Ivan Král

12 May 1948, Prague – 2 February 2020, Michigan, USA

Ivan Král (Ivan Kral), born in Prague, was active in the student rock band Saze while still a student in the grammar school in Ohradní Street in Prague. Apart from playing the solo guitar, he also composed songs. His song Pierot was played on the Czechoslovak Radio. In 1966, he and his brother went to the USA, where their father worked as a translator in a Czechoslovak news agency and also translated for the UN. He did not return to his homeland until the fall of communism.

Soon after his arrival in New York, he became interested in rock music. He worked for the music publisher Apple Records, which collaborated with The Beatles. He played in the band Luger and later Blondie. In 1975, he became a member of Patti Smith’s band and recorded four albums with her. He wrote a number of songs for Patti Smith, most famously Dancing Barefoot, to Patti Smith’s text (the song became controversial and the Rolling Stone included it on the list of 500 best songs of all times). He also had a close collaboration with the punk singer Iggy Pop, as well as with David Bowie and John Wait. He composed songs and film music, and also produced. He held concerts with the band Eastern Block.

After 1989, he returned to his homeland regularly. He collaborated with Jiří Suchý, Ivan Hlasem, David Koller and Karel Šůcha. He produced records of the bands Lucie, Mňága a Žďorp and Garage.

Ivan Král, one of the biggest Czech rock musicians who worked with many world rock stars, died of cancer in his home in Michigan.