Vladimir Vysotsky (Владимир Высоцкий, 1938 – 1980) is widely considered to be the premier Russian bard, as he combined the typical, almost perfunctory guitar work with a unique voice and diverse songwriting. He not only had political music, but also love songs, fables, “criminal” music (blatnaya pesnya, блатная песня), songs without choruses or traditional structures, and much more. You can learn more about Vysotsky and the Russian bard tradition here, which features another translation of his earliest known song, 1961’s Татуировка (“Tattoo”).

His composition “Capricious Horses” (Кони привередливые) is among his most famous, with song collections, shows, and documentaries titled after it. Here is my English translation of it, which you can watch Vysotsky perform (shortly before his death) with English subtitles here. […]