Suncokret -

Suncokret was a Yugoslav folk-rock ensemble with a revolving-door lineup across a five-year run. Between 1975 and 1979, they cut seven singles on RTB, Diskos, and ZKP RTVLJ, which issued their 1977 singular album, Moje Bube. The band also appears on documents of the 1976 and 1977 Boom Festivals.

Members: Bora Đorđević (guitar, vocals), Nenad Božić (guitar, vocals), Snežana Jandrlić (vocals), Vesna Rakočević (vocals), Gorica Popović (vocals), Biljana Krstić (vocals), Miodrag-Bata Kostić (bass), Duško Nikodijević (keyboards), Ljubinko Milošević (drums), Branko Isaković (bass), Ivan Vdović Vd (drums), Dušan Bezuha Duda (guitar, vocals), Vladimir Golubović (drums), Dragan Miljanović (keyboards)

Background

Suncokret formed in Belgrade in 1975 when vocalist–acoustic guitarist Bora Đorđević assembled a group with vocalist–acoustic guitarist Nenad Božić and singers Snežana Jandrlić and Vesna Rakočević. Đorđević previously led Zajedno, a Belgrade acoustic group that recorded for PGP-RTB. He also recorded a 1975 single with radio presenter Zoran Modli under the name Hajduk Stanko i Jataci. Božić came from the acoustic group U cvetu mladosti. Đorđević and Jandrlić both appeared in the 1972 Atelje 212 production of Jesus Christ Superstar, with Jandrlić cast as a girl and Đorđević among the apostles.

RTV Ljubljana issued the quartet’s 1975 first single, an arrangement of the traditional song “Kara Mustafa” (b/w the Đorđević composition “Moje tuge”). Rakočević subsequently joined Zdravo, while Đorđević recruited actress Gorica Popović as her replacement. Popović graduated in acting that year and recently sang as a temporary member of S vremena na vreme at the invitation of guitarist Ljuba Ninković. The group added Biljana Krstić, a Belgrade Music Academy student from Niš, through an audition arranged by her former schoolmate Dragan Miloradović. Krstić studied piano and sang in school choirs in Niš. She also performed in 1972–73 with the Leskovac group Bubamare. Her first Suncokret appearance took place at the November 1975 Belgrade Fair.

Suncokret rehearsed four or five times a week at the DADOV theatre in Belgrade. Krstić developed the vocal arrangements, with Jandrlić on lead and Popović in the contralto register. The group performed “Gde ćeš biti, lepa Kejo” at the 1976 Omladina Festival in Subotica and “Pusto more, pusti vali” at Beogradsko proleće. RTV Ljubljana coupled the two festival songs on a June single. That year, Suncokret welcomed bassist Miodrag “Bata,” Sokić, an alumnus of the Singidunum and Svetomir Šešić orchestras who knew Đorđević from their school years in Čačak.

On June 11, the six-member lineup played the BOOM ’76 festival in Belgrade. PGP-RTB included their performance of the traditional song “Moj đerdane” on the festival LP. Suncokret also appeared in Mića Milošević’s 1976 film Nije nego and recorded a Kvas soft-drink advertisement for Studio B. The group joined Modli on the October Diskos single “Rock’n’roll duku duku” (b/w “Gili gili blues”), then issued “Oj, nevene” (b/w “Tekla voda”) through PGP-RTB in November. In February 1977, Suncokret entered RTV Ljubljana’s Studio XIV with producer Ivo Umek to record the debut album Moje bube.

Discography:

“Kara Mustafa” / “Moje tuge” (1975)
“Gde ćeš biti lepa Kejo” / “Pusto more, pusti vali” (1976)
“Oj, nevene (Hit Parada ’76)” / “Tekla voda (Sabor ’76)” (1976)
“Rock ‘n’ Roll duku duku” / “Gili, gili blues” (1976 • Suncokret & Zoran Modli)
Moje Bube (1977)
“Imam pesmu za sve ljude” / “Čovek koga znam” (1978)
“Dlakavo čudo” / “Noćna ptica” (1979)
“Sviće novi dan” / “Tvoja mama gundja protiv mene” (1979)

Sources

Borisav Đorđević – Bora. Detailed chronology of Đorđević’s early groups, the original Suncokret lineup, four pre-album singles, BOOM ’76 appearance, film participation, and Ljubljana sessions. (Riblja Čorba)
Isus Hristos Superstar. Original Atelje 212 production records, with the June 23, 1972 premiere date and cast credits for Jandrlić and Đorđević. (Atelje 212)
Bilja Krstić o svojoj karijeri, detinjstvu, Balaševiću. December 5, 2021 interview covering Krstić’s music education, Bubamare, the Suncokret audition, Gorica’s earlier arrival, DADOV rehearsals, and the distribution of vocal parts. (Telegraf)
Suncokreti su mi odredili karijeru. March 16, 2008 interview with Krstić, who dates her first Suncokret appearance to November 1975 at the Belgrade Fair. (Blic)
Gorica Popović, glumica – Jubilej magije. Interview explaining how Ljuba Ninković recruited Popović and fellow acting students as temporary singers for S vremena na vreme, which led to Đorđević’s invitation. (eKapija)
Bata Sokić: Suncokreti teraju po svom, ali se svi družimo. February 28, 2021 interview covering Sokić’s early bands in Čačak, orchestral engagements, recruitment to Suncokret, and recollections of the original personnel. (Nova.rs)
YU Rock enciklopedija 1960–2006, p. 219. Petar Janjatović’s Suncokret entry, with founding personnel, prior affiliations, festival appearances, and early personnel changes. (YU Rock enciklopedija)
Suncokret – Kara Mustafa / Moje Tuge. Original RTV Ljubljana single, catalog SP 10080, issued in 1975. (45cat)
Suncokret – Moje Bube. Original LP sleeve transcription confirming February 1977 sessions at Studio XIV, the complete six-member lineup, producer Ivo Umek, and recording credits. (45cat)
Suncokret – Gde ćeš biti lepa Kejo. Original festival-single information identifying the Subotica and Beogradsko proleće recordings on RTV Ljubljana SP-10102. (Slovo po Slovo)