1. Talisman, from Bris… Read Full Bio ↴There are at least two bands called Talisman:
1. Talisman, from Bristol, England, UK, formed in 1977 and were one of the UK's top Roots Reggae bands in the late 1970s and early 1980s.The band's prowess earned them support slots with acts as diverse as Burning Spear, The Clash and The Rolling Stones.
They reformed with the original line up after 30 years apart to support the re-release of their classic roots single āDole Ageā on a brand new album 'Dole Age - The 1981 Reggae Collection'. In September 2013, thirty years after they recorded their debut long player, 1984ā²s āTakin The Strainā, Bristolās roots reggae pioneers Talisman released their third studio album, āI-Surrectionā
2. TALISMAN are a hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.
TALISMAN started off more or less as the brainchild of the amazing bass player Marcel Jacob. He played with bands like Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power. On the first self titled album, TALISMAN were not really a band: Marcel was playing with John Norum when he started working on the tracks he thought would end up on the second Norum's solo album after he left Europe. The singer on those demos was Gƶran Edman, also in John Norum Group at that time. But John rejected the songs and, in the meantime, Gƶran was offered to join Yngwie Malmsteen.
Marcel was later contacted by a guy who had previously worked for the label which had originally showed some interest in the demos. This guy was pretty much sure that a couple of tracks could easily become hits. This was very good but Marcel didnāt basically have anyone lined up. So he started looking around for musicians, while the auditions done to some Swedish vocalist contenders were unsuccessful. Cary Sharaf (ex Wasa Express guitar player) suggested the name of Jeff Scott Soto: he was called, he got the material and said yes! Both Jeff and Marcel had played on Malmsteen's "Marching Out" in 1985, hitting the road to support the album and making quite a stir in Japan.
In February of 1989 the recordings for the first album took place in Stockholm with Christopher StƄhl (Power) and Mats Lindfors (Norum, Grand Slam) on guitars, Peter Hermansson (220 Volt, Norum) playing drums on some tracks and Mats Olausson (Yngwie Malmsteen, Glory) on keyboards. Marcel programmed the rest of drums and played all rhythm guitars with the help of the producer Mats Lindfors on "Women, whiskey and songs"
Unfortunately, Electra, the label Marcel was signed to, went bankrupt just when the mixing was finished, therefore the album got locked for a while. Meanwhile, Jeff US based project Eyes got signed. Marcel left for LA to help Eyes demo and record what would be their first release. During this time somebody from the label that had originally signed TALISMAN found a new label to work for and the masters of the first album were bought from the bankruptcy. So āTalismanā was eventually released in February 1990 on the Airplay/Vinyl Mania. The first single "I'll be waiting" was tested on the biggest hit radio show and reached number 2 in the top ten of the singles chart! The album ended up selling more than 33,000 copies in two months in Sweden!
On live gigs the band featured Jason Bieler on guitar (Saigon Kick), Jakob "Jake Samuels" Samuelsson on drums and Thomas Wikstrƶm (Talk of the town, Candlemass) on keyboards and backing vocals. TALISMAN ended up on the top ten list of drawing acts in Sweden in the summer. Unfortunately, the label went bust putting an end to any chances of international adventures for the album.
The time following summer 1990 was rather difficult. Jeff was signed to the label Pasha doing Eyes. Jason Bieler was enjoying some success with Saigon Kick. Marcel got signed to Warner Sweden because of the success of "Talisman" and had to put together a band. A trip to the US and the UK followed, looking for talent but nothing really worked.
Eventually Marcel met again Matti Alfonzetti, an old acquaintance from grade school and from touring in 1986 with Swedish fusion/rock group Wasa Express, and they started writing and recording together in 1992. After some auditions, Matti, Marcel and Jake Samuels chose the young guitar player Fredrik Ć kesson (19 years old at the time). When everything seemed to be perfect, the guy that got Marcel signed to Warner left and the new person in charge was not interested in dealing with any acts he hadnāt signed himself. Since it took most of 1992 to find a new label, Matti Alfonzetti left and joined Skin Trade.
Christer Wedin, who was doing some press and promotion for the label that released āTalismanā, became the Swedish label manager for Dutch/Canadian label Dino Music (later Empire Records). Christer was interested in releasing a second TALISMAN album, if only Jeff was available. As Eyes were history (the album was released on a label apparently dealing with rock music for the first time), JSS agreed. So back to the studio once again!
In the meantime Jake Samuels had left to join Zinny Zan's band and so Marcel programmed all drums. The new album "Genesis" was recorded in three weeksā time in December 1992 at Stocksund Recording Studios, in the elegant quarter of Stockholm, where the video for "Mysterious" was shot as well. Jeff joined the guys with his then girlfriend Julie Greaux (Billy Idol, Axel Rudi Pell) who ended up playing the grand piano on "All I want".
In conjunction with the release of "Genesis" early 1993, Dino Music managed to obtain licensing of the first album from Vinyl Mania and re-issued "Talisman" adding six live tracks taken from some gigs played in Sweden in 1990. When āGenesisā was released, the single āMysteriousā got some airplay, and the album immediately sold more than 15,000 copies in Sweden. Furthermore, both āTalismanā and āGenesisā gathered some international interest and were released in Japan on Zero.
The band did a club tour in Sweden in March with Julie Greaux on keyboards and Jake Samuels back again on drums. While the band was planning a tour in Japan, Jake left again to pursue a singing career. The new drummer was found in Jamie Borger (long time favourite drummer for Marcel) from the just broken up band Treat. TALISMAN became āa groupā for the first time and were now ready to tour Japan (where the live album "5 out of 5" was recorded and released postponed) and Europe.
For the next album the group prepared more than for any previous recording. After the end of the European tour early October, the guys were supposed to fly to LA to record the already available material. But those plans were disregarded and the recording got delayed. Fredrik, Jamie and Marcel spent the following two months in a rehearsal studio in Upplands VƤsby, just outside Stockholm, writing, playing bits of music, improvising arrangements, learning the new stuff and collecting tons of material.
In January 1994 Jeff joined the guys and the band recorded and mixed the new album "Humanimal" at Sound Trade Studios in Stockholm. Everything was perfect: the recording sessions, the working environment, everyone having much fun! Except for Jeff being worried about his home situation because of the huge earthquake which hit LA killing 60 and injuring around 8,000 people. Additional musicians on āHumanimalā were Julie Greaux as backing vocalist and the sound engineer Ronny Lahti playing the funky wah guitar on "Seasons".
The guys, being so pleased with the recordings (22 tracks recorded and mixed in 22 days), wanted to make it a double album at first place but then decided against it since pretty much all the material would fit on one cd. So Jeff and Marcel chose the set of the songs to be on the album. Unfortunately, the Japanese label Zero, was allowed to put together their own version of the album suitable for the Japanese audience. The whole matter turned out to be a mess: the German version by Polydor was different from the Swedish one featuring "Hypocrite" as bonus track; the Japanese had to release the Swedish version too because of the amount of imports; in Europe a second version was released with the outtakes from the first one. "Humanimal" was greeted with great enthusiasm thanks to a successful combination of metal, funky and pop influences. It is still the favourite album of several fans and of more than one member in the band. Despite some good album sales, no touring was done for this album.
In 1995 Marcel and Jeff worked together in LA to write the songs for the next album "Life". Drums were recorded by Jamie in a very short time at Park Studios. After doing overdubs, the tapes were sent to Jeff so that he could record the bulk of the vocals at home. The original mixing took place in the same studio where "Genesis" was recorded, once again with the help of Mats Lindfors, but something didnāt sound right to the guys and the album was remixed for the European version. At the same time, several problems with the labels (Polydor, Zero, Empire) occurred, leading the band not to get any touring done for the album.
The guys took a break from TALISMAN for 3 years...
Jeff went on to do things with the Boogie Knights, although he and Marcel had taken some time to record the Human Clay albums. TALISMAN also had the chance to play a couple of gigs and to open up for Yngwie Malmsteen in Stockholm. For those shows the band enlisted Pontus Norgren on guitar (ex Great King Rat) because Fredrik had left in the fall of 1995 to pursue a more metal oriented direction (see the band Southpaw featuring Mats LevƩn on vocals and John LevƩn on bass).
In 1998 the guys were requested from Christer Wedin (Empire Records) to do a new TALISMAN album. Marcel travelled to LA to write songs with Jeff. Jamie and Pontus joined the guys a few days later to rehearse and record drums in a small studio and do overdubs in Jeff's home studio. The new album "Truth" saw the light. The guys had a lot of help with the recording and the mixing from John Ellis (Prism Sound Studios, Boston). The album included a range of covers: āDarling Nikkiā of Prince, āLet me entertain youā of Queen and āFrozenā of Madonna (which apparently became very popular in clubs in Germany). Once again there was no touring done for the album unfortunately.
In May/June 2001 Pontus, Marcel and Jeff were busy working in Sweden on the album of Humanimal (the band!). At the same time, dj Dr. Rock from the Swedish Radio Rock Klassiker persuaded the guys to perform at Sweden Rock Festival.
Two nights before the festival gig, TALISMAN played in Stockholm. Owing to a miscommunication between Jamie, Pontus, Marcel and the guys doing the mobile recording stuff, Marcel's entire gear (bass included!) was left at the venue in Stockholm instead of travelling with everybody elseās gear down to Sƶlvesborg, south of Sweden, where the Sweden Rock Festival takes place. Marcel wanted to leave the festival but, after looking inside the tent which was fully packed with a crowd shouting for TALISMAN, he decided not to turn his back on those people. So Marcel and other people started to run around the festival area to look for a bass to be borrowed in time for the show: Magnus RosĆ©n from Hammerfall finally lent Marcel one of his bass guitars.
The show went great and, since another band playing at SRF had a mobile hard disc recording unit, Christer Wedin managed to get the TALISMAN show recorded as well. But the sound Marcel had at the show was not too exciting and some out of tunes guitars needed some fixing. So he and Pontus went into the studio to record live together the entire show exactly the same way they would have done it on stage. The live album was released in October 2002 in Sweden only through Empire Records, charting at number 18 the first week! In the same year, the entire back catalogue of TALISMAN was re-issued with bonus tracks on Frontline Records in Brazil.
Jeff, Marcel and Pontus later joined forces with drummer Thomas Broman (Great King Rat, Electric Boys, Amaze Me) and finally released the self titled debut album of Humanimal in 2002. In May the band played a couple of shows to support it. Unfortunately, this was not a good moment for the guys owing to some personal, professional and legal problems. Pontus and Marcel had a falling out and this meant that Pontus was out both of TALISMAN and Humanimal.
Humanimal split. Marcel and Jeff had a meeting with Christer Wedin who explained the guys were basically free to go into business without him. Since Jeff had already signed a deal with the Italian label Frontiers for his solo album āLove Paradeā, he talked to them about doing a new TALISMAN album. Frontiers showed them open arms.
Now the guitar issue had to be sorted. Jeff had had Howie Simon playing on his solo album and was now trying to persuade Marcel to involve him. Jamie was at the same time pushing to get Fredrik back in the band. It ended up with Fredrik back in the studio and Howie joining the band for some live gigs. Interesting coincidence, Christer Wedin had been contacted by an Italian recording studio willing to let TALISMAN use the studio for free. This contact was reopened and the guys spent two weeksā time at the Music Planet Recording Studio in Acqui Terme, near Turin, with Jeff being in charge of everything in terms of logistics and dealing with Frontiers. After having finished in the studio, Marcel and Jeff flew to Boston where they worked with engineer and friend John Ellis for the second time. They were supposed to be mixing, but had to do some editing first instead and so John did the final mixes without Marcel and Jeff.
āCats and Dogsā was released in May 2003 and a tour in Europe (including a headlining slot at Gods of AOR Festival in the UK, a performance at Frontiers Showcase in Italy, a new appearance at Sweden Rock Festival and a show at Lokerse Festival in Belgium) took place in the following months.
Always in 2003 through GMR Music Group Sweden, the entire back catalogue of TALISMAN was re-mastered and re-issued, complete with bonus-tracks, demos, live gigs, promotional videos, liner notes.
In March 2005 through Frontiers Records, TALISMAN launched a double DVD package āWorldās best kept secretā which coincided with the 15th year anniversary of the release of the first TALISMAN album. The set comprised two complete shows from the āCats & Dogsā tour in 2003 (Sweden Rock Festival and Club Mondo in Stockholm), archive backstage and live footage, all the bandās promotional videos, an instructional video from Marcel Jacob and much more! A double live album āFive men liveā, including the gigs at Sweden Rock Festival and at Club Mondo, was also released at the same time.
For about 9 months starting from the end of 2005, Jeff, Marcel, Jamie and Fredrik have worked on a brand new TALISMAN album called ā7ā. According to Marcel, this might simply be the best TALISMAN album ever!!! The release is due on 20th October on Frontiers Records with a Japanese release on King Records.
The working title was āBarā which stood for āBitter-Angry-Resentfulā, basically a joke referring to the guysā outlook on certain life events. The guys then opted for the more straightforward title ā7ā (itās actually the bandās 7th studio album!).
The new material is very melodic including some ballads, yet it encompasses what is the bandās trademark: catchy hooks, groovy rhythms, aggressive guitars and the ability to play different music styles. All songs were written by Marcel and Jeff, except āShed a tear goodbyeā which was written by Jamie and Jeff.
ā7ā was recorded at XTC Studios in Ćlvsjƶ and at Mahatma Gandhi Location in Stockholm, with all the vocals done at the Hampton in Northridge, California. Marcel has handled all guitars, except leads, and keyboards. The album will include 11 tracks and was mixed by Pontus Norgren, who is also the guest guitar player on āFinal curtainā, the bonus-track on the Japanese release.
The band was supposed to do a tour in September/October 2006 hitting Germany, Greece, Belgium, Italy and Spain, but everything has been delayed to further notice due to Jeffās commitment in Journey. Another go will be given as soon as possible.
3)Talisman is Loyko reborn after the famous late Gypsy Trio disbanded in the summer of 2000. Loykoās guitarist Vadim Kulitskij immediately founded the new trio Talisman with Oleksandr Klimas on violin and Oleg Nehls on button accordion. All three are master musicians but if the crown of devilish chops must go to one of them, it is to Klimas whom aficionados already call Russiaās new Paganini, so superhuman is his virtuosity.
Perhaps more ungodly yet is the mindbending precision whereby these three sail effortlessly through drastic time changes and the cossack-style prestissimo finales whereby Russian Gypsies speed up tempi to beyond what seems possible. With haunting vocals compliments of Kulitskij in the lead, and diverse effects by way of pizzicato and guitar-style strummed violin, Russian Gypsy Fire takes folk tunes and similarly inspired material and transforms it into conservatory-style concertizing of the very highest caliber.
Like the Nedim Nalbantoglu/Roberto de Brasov trio with Turkish violin and Bulgarian accordion, Talisman manages to sound far denser than seems possible for a trio formation. These musicians conjure up a microcosm of folkoristic symphonica such as Zoltan Kodaly and Bela Bartok put to score. And lest one suspect multi-dubbing trickery, performance applause between tracks reminds us that weāre listening to a live performance. Thatās when you really shake your head in utter disbelief. In short, this is fiery music, fiercely demanding from a technical perspective and equal parts passion and bravado. Itās as though the guitar and accordion equivalents for moviedomās Red Violin had met up in Buchara and found themselves in the hands of gods letting āer rip for one round of mortal excess, shredded strings, hoarse throats and bloodied fingers to be transformed in the hereafter.
Musicians
Oleg NIELS: bayan (Russian button accordion)
Oleksandr KLIMAS: violin
Vadim KULITSKII: guitar, vocals
4) Talisman is a pop/rock and very comercial band from Romania. It was formed by Tavi Colen and Alin Oprea. The band appeared in 1996, and at the end of that year they collected the grand prize at the festival "Om bun". Probably their best know hit is "Atat de singur". Unfortunatelly, in the year 2006 Tavi Colen and Alin Oprea decided to split up, and the band practically ceased to exist (though Oprea announced that Talisman will continue to exist with him and the 5 instrumentalists and maybe 2 new girls for backing vocals...)
A Life
Talisman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
thru the fields of your soul
momma, please take my hand,
help me 2 understand
cuz, i'm afraid 2 face this life alone
people, faces everywhere
everytime i turn i see another stop& stare
of the modern world
televisionaries, hari-kari, quite contrary
u'd think the trials of life were scary
4 a boy growin' 2 a man,
now watch my flag unfurl, good god,
the mirror on the wall shows a frightened man
the lessons i've learned could not explain
the meaning of love now sees thru puzzled eyes
no 1 could define the joy & the pain, i'm born again
i'd die 4 your love if u'd take me in
true life begins, as i embrace another miracle
i live 4 your love, til the day we die with no tears 2 cry,
i'll guide u thru fear & desire, oh
all i know, in the shadows of where i've been
all i know, no more cares if i lose or win now i know,
as i watch my children grow now i know,
i'm fulfilling my mother's soul all i know,
while the world is spinnin' around all i know,
& the hands of time r tickin' down now i know,
i look back 2 my days of youth
now i know, i'm much older now, but i'm not yet thru
i'm still searchin' the keys of my life
the war's far from over inside
i died in your arms as your tears recite
our pictured life, did i fulfill my prediction
was it all i yearned 2 know, so long ago
if i had the chance 2 do it all again,
i wouldn't change a thing
Talisman's song "A Life" portrays a person who is seeking guidance and understanding from their mother in navigating the complexities of life. The first verse discusses the fear and uncertainty that comes with facing life alone, and the second verse delves into the overwhelming and often confusing nature of modern society. The song progresses with the chorus emphasizing the importance of love and relationships, highlighting the singer's desire to live for their loved one and guide them through both fear and desire.
As the song continues, the singer reflects on the lessons they've learned and the growth they've experienced. They acknowledge that while there may have been struggles and hardships along the way, they are still determined to keep searching for the meaning and purpose of life. The final verse speaks to the idea that every experience and choice has contributed to the person they have become, and that they would not change a thing if given the chance to do it all again.
Overall, the song is a reflection on the journey of life, the importance of love and human connection, and the personal growth and search for understanding that comes with it.
Line by Line Meaning
momma, do u feel the pain as i'm travelin'
The singer is asking their mother if she can feel the pain they are going through as they explore the depths of her being.
thru the fields of your soul
The singer is metaphorically traveling through their mother's soul.
momma, please take my hand,
The singer is asking their mother for assistance and guidance.
help me 2 understand
The artist is seeking knowledge and wisdom from their mother.
cuz, i'm afraid 2 face this life alone
The artist is afraid of facing life without the assistance of their mother.
people, faces everywhere
The singer is acknowledging the presence of countless people in the world.
everytime i turn i see another stop& stare
The singer is aware of people staring at them, potentially due to their race or appearance.
2 much, 2 soon, take a picture
The artist is commenting on the fast pace of modern life, observing that it is moving too quickly.
of the modern world
The picture is meant to represent the modern, technologically advanced world.
televisionaries, hari-kari, quite contrary
The artist is criticizing the media and individuals who follow it blindly, suggesting that they are hurting themselves in doing so.
u'd think the trials of life were scary
The singer is commenting on the trials of life and how difficult they can be.
4 a boy growin' 2 a man,
The artist is reflecting on their own experience of growing up.
now watch my flag unfurl, good god,
The singer refers to their own maturation and growth as they become an adult.
the mirror on the wall shows a frightened man
The singer is looking at themselves in a mirror and seeing a scared, vulnerable person.
the lessons i've learned could not explain
The singer is acknowledging that even with all their knowledge, they still do not fully understand love.
the meaning of love now sees thru puzzled eyes
The artist is saying that they now understand love from a different, more confused perspective.
no 1 could define the joy & the pain, i'm born again
The artist acknowledges that no one can fully define the experience of love, but they feel like they are experiencing it anew.
i'd die 4 your love if u'd take me in
The singer is expressing their willingness to sacrifice everything for the love of another.
true life begins, as i embrace another miracle
The singer believes that their true purpose in life is to love and embrace others.
i live 4 your love, til the day we die with no tears 2 cry,
The artist is saying that they will love their partner until the very end, even if that means they will have no tears to cry.
i'll guide u thru fear & desire, oh
The artist is saying that they are committed to being their partner's guide and support through all of life's ups and downs.
all i know, in the shadows of where i've been
The artist is reflecting on their past experiences and how they have shaped who they are.
no more cares if i lose or win now i know,
The singer is acknowledging that they no longer care about success or failure in the way they used to.
as i watch my children grow now i know,
The artist is saying that they have gained insight from watching their children grow and learn.
i'm fulfilling my mother's soul all i know,
The singer is stating that they believe they are fulfilling their mother's hopes and desires for them.
while the world is spinnin' around all i know,
The singer is reflecting on the chaos of the world and how it can make it hard to find direction.
& the hands of time r tickin' down now i know,
The singer is acknowledging the passage of time and how it influences their outlook on life.
i look back 2 my days of youth
The artist is reflecting on their childhood and how it has impacted them.
now i know, i'm much older now, but i'm not yet thru
The artist is acknowledging that they are getting older but that they still have much to accomplish in life.
i'm still searchin' the keys of my life
The singer admits that they are still trying to figure out what their life is all about.
the war's far from over inside
The singer acknowledges that they are still struggling with inner conflicts and battles.
i died in your arms as your tears recite
The artist is metaphorically dying in the arms of their loved one, renewing their commitment to that person.
our pictured life, did i fulfill my prediction
The artist is reflecting on whether they have lived up to their own expectations and goals.
was it all i yearned 2 know, so long ago
The artist is reflecting on their past desires and whether or not they have been fulfilled.
if i had the chance 2 do it all again,
The singer is considering whether or not they would change their choices and actions if they could go back in time.
i wouldn't change a thing
The artist ultimately decides that they do not regret any of the choices they have made.
Writer(s): Marcel Jacob, Jeff Scott Soto Copyright: Warner/Chappell Music Scandinavia AB
Contributed by Ellie G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.