1963–1970: beginnings, nationwide popularity The band was formed in Belgrade at the end of 1963. The first lineup consisted of Goran Vukićević (acoustic guitar, keyboards and harmonica), Predrag "Krcko" Jovanović (drums) and brothers Ivan (guitar) and Slavko Božović (saxophone). Initially, the band performed without a bass guitarist, but were soon joined by bassist and vocalist
Vladimir Janković, also known as "Vlada Džet", who got his nickname ("Džet" being a
transliteration for
Jet) after
The Shadows bass guitarist
Jet Harris. Following the EP release, the band performed mostly in the club Euridika in Belgrade. During the same year, the band also appeared in the
Black Wave film
When I Am Dead and Gone directed by
Živojin Pavlović, portraying a band which accompanies young singers on an audition, and appeared in the TV show
Koncert za ludi mladi svet (
Concert for Crazy Young People) performing their songs "Ringišpil" ("Carousel") and "Hey Girl", and a cover of the song "
Wild Thing". In the video recorded for their version of "Wild Thing", the band performed while riding a moving
locomotive. In 1968, Valčić decided to leave the band in order to dedicate himself to his studies of medicine, and was replaced by the former Duka & Čavke (
Duka & the Jackdaws) frontman Nenad "Duka" Dukić. Dukić was a band member for only three months, but performed with the band on a joint concert with
Džentlmeni in
Belgrade Youth Center, and provided vocals for three cover songs released in 1968 on the band's second EP: "Dream" (a cover of
Cupid's Inspiration song), "Moni, Moni" (a cover of
Tommy James and the Shondells song "
Mony Mony") and "I Wanna Be Free" (a cover of
The V.I.P.'s song). During 1973, the band made a hiatus in their work due to Janković's and Baletić's mandatory stints in the
Yugoslav People's Army. After the two returned from the army, the band continued their activity without Petković. For a certain time keyboardist Dragan Batalo performed with the band, but soon moved to
Zlatni Prsti, and was replaced by keyboardist Dragan Raičević, a former Saphiri (
The Sapphires) and Juniori member. In October 1976, Ljubisavljević left the band due to his army stint, and was replaced by Velibor "Boka" Bogdanović, who previously played in the bands Plavi Dečaci (
Blue Boys), Duka & Čavke,
Džentlmeni,
YU Grupa,
Opus and
Dah. Having released their only full-length studio album,
boogie rock-oriented
Motorok (
Motorock), in 1976, and the single "Ti si uvek htela sve" / "Moj brat i ja" ("You Always Wanted It All" / "My Brother and I"), Dragan Baletić left the band and was replaced by a former Op Cup member Branislav "Cile" Živančević. In 1977, the band recorded a 7-inch single featuring their English-language songs "Hush Hush Maria" and "Night in Casablanca" under the name Denis. Three years later, on 1 January 1980, Crni Biseri officially disbanded. After the group split up, for a short period of time Branislav Živančević and his backing band performed under the name Crni Biseri. However, other members of the group publicly disapproved the usage of the band's name, and Živanćevič's incarnation of the group ended their activity. During their career, Crni Biseri held about 3.000 concerts, performing, besides Yugoslavia, in
Malta,
Tunisia and
Morocco. They also wrote songs for several plays of the
Belgrade Drama Theatre.
Post breakup After he left Crni Biseri in 1968, Nenad Dukić withdrew from music, later starting a career of a
film critic. After Crni Biseri disbanded, Janković formed the band
Tunel with former
S Vremena Na Vreme member Ljuba Ninković and former SOS member Steva Stevanović. He started working as an editor on
Radio 202, and later in the record company ITMM. With his former Crni Biseri bandmate Jovan Ljubisavljević "Kića" (drums) and former
Siluete membet Boban Birtašević (guitar) he formed his Vlada Džet Band.
1997 reunion and beyond In 1997, the band reunited with both Dragan Baletić and Branislav Živančević on vocals to hold a concert in the club Crna Maca in
Zemun. The concert was recorded and broadcast by
Radio Television of Serbia. During the following year, the compilation album
Crni Biseri was released, featuring several previously unreleased songs – "Moja draga" ("My Darling"), "Hey Girl", instrumental track "Mesto pod suncem" ("A Spot under the Sun", a cover of the theme from the 1959 film
A Summer Place) and "Kamena vizija" ("Stone Vision", a cover of "Tips of My Fingers" by
P. J. Proby), the latter two being their first ever studio recordings, made in 1965. In 2008, Vladimir Janković published the
autobiographical book
Godine na 6 (
The Years Beginning With 6), about the 1960s rock scene in Belgrade and his work with Crni Biseri. The book was released with a
CD featuring songs from Crni Biseri's early releases and several previously unreleased tracks. Dragan Baletić died on 14 May 2005. Jovan Ljubisavljević died on 15 September 2014. Predrag Jovanović died on 30 March 2021. ==Legacy==