, Serbian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

band Bata Božanić Kvintet covered the song "Možda, možda" on their album ''Uspomene 2'' (''Memories 2''), with Dragojlović making a guest appearance on the song. In 1998, the various artists compilation '' Ventilator 202 Demo Top 10'', featuring the demo version of the band's song "Možda, možda", appeared on the 100th place on the 100 Greatest Yugoslav Popular Music Albums list, released in the book '' YU 100: najbolji albumi jugoslovenske rok i pop muzike'' (''YU 100: The Best albums of Yugoslav pop and rock music''). In 2006, the song "Šizika" was polled No.56 on the B92 Top 100 Yugoslav songs list. In 2011, "Šizika" was polled by the listeners of Radio 202 as one of 60 greatest songs released by

PGP-RTB PGP-RTB (abbreviation for sr, Produkcija gramofonskih ploča Radio televizije Beograd) was a major state-owned record label and chain record store in the former SFR Yugoslavia, based in Belgrade, Socialist Republic of Serbia. After the breakup ...

PGP-RTS PGP-RTS ( sr, Produkcija gramofonskih ploča Radio televizije Srbije) is a major record label based in Belgrade, Serbia. It is a successor of PGP-RTB which was established in 1959 in Belgrade, then capital of Socialist Republic of Serbia and S ...

during the sixty years of the label's existence.

Discography

Studio albums

*''Muzika za mlade'' (1984) *''Striptiz'' (1985) *''Stereo'' (1995)

EPs

*''Šizika'' (1983)

Singles

"Cry, baby, cry" / "Blago morskih dubina" (1985)

Other appearances

*"Možda, možda" ('' Ventilator 202 Demo Top 10'', 1983) *"Ja sam mornar" / "Voli me" (''Split '84'') *"Šizika" ('' Bez struje'', 1994)

References

External links

Laki Pingvini
at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the ...