Filipinki

Filipinki

Filipinki in the Polish movie Being a sailor it's a men's adventure, 1966.
Background information
Origin Szczecin, Poland
Genres Pop, Jazz, Doo-wop, Beat, Rock, Psychedelic pop
Years active 1959–1974
Labels
  • Polskie Nagrania Muza
  • Pronit
  • Veriton (Polish record label)
  • Melodiya
  • Bruno Records (USA record label)
  • Radio Request Records (USA record label)
  • Melodia Record Co. (Canadian record label)
Past members
  • Zofia Bogdanowicz
  • Niki Ikonomu
  • Elżbieta Klausz
  • Krystyna Pawlaczyk
  • Iwona Racz
  • Krystyna Sadowska
  • Anna Sadowa

Filipinki were the first Polish all-girl vocal group and also Poland’s leading female band of the 1960s.[1][2][3]

Career

Filipinki were founded in October 1959 at an economic college in Szczecin and became popular in Poland through exposure at music festivals and other events during the years that followed. They named themselves after popular teen girl magazine Filipinka.[4]

By 1963 they were well-established but the big breakthrough came with their Wala Twist[5] – a playful song celebrating female cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, who became the first woman into space aboard Vostok 6 in June 1963. Wala Twist immediately became a smash-hit in Poland and the Soviet Union. In the same year Filipinki released their first EP vinyl record in the Soviet Union and two more EPs in Poland. Just in 1964 their Polish EPs sold over 704,740 copies (N-0298: 353,240 copies and N-0299: 351,500 copies).[6] The group became extremely popular both domestically and in all countries of the Eastern Bloc,[7][8] becoming one of the first teen musicians acts to appear regularly on Polish, Soviet Union and GDR television programs. In the mid-1960s they were called The Beatles Girls by Polish media.[9]

In 1965 Filipinki became first Eastern Bloc young musicians to tour overseas – in Canada and the United States.[10] They performed concerts, among others, in the cities: Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, New York, Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, Pittsburg, Philadelphia and Baltimore. They returned to America in 1966 for the next three-month tour. Filipinki also released three vinyl records in Canada and the US – two LPs and one EP.[11]

In 1968 Filipinki reduced group from seven to five vocalists, totally changed their image and revamped as a rock band.[12]

The group disbanded in November 1974 after a 15-year run. Their success[13] made it possible for future Polish teenage musicians and girl bands to find mainstream success.

Discography

Bibliography

In November 2013, a biography of the band by Marcin Szczygielski entitled We are Filipinki! Illustrated History of First Polish Girlsband (ISBN 978-83-2681277-4) was released in Poland.

Promotional poster for Filipinki Boys Are Liars Tour (from January till June 1970)

Notes

  1. ↑ "Pierwszy girlsband w Europie ma 50 lat!" (in Polish). TVP Info. 25 November 2009.
  2. ↑ "Filipinki – pierwszy polski, a może i europejski girlsband w historii" (in Polish). Dziennik.pl. 18 October 2014.
  3. ↑ "Filipinki i rockowa rewolta" (in Polish). Newsweek Polska. 4 November 2013.
  4. ↑ "Filipinki" (in Polish). Polish Radio Three. 6 December 2013.
  5. ↑ "Filipinki: Wala-Twist". Eastern Bloc Songs. 17 May 2011.
  6. ↑ "The Strange Case of the Charts". Billboard. 20 April 1974.
  7. ↑ "7 girls from Szczecin", The Moscow News, No 12 (847), 25 March 1967
  8. ↑ Ivanov, V. (March 1967), "Filipinki", Krugozor, No 3: 17
  9. ↑ "Filipinki" (in Polish). Warner Music Poland. November 2014.
  10. ↑ "Music Capitals of the World". Billboard. 23 October 1965.
  11. ↑ "Album Reviews". Billboard. 7 May 1966.
  12. ↑ "Filipinki: Nie Ma Go". Eastern Bloc Songs. 25 July 2012.
  13. ↑ "From The Music Capitals of the World". Billboard. 14 November 1970.
  14. ↑ "Filipinki". Discogs.com.

External links