Zbigniew Rawicz & Piotr Szymanowski’s Orchestra – Zakochany [Enamored] Tango (Frachowicz – Szczerbiński), Muza 1948 (Polish)

NOTE: At the end of 1938 and in 1939, a few months before the outbreak of World War 2, several Syrena Electro records were released with the lyrical hits performed by a young promising singer Zbigniew Rawicz, who came from Lwów. His warm, melodic renditions brought him to the attention of the public, and he was dubbed the "Polish Tino Rossi". Unfortunately, the outbreak of war ceased the career of someone who had a chance to become one of Poland's favorite singers, a follower of such prominent crooners as Witas, Popławski or Harris. During the war, Rawicz performed in Warsaw cafes and was active in the underground anti-Hitler movement. He also took part in the Warsaw Uprising in August-October 1944, which ended with the complete destruction of the city by the retreating Germans. After the war, Zbigniew Rawicz made up for lost time in his career to a large extent. He recorded dozens of new songs in the companies Melodje and Muza (the latter released 60 records), he also appeared frequently on the radio and traveled to concerts abroad, including Austria, Hungary, Romania. He died prematurely in 1966 in Warsaw, plagued by chronic illness.

Also noteworthy is the charming style of the Piotr Szymanowski’s Orchestra that accompanies Rawicz. In the first years after World War 2, irrespective of the swing movement developing in Poland (e.g. the Lopatowski Brothers' or the Charles Bowery's orchestras) the model worth following for popular dance bands were the excellent pre-war but now defunct dance orchestras e.g. Henryk Wars, Henryk Gold, Szymon Kataszek. This is why the sound of these early post-war dance performances very often bears an uncanny resemblance to the style of the Odeon or Syrena Electro records.

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