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The book launch took place at the Bárka Theatre, but without Cseh, who fell ill more than a year ago.
Bérczes said he decided five years ago to make a book out of interviews with his musician friend, but the project was put off for three and a half years. News of Cseh's illness in the summer of 2006 gave the project new impetus.
"My method of working (on the book) was very simple," said Bérczes. "Every day I went up to Tamás. When he wasn't in the mood to talk, I left after a short visit, but if he was in a good mood, I could ask anything. I was able to ask about things that I would not have been able to ask about earlier."
The book launch was like a trip back in time. It opened with a recording that Cseh had made some thirty years earlier. Then János Háy, who heads Palatinus Kidaó, which is publishing the book, introduced the man who wrote the lyrics to the song and who collaborated with Cseh for decades, Géza Bereményi. Bereményi recalled his first meeting with Cseh, on Rákóczi Street early one morning. The two talked in a restaurant, and the following afternoon, in a rented flat in Buda, they started writing material which would become the 1978 album Antoine és Désiré.
Also present at the book launch were the musicians who first backed Cseh: Gábor Kecskeméti, István Mártha and János Novák.
Bérczes said Cseh's condition had improved markedly, but his doctor had advised him to not to go out in the cold. So the book signing took a different turn: as a gesture of appreciation for the years of unforgettable music and performances, the audience at the Bárka all signed a copy of the book that was later presented to Cseh.
Cseh Tamás, by Bérczes László is published by Palatinus Kiadó (2007)
Author: György Kerékgyártó
