Karel Fialka
Karel Fialka | |
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| Born | Karel Francis Fialka 9 November 1946 |
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| Occupations |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1980–present |
| Labels | |
| Website | karelfialka |
Karel Francis Fialka (born 9 November 1946) is a British singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. He is best known for his 1987 single, "Hey Matthew".
Early life
Karel Francis Fialka was born on 9 November 1946 in Calcutta, British India, to a Scottish mother and Czech father.[1] His father, Karel Fialka Sr. (1916–1963), was a pilot of No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF, who met his future wife in Tain, Scotland, in 1944. They married in summer of 1945 and later moved to India because of Karel Sr.'s job for Baťa Company.[2][3]
Career
Fialka was launched in 1980 as "the street poet of the 1980s." Fialka's debut studio album Still Life was well received. The single "The Eyes Have It" received radio play.[4]
Fialka had a top 10 hit in 1987 on the UK singles chart with the single "Hey Matthew", (on I.R.S. Records).[5] Fialka works mainly as a conceptual songwriter and record producer with occasional and infrequent live appearances.
"The Things I Saw" was released on the Berlin based Studio !K7 label, as part of Booka Shade's DJ mix album DJ-Kicks: Booka Shade in October 2007. This came as a mashup with another track by Akiko Kiyama.
Fialka released his third studio album Film Noir in March 2009. Featured guest artists included Tilda Swinton and Paul Roberts (Sniff 'n' the Tears).
Bootleg recordings include the titles Morrison Cafe, a deconstruction of songs by the Doors, and To Live Outside the Law You Must Be Honest, where he has done the same to songs written by Bob Dylan.
Songwriting and production credits
Fialka has written songs recorded and/or remixed by other artists, as follows:
- "Maybe Someday" – Cliff Richard – 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 Shade – DJ-Kicks: Booka Shade (2007)
- "Thru the Gate... Every Step of the Way" – Martin Stephenson – Collective Force (2002)
- "Today Is Yesterday" – Simeone – An Introduction to Simeone (2011)[6]
Discography
Studio albums
- Still Life (1980)
- Human Animal (1988)
- Film Noir (2009)[7]
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [5][8] |
SWI [9] |
GER [10] |
US Alt. [11] | |||||||||||
| 1980 | "The Eyes Have It" | 52 | — | — | — | |||||||||
| "File in Forget" | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||
| "Armband" | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||
| 1984 | "Eat, Drink, Dance, Relax" | — | — | — | — | |||||||||
| 1987 | "Hey Matthew" | 9 | 13 | 15 | 29 | |||||||||
| 1988 | "Eat, Drink, Dance, Relax" (remix) | — | — | — | — | |||||||||
| "You Be the Judge" | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
See also
References
- ^ "Karel Fialka". Deezer.com. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
- ^ "Fialka není Smith, ale možná je to dobře, říká autor britského hitu z 80. let. České jméno nosí s hrdostí" (in Czech). Czech Radio. 14 June 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
- ^ "Letec RAF Karel Fialka má pamětní desku v rodném Štěpánově u Přelouče". České noviny (in Czech). Czech News Agency. 8 May 2025. Retrieved 16 March 2026.
- ^ "Karel Fialka Biography". Music.us. Archived from the original on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 198. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Karel Fialka | Songs". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ^ "Karel Fialka | Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ^ "KAREL FIALKA - full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
- ^ "Karel Fialka - Hey Matthew". hitparade.ch (in German). Retrieved 15 February 2021.
- ^ "KAREL FIALKA - HEY MATTHEW [SINGLE]". Offizielle Deutsche Charts (in German). Retrieved 15 February 2021.
- ^ "Karel Fialka Songs • Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography". Musicvf.com. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
External links
- Official website
- Karel Fialka at AllMusic
- Karel Fialka discography at Discogs
- Karel Fialka at IMDb