Jaak Joala

Jaak Joala
Born (1950-06-26)June 26, 1950
Viljandi, Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Union
Died September 25, 2014(2014-09-25) (aged 64)
Tallinn, Estonia
Occupation Singer
Awards

Jaak Joala (June 26, 1950, Viljandi - September 25, 2014, Tallinn) was an Estonian singer, musician and a member of two bands: Kristallid and Virmalised. He began as a flautist, later adding singing and bass guitar.

Career

Joala was considered a music legend by some.[1] He began his musical career with beat group Kristallid (English: The Crystals) in 1966 as a flautist, then as singer and bassist. In 1968, he was bassist player and lead singer in the popular group Virmalised (English: Northern Lights). With Virmalised, he sang several of Toivo Kurmet's songs: "Ainult sul" ("Only You Have"), "Ma ei tea, miks" ("I Don't Know Why"), "Naer" ("Laughter"), "Taas on päev" ("Once Again The Day") and "Üksinda" ("Alone"). Joala introduced western rock music to Estonian and Soviet audiences by singing in his native language.

In the 1980s, he earned the nickname "Kremlin's Nightingale" , because he often performed and recorded in Russia, and a large part of his repertoire, comprising songs written by such great composers as Raimonds Pauls, David Tukhmanov and Alexander Zatsepin, at that time was in Russian. [2] Bandmate Paap Kõlar recounted that eventually Joala grew tired of performing, saying that Goskontsert, the Soviet entertainment agency, demanded that he perform. Kõlar suggested that Joala did not have much choice as to whether to perform or not.[3]

Joala's most well-known projects as a singer in the 1990s were with Kollane Allveelaev G (English: Yellow Submarine G). They performed 1960s music along with Ivo Linna, Karl Madis, Meelis Punder and others. In the middle of 1990s, he performed in joint concerts with Ivo Linna and Tõnis Mägi. The concert tour was nicknamed "The Three Tenors Tour".

Later, Joala devoted his time to teaching, producing and hosting on TV/radio. In his final ten years, he became reclusive. Many old friends lost contact with him.

Popular Songs

External links

References

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