Страна, где ночует солнце

by Ivan Smirnov

A few years ago, an old friend of mine send me the DVD published by TeRiRem Productions. I am not sure if this DVD is/was available anywhere outside Russia. Which is a great shame, for Ivan Smirnov is one of the finest guitarists Russia ever produced. Back in 1980s, I saw him in two very different incarnations of Kozlov’s Арсенал (Arsenal), playing... well, very different music indeed. Страна, где ночует солнце (The Land Where the Sun Slumbers) is a live concert of Smirnov’s quartet recorded on 30 January 2002 at Le Club. The double CD of the same name (“currently unavailable” in its physical form, on Amazon or elsewhere, but you can listen to it for free), contains more material from the same concert. (Five songs, to be precise.)

It’s all achingly beautiful stuff but — or should I say “and”? — a bit on the melancholy side. And (or should I say “but”?) then, when you think you got the idea, comes the final number: Tipsy Dance, a sort of Russian folk-inspired tune with a healthy dose of humour... and heavy(ish) blues riffs. What does it prove? Once a jazz-rocker, always a jazz-rocker.

Иван Смирнов — Страна, где ночует солнце (DVD) Долина эха / Echoes in the Glen Страна, где ночует солнце / The Land Where the Sun Slumbers Братан / Buddy Черная Бабочка / Black Butterfly Среди пустыни / In the Heart of a Desert С тобой / With You Долгое озеро / Long Lake Дикое поле / Steppe Frontier Наигрыш / Folk Tune Когда сжигают золотые листья / September (by the Fire) Хмель / Tipsy Dance Иван Смирнов — акустическая гитара Михаил Смирнов — клавишные, аккордеон, перкуссия Сергей Клевенский — кларнет, свирели, рожки, волынка Дмитрий Сафонов — акустическая гитара