Hobo and the Budapest Blues Band
Blues
Rock
Hobo and the Budapest Blues Band
László Földes, aka Hobo, is one of the most prominent figures in Hungarian music, who has made a lasting mark during his more than five-decade career with the Hobo Blues Band, as a solo artist, with poetry albums, and through his work in theater. Now, at over 80 years of age, he has formed a new band, which will make its debut at the House of Music. The Budapest Blues Band includes such legendary Hungarian blues musicians as Gábor Szűcs (aka Little G Weevil), Jenő Fekete, and Zoltán Nemes. We recommend the concert in the words of Hobo, who also recounts the story of how the band came to be.
“If someone at the age of 80 starts a new band, they should be required to obtain a psychiatrist’s permission. But despite all prejudice I did this and recently put together the Budapest Blues Band. I think that despite my long career I have not been able to establish blues in the Hungarian language, so before I step off the stage I wanted to leave some trace that is not exclusively tied to my name.
Unfortunately, many of my late companions from the Hobo Blues Band are no longer alive, or have taken a different path, like Deák Bill Gyula, who today also calls himself a rock singer. But much of his repertoire is still what we wrote for him with Póka Egon before his departure in 1985, forty years ago. Although he is not a songwriter, this is how he preserves the old tradition.
So I called together the much younger Fekete Jenő, Szűcs Gábor (alias Little Weevil) and Nemes Zoltán, who for decades have been singing blues in English, to try it in Hungarian as well. To justify their fear of death, I wrote the lyrics for a full album and asked them each to choose something they liked from it, set it to music and then sing it. After that I put a machine gun to them and told them that I would not take the blame alone, but that four of us would sing, and I would only be a quarter.
The House of Music has welcomed us and we will debut here with a new album and quite a few blues translated into Hungarian.”
Members of the Budapest Blues Band:
Gábor Szűcs – vocals, guitar
Jenő Fekete – vocals, guitar
József Adamecz – drums
Csaba Pengő – bass guitar
Zsolt Magda – saxophones
Zoltán Nemes – vocals, keyboards
Hobo – vocals, dance
Rock Troubadours (US, 70s): CSNY, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Van Morrison, Roy Harper
