Omega (band)
This article refers to a musical group called Omega. For other uses see the Omega disambiguation page.
Omega is one of the most successful Hungarian rock bands. Formed in the early 1960s, they initially performed covers of British and American rock songs, with a frequently changing lineup of members. In 1967, Gábor Presser joined the group on keyboards, and began writing original music for the band, releasing three LPs before leaving the band with drummer József Laux to form Locomotiv GT. These first albums were heavily influenced by the music of the Beatles, but they also looked forward to the band's future more progressive, space-rock style. After Presser and Laux's departure, the band found a new drummer and moved their winds player to keyboard, creating the current lineup, which has remained the same for over 30 years: János Kóbor ("Mecky"), lead vocalsGyörgy Molnár ("Elefánt"), guitarsLászló Benkő ("Laci"), keyboards, vocalsTamás Mihály ("Misi"), bass, vocalsFerenc Debreceni ("Ciki"), drums This lineup of Omega released ten more albums from 1972 to 1987. Many of these were released both in Hungarian and in English, in the hopes of generating wider interest in their music; however, the contents of the English albums often differed from their Hungarian counterparts, sometimes assembling tracks from several different albums, and nearly always changing the song order. Following a few years of inactivity, the band reunited in 1994, with former member Gábor Presser joining them at concerts and contributing several tracks to 1995's Trans and Dance. Omega has achieved modest international success through releases in multiple languages, and tours in England and Germany in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Their 1969 song "Gyöngyhajú lány" became an international hit, and was later covered by The Scorpions on a 1995 live release, with new lyrics and the title "White Dove" (the Hungarian title roughly translates to "Girl with Pearls in Her Hair"). Omega’s latest Hungarian studio release is 1998’s Egy életre szól, and their latest English release is 1996’s Transcendent. As of 2005, they continue to regularly tour in Hungary.
DiscographyHungarian Studio AlbumsTrombitás Frédi és a rettenetes emberek (1968)10 000 lépés (1969)Éjszakai országút (1970)200 évvel az utolsó háború után (recorded 1972, but not released until 1998 due to government censorship; Élő Omega, a live compilation, was released instead)Omega 5 (1973)Omega 6: Nem tudom a neved (1975)Omega 7: Időrabló (1977)Omega 8: Csillagok útján (1978)Gammapolisz (1979)Omega X: Az arc (1981)Omega XI (1982)Omega 12: A Föld árnyékos oldalán (1986)Omega XIII: Babylon (1987)Trans and Dance (1995)Omega XV: Egy életre szól (1998)
English Studio AlbumsOmega (1973)200 Years After the Last War (1974)Omega III (1974)The Hall of Floaters in the Sky (1975)Time Robber (1976)Gammapolis (1978)Skyrover (1978)Working (1981)Transcendent (1996)
Live ReleasesÉlő Omega (1972, released instead of their 4th studio album)Élő Omega Kisstadion 79 (1979)Live At The Kisstadion 79 (1979, including some tracks dubbed with English vocals)Kisstadion 80 (1981)Jubileumi Koncert (1983)Népstadion 1994 Omegakoncert No. 1: Vizesblokk (1994)Népstadion 1994 Omegakoncert No. 2: Szárazblokk (1994)Az Omega összes koncertfelvétele 1. (1995, a 3-CD set of live recordings from the 60s and 70s, including the Kisstadion 79 concert)Az Omega összes koncertfelvétele 2. (1995, a 3-CD set of live recordings from the 80s and 90s)Népstadion 1999 (1999, released as a double CD and as a DVD)Napot hoztam, csillagot (2004 limited edition CD; a DVD of this title was also released, with a different tracklist)
External LinksOfficial Omega Homepage (in Hungarian)Gammapolis.de, an extensive multi-lingual Omega fan site
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