HOOGANS MUSIKTEATER – Harry Hoogan behöver dig (Piglet, 1981)

  
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Another album on the puzzling, bewildering, stylistically inconsistent and utterly fascinating Piglet label. Stylistically inconsistent is also the best way to describe ”Harry Hoogan behöver dig”. Here you get funk, rock, reggae, show jazz, balladeering – all in one unkempt mess. The reason is that Hoogans Musikteater, originally named Komadawoloteatern, was a theatre group as much as a musical one, and the songs were taken from a stage play.

The problem with ”Harry Hoogan behöver dig” is the same as with many albums such as this – it doesn't work as an album. It's just a bunch of poor songs that seem out of place without the narrative framework of the play. Not all of Piglet's releases are great, and this is one of the weakest. 

The group also had ties to Låt & Leklaget who released a number of children's albums in the 80s.

No links found

A SEVEN INCH SPECIAL, VOL. 9: Political, religious & theatrical

 
JOINT EFFORT – Du, värld / I morgon (Kyrkoton, 1969)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: ***

A very rare single from a very obscure Christian trio, so obscure it's not even listed on Discogs at the time of writing. Released on the Kyrkoton label who also gave us the collectable Vergers which should pique the interest of some readers. Not that it needs any pull from others because it stands up well on its own. The B side is the weaker track of the two, although that one's OK as well with a Sir Douglas Quintet styled organ and a pretty catchy drive. But the real treat is ”Du, värld” which is just excellent, a rare Swedish example of what's internationally known as moody garage. Absolutely haunting with brooding organ, reverbed rimshots and a mesmerizing atmosphere created by a slow, almost ghostlike, harmonized melody. In a time when everything appears excavated, discovered, comped and reissued all over again, it's a mystery how this one slipped through the cracks. It's not even of Discogs at the time of writing. It's one of the best Xian tracks I've ever heard from Sweden, almost up there with New Creation's ”He Is There”.

Joint Effort later changed their name to Mission Possible and as such released another Kyrkoton single in 1971. The A side, in a style similar to ”Du, värld”, is featured on the ”Frälst!” compilation.

 

VARIOUS ARTISTS – Jubileum SSU 60 år (Frihets Förlag, 1977)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: -

Four tracks recorded for the ”Democratize Sweden” conference in January 1977 and released to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Social Democrats' youth association SSU the same year. The focus is obsviously on the message, delivered by singing groups Nacka-gänget, Nya Gesällerna and Lasse-Maja. The music was written by Göran Blomqvist known from some other Social Democratic releases, with words by journalist Bernt Rosengren (no, not that Bernt Rosengren). A couple of the songs – with hot titles such as ”Var börjar socialismen” (=”where does socialism begin”) and ”Socialismen är solidaritet” (=”socialism is solidarity”) – appear rooted in the Eisler/Weill tradition but are melodically paralyzed. The whole thing just sounds unmusical, but it wouldn't surprise me if some perverted hipster DJ takes a liking to ”Du duger” (=”you're OK”) because of its, ahem, 'funkiness'.

 

FRISKT VATTEN – Tågsång / Marknadsföring (A Disc, 1980)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

Two non-album tracks released inbetween Friskt Vatten's last two albums. ”Tågsång” is a ballad of sorts, unpleasantly close to yacht rock but with some fine piano playing. ”Marknadsföring” speaks out again mindless consumption and shares the sentiment with Peps Persson's ”Hög standard” but lacking Peps's ability to transform observation to sharp-witted lyrics on his level.

KYRKSTÖT – No Smoking / Dr. Jekyll (no label, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

A Christian hard rock band familiar from the V/A comp ”Rockplock”. This single was the only other outing from Kyrkstöt. The A side is competent but entirely uninteresting boogie rock, while ”Dr. Jekyll” is radio friendly pop rock that feels overlong despite being of 4 minute standard length. Best avoided.

 

SKOGSNÄSKOLLEKTIVET – Odlad jord ska förbli odlad (Ljudbarrikaden, 1980)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: ***

The title of this single is ”Odlad jord ska förbli odlad” (=”cultivated land should remain cultivated”) but the song titles are actually ”Fattig på de fattigas planet” (=”poor on the planet of poors”) and ”Den trygge” (=”the safe one”). It was recorded within the long running environmentally concerned and anti-capitalist Skogsnäs community in the Northern Sweden.

I was afraid ”Odlad jord ska förbli odlad” would be just another fingerpointing pamphlet progg release, so I was completely taken aback when ”Fattig på de fattigas planet” proved to be an outright fantastic minor key folksy track in a Townes Van Zandt vein, augmented with a wonderful, gnarly fiddle like straight out of cult movie ”The Wicker Man”. Even the children's chorus sounds good (!), adding another emotional layer to the splendid track. The guy who wrote it is Kåre Wigforss who I think is still musically active (judging by a Youtube channel dedicated to Kåre Wigforss Band) although I can't find any proof of him having released anything apart from this one knockout track.

The B side is credited to the band Ryktet Går and while their ”Den trygge” isn't on par with ”Fattig på de fattigas planet”, it's still better than expected. It's more of an early 80s folk rock track with jangly guitars – think a slightly more garage-y but relaxed early R.E.M. and you're not exactly correct but going in the right direction.

MUSIKGRUPPEN NEJRÖSTERNA – Solen och vinden och vattnet och jorden / Kärnkraftsman (Live Studio Lane, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

A twelve-piece band formed in late 1979 when the Gothenburg fraction of The Anti-Nuclear Movement needed music during their meetings. (”Nejrösterna” means ”the no votes”, referring to the nuclear referendum held in Sweden in March 1980). Two songs were recorded in November 1979 but the release was belated by the pressing plant until early 1980 when the single was finally released in an edition of a 1000 copies (with about half of them sold by the band). The lyrics for the A side were found in a leaflet distributed during an anti-nuclear protest march, while the words for the B side used The Beatles' ”Nowhere Man” as a source inspiration. Let's get it over with right away: This sounds nothing like The Beatles. It doesn't sound like anything you'd want to hear. As opposed to Skogsnäskollektivet above, this is exactly the kind of stuff that makes me want to rip my ears off my head. Ten people singing at once in a smug tone, backed by flutes, bongos and accordeon and an unnecessary large number of maracas. My only question now is how far this piece of shit will fly if I throw it from a cliff.

SKOTTES MUSIKORKESTER / THOMAS WIEHE, PER DUNSÖ, OLA STRÖM & TRULS – Antikärnkraftverk (Källan, 1979)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

The resistance against nuclear power was well spread in the cultural world prior to the referendum mentioned above. Plenty of actors, musicians and artists spoke out against it in 1979-1980 as proven by several charity singles and albums released at the time. This one gathered Skottes Musikorkester, and Thomas Wiehe together with Per Dunsö, Ola Ström and Ström's nephew Truls. Per Dunsö and the two Ströms were known from TV where they produced appalling children's shows, and their track ”Vaggvisa fem i tolv” (=”lullabye five to twelve”) could very well have appeared in one of them. The clarinet and the fiddle are pleasant features, and the acoustic framework is nice enough, but the song itself is oddly formless. And there's way too much Truls singing.

Skottes Musikorkester in turn contribute a klezmer styled track with a few instrumental turns that are quite nice but it's spoiled by the overzealous vocals.

CHECKPOINT CHARLIE – SUSB / Pyret (CC Records, 1979)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

Checkpoint Charlie formed in 1976 and had a few active years before eventually disbanding in the early 80s. In the meantime they appeared on the various artists comps ”Vi har rätt till jobb” and ”Umeå Rocks, Vol. 1”, but had only one single out under their own banner. Heavily rooted in the semi-heavy rock style of the Umeå/Luleå region as represented by Rekyl and Kylans Rockorkester. The title ”SUSB” is short for Stiftelsen Umeå Studentbostäder (Umeå Student Housing Foundation) with some wonderfully acidic lyrics against the local lack of housing. The track is credited to guitarist Urban Bergman, but it's so much Chuck Berry that it's almost a cover of every Berry song in the style of ”Johnny B. Goode”. Still, the hard driving performance and the great lyrics (if you can understand them) have a certain appeal. ”Pyret” slows things down a bit, a dark observation written from a two-year-old's perspective. Some heavy guitars and a couple of progressive sections are nice features, but it's not as effective as the rousing A side.

 

TURMANS BAND – Bluesen kommer från Tierp (Mistlur, 1980)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Three songs recorded in 1979 and released the next year by the Mistlur imprint that at the time, early in their existence, was one of the companies that most strategically documented progg's extension into punk. As the title of this EP suggests (meaning ”the blues come from Tierp”, Tierp being the band's hometown situated between Uppsala and Gävle), Turmans Band dealt with blues, but not very proficiently. There's no real edge to it, and the main focus seems to be on the lyrics (also printed on an insert) that address a dull everyday life, unemployment and the troubles getting somewhere to live. The vocals could have strengthened the pedestrian performance but they're too weak to help the cause.

Mora Träsk's Thomas Örstrand appears on harmonica, and the EP title is a nod to Mora Träsk's album "Rocken kommer från Gävle" (="the rock music comes from Gävle"). 

MIKAEL WIEHE, NYBERG, FRANCK & FJELLIS – Gökungen / Livet efter 30 (Amalthea, 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

”Gökungen” was later included on Wiehe's 1983 album ”Lindansaren”, one of the best tracks off that album. It has a a scary, sinister atmosphere and is by far one of the best tracks on that album. The B side is unique to this single and it's easy to see why it was left off the album. A weak track with an ironic lyric about the ”joys” of turning 30 when your body has been broken down by hard work (although the hard work bit is merely implied).

SÄTRASKOLANS MUSIKTEATERGRUPP – Tjejsans nya kläder (no label, 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

A real oddity with seven songs taken from a school play performed at a suburbian Stockholm school. (The title is an impossible to translate wordplay on the "emperor's new clothes" expression.) Probably of interest mainly to those participating in the play (about fashion peer pressure among youths), but several of the songs actually have pretty cool solo guitar. A couple of surprisingly catchy performances, especially on ”Mode, mode, mode”. But there's also a couple of tracks which suggests some of the songwriters (teachers?) had listened too much to political progg in the 70s. The EP is generally better than I expected, but not worth looking for unless you're a collector of school projects.

The track "Discolåten" was included on "Annorlunda Underground", a CD-r compilation released in 2000.

 

ETOS – Den nakna sanningen / Skulden (A Disc, 1981)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

One of very few singles released on the pathologically humdrum A Disc label. That this is one of their best releases says way more about the label than the music on this disc. It's very commercial sounding with some hard rock aspirations mixed in with the lacklustre pop rock and ska influences, but they fall flat due to a submissive production. Minus also for the shouty singer and the A Disc-typical bland lyrics.

 

PISTOLTEATERN – Reggae från Torsgatan (Alice, 1982, EP)
Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

Pistolteatern (=”the pistol theatre”) is probably best known to proggsters as a venue where bands such as International Harvester and Fläsket Brinner played. But their main purpose was of course that of an independent theatre group, and their progressive stance has made them legendary. The four tracks on this seldom seen 33 rpm EP all come from the play ”Alive”, and features the busy Göran Lagerberg on bass and Sven Bjärhall (Solen Skiner, Jan Hammarlund) on lead guitar. Guitarist/keyboardist Håkan Möller also appeared on a late Thomas Mera Gartz album. The vocals are shared by Jonas Uddenmyr (later appearing on a cassette-only release by Thomas Tidholm) and Lars Källenius. All tracks are suprisingly solid reggae numbers, much more credible than I expected from their ephemeral origins. There's a relieving lack of ”jokiness”, but one of the songwriters is Lars Naumborg, friend of Aston Reymers Rivaler, and thus respectful and knowledgeable enough of reggae not to waste his efforts on any unserious silliness. Can very well be of interest to those into Swedish reggae.

Friskt Vatten full single playlist
Etos full single playlist (Spotify) 
Musikgruppen Nejrösterna 
Solen och vinden och vattnet och jorden (poor sound) 
Jubileum SSU 60 år
Ditt eget ansvar / Socialismen är solidaritet / Du duger / Var börjar socialismen
Skottes Musikorkester
Frihetens eko 
Turmans Band
Till arbetsmarknadens förfogande blues / Bostadsblues 
Mikael Wiehe
Gökungen / Livet efter 30 
Sätraskolans Musikteatergrupp
Brain Tango / Mode, mode, mode / Discolåten / Sången om Tom / Pia Jansson / Barbies sång

Joint Effort / Kyrkstöt / Skogsnäskollektivet / Checkpoint Charlie / Pistolteatern no links found

FRIA TEATERN – Bruket ska leva (Teaterlåtar, 1979)

  
Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

Fria Teatern began in the 1968 and was active at least well into the 2010s. The name means ”The Free Theatre” and that says it all. ”Bruket ska leva” is a selection of songs from three of their plays about the closure of the local ironworks, unemployment and depopulation in the fictious town of Hyttefors. A couple of songs have a rock setting but most songs are in a Swedish old-timey style similar to "Stjärnsmällar & tjuvnyp". A truly horrible album in every way.

No links found

FAGERSTA STADSMUSIKKÅR & BERÄTTARGRUPP – Norbergs-strejken 1891-92 (no label, 1980)

Swedish vocals, spoken word
International relevance: -

A virtually unknown double album documenting a stage play written by Sture Karlsson with music composed by Anders Lindström, and first performed in 1977. It deals with a miners strike in 1891-92 which is one of the labor movement's biggest conflicts. It started when the workers in Kallmora iron ore mine suddenly got less wages than promised and quickly grew to a nationwide concern when Sweden's then Prime Minister Hjalmar Branting came to Kallmora to appear for the workers. Military forces were called in against the strikers, but the soldiers surprisingly sided with the miners. The workers eventually settled for an agreement that didn't entirely fulfilled their claims.

It's a historically relevant incident, and so is the theatrical description of it as it inspired several more so called ”workers plays” around Sweden in the following years. But that doesn't mean it's fun to listen to on record, especially not a double album. It's virtually impossible to sit through ”Norbergs-strejken 1891-92” with its amateurish acting (I don't think any of the actors was a professional) and the terrible music. The songs are all in the typical vein of all acoustic political progg albums from the 70s. The message is the all-important thing here, so the songs are merely meant to carry the narrative and not necessarily to entertain. And they certainly don't. I can't see anyone getting a lot out of this album, except for possibly one or two local Norberg scholars wanting to dig deeper into the area's political history. 

Marie Selander also sang about the strike in the appropriately titled "Norbergsstrejken" on her fine album "Från den svenska vildmarken".

No links found.

FRIA PROTEATERN (NJA-GRUPPEN) - Koncert I København Okt. 1973 (Demos, 1973)

 Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Fria Proteatern, known for having given me permanent brain damages by being the third worst band I ever sat through for the sole purpose of this blog, here recorded in concert in Copenhagen and released on Demos, Denmark's equivalent to MNW. This is the same kind of drivel as on their studio albums, only with poorer sound.

Side 1
Side 2

FOLKTEATERN – Nya kvasten (Folkteatern, 1978)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: -

Definitely an album to ignore, being songs and spoken excerpts from a local Gothenburg stage play written by political playwrights Kent Andersson and Bengt Bratt. All Andersson's and Bratt's works have a strong socialist kitchen sink framework with a strong local colour, and this is no exception. Only one track has a progg feel, namely the actually rather decent ”Irrfärd” that vaguely sounds like a something inbetween Motvind's ”Lära för livet” and some of Ulf Dageby's soundtrack to ”Ett anständigt liv”.

The album was released by Folkteatern themselves.

No links found.

KLARATEATERN – Sessornas sånger (YTF, 1976)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: **

With music written by Gunnar Evander (and lyrics by Per Lysander and Suzanne Osten), this stands as something of the third part in the informal feminist trilogy beginning with ”Sånger om kvinnor” in 1971 and continuing with ”Jösses flickor – befrielsen är nära” in 1975. While not great, ”Sessornas sånger” stands head and shoulders above the previous two. It's more refined, the perfomances are smoother thanks to seasoned studio pros such as Rolf Alex and Jan Bandel but it's also a bit lacklustre, and the songs are at least occasionally better. Although they originate from a stage performance by Klarateatern, several of them are focused enough to stand on their own, in particular the almost-funky ”Den svarta prinsessan och den röda”, the evocative ”Sessornas magar” and the brooding gospel-tinged ”O Gud gör mig fattig”. ”Äntligen en prins” isn't that great, but fans of wah-wah might appreciate it nevertheless. Some songs have male vocals, but the songs featuring female vocals fare generally better.

Being musical excerpts from a stage play, the songs tell a story, with the plot centered around the Swedish princesses. Given ”Sessornas sånger” was released at the height of progg era, it's critical of the Swedish monarchy. 

All in all, the album's value is greater as a period piece than a musical work.

Comes with a lyric sheet.

No links found

NATIONALTEATERN - Complete albums 1972-1981

The origins of Nationalteatern can be traced back to Lilla Teatern in Lund that developed into Malmö based Gorillateatern. When they split in two in 1969, Dalateatern became one part and Nationalteatern the other. Nationalteatern relocated to Gothenburg in 1970, and the following year, songwriters Anders Melander and Ulf Dageby joined the troupe. Throughout the decade, Nationalteatern wrote plays and music that acknowledged the suburban youth that felt ignored by society and its politicians. Nationalteatern appeared at lots of youth centres in and around Gothenburg, slowly building an appreciative following with their straightforward music and socially aware lyrics. They also wrote several children's plays.

Ta det som ett löfte... ta det inte som ett hot (MNW, 1972)
Swedish vocals, instrumental

International relevance: **

Nationalteatern's first album was a product of its time, permeated by the idea that everybody should play an instrument to create a truly collective effort. Not everyone was keen on that, group member Med Reventberg admitted in an interviewfor Swedish pod radio show Snedtänkt in 2018. She had no interest in playing the guitar or whatever, and thought it would be much better if the musicianship was left to those who mastered better than she (and others) did. It's easy to get the impression that it was solely a concession to the era's fashionable collectivity ethos, and that impression grows even stronger upon hearing ”Ta det som ett löfte... ta det inte som ett hot”. ”Ut i kylan” is a decent track, and one of the few here not entirely lost to the communal/collective nonsense. This is easily the worst of Nationalteatern's 70's albums (”Kåldolmar och kalsipper” doesn't quite count).

Two cover variations exist, the original with a light green colour – a misprint – and a later version in a much darker green as seen above.

Livet är en fest (MNW, 1974)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Nationalteatern's most classic album. ”Livet är en fest” is like a 'best of' album of sorts, collecting the musical highlights from several different stage plays. Many of the songs have an anti-drug message clad in irony that was easy to distinguish at the time. But irony's often lost over time, and today people unfamiliar with the songs original context misinterpret them as being pro drugs (which Anders Melander has commented on with a fair bit of unease). The songs have survived, but not so much the original meaning of them. In an awkward way, that proves that good songs have a greater longevity than the message.

And the songs are good, with plenty of memorable hooks. But that doesn't mean I want to hear them over and over again, not anymore. The title track was originally performed as a country song but transformed into a Rolling Stones inspired rock workout is overplayed, ”Lägg av” is simply embarassing today and ”Stena Olssons Compagnie” – a reworking of The Coasters' ”Riot in Cell Block No. 9” – is hard to listen to today, as is the irritating mock reggae of ”Speedy Gonzales” and the crypto calypso of ”Hanna från Arlöv”. But I still like Melander's ”Jack the Ripper” and ”Bängen trålar”, but two tracks are enough only for a single, not an album. A seriously overplayed album.

Beware of early CD editions, remixed with reverb added to the original recordings to make them sound more 'contemporary'. When confronted, Ulf Dageby replied ”who cares about mixings?” Well I, for one, do. And I, for one, don't like revisionism.

Kåldolmar och kalsipper (MNW, 1976)

Swedish vocals, spoken word
International relevance: *

Briefly mentioned in my children's progg post, this is a kids' record with a plot being a mish-mash of several different Nationalteatern plays. Heralded as a classic children's album, ex-members of Nationalteatern later said it didn't turn out quite as consistent as it should have. When they recorded it there were also fights over the overt political opinions expressed on the album. While Nationalteatern always had a left-wing bent, they rarerly stated it that openly, usually only describing social issues and problems, leaving the listener/spectator to draw their own conclusions.

Obviously, the songs on ”Kåldolmar och kalsipper” are aimed at kids and not very fun to listen to, but ”Agamemnons stora ballad om flykten från sitt hemland” and ”Jenny, havets skräck” are OK even to grown-up ears.

Vi kommer att leva igen (Nacksving, 1977)

as Nynningen & Nationalteatern

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

In early 1977, the Big 2 of Gothenburg progg, Nynningen and Nationalteatern. joined forces for a stage play about the oppression of the Native Americans, just in time for the 200th anniversary of the United States of America. Despite the collaboration, ”Vi kommer att leva igen” is more of a Nationalteatern album as Ulf Dageby wrote all the songs for it. Not very good songs though, too dependent on the stage context.

1977 was also the year of Tältprojektet, a large scale collaboration between several independent theatre groups and musicians, and often considered the peak of the 70's music and theatre movements.

Barn av vår tid (Nacksving, 1978)

International relevance: *

Swedish vocals

Few album covers have captured the feeling of late 70's grey hopelessness as well as ”Barn av vår tid”, and the music reflects it. Nationalteatern's best album, with songs like ”Kolla kolla”, ”Spisa” and the majestic, eerie title track crowning the album – one of the major songs of the progg era. And ”Men bara om min älskade väntar” is perhaps the best Swedish Dylan translation ever, of ”Tomorrow Is a Long Time”, heartfelt and sincerely sung by Totta Näslund, originally of Nynningen but from ”Kåldolmar och kalsipper” more and more involved in Nationalteatern.

Rockormen (Nacksving, 1979)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

Recorded while on tour with the ”Rockormen” 'rock opera' in late 1978. With Ulf Dageby taking a step back only providing two songs and lyrics for another, members Peter Wahlqvist and Bertil Goldberg wrote most of the remaining material. With none of them being as driven songwriters as Ulf Dageby and the then ex-member Anders Molander, the album is weak.

Rövarkungens ö (Nacksving, 1980)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

Ulf Dageby had grown increasingly unhappy with the theatre format. He wanted to write songs without having to consider a plot or stage functionality. ”Rövarkungens ö” clearly demonstrates in what direction Dageby wanted to go. The tracks are longer, most of them around 5-7 minutes long, and the title track even clocking in at 12 minutes. It's obvious Dageby enjoyed his new-found freedom and Totta Näslund's vocals, but the album is pretty dull in that Nacksving way.

Luffarrock – en lurkmusikal (Nacksving, 1981)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

A 'musical' originally written and performed in 1974-75, the songs weren't recorded and released on disc until 1981. An often overlooked entry in Nationalteatern's discography, or should I say ignored? It's best left that way, unless you want silly songs sometimes performed in a semi-reggae style that doesn't sit at all well with the band. A terribly stiff production too. 

All Nationalteatern albums have been reissued. 9CD box set "Lägg av! Historien om Nationalteatern" compiled the albums in their entirety, adding numerous bonus tracks. A live session from "Lägg av!" is also featured in "Progglådan".

The theatre division of Nationalteatern released one further album on Amalthea in 1987 ”Peter Pan”, a children's play with the spoken parts interspersed with horrible synth laden musical bits, before dissolving in 1993. Nationalteatern's the rock band has reunited several times, released a live album in 1991, and another one in 2006. They're still active performing their old hits to nostalgic audiences across Sweden.

Ulf Dageby has released several solo albums, and also composed the soundtrack to Stefan Jarl's movie ”Ett anständigt liv”. The versatile Anders Melander has contributed music to a number of movies and television series, as well forming the shortlived band Cue with actor Niklas Hjulström.

Ta det som ett löfte full album playlist with bonus tracks
Livet är en fest full album playlist
Kåldolmar och kalsipper full album playlist
Vi kommer att leva igen full album playlist
Barn av vår tid full album playlist
Rockormen full album playlist with bonus tracks
Rövarkungens ö full album playlist
Luffarrock full album playlist
Tonkraft 1975 full album playlist

TÄLTPROJEKTET – Vi äro tusenden... (Nacksving, 1977)

Swedish vocals
International relevance: *

Tältprojektet is often seen as the peak of progg, but in a way, it also became its downfall. Or at least, it marked the beginning of the end. The whole project was a grand tour de force, with several independent theatre groups (Nationalteatern, Musikteatergruppen Oktober, Tidningsteatern, Narren) and numerous musicians coming together for something that some people said would be impossible to see through.

”Vi äro tusenden” was a four hour stage play telling the story of the Swedish labour movement from 1879 and on, with approximately 100 people touring for four and half months in the summer of 1977, visiting 31 cities all over the country (and some in Denmark), performing 82 shows to 100,000 people. Nothing of that scope had been done before, and nothing of that scope has been done since. ”Vi äro tusenden” was the ultimate proof of what power there was in the music movement and the related independent theatre groups, and an example of what you can do if you unite and strive for the same thing. The progg movement proved its own point by demonstrating it.

A documentary was made, ”Tältet – vem tillhör världen?”, and a record was rushed out by Nacksving so that it could be sold at the shows. People should be able to take home some of the music they had just heard played live. The original idea was also to record the album live in performance, but that proved impossible for practical reasons, why songs from show instead were recorded with Nacksving's mobile studio. Some tracks were composed by jazz legend and member of Musikteatergruppe Oktober Christer Boustedt, but most of the music was written by Nationalteatern's Ulf Dageby and Nynningen's Bernt Andersson and Bertil Goldberg. Both Gothenburg bands had collaborated before, so much in fact that it was getting more and more impossible to tell the two bands apart. Tracks like the powerful ”Aldrig mera krig” (sung by Nynningen's Totta Näslund) and Tältprojektet's anthem ”Vi äro tusenden” are heralded as classics. They're also the two best songs on the album.

Actually, the only two good songs on the album, and the only two distinct enough to work outside their original stage context. The remainder of the tracks have too many theatrical characteristics, with narrative lyrics, sometimes with large choirs, sometimes sounding like run-of-the-mill political songs, sometimes cabaret-like. It's just not very fun to listen to, and the album's true value is mainly historical and academic.

Nationalteatern's Med Reventberg has later admitted that it was hard to get on with their work after Taltprojektet. Nationalteatern tried to set up another massive theatre tour soon after but it didn't work out as well as they had hoped for. And that probably goes for everyone involved. The fatigue set in, and while many (most) of them continued their artistic work (after all, it was their profession), many of them in the spirit of progg, progg was never to be the same again. And new sounds and attitudes were coming around the corner. Punk was ready to take over.

Full album playlist

FICKTEATERN – Allt växer till det hejdas (MNW, 1971)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

Fickteatern was an early independent theatre group, founded in 1967 by former Narren members, including Suzanne Osten who directed a total of 23 Fickteatern plays until 1971 when they called it a day. They performed all over Sweden, and wanting to reach audiences not regular theatre goers, they appeared in jails, libraries, schools and in the streets.

Gunnar Edander wrote the music, and Fickteatern released two albums during their three year lifetime. Their first LP appeared in 1968, ”Människor i stan”, and ”Allt växer till det hejdas” in 1971.

While ”Allt växer till det hejdas” has some of the typical theatre group album characteristics, it's a bit quirkier than most, partly because of the highly welcome addition of musicians Bengt Berger, Roland Keijser and Kjell Westling. First track ”Vi valde inte våldet” is a minor classic featuring a particularly energetic Berger. Something about the track makes me think of ”Montgomery Chapel” by U.S. Xian band The Search Party. That track alone puts ”Allt växer till det hejdas” a cut above most albums I've heard originating from the theatrical circuits of the 70's, but ”Vem bombar i Kambodja”, ”Revolution” and the short title track are OK too.

The vastly prolific Gunnar Edander later composed music for feminist projects ”Sånger om kvinnor”, ”Kärleksföreställningen” and ”Jösses flickor – befrielsenär nära”. Suzanne Osten kept working with theatre, and has written a number of books and directed several movies.

Full album playlist

NARREN – ...Inte slutet, bara början – Sånger om Norrland och Latinamerika (MNW, 1972)

Swedish vocals 

International relevance: *

 

Narren was one of the first independent theatre groups in Stockholm, and began already in 1965. Their early repertoire consisted of American avantgarde plays, but towards the end of the decade their focus changed to political plays of a revolutionary nature. They released a couple of LP's on their own label Narren, but this particular album – their first – was an early MNW release.

The album's subtitle means ”songs about Norrland and Latin America” and is as self-explanatory as the album cover. Side 1 is dedicated to Latin America, side 2 to Norrland. Norrland is the most Northern area of Sweden where forest and mining industries are an important part of the economy. Several of Fria Proteatern's albums deal with the Norrland region, and thos could very well have been a Fria Proteatern recording, except that this is a tad more primitive sounding. It's a pretty bet that if you like them, you'll like Narren too. And it works both ways – if you don't like Fria Proteatern, you probably won't like Narren either. 

Sången om hur BD80 kom på skam

MUSIKTEATERGRUPPEN OKTOBER – För släkt och vänner (Amalthea, 1977)

Swedish vocals, spoken word
International relevance: -

Musikteatergruppen Oktober was an integrated part of Tältprojektet, by many considered the zenith of the progg movement, a four hour travelling show telling the history of the working class through the ages. Like their Swedish name implies, Musikteatergruppen Oktober was a music theatre group, founded in Malmö in 1973. They relocated to Södertälje not far from Stockholm in 1978 and quickly became an important force in the city's cultural life (eventually changing their name to Oktoberteatern). Their plays were well recieved, and many (including me) specifically remember their acclaimed children's play”Prins Hatt under jorden” which also became their final record release in 1980. Prior to that, they had co-operated with Bruksteatern on Bertolt Brecht's ”Modern” 1974, and had made the 1976 Swedish movie classic ”Sven Klangs kvintett” about a struggling jazz quintet – an obvious subject for them to deal with, with famed saxophonist Christer Boustedt a prominent member of the ensemble.

”För släkt och vänner” was their third vinyl outing, released in Tältprojektet year 1977, with selections from a cabaret partially recorded at the legendary progg establishment Sprängkullen in Gothenburg. The word 'cabaret' is descriptive enough. The album features long spoken word sections, and the music is largely uninteresting showlike jazz tinged numbers with a socialist message. Musikteatergruppen Oktober certainly had more musical talent to offer than most other independent theatre groups from around the same time, but ”För släkt och vänner” just isn't very fun to listen to. With too many and too longspoken parts, international listeners are emphatically advised to avoid this one.

Eva Rameaus of Musikteatergruppen Oktober was also a much loved children's TV host along with Magnus Härenstam and Brasse Brännström on the much loved educational show ”Fem myror är fler än fyra elefanter” (”five ants are more than four elephants”). She passed away in 1993, not yet 41 years old. Henric Holmberg is also a well known former Oktober member, with for example several stage monologues to his credit.

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GÖTATEATERN & ÖBÖBÖ – Flyttfåglarna (Götateatern, 1980)

Swedish vocals, instrumental, spoken word

International relevance: **

A rarely mentioned curio. a double album from a stage play made for children in 1980 by Götateatern in Gothenburg. While the narration is a bit distracting and even more so to a non-Swedish listener, there's more music than spoken word on the album, and the musical parts are in fact rather interesting. Especially when you realize that the bizarrely named Öböbö musical ensemble comprised Sebastian Öberg and Andreas Brandt from Älgarnas Trädgård; Christer Öhman who provided percussion to ”Tristans klagan” on the Älgarna Trädgård album; Gunnar Bergsten of Fläsket Brinner and Sevda (plus a plentiful of jazz groups), and Bill Öhström who had played with Tillsammans, Ramlösa Kvällar, Mikael Ramel, Bo Hansson... You get the point.

Some of the all-acoustic tracks have vocal appearances from Ragni Carlsson, with lyrics by Ingegerd Leyman (today known as Ingegerd Rönnbäck) who also wrote the play. Not all tracks are good, but the folksier tracks are rather pleasant and evocative, especially the Eastern inspired ”Zinkonsången” complete with Öhrström's darbouka, Bergsten's flute and Brandt's fiddle, and ”Spindeln Spinn” with its quirky time signature and rich use of marimba, which also happen to be the two longest tracks on the album.

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FRIA PROTEATERN & NJA-GRUPPEN – Albums 1970-1977

Fria Proteatern grew out of the Swedish beat group Mascots who released two above average albums and a massive amount of 45's between 1964 and 1969 including the absolutely gorgeous Beatles pastiche ”Words Enough to Tell You”. As the Mascots concept proved to narrow for the members' burgeoning interest in polirics, it became necessary to create a new outlet for their ideas. Enter NJA-gruppen who wrote a stage play about iron workers in the northern parts of Sweden. They put a lot of effort into their material, for instance interviewing actual labourers to secure an authentic as possible stage presentation of the workers' conditions. The group changed their name to Fria Proteatern in 1971.

Hör upp allt folk (MNW, 1970) 

as NJA-gruppen

Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

There's nothing about ”Hör upp allt folk” that reveals the band's past as The Mascots. Gone was the charming Beatles inspired tunes, substituted with political sloganeering set to a mellow, acoustic folk pop sound. Although some tracks are accessible and melodic, the lyrics are strenuously propagandistic. They focused on important wrongs and faults with the system but the message is so densly packed, it's a hard task sitting through it today. And it got worse as their career proceeded. Fria Proteatern was very much a product of their time and time has been rough on them.

”Balladen om Olsson” has become some kind of classic but has nothing to set it apart from the rest of the album.

Hör ni hört kamrater (Folksång, 1971) 

as Fria Proteatern (NJA-gruppen)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

If one album was forgivable (albeit not excusable), two were as pleasant as trying to brush the teeth of a starving crocodile. The style is the same as on the previous album, the lyrics read like a transcription of a communist meeting. Wanna proselytize along? No prob, lyric booklet is included.

Typerna och draken (Folksång, 1972)

International relevance: -

Swedish vocals

Their third album, recorded in performance, including spoken portions from the actual play which only makes this album even more abysmal. This time the plot deals with typographers and newspapers but the sentiment is the same as before. Nervegrating, impenetrable.

Sånger från Ljugarbänken (Oktober, 1975)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

After a live album released on Danish progressive label Demos, ”Koncert i København okt. 1973”, Fria Proteatern switched labels from their own Folksång to Oktober for their fourth proper album. What it's like? More of the same. This never ends, does it?
 

 

Knytkalas: Nya sånger med Fria Proteatern (Oktober, 1976)

 Swedish vocals

International relevance: *

If you consider that the catchy pseudo blues of album opener ”Kom igen” and that ”Utanför mitt fönster” is reasonably evocative, this is a surprisingly good album by Fria Proteatern standards. Then again, two songs don't make an album.

Med vilken rätt (Oktober, 1977)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

A more mature work with influences from Finnish tango and a greater amount of Swedish traditional music in the mix. The surprisingly heavy, electric album closer ”Teruel” is quite good. The best album Fria Proteatern ever did in the 70s. What a pity it took them so long to make one listenable album...

Fria Proteatern re-appeared on disc ten years later with ”Sånger av Vysotskij” featuring translations of Russian poet and songwriter Vladimir Vysotskij. Being the best album they did at all, it was reissued and expanded in 2007. A live album of more Vysotskij songs were recorded in 2003. They also had a couple of singles out. Career overview ”Valda verk 1969-1984” contains unreleased recordings, god help us all. They're also featued in ”Progglådan” with a live recording from Scalateatern in Stockholm.

Final words: Fria Proteatern was one of the bands that kept me from exploring progg music more extensively for so long. They gave me the wrong idea of what progg was and could be, and the loathing runs deep. I know that this runthrough isn't very thorough, but it took me a serious amount of self-denial and determination to get it done at all. Going through all their albums once again was a horror. Now I hope I won't ever have to listen to them again, with the possible exception of ”Med vilken rätt”. 

 

Hör upp allt folk full album playlist

from Har ni hört kamrater

Ni Volvos höga herrar
Jag kommer hem igen
Frihet är det bästa ting
Glanshammarvisa
Ut till fronten     

 

from Typerna och draken
Nya Internationalen
Polisen skjuter skarpt 1932
Lägersång
Bonnieroperan
Det nya livet  

from Sånger från ljugarbänken
Vilken sida står du på?
Tjänstevägen
Dialektikens lov
Balladen om Rune Henry Johansson
Allting har sin tid

 

from Knytkalas
Utanför mitt fönster
Brittiska muséet

 

from Med vilken rätt
Skogsarbetarens sång
Med vilken rätt
Violincellen
Visan om morbror Elof

Anna-Lena Lind

Granada - sång om förnöjsamheten 

Sagolandet 

Skomakaren från Rovaniemi 

Teruel

 

Scalateatern 1975 full album playlist 

BRUKSTEATERN – Palestina, mitt blod, min väg, mitt land (Bruksskivor, 1976)

International relevance: -

Swedish vocals

Independent theatre groups were an important part of the progg movement. Bertolt Brecht was a popular author among those groups, but it was a common thing that the theatre groups staged their self-written plays, often with a clear political agenda. The most famous of the lot were Nationalteatern and Fria Proteatern, but there were many more spread across the country, such as Musikteatergruppen Oktober and their some time collaborators Bruksteatern. All the aforementioned groups used music as an integrated part of the theatrical performances, and all of them released albums with songs excerpted from their plays. However, few shared Nationalteatern's knack for writing songs memorable enough to have a life away from the stage setting. Many of the albums made by musical theatre groups are frankly an embarassing listen today.

This is certainly the case of Bruksteatern's ”Palestina mitt blod, min väg, mitt land”, funded by a plethora of organisations, musicians and writers. The songs and the play they were written for deal with the long standing conflict between Palestina and Israel, and the music – all acoustic – is subordinated the message. While some of the instrumental passages are OK (after all, experienced musicians such as Björn J:son Lindh, ”Fjellis” Fjellström and Kebnekajse's Mats Glenngård came to Bruksteatern's aid for the recording), the vocals are so overwrought that it hurts, and the recitations that keep the narrative going are cringeworthy. This is exactly the kind of stuff that makes it easy to poke nasty fun at progg music, and this album deserves every bit of ridicule it can get. Listening to this crap makes me feel unclean. I'm sure it has traumatized me for life.

No links found