Adam Aston (born Adolf Loewinsohn, 17 September 1902, Warsaw, Poland: died 10 January 1993 in London, England) was a Polish singer, actor, and pianist of Jewish origin. He sang in Polish, Hebrew and Yiddish and was one of the most popular artists in interwar Poland. He often worked with Henryk Wars. He also went under the names Adam Wiński, Adam Stanisław Lewinson, recorded also under names J. Kierski, Adam Winski and Ben-Lewi.[1] He used the name Ben-Lewi when recording in Hebrew.
Adam Aston | |
|---|---|
| Born | Adolf Loewinsohn 17 September 1902 |
| Died | 10 January 1993 (aged 90) London, England |
| Other names | Adam Wiński, Adam Stanisław Lewinson, J. Kierski, Ben-Lew |
He debuted at the revue theater (music hall, cabaret) Morskie Oko in Warsaw. He made his first record in 1927; in 1930 he began to work with Henryk Wars at the Morskie Oko cabaret and adopted his stage name of Adam Aston.[2][3]
He recorded gramophone records for Syrena Rekord, Odeon, Parlophon, Columbia, and Lonora, singing as many as 900 songs between 1930 and 1939.[1] He also appeared in two musical comedy films: Dwie Joasie and Manewry miłosne in 1935. He also sang the Polish version of Cheek to Cheek (Polish title: W siódmym niebie - "In Seventh Heaven").
In 1920, he fought in the Polish–Soviet War. After the outbreak of World War II he was evacuated to the east and performed in Lviv, which was then under Soviet occupation. In late 1941, he joined the Polish II Corps of General Anders as part of the Polska Parada cabaret. In 1944, he fought at the Battle of Monte Cassino in Italy. After the war he lived in Johannesburg, South Africa and in 1960 moved to the United Kingdom.
References
edit- ^ a b "Details Polskie Tango". Archived from the original on 2010-07-08. Retrieved 2011-03-02. Orient recording company notes by historian pl:Jerzy Płaczkiewicz
- ^ http://yiddishmusic.jewniverse.info/astonadam/index.html Biographies of noted Jewish musicians
- ^ Biblioteka Polskiej Piosenki