Wigwam - Hard 'n' Horny (1969)

Wigwam - Hard 'n' Horny (1969)

Tracklist front / back album covers

Wigwam is a Finnish progressive rock band formed in 1968.

Wigwam was founded after the split of the seminal Blues Section, with whom drummer Ronnie Österberg had played before. He formed the band as a trio, but soon brought in British expatriate singer/songwriter Jim Pembroke and organist Jukka Gustavson. A year later, Pekka Pohjola joined on bass. Kim Fowley produced Wigwam's second album Tombstone Valentine (1970). This album also featured an excerpt of Erkki Kurenniemi's electronic composition 'Dance of the Anthropoids'. The 1974 album Being is often called Wigwam's masterpiece. After its release, though, Pohjola and Gustavson quit the band. Commercially the most successful Wigwam album must be the more pop-oriented Nuclear Nightclub that followed in 1975, with new members Pekka Rechardt on guitar and Måns Groundstroem on bass. The album was recorded in Stockholm with better studios, and featured Esa Kotilainen, the Finnish equivalent of Rick Wakeman, on synthesizer. The effect of the synthesizer was to steer the group away from the organ and piano sound of Gustavson that dominated previous albums. The band from Nuclear Nightclub on had songwriters Pembroke and Rechardt often working together, and the two came to describe the style as "deep pop" instead of progressive rock.

For a time in the 1970s Wigwam seemed poised to break through in Europe, along with bands like Tasavallan Presidentti, but even though they were highly praised by the UK press large-scale international fame eluded them, and by 1978 they had disbanded. Jim Pembroke and Ronnie Österberg formed the Jim Pembroke Band in late 1979, but following health problems with diabetes, Österberg committed suicide on December 6, 1980.

Wigwam reformed in the 1990s with the Pembroke-Rechardt-Groundstroem core intact, and has been active to the present. In Finland they have a lasting (although limited) following, and their influence on Finnish rock music is widely recognised.

In the 2010s, the former members of Wigwam have made concerts billed as Wigwam Unplugged or Wigwam Revisited. The latest line-up consists Mikko Rintanen, Jan Noponen, Måns Groundstroem and Jukka Gustavson with Pekka Nylund playing guitar.

In late 2018, the band made a short 50th anniversary tour in Finland with line-up of Jukka Gustavson, Jim Pembroke, Pekka Rechardt, Esa Kotilainen and Jan Noponen with Pave Maijanen on bass.

Wigwam Band Members / Musicians

Jim Pembroke – vocals, keyboards (1969-2018; died 2021)

Jukka Gustavson – vocals, electric organ (1969–1974, 2018)

Pekka "Rekku" Rechardt – guitar (1974-)

Jan Noponen – drums (1991–1993, 2018)

Esa Kotilainen – keyboards (1974–75, 1977, 2001-)

Pave Maijanen – bass guitar, vocals (2018; died 2021)

Drums

Ronald "Ronnie" Österberg (1968–1980; died 1980)

Jari "Kepa" Kettunen (1993–2006)

Guitar

Vladimir "Nikke" Nikamo (1968–1970)

Bass guitar

Mats Huldén (1968–70, 2004–2006)

Pekka Pohjola (1970–1974; died 2008)

Måns "Måsse" Groundstroem (1974–2003)

Jussi Kinnunen (2003–2004)

Violin

Pekka Pohjola (1970–1974; died 2008)

Keyboards

Heikki "Pedro" (or "Hessu") Hietanen (1975–1977, 1991–1992, 1999–2000)

Mikko Rintanen (1992–1993)

Guest musicians

Jukka Tolonen, guitar (1970–1972), bass (2018)

Esa Kotilainen, keyboards (1974–1975, 1977)

Kristian (Bengt Huhta), vocals (1968)

Ilpo Aaltio, saxophone (1968)

Ilmari Varila, oboe

Tapio Louhensalo, bassoon

Hannu Saxelin, clarinet

Risto Pensola, clarinet

Unto Haapa-aho, bass clarinet

Eero Koivistoinen, soprano saxophone

Pekka Pöyry, soprano saxophone

Pentti Lasanen, clarinet, flute

Paavo Honkanen, clarinet

Aale Lindgren, oboe

Juhani Tapaninen, bassoon

Juhani Aaltonen, flute

Seppo Paakkunainen, flute

Erik Dannholm, flute

Pentti Lahti, flute

Kari Veisterä, flute

Taisto Wesslin, acoustic guitar

Erkki Kurenniemi, VCS3 synthesizer

Jukka Ruohomäki, VCS3 programming assistant

Heikki Laurila, guitar, banjo

Kalevi Nyqvist, accordion

Pedro Hietanen, keyboards (2018)

Mikko Rintanen, keyboards, vocals (2018)

Kepa Kettunen, drums (2018)

Wigwam Discography Full

1969 Hard 'n' Horny

1970 Tombstone Valentine

1971 Fairyport

1974 Being

1975 Nuclear Nightclub

1976 The Lucky Golden Stripes and Starpose

1977 Dark Album

1993 Light Ages

2002 Titans Wheel

2005 Some Several Moons

Compilations and live albums

1972 Wigwam

1975 Live Music from the Twilight Zone

1979 Rumours on the Rebound

1990 Classics — The Rarest

1996 Highlights