Karel Fialka
Encyclopedia
Karel Fialka is a British
singer-songwriter
, best known for his 1987 single, "Hey, Matthew
".
, India
, to a Scottish
mother and Czech father. Fialka was launched in 1980 as the street poet
of the 1980s. A poet, traveller, musician and actor
, his music turned out to be a combination, of acute observations on life, a keen sense of melodic phrases helped by the production touches of Wally Brill and Robin Langridge. Fialka's debut album Still Life was well received and "The Eyes Have It" became an airplay favourite.
Fialka had a Top 10 hit
in 1987 on the UK Singles Chart
with the single
"Hey, Matthew
", (on I.R.S. Records
) after having a minor hit in 1980 with "The Eyes Have It" on Blueprint Records. Fialka works mainly as a conceptual songwriter
and record producer
with occasional and infrequent live appearances
. He released his Film Noir album
in March 2009. Featured guest artists
included Tilda Swinton
and Paul Roberts
(Sniff 'n' the Tears
). The tracks on the album were character-driven.
Fialka has had "The Things I Saw" released on the Berlin
based !K7 Records
label
, as part of Booka Shade
's DJ-Kicks: Booka Shade
album in October 2007. This came as a mashup
with another track by Akiko Kiyama.
Collectors of work by Fialka prize bootleg
copies of Morrison Cafe, a deconstruction
of song
s by The Doors
, and also To Live Outside The Law You Must Be Honest, where he has done the same to song
s written by Bob Dylan
.
and/or remix
ed by other artists, as follows:-
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, best known for his 1987 single, "Hey, Matthew
Hey, Matthew
"Hey, Matthew" is a single released by the British musician, Karel Fialka, in 1987. It was later included on his 1988 album, Human Animal.The song has instrumentation with only a synthesizer and a drum machine being used...
".
Career
He was born Karel Francis Fialka in BengalBengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, to a Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
mother and Czech father. Fialka was launched in 1980 as the street poet
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
of the 1980s. A poet, traveller, musician and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, his music turned out to be a combination, of acute observations on life, a keen sense of melodic phrases helped by the production touches of Wally Brill and Robin Langridge. Fialka's debut album Still Life was well received and "The Eyes Have It" became an airplay favourite.
Fialka had a Top 10 hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
in 1987 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
with the single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"Hey, Matthew
Hey, Matthew
"Hey, Matthew" is a single released by the British musician, Karel Fialka, in 1987. It was later included on his 1988 album, Human Animal.The song has instrumentation with only a synthesizer and a drum machine being used...
", (on I.R.S. Records
I.R.S. Records
I.R.S. Records was a record label, started in the United States in 1979 by Miles Copeland III along with Jay Boberg and Carl Grasso. Miles was also the manager of Wishbone Ash, The Police, and later, Sting, as well as other bands. I.R.S. was the sister label of Copeland's Illegal Records .I.R.S...
) after having a minor hit in 1980 with "The Eyes Have It" on Blueprint Records. Fialka works mainly as a conceptual songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
with occasional and infrequent live appearances
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
. He released his Film Noir album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
in March 2009. Featured guest artists
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
included Tilda Swinton
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Mathilda "Tilda" Swinton is a British actress known for both arthouse and mainstream films. She has appeared in a number of films including The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Burn After Reading, The Beach, We Need to Talk About Kevin and was nominated for a Golden Globe for her...
and Paul Roberts
Paul Roberts (painter)
Paul Roberts is the former lead singer and songwriter of Sniff 'n' the Tears. He is also known for his work as a photorealistic painter. He recorded a number of albums under his own name, with music very similar to that of Sniff 'n' Tears. The key albums were City Without Walls and Kettle Drum...
(Sniff 'n' the Tears
Sniff 'n' the Tears
Sniff 'n' the Tears is a British rock band best known for their 1978 song "Driver's Seat", a hit in many countries . The exception was the UK itself where a problem with EMI's pressing plant meant that the single was not available following the band's appearance on Top of the Pops and it peaked...
). The tracks on the album were character-driven.
Fialka has had "The Things I Saw" released on the Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
based !K7 Records
Studio !K7
Studio !K7 is an independent record label based in Berlin, Germany that focuses mostly on electronic music. The name is an abbreviation of the company's original Berlin address, Kaiserdamm 7 . !K7 has since opened branch offices in New York City, Hamburg, London, and Tokyo.It has four independent...
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
, as part of Booka Shade
Booka Shade
Booka Shade is a German house duo. It is made up of Walter Merziger and Arno Kammermeier, described as veterans of the Frankfurt electronic music scene...
's DJ-Kicks: Booka Shade
DJ-Kicks: Booka Shade
DJ-Kicks: Booka Shade is a DJ mix album, mixed by Booka Shade. It was released on the Studio !K7 independent record label as part of the DJ-Kicks series.-Track listing:# "A Different Kind Of Blue" - Passengers# "Slum Girl" - Nôze...
album in October 2007. This came as a mashup
Mashup (music)
A mashup or bootleg is a song or composition created by blending two or more pre-recorded songs, usually by overlaying the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the instrumental track of another...
with another track by Akiko Kiyama.
Collectors of work by Fialka prize bootleg
Bootleg recording
A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...
copies of Morrison Cafe, a deconstruction
Deconstruction
Deconstruction is a term introduced by French philosopher Jacques Derrida in his 1967 book Of Grammatology. Although he carefully avoided defining the term directly, he sought to apply Martin Heidegger's concept of Destruktion or Abbau, to textual reading...
of song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s by The Doors
The Doors
The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
, and also To Live Outside The Law You Must Be Honest, where he has done the same to song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s written by Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
.
Songwriting and production credits
Fialka has written songs recordedSound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
and/or remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
ed by other artists, as follows:-
- "Maybe Someday" - Cliff RichardCliff RichardSir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
- Dressed For the Occasion (1983) - "In the Silence of the Night" - Sniff 'n' the Tears - Underground (2001)
- "Lip Service" - Sniff 'n' the Tears - Underground (2001)
- "The Misidia Monarchy/The Things I Saw" - Booka ShadeBooka ShadeBooka Shade is a German house duo. It is made up of Walter Merziger and Arno Kammermeier, described as veterans of the Frankfurt electronic music scene...
- DJ-Kicks: Booka ShadeDJ-Kicks: Booka ShadeDJ-Kicks: Booka Shade is a DJ mix album, mixed by Booka Shade. It was released on the Studio !K7 independent record label as part of the DJ-Kicks series.-Track listing:# "A Different Kind Of Blue" - Passengers# "Slum Girl" - Nôze...
(2007) - "Thru the Gate... Every Step of the Way" - Martin Stephenson - Collective Force (2002)
- "Today Is Yesterday" - SimeoneSimeoneSimeone is an English musician, who is signed to the independent record label Le Coq Musique other artists of the label include; Kevin Mooney of Adam And The Ants, Gary Asquith of Renegade Soundwave.- Solo career :...
- An Introduction To Simeone (2011)
Singles
- 1980: "The Eyes Have It" UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#52 - 1980: "File In Forget"
- 1980: "Armband"
- 1984: "Eat, Drink, Dance, Relax"
- 1987: "Hey, MatthewHey, Matthew"Hey, Matthew" is a single released by the British musician, Karel Fialka, in 1987. It was later included on his 1988 album, Human Animal.The song has instrumentation with only a synthesizer and a drum machine being used...
" UK #9, DGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
#15, CHCzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
#13, U.S. Modern Rock #29 - 1988: "Eat, Drink, Dance, Relax (remixRemixA remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
)" - 1988: "You Be The Judge"