141. Jacek Cygan (lyrics), Grzegorz Turnau (vocals) – W muszelkach twoich dłoni (Inside the shells of your hands)

This song wrote one of the most famous Polish songwriters, Jacek Cygan. The song is housed on an album called “Księżyc w misce” (‘The moon in the bowl’).

W muszelkach twoich dłoni	Inside the shells of your hands
W muszelkach twoich dłoni	Inside the shells of your hands
Ocean śpi spieniony,	The foamy ocean’s sleeping
Więc przystaw je do ucha	So put them to your ear
I słuchaj, słuchaj.....	And listen, listen…
A gdy otworzysz dłonie,	And when your hands are opened
Na każdej białej stronie	On every page that’s clear
Zobaczysz mapę życia	You’ll see the map of life
Więc czytaj, czytaj	So read it, read it
A dłonie tak bezbronne,	And hands are so defenseless
Unosi życia prąd	By stream of life are swept
Jak białe brzuchy ryb	Like fish white abdomens
Gdy gna je wodna toń.	While driven by water’s depths.
Ławice białych śladów,	The shoals of pale white tracks
Ktoś był i walczył z nurtem,	One’s been and fought the flow
A teraz gna w niepamięć	And now oblivion has him
Wciąganym w wiry kutrem,	Whirlpools engulfed his boat
Więc mocno ściskaj pięści,	So clench your fists with power
Jak gdybyś chciał na krótko	To give your heart not sooner
Zatrzymać małe serce	(If only you would like to)
Co jest jak chwiejna łódka,	Which is as fragile schooner
Zatrzymać małe serce	(If only you would like to)
Co jest jak chwiejna łódka,	Your heart as fragile schooner
Co jest jak chwiejna łódka,
Co jest jak chwiejna łódka.

140. Ewa Lipska (lyrics), Grzegorz Turnau (vocals) – Ostatnie słowa (The last words)

A song from an album called “Kawałek cienia” (“A piece of shadow”) written by famous Polish poetess Ewa Lipska.

The translation showed below needs some explanation, namely the last word of the poem. In fact, the Polish lyrics contain the word ‘capercaille’ at the end of the last stanza. Probably the purpose of this word was that in Polish it connotes other words with the root “głusz-” or “głuch-” (there is an alternation “sz” /ʃ/ to “ch” /x/ in many Polish words) like “ogłuszyć”, “zagłuszyć” (both mean ‘to deafen’), “głuchy” (‘deaf’) as well as “głusza” (‘wilderness, solitude or stillness’). I have used the word “daffodil” which probably is the best English word to connote the idea of deafening or being deaf, although in fact it contains more open vowel (/æ/) then the word “deaf” and its derivatives (/e/). Unfortunately, the daffodil translation fails to convey the ideas of solitude and stillness but on the other hand it is impossible to render all the meanings from the original.

The lyrics were taken from “pome.art” site (http://www.poema.art.pl/site/itm_90240_ostatnie_slowa.html).

Ostatnie słowa	The last words
Może lepiej, że nie zdążyliśmy	Maybe it’s better this way
powiedzieć sobie tych ostatnich słów,	Without saying the last words to each other
ostatnie słowa mogłyby nas zawieść...	The last words might have disappointed us…
Może lepiej, że nie zdążyliśmy	Maybe it’s better this way
powiedzieć sobie tych ostatnich słów,	Without saying the last words to each other
bo nie ostrożne mogły zawadzić po czas przyszły...	Since they might have stopped in the future tense
Mogłyby nic nie mieć do powiedzenia,	Might have had nothing to say
przedwcześnie pogrzebać coś w nas,	Or ruined something inside us too soon
mogłyby mówić nad wszelką miarę	Might have been speaking beyond any measure
powiedzieć do nas o wiele za wszystko	And told us far too everything
jak czynny wulkan pod tweedowym niebem...	Like an active volcano under the tweed sky…
Mogłyby nic nie mieć do powiedzenia,	Might have had nothing to say
przedwcześnie pogrzebać coś w nas...	Or ruined something inside us too soon…
Może lepiej, że nie zdążyliśmy	Maybe it’s better this way
powiedzieć sobie tych ostatnich słów,	Without saying the last words to each other
w ostatnich słowach zamknięty jest głuszec...	The last words contain a daffodil …

76. Michał Zabłocki (lyrics), Grzegorz Turnau (vocals) – Cichosza (Shush-quiet)

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Cichosza is one of the most popular songs by Grzegorz Turnau. It is housed in the Turnau’s second album called Pod światło (‘Against the light’).

In the poem, we can find some play on words, e.g. in the title itself which is actually a neologism derived from the adverb “cicho” (‘quietly’) and the interjection “sza” (‘(s)hush’). Both of them may be used together as when ordering someone to be quiet: “cisho, sza!” (‘quiet!’ or ‘silence! (s)hush!’), but even then they are written separately, as two words, not one. In the below translation, this coinage was rendered retaining the original location of the stress, i.e. on the penultimate syllable which points out, at least in the Polish version, the joining between the roots. “Shush-quiet” /ʃʌʃˈkwaɪət/ is probably (hopefully) as extraordinary and surprising in English as “cichosza” in Polish.

The above-mentioned play on words is not limited to the title. Zabłocki, the author of the poem, have modified some words, namely “zwiadu, idu, patrzu, widzu”. The correct forms of the words are: “zwiad, idę, patrzę, widzę” /zvjat, ide, patʃe, vid͡ze/. The changed endings make the words similar to Russian language or to a rural dialect (though there is no Polish dialect with such endings, at least in such a context, namely the first person singular of the verbs). Also, the words resemble the Polish idiom “ani widu, ani słychu” /aɲi vidu, aɲi swɨxu/ (‘there is no trace of somebody or something’). This connection is probably the most appropriate since the poem refers clearly to the lack of loftiness in our lives. Loftiness of different kind. It may be as well high culture or extraordinary feats of technology.

Real dialect feature appears in the end of the poem, in the verse “I w ogóle nic ni ma” /i v ɔgulɛ ɲit͡s ɲi ma/. In the common variant of the Polish language, it should be: “I w ogóle nic nie ma”. Here we have the narrowing of the /ɛ/ vowel preceding and following nasal consonants (the latter being the palatal consonant what additionally facilitates the narrowing). This dialect form makes the whole sentence seem more colloquial and plain, as well as it enables to relate the expression “ni ma” to “zima” in the next verse by means of a rhyme: /ɲi ma, ʑima/.

Note: in the below translation, the second column provides rather literal translation while the last one houses a more poetic rendering.

Cichosza	Quiet-hush	Shush-quiet
Po cichu po wielkiemu cichu	Quietly, very quietly	Quietly, veryly quietly
Idę sobie ku miastu na zwiadu	I’m going calmly to town to scout	Goin’ calmly to town to scout around
I idu i patrzu	And going and looking	And go ‘round, and look ‘round
Na ulicach cichosza na chodnikach cichosza	In the streets, there’s quiet-hush, in the pavements there’s quiet-hush	In the streets, there’s shush-quiet, in pavements, there’s shush-quiet
Nie ma Mickiewicza i nie ma Miłosza	There is no Mickiewicz and there is no Miłosz	There is no Mickiewicz and there is no Miłosz
Tu cichosza tam cicho, szaro, brudno i zima	Here and there is quiet-hush, dully, dirty and winter	Here’s shush-quiet, there is hush, dully, dirty and so dim
Nie ma Słowackiego i nie ma Tuwima	There is no Słowacki and there is no Tuwim	There is no Słowacki and there is no Tuwim
Na ulicach cichosza…
Po cichu po wielkiemu cichu	Quietly, very quietly	Quietly, veryly quietly
Idu sobie i idu i idu	I’m going calmly, and going, and going	Goin’ calmly and goin’, and goin’
I patrzu i widzu	And looking and seeing	And lookin’and seein’
W rękach głowach cichosza, w ustach, oczach cichosza	In hands, in head there’s quiet-hush, in mouths, in eyes there’s quiet-hush	Hands bear, heads bear shush-quiet, mouths bear, eyes bear shush-quiet
Nie ma samozwańców i nie ma rokoszan	There are no pretenders and there are no rebels	There are no pretenders and there’re no insurgents
Tu cichosza tam cicho szaro buro i śnieży	Here and there is quiet-hush, dirty, dim and snowy	Here’s shush-quiet, there is hush, dully, dirty and snowy
Nie ma kosmonautów i nie ma papieży	There are no cosmonauts and there are no popes	There are no inventors and there is no clergy
Na ulicach cichosza na chodnikach cichosza…
Tu cichosza tam cicho i w ogóle nic ni ma	Here’s quiet-hush, there is quiet, and generally there’s nothing	Here’s shush-quiet, there is hush, altogether there’s no thing
Wiosna to czy lato jesień albo zima	Whether it’s spring, summer, autumn or winter	In winter, in summer, in autumn or in spring
Po cichu po wielkiemu cichu

65. Michał Zabłocki (lyrics), Grzegorz Turnau (vocals) – Naprawdę nie dzieje się nic (Nothing really happens)

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Zabłocki and Turnau are a real team creating beautiful, lyric songs. It is really cheering that there are still people in Poland who like to listen to such poems sung to the accompaniment of good music.

Probably, Zabłocki refers to the old motif of Biblical provenance, namely nihil novi sub sole (‘nothing new under the sun’). It is rather strange in our times full of new discoveries and technologies.

In the video below, Turnau said that the chorus is rather sad, but it may be regard differently. Nothing bad ever happens as well as good things.

Naprawdę nie dzieje się nic	Nothing really happens
Czy zdanie okrągłe wypowiesz,	If you say a round phrase
czy księgę mądrą napiszesz,	If you write a wise book
będziesz zawsze mieć w głowie	Your mind will always be
tę samą pustkę i ciszę.	A total blank
Słowo to zimny powiew	A word is a cold breeze
nagłego wiatru w przestworze;	Of sudden wind to the expanse
może orzeźwi cię, ale	It may refresh you but
donikąd dojść nie pomoże.	Will lead you to nowhere
Zwieść cię może ciągnący ulicami tłum,	Crowds heading in streets may deceive you,
wódka w parku wypita albo zachód słońca,	Vodka drunk up in a park or sunset
lecz pamiętaj: naprawdę nie dzieje się nic	But remember: nothing really happens
i nie stanie się nic – aż do końca.	And nothing will happen, till the end
Czy zdanie okrągłe wypowiesz,	If you say a round phrase
czy księgę mądrą napiszesz,	If you write a wise book
będziesz zawsze mieć w głowie	Your mind will always be
tę samą pustkę i ciszę.	A total blank
Zaufaj tylko warg splotom,	Trust in the lips’ weaves
bełkotom niezrozumiałym,	Gibbering incomprehensible
gestom w próżni zawisłym,	Gestures in air looming
niedoskonałym.	Imperfect ones
Zwieść cię może ciągnący ulicami tłum,	Crowds heading in streets may deceive you,
wódka w parku wypita albo zachód słońca,	Vodka drunk up in a park or sunset
lecz pamiętaj: naprawdę nie dzieje się nic
i nie stanie się nic - aż do końca.

60. Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński (poem), Grzegorz Turnau (vocals, music) – Liryka, liryka, tkliwa dynamika (Poetry, poetry, tender geometry)

It must have happened... A poem by Gałczyński sung by Grzegorz Turnau translated, let’s say, and with a bit of luck, poetically.

To preserve the rhymes and the rhythm I had to change some verses, e.g. the chorus. The literal meaning of the original is shown in the literal translation (the “little fish” as it’s called in Polish). Also, I had to change the magazine titles because Polish titles are completely unknown to English reader. Of course, where there’s a reference to a communist gazette (“Gazeta Ludowa”), which builds a comic effect, I left it as it was.

“Gazeta Ludowa” was in fact an organ of the Polish Peasant’s Party in years 1947-1949. Next the “Generation” (“Pokolenie”) was a biweekly magazine published by Polish Youth Association (Związek Młodzieży Polskiej) and “Kamena” was a literary monthly issued in Lublin from 1933 to 1993.

The reference to “Przekrój” has its meaning: it was this magazine where Gałczyński published his poems after the Second World War, among others there were famous Gałczyński's “Green geese”. “Liryka, liryka, tkliwa dynamika” dates back to that exact time, namely 1946 year.

Arthur mentioned in the text was Artur Maria Swinarski, a poet and satirist.

It's worth mentioning that the lyrics sung by Turnau differ a little from the original poem. The differences are marked by writing the Turnau’s lyrics in superscript. Apart from that, Turnau skips some strophes, namely the 3^rd, 5^th, and 6^th strophe.

There are two puns in the text which are difficult to render in translation. It’d be better to explain them. “A ja jak bóbr” (the 2^nd strophe) refers to a Polish idiom “płakać jak bóbr”, literally ‘to cry like a beaver’ which is the equivalent for English “to cry one’s eyes out”. Next “Cud jak z nut” (the 4^th strophe) contains part of the idiom “kłamać/łżeć jak z nut”, literally ‘to lie from music/a score’, which means ‘to lie through one’s teeth’.

Liryka, liryka, tkliwa dynamika	Lyric poetry, lyric poetry, tender dynamics	Poetry, poetry, tender geometry
Sam nie rozumiem, skąd to mi się bierze,	I don’t how myself, how I happens to be	Have no idea, how it happens to me
że jestem mitologiczne zwierzę,	A mythological beast	that I’m a mythological beast
ni to świnio-byk ni to koto-pies,	A cross between a pig and a bull, a cross between a cat and a dog	half a piggy-bull, half a kitty-dog
i w ogóle z innych stron:	Totally from different parts	and from total different parts
Liryka, liryka	Lyric poetry, lyric poetry	Poetry, poetry
tkliwa dynamika,	tender dynamics	tender geometry
angelologia	angelology	angelology
i dal.	and distance	and far
Idę, powiedzmy, wieczorem z Arturem	Say, when I’m going in the evening with Arthur	Going, let’s say, in the evening with Arthur
i nagle: księżyc wschodzi zanad murem,	And then the moon rises behindabove a wall	suddenly, the moon rises at harbour
Artur ostrzega, bo dobry kolega:	Arthur warns me, ‘cause he’s my good friend	Arthur warns me then, since a good friend
– Nie patrz. – A ja jak bóbr:	‘Don’t look.’ And me like a baby	‘Don’t look.’ And me like child
Liryka, liryka…
W takim „Przekroju” po prostu się boją	In such “Przekrój” they are just afraid	In such “New Yorker” they are just afraid
bo jak na przykład wejdę do pokoju	‘Cause when I enter a room, for example	‘Cause when I enter a space
i się zamyślę, powiedzmy, o Wiśle,	And fall into thought, say, on Vistula	and fall into thought, let say, on the Wisłok
to zaraz łzy jak groch:	Right Away bust in tears	right away burst in tears
Liryka, liryka…
Wy się nie dziwcie, śliczni panowie,	Don’t you wonder, my lovely gentlemen	My lovely gents, so stop you wondering
sześć lat po świecie tułał się człowiek	It was six years of wandering around the world,	Around the world six years of wandering
i naglea tutaj: Polska i harfa eolska,	And then there’shere’s Poland and the aeolian harp	and then there’s Poland and harp the aeolian
po prostu cud jak z nut:	Simply, a miracle through one’s teeth	a wonder through one’s teeth
Liryka, liryka…
Będziecie śmiać się, lecz daję słowo:	You may laugh, but I give you my word	You may be laughing, my word you can take
ja czytam nawet „Gazetę Ludową”	I even read the “Gazeta Ludowa”	While even reading “Popular Gazette”
i „Pokolenie”, i wiersze w „Kamenie”,	And “Pokolenie”, and poems in “Kamena”	or „Generation”, “Kamena” citations
i czytam, i szlocham, och!	And read and sob, oh!	and read I, and sob I, oh
Liryka, liryka…
Niech mnie zarąbią, niech honoraria	Let them hack me down, let the honoraria	Let them do hack me, and honoraria
wyda na wieńce Artur Marya!	be spent on the wreaths by Arthur Mary	spend on the wreaths my Arthur Maria
Ja jestem Polak, a Polak jest wariat,	I am a Pole, and a Pole is mad	A Pole I am true, and Poles have hysteria
a wariat to lepszy gość:	And madmas is still a better guy.	and madman is great a bloke
Liryka, liryka…
A po pogrzebie pod korniszon	And after the funeral under the gherkin	After funeral under gherkin
niech epitaphium mi napiszą:	Let an epitaph be written for me	Let them write an epitaph for me
TU LEŻY MAGIK I MAŁPISZON,	‘Here lies a magician and a cheeky monkey’	“Here lies magician, cheeky monkey”
pod spodem taki tekst:	Underneath such a text	Beneath it such a text
Liryka, liryka…