Karin Stanek – The girl with the guitar

A permanent memento

Anna Kryszkiewicz, Karin Stanek’s untiring manager, and Karin’s loyal fans, still keep the memory of the “Queen of Polish beat music” alive today. One particular contribution was made by Stefan Papierowski. He and Karin Stanek were friends. She met him several times and kept in touch by letter. She described him as her “biggest, most loyal fan in Poland”, and gave him a series of personal mementoes, including her guitar and stage costumes. Stefan Papierowski, as well as being Karin's “most loyal fan”, also organised special exhibitions, gave interviews and visited schools in Silesia to tell the young pupils about Karin Stanek’s decisiveness and talent. In his mind, all of these items could later be used as the basis for a permanent exhibition or a place of remembrance for Karin Stanek.

The actress and singer Arleta gave a series of concerts in different venues in Poland together with the Acoustic Warsaw Band, at which she sang Karin Stanek’s greatest hits to great acclaim. For her part, Anna Kryszkiewicz produced and published a triple CD album, “Karin Stanek – Autostopem z malowaną lalą” (“Karin Stanek – hitch-hiking with the painted doll”). In memory of Karin Stanek, the town of Bytom renamed the square in front of the local culture centre after her and erected a memorial plaque dedicated to her there.

In addition, for two years, the “League of non-indifferent women” (Liga Kobiet Nieobojętnych) from Bytom collected money to enable a statue to be built in honour of Karin Stanek. In 2013 to mark the occasion of the 70th birthday of the charismatic singer from Silesia, the statue was unveiled in front of the culture centre in Bytom. The statue was created by the sculptor Jacek Wichrowski.

In 2011, shortly before Karin's death, Anna Kryszkiewicz unveiled the Karin Stanek star in the walk of fame in Opole. And in Szczecin, where she won the first Festival of Young Talent in 1962, Stefan Papierowski unveiled a start with her autograph in the walk of fame there, in the garden of the Villa Sorrento.

Alina Moś-Kerger, a theatre director from Katowice, wrote a moving monodrama about Karin Stanek. The singer was played by actress Agnieszka Wajs, while the music was provided by Piotr Górka, a well-known musician in Silesia.

Anna Kryszkiewicz paid homage to her friend, with whom she worked for 40 years, with the biography “Karin Stanek. Autostopem z malowaną lalą” (“Karin Stanek. Hitch-hiking with the Painted Doll”). In 1991, it was printed as a serial in the press, and since 2015 has been available in an extended version from the Edipresse publishers in Warsaw. Kryszkiewicz also maintains a website dedicated to Karin Stanek: karin-stanek.hpage.com. Stefan Papierowski administers the KARIN STANEK group on Facebook and regularly publishes material about the singer on his YouTube channel.

Joanna de Vincenz, July 2022

This text was written on the basis of the book by Anna Kryszkiewicz: “Karin Stanek. Autostopem z malowaną lalą”, Warsaw 2015.

The author of this article wishes to thank Anna Kryszkiewicz and Stefan Papierowski for their cooperation and for making photographs available from their personal archives.

Discography

1962 – Karin Stanek, Czerwono-Czarni (P, Muza SP-323)

1962 – Karin Stanek, Czerwono-Czarni (Muza N-0209)

1963 – Karin Stanek, Czerwono-Czarni (EP, Pronit N-0257)

1963 – Karin Stanek, Czerwono-Czarni (EP, Pronit N-0289)

1964 – Karin Stanek, Czerwono-Czarni (Muza N-0303)

1966 – Czerwono-Czarni (LP, Muza SXL-0352)

1966 – Karin Stanek – Malowana lala (Syrena Record Company USA, LPS-1004)

1967 – Czerwono-Czarni – 17.000.000 (LP, Muza XL-0458)

1979 – Karin Stanek – Ich mag dich so wie du bist (TopSound, S-9001, Germany)

1979 – Karin Stanek – Das geballte Temperament mit der unerhörten Stimme (TopSound, Top-368, Germany)

1981 – CORY GUN – Let's have a party (Monopole, S-1931, Germany)

1982 – BLACKBIRD – Don't play that game with me (Aladin, A-1966, Germany)

1982 – BLACKBIRD – Tell me (Aladin, A-2770, Germany)

1985 – Karin Stanek – Tango Gitano (Tonpress, S-203 A)

1985 – Karin Stanek – Hey Schnucki (Tonpress, S-202)

1992 – Karin Stanek – Greatest Hits (Digiton, DIG-112)

1999 – Karin Stanek – Malowana lala, Galeria Polskiej Piosenki (Yesterday 83098812-2)

2002 – Karin Stanek – Jedziemy autostopem, Złota Kolekcja (Pomaton EMI 7243 5 39120 2 4)

2005 – Karin Stanek – SEX (NPR Records 09940, Germany)

2009 – Karin Stanek – Dziewczyna z gitarą (Muza, Polskie Nagrania PNCD-1275)

2011 – Karin Stanek – Autostopem z malowaną lalą 3 CD (Agencja Artystyczna MTJ, CD-90201)

Further information online:

https://karin-stanek.hpage.com/index.html

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=karin+stanek