Bijelo Dugme was officially formed in 1974, although the members of its default lineup—guitarist Goran Bregović, vocalist Željko Bebek, drummer Ipe Ivandić, keyboardist Vlado Pravdić and bass guitarist Zoran Redžić—had previously played together under the name Jutro.

The band's 1974 debut album Kad bi' bio bijelo dugme brought them nationwide popularity with its Balkan folk-influenced hard rock sound.

At the concert, they performed covers of songs by Cream, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Ten Years After, Taste, Free, and managed to thrill the audience.

[5] Hastily composed and recorded "Ja i zvijezda sjaj" ("Me and the Stars' Glow") was of poor quality and little artistic value,[5] which influenced Vukašinović's decision to move to London.

[1] During Bebek's short leave from the army, the band recorded four more songs: "Kad bi' bio bijelo dugme" ("If I Were a White Button"), "U subotu, mala" ("On Saturday, Baby"), "Na vrh brda vrba mrda" (the title being a traditional tongue-twister which translates to "Willow Tree Is Moving on the Top of the Hill") and "Hop-cup" ("Whoopsie Daisy"), the first two appearing on a 7-inch single.

[1] "Da sam pekar" was musically inspired by the traditional "deaf kolo", while "Selma", with lyrics written by poet Vlado Dijak, was a hard rock ballad.

[1] Several days before the album release, wanting to appear in the media as much as possible, Bijelo Dugme performed at the Skopje Festival, playing the song "Edna nadež" ("One Hope") by composer Grigor Koprov.

[20] Although Smak guitarist Radomir Mihajlović Točak left the best impression on the gathered crowd, he was not officially recognized due to his band not being under contract with Jugoton, a record label that financially supported the competition.

[20] Soon after, Bebek took part in an event similar to Kongres rock majstora – Rock Fest '75, the gathering of the most popular Yugoslav singers of the time; besides Bebek, the event featured Marin Škrgatić (of Grupa Marina Škrgatića), Mato Došen (of Hobo), Aki Rahimovski (of Parni Valjak), Seid Memić "Vajta" (of Teška Industrija), Boris Aranđelović (of Smak), Hrvoje Marjanović (of Grupa 220), Dado Topić (of Time) and Janez Bončina "Benč" (of September).

[20] The band used the time spent in studio to record an English language song "Playing the Part", with lyrics written by lyricist Dave Townsend,[26] released on a promo single which was distributed to journalists.

[20] The album was a huge commercial success, bringing hits "Tako ti je, mala moja, kad ljubi Bosanac" ("That's How It Is, Baby, When You Kiss a Bosnian"), "Došao sam da ti kažem da odlazim" ("I've Come to Tell You that I'm Leaving"), "Ne gledaj me tako i ne ljubi me više" ("Don't Look at Me like That and Kiss Me No More") and "Požurite, konji moji" ("Hurry Up, My Horses")[20] and selling more than 200,000 copies.

[20] Bregović did not manage to write the music on the lyrics (they were later used for the song recorded by Jadranka Stojaković),[20] so he intended to name the album Hoću bar jednom da budem blesav (For Once I Want to Be Crazy), but Jugoton editors did not like this title.

[20] The album hits included hard rock tunes "Izgledala je malo čudno u kaputu žutom krojenom bez veze" ("She Looked a Little Bit Weird in a Yellow Sillymade Coat") and "Dede bona, sjeti se, de tako ti svega" ("Come on, Remember, for God's Sake"), folk-oriented "Slatko li je ljubit' tajno" ("It's So Sweet to Kiss Secretly"), simple tune "Ništa mudro" ("Nothing Smart", featuring lyrics written by Duško Trifunović) and two ballads, symphonic-oriented "Sanjao sam noćas da te nemam" ("I Dreamed Last Night that I Didn't Have You") and less complex "Loše vino" ("Bad Wine", written by Bregović and singer-songwriter Arsen Dedić and originally recorded by singer Zdravko Čolić).

[35] After the opening acts – Slađana Milošević, Tako, Zdravo, Džadžo, Suncokret, Ibn Tup and Leb i Sol[39] – Bijelo Dugme played a very successful concert.

[27] Redžić continued to work on the Koncert kod hajdučke česme recordings, and a live version of "Dede, bona, sjeti se, de tako ti svega" was later used as a B-side for the single "Bitanga i princeza" ("The Brute and the Princess"), released in 1979.

[35][47] The album did not feature folk music elements, and brought songs "Bitanga i princeza", "Ala je glupo zaboravit njen broj", "Na zadnjem sjedištu mog auta" ("On the Back Seat of My Car"), "A koliko si ih imala do sad" ("How Many Have There Been?

The concert featured numerous opening acts: Crni Petak, Kilo i Po, Rok Apoteka, Galija, Kako, Mama Rock, Formula 4, Peta Rijeka, Čisti Zrak, Aerodrom, Opus, Senad od Bosne, Boomerang, Prva Ljubav, Revolver, Prljavo Kazalište, Tomaž Domicelj, Metak, Obećanje Proljeća, Suncokret, Parni Valjak, Generacija 5 and Siluete.

[35] The provocative cover, depicting plastic surgery, was designed by Mirko Ilić, an artist closely associated with Yugoslav new wave scene and appeared in three different versions.

[35] In accordance with their shift towards new wave, the band changed their hard rock style: the members cut their hair short, and the frontman Željko Bebek shaved his trademark mustache.

[58] The songs "Ako možeš zaboravi" ("Forget, if You Can"), "U vrijeme otkazanih letova" ("In the Time of Canceled Flights"), "Polubauk polukruži poluevropom" ("Half-Spectre is Half-Haunting Half-Europe", the title referring to the first sentence of The Communist Manifesto) and "Ovaj ples dame biraju" ("Ladies' Choice") featured diverse sound, illustrating various phases in the band's career.

[58] Other hits included "Padaju zvijezde" ("The Stars Are Falling"), "Lažeš" ("You're Lying"), "Da te bogdo ne volim" ("If I Could Only Not Love You") and "Jer kad ostariš" ("Because, When You Grow Old").

[58] The stylized army uniform in which the members of the band appeared on stage and the large red star from Kamarad logo were partially inspired by the works of Laibach.

To that end he and the band's manager Raka Marić approached three such individuals who were effectively proscribed from public discourse in Yugoslavia: pop singer Vice Vukov, who represented SFR Yugoslavia at the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest before seeing his career prospects marginalized after being branded a Croatian nationalist due to his association with the Croatian Spring political movement; painter and experimental filmmaker Mića Popović, associated with Yugoslav Black Wave film movement, who got a dissident reputation due to his paintings; politician and diplomat Koča Popović who, despite a prominent World War II engagement on the Partisan side as the First Proletarian Brigade commander that earned him the Order of the People's Hero medal, followed by high political and diplomatic appointments in the post-war period, nevertheless got silently removed from public life in 1972 after supporting a liberal faction within the Yugoslav Communist League's Serbian branch.

He, together with Bregović and children from the Ljubica Ivezić orphanage in Sarajevo, sang a cover of "Padaj silo i nepravdo" ("Fall, (Oh) Force and Injustice"), an old revolutionary song.

[58] The album featured similar Yugoslavist iconography as the bands' previous two releases: the track "A milicija trenira strogoću" begins with "The Internationale" melody, during the intro to "Svi marš na ples" Islamović shouts "Bratsvo!

[82] The album's biggest hit was "Đurđevdan je, a ja nisam s onom koju volim" ("It's St. George's Day, and I'm Not with the One I Love'"), based on traditional Romani song "Ederlezi" and featuring Fejat Sejdić Trumpet Orchestra.

[92][93] In 1994, the double compilation album Ima neka tajna veza (There's Some Secret Connection), featuring Dragan Malešević Tapi's painting Radost bankrota (The Joy of Bankruptcy) on the cover, was released.

[101] Eventually, Goran Bregović marked 40 years since the formation of the band and the release of their debut album with a series of concerts with his Weddings and Funerals Orchestra, featuring Alen Islamović as vocalist.

The acts that recorded covers of Bijelo Dugme songs include Aska,[108] Srđan Marjanović,[109] Regina,[110] Revolveri,[111] Prljavi Inspektor Blaža i Kljunovi,[112] Viktorija,[113] Sokoli,[80] Massimo Savić,[114] Vasko Serafimov,[115] Zoran Predin and Matija Dedić,[116] Branimir "Džoni" Štulić,[117] Teška Industrija,[118] Texas Flood[119] and others.

[137] In addition to the band's works appearing on various lists of best Yugoslav albums and songs, praised for composition, poetic lyrics of Goran Bregović and Duško Trifunvović, musicianship and production, Bijelo Dugme was often criticized by a part of Yugoslav and post-Yugoslav musicians, critics and audience who believe that the group's blend of rock and Balkan folk music paved the way for the appearance of turbo-folk music in the late 1980s and 1990s.