Jožin z bažin
| "Jožin z bažin" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Banjo Band | ||||
| from the album Nashledanou! | ||||
| B-side | "Ušní Příhoda" | |||
| Released | 1977 | |||
| Recorded | 1977 | |||
| Genre | Czech bluegrass | |||
| Label | Panton | |||
| Songwriter | Ivan Mládek | |||
| Banjo Band singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Jožin z bažin is a song written by Czech musician and comedian Ivan Mládek and recorded by his group, Banjo Band, for their 1977 album, Nashledanou! It is considered the band's best-known song, both at home and internationally.
In January 2008, the clip of the song unexpectedly became popular in Poland, winning several radio hit lists,[1] and the band recorded a Polish version on their album Jozin z bazin w Polsce, released the same year.[2] It was also popular in Hungary, Austria, and Russia.[3]
Story
The song is a parody on medieval tales, where a brave knight rescues a kingdom terrorized by a monster and as a reward marries the princess, with half the kingdom in dowry.
A man driving a Škoda 100 takes a shortcut through the Czech region of Moravia, which is being terrorized by a monster named Jožin z bažin (Josey from the swamps), who mainly eats people from Prague. In a village on a road to Vizovice, the chairman of the local collective farm promises half of the farm, together with his daughter's hand in marriage, to whoever defeats Jožin. The man asks for a cropduster plane to spray the monster with pesticide, catches Jožin, and sells him to a zoo.
Comments
Part of the humorous attraction of the clip is a jerky "air guitar"-style dance performed by Ivo Pešák with a straight face. Pešák recalled that the dance appeared by sheer accident: the band forgot the banjo, and not knowing what to do during the performance, Ivo started dancing.[1][4]
The American heavy metal band Metallica covered the song during a concert in Prague in 2018, receiving an enthusiastic response from their audience, who sang along.[5][6]
References
- ^ a b "Jožin z bažin a trsající Pešák uhranuli Polsko" [Jožin z bažin and the Shaking Pawn Conquered Poland]. idnes.cz (in Czech). 15 January 2008. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
- ^ "Jožin Z Bažin W Polsce". discogs.com. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
- ^ "Jožin z bažin hitem i v Rusku. V nové verzi škádlí Putina" [Jožin z bažin a hit in Russia as well. In the new version, he teases Putin]. tyden.cz (in Czech). 27 July 2009. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
- ^ "Zemřel Ivo Pešák, hudebník z Banjo Bandu Ivana Mládka" [Ivo Pešák, musician from Ivan Mládek's Banjo Band, has died]. irozhlas.cz (in Czech). 9 May 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2026.
- ^ "Metallica zahrála v Praze Jožina z Bažin". Novinky.cz (in Czech). 3 April 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "Metallica zahrála v Praze. Došlo i na Jožina z bažin a práškovací letadlo". iRozhlas.cz (in Czech). 3 April 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
