JOANNA STINGRAY

Joanna Stingray - Proving that Music Has No Borders
 
Джоанна Стингрей – мы доказали, что музыка не имеет границ

​In 1984, while touring Russia, Joanna Stingray met and befriended Boris Grebenschikov, a revered musical poet (who many Soviets called the ‘Russian Dylan’) and soon became the first American producer of Underground Russian Rock n’ Roll. Joanna would become the first producer to publish Russian music in the United States when she released a double album entitled “Red Wave – 4 Underground Bands From The USSR” – a compilation of music smuggled out of the USSR by Joanna in 1986.

В 1984 году, во время путешествия в Россию, Джоанна познакомилась и подружилась с Борисом Гребенщиковым, известным музыкантом и автором песен, которого называют русским Диланом, и вскоре стала первым американским продюсером подпольного русского рок' н' ролла. Джоанна выпустила первые пластинки русского рока в США: двойной альбом «Красная волна – 4 подпольные группы из СССР», музыкальный сборник, записи для которого она контрабандой вывезла из СССР в 1986 году.

A frequent traveller in and out of Russia, Joanna was interrogated by both the KGB and FBI (both thought she was a spy) and in 1987, she became an enemy of the Russian State - her visa blocked from entering the Soviet Union to marry Leningrad guitarist Yuri Kasparyan. After months of intervention by the U.S. State Department, she returned to Russia, married Yuri and in the early 90’s became a television host, a recording artist and well known rock personality throughout Russia. 

​Во время поездок в СССР Джоанну допрашивали и в КГБ, и в ФБР (и те, и другие подозревали ее в шпионаже), а в 1987 году, когда она собиралась приехать в СССР, чтобы выйти замуж за ленинградского гитариста Юрия Каспаряна, она была объявлена врагом советского государства и ее визу заблокировали. После вмешательства госдепартамента США она вернулась в Россию, вышла замуж за Юрия и в начале 90-х была в России телеведущей, музыкантом, записи которого издавались и известной персоной в рок-музыке.

FREE TO ROCK” – a documentary exposé, featuring Joanna and other Russian musicians, reveals to the world the heretofore unknown dismantling socio-political effect of “soft power,” as American Rock n’ Roll and the release of Red Wave contributed to the ending of the Cold War. 

Документальный фильм «Свободны для рока», снятый при участии Джоанны и российских музыкантов,  рассказал всему миру о неизвестных страницах «мягкого воздействия» американского рока и русской «Красной волны», способствовавшего окончанию «холодной войны».

Out of genuine passion for Leningrad Rock and her love of the Russian people, Stingray globally proliferated Russian Rock n’ Roll and made her own unique contribution to the fall of the USSR and close of the Cold War.

Со всей страстью любви к русскому року и русским людям Джоанна приложила огромные усилия для распространения русского рок'н'ролла и внесла свой вклад в демонтаж советской системы и завершение «холодной войны».

Long live Rock n’ Roll and Joanna Stingray
Долгой жизни рок'н'роллу и Джоанне Стингрей!

Joanna Stingray would like to dedicate this archival website to all of her Russian fans as well as to honor all of the Russian musicians/artists that were part of her wonderful experience.
Этот архив Джоанна Стингрей посвящает всем своим российским поклонникам и многочисленным друзьям, музыкантам и художникам, общение с которыми было для нее уникальным опытом.

In memory of her dearest friends: Victor Tsoi, Sergey Kuryokhin, Timur Novikov and Gustav Gurianov
Памяти дорогих друзей: Виктора Цоя, Сергея Курехина, Тимура Новикова и Густава Гурьянова

The American Who Smuggled Russian Rock Music Out Of The USSR

Watch as NBC Left Field takes a deep dive into Joanna’s video diaries from Russia, as she pulled back the Iron Curtain with a little help from an album called Red Wave.

Read More About Joanna in These Articles

RED WAVE: HOW SOVIET ROCK MADE IT TO THE U.S.
​ALEXANDER KUSHNIR,  SPECIAL TO RBTH JULY 27, 2013
The 25-year-old American singer Joanna Stingray played a major role in the fate of Sergei Kuryokhin and Leningrad rock. The stepdaughter of a successful gallery owner from Los Angeles, she came to Petersburg as a tourist and unexpectedly discovered a rich rock...
READ MORE HERE
​JOANNA STINGRAY, A CALIFORNIA GIRL IN THE U.S.S.R
The history of Russian rock music could have been very different without Joanna Stingray. As a 24-year-old California clubber, she spent a week in the Soviet Union in 1984 and fell in love with the Leningrad underground rock scene. 

​READ MORE HERE

COMRADES
Друзья

Screen Shot 2019-03-22 at 3.10.01 PM

Kino/Кино

Victor Tsoi - guitar and vocals, (Deceased)
Yuri Kasparyan – guitar
Gustav Gurianov – Drums (Deceased)
Igor Tikomirov – bass

Industrial Percussion Section:
​Timur Novikov (Deceased)
Afrika Bugaev
Andrei Krisanov
Andrei Medvedyev

Aquarium/Аквариум

Boris Grebenschikov (aka BG) vocals, guitar, wife Lyuda with son, Gleb,  then Irina
Sergey Kuryokhin - keyboards
Seva Gakel – cello
Sasha Titov – bass (wife Irina, who then became Boris’ wife)
Andrei “Dyusha” Romanov – flute & keyboards (Deceased)
Michael “Fan” Feinstein - percussion & Bass (Deceased)
Peter Troschenkov – drums
Alexander Lyapin - guitar

Screen Shot 2019-03-22 at 3.29.01 PM
Screen Shot 2019-03-22 at 3.34.26 PM

Alisa/Алиса

Kostya Kinchev – vocals
Slava Zaderi – bass
Peter Samoilov – guitar
Michael Nefedov – Drums
Paul Kondratenko - keyboards

Strange Games/Странные игры (later became Games/первоначальное название «Игры»)

Vitia Sologub – vocals and bass
Grysha Sologub –  vocals &guitar (Deceased)
Alexander Kondrashkin – drums
Nikolai Gusev - keyboards
Alexey Rahov - saxophone
Alexander Davydov – guitar
Nikolai Kulikovsky – keyboards
Nikolai Olshavski - Trombone

Screen Shot 2019-03-22 at 3.39.16 PM
Screen Shot 2019-03-22 at 3.41.02 PM

Joanna Stingray/Джоанна Стингрей (90's in Moscow/90-е, Москва)

Joanna Stingray – vocals
​Sasha Vasilyev – drums (Joanna’s 2nd husband)
Robert – bass
Igor Kozhin - guitar

Others

Остальные


Sergey Kuryokhin – (aka Capitan) (Deceased) classical pianist ,leader and conductor of Pop Mechanics, keyboardist for Aquarium, wife Nastia
Kolya Mikhailov- head of the Leningrad Rock Club
Yuri Chevchuk – leader of DDT
Slava Butuzov – leader of Nautilus Pompilius
Garik Sukachov – leader of Brigada S
Sergey Galanin – guitarist of Brigada S and then leader of his own band
Volodia Shakrin – leader of band, Chaif
Peter Mamonov – vocals Zvuki MU
Mike Naumenko - Leader of Zoo Park
Sasha Lipnitshy – bass player Zvuki Mu
Oleh Garkusha – leader of Auction
Oleg Kotelnikov – Leningrad artist
Andrie Khlobustin – Leningrad artist
Alex Kahn – Leningrad music critic
Alexander Aksyonov (Rikoshet) - Object Nashmeshek
Evgeny Fedorov (Aya-Yai) - Object NashmeshekBig 

Misha Kucherenko (translator, Joanna’s friend in Moscow in the 90’s)
​Artiom Troitsky – music critic
Andrei Makarevich – Time Machine
Sasha Bashlachev – bard singer (Deceased)
Madison Stingray – Joanna Stingray’s daughter with Sasha Vasilyev from Moscow group, “Center”
Judy Fields – Stingray’s sister
Losha Cherry – Engineer of many of the underground bands on 2 track machines
Fedor Bondarchuk (son of  famous Russian director Sergey Bondarchuk  “War and Peace”) director of Stingray’s videos “Come Together”, “Dancing in the Sky”, “Danger”
Misha Mukaseyev  - cameraman on many of Stingray’s videos
Misha Khlebarodov – director of Stingray’s video “Turn Away”
Lyuda Chasteauneuf – Head of Joanna Stingray fan club in the 90’s
Timur Gasanov – Stingray’s manager, Moscow 90’s


PHOTO CREDITS

All the photos on this site have been taken by the following photographers

Joanna Stingray
Judy Fields
Dimitri Konrad
Natasha Vasilyeva
Valentin Baranovsky
Sergey Borisoff
Valery Potapov
Oleg Belikov
​Alexander Petrov
Lyuda Novosadova

Alexandra Shiskina
Leonida Sharapova
Anatoly Syagin​
O Zotova
Nemtinov
Heidi Hollinger
V. Nemtilova
Anatoly Azanov (deceased)
Georgy Molitvan
​and a few unknowns​​