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Leonid and Friends

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Leonid and Friends
Also known asChicagovich
OriginRussia
GenresPop rock, jazz rock
Years active2014–present
LabelsIEC Leonid Vorobyev
Websiteleonidandf.com

Leonid and Friends is a Chicago tribute band based in Moscow. They began as a YouTube band, and now occasionally tour as well. Leonid Vorobyev (b. 1957 in Moscow, Russia), is the founder and leader of the band. Vorobyev is a multi-instrumentalist, a recording studio sound engineer and choir conductor by training, at the East Siberian Institute of Culture.[1] Vorobyev made his first Chicago video recording of the song "Brand New Love Affair" in 2014.

With Ukrainian vocalist Serge Tiagniryadno, Leonid and Friends' YouTube videos have gone viral, with views in the millions.[2] Leonid & Friends have recorded three Chicago tribute albums, titled Chicagovich.

After touring in Russia, the band first toured the United States in 2019.[3] Starting in 2018, songs by Earth, Wind, & Fire, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Tower of Power, The Ides of March, Lighthouse and Steely Dan were added to the playlist. In 2022, their cover of Rufus and Chaka Khan's "Ain't Nobody" with Ksenia Buzina was added to the setlist.

Leonid Vorobyev's son, Roman Vorobyev (b. 1991), is the band’s manager. The band's instrumental setup features bass and lead guitars, drums, keyboards, saxophone, trumpet and trombone, with occasional flugelhorn, French horn, flute, metal clarinet, cello and violin and miscellaneous percussion.[4][5][6][7]

Discography

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Albums

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Four self-released albums (vich is Russian for son of):

Singles

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  • "The Speck of Dust" - a Leonid and Friends original single with lead vocals by Buzina Kseniya Yurievna, released in 2021 (written by Alexey Ashtaev, lyrics by Leonid Vorobyev and Roman Vorobyev)[12]

Tours

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Leonid and Friends currently tours with about 11 musicians, from Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, and Belarus. Prior to 2019, the band performed exclusively in Russia. In 2019, the band embarked on their first tour of the United States, the Fancy Colours Tour, and later followed with two more sold-out tours in 2019. The 2020 tour was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Leonid and Friends toured the United States again in 2021, with the Feeling Stronger Every Day Tour, and once more in 2022. In late 2023, the group embarked on yet another tour of the United States.

In 2024, the band performed their first cruise gig, On The Blue Cruise: The World’s Greatest Classic Rock Music Cruise from Miami to Puerto Plata and Nassau, as part of a bill with other bands. The cruise took place on the Norwegian Pearl from April 5-10.[15][16] They also announced an extensive 2024 US tour following the cruise.

Members

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Current members

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[17]

  • Leonid Vorobyev – transcribes, bass guitar, keyboards, piano, synth, backing and lead vocals (2014–present)[18]
  • Igor Javad-Zade – drums, percussion (2014–present)[19]
  • Vasily Akimov – lead and backing vocals, percussion, occasional rhythm guitar (2014–present)[20]
  • Ksenia Buzina – backing and lead vocals, percussion (2016–present)[21]
  • Andrey Zyl – trumpet, flugelhorn (2017–present)[22]
  • Oleg Kudryavtsev – tenor and alto saxophones, flute, percussion, backing vocals (2017–present)[23]
  • Maxim Likhachev – trombone, percussion (2017–present)[24]
  • Sergey Kurmaev – keyboards, backing vocals (2020–present)
  • Konstantin Kovachev – lead guitar (2021–present)[25]
  • Danil Buranov – lead and backing vocals, percussion (2021–present)
  • Mikhail Puntov (Michael Puntov) – lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, percussion (2022–present, touring substitute 2021)

Past members

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  • Serge Tiagnyriadno – lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, percussion (2015–2022)[26] Serge returned to Ukraine to fight in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine[27]
  • Dmitry Maximov – bass guitar (2014–2015)
  • Sergey Kashirin – lead guitar, lead and backing vocals (2014–2021)[28]
  • Alexey Batychenko (1972-2021) – trumpet, flugelhorn (2014–2017)[29]
  • Alexandr Michurin – trombone, percussion (2014–2017, guest on "You Are on My Mind" and "Beginnings")[30]
  • Konstantin Gorshkov – tenor saxophone (2014–2017)[31]
  • Vladimir Popov – baritone and alto saxophones, flute, percussion, backing vocals (2015–2020)
  • Vlad Senchillo – keyboards, backing vocals (2016–2020)[32]

Other contributors

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  • Vladimir Osinsky – piano on "Colour My World"
  • Ilya Prokudin – trumpet, flugelhorn on "You Are on My Mind" and "Spinning Wheel"
  • Daniil Dubrovsky – alto, soprano and tenor saxophones on "Beginnings", "Street Player", "Hanky Panky/Life Saver", "Mongonucleosis" and "After the Love Has Gone"
  • Ilya Vymenits – congas on "Hot Streets" and "Street Player"
  • Jorgito Nunez – congas on "Hanky Panky/Life Saver"
  • Rei Frometa – congas on "Call on Me", "Happy Man", "(I've Been) Searchin' So Long", "Mongonucleosis", "The Speck of Dust" and "So Very Hard to Go"
  • Olga Andreeva – trumpet on "Got to Get You into My Life"
  • Roman Vorobyev – backing vocals and handclaps on "East River" and "Mongonucleosis" (also manager)
  • Igor Baydikov – backing vocals and handclaps on "East River" and "Mongonucleosis"
  • Yan Senchillo – backing vocals and handclaps on "East River" and "Mongonucleosis"
  • Artur Gilfanov – trombone, percussion on "Mongonucleosis"
  • Evgeny Kondratyev – trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion on "Mongonucleosis" and "After the Love Has Gone"
  • Roman Koshkarov – keyboards on "If You Leave Me Now"
  • Jacob Zakh – keyboards on "Just You 'n' Me", "You're the Inspiration" and "After the Love Has Gone"
  • Mikhail Spasibo – keyboards on "Just You 'n' Me"
  • Suren Kocharyan – baritone saxophone on "My Old School"
  • Kirill Stekhov – alto saxophone on "My Old School"
  • Dmitry Andrianov – guitar on "Ain't It Blue?"
  • Valery Martynov – trumpet on "So Very Hard to Go" (also touring substitute 2022–present)
  • Dmitry Gorevoy – baritone saxophone on "So Very Hard to Go"

Most members are from Moscow, though Tiagnyriadno, Kashirin, Zyl, Kurmaev and Kovachev hail from Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan respectively.

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References

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  1. ^ "Leonid & Friends - Chicagovich". Phil Traynor - Official Site.
  2. ^ LLC, The Fourth Way World. "BACK IN THE USSA: Leonid and Friends Arrive in America". www.prnewswire.com (Press release).
  3. ^ "OFFICIAL TOUR SCHEDULE". Leonid & Friends Tour.
  4. ^ "Leonid & Friends". Discogs.
  5. ^ Cashmere, Paul (November 13, 2018). "Leonid Vorobyev takes the music of Chicago and Earth Wind & Fire to Russian audiences". Noise11.com.
  6. ^ "Russia's top Chicago tribute band, Leonid & Friends, back in the USA". San Diego Union-Tribune. August 7, 2019.
  7. ^ "How a group of guys from Moscow became an internationally renowned Chicago tribute band". Los Angeles Daily News. January 11, 2019.
  8. ^ "Leonid & Friends – Chicagovich - To 50th Anniversary Of The Band Chicago (2017, CD)" – via www.discogs.com.
  9. ^ "Leonid & Friends – Chicagovich II (2018, CD)" – via www.discogs.com.
  10. ^ "Leonid & Friends – Chicagovich III (2021, CD)" – via www.discogs.com.
  11. ^ "Leonid & Friends - Oldies But Goldies Part I".
  12. ^ Holton, John (May 3, 2021). "Song of the Day: Leonid & Friends, "The Speck Of Dust"".
  13. ^ Superstar by Ksenia Buzina and Leonid & Friends
  14. ^ Ain't Nobody, lead vocals by Buzina Kseniya Yurievna]
  15. ^ Leonid and Friends Tour, leonidandf.com
  16. ^ n The Blue Cruise, onthebluecruise.com
  17. ^ "Visit the new Leonid & Friends SHOP!". Leonid & Friends.
  18. ^ "- IMDb". IMDb.
  19. ^ "Igor Javad-Zade". IMDb.
  20. ^ "Vasily Akimov". IMDb.
  21. ^ "Biography". kseniabuzina.com.
  22. ^ "Andrey Zyl – Fine Arts Gallery". fine-arts-gallery.com.
  23. ^ "Oleg Kudryavtsev". IMDb.
  24. ^ "Maxim Likhachev – Fine Arts Gallery". fine-arts-gallery.com.
  25. ^ "Konstantin Kovachev – iMediaTV.net".
  26. ^ "Serge Tiagnyriadno – Singer, musician, songwriter".
  27. ^ "Serge Tiagniryadno – Ukrainian Singer Of Leonid & Friends – Defends against Putin | 2911 Enterprises, Inc".
  28. ^ "Sergey Kashirin Russian lead guitar of Leonid and Friends on 25 or 6 to 4". Telecaster Guitar Forum.
  29. ^ Jazz, All About. "Aleksey Batychenko music @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz Musicians.
  30. ^ "Alexandr Michurin". IMDb.
  31. ^ "Konstantin Gorshkov". IMDb.
  32. ^ "Vlad Senchillo". IMDb.
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