Kaczmarski was considered by many to be the voice of the anti-communist Solidarity movement in the 1980s, for his commitment to a free Poland, independent of Soviet rule. His songs criticized the ruling regime and appealed to the tradition of patriotic resistance within Poles. He remains best known for his protest songs on social and political subjects ("Mury" (Walls), "Obława" (Wolf hunt)). However, he was more a poet than a political singer, and his texts have not lost their meaning with the demise of the Soviet union and its communist block.
He made his debut in 1977 at the Student Song Festival, where he was awarded first prize for his work "Obława" (Wolf hunt) based on song "Охота на волков" by Vladimir Vysotsky. In 1980 he won Second prize at the Opole Song Festival for "Epitafium dla Włodzimierza Wysockiego" (Epitaph for Vladimir Vysotsky).
Kaczmarski chose to emigrate after the imposition of the martial law in Poland in 1981, and would not be allowed to return until 1990. From 1982 he was an editor and journalist with Radio Free Europe, with his own radio program, A Quarter with Jacek Kaczmarski.
After his return to Poland (following the Round Table negotiations that brought and end to communist rule) he toured the country with his friend and artist Zbigniew Łapiński. The tour was recorded and released as Live, and it achieved Gold album status in 2001. His other albums included "Mury" (Walls), "Nasza klasa" (Our class), "Raj" (Paradise), "Muzeum" (Museum), "Pochwała łotrostwa" (Praising the Rascals), "Wojna postu z karnawałem" (The War between Carnival and Lent). However, Kaczmarski was soon disillusioned by the developments in Poland after 1989 and would eventually emigrate to Australia.
Kaczmarski was known not only for his politically motivated lyrics but also for his characteristically dynamic — even aggressive — classical guitar playing, and expressive performance style. His deep knowledge of not only the history of Poland but also Classical literature resulted in a wide variety of insightful connections between cultures and eras via song (for example "Powtórka z Odysei," recalling Homer's Odyssey or "Lalka," a masterful strike at the heart of a riveting Polish novel). He often performed before contrastingly different audiences: groups of friends in their homes, campus venues, and large concert halls in Poland, the rest of Europe and America.
Kaczmarski in the late 1990s was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx (attributed to his heavy smoking). He could not afford the costs of the treatment and in response a nationwide fundraising campaign was organized. However, Jacek Kaczmarski, out of fear of irrevocably losing his voice, did not agree to standard cancer therapy and resorted instead to alternatives such as vilcacora and sangre de drago, among other "natural" remedies.
He died in a hospital in Gdańsk 2004.
Rozbite oddziały
Jacek Kaczmarski Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Przechodzą, jak we śnie, ostatnie granice
Przez cło przemycają swój okrzyk bojowy
I kulę ostatnią, co w ustach się schowa
Przy stołach współczucia nurzają się w winie
I obcym śpiewają o tej, co nie zginie
Swą krew ocaloną oddają za darmo
Farbują mundury, wędrują przez kraje
I czasem strzelają do siebie nawzajem
Pod każdym sztandarem - byle nie białym
Szukają zwycięstwa - rozbite oddziały
Przychodzą po zmierzchu do kobiet im obcych
A tam, kiedy przejdą - urodzą się chłopcy
Gdy wrócą, przygnani kolejną zawieją
Zobaczą, że synów swych nie rozumieją
Spisują więc dla nich, dla nich noc w noc pamiętniki
Nieprzetłumaczalne na obce języki
I cierpią, gdy śmieje się z nich świat zwycięski
Niepomni, że mądry nie śmieje się z klęski
The song "Rozbite oddziały" by Jacek Kaczmarski reflects on the aftermath of a defeat in battle. The lyrics describe soldiers who have suffered a loss, but instead of giving up, they continue to push forward, crossing the last boundaries as if in a dream. They smuggle their battle cry and the last remaining bullet, and drown their sorrows at the table of empathy. They sing about the woman who will never die, and donate their salvaged blood for free to anyone who wants to join their army.
Despite being defeated, these soldiers refuse to give up hope. They dye their uniforms and travel through many countries, even occasionally shooting at each other. They seek victories under any banner except a white one, as they search for the victory that has eluded them thus far. They visit foreign women at night and unknowingly father children who they will only meet when they return home. When they come back, they realize that they do not understand their own sons, who were born and raised with different languages and cultures. So, for them, they write diaries every night, which are untranslatable into a foreign language.
This song highlights the sense of hopefulness that persists in people, even in the face of adversity. Despite the defeat of the soldiers, they continue to fight, to keep pushing forward, and to seek victory, even if it means under a different banner. The soldiers, though estranged from their own culture, still wish to preserve their history by penning down their feelings in a diary. The song conveys a message of resilience in the face of setbacks, showing the power of the human spirit to overcome obstacles.
Line by Line Meaning
Po klęsce - nie pierwszej, podnosząc przyłbicę
After defeat - not their first, they lift their visor
Przechodzą, jak we śnie, ostatnie granice
They cross the last borders as if in a dream
Przez cło przemycają swój okrzyk bojowy
They smuggle their battle cry through customs
I kulę ostatnią, co w ustach się schowa
And the last bullet hidden in their mouths
Przy stołach współczucia nurzają się w winie
They drown in wine at tables of sympathy
I obcym śpiewają o tej, co nie zginie
And sing to strangers about the one who will not die
Swą krew ocaloną oddają za darmo
They freely give their saved blood
Każdemu, kto zechce połączyć ich z armią
To anyone who wants to join them in their army
Farbują mundury, wędrują przez kraje
They dye their uniforms and wander through countries
I czasem strzelają do siebie nawzajem
And sometimes shoot at each other
Pod każdym sztandarem - byle nie białym
Under any banner - except for the white one
Szukają zwycięstwa - rozbite oddziały
They seek victory - broken units
Przychodzą po zmierzchu do kobiet im obcych
They come to women they do not know after dark
A tam, kiedy przejdą - urodzą się chłopcy
And there, once they leave - boys are born
Gdy wrócą, przygnani kolejną zawieją
When they come back, pushed by another wind
Zobaczą, że synów swych nie rozumieją
They will see that they don't understand their sons
Spisują więc dla nich, dla nich noc w noc pamiętniki
So, they write diaries for them, night after night
Nieprzetłumaczalne na obce języki
Untranslatable into foreign languages
I cierpią, gdy śmieje się z nich świat zwycięski
And suffer when the victorious world laughs at them
Niepomni, że mądry nie śmieje się z klęski
Unmindful that a wise person does not laugh at defeat
Contributed by Madelyn A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Elite GamesChannel
Kocham tą piosenkę :D
A i te fragmenty filmu w tle dodają klimatu :D
Pozdrawiam autora tego klipu HardKoxTV/Głos Historii
Mateusz Gilotyna
*tę
Anna Hordziejewicz
Niech pamięć o Nich żyje w nas .🇵🇱
Cezary Gocał
Wciąż mnie to wzrusza...
Był wielkim pieśniarzem. Gdzież dzisiaj tacy...
I słuchać wciąż mało...
zbig1964
A dziś Warszawa odmawia mu nawet imienia ulicy !
Gaudenty
@zbig1964 przydało by się muzeum poety :)
TomsRocc
dzisiaj tacy jak on mają niebieską kartę
Ziemowit Ślęża
@TomsRocc Ty masz za to zielone papiery.
Jarosław Świętochowski
Był te wielkim pięściarzem xd
arekarb
Jeśli ktoś jeszcze mi powie że bokserzy nie mogą pisać pięknych utworów to pokażę mu tą piosenkę