Czerwone Gitary—dubbed the “Polish Beatles”—were decorated during a concert at the Łódź Philharmonic. The culture honor, conferred by Culture and National Heritage Minister Marta Cienkowska, was presented by deputy minister Maciej Wróbel.
Jerzy Skrzypczyk, the group’s vocalist and drummer who has performed continuously with the band for six decades, received the Gold Medal. Silver Medals went to vocalist, bassist, composer and lyricist Arkadiusz Wiśniewski, and to guitarist, vocalist and composer Mieczysław Wądołowski. Guitarist, vocalist and composer Marcin Niewęgłowski received the Bronze Medal. Bandmates noted Skrzypczyk has not missed any of the more than 6,500 concerts.
“I’m very happy to present the highest departmental honors to a band that has moved and entertained audiences for 60 years—and uniquely, so beautifully connects generations,” Wróbel said from the stage.
Wróbel added a personal note, recalling he directed the 2015 documentary “Czerwone Gitary i… pół wieku” as a journalist at Polish Television. He quoted the late Jerzy Kossela: “This band will probably be immortal… When I’m gone, when Jurek Skrzypczyk is gone, they will carry it on, because this is a beautiful story in which experienced musicians pass the baton to the next generations.”
Thanking the audience, Skrzypczyk said: “You deserve special thanks—by being here, you gave today’s event its stature. Thank you to audiences across Poland for being with us for 60 years, through good times and bad, and for not forgetting us,” drawing ovations.
The jubilee tour spans 313 cities; Sunday’s performance fell around the midpoint, with some 140 concerts already played. “We have 350 songs in our repertoire—about 18 hours of nonstop playing. Will you last?” Skrzypczyk joked as the show began. The Łódź crowd roared back: “We will!”
Formed on January 3, 1965, in the Cristal café in Gdańsk-Wrzeszcz, the original lineup featured Bernard Dornowski, Krzysztof Klenczon, Jerzy Kossela, Jerzy Skrzypczyk and Henryk Zomerski, according to the band’s official history. Their first record included four tracks—“Bo ty się boisz myszy,” “Taka jak ty,” “Licz do stu” and “Pluszowe niedźwiadki”—with a guest appearance by Seweryn Krajewski.
The band first aired on Polish Radio in April 1965 and spent that summer at Sopot’s Non-Stop club, then launched its debut tour in the fall under the banner “We play and sing the loudest in Poland.”
In 1966, Czerwone Gitary recorded its first LP, “To właśnie my,” in two days; 160,000 copies were pressed. At MIDEM in Cannes in January 1969, the group won an award for the highest domestic record sales—an honor also given that year to The Beatles.
After Klenczon’s 1970 departure, concerts became less frequent and the group eventually suspended activity in the early 1980s, before returning in 1991.
Since 1966, the band has released 14 albums, producing dozens of enduring hits including “Anna Maria,” “10 w skali Beauforta,” “Matura,” “Nie zadzieraj nosa,” “Historia jednej znajomości,” “Takie ładne oczy,” “Dozwolone do lat 18,” “Kwiaty we włosach,” “Płoną góry, płoną lasy” and “Ciągle pada.”
Sunday’s audience heard these and other favorites. Closing with the classic “Matura,” Skrzypczyk promised a “concert on encore” in Łódź on October 24, 2026: “Again in a year—and so it has been for 60 years.”
(jh)
Source: PAP