Simultaneously to their high school studies, Kodeksi members spent the rest of the decade playing local dance parties with a repertoire of covered tunes they would hear on Radio Luxembourg.
In the summer of 1969, Kodeksi secured a season-long gig at Hotel Splendid's bar in Dubrovnik, however, just before they were set to depart for Adriatic coast, Ismeta Dervoz left the band, choosing to devote her full attention to university studies.
Though it clearly didn't inspire much in terms of creativity, the Dubrovnik stay still proved useful as they got spotted by an Italian nightclub owner, Renato Pacifico, who offered a two-month gig in his Naples club.
Infused with new energy, the band went back home to hone a new progressive rock set inspired by the likes of Cream and Jimi Hendrix, while simultaneously obtaining the necessary paperwork in order to be able to travel and temporarily live and work in Italy.
Instead of Anglo-American progressive rock, he wanted them to play kozachok and other similar Eastern European folkish stuff from their Dubrovnik repertoire and the band unwillingly acquiesced.
Just before the first two-month stint ended, Kodeksi's founder and main decision-maker Edo Bogeljić quit and went back to Sarajevo, which is when Bregović assumed the lead guitar role for the first time.
In keeping with the Canned Heat-inspired boogie rock sound favoured by Vukašinović and Bregović, the two made Bebek stop playing the rhythm guitar reasoning it's no longer fashionable.
For their part, Vukašinović, Bregović, and Redžić remained in Italy and continued soldiering on under the new name Mića, Goran i Zoran, playing everything from clubs to weddings in the Naples area.
Upon returning, the trio continued gigging in Sarajevo—mostly at the Želimir Altarac Čičak-run Kaktus Klub in the basement of the recently-opened Dom Mladih—playing covers of Ten Years After, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, etc.