Tasavallan Presidentti (in
English ''
President of the Republic'') is a
Finnish progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...
band. It was founded in 1969 by guitarist
Jukka Tolonen and drummer
Vesa Aaltonen. Other founder members were
Måns Groundstroem (bass) and
Frank Robson (vocals), previously of
Blues Section.
Juhani Aaltonen (saxophone/flute) had earlier played in
Soulset; he was replaced in 1970 by
Pekka Pöyry.
Eero Raittinen replaced Robson as a vocalist in 1972, the same year as the album ''
Lambertland'' was released in UK. The album was a tight fusion of jazz and folk rock with highly inventive and imaginative lyrics which charted at the number 7 position in Finland. ''
Milky Way Moses'' reached number 12 in Finland in 1974. The band toured in continental Europe and the United Kingdom in 1973 and 1974, but Pöyry, stricken with bouts of manic depression, was occasionally replaced with keyboardist Esa Kotilainen on live dates.
Tasavallan Presidentti disbanded in 1974, then reunited from 2005 to 2006 with original saxophonist Juhani Aaltonen, as Pöyry had committed suicide in 1980. The band celebrated its fiftieth anniversary with two concerts in December 2019 in Helsinki and Tampere.
Tasavallan Presidentti täyttää 50 vuotta – asiaa juhlistetaan konserteilla ja ainutlaatuisella livealbumilla.
''Soundi'', 7 October 2019 (in Finnish).
Discography
Albums
* ''Tasavallan Presidentti'' (1969)
* Pekka Streng with Tasavallan Presidentti: ''Magneettimiehen kuolema'' (1970)
* ''Tasavallan Presidentti (II)'' (1971)
* '' Lambertland'' (1972)
* '' Milky Way Moses'' (1974)
* ''Classics'' (compilation) (1990)
* ''Tasavallan Presidentti'' (2000)
* ''Still Struggling for Freedom'' (live) (2001)
* ''Tasavallan Presidentti Six'' (2005, EP)
* ''Six Complete'' (2006)
* ''Pop-Liisa 1'' (2016)
* ''The Lost 1971 Studio Session'' (2023)
Singles
* ''Time Alone with You'' / ''Obsolete Machine'' (1969)
* ''Solitary'' / ''Deep Thinker'' (1970)
* Kirka Babitzin & Tasavallan Presidentti: ''Saat kaiken / Kaukainen valo'' (1970)
* ''Sisältäni portin löysin / Selvä näkijä'' (1972)
Band members
* Frank Robson – vocals
Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...
, keyboards (1969–1972, 1983-)
* Eero Raittinen – vocals
Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...
(1972–1974, 1995, 2000)
* Juhani Aaltonen – saxophone
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...
, flute
The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...
(1969–1970, 1983-)
* Pekka Pöyry – saxophone
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...
, flute
The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...
(1970–1974)
* Jukka Tolonen – guitar
The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
* Esa Kotilainen – keyboards (1974, 1990, 1995)
* Måns Groundstroem – bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Wood
* Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
(1969–1972, 1983–2002)
* Heikki Virtanen – bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Wood
* Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...
(1973–1974, 2002-)
* Vesa Aaltonen – drums
The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...
References
External links
Unofficial fan site
{{Finland-band-stub
Finnish progressive rock groups
Musical groups established in 1969