Biography
Fikret Kizilok stood out as one of the era’s most refined songwriters. His reputation as both a skilled musician and a reflective thinker endured despite repeated career fluctuations. Political and sarcastic lyrics, paired with an expansive grasp of musical styles, placed him among the leading presences on the Turkish music landscape.
Born November 10, 1946, in Istanbul, Turkey, Kizilok began accordion lessons in 1954 while attending primary school at Galatasaray Lycee. By 1960 he had taken up guitar and joined his friends’ group Cahit Oben 4. Although the band proved short-lived, the experience allowed him to record the first song he had written.
Following several singles and another brief project called Veliahtlar, he turned his attention to dental studies. A period performing with Kaygisizlar preceded the decisive journey through rural Anatolia that altered his path. In Sivas he encountered the acclaimed poet and troubadour Asik Veysel, prompting him to adopt the baglama. Back in Istanbul he cut a version of “Uzun Ince Bir Yoldayim,” one of the most celebrated compositions in Turkish music history and a work written by Asik Veysel. The single attracted considerable notice, yet the true breakthrough arrived with the follow-up release “Yumma Gozun Kor Gibi.”
Throughout the opening years of the 1970s Kizilok issued singles and performed live. At the height of his rising profile, Asik Veysel’s death in 1973 prompted him to announce his withdrawal from music—an early instance of the repeated separations that would mark his relationship with the profession. In 1975 he assembled the band Tehlikeli Madde. The music now leaned toward an Anatolian-pop aesthetic, drawing sharp criticism. Two years later he issued Not Defterimden, an album captured between 1971 and 1972 that stood as one of Turkey’s earliest fully electronic recordings; the set set poems against ambient backdrops. He again stepped away from music to practice dentistry.
The 1980s brought an unexpected return with the understated yet masterful Zaman, Zaman. Entirely acoustic, the 1983 album demonstrated how a pop record could be realized through disciplined musicianship and Turkish-language songwriting. Tracks such as “Yeter Ki,” “Zaman Zaman,” and “Sevda Cicegi,” together with seven additional enduring classics, established the collection as one of the finest albums in Turkish music history. During the same decade Kizilok and his associate Bulent Ortacgil founded the celebrated art-house venue Cekirdek Sanat Evi. Their partnership yielded Cekirdek Hatirasi-Biz Sarkilarimizi in 1984 and the further gem Pencere Onu Cicegi in 1986.
Following the dissolution of that creative alliance, Kizilok released Yana Yana in 1990 in a vein closely aligned with his 1980s work. “Bu Kalp Seni Unutur Mu?” quickly became an anthem for lovers, while other songs on the album showcased his matured craft even if the overall impact fell short of Zaman, Zaman. The humorous “Why High One Why” foreshadowed the direction of his next effort, Olmuyo Olmuyo (Dusler), which appeared two years later and featured synthesizers prominently as Kizilok shouted, whispered, and revealed his restless artistic spirit.
The year 1995 proved exceptionally productive: Yadigar, the more personal of two releases, and Demirbas marked a return to the warmer 1980s sound after the less successful Olmuyo Olmuyo (Dusler). Also that year he issued the symphonic poem Vurulduk Ey Halkim in tribute to the journalist Ugur Mumcu, who had been assassinated in 1993.
His final album of original material, the symphonic poem Mustafa Kemal: Devrimcinin Guncesi, appeared in 1998. Another extended silence followed, this time owing to health concerns. While Kizilok was in Bodrum, the compilation Gun Ola Devran Done gathered earlier recordings. In 2001 he composed “Kumsalda” for Sertab Erener, the 2003 Eurovision champion, raising hopes of further output. Instead his long-standing heart condition worsened, and he suffered a fatal heart attack on September 22, 2001, in Istanbul.
A year afterward the career-spanning best-of collection Dunden Bugune Fikret Kizilok was issued. In 2007 the previously unreleased songs written with Bulent Ortacgil two decades earlier for a children’s play were released as Buyukler Icin Cocuk Sarkilari. Remembered as a perfectionist and idealist musician, Kizilok remains one of the most significant figures the Turkish music scene has produced.
Born November 10, 1946, in Istanbul, Turkey, Kizilok began accordion lessons in 1954 while attending primary school at Galatasaray Lycee. By 1960 he had taken up guitar and joined his friends’ group Cahit Oben 4. Although the band proved short-lived, the experience allowed him to record the first song he had written.
Following several singles and another brief project called Veliahtlar, he turned his attention to dental studies. A period performing with Kaygisizlar preceded the decisive journey through rural Anatolia that altered his path. In Sivas he encountered the acclaimed poet and troubadour Asik Veysel, prompting him to adopt the baglama. Back in Istanbul he cut a version of “Uzun Ince Bir Yoldayim,” one of the most celebrated compositions in Turkish music history and a work written by Asik Veysel. The single attracted considerable notice, yet the true breakthrough arrived with the follow-up release “Yumma Gozun Kor Gibi.”
Throughout the opening years of the 1970s Kizilok issued singles and performed live. At the height of his rising profile, Asik Veysel’s death in 1973 prompted him to announce his withdrawal from music—an early instance of the repeated separations that would mark his relationship with the profession. In 1975 he assembled the band Tehlikeli Madde. The music now leaned toward an Anatolian-pop aesthetic, drawing sharp criticism. Two years later he issued Not Defterimden, an album captured between 1971 and 1972 that stood as one of Turkey’s earliest fully electronic recordings; the set set poems against ambient backdrops. He again stepped away from music to practice dentistry.
The 1980s brought an unexpected return with the understated yet masterful Zaman, Zaman. Entirely acoustic, the 1983 album demonstrated how a pop record could be realized through disciplined musicianship and Turkish-language songwriting. Tracks such as “Yeter Ki,” “Zaman Zaman,” and “Sevda Cicegi,” together with seven additional enduring classics, established the collection as one of the finest albums in Turkish music history. During the same decade Kizilok and his associate Bulent Ortacgil founded the celebrated art-house venue Cekirdek Sanat Evi. Their partnership yielded Cekirdek Hatirasi-Biz Sarkilarimizi in 1984 and the further gem Pencere Onu Cicegi in 1986.
Following the dissolution of that creative alliance, Kizilok released Yana Yana in 1990 in a vein closely aligned with his 1980s work. “Bu Kalp Seni Unutur Mu?” quickly became an anthem for lovers, while other songs on the album showcased his matured craft even if the overall impact fell short of Zaman, Zaman. The humorous “Why High One Why” foreshadowed the direction of his next effort, Olmuyo Olmuyo (Dusler), which appeared two years later and featured synthesizers prominently as Kizilok shouted, whispered, and revealed his restless artistic spirit.
The year 1995 proved exceptionally productive: Yadigar, the more personal of two releases, and Demirbas marked a return to the warmer 1980s sound after the less successful Olmuyo Olmuyo (Dusler). Also that year he issued the symphonic poem Vurulduk Ey Halkim in tribute to the journalist Ugur Mumcu, who had been assassinated in 1993.
His final album of original material, the symphonic poem Mustafa Kemal: Devrimcinin Guncesi, appeared in 1998. Another extended silence followed, this time owing to health concerns. While Kizilok was in Bodrum, the compilation Gun Ola Devran Done gathered earlier recordings. In 2001 he composed “Kumsalda” for Sertab Erener, the 2003 Eurovision champion, raising hopes of further output. Instead his long-standing heart condition worsened, and he suffered a fatal heart attack on September 22, 2001, in Istanbul.
A year afterward the career-spanning best-of collection Dunden Bugune Fikret Kizilok was issued. In 2007 the previously unreleased songs written with Bulent Ortacgil two decades earlier for a children’s play were released as Buyukler Icin Cocuk Sarkilari. Remembered as a perfectionist and idealist musician, Kizilok remains one of the most significant figures the Turkish music scene has produced.
Albums
