1970s Warsaw Pact J-R Fusion bands

If you are not already familiar with a series of albums called Polish Jazz, I highly recommend you check that out, lots of great music in that series. 

I was born in Lithuania - former Western European country on Baltic shore, occupied by Russians in 1940, and once again - in 1944. As other Baltic countries, we became a part of Russians controlled Soviet Union(SU), what among other, means we were most strictly controlled, compared with semi-independent Eastern block countries, as Poland or Czechoslovakia. 

As a result, even if Czechs or Poles will say their semi-independent authorities tried to ban or strictly control popular Western music development in their countries, they don't really know, how strict the control was for those living in former SU.

Of all former SU, there were three Baltic countries, which before WWII were part of the Western civilization, even under Soviet control they stayed a local points of Western culture for other nations, incorporated to SU. As a result, Baltics were most liberal part of all former SU, still very much under Moscow censorship pressure. 

Still, there were some small local initiatives, trying to support. For example, there in Lithuania was almost unique possibility to study jazz in a Music Academy (and even not in capital Vilnius, but in small branch, located 300 km from Vilnius in seaside town of Klaipeda- as far as possible from Moscow controllers eyes). For an empire with almost 300 million population, it was almost the only possibility to study jazz in a university. From other hand, it made small Lithuania the Mecca for jazz musicians from all former SU. Best early Lithuanian jazz bands were founded by immigrants from Russia, Ukraine, etc, running to the secret part of SU, where they had the possibility play jazz.

Early Lithuanian jazz super band was Ganelin trio, founded by Moscow-born Russian Jew pianist Vyacheslav Ganelin(moved to Lithuania with family in 1948), Ural (Russia)-born sax player Vladimir Chekasin(moved to Lithuania in 1971) and Archangelsk(N.Russia)-born drummer Vladimir Tarasov(moved to Lithuania in 1968). Ganelin trio played very their own classics-influenced avant-garde jazz and even successfully toured US still in SU-times. 

Since there were almost no possibility to study jazz, most former SU jazz musicians were classically trained - that's why early jazz from former SU-territories is often of strong technical quality. 

Soviet authorities target was to control popularisation of Western values, and the music was part of it. Still, they were mostly afraid of lyrics - that's why any form of domestic rock music was under very strict control and usually banned. Jazz, as instrumental music, was too free to be accepted, but didn't look so potentially dangerous. 

In Eastern block countries, as Poland or Czechoslovakia, there were even wider possibilities for jazz-rock existence, so one can find some well-known jazz-rock bands from these countries , very popular around the world now.

The exception of common rule was Yugoslavia - most liberal country from region. I've been living there for three years, and for my knowledge they didn't experience the pressure on rock music even in dictator's Tito times. There are some popular jazz rock bands from former Yugoslavia well known around the world as well

YES! I've heard (and reviewed) their music! I LOVE it! I was quite impressed with their debut from 1980--gave it a full five stars. It reminded me a lot of Chilean band Los Jaivas (which is kind of odd).

Also forgot to mention Yugoslavian band DEN DA ZEN--another band whose 1980 debut album I LOVE!

The band started from their own kind of fusion (mix of classical arrangements, jazz-rock and pop-songs), very soon became a first SU band, incorporating hip-hop to their sound (I saw this their program played live somewhere in mid 80s), but finished as boring pop-jazz collective very soon.