Alen Islamović

Alen Islamović (born August 17, 1957 in Sokolac near Bihać , SFR Yugoslavia ) is a Bosnian musician and singer. Islamović is best known as the singer of the bands Divlje jagode (1979–1986) and Bijelo dugme (1986–1989).

Life

Islamović was born to Bosnian parents in Sokolac, a small village about five kilometers from the city of Bihać , in the north-western part of what is now Bosnia and Herzegovina . Until he was two and a half years old, the family lived in Sokolac. But when his father found work in Bihać, the whole family moved to the city. Islamović first came into contact with music through his brother, who brought home a gramophone in the late 1960s. He learned to play guitar from his older brother and in 1974 he started playing bass guitar in a band called Bag . He started singing because his brother had a lot of records so he could learn the lyrics.

The local popularity soon grew around Islamović and his band, also because he gave numerous concerts in the region. Besides Bihać, Bag performed in places like Prijedor , Drvar , Sanski Most and Banja Luka , where he made decent sums of money. He liked music by Led Zeppelin , Deep Purple and Bijelo dugme . When his band broke up, Islamović began playing football in what was then the second division club NK Jedinstvo Bihać . After completing the army service, Sead Lipovača invited him to Divlje jagode. In the beginning it was very difficult for him with Divlje jagode, but it finally paid off when the band made their breakthrough in many parts of Yugoslavia . They were so promising that in April 1984, when Željko Bebek left Bijelo Dugme, Islamović turned down Goran Bregović's offer to sing in Bijelo Dugme, also fearing that Bebek might return to Bijelo Dugme, and that Divlje jagode only were one step away from becoming world famous. But everything failed, Divlje jagode fell apart and Islamović returned to Bihać and decided to do a traditional job and forget about music. But then there was another offer from Goran Bregović when Tifa Bijelo Dugme left, and this time Islamović accepted the offer.

At the time, the last singer of Bijelo Dugme's vocal abilities were questioned when comparing the band's former two singers to him. Goran Bregović allegedly invited Islamović only for his healthy lifestyle, allegedly declaring that he had had enough of booze and drug addicts. Goran was right, and Islamović did not let fame spoil him. After each tour he returned home in Bihać, where he had his bar, fishing and playing table tennis. In 1989 he left the Bijelo Dugme tour without notifying anyone. He returned home to heal a kidney problem that he sustained on the trip, so the tour was canceled. At first it looked like a slight shift, but ultimately turned out to be the end of Bijelo Dugme. Soon the war started and the band took a 15 year hiatus.

After Islamović had recovered, he first used the time to record a solo album in 1989 with the title Haj, nek se čuje, ha, nek se zna . With the exception of the title track, the album received a lukewarm response from the public and was soon forgotten. When the war began in Bosnia, he fled from Bihać to Zagreb . He was still active and performed mostly in Bosnia and Herzegovina and occasionally in neighboring countries. Islamović also played in Germany , Austria and Switzerland , where he is popular in the guest worker communities from the former Yugoslavia. His repertoire consists mainly of songs by Bijelo Dugme. It is seen as a one-man tribute band to Bijelo Dugme.

Islamović recorded a duet with Turbofolk singer Indira Radić for her album Pocrnela Burma (2002). The song they recorded together, Lopov , became a huge commercial hit. He would later do two more duets with her: 2007 songs Imali smo, nismo znali for her album Lepo se provedi and again for her single in 2011 Ljubav stara .

In 2005 Islamović took part in three big farewell concerts with Bijelo Dugme in Sarajevo , Zagreb and Belgrade . It was the band's first live performance since 1989. He also played rhythm guitar and sang in the band "4 Asa" with Vlado Kalember , Slavko Pintarić - Pišta, Rajko Dujmić and Jurica Pađen .

Islamović released the song Mrtvo hladno in February 2005 and an album of the same name in April 2005 with the Canadian band "Srčani Udar" (translated: "Heart Attack"). The album included eleven songs and a bonus DVD with two music videos and a 30-minute documentary "in the making".

In October 2006 Islamović, Željko Bebek and Tifa founded a tribute band called " BAT " in Bijelo Dugme . They performed on numerous stages between 2006 and 2010. BAT's 2006 USA-Canada tour was shot for a documentary entitled BAT: Balkan Rock Nostalgia , directed by Branislav R. Tatalovic .

In 2012, a new single, Heroin , was released along with two music videos. It was written by Dejan Djurković Englez , lead guitarist of the "Srčani Udar". This was an announcement for Islamović's next studio album.

On August 15, 2013 Islamović appeared at the Belgrade Beer Festival with the Kad bi bio Bijelo Dugme Band, who played songs by Bijelo Dugme as well as his own solo songs. This was his first major Belgrade show in many years, and the second in front of thousands of people, after the Bijelo Dugme concert in Belgrade Hippodrome in 2005.

In 2014 his new studio album called Alcatraz was released . This was his first new material since 2005, and album Mrtvo Hladno with "Srčani Udar". The album was released by City Records in March .

Islamović teamed up again with Goran Bregović for a Bijelo Dugme live concert in Ljubljana in June 2014. What was initially planned as a 40-year anniversary tour for the entire band, remained with these two after financial disputes with the other band members. After the successful show in front of more than 10,000 people, the entire tour, in Europe and USA, was planned with only Islamović and Bregović.

Islamović currently lives in Bihać. He is married and has two daughters. He finances and is the owner of the Una Gem Tennis Club in Bihać and is also the president of the club.

Discography

With Divlje Jagode

Stakleni hotel (1981)
Motori (1982)
Čarobnjaci (1983)
Vatra (1985)
Wild Strawberries (1986)

With Bijelo dugme

Pljuni i zapjevaj moja Yugoslavijo (1986)
Mramor, came i željezo (1987)
Ćiribiribela (1988)
Đurđevdan (1989)

With Srčani Udar

Mrtvo hladno (2005)

Solo albums

Haj, nek se čuje, haj, nek se zna (1989)
Gdje je moj rođeni brat (1992)
Zrno Duse (1993)
Hitovi (1994)
Bauštelac (1994)
Nema meni bez tebe (1995)
Live Eurotour (1996)
Samo nebo zna (1999)
Divlje Dugme (2000)
Istok, zapad, sjever, jug (2001)
Heroin (2013)
Alcatraz (2014)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME	Islamović, Alen
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Yugoslav or Bosnian musician and singer
DATE OF BIRTH	17th August 1957
PLACE OF BIRTH	Sokolac