Filipinki were the first Polish all-girl vocal group and also Poland's leading female band of the 1960s.[1][2][3]
Filipinki | |
|---|---|
 Filipinki in the Polish movie The Navy is a Men's Adventure (1966) | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Szczecin, Poland |
| Genres | Pop, jazz, doo-wop, beat, rock, psychedelic pop |
| Years active | 1959–1974 |
| Labels |
|
| Past members | |
Career
editFilipinki 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 quickly became a 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 City, Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, Pittsburgh, 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 the group from seven to five vocalists, 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
edit| Format | Year | Country | Title | Record Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LP | 1965 | Poland | Rozśpiewani rówieśnicy (Teenagers Songs) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza L0454 |
| USA | Piosenka nie zna granic (Music Has No Bounds) |
Melodia Record Co. LPM1025 | ||
| 1966 | Poland | Filipinki - to my (We Are Filipinki Girls) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza XL0323 | |
| USA | Filipinki with orchestra under J. Janikowski in their Top 16 Hits. A Polish A GO-GO |
Bruno Records BR10214L | ||
| EP | 1963 | USSR | Filipinki | Melodiya PD 33GD 00881 |
| 1964 | Poland | Wala Twist | Polskie Nagrania Muza N0298 | |
| Filipinki to my (We Are Filipinki Girls) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza N0299 | |||
| 1965 | Poland | Tarap tarap | Pronit N0361 | |
| USA | Filipinki | Radio Request Records M-40 | ||
| 1968 | Poland | Nie ma go (He Isn't Here) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza N0529 | |
| Kolędy śpiewają Filipinki (Christmas Carol by Filipinki) |
Veriton V350 | |||
| 1969 | Poland | Wiosna majem wróci (Spring Will Return in May) |
Pronit N0572 | |
| 1971 | Poland | Ja się w tobie nie zakocham (I Will Not Fall in Love With You) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza N0653 | |
| SP | 1966 | Poland | Serwus, panie chief (Hello Mr. Chief) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza SP251 |
| 1965 | USSR | Батуми (Batumi) Мы Филипинки (orig. Filipinki - to my = We Are Filipinki Girls) |
Melodiya 0044573/0044574 | |
| Валентина (orig. Wala Twist = Valentina Twist) Пити-пити (Pity, pity) |
Melodiya 0044575/0044576 | |||
| 1967 | USSR | Tylko raz (Just Once) |
Melodiya 0045419 | |
| 1971 | Poland | Królewski Zamek (King's Castle) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza SP357 | |
| Cardboard record (official) |
1966 | Poland | Filipinki i Chochoły: Znajdź sobie dziewczynę (Find Yourself a Girlfriend) |
Ruch R0030 |
| Serwus, panie Chief (Hello Mr. Chief) |
Ruch R0036 | |||
| 1969 | Poland | Wiosna majem wróci (Spring Will Return in May) |
Polskie Nagrania Muza KP137 | |
| 1971 | Poland | Królewski zamek (King's Castle) |
Ruch R0315 | |
| Greatest Hits | 1993 | Poland | Filipinki - największe przeboje | Polskie Nagrania Edition Ltd. ECD 018 |
| 2003 | Poland | Filipinki - to my | Polskie Nagrania Muza PNCD 540 | |
| 2004 | Poland | Platynowa kolekcja. Filipinki. Złote przeboje | GM Records 222 005-2 | |
| 2005 | Poland | Platynowa kolekcja. Filipinki - nasze złote przeboje | Media Way Sp. z o.o. 2-0020 | |
| 2008 | Poland | Z archiwum Polskiego Radia vol. 4. Filipinki. Nagrania radiowe z lat 1963-1972 | Polskie Radio SA PRCD 1078-79 | |
| 2010 | Poland | Filipinki | Polskie Nagrania Muza PNCD 1339 | |
| 2012 | Poland | Złote lata polskiej piosenki. Filipinki | Gazeta Wyborcza, Agora SA | |
| 2013 | Poland | Filipinki - to my! niepublikowane nagrania z lat 1962-1971 | Latarnik/AS AS01 | |
| 2014 | Poland | Złota kolekcja. Filipinki. Batumi. Własny świat | Warner Music Poland 08256 4 61914 8 2 |
Bibliography
edit
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.
Notes
edit- ^ "Pierwszy girlsband w Europie ma 50 lat!" (in Polish). TVP Info. 25 November 2009.
- ^ "Filipinki – pierwszy polski, a może i europejski girlsband w historii" (in Polish). Dziennik.pl. 18 October 2014.
- ^ "Filipinki i rockowa rewolta" (in Polish). Newsweek Polska. 4 November 2013.
- ^ "Filipinki" (in Polish). Polish Radio Three. 6 December 2013.
- ^ "Filipinki: Wala-Twist". Eastern Bloc Songs. 17 May 2011.
- ^ "The Strange Case of the Chart Records That Don't Sell!". Billboard. 20 April 1974.
- ^ "7 girls from Szczecin", The Moscow News, No 12 (847), 25 March 1967
- ^ Ivanov, V. (March 1967), "Filipinki", Krugozor, No 3, p. 17
- ^ "Filipinki" (in Polish). Warner Music Poland. November 2014.
- ^ "Music Capitals of the World". Billboard. 23 October 1965.
- ^ "Album Reviews". Billboard. 7 May 1966.
- ^ "Filipinki: Nie Ma Go". Eastern Bloc Songs. 25 July 2012.
- ^ "From The Music Capitals of the World". Billboard. 14 November 1970.
- ^ "Filipinki". Discogs.com.
External links
edit