Franciszek Walicki (20 July 1921 – 3 October 2015) was a Polish journalist. He was considered the father of Polish beat and rock music, calling them big-beat as rock and roll was unacceptable name for the authorities of the Polish People's Republic at the time.
In 1956 he and Leopold Tyrmand organized the first Jazz Festival in Sopot. Walicki also founded a number of important Polish bands: 1959 – – the first Polish big beat group 1960 – Czerwono-Czarni 1962 – Niebiesko-Czarni 1968 – Breakout 1974 – SBB
Awards and distinctions
1996 – Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta
Righteous among the Nations medal
1998 – Grand Prix, National Festival of Polish Song in Opole
References
External links
Official website
1921 births
2015 deaths
Musicians from Łódź
Polish journalists
Writers from Łódź
People from Łódź Voivodeship (1919–1939) Officers of the Order of Polonia Restituta Polish Righteous Among the Nations Recipients of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis