‘Ribič Jaka’ is a polka by the Avsenik brothers from Slovenia, which was recorded in at least two different versions throughout the 1960s, with different names. The earlier instrumental version was released on German records as ‘Liebes Mädchen komm’ (Dear girl, come on) with a Slovenian title of ‘Oj, ti Janka’ (Oh, you, Janka), whereas the later version with vocals by Franc Koren and Ema Prodnik was titled ‘Ribič Jaka’ (Fisherman Jaka) and featured on the 1964 Slovenian LP ‘Stari mlin’ (Old mill). To my knowledge, it was never released with German vocals. I first heard it on a German compilation CD of 1960s Avsenik recordings which were originally released on Slovenian ‘Jugoton’ albums, which I’m so grateful to have heard so early in my musical journey. Despite being older mono recordings, the energy of the Avsenik ensemble’s performances were brilliant, along with the beautiful vocals of Danica Filiplič, Franc Koren, and later into the 1960s, Ema Prodnik who stayed on till the early 1980s. Interestingly, all recordings of this polka featured Avsenik’s seldom seen Excelsior accordion which he used in the early 1960s (which came after his usage of the the Hohner Verdi 3B, and before the Hohner Morino VM). Many album covers from around this period show Slavko Avsenik with his Excelsior 1320S.
In recent years, this song has experienced a revival by the Andrej Toplišek Septett from Slovenia, brilliantly capturing Avsenik’s 1960s and 1970s sound and energy through amazing live performances.
Sheet music
📝 Sheet music pdf (G major)