Song of the group "Black Coffee" - "Leaves"

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The end of the seventies and the beginning of the eighties of the last century - the heyday of not only stagnation in our country, but also rock music. Of course, these two factors are inextricably linked, because the driving force behind this direction in music, especially in those years, was social protest. Russian rock has always been distinguished by the dominant role of texts; listeners of records and reel-to-reel records delved into its meaning. During this period, a "gold reserve" of groups and performers of this genre appeared, which became the foundation, support and standard of rock music, first in the USSR, and then in Russia: "Time Machine", "Bravo", "Brigada S", "Alisa”, “Kino”, “DDT”, “Aquarium”, “Chayf”, “Nautilus Pompilius” and many others. The representatives of the more "heavy" direction of heavy metal were the groups "Aria", "Cruise", "Metal Corrosion" and, of course, "Black Coffee" ("CHK").

Each performer has songs by which he is always recognized, what is called a "calling card". The Black Coffee group also has such songs - Leaves, Wooden Churches of Russia, Vladimirskaya Rus, Black Coffee. In thisIn this article, we want to dwell on the composition "Leaves", which was especially loved by the audience, but first a few words about the group itself.

The history of the group "Black Coffee" dates back to 1979, when its permanent leader, songwriter, guitarist and vocalist Dmitry Varshavsky wrote the first song to the words of Andrei Voznesensky "Country". Dmitry was then studying at the Gnessin School in the class of electric guitar.

The first recording of the group was made by a professional sound engineer (Yuri Bogdanov) in 1981, it was the song "Flight of a Bird".

In 1982, the classical line-up was formed - Fedor Vasilyev (bass guitar) and Andrey Shatunovsky (drums). In 1984, the group's first "solo album" was held, and the magnetic album "ChK' 84" was recorded. At the same time, the Chekists began to actively tour the country.

In 1985, the Ministry of Culture compiled a "black list", which included the brightest representatives of the rock movement, including the Black Coffee group. "Amateur rock bands" from this list were forbidden to perform concerts in Moscow and other large cities (Leningrad, Kyiv, etc.), as well as to put recordings of their songs in discos.

This ban caused some inconvenience for the members of the list, but did not turn out to be something fatal for their creative self-realization, because the country was large, and in addition to Moscow there were many more cities in which full halls and stadiums were packed to listen to the songs of your favorite artists. In addition, they could work in recording studios.

In 1987year, the musicians are recording a new album - "Cross the Threshold". One of the most beloved songs of the group "Black Coffee" - "Leaves" appears in it. The album also included the compositions "Black Coffee", "Vladimir Rus", "My House" and others. Almost all of it became a hit, but the ballad of the group “Black Coffee” - “Leaves” was especially fond of the audience.

The lyrics were written by the then young poet Alexander Shaganov, the music was written by Dmitry Varshavsky. This is a typical rock ballad, which begins with a quiet voice singing along with guitar picking, gradually gaining volume and strength of sound, and at the end of the first verse, drums and other instruments are already connected, connecting with the famous Warsaw vocals on high notes and a virtuoso guitar solo (solo part). It was the high professionalism of the musicians that played an important role in gaining stable fame for the Black Coffee group. The song "Leaves" is a great example of their style. Despite the fact that this is a classic fatal "slow-motion", the meaning of the text is not lyrical, but metaphorical. The leaf breaks away from its “brothers”, peacefully hanging on a branch, and flies down, enjoying the moments of freedom that this flight gives him. And then he "lies to wallow underfoot and in the dust." Would he have flown if he knew it would? “If the leaves could know…” The last verse, performed with special expression, says that freedom is dear to every person, just like this leaf, even if it lasts one hour, and it’s not a pity to give life during this hour. "Black Coffee" "Leaves" performed onall concerts at the request of their fans. They still perform it.

Since the beginning of the nineties, the Chekists have been spending a lot of time in the USA, where they successfully perform in clubs and work on recording new songs. In the 2000s, Varshavsky and his comrades returned to Russia and continued to work here. Participates in the recording of the rock opera Word and Deed, reissues his old albums on MP3 discs, including Cross the Threshold. Favorite songs sounded from new media, but it was still Black Coffee. "Leaves", "Vladimirskaya Rus" and other songs were included in it in the same way as in the vinyl album, but the compositions "Light Metal" and "Banner of Peace" were added to them, which then, in 1987, did not pass censorship.