Branimir Štulić

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article or the following section is not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.

Branimir Štulić (born April 11, 1953 in Skopje , Yugoslavia ) is a Yugoslav musician from the generation of " Novi val " ("The New Wave") and the founder of the group Azra .

Life

Beginnings of the career

Štulić's father was a colonel in the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in Skopje. Five years later his family moved first to Jastrebarsko , then to Zagreb . There he finished school and first studied philosophy , but repeatedly changed faculties and did not graduate. Even then he began to sing his own songs as well as foreign songs under the name "Johnny" and to play the acoustic guitar . His first band was the "Balkan sevdah band", which was composed of unknown musicians. They played everything from the Beatles to folk songs and Štulić's own songs. Because of its difficult nature, the members of the group changed very often. Some of the better-known musicians who were part of the group in the meantime are Jura Stublić , Marin Pelajić and Mladen Juričić , who later split up and founded "Film", also a well-known group at the time. It was only after meeting Boris Leiner (drummer from the “ Haustor ” group) and Mišo Hrnjak (bassist) that a permanent group formed.

Azra

A special turning point for Štulić was the first concert of the Slovenian group “Pankrti” in Zagreb. Then Štulić cut off his long hair and shaved his beard, which he also addressed in one of Azra's most popular songs, “Balkan”. Under the influence of punk and “Novi val” the style of the group changed and Štulić felt that it was time to change the group's name. In 1977 he changed his name to "Azra" ("virgin") after Heinrich Heine's poem "Der Asra". In the spring of 1980 the trio decided to release an album. The result, the debut album "Azra", did not meet Štulić's expectations. The audience, on the other hand, was thrilled to finally have the songs they had known for a long time on a record. Štulić's fuzzy guitar and hoarse voice quickly became their trademark and the group secured a leading place on the Yugoslav rock scene. The next album, "Sunčana strana ulice" (1981), was produced by Štulić, as were all subsequent albums. In addition to Štulić's songs, the album also includes one by Mile Rupčić - “Pit, i to je Amerika” (“Pete, that's America too ”), which was written for a monodrama of the same name . In addition to love poems, the album also contains songs with socially or politically engaged topics, which very quickly made Štulić the press spokesman for the new generation.

After a tour of Yugoslavia that ended in the autumn of 1981, seven consecutive sold-out concerts followed at the “Kulušić” club in Zagreb. This resulted in a triple album "Ravno do dna" (straight down). The double album "Filigranski pločnici" (Filigree Sidewalks) was released three months after "Ravno do dna" and quickly became Azra's best-selling album.

In 1983, Mišo Hrnjak left the group and joined Jehovah's Witnesses . Boris Leiner went to the JNA to do military service . That was the end of the group in the original line-up. With Srećko Antolović on bass he recorded “Kad fazani lete” (When the pheasants fly) in Frankfurt am Main in 1983 and after Leiner's return “Krivo srastanje” (Wrongly grow together) in 1984. These two albums differ stylistically from the previous albums.

The Netherlands

In 1986 Štulić disbanded the group and moved to the Netherlands . There he translated his songs into English and published them on the album "It ain't like in the movies at all". With this he tried, with little success, to start a career abroad. In 1987 he returned to Croatia and recorded "Između krajnosti" with Boris Leiner, Jurica Pađen and Stephen Kipp. With them he made a comeback tour in 1988, during which the live album "Zadovoljština" was recorded. Due to disagreements, Boris Leiner left the group in 1990, with which Azra was officially dissolved. In 1991 he moved back to the Netherlands.

Solo career

After Azra's disintegration, Štulić worked on his solo albums "Balkansta rapsodija" (1988), "Balegari ne vjeruju sreći" (1990), "Sevdah za Paulu Horvat" (1995), "Anali" (1995) and " Bladder "(1997). None of them witness the success of their earlier works. Today he lives with his wife Josefine in the Netherlands in Houten near Utrecht . He is a translator and very rarely communicates with journalists .

Discography

Singles

  • Balkans / A šta da radim (Suzy, 1979)
  • Lijepe žene prolaze kroz grad / Poziv na ples / Suzy F. (Jugoton, 1980)
  • Đoni, budi dobar / Teško vrijeme (Jugoton, 1982)
  • E pa što / Sloboda / Gluperde lutaju daleko (Jugoton, 1982)
  • Nemir i strast / Doviđenja na vlaškom drumu (Jugoton, 1983)
  • Klinček stoji pod oblokom / Flash (Jugoton, 1984)
  • Mon Ami / Duboko u tebi (Jugoton, 1984)
  • The Balkans / Pretty Women Passing Through Town / Vondel Park (Marginal Face Production, 1985)
  • Kao i jučer / Doviđenja na vlaškom drumu (Jugoton, 1987)
  • Bed rok / Kada stvari krenu loše (Jugoton, 1987)
  • Ma Che Colpa Abbiamo Noi / Adio Mare (Jugoton, 1988)
  • Teško ovo život / Lađa bez dna (Jugoton, 1989)
  • Meni se dušo od tebe ne rastaje / People moj (Jugoton, 1990)

Albums (with Azra)

  • Azra (Jugoton, 1980)
  • Sunčana strana ulice (Jugoton, 1981)
  • Ravno do dna (Jugoton, 1982)
  • Filigranski pločnici (Jugoton, 1982)
  • Singl ploče 1979–1982 (Jugoton, 1982)
  • Kad fazani lete (Jugoton, 1983)
  • Krivo srastanje (Jugoton, 1984)
  • It ain't Like In The Movies At All (Diskoton, 1986; Jugoton, 1990)
  • Kao i jučer (Singl ploče '83 -'86) (Jugoton 1987)
  • Između krajnosti (Jugoton, 1987)
  • Zadovoljština (Jugoton, 1988)

Solo albums

  • Balkanska rapsodija (Jugoton, 1989)
  • Balegari ne vjeruju sreći (Jugoton, 1990)
  • Sevdah za Paulu Horvat (1991; Komuna 1995)
  • Anali (Komuna, 1995)
  • Bladder (Hi Fi Centar, 1997)

Books

  • Filigranski pločnici (Azra Music, 1982)
  • Big Bang (1985)
  • Anonymous Epigramus (1988)
  • Božanska Ilijada via Hoemer (Beogradski sajam knjige, 1995)
  • Smijurija u mjerama (Vreme, 2005),

Videotapes

  • Zadovoljština (Jugoton, 1988)
  • Klinček stoji pod oblokon (Jugoton, 1990)

literature

  • Hrvoje Horvat: Johnny B. Štulić: Fantom slobode . Profile international, Zagreb 2005., ISBN 953-12-0156-0
personal data
SURNAME Štulić, Branimir
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Yugoslav musician
DATE OF BIRTH April 11, 1953
PLACE OF BIRTH Skopje