At one time regarded as the Eastern bloc's answer to Brenda Lee -- and a definite candidate for the Communist bloc's first rock & roll singer -- Yvonne Prenosilova was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia in 1947 and her singing career began while she was in her mid-teens. She had an affinity for rhythm & blues from an early age along with an appreciation of rock & roll, which was (then) officially regarded as a byproduct of capitalist decadence. She emerged as the winner of a singing competition in Prague and made a series of recordings for the state-run Supraphon label. Prenosilova's repertory included covers of Brenda Lee and other singers of the era, as well as duos such as Paul & Paula, and one song, "When My Baby Comes," was issued in England. She went into exile from her homeland after the 1968 Soviet invasion, and -- based in Germany -- worked under the name Silova. She returned to Prague after the fall of the Communist regime in 1990, and continued to sing in the decade that followed. Prenosilova may have come to rock & roll from a long distance away, but critics have compared her favorably at her best to Wanda Jackson. Yvonne Prenosilova died on September 11, 2023, at the age of 76. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi