Monday, June 23, 2025

Zbig Szafranski - Polska, My Home

By the time we at Big And Tall Records released this song by Zbig Szafranski, he was on his way home to Poland. He had left in the early 1970's for political reasons. His work in Polish resistance to the government then led to him having a price on his head. The group he was involved with slowly grew into the Solidarity movement. He was married with two children at the time, and had been separated from his wife for her and the children's safety for many months. He was in imminent danger of being discovered, and no doubt would have been executed if he had stayed. He was assured by the leaders of the movement that he needed to leave the country and his family would be safe. So he made his way to the U.S. (he still won't tell anyone how he got here) and started to make a new life and awaited the arrival of his family.  months later, he received a letter from Poland that his wife had died in a Gulag.  He never heard a word about his children. 

That was related to us by a band member of The Nude Polka Kings, with which he toured with. The band member said that he hoped his children were still alive, and that he wanted to die in Poland. He's in his late 80's, so it's understandable that he'd want to tie up loose ends. He's sold all his holdings in the tavern and dance hall he ran for over 40 years, so it's reasonable he won't be back. His gravelly, out of tune renditions of Polka songs have been interesting to say the least. And it's of note that he usually ends his songs with some graphic language in Polish, but that doesn't happen here. Just a slow lament of his countries name in Polish - Polska.

I not been to my homeland 
For a very long time ago
 Before I fall over the dead 
I vant to pack it up and go 
 
 I don’t know who is still alive
But I know that my wife is dead 
I getting ready to die myself 
I can’t get Polska out my head 
 
Polska, it is land of my birth 
A peoples wronged in history 
Cheated and robbed all their worth 
But it is still homeland to me
 
 Damn filthy Rosjanie (Russians) 
Damn filthy Niemcy (Germans) 
Invade our homeland take wealth 
 
They never want us to be free 
 So much Polska blood drenched the ground 
Bastards brought so much death and pain 
And nothing has been learned from it all 
For it happens over again... 
 
 Polska, I am still filled with hate 
For peoples wronged in history 
Masters of not their own fate 
Is still my homeland to me 
 
Never should have left long ago 
With promise that my family 
After a short time in hiding 
Would come here eventually 
 
GOD DAMN ROSJANIE! 
WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM?
 So many years alone, by myself
 I never see them again... 
 
Polska, I am so ashamed
 For not staying together 
And die all as a family 
Be a family…forever.. 
Polska...Polska...Polska

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