Einheit

Today (scarily) marks thirty years since the reunification of Germany, following the total collapse of the Soviet Eastern Bloc. Understandably, celebrations have been somewhat hampered by what maybe we should call today "the Trump virus", but nevertheless a significant milestone.

Never one to miss an opportunity, I thought I would focus, by way of celebration, on some of the - ahem - choicer musical gems I have featured over the years that originated in the Land of the Franks...

First up, perhaps our favourite Kraut-rocker, the utterly bizarre (and wonderful) Punk-turned-Big-Band-chanteuse Nina Hagen!

Nina Hagen & Leipzig Big Band - Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

Here's a true classic from the late, sadly-missed Falco:

Falco - Der Kommisar

Another fave, the splendid Max Raabe (who we managed to get to see live in March this year, just weeks before lockdown), with his "tribute" to Britney...

Max Raabe - Oops I Did It Again

The amazing, the unique, the irreplaceable, late, great Klaus Nomi:

Klaus Nomi - Total Eclipse

And finally - possibly the weirdest clip in German cinematic history from the legendary Marika Rökk...

Gern geschehen.

Happy German Unity Day!

When you dance, you're charming and you're gentle, 'specially when you do the Continental

Madam Acarti, our friend Al and I are long-term fans of the German bandleader Max Raabe - indeed I first posted a blog about him twelve years ago. At that time, we adored discovering Herr Raabe and his Palast Orchester and their novelty "cod-dance-band" versions of hits by Britney Spears and Tom Jones, but before long our exploration of the man's musical repertoire led us to collect several of his albums, including his collaborations with the faboo Nina Hagen (who nowadays leads a Big Band of her very own).

Imagine our delight when we managed to land tickets for the opening concert of the very first UK tour by the maestro himself, at the swanky Cadogan Hall in Chelsea, no less!

Herr Raabe's is a loving tribute to the music of the Dance Band era of the 1920s and 30s, from both sides of the pond - and we were treated to not only some familiar standards from the golden age of British dance bands and from early Hollywood, but also a portfolio of (sometimes less-than-familiar) music from his native Germany, all interspersed with some dry-as-dust humour from the man himself, and some very amusing interplay between band-members and the audience as they "played-up" the sillier moments of some of the musical arrangements.

It was utterly faboo from beginning to end. Here is just a small selection of the musical numbers we enjoyed:

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester - Singing In The Rain

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester - Dream a Little Dream Of Me

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester - I Won't Dance

Particularly inventive and great fun were these two less familiar numbers:

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester - Dort tanzt Lulu

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester - Salome

Time just flew by in the company of Max Raabe. Getting up and down the myriad staircases at the Cadogan Hall from seats to bar and back again, on the other hand, seemed to take half a lifetime...

The evening was faboo, nonetheless - es war wunderbar, meine Lieben!

For details on the continuing tour visit Max Raabe and Palast Orchester website.

And baby you can turn me on

From the BBC:

Sex toys, ancient carvings and medical artefacts will be among objects on display at a new exhibition opening in central London in November.

The Institute Of Sexology will be the first UK exhibition to bring together the pioneers of the study of sex, according to its curators. Paintings, films and photographs of copulation will also be on display.

Curators said that The Institute Of Sexology will include commissions, live events, discussions and performance art and "form part of a sexology season of activity across the country".

"The Institute Of Sexology offers a complex, often contradictory story of the study of sex, and highlights the profound effect that the gathering and analysis of information can have in changing attitudes about the human condition."

Sex Bomb? House bandleader here at Dolores Delargo Towers Max Raabe certainly seems to think so!

Max Raabe - Sex Bomb

The Institute Of Sexology will run for one year from 20th November 2014 at the Wellcome Collection in London.

Germans have a sense of humour, shock

Oh wow! Madame Arcati has discovered a real gem - bizarre "cocktail-bar jazz" versions of pop classics by Max Raabe and the Palast Orchester. I just had to share...

Max Raabe - Oops I Did It Again

Max Raabe - Sex Bomb

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester website

Max Raabe on MySpace