A great Latvian word is the adjective sirsnīgs. Roughly translated, it means “from the heart” or “warm hearted” or “sincere.” It is one of the most complimentary things one can say in Latvian. If I were to sum up my thoughts in one word on the sold-out Čikāgas piecīši concert, “Kad Latvijai bij’ 90,” in the Arēna Rīga on Independence Day, sirsnīgs would do nicely.

Though members of the group have made sporadic appearances in Latvia in the past years, the last true full band performance of the group in Latvia was in 1995. For this year’s concert tour, the performers were stalwarts Alberts Legzdiņš (vocals, guitar and group founder), Armands Birkens (vocals, guitar), Uldis Streips (bass guitar, vocals), Alnis Cers (guitar), and the returning Laurie Cinkuss (vocals) and Janīna Ankipāne (vocals, guitar).

This was actually the first time that I had seen the group in concert. Alhough I grew up in the United States, I never managed to see Čikāgas piecīši. So I was very much looking forward to seeing the group when it performed Nov. 18. It has been a very long time since the group was in Rīga, but time doesn’t seem to have had much effect on its members, particularly on Ankipāne and Birkens, who sound just like they did 30 years ago.

As the group has not had a new album since 1994’s Vai debesīs būs Latvija?, the concert—the third of a six-city tour of Latvia—focused mainly on the many hits Čikāgas piecīsi has had throughout the years, particularly from the 1970s and ‘80s.

For the most part, the audience in Arēna Rīga was rather subdued. The loudest applause was saved for Birkens’ performance of “Mūsu mīlestība” and his duet with Cinkuss on “Lai visa pasaule to redz.” Other highlights included Ankipāne’s performance of “Sapnis par Latgali,” the ever-popular “Pazudušais dēls,” the poignant “Kurzemnieki Viskonsīnā,” “Es redzēju bālēliņu” (which Cinkuss was quick to point out was not a folk song, though it has all but become one), and the rarely heard Birkens solo number “Roze.”

Guests included Māris Muktupāvels (of post-folk group Iļģi) on accordion for a few songs; men’s choir Gaudeamus, beer steins in hand, singing along with “Man garšo alus” (which featured notably different lyrics than the original recording); and a number of Latvia’s children’s ensembles performing on several songs.

The comedy skits that are often part of the Piecīši’s performances were minimal this time around, likely due to the fact that the group’s main skit writer, Uldis Ievāns, suffered a stroke a few years ago. However, Legzdiņš did provide a bit of comedy with a copy of the newspaper Diena, cracking wise about the newly opened Dienvidu (Southern) Bridge in Rīga, as well as the results of the latest U.S. presidential election. Another bit of comedy was in the song “Latviešu sievietei.” The original version of the song featured the line, “Nav viegli latviešu sievietei būt” (It is not easy to be a Latvian woman). But, in today’s environment, it was changed to “Nav viegli latviešu vīrietim būt” (It is not easy to be a Latvian man), with a man now expected to be as intelligent as former president Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga, not to mention as attractive as Latvian singer Linda Leen.

Were I to be pressed to say anything critical of the concert, I would point out the subdued audience, who, though very polite, didnt much participate in the concert by singing along. Legzdiņš himself had to plead with the audience (with little effect) to sing along. Perhaps this was due to the early starting time of the concert (4 p.m.), so not enough beer had been ingested yet. It would have been nice to hear more of Ankipāne. Though she certainly did get many chances to sing, her solos such as “Staburadze” or “Nāk rudentiņis” were missed. Also, I would have liked to hear a few more of the group’s 1960s songs. And, sorry gang, I could probably do without hearing “Sekss ir labs” for a while!

Latvia, being the home of so very many talented professional musicians, has many excellent concerts. Because so very many Latvians take their music so very seriously, many concerts wind up being over-professional, and, to some extent, even a bit “cold.” This was certainly not the case with the Piecīši concert, where one could tell that the members of the group were overjoyed to be back and performing on Latvia’s Independence Day in front of such a large crowd. Hopefully we won’t have to wait another decade for another concert!

One of the most recognizable voices of the Liepāja rock scene has always been Ivo Fomins. To honor his career so far, MICREC this summer released the compilation compact disc Labākās dziesmas.

Brother of legendary Latvian singer Igo Fomins, Ivo has always tended toward a harder rock sound while Igo—despite having spent time in the hard rock band Līvi—leaned more towards pop songs as well as theater music. Although he has often been in his brother’s shadow, Ivo established himself as a star in recent years, particularly through his work with Tomass Kleins in the duo Fomins un Kleins. Sadly, they have disbanded, supposedly due to the standard “creative differences,” with Fomins looking more towards a heavier sound in their music and Kleins embracing popular music. These trends are made clearer by the more aggressive sound on Fomins’ solid 2006 solo CD Palikt vienam, while Kleins went on to work with rising pop star Andris Ērglis in the group Cacao.

Fomins’ career did not start with Fomins un Kleins, but the duo’s popularity brought him many new fans. One of the first groups he performed with professionally was Neptūns during the mid 1980s. He was also one of the members of Liepājas brāļi. Other groups with which he has been associated include Libau and Melnā princese, where he performed with guitarist Felikss Ķiģelis. In 2003, he began work with Kleins, producing two excellent albums—2003’s Muzikants and 2004’s Dzimis Latvijā—and even participated in 2004’s Eurovision Song Contest with the tune “Dziesma par laimi.”

The bulk of the Labākās dziesmas collection is taken from the two Fomins un Kleins albums,  but two of their bigger hits, “Solījums” and “Sniegs,” are conspicuous by their absence. There is also an unreleased track, “Uz neatgriešanos.” It is odd that no space was found for another track, “Notiks tā kā jānotiek,” which can only be found on the collection 100% svaigs Nr. 8. But no matter. The work of the duo was outstanding and they produced some of the best Latvian pop-rock songs in recent memory.

Many of the tracks have been newly re-recorded, including one Fomins un Kleins song, “Muzikants.” The albums also has one completely new song, “Mēs dzīvojam pasakās.” I think it would have been far more interesting to hear the originals, so that one could follow the progress of this singer, but since many of these older recordings are no longer available, new versions are just as good. Songs re-recorded include the old Līvi track “Sniega velns,” as well as “Viņa raud,” from his solo album Palikt vienam. Both songs feature singer and actress Ieva Pļavniece, with whom Fomins performed on the Latvian reality TV show “Zvaigžņu lietus” earlier this year. Also re-recorded are two songs from Melnā princese, “Melna saule” and “Lūdz lai.” The song “Viena dziesma” from the new theater work “Liepājas stāsts” is included, too.

Lyrics for a few of the songs are offered in the liner notes, as well as chords for “Viņa raud.” Unfortunately, no real biographical information is included about the singer, and it is not made clear with which groups he originally recorded the older songs.

Otherwise this is an excellent set from an excellent vocalist. It is unfortunate that Fomins un Kleins broke up, since the best songs on this set are from the duo. Also, the songs chosen for this set do not indicate the heavier direction that Fomins went with his solo album. They seem to be re-recorded with a more “popular” sound for a larger audience. In any case, it is great to have these older songs, as well as the best of Fomins’ more recent work, all on one CD. As one of the most distinctive voices to have come from Liepāja, it is a well-deserved honor.