Kalemegdan Disk - ROCK FROM EASTERN EUROPE

Tracklist

Side A

1. Bitanga i princeza 3:45
2. Ala je glupo zaboravit’ njen broj 3:50
3. Ipak, poželim neko pismo 4:45
4. Kad zaboraviš juli 4:42

Side B

1. Na zadnjem sjedištu moga auta 3:55
2. A koliko si ih imala do sad 4:28
3. Sve će to mila moja prekriti ruzmarin, snjegovi i šaš 8:25

Full album at YouTube

Croatia Records Release Information

Croatia Records presents a new, previously unheard and unseen version of the album “Bitanga i princeza” (The Bastard and the Princess) with the original censored cover by Dragan S. Stefanović!

Forty-five years later, the fourth, most ambitious and, according to some, the best album of the iconic Bijelo Dugme (The White Button) comes in a new sound guise, re-mixed in the Croatia Records Studio by Goran Martinac from the original 24-channel tapes which have been carefully preserved all these years in the archives of Jugoton and Croatia Records. The LP edition of the album “Bitanga i princeza” was cut at the Abbey Road Studios in London by Sean Magee, a Grammy Award-winning sound engineer.

“Following the example of Giles Martin’s The Beatles, but also the global trend of remixing great, legendary albums, we decided on a dangerous but challenging venture. “Bitanga i princeza” has certainly been one of the best played, best recorded and best mixed albums in the history of rock music in Yugoslavia, but new technologies also bring new possibilities, so “Bitanga i princeza 2024” sounds cleaner and more present. We tried to stick to the original sound, original spaces and original balance of instruments.

On the new version of the album, the once censored verse from “Ala je glupo zaboravit’ njen broj” (Oh, It’s Stupid to Forget Her Number) – “…a koji mi je moj?” (…and which One Is Mine? has been restored. In the original, due to the recording and microphone techniques of the time, there was a lot of “bleeding” on the drum elements, and because of that, the original sound engineers Nick Glennie Smith and Rade Ercegovac certainly had problems with the presence and solidity of the rhythm section itself. Today’s mixing technology makes it much easier for us to deal with these problems,” explained Goran Martinac.

The 180 gram vinyl comes with a download card with wav versions of all the songs. In addition to the stereo versions of the mixes, a Dolby Atmos version is ready for the digital services, as well as for the hybrid Super Audio CD with a HiRes Stereo version, and a 5.1 surround mix mastered by Simon Gibson in the legendary Abbey Road studio.

But it’s not just the sound that will delight discophiles. The anniversary album “Bitanga i princeza” comes with the original censored cover by Dragan S. Stefanović!

“The cover of “Bitanga i princeza” was a bit (too?) “cheeky” in its message, but concealed by a beautiful and elegant image. The idea was simply a low blow from a girl (the princess) to someone close to her (the bastard), with whom she is in a relationship. But the relationship itself was replaced: The Princess is dressed as a streetwalker, and reacts as such, while the man is nicely dressed, almost gentlemanly in his demeanor and like a groom in a white suit, protecting himself instead of attacking. When I heard that it was censored and banned from publication, I felt hurt.

There was nothing visually indecent or vulgar in the image itself, only the idea was provocative. I was pleasantly surprised by the kind offer from Croatia Records to participate again in the project with the “forbidden image” of the almost forgotten cover! Their openness and willingness to meet with everything necessary obliged me to try to do something on the edge of the possible. With the help of Darko Kujundžić, we managed to make the image authentic and original again. “Zabranjena slika” (the forbidden image) is now back in front of the audience and I am very happy!”, explains Dragan S. Stefanović.

The album “Bitanga i princeza” brings seven excellent songs: “ Na zadnjem sjedištu moga auta” (On the Back Seat of My Car), “Ala je glupo zaboravit’ njen broj” (Oh, It’s Stupid to Forget Her Number), “Bitanga i princeza” (The Bastard and the Princess), “A koliko si ih imala do sad” (How Many of them have You Had so Far), “Ipak poželim neko pismo” (I still Wish a Letter) and the emotional ballads “Kad zaboraviš juli” (When You Forget July) and “Sve će to mila moja prekriti ruzmarin, snjegovi i šaš” (All of It, My Dear, Will Be Covered by Rosemary, Snowflakes and Sedge) in which Bijelo dugme is accompanied by a symphony orchestra and choir.

“Even from today’s perspective, the album “Bitanga i princeza” is one of the most interesting achievements in the entire production of Bijelo Dugme. Personally, I see it as my top achievement in the distant seventies”, said Željko Bebek, the first frontman and vocalists of Bijelo Dugme.

Following global trends in discography, Croatia Records brings great legendary releases in the most technologically modern way.

“Even after 50 years since their appearance, the Bijelo Dugme phenomenon probably cannot be repeated in any segment. Since their foundation, they have been an institution that has changed the Yugoslavian discography for the better with their activities, and the time in which they were created and created creatively is unrepeatable. Therefore, this release is another contribution to their uniqueness, as well as a new way of looking at the album “Bitanga i princeza” for discophiles eager to further study the Bijelo Dugme phenomenon”, concluded Želimir Babogredac, director of Croatia Records.

The whole story is accompanied by the video clip “Bitanga i princeza” from 1980, which has been restored and upgraded to Full HD quality by CroRec Videos.