Vladimir Semeonovich Vysotsky (1938-1980) was a Soviet singer-songwriter, as well as a theatre and movie actor. With his song lyrics, often humorous, often melancholic, and his harsh, passionate voice Vysotsky gained wide popularity despite his criticism of the Soviet government, which considered him a dissident. By the mid-1970s, Vysotsky had been suffering from alcoholism for quite some time. This was also the height of his popularity, when, as described in Marina Vlady's book about her husband