One of all-time biggest 1960s Ex Yu pop stars just passed away at the age of 81.
The nature of pop music is such that audience eventually forgets people who used to be really important once, although I doubt that anybody who was around in 1960s will forget Lola Novaković because she was definitely superstar of her time: constantly present on festivals, TV shows and cover pages, she was hit maker and fashion trend setter for generation that enjoyed first fruits of post-WW2 prosperity in Yugoslavia. As female counterpart to Đorđe Marjanović, she was there at the very beginning of local pop music and its first hit recordings - it is very interesting to listen those old recordings today because they are like time machine into completely different world, exquisitely arranged, sophisticated and beautifully orchestrated, they were collaborations between selected conductors, composers and arrangers who really operated on high professional level, completely unlike what we accept today as pop music. If Marjanović represented jolly hit maker, Novaković was far more versatile artist because she could sing anything producers wanted her to - from traditional Mexican rancheras, country, dixieland and ubiquitous international covers to homegrown torch ballads like unforgettable "Ne pali svetla u sumrak" that represented Yugoslavia on Eurovision in 1964 and was amongst best songs that year.
Novaković belongs to that first generation of pop singers who all worked under perhaps difficult circumstances - lacking local composers, recordings were dependent on covers, political situation behind the iron curtain didn't really encourage anything that suggested decadence of the west and pop market was not established yet properly, so recording companies recorded everything from comedians, traditional folk and children's songs to poetry and army music. On positive side, lack of competition means that all those musicians worked as close, friendly collaborators, knew and supported each other, often toured together and basically created that first wave of local pop music, no matter how clumsy or derivative it might have been. Like all her colleagues from early 1960s Novaković kept her eyes and ears on legendary Italian San Remo and regularly covered Italian hits for Yu market, there is quite large selection of music originally sung by Milva who might have been her biggest idol. It also helped that Novaković was attractive, photogenic and statuesque woman, blessed with sensual voice that showed great personality even amongst countless similar-sounding, polite singers of that time.
I doubt that kids today would be familiar with her name: Novaković's golden years were 1960s when she really worked hard and seemingly non-stop. It appears that in 1970s she lost the drive and slowly pulled out of the business, even though the time didn't diminish her talent as singer. I saw some TV concert from 1980s where during retrospective of big festival hits she was amongst invited veterans and my God, her all too short cameo was show stopper. What kind of life she must have led during last few decades in war torn and impoverished country, I cannot even imagine but I am almost sure that she was alarmed with changes in business that once not only respected but demanded professional behavior and high standards.
Mama, mama (1966) EP
Recorded in 1960s when local recording companies still played safe and used a lot of international covers (local pop composers were still relatively new phenomenon although there were some, but there was still no such a thing as singer/songwriter) this cute little EP glows like diamond because of sophisticated orchestration and arrangements by wonderful Ilija Genić who beautified everything he worked on. When I see the name Ilija Genić, its the highest possible recommendation, this guy was truly magnificent and no matter what genre, he always had such class and sophistication that time still didn't diminish his work.
Novaković is placed front and center here, though I suspect that anybody would sound brilliant if backed by orchestra by Genić who could easily play behind Ella Fitzgerald or Frank Sinatra, that's how good he was. The material is fairly pedestrian - anything that was current back than, a little bit of Greece, Country & Western and obligatory nod to San Remo, even a decent cover by Italian pop goddess Mina - in lesser hands this could have been a routine work but Genić gives his star such regal treatment that with all this strings, semi-classical orchestra and chorus, singer can't help but to sound inspired. It is a huge improvement to her early singles ("Mustafa") where shrill volume often eclipsed everything else, this was first-class musical cushion tailored to enhance singer's voice and she was as smooth as silk here. Golden years for Novaković, that is sure and probably something she played to herself later in life when she retired from the business.
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