This Uzbek disco clip is pilfered from the late Soviet Union-era movie “Take Care of the Women! (Beregite zhenschin!).” Though I can find no information on the band, this track does but the “party” into “Communist Party,” no?
Uzbekistan
[Music] Uzbek TVR Uyghur Ensemble – Rak Muqam (Parts 1-4)
We found a gem today on the Obscure Little Beasties Youtube channel. This comes from Uzbekistan, where they host a proper Uyghur music ensemble.
Most Uyghurs live in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region inside of China, so it’s interesting to see music coming from the diaspora.
[Music] Sato – Pereday Dabró Pá Krúgu (Uzbekistan/USSR, 1987)
Through scouring the net over the past 20 years, I’ve come to find that Uzbekistan hides a treasure trove of music. First, prog-rock seems to be relatively popular there (bands like Fromuz and magazines like ProgressoR come to mind).
However, this release was a true gem. Ethno-jazz performed by the band Sato, who have almost nothing in terms of information online.
Thanks to the blog Digg Hop for the information they provided to an intriguing band.
[Music] Enver İzmaylov – Aranjuez
Uzbek-Ukrainian guitarist Enver İzmaylov, known for his amazing tapping technique on the guitar, does justice to a piece penned by Spanish maestro Joaquín Rodrigo.
[Art] Banned Russian art squirrelled away in Uzbekistan
I’m a bit late with this article, but it discusses a treasure trove of art which was forbidden in the Soviet Union. It turns out that these pieces were socked away in the Karakalpakstan province of Uzbekistan.
[Video] Vagif Mustafa Zadeh – Jazz Compositions
Those who know me well, say, for at least 15 years, know that I have tried throughout my life to be a champion for Soviet Jazz. They had something exquisite that the world didn’t have full access to until the end of Communism. One of these treasures hailed from Azerbaijan.
With the passing of B. B. King a few days ago, I was reminded of a story when the legendary blues guitarist came to the Soviet Union to watch a jazz festival. After seeing Vagif Mustafa Zade play, he named the stunned pianist as the ‘true king of the blues’. Vagif would die at age 35 in 1979, suffering a heart attack while performing onstage at a concert in Uzbekistan.
May his memory be eternal.
Many thanks to Funked Up East for their incredible selection of Soviet music.
[Magazine] ProgressoR
I love scouring the Internet precisely because I run into treasures like these.
Uzbekistan is not the first name one would think of when discussing progressive rock. The Central Asian republic is far away from any of the traditional power centers like the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy or the United States. It is several time zones away from Moscow and St Petersburg, where Russia’s small prog-rock scene is at its strongest.
Yet chaps from Uzbekistan (and a chap from Norway, apparently!), working out of London, do yeoman’s work in covering progressive rock releases for the website ProgressoR. These folks are passionate about the genre, indeed. Consider this a go-to site for those who love prog and its sub-genres.
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 