Wodecki confessed:
It would’ve been difficult to make a living playing jazz – unless I did Ave Maria at weddings and Silentium at funerals. Working in the culture sector never paid much. Culture is needed by people who are sated, well-rested and bored. We don’t have many of them in Poland, which is why they’re difficult to encounter at the theatre or philharmonics.
His profession left a solid mark on him. He admits to his scoliosis and a mark on the neck left from holding the violin, bad eyesight from reading sheet music all the time and to the so-called ‘fat lip syndrome’ from playing the trumpet, which undoubtedly interferes with kissing. Wodecki, surprised, disagreed: ‘No, why?… If a man has resolve, even a wall won’t hold him back.’
In the civilised world, artist-musicians make a living from selling records and only perform concerts from time to time. It is slowly starting to be the case in Poland but not everyone can sustain themselves without playing live. For an entertainer-artist who did not get any invitations for some time, it might seem that he is finished. Wodecki revealed:
It’s like a horrible drug. However, I see that young people try to find their own methods to promote themselves nowadays. Artistic value plays second fiddle here, what’s more important is a shaved head, a pierced ear and a catchy tune played loud enough. The songs themselves have no content. Without the image, they don’t hold water. That’s a pity. Even if classical guitar starts being hip again, you have to be able to play something more than just four notes. As it turned out, now you only need two. Still, to play those two notes well, you have to know how to play thousands more.
Zbigniew Wodecki is not only a versatile virtuoso musician but also an excellent vocalist with exceptional vocal capabilities. Paradoxically, he thought that a man should do better things than singing.
If I could be born again, I’d become a doctor because I like to help people, or a policeman because I hate boorishness – and I would treat singing and performing simply as a hobby. If I could manage to earn a penny from recording, that would be nice, but, as I said, it should be a secondary option.
What turned out to be very intriguing was Wodecki’s return to his own roots. It all started thanks to the band Mitch & Mitch (formed in 2002 by Bartek ‘Magneto’ Tyciński and Macio Moretti). The two musicians from a younger generation managed to convince Wodecki to record material from his previous records once again. Songs from the self-titled Zbigniew Wodecki album were performed in a refreshed arrangement for the first time on OFF Festival 2013 in Katowice. The concert turned out to be one of the hottest and most commented on shows of the season. In 2015, Wodecki and Mitch & Mitch, backed by an orchestra of 43 musicians, performed in Polish Radio’s Witold Lutosławski’s Concert Studio. The recording was released on an album titled 1976: A Space Odyssey (on CD and DVD). Wodecki assured:
It’s a normal record, nothing special. It consists of reliable, sincerely recorded arrangements of the songs from that era.
He admitted that in the 1970s, his debut album had no chance to become popular:
It was a time of promoting electric guitars. Back then, we stopped listening to big band music with live orchestras, like Glenn Miller’s.
As for Mitch & Mitch, he jokingly commented:
This band is known for the fact that it’s unknown. Everyone knows about the Mitches but they remain hidden. It seems that they gather energy for their live shows, which later transfers from the scene to the audience.
In 2011, a book titled Pszczoła, Bach i Skrzypce (The Bee, Bach and Violin) was released in which the artist confessed to Wacław Krupiński what he thinks about show-business, looked behind the scenes of Dancing With the Stars and reminisced about his work with Ewa Demarczyk.
Discography:
Albums
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Discography
Albums
- 1973 – Tak to ty, Polskie Nagrania Muza (EP)
- 1976 – Zbigniew Wodecki, Polskie Nagrania Muza (LP)
- 1987 – Dusze Kobiet, Polskie Nagrania Muza (LP)
- 1995 – Zbigniew Wodecki '95, Koch International (CD)
- 4th March 2002 – Obok Siebie, Sony Music Poland (CD)
- 12th July 2010 – PlatyNOWA, Fonografika (CD)
- 15th May 2015 – 1976: A Space Odyssey (with Mitch & Mitch), Lado ABC/Agora SA – golden record
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Compilations
- 1992 – Największe Przeboje, Intersonus
- 1997 – Z Tobą Chcę Oglądać Świat, (CD)
- 1999 – Złota Kolekcja: Zacznij od Bacha, Pomaton EMI (CD)
- 2004 – The Best – Zacznij od Bacha, Agencja Artystyczna MTJ (CD)
- 2013 – Kompozycje, Polskie Nagrania Muza (CD)
- 2015 – The Very Best Of Zbigniew Wodecki, Bursztynowa kolekcja empik (CD)
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Cardboard records
- 1972 – Do Szczęścia Blisko, Zakład Fonograficzny Ruch
- 1975 – Tak Chciałbym Mieć, Krajowa Agencja Wydawnicza
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Singles
- 1980 – Byłaś Dla Mnie Dobra
- 1984 – Z Tobą Chcę Oglądać Świat (with Zdzisława Sośnicka)
- 1985 – Chałupy Welcome to
- 1986 – Po co en Żal
- 2002 – Ufam ci (from Obok siebie)
- 2015 – Rzuć to Wszystko co Złe (with Mitch & Mitch, from 1976: A Space Odyssey)
- 2015 – Opowiadaj mi tak (with Mitch & Mitch, from 1976: A Space Odyssey)
- 2015 – Posłuchaj Mnie Spokojnie (with Mitch & Mitch, from 1976: A Space Odyssey)
- 2016 – Panny Mego Dziadka (with Mitch & Mitch, from 1976: A Space Odyssey)
Awards
- 1972 – Debut award – for the song Znajdziesz Mnie Znowu – 10th National Festival of Polish Song in Opole
- 1974 – 1st award at Festival in Rostock
- 1978 – Journalist Award – 18th International Song Festival in Sopot
- 1979 – 1st award at the premiere competition – for the song Wspomnienie Tych Dni – 17th National Festival of Polish Song in Opole
- 1984 – 1st award for the song Lubię Wracać tam, Gdzie Byłem in OIRT competition in Prague
- 1984 – 1st award at Festival in Słoneczny Brzeg
- 1991 – President of Opole Award – 28th National Festival of Polish Song in Opole
- 1991 – Polskie Nagrania Special Award – 28th National Festival of Polish Song in Opole
- 1991 – Premiere Competition Award – for Sobą być – 28th National Festival of Polish Song in Opole
- 1994 – Polish Stage Artistic Award Prometeusz
- 2007 – Polish Stage Artistic Award Prometeusz
- 2011 – Golden Laurel – for mastering the art of composing and singing Polish song, for talent and love for Kraków and prominence in Polish culture
- 2015 – Polish Radio Mateusz Music Award – in entertainment music-event category – together with Mitch & Mitch
- 2016 – Fryderyki 2016 – in Pop Album of the Year category – for 1976: A Space Odyssey
- 2016 – Fryderyki 2016 – in Song of the Year category – for Rzuć to Wszystko co Złe
Honours
- 2011 – Silver Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis
- 2011 – Honoris Gratia – for contributions to Kraków and its citizens
- 2017 – Labor Omnia Vincit – for contributions to the development of Polish entertainment music
Originally written in Polish by Janusz R. Kowalczyk, May 2017, translated to English by Patryk Grabowski, May 2019