Underground under Communism: It wasn’t only rock ’n’ roll – and Czechs liked it

The former political regime in Czechoslovakia deemed much of Western
culture “damaging” and “ideologically subversive”, but authorities
struggled in particular to control the flood of foreign rock ’n’ roll
and pop music. State cultural agencies and censors rarely allowed Western
bands to perform here or even play their music on the airwaves. But
unofficial channels filled the demand – through illegal imports,
home-copying networks and ‘magnetizdat’ – do-it-yourself music. At
the same time, state authorities sanctioned Western music when sung by
Czech artists, and with totally new lyrics.