Чиж & Co

Chizh & Co (Russian: Чиж & Co) is a Russian rock band, formed in the early 1990s by guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Sergey Chigrakov. The band's last studio album to date was released in 1999. The band was also named The Band of a Year by Rock-Fuzz Magazine in 1997. The band's full name is "Chizh & Company" (Russian: “Чиж & Компания”), derived from Sergey Chigrakov’s nickname "Chizh" (Russian: “Чиж”). This nickname, in turn, is the Russian word for the Eurasian siskin (Spinus spinus), a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. Accordingly, the "company" in the name refers to the rest of band. In March 1993, guitarist, singer and songwriter Sergei "Chizh" Chigrakov, who at that time played in the band "Various People", receives an offer from Igor Berezovets and Andrei Burlaki to record a solo album. With the support of Boris Grebenshchikov, he comes to St. Petersburg, where he records an album called simply "Chizh" on the label "OsoAviAkhim". Since he didn't have his own band at that moment, he was helped to record the album by well-known musicians of the city: Boris Grebenshchikov and Sergey Berezovoy (Aquarium), Nikolay Korzinin (St. Petersburg band), Alexander Brovko and Mikhail Chernov (DDT). In the fall of the same year Sergey Chigrakov gave concerts in St. Petersburg. The band accompanying him included guitarist Rodion Chikunov from the band "Streets", bass guitarist Alexey Romaniuk, known from the bands "Style" and "Nesterov's Loop", and well-known session drummer Alexander Kondrashkin. Encouraged by the warm reception, Sergey Chigrakov decides to leave "Different People", move to St. Petersburg and create his own band. On 1 May 1994 Chizh finally moved to St. Petersburg, where he started searching for musicians for a new band. A month later, Chigrakov assembled the band "Chizh and Company", which included Alexei Romaniuk and drummer Vladimir Khanutin. A month later, Mikhail Vladimirov joined them. In such a line-up the "live" album Live was recorded, which became the band's debut album. In the same year the band released its first studio album – "Perekrestok". Alexander Kondrashkin, although he did not become a member of the band, first collaborated with the band as a percussionist. The first producer of the band was Elena Karpova, editor of the Main Editorial Board of the Central Television music programs, who promoted the band until 1996. The next album of Chizh & Co — "About Love", recorded in 1995, was the most interesting because most of the songs on this album were cover versions of less known authors: A. Selunin, O. Tarasov, V. Demidov, A. Khrynov, I. Gankevich, E. Varva, S. Kocherga. In the album “About Love” was also recorded “folk” song “Here the bullet whistled”. But the songs “O'k” (Chizh) and “About Love” (O. Tarasov) became undoubted hits that hit the charts. It is already customary for a band at the peak of popularity to release an album of its best songs. In 1995 the band “Chizh & Co” rose to the top of its popularity and it was time to record the album “Greatest Hits”. This album was recorded “live”, at a concert in September 1995 at the Yubileiny DK in St. Petersburg. It was actually a concert made up of the best songs of the band at that time. The hall enthusiastically accepted all the songs, and when Chizh forgot the lyrics, sang for him selflessly. In the same year the solo album of the band's guitarist Mikhail Vladimirov "Crimson Shores" was released. The next year 1996 was quite laborious for the band. In addition to touring, solo concerts, as well as gathering concerts ("Maxidrom" and others), the band also recorded two new albums: “Erogenous Zone” and “Polonaise”. For the song “Polonaise” a video clip was also shot, part of which was filmed in America and the other half in Russia, near St. Petersburg. This trip to America was the first for all the band members. Opinions were very different. Mikhail Vladimirov called America "the country of cheap jeans and good guitars", Chizh said that he was "bored there and wanted to go home". The "Polonaise" album itself is notable for the fact that the Chamber Orchestra conducted by Y. P. Serebryakov was involved in the work on it. Another musician, Chizh's old friend Evgeny Barinov, nicknamed "Powerful", who played with Chizh in the Dzerzhinsk band "GPD", was invited to join the band. Additionally, this year was marked by various solo projects of the band members. Chizh took part in the recording of two albums "Mit'kovskiye pesni" along with such famous performers as BG, Yuri Shevchuk, V. Butusov, A. F. Sklyar and others, who sang good old songs of war and Soviet peace time in a new way. The next project in which Chizh participated was the recording and performances of Alexey "Polkovnik" Khrynov's session band — "Polkovnik and Odnopolchanye". "Polkovnik", a famous Nizhny Novgorod rock bard, was invited by producer S. Firsov to record old and new songs. For this project a truly "star" cast was gathered: Chizh, I. Vasiliev (“DDT"), L. Fedorov ("AuktsYon"), M. Kolovsky ("AuktsYon"), E. Barinov ("Chizh & Co"), D. Nekrasov. Then the band recorded the album "The First Call", and the song from this album "Spread me the field" (D. Nekrasov), the band "Chizh & Co" included in their album "Nothing to lose". Mikhail Vladimirov also continued his solo career and recorded the album "Nayavu and in a dream". The band's sound engineer Y. Morozov recorded his next album "Illusion", in which the band "Chizh & Co" accompanied the author. In addition, the band "Chizh & Co" recorded for the collection "Strange Races" the song "Lyrical" on V. S. Vysotsky's poems. Vysotsky's songs were also performed by: “Alisa”, “Va-Bank”, “Chaif”, Yuri Shevchuk and others. In 1997, "Chizh & Co" recorded the album "Bombers" — an album of cover versions of old songs of Soviet times. The album is dedicated to the musicians' parents. Video clips were shot for the songs "Bombers" and "Under the Balkan Stars". In the same year "Boogie-Kharkov" was reissued, now under the name "Chizh and Various People". In the same year the popular magazine "Rock Fuzz" announces "Chizh & Co" as the band of the year. The year 1998 starts for Chizh & Co. with a foreign tour in Israel and a scandal connected with the departure of drummer Vladimir Khanutin from the band. The live album "New Jerusalem" was recorded there. The album opens with several new songs "I'm Like a Dog", "I'm Going, I'm Going", "For Two", and ends with the blues "Ural Biker Blues". On their return to their homeland the musicians are in for an unpleasant surprise: drummer Vladimir Khanutin leaves the band – he goes to a rather famous St. Petersburg band "NOM". Igor Fedorov (born 8 September 1969), who previously played in the bands "Televizor", "NEP" and others, is invited to take his place. In the same year (still with V. Khanutin), the band released the album "Best Blues and Ballads". This is another album of hits by Chizh & Co, which is a compilation of all previous albums. In September 1998, the band "Chizh & Co" is invited to London for the only concert in the club "Astoria". However, the band plays two concerts: the second one is an acoustic concert, in the BBC Radio studio in the program with the famous Seva Novgorodtsev. Later this recording was released by the band as a live album under the title "At 20:00 GMT". The album features acoustic versions of old well—known songs and one new one, later included in the next album. Recording of the album "Nothing to Lose" was intermittent – it was started on 25 August 1998, and finished on 13 March 1999. During the whole year of 1999, the band actively toured the country. At the end of March in New York there is a festival with participation of Chizh & Co, Krematorium, Agata Kristi, AuktsYon, and a day later there is a concert in Chicago. In early July, Gorno-Altaisk hosts a grand rock festival "In the mountains on the fast river" with the participation of bands Chizh & Co, Chaif, Aquarium, Crematarium,