''Soldatski bal'' (translation: ''The

Soldiers A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

' Ball'') is the first studio album by the Yugoslav band

Plavi orkestar Plavi orkestar () is a Bosnian and former Yugoslavian pop rock band from Sarajevo. The band was formed in 1983 by Saša Lošić, who is the lead singer and songwriter of the group. The band has remained popular with seven albums and more than ...

, released in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

. With over 500,000 copies sold, it is the best-selling debut album in Yugoslavia and its successor states. Recorded during January 1985 and released a few months later, the album was a huge commercial success, spawning numerous hits. It catapulted a band of 21-year-olds to nationwide fame, making them into instant teenage stars. The album's lyrics are mostly inspired by

Saša Lošić Saša Lošić "Loša" (; born 19 July 1964) is a Bosnian recording artist. He initially rose to prominence as the lead vocalist of the Bosnian-based music act Plavi orkestar, which is one of the most popular music bands of the former Yugoslav Pop ...

's compulsory

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distin ...

service, which he served in

Bitola Bitola (; mk, Битола ) is a city in the southwestern part of North Macedonia. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba (North Macedonia), Baba, Nidže, and Kajmakčalan mountain ranges, north of th ...

from September 1983 until September 1984. The album features numerous guest appearances, including Nada Obrić,

Aki Rahimovski Parni Valjak (; "steamroller") is a Croatian and former Yugoslav rock band. They were one of the top acts of the former Yugoslav rock scene, and one of the top rock bands in Croatia. Biography Parni Valjak was founded in 1975 in Zagreb. Unl ...

Parni valjak Parni Valjak (; "steamroller") is a Croatian and former Yugoslav rock band. They were one of the top acts of the former Yugoslav rock scene, and one of the top rock bands in Croatia. Biography Parni Valjak was founded in 1975 in Zagreb. Unlik ...

Jura Stublić Jurislav "Jura" Stublić (born 19 December 1953) is a Croatian singer-songwriter. References 1950s births Singers from Sarajevo Living people Croatian rock musicians 20th-century Croatian male singers Bosnia and Herzegovina rock sin ...

of Film, Peđa D'Boy of

Dʼ Boys D' Boys (pronounced as The Boys) was a Yugoslav synth-pop/ pop rock band formed in Belgrade in 1982. Originally formed as a duo consisting of Peđa D'Boy (real name Predrag Jovanović, vocals and guitar, formerly of German band Jane) and Miros ...

, Ivan "Firchie" Fece of EKV, Marina Perazić, Dragoš Kalajić, and Jovan Ćirilov. The album sleeve was designed by Bojan Hadžihalilović. In a replica of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...

' ''

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept album that advanced the roles of sound composi ...

'', it shows the four band members flanked by the seven Yugoslav Youth Communist League (SKOJ) secretaries, in addition to 49 individuals from Yugoslav history and public life such as

Petar II Petrović-Njegoš Petar II Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyrl, Петар II Петровић-Његош, ; – ), commonly referred to simply as Njegoš (), was a Prince-Bishop (''vladika'') of Montenegro, poet and philosopher whose works are widely considered ...

Ivo Lola Ribar Ivan Ribar (23 April 1916 – 27 November 1943), known as Ivo Lola or Ivo Lolo, was a Yugoslav communist politician and military leader of Croatian descent. In the 1930s, he became one of the closest associates of Josip Broz Tito, leader of the ...

Bata Živojinović Velimir "Bata" Živojinović ( sr-Cyrl, Велимир "Бата" Живојиновић; 5 June 1933 – 22 May 2016) was a Yugoslav and Serbian actor and politician. He appeared in more than 340 films and TV series, and is regarded as one of ...

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Vuk Karadžić Vuk Stefanović Karadžić ( sr-Cyrl, Вук Стефановић Караџић, ; 6 November 1787 (26 October OS)7 February 1864) was a Serbian philologist, anthropologist and linguist. He was one of the most important reformers of the mode ...

Slavko Štimac Slavko Štimac ( sr-cyrl, Славко Штимац; born 15 October 1960) is a Serbian actor. Born in a village near Perušić in modern-day Croatia, he later graduated from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade. Štimac made his screen debu ...

Miroslav Krleža Miroslav Krleža (; 7 July 1893 – 29 December 1981) was a Yugoslav and Croatian writer who is widely considered to be the greatest Croatian writer of the 20th century. He wrote notable works in all the literary genres, including poetry ('' B ...

Oliver Mandić Oliver Mandić (Serbian Cyrillic: Оливер Мандић; born 13 July 1953) is a Serbian rock musician, composer, and producer. Early life Musically involved from a young age, Mandić first started playing the accordion before taking up the ...

Mirza Delibašić Mirza Delibašić (9 January 1954 – 8 December 2001) was a Bosnian professional basketball player and coach. Delibašić was named one of FIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991. He was enshrined into the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2008, he was ...

, etc. In 2015 the album cover was ranked 58th on the list of 100 Greatest Album Covers of Yugoslav Rock published by

web magazine An online magazine is a magazine published on the Internet, through bulletin board systems and other forms of public computer networks. One of the first magazines to convert from a print magazine format to being online only was the computer maga ...

Balkanrock."100 najboljih omota YU rocka", Balkanrock.com
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Track listing

Personnel

Bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and s ...

— Ćera I *

Drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

— Ćera II *Drums,

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...

— Firči *Engineer — Vladimir Smolec *

Executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights ...

— Malcolm Muharem *

Guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

, arranged by — Pava * Keyboards — Zoran Kraš *Photography — Mehmed Akšamija *Producer — Husein Hasanefendić *Vocals, voice, arranged by —

*Guest vocal on "Šta će nama šoferima kuća" — Nada Obrić *Guest vocals on "Stambol, Pešta, Bečlija" —

, and Peđa D'Boy *Backing vocals on "Bolje biti pijan nego star" — Dragoš Kalajić and Jovan Ćirilov

Sound-alike

Song "Bolje biti pijan nego star" use melody as in "Dok palme nijšu grane" by Dubrovački trubaduri.

References

External links

''Soldatski bal''
at Discogs {{Authority control 1985 debut albums Plavi orkestar albums