He preferred to die than to stop singing. The golden voice of the People’s Republic of Poland was silenced by a deadly disease

Jacek Lech (actually Leszek Zerhau) was born on April 15, 1947 in Mikuszowice. From an early age, he dreamed of linking his future with performances. Initially, he thought about an acting career and already in primary school he took part in school theaters, which he writes about . Although his peers called him an “artist”, his parents wanted him to become a doctor or a lawyer. They hoped that this would provide him with a better future, but they did not prevent him from developing his artistic passions. Jacek Lech was interested not only in acting, but also in music. In high school, he founded a band, and at the age of 17 he achieved his first success – he managed to win the jazz competition “Microphone for everyone”. Although he tried to get into the Łódź film school, after two failures, he decided to focus on music. It turned out to be a hit.

Jacek Lech spread his musical wings in 1966. Two years after winning a jazz competition, he joined the band Czerwono-Czarni, where he became a soloist. He released his first hit quite quickly – the song was called “Be the girl of my dreams” and took over the hearts of Polish women and men. Soon it turned out that the first song was just the beginning of his success. The following year, from the beginning of his career, he received a distinction for the song “Let me sing birds” at the 5th National Festival of Polish Song in Opole. Czerwono-Czarni also performed alongside the famous band The Rolling Stones. In 1972, Jacek Lech decided to leave the group and start his own band. An unfortunate car accident interrupted his career for a while, but the musician decided to return to the stage, this time as a solo singer.

He died for the love of music. He refused to agree to the operation

Jacek Lech’s career developed and absorbed him completely, but in 2006 the artist heard a diagnosis that changed his life. The doctors informed him that a tumor was growing in his esophagus. The musician confessed in later interviews that although he was shocked by it, he guessed what was the reason for his health problems. The cancer was related to his addiction – the artist smoked cigarettes from the age of 12. Jacek Lech, however, saw no escape from tobacco.

I tried, but it hurt my vocal cords, which were used to tobacco. When I stopped smoking, my hoarseness became worse because the vocal cords were addicted to nicotine

– he admitted in his last interview. Doctors recommended surgery, but Jacek Lech flatly refused. He was concerned that such a procedure might damage the vocal cords.

I was offered an operation, but I refused, because even the best surgeon’s hand can tremble and then there will be no singing at all, no talking either. That’s why I decided on such a harsh, even deadly chemotherapy and radiotherapy

–

Chemotherapy and irradiation left their mark on the artist. At the end of his life, the man weighed only 60 kilograms. What’s more, the therapy did not bring the expected results, and the disease progressed. Finally, Jacek Lech agreed to the operation. He hoped to marry his beloved Urszula Kopeć, but it was too late. On March 25, 2007, Jacek Lech died in a hospital in Katowice. Three days later he was buried in Bielsko-Biała.