1. Just The Two Of Us (full-length Borat version) 02:56
2. Babo Never Worked A Day 03:49
3. The Hungarian Wild Bunch (dedicated to Jaap Scholten) 02:24
4. Pannonicated Polka (dedicated to Pannonica Festival) 02:13
5. Escape From Baltimore 03:26
6. Song For Noga 02:46
7. Hobo Kolo (dedicated to Charles M Higson) 01:52 video
8. The Trumpeter's Lament 03:29
9. First Aid Klezmer (dedicated to Viorica Agarici) 02:52
10. Porsche Polka (dedicated to Carsten Ernst) 01:47
11. Gypsy Mambo No. 555 03:34
12. Red Moon 03:43
13. Busbus 03:06
14. Demon Dance (dedicated to Ivan Nikolaev) 02:23
15. Cruzzzando el Campooo 02:23
16. Mosquito Swamp (Bandcamp bonus track) 02:49

about
25 YEARS AGO:

A seemingly endless and bumpy road meanders past rolling hills that do not want to be called mountains - somewhere in northeastern Romania near the Moldavian border. Past houses that Chagall has thrown into the landscape at random, standing crooked and audaciously colorful in the mud, their windows gazing wide-eyed at passersby. At some point, the traveler makes a last hard left turn and, after traversing another gravel road, finally reaches the birthplace of one of the most incredible recent phenomena in brass music: Zece Prăjini, the place where it all began for Fanfare Ciocărlia. Here, in 1997, 12 musicians set out to conquer the world with deep pressure blasts from tubas and tenor horns intermingled with wild cacophonies of trumpets and saxophones. To unleash the joyful power of Eastern European brass music into the world - that was the idea!
The seriousness of their mission was preserved back in 1998 on their first album release with a quote from senior trumpeter Radulescu: "... just wait and see - at some point we‘re going to play on Mars". Since this momentous statement, the band has traveled millions of kilometers on countless tours in their attempt to reach the red planet.

NOW IN 2021:

Nothing needs to be rewritten about their music either. Fanfare Ciocărlia's unparalleled talent for alloying their Balkan brass with dashes of jazz, pop and rock, all performed with mad precision at breakneck tempos, has given them cult status and made them a permanent fixture in the music scene ranging from punk to classical. Two and a half decades, thousands of shows and 9 studio albums later, Fanfare Ciocărlia were at the pinnacle of their career when a pandemic shocked the world. This unprecedented event has meant the same for them as it has for millions of other artists around the world: an abrupt stop to all work. And while the world seemed to be at a standstill, the band's many fans became active and helped them to complete their long-planned 25th anniversary album with financial support and words of encouragement. Now the results can be heard: "It Wasn't Hard To Love You" is a musical ode to Fanfare Ciocărlia's legions of fans. It is the latest chapter in the story of a big band from a small village, a band that wants to put smiles on people's faces, and a band that yearns for a long future of thrilling concerts extending deep into the night.

We say Thank You to more than 500 fans who have supported Fanfare Ciocarlia to make this album real! Special thanks goes to Tanja Cummings (D), Carsten Ernst (D), David Herzmann (CH), Andre Seidenberg (D), Alexei Turcan (RO), Charles M. Higson (UK), Tomas Drgon (USA), Tuva Kahrs (UK), Teppei Katori (UK), Stephen Simblet (UK), Manon Jütte (NL), Ivan Nikolaev (RUS)
credits
released September 10, 2021

We say Thank You to more than 500 fans who have supported Fanfare Ciocarlia to make this album real! Special thanks goes to Tanja Cummings (D), Carsten Ernst (D), David Herzmann (CH), Andre Seidenberg (D), Alexei Turcan (RO), Charles M. Higson (UK), Tomas Drgon (USA), Tuva Kahrs (UK), Teppei Katori (UK), Stephen Simblet (UK), Manon Jütte (NL), Ivan Nikolaev (RUS)

Special studio guests:
Džambo Agušev - trumpet (track 10 & 12)
Vladuţ Ivancea – clarinet (track 2,7 & 9)
Michael Metzler, Darabuka (track 2 & 11)
Iulian Canaf, vocals (track 8)

Production: Henry Ernst
Artistic Direction: Henry Ernst
Recording: Frithjof Rödel & Henry Ernst at Atomino Studio, Erfurt - Germany
Additional recording: Gabriel Belscescu at Studioul de Bază, Iaşi – Romania & Robert Cummings at Hotmilk Studio, Berlin – Germany & Henry Ernst at GoldleistenFabrik, Berlin - Germany
Mixing & Mastering: Robert Cummings & Henry Ernst at Hotmilk Studio, Berlin – Germany
Liner notes Henry Ernst
English translation: Robert Cummings
Photos Paul Benedikt Stehle & Henry Ernst
Album artwork by Lilli Kirchmann
Executive production: Henry Ernst

Track 1 comp. by Bill Withers, William Salter & Ralph MacDonald & arr. by Adrian Sical, track 2 & 3 comp. by Koby Israelite & arr. by Henry Ernst, track 4 comp. by Bernard Ładysz & arr. by Adrian Sical / lyrics written by Adrian Sical, track 5 comp. by Philipp von Rothkirch, Benedikt Stehle & Henry Ernst, track 6 comp. by Koby Israelite & arr. by Henry Ernst, track 7 comp. by Tomáš Drgoň & Henry Ernst, track 8 comp. by Koby Israelite & arr. by Henry Ernst / lyrics by Henry Ernst, 9 & 10 comp. by Koby Israelite & arr. by Henry Ernst, track 11 comp. by Adrian Sical & Alexey Turcan, track 12 comp. by Adrian Raso & Henry Ernst, track 13 comp. by Olaf Taranczewski, Benedikt Stehle & Henry Ernst, track 14 comp. by Koby Israelite & arr. by Henry Ernst, track 15 comp. by Adrian Sical & Alexey Turcan.

All tracks published by Asphalt Tango Records GmbH, except track 1 published by Universal Music and track 13 published by Edition Eiserstein der Musikverlag Progressive GmbH & co-published by Asphalt Tango Records GmbH.