Siluete
Encyclopedia
Siluete was a former Yugoslav and Serbia
n rock
band from Belgrade
, notable for being one of the pioneers of the former Yugoslav rock scene.
), Branko Gluščević (formerly of Black Cats, rhythm guitar
), Ilija Stanić (guitar
), Zoran Simjanović
(keyboards
) and Miroslav "Mine" Minić (drums
). The band members, influenced by the film The Young Ones
which featured Cliff Richard
and The Shadows
, named the band Siluete. The band had their first notable performance on Đorđe Marjanović's concert in Belgrade's Dom sindikata.
After performances in Makarska
during the summer of 1963, the members of Siluete departed. Simjanović moved to Elipse
, Gluščević and Miščević formed Lutalice with guitarist Božidar "Lari" Plesničar and rhythm guitarist Slobodan Mihajlović, and Ilić continued to lead Siluete in the new lineup: Dejan Dunjić (bass guitar), Jovan Mišević (drums), Miomir "Kraka" Petrović (rhythm guitar) and Ljuba Đorđević (keyboards). As the band performed instrumental music, at one of their performances they were approached by singer Tomislav "Tomi" Sovilj
(formerly of Zlatni Dečaci
) who suggested them to work together, but this collaboration lasted for only a year.
As Lutalice disbanded in 1964, Miščević moved back to Siluete which soon achieved high success with their live performances. In the mid 1964, Tomi Sovilj formed his own Siluete, but the members of the original Siluete sued him and he lost the right to use the name Siluete, so he continued to perform with his band under the name Tomi Sovilj i Njegove Siluete
(Tomi Sovilj and His Silhouettes). During 1965, Siluete shocked the audience with their live performances, which secured them with huge popularity. At the time there were around 230 rock bands in Belgrade
, but all of them wore short hair and tidy clothes, which were the standards Siluete changed. At the Belgrade Gitarijada (not to be confused with Zaječar
Gitarijada
) held on January 9, 1966 on Belgrade's Sajmište
, Siluete performed with other popular rock bands. That evening a former member of Beduini, guitarist Dragi Jelić
performed with the band for the first time. In 1967, Siluete won the first place on Gitarijada organized by Večernje novosti
. They released their first EP
with songs "Tvoj rođendan" (a cover of Small Faces's "Sha la la lie") "Massachusetts
" (cover of the Bee Gees
' song) ""Keti", "Najdraži san" (cover of The Searchers
' "When You Walk in the Room
") and "Uhvati vetar" (cover of Donovan
's "Catch the Wind") and sold more than 45,000 copies of it.
At the time, film direction student Srđan Karanović recorded a television movie about Siluete, entitled Učio sam dve godine kontrabas (I Learned how to Play Bass for Two Years). The band also appeared in Branko Bauer
's film Doći i ostati. During 1966 they often performed in Belgrade and Zagreb
on the exhibitions of painter Olja Ivanjicki
. The band appeared on front covers of various magazines and Miščević's long blond hair caused numerous scandals. There were several attempts by citizens of Belgrade to cut his hair, so he got the media's attention by trying to insure
his hair. On New Year's Eve
of 1967, they held a twenty-three hour concert in Belgrade's Dom Omladine. In January 1968, at their concert in Sarajevo
, a riot broke out. A large number of chairs was broken, Miščević's shirt was ripped off, his gold necklace was split, Ljuba Đorđević was hit on the head with a bottle, and Siluete manager's wallet was stolen. At the Siluete concert in Novi Sad
band members broke their guitars, got in a fight with the audience and the band's van was damaged. Miščević regularly received hundreds of letters from his fans becoming the first Yugoslav megastar
since Đorđe Marjanović.
The band tried to break into the foreign market; for months they performed in Austria
and Germany
, but the guitarist Dragi Jelić left the band and went back to Yugoslavia where he joined the band Džentlmeni
(he would later form highly successful YU grupa
with his brother Žika). Jelić was replaced by a former Džentlmeni member Slobodan Todorović. During the absence of Siluete from Yugoslavia some newspapers published the news that Siluete performed at a graveyard
in Nuremberg
.
After returning to Yugoslavia the band released the single with songs "Dona" i "Voleti nekog", organized comeback concert in Belgrade's Dom Omladine, and went on Yugoslav tour. In 1969 Dunjić left the band and was replaced by the bass guitarist and painter Aleksandar Cvetković. After releasing the single "Dosadan dan" they started performing in clubs all over Europe
, but when the band members realized that their intention to release a record for the foreign market will not be realized, they split-up. Cvetković moved to the band CD, and Miščević remained in Germany for two more years. After returning to Yugoslavia in 1973 he performed with various bands before deciding to retire.
) and Radomir Dramičanin (formerly of Dah
, drums). Siluete went on a tour on which Miščević appeared on stage with a snake
, but they saw little success and disbanded once again. In 1976 Miščević and Đorđević reformed Siluete with a group of younger musicians. This line-up recorded single "Ponoćni voz" and single "Makedonsko devojče" with former miss Yugoslavia Lidija Vekovska.
During the following years Miščević led Siluete with little success. More than 180 musicians passed through Siluete, and new musical trends took Siluete to the margin. However, Siluete appeared on several larger concerts, on which the band performed a cover of Bijelo Dugme
's "Kad bi bio bijelo dugme" with lyrics "Dok su bile Siluete / Dugmići su bili malo dete" ("While Silhouettes were playing / Buttons
were just kids"). Siluete would later appear on Bijelo Dugme's concert on JNA Stadium as one of the opening bands.
In 1986, Ljuba Đorđević died, but Miščević decided to continue activity. In 1994, a various artists compilation album Sjaj izgubljene ljubavi (Shine of the Lost Love), which featured Siluete song "Tvoj rođendan", was released. Zoran Miščević died on April 4, 1995. In 2000 the compilation album VIS Siluete, with an overview of the bands work, was released.
Kad je rock bio mlad, a 2005 box-set compilation released by Croatia Records, featuring the Yugoslav rock pioneer bands, included the band's instrumental "Tema Silueta" ("Silhouettes' Theme").
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band from Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, notable for being one of the pioneers of the former Yugoslav rock scene.
1961 - 1971
The band was officially formed on October 20, 1961 by Zoran Miščević (vocals and bass guitarBass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), Branko Gluščević (formerly of Black Cats, rhythm guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
), Ilija Stanić (guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
), Zoran Simjanović
Zoran Simjanovic
Zoran Simjanović , was born in Belgrade on 11 May 1946. At the age of six he learned the piano, then went to the Mokranjac music school and then to the Belgrade music academy. Since 1961 he founded and played in some of the most popular rock'n'roll groups in Yugoslavia and abroad...
(keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
) and Miroslav "Mine" Minić (drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
). The band members, influenced by the film The Young Ones
The Young Ones (film)
The Young Ones is a British musical released in 1961, featuring singer Cliff Richard. The musical was directed by Sidney J. Furie and was produced by Kenneth Harper and Andrew Mitchell for the Associated British Studios at Elstree. The original screenplay was written by Peter Myers and Ronald...
which featured Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
and The Shadows
The Shadows
The Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...
, named the band Siluete. The band had their first notable performance on Đorđe Marjanović's concert in Belgrade's Dom sindikata.
After performances in Makarska
Makarska
Makarska is a small town on the Adriatic coastline of Croatia, about southeast of Split and northwest of Dubrovnik. It has a population of 13,716 residents. Administratively Makarska has the status of a town and it is part of the Split-Dalmatia County....
during the summer of 1963, the members of Siluete departed. Simjanović moved to Elipse
Elipse (band)
Elipse were a former Yugoslav rock and soul group from Belgrade, notable as one of the pioneers of the former Yugoslav rock scene.- The beat years :...
, Gluščević and Miščević formed Lutalice with guitarist Božidar "Lari" Plesničar and rhythm guitarist Slobodan Mihajlović, and Ilić continued to lead Siluete in the new lineup: Dejan Dunjić (bass guitar), Jovan Mišević (drums), Miomir "Kraka" Petrović (rhythm guitar) and Ljuba Đorđević (keyboards). As the band performed instrumental music, at one of their performances they were approached by singer Tomislav "Tomi" Sovilj
Tomi Sovilj i Njegove Siluete
Tomi Sovilj i Njegove Siluete were a Serbian and former Yugoslav beat group from Belgrade, notable for being one of the pioneers of the former Yugoslav rock scene....
(formerly of Zlatni Dečaci
Zlatni Dečaci
Zlatni Dečaci were a former Yugoslav rock band from Belgrade, notable as one of the pioneers of the former Yugoslav rock scene.- History :...
) who suggested them to work together, but this collaboration lasted for only a year.
As Lutalice disbanded in 1964, Miščević moved back to Siluete which soon achieved high success with their live performances. In the mid 1964, Tomi Sovilj formed his own Siluete, but the members of the original Siluete sued him and he lost the right to use the name Siluete, so he continued to perform with his band under the name Tomi Sovilj i Njegove Siluete
Tomi Sovilj i Njegove Siluete
Tomi Sovilj i Njegove Siluete were a Serbian and former Yugoslav beat group from Belgrade, notable for being one of the pioneers of the former Yugoslav rock scene....
(Tomi Sovilj and His Silhouettes). During 1965, Siluete shocked the audience with their live performances, which secured them with huge popularity. At the time there were around 230 rock bands in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, but all of them wore short hair and tidy clothes, which were the standards Siluete changed. At the Belgrade Gitarijada (not to be confused with Zaječar
Zajecar
Zaječar is a city and municipality in the eastern part of Serbia. According to the 2011 census the town has a population of 36,830, and its coordinates are 43.91° North, 22.30° East...
Gitarijada
Gitarijada
Gitarijada is a musical festival held in Zaječar, Serbia in order to promote demo bands. Held since 1969, Gitarijada is one of the longest lasting festivals in Serbia and in South Eastern Europe and the largest festival of young and unsinged bands in South Eastern Europe...
) held on January 9, 1966 on Belgrade's Sajmište
Staro Sajmište
Staro Sajmište is an urban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Novi Beograd and it was the site of the World War II Sajmište concentration camp ....
, Siluete performed with other popular rock bands. That evening a former member of Beduini, guitarist Dragi Jelić
Dragi Jelić
Dragi Jelić is a Serbian rock musician, best known as a singer and guitarist for the band YU grupa, which he formed in 1970 with his brother Zika Jelić. During the 1960s, alongside his brother Žika, he was a member of the beat band Džentlmeni.-References:...
performed with the band for the first time. In 1967, Siluete won the first place on Gitarijada organized by Večernje novosti
Vecernje novosti
Večernje novosti is a Belgrade-based daily newspaper. Founded in 1953, it quickly grew into a high-circulation daily.It first appeared on stands on October 16, 1953 edited by Slobodan Glumac who set the newspaper's tone for years to come...
. They released their first EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
with songs "Tvoj rođendan" (a cover of Small Faces's "Sha la la lie") "Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Bee Gees song)
"Massachusetts" is a song written, recorded, and released by the Bee Gees in 1967 and later appearing on their 1968 album, Horizontal. It was their first Number 1 hit in the UK and eventually became one of the best selling singles of all times....
" (cover of the Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
' song) ""Keti", "Najdraži san" (cover of The Searchers
The Searchers (band)
The Searchers are an English beat group, who emerged as part of the 1960s Merseybeat scene along with The Beatles, The Fourmost, The Merseybeats, The Swinging Blue Jeans, and Gerry & The Pacemakers....
' "When You Walk in the Room
When You Walk In The Room
"When You Walk in the Room" is a song written and recorded by Jackie DeShannon, first released by her in 1963 but covered by many artists. The lyrics of the song attempt to detail the singer's emotions when in the presence of the person he or she loves...
") and "Uhvati vetar" (cover of Donovan
Donovan
Donovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
's "Catch the Wind") and sold more than 45,000 copies of it.
At the time, film direction student Srđan Karanović recorded a television movie about Siluete, entitled Učio sam dve godine kontrabas (I Learned how to Play Bass for Two Years). The band also appeared in Branko Bauer
Branko Bauer
-Early life:Bauer became interested in cinema as a school boy, influenced by a Jewish girl, a piano player, who was hiding from Ustaše in his parents' home. After World War II, he began working in the Zagreb-based Jadran Film studio as a documentary filmmaker...
's film Doći i ostati. During 1966 they often performed in Belgrade and Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
on the exhibitions of painter Olja Ivanjicki
Olja Ivanjicki
Olja Ivanjicki was a well-known Serbian contemporary artist, in fields such as sculpture, poetry, costume design, architecture and writing, but was best known for her painting...
. The band appeared on front covers of various magazines and Miščević's long blond hair caused numerous scandals. There were several attempts by citizens of Belgrade to cut his hair, so he got the media's attention by trying to insure
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
his hair. On New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
of 1967, they held a twenty-three hour concert in Belgrade's Dom Omladine. In January 1968, at their concert in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
, a riot broke out. A large number of chairs was broken, Miščević's shirt was ripped off, his gold necklace was split, Ljuba Đorđević was hit on the head with a bottle, and Siluete manager's wallet was stolen. At the Siluete concert in Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
band members broke their guitars, got in a fight with the audience and the band's van was damaged. Miščević regularly received hundreds of letters from his fans becoming the first Yugoslav megastar
Megastar
-Celebrities:* Megastar, a particularly notable superstar* MegaStar, nickname of Indian Telugu film actor Chiranjeevi...
since Đorđe Marjanović.
The band tried to break into the foreign market; for months they performed in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, but the guitarist Dragi Jelić left the band and went back to Yugoslavia where he joined the band Džentlmeni
Džentlmeni
Džentlmeni were a Serbian beat band from Belgrade.- Band formation and split :...
(he would later form highly successful YU grupa
YU grupa
YU grupa is a Serbian and former Yugoslav rock band. One of the pioneers in combining rock music with the elements of the traditional music of the Balkans, YU grupa is considered the longest-lasting rock band to come from Serbia....
with his brother Žika). Jelić was replaced by a former Džentlmeni member Slobodan Todorović. During the absence of Siluete from Yugoslavia some newspapers published the news that Siluete performed at a graveyard
Graveyard
A graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead, with or without monuments such as headstones...
in Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
.
After returning to Yugoslavia the band released the single with songs "Dona" i "Voleti nekog", organized comeback concert in Belgrade's Dom Omladine, and went on Yugoslav tour. In 1969 Dunjić left the band and was replaced by the bass guitarist and painter Aleksandar Cvetković. After releasing the single "Dosadan dan" they started performing in clubs all over Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, but when the band members realized that their intention to release a record for the foreign market will not be realized, they split-up. Cvetković moved to the band CD, and Miščević remained in Germany for two more years. After returning to Yugoslavia in 1973 he performed with various bands before deciding to retire.
1975 - 1995
In 1975 Miščević reformed Siluete. The new lineup consisted of Ljuba Đorđević (keyboards), Boba Orlić (formerly of Bitnici, bass guitar) Dragan Vukelić (electric pianoElectric piano
An electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
) and Radomir Dramičanin (formerly of Dah
Dah (band)
Dah was a former Yugoslav/Belgian progressive rock band. Originally formed in Yugoslavia in 1972, the band, in 1975, moved to Belgium and changed the name to Land...
, drums). Siluete went on a tour on which Miščević appeared on stage with a snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
, but they saw little success and disbanded once again. In 1976 Miščević and Đorđević reformed Siluete with a group of younger musicians. This line-up recorded single "Ponoćni voz" and single "Makedonsko devojče" with former miss Yugoslavia Lidija Vekovska.
During the following years Miščević led Siluete with little success. More than 180 musicians passed through Siluete, and new musical trends took Siluete to the margin. However, Siluete appeared on several larger concerts, on which the band performed a cover of Bijelo Dugme
Bijelo dugme
Bijelo dugme was a highly influential former Yugoslav rock band, based in Sarajevo. Active between 1974 and 1989, it is widely considered to have been the most popular band ever to exist in former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and one of the most important acts of the Yugoslav rock...
's "Kad bi bio bijelo dugme" with lyrics "Dok su bile Siluete / Dugmići su bili malo dete" ("While Silhouettes were playing / Buttons
Bijelo dugme
Bijelo dugme was a highly influential former Yugoslav rock band, based in Sarajevo. Active between 1974 and 1989, it is widely considered to have been the most popular band ever to exist in former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and one of the most important acts of the Yugoslav rock...
were just kids"). Siluete would later appear on Bijelo Dugme's concert on JNA Stadium as one of the opening bands.
In 1986, Ljuba Đorđević died, but Miščević decided to continue activity. In 1994, a various artists compilation album Sjaj izgubljene ljubavi (Shine of the Lost Love), which featured Siluete song "Tvoj rođendan", was released. Zoran Miščević died on April 4, 1995. In 2000 the compilation album VIS Siluete, with an overview of the bands work, was released.
Kad je rock bio mlad, a 2005 box-set compilation released by Croatia Records, featuring the Yugoslav rock pioneer bands, included the band's instrumental "Tema Silueta" ("Silhouettes' Theme").
Singles
- "Sećanje na Keti" / "Dosadan dan" (1969)
- "Makedonsko devojče" / "The Girls From Macedonia" (1976)
- "Ponoćni voz" / "Plačem" (1977)
- "Tvoj rođendan" (1994)
- "Tema Silueta" (2005)