Karel Gott

Karel Gott, born on July 14, 1939 in Pilsen; died on October 1, 2019 in Prague, was a versatile Czech artist – a pop singercomposer, actor and painter. Known as the “golden voice from Prague”, he achieved great popularity in German-speaking countries with hits such as Weißt du wohin, Einmal um die ganze Welt, Lady Carneval, Die Biene Maja, Babička and Fang das Licht. His record sales are estimated at over 50 million.

Karel Gott was the only child of Karel Gott (1911-1982) and Marie Valešová (1910-1977). At the age of six, he moved with his parents from Pilsen to Prague. There he attended grammar school and danced with friends in dance cafés. He actually wanted to become a painter, but saw no chance of passing the entrance exam to the Prague Academy of Fine Arts and initially trained as a high-voltage electrician at ČKD.

His musical career began in 1958 with performances in Prague dance cafés. In 1959, he came to the attention of band leader Karel Krautgartner, who sponsored him with a place at the Prague Conservatory. Gott studied singing there for three years. He made his first recordings in English in 1960. In 1963, he released his first single – a Czech version of Moon River. He attracted international attention in 1967 with a performance at the Midem Festival in Cannes and a six-month engagement in Las Vegas. In the same year, he celebrated his first major success with Weiß du wohin, followed by Einmal um die ganze Welt in 1968.

In 1968 he represented Austria at the Grand Prix Eurovision (ESC) with the song by Udo JürgensHis first album Die goldene Stimme aus Prag reached number 1 in the German album charts in 1969. The term “Golden Voice from Prague” was coined by producer Ossi Drechsler. In the same year, he had a film role in Charley’s Uncle. After the Prague Spring, Gott briefly considered emigrating, but then decided to return to Czechoslovakia.

In 1976, he recorded the children’s song Maya the Bee together with Karel Svoboda, which became one of his best-known titles. He enjoyed further success with German-language hits such as Babička (1979) and the duet Fang das Licht (1985). Svoboda composed many of his songs himself, while the lyrics were written by well-known authors such as Michael Kunze and Bernd Meinunger. His studio album Guten Abend, gute Laune (1981) reached number 1 in Austria and number 2 in Germany.

Gott also remained active in the 2000s. In 2008, he reached the top of the charts with the song Für immer jung (together with Bushido) reached number 5 in the German charts. His last studio album Sentiment was released in 2011. He last sang the soulful song Srdce nehasnou together with his daughter Charlotte Ella Gottová in 2019.

The family life of Karel Gott

Karel Gott was married to Ivana Macháčková (* 1976), whom he married in Las Vegas in January 2008. This marriage produced two daughters: Charlotte Ella Gottová, born in 2006, and Nelly, born in 2008. Karel Gott also had two other daughters from previous extramarital relationships, born in 1973 and 1987. He lived with his family in a picturesque villa on a hill in the Prague district of Smíchov.

In November 2015, it became known that Gott was suffering from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a form of cancer. After intensive treatment, the doctors declared him cured in July 2016. However, the next tragic diagnosis followed in September 2019: acute leukemia. On October 1, 2019, Karel Gott passed away at the age of 80 surrounded by his family at his home in Prague.

The Czech Republic bid farewell to its national idol on October 12, 2019 with a national day of mourning. The funeral service took place in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague and was led by Archbishop Dominik Duka. Karel Gott was laid to rest in December 2019 at the Malvazinky Cemetery (Hřbitov Malvazinky) in Smíchov.

Studio albums by Karel Gott

• 1965 Zpívá Karel Gott
• 1966 The Golden Voice of Prague
• 1967 Recital Karla Gotta
• 1967 You know where (Zhivago melody)
• 1967 Hlas můj nech tu znít
• 1968 The voice from golden Prague
• 1969 A song sounds in me
• 1970 From the Bohemian Forest to Vienna
• 1970 The star of my life
• 1971 From Bohemia to the world
• 1971 From Romeo and Juliet
• 1972 Bring the world into your home
• 1973 Karel Gott
• 1975 From the Bohemian Forest to the Vienna Woods
• 1975 The new LP
• 1977 Today is the best day of my life
• 1978 Gute Reise with Karel Gott
• 1978 My Romantic Feeling
• 1979 Every year again
• 1980 One love is worth many tears
• 1981 Good evening, good mood
• 1983 You are there for me
• 1987 No looking back
• 1989 I want you the way you are
• 2000 Forever young
• 2009 Life
• 2011 Sentiment