Hejma Ondřej: Dáreček - CD

On his solo album, the result of a five-year effort, Hejma offers a total of 9 new recordings that, in terms of both authorship and style, cover his entire contemporary world, inspired not only by classic blues (Finanční tíseň), but also by folk (Slepou uličkou), indie rock (Evropanka Blanka), and the vocal harmonies of the Californian West Coast (Bytosti). Ondřej Hejma recorded the album with Kateřina Pelíšková from the band Gaia Mesiah and the young singer-songwriter Jiří “Nick” Trpák. All three contributed to the final result both as writers and performers. In addition to the original songs, the album features Dylan's Desolation Row and Angel from Montgomery, written by the recently deceased John Prine. Hejma provided both covers with Czech lyrics. A crucial contribution to the album was the musical direction and arrangements by Jan Ponocný, in whose studio most of the songs were recorded. The mixing, mastering, and additional tracks were then created at the Svárov studio in collaboration with Lukáš Martinek and Michal Šindelář. In the track Finanční tíseň, the current lineup of Žlutý pes virtually meets its guests in a pandemic improvisation.

Ondřej Hejma has been active on the Czech music scene for fifty years. He started as a harmonica player in the folk group Žízeň, where he met Ivan Hlas, who later showed him the path to his own songwriting. After several years with Yo Yo Band, he founded the blues group Žlutý pes in 1978, with whom he still performs today. In 1996, Žlutý pes won the Anděl Award for Band of the Year.

Tracklist

CD
Evropanka Blanka / Dejte mi anděla / Jdou po mě / Normální chlápek / Finanční tíseň / Bytosti / Rok nula / Slepou uličkou / V hotelu