Zebra (Kayah album)
Zebra is a studio album by Polish singer Kayah, released in 1997 by Zic Zac and BMG Poland. The album was a critical and commercial success, and spawned one of Kayah's biggest hits, "Na językach" and "Supermenka".
Zebra | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 23 March 1997[1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 64:48 | |||
Language | ||||
Label |
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Producer |
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Kayah chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Europopmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Machina | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Background
Musically, the album blends contemporary pop and the 1970s disco music with elements of soul and funk.[4] All songs were written by Kayah, except for "Konferencja prasowa", co-written with Artur Affek, and two covers: The Doors' "Light My Fire" and Rod Stewart's "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?". The album was supported by two singles: "Na językach", a song about gossiping, released in February 1997, and the feminist track "Supermenka", released in May 1997, accompanied by music video with a guest appearance by Ice-T.[5] Both songs were number ones in the Polish airplay chart[6][7] and remain one of Kayah's biggest hits to date.
Zebra was a commercial and critical success, outselling her previous album Kamień. It sold 100,000 copies within weeks after premiere[8] and eventually shifted over 200,000 units, earning platinum certification in Poland. Official Polish album sales chart OLiS did not exist at the time, but the album reached number 2 in the reliable monthly sales chart published by Radio Bis. Zebra also won the Fryderyk award for the Pop Album of the Year.[9]
Track listing
- "Na dobry początek" – 0:30
- "Na językach" – 4:30
- "Supermenka" – 3:36
- "Serce jak szafa" – 6:50
- "Light My Fire" – 3:56
- "Uratujcie go" – 4:09
- "Konferencja prasowa" – 6:06
- "Niewidzialna" – 5:19
- "Cogito ergo non sum" – 4:18
- "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" – 4:22
- "Cicho tu" – 6:35
- "Moja sukienka" – 5:34
- "Im więcej tym mniej" – 3:55
- "Wszystko się skończyło" – 5:08
Personnel
- Kayah – vocals, keyboards, loops, production
- Michał Przytuła – keyboards, loops, music programming, mixing, production, mastering
- Krzysztof Pszona – piano (2-8, 10–14)
- Krzysztof Herdzin – piano (4, 11)
- Artur Affek – guitar (2-11)
- Michał Grymuza – guitar (14)
- Artur Kurpisz – guitar (12)
- Filip Sojka – bass (2-8, 10–12, 14)
- Magda Trybuła, Nadia Bogadżijew, Piotr Nowicki, Andrzej Gębski – strings (7, 10, 12–13)
- Piotr Remiszewski – drums (4, 7–8, 10–11)
- José Torres – percussions (2, 4, 8, 11, 14)
- Janusz Mus – accordion (14)
- Marek Podkowa – saxophone (4, 7, 10–11)
- Michał Urbaniak – saxophone (5)
- Łukasz Golec – trumpet (4, 7)
- Paweł Golec – trombone (4, 7)
- Darek Miller – harmonika (3)
- Kasia Stankiewicz – vocals (6, 11)
- Mietek Szcześniak – vocals (4, 8, 11, 14)
- Agnieszka Betley – backing vocals (2-3, 5, 7-10)
- Magda Gleinert – backing vocals (2-3, 5, 7-10)
- Grzegorz Piwkowski – mastering
- Robert Wolański – photography
- Adah Studio – graphic design
Charts
Chart (1997) | Peak position |
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Polish Albums[10] | 2 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Poland (ZPAV) | Platinum[11] | 200,000[12] |
References
- "Zebra - Kayah - Muzyka" (in Polish). Wirtualna Polska. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
- "Kayah". Europopmusic. Retrieved 2013-12-01.
- Bogna Świątkowska (May 1997). "Kayah – Zebra". Machina (in Polish). ISSN 1426-2312.
- ""Dzięki publiczności czuję się jak królowa". Urodziny Kayah" (in Polish). Empik. 2019-11-04. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
- "Kayah - Supermenka (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
- "Major Market Airplay" (PDF). Music & Media. London. 1997-02-22. p. 23. Retrieved 2021-10-05.
- "Major Market Airplay" (PDF). Music & Media. London. 1997-06-07. p. 27. Retrieved 2021-10-05.
- "Kayah - "Zebra": ten sukces jej się należał" (in Polish). polskieradio.pl. 2014-04-20. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
- "Fryderyk 1997" (in Polish). fryderyki.pl. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
- Artur Orzech (1997-04-05). Ranking płytowy (in Polish). Radio Bis.
- "Bestseller charts and awards :: Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry". zpav.pl. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2013-11-29.
- "Kayah – wywiad" (in Polish). muzyczna.pl. 2004-08-31. Archived from the original on 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2021-10-14.