Gunnar Graps-Grāfs (27 November 1951 – 17 May 2004) was a popular

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n musician and one of the pioneers of

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

and the former

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. He has sold hundreds of thousands of records all over the world and in 2004 Graps was given a lifetime award at Estonian Music Awards. He has been compared to

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

and

Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...

, both who were his own personal idols, and is often called Raudmees (''Iron Man'').

Biography

Start of music career, 1960s

Gunnar Graps was born to Latvian conductor, cellist and musical pedagogue Igors Gunārs Graps-Grāfs and his Estonian wife Salme (née Pluum). Graps was inspired to turn to music by his father at the age of six when he started to learn

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

. In 1964, being only 13, he joined his first band Satelliidid as a guitarist. In spring of 1967 Graps joined Mikronid, where he played drums for the next six years. In 1970–1972 he was in the army and during that period he performed with

Ivo Linna Ivo Linna (born 12 June 1949 in Kuressaare) is an Estonian singer. Eurovision Song Contest and Eesti Laul He represented Estonia alongside Maarja Liis Ilus in the Eurovision Song Contest 1996 in Oslo with the song " Kaelakee Hääl" (The Sound ...

. He spent another year behind the drums in Mikronid after his return from military service. In spring 1968 Jüri Lina recorded about ten Mikronid's songs which also included Graps' creation for his show "Pobifo Revüü".

Golden-Age of his music, 1970s

After leaving the group Mikronid Graps created Ornament in 1973, which was one of the pioneers of

in Estonia and the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

(Estonia was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1944–1991). Ornament's music was influenced by

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

and

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

. In 1976 Graps put together a new outfit called

Magnetic Band Magnetic Band was an Estonian metal-rock and jazz-rock band. History Magnetic Band was formed in 1976 by Gunnar Graps. They played jazz-rock, which had influences of reggae and funk-soul. Later, after Graps graduated from Tallinn music school ...

which was

Jazz-rock Jazz fusion (also known as jazz rock, jazz-rock fusion, or simply fusion) is a popular music Music genre, genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and jazz improvisation, improvisation with rock music, funk, a ...

oriented, with

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

influences. In 1977 Graps graduated from Tallinn Music School, from the

percussion instrument A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

s department. Soon after that he reformed his group and they started leaning towards

. Soon Magnetic Band became one of the most popular heavy-music bands in the Soviet Union. They won first prize at the first official rock-festival of the Soviet Union which took place in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

thanks to their hit "Lady Blues" and became the stars of Yerevan-81 international pop-rock-festival. "Garbed in fire-engine red pants and white shirt decorated with a splashy 7-Up emblem, Graps sang: "Since we have nowhere else to make love/we do it out in the open/And sometimes the rain washes away the makeup/from her face—and mine", wrote ''Time'' magazine in 1981.

At the top, 1980s

His popularity peaked in the 1980s. Magnetic Band constantly toured the Soviet Union. In 1982, ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' dedicated a whole page to Gunnar Graps and the Magnetic Band. It was no surprise that in 1983 Magnetic Band got banned by the Soviet authorities, which led to creation of GGG (Gunnar Graps Group). The change also marked a shift towards straightforward hard rock and heavy metal, genres which Magnetic Band were already flirting with (''Note: all the musical groups in Soviet Union had to be evaluated before they were allowed to perform or exist at all''). After

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

became the new leader of the Soviet regime, GGG experienced less obstruction from the Soviet authorities. In 1988, they released their only LP entitled ''Põlemine'' (Burning). The vinyl was issued by Melodiya, the only record company in the entire USSR. Distribution of the record was very high. At the time, GGG consisted of Gunnar Graps (drums, percussion, vocals, keyboards), Juri Stihhanov (lead guitar), Andres Aak (now known as Angela Aak, rhythm guitar), Jüri Roosa (bass guitar) and Tiit Altosaar (drums on some songs, as Graps tended to perform most drumming (along with singing) himself). They performed in Estonia and many locations over the former Soviet Union and were popular until their fade in the end of decade. Their most popular songs were "Põlemine" (Burning), "Valgus" (Light), the ballad "Mosaiik" (Mosaic), "Raudmees" (Iron Man) – a song which gave Graps his nickname. During the

Singing Revolution The Singing Revolution was a series of events from 1987 to 1991 that led to the restoration of independence of the three Soviet-occupied Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania at the end of the Cold War. The term was coined by a ...

, in 1987, a choir composed of well-known Estonian singers, Gunnar Graps among them, recorded Alo Mattiisen's song " Ei ole üksi ükski maa", a patriotic song about Estonia. In 1989 Gunnar Graps moved to the United States in the hopes of reaching new heights with his musical career but, alas, failed to reach those previous lofty heights and was compelled to work as a repairman – to "make ends meet".

Start of decline, 1990s

After the end of the Soviet occupation, when Estonia had been restored into a fully independent country in 1991, Graps returned to his homeland. In the summer of 1993, he was caught, while working as a DJ at the nightclub on the ferryboat "Estonia", trying to cross the border to Sweden with

anabolic steroid Anabolic steroids, also known as anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS), are a class of drugs that are structurally related to testosterone, the main male sex hormone, and produce effects by binding to the androgen receptor (AR). Anabolism, Anaboli ...

s and was imprisoned for two months in Sweden. Graps reportedly did not complain about his imprisonment and praised the jail as being better than restaurants in Estonia. After his release, Graps came back to Estonia. Financial problems arose once more and he was compelled to work at local radio stations and night-clubs as a DJ, playing music he hated. In 1995, Graps released "Tühjad pihud" (Empty Hands) and reformed GGG the next year, performing about once a month. Graps was becoming more and more depressed.

Last years

Starting in the 21st century, Graps was still having financial troubles and performed in a series of Hansapank pension fund commercials. The commercials included a word play of "Tühjad pihud" (Empty Hands) record. In 2002, a 3 CD collection of Gunnar Graps' music, from all his tenures with past bands, was released as part of " Eesti kullafond" (Estionian Gold Fund) series. In 2003, Gunnar Graps performed at one of his last big concerts before death. An incarnation of

played in front of approx. 600 people at Green Christmas Festival in

Rakvere Rakvere is the administrative center, or county seat, of Lääne-Viru County in northern Estonia, about 100 km southeast of Tallinn and 20 km south of the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea. Rakvere boasts a distinctive architectural feature: th ...

. Despite his health problems, Graps did not want to give up on music and in 2003 he released "Rajalt maas" (Off the Track), which had a strong

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

influence. In one of his last interviews Graps promised to go on tour in Russia, because he was disappointed in the local music scene. Three months before his death he was still looking forward to continue his career and in an interview for ''Sakala'', an Estonian newspaper, he promised to release a new album by the end of 2004 and another record in 2005. On 17 May 2004, at the age of 52, Gunnar Graps died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

at his home on Mooni street in Tallinn.

Legacy

Gunnar Graps is considered a rock idol by many Estonians. Another popular Estonian band Metsatöll have said that Gunnar Graps means the same to Estonian metal as

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...

means to the world. Also, numerous tribute events have spawned, paying homage to the early departed musician. These events take place around Graps' birthday month and death month. A string of local bands usually perform at the event along with incarnations of GGG or Magnetic Band, with people Graps used to play with. Gunnar Graps was inducted into the Hall Of Fame of Rock Cafe, a local pub (operated by the owners of Radio Mania, also the place where the tribute events take place), on 17 May 2005. In December 2005, Hard Rock Club started collecting funds to erect a memorial headstone at Graps' grave. A fund-rising concert was held on 5 March 2006 at Rock Cafe in Tallinn. The stone was designed by Graps' son Jan Graps and placed on his grave at Rahumäe cemetery on 17 May 2006. A cover band – Gunnar's Roses – was also active at some point during 2005–2006, performing at Hard Rock Laager in 2005 (a heavy metal festival created by Hard Rock Club) and at smaller pubs. The band was put together by Henri "Suss" Hinno (drummer of Manatark and Must Missa) who took the role of the drummer. Hinno is known to be a big fan of Graps' work and sang "Mosaiik" live with Gunnar's Roses. In 2011, dramatist Ivar Põllu's play ''Raudmees. Odysseuse eksirännakud'', which focuses of the life of Graps, was performed at the New Tartu Theatre in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

. Directed by Robert Annus, the play featured actor Juss Haasma as Graps and a musical score that consisted of many of Graps' most well-known songs.Uus Teater
''Raudmees. Odysseuse eksirännakud'' 27 November 2011. Retrieved 9 February 2017.

Singing style

Gunnar Graps' singing style was somewhat similar to the style

James Hetfield James Alan Hetfield (born August 3, 1963) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, co-founder, and a primary songwriter of heavy metal band Metallica. He is mainly known for his raspy voice and intricate rhythm playi ...

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

used to have, which was essentially trying to sing from the throat to produce a raspier sound. A very busy schedule contributed to the development of his signature rasp. It was not uncommon for Graps to perform even 3 shows per day and 25 days in a month. He was still able to produce very high notes, as is evident from his songs and ''

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...

'' song "Gethsamen", which is included on the '' Gunnar Graps – Eesti kullafond 4''. He is known to have trained his voice by yelling at walls; he usually did it before going on stage.

Partial discography

*''Magnetic Band'', (1978, EP) Issued by soviet record company Melodjia *''Roosid papale'' (Roses for Papa) (1981, LP) Issued by Melodija GGG *''Põlemine'' (Burning) (1988, LP) Issued by Melodija Solo *''Tühjad pihud'' (Empty Hands) (1995, CD) Issued by Elwood *''Rajalt maas'' (Off the Track) (2003, CD/MC) Issued by Elwood Compilation *'' Gunnar Graps – Eesti kullafond 4'' (2002, 3CD/3MC) TT Rec

References

External links

Videos

* * * , performed at

Levimuusikapäevad in 1987 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Graps, Gunnar 1951 births 2004 deaths Estonian rock singers Estonian cellists Estonian drummers Estonian rock guitarists Estonian pianists Harmonica players Musicians from Tartu Burials at Rahumäe Cemetery Estonian people of Latvian descent 20th-century Estonian male singers Tallinn Georg Ots Music School alumni