THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s oTHAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,857) Flamengo — “Zavraždil Jsem Lásku”/”I Murdered Love”
Here’s a groovy, spooky B-side from Prague, which “marked [Flamengo’s] turn toward fatalistic and psychologically driven lyrics”. (Jazz Rock Soul, https://jazzrocksoul.com/artists/flamengo/) The lyrics are a bit disturbing — if you know Czech (or use Google Translate)!
Jazz Rock Soul tells us:
Flamengo formed in August 1966 in Prague under the direction of drummer and manager Přemysl Černý, who reconfigured the rhythm-and-blues group Mahagon into a new soul-rock act. Guitarist Pavel Fořt, a student of classical composition and orchestration at the People’s School of Art, had just begun his musical career in Mahagon and became a founding member of Flamengo. Early vocal duties rotated between Petr Novák [see #1,369], Viktor Sodoma, and Karel Kahovec, with occasional appearances by beat scene peer Pavel Sedláček. The band’s early repertoire drew from UK and US R&B, including songs by John Mayall. After Novák’s departure in June 1967, Flamengo deepened their focus on soul and blues, gradually moving away from standard beat music. Between 1967 and 1969, Flamengo released a sequence of singles that reflected their shift from beat-rooted repertoire toward a heavier, blues-influenced sound. Early recordings featured alternating lead vocals by Petr Novák, Viktor Sodoma, Karel Kahovec, and occasionally Pavel Sedláček. Their first 1967 single, “Já budu chodit po špičkách”/“Povídej,” adhered to standard beat phrasing with Czech lyrics. This was followed by “Vyber si palác”/“Svou lásku jsem rozdal” and “Náhrobní kámen”/“Paní v černém,” both issued the same year. The band began introducing darker lyrical imagery and more minor-key melodic content on “Džbán”/“Poprava blond holky,” with the B-side in particular suggesting a stylistic break from early pop influences. In 1968, Flamengo continued this trajectory with “Co skrýváš v očích”/“Zavraždil jsem lásku,” whose themes marked a turn toward fatalistic and psychologically driven lyrics. This period culminated in the 1969 single “No Reply”/“The Way for Horses.” The A-side was a Czech-language cover of John Mayall’s “No Reply,” performed with amplified instrumentation and phrasing aligned with British electric blues. The B-side, sung in English, extended this approach with a harder rhythmic framework and blues-oriented delivery. A second 1969 release, “Summertime”/“Too Much Love Is a Bad Thing,” paired a Janis Joplin–derived cover with another English-language track, confirming the band’s transition into a blues-rock format and increasing use of non-Czech material. These singles document Flamengo’s gradual departure from mainstream beat structures toward a denser, imported electric sound that prefaced the lineup changes and compositional developments of the next decade. Flamengo released their singular album, Kuře V Hodinkách[/Chicken in the Clock], in May 1972 . . . . The album marked a departure from their earlier beat and blues-based singles, integrating brass arrangements, electric jazz textures, and a denser, lyrically structured format anchored by the writing of poet Josef Kainar. . . . Lyricist Josef Kainar wrote all texts except [with one exception] . . . . [and his] literary stature helped secure the album’s release despite restrictions on rock output in early-70s Czechoslovakia.
Czech Musical Dictionary of Persons and Institutions adds (courtesy of Google Translate):
[With Kuře V Hodinkách, p]revious stylistic escapades and professional downfalls were suddenly forgotten: Flamengo suddenly spoke in the current language of advanced rock, drawing on the best Anglo-Saxon traditions (Steve Winwood, Van Morrison, Roger Chapman) and Slavic singing. However, even this evident artistic success did not become a link in the group, which after the publication of its manifesto could not withstand the increasing pressure of political “normalization” and finally broke up.
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