70s German disco pop

[ncr]

Have you seen that nonsensical TV ad for Coke with Chinese guys in traditional clothes fighting in a room (or something like that)? The thing that strikes me most about is is the accompanying music, however. That is Dschinghis Khan by the band of the same name!

What??? you will ask. Probably you have never heard about this German pop group, though the song might sound somewhat familiar to your ears.

Well, Dschinghis Khan were something very similar to the infamous Boney M (already mentioned (http://www.2bangkok.com/news05b.shtml) on 2Bangkok on 10 February). I don't know much about them, only that they were active in the late 70s and early 80s and had two major hits: Dschinghis Khan (you guessed it, the German spelling of the Mongolian leader Genghis Khan) and Moskau (Moscow) - still favourites at some parties today. They also participated in the Grand Prix de la Chanson/Eurovision Song Contest, winning a 4th place in 1979. Well, I was too young back then to follow their career, but I do remember these songs.

Apparently their trademark was to sport ridiculous, tacky outfits (or was that just the standard fashion sense/sins of those times?) See their entry (http://rateyourmusic.com/view_albums?artist_id=29421) at Rateyourmusic.... and some more info here (http://rateyourmusic.com/lists/list_view?list_id=16537&show=25&start=25) ..... (scroll down to no.42 on the list).

Having said that, these two songs are very catchy and not that bad at all, provided that you forget about the lyrical contents..........
An example chorus goes like this: "Moscow, Moscow, throw the glasses at the wall, Russia is so beautiful, hahahahaha." [Alluding to the cultural myth (?) of Russians having the custom of smashing their empty Vodka glasses.]

Would really like to know who these people actually were and what has become of them.

I think they had versions of their songs in German as well as in English, for the international market. However, in the case of the abovementioned TV ad, the lyrics are in Thai! (Have to find out what they mean......)

Now, the burning question is - how did the advertising agency end up putting all this together, and what the hell does it have to do with a soft drink?

[ncr]

Would really like to know who these people actually were and what has become of them.

New: Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dschinghis_Khan) on Dschinghis Khan (finally!)

And the authoritative source: German fanpage (http://de.geocities.com/jobeyer42/index2.htm) - includes band history, members biographies, discography and lyrics (hidden link, for legal reasons).

Or how about a Japanese (http://www6.plala.or.jp/arabesque/candy_pop/dschinghis_khan.htm) fan site?

Finally, I urge everyone to watch the video for the song "Moskau", from German television show "Disco", 1979 or 1980!!! Utter coolness. Those were the times.

MPEG (http://opendir.mine.nu/stuff/week_26/Dschinghis%20Khan%20-%20Moskau.mpg) (direct link to file, rightclick to download, 23 MB)
Flash application (http://www.unbuffered.com/moskau.html), complete with lyrics and some comments in Swedish...

[Ahoerstemeier]

New: Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dschinghis_Khan) on Dschinghis Khan (finally!)

Finally? I started that article last year already :-) That band was one of my favourites when I was still a child (and didn't know better :p yet), so it was a big surprise when I suddenly heard the well-known melody in Thai TV with Thai lyrics. My wife explained me that it was a popular funny band who did that Thai version at that time, and it is still rather popular. Did they only convert the song "Dschinghis Khan" to Thai, or also others of the band? And anyone have a MP3 of that Thai version(s)?

[Wisarut]

For the case of Thai version the the song "Genghis Khan", it was done during 1979-1980 by Thai Band "Royal Sprite" ... I have Thai version of "Genghis Khan" in my Audio CD though :D ;) Look at Thai Lyric for "Genghis Khan", here:

http://music.forthai.com/lyric/?sid=5095

English version is her:
http://www.getlyrics.com/lyrics.php/Dschingis+Khan/SHOW+LYRICS/Genghis+Khan

[ncr]

Cool, Khun Wisarut!

They were that popular throughout the world that someone made a Thai version back then?! But is that actually the same lyrics as used in the TV commercial? I thought that was something entirely different, just using the music for effect.

Can you be bothered to make a translation? I could translate the original German text into English - then we can compare. :)

[ncr]

Here's the lyrics of the English version:

Genghis Khan

music: Ralph Siegel English lyrics: Werner Schüler

They rode the fastest horses left the wind behind
Thousand men
And one man led the way the others followed blind
Genghis Khan
They galopped over mountains and desert sands
They carried desolation throughout the land
And nothing there could stop them in this world

Geng Geng Genghis Khan
Hey rider ho rider go rider let us follow
Geng Geng Genghis Khan
Go brother drink brother dance brother hear us holler
You can hear his laughter ho ho ho ho
Now and ever after ha ha ha ha
When he drinks his glass up at one draught

He was the greatest lover and the strongest man
Of his day
And we have heard that all the women fell for him
So they say
And he bred seven child in one long night
He had his foes a-running at his very sight
And nothing that could stop him in this world

Geng Geng Genghis Khan...

[Wisarut]

English Translation for Thai version of "Genghis Khan"

The Famous Warlord
Riding from Mongol with Valor
and Bolt Determination
Every Lord Surrendered under the Gallop of Genghis Khan

Moving thousands of troops,
Passing through all the kingdoms
While other lands Surrender, Refusing to Fight with the Troops led by Him
Everybody Bows Him as if they were confronting with the Lord of Lion

Gen gen Genghis Khan
Moving the troops whiole the otehr give the wayfor his troop
With Obstruct from Nobody
Ready to Open the City Gates for Him.

Gen Gen gen Genghis Khan
Rumbling the landin all directions
Beheading, Piercing, Cuttign down the Enemies ....
Layign Waste on the Cities Standing on his way
at Thunderbolt Speed ....
Turnign himinto the Lord of the Lands

Gen gen Genghis Khan
Moving the troops whiole the otehr give the wayfor his troop
With Obstruct from Nobody
Ready to Open the City Gates for Him.

Gen Gen gen Genghis Khan
Rumbling the land in all directions
Beheading, Piercing, Cuttign down the Enemies ....
Laying Waste on the Cities Standing on his way
at Thunderbolt Speed ....
Turnign him into the Lord of the Lands-> The Real Lord of the World!

[Repeated]

[Wisarut]

Definitely, the Same Lyric from Royal Sprite that used in
Thai Coca Cola Commercial! ;) :D

Yep, That Popular Then (1979-1980) ... can be resurrected anytime if they want :eek:

[GWR]

Don't know if they still tour, but Boney M did a concert at Hat-Yai's Hi-Ace Ballroom in the late 90s. The same venue also attracted 'Michael Learns to Rock' soon after.

[ncr]

Thanks, Khun Wisarut, for the translation. So to make it complete, here's my English translation of the German original (as opposed to the English version of the song that I cited above):

They rode in a race with the prairie wind, one thousand men
And one rode at the front, the others followed him blindly - Genghis Khan
The hooves of their horses whipping the sand,
They carried fear and terror into every land
And neither lightning nor thunder could stop them

Geng-, Geng-, Genghis Khan
Hey rider, hoh rider, hey rider - On and on!
Come on, brothers! Drink, brothers! Brawl, brothers! - Time and again!
Let them bring more vodka, for we are Mongolians
And the devil will fetch us early enough!

Geng-, Geng-, Genghis Khan
Hey rider, hoh rider, hey rider - On and on!
Geng-, Geng-, Genghis Khan
Hey men, hoh men, dance, men - Just as always!
And you hear him laugh
Laugh louder and louder
And he empties his jug in a single draft

And any woman that he liked, he took her into his tent
They said the type of woman who didn't love him didn't exist in this world
He fathered seven children - in a single night
And he only laughed about his enemies
Because nobody could resist his force

Geng-, Geng-, Genghis Khan
Hey rider, hoh rider, hey rider - On and on!
Come on, brothers! Drink, brothers! Brawl, brothers! - Time and again!
Let them bring more vodka, for we are Mongolians
And the devil will fetch us early enough!

Geng-, Geng-, Genghis Khan
Hey rider, hoh rider, hey rider - On and on!
Geng-, Geng-, Genghis Khan
Hey men, hoh men, dance, men - Just as always!
And you hear him laugh
Laugh louder and louder
And he empties his jug in a single draft

I still wonder what this has to do with an advertisement for a soft drink that has Chinese guys fighting in a closed room...... :D :D :D

[ncr]

Don't know if they still tour, but Boney M did a concert at Hat-Yai's Hi-Ace Ballroom in the late 90s. The same venue also attracted 'Michael Learns to Rock' soon after.Boney M is same-same, but different. Certainly some musical similarities, but Dschinghis Khan was the brainchild of Ralph Siegel (notorious for the repeated participation of his artists in the Grand Prix de la Chanson / Eurovision Song Contest, usually without success), while Boney M was manufactured by Frank Farian (infamous for this and other things, such as producing Milli Vanilli (http://rateyourmusic.com/view_albums?artist_id=1330) in the 1980s).

By the way, I still wonder how Farian came up with the name "Boney M" and what it's supposed to mean. :eek:

[jpatokal]

I thought Moskau was the worst music video ever, but nay, I'm afraid that this one tops it:

http://www.jumpingpixels.com/80best.html

Danny & Armi presenting "I Wanna Love You Tender", circa 1978. Somebody please shoot the choreographer, and tell Danny that he needs to take a cue from Austin Powers and stuff a shaggy carpet down his neckline if he's going to wear a shirt like that.

[ncr]

Oh my dear, that's surreal indeed..... :eek:

These people must have ingested drugs with their mother's milk as babies. Poor bastards.

In fact I think the dancers are not even humans. They are either androids or aliens from planet Disco..... compared to them, the "singers" (note the bad lip-syncing) appear almost likable.

Do you know anything about "Danny & Armi"? Were they big stars in Finland back in those times? :D

[jpatokal]

That's the weirdest part -- Danny is one of these Tom Jones-y evergreen singer types who's been performing for 30 years solid and is still going strong, see his entry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilkka_Lipsanen) at Wikipedia. Armi Aavikko was Miss Finland 1977 and promptly joined up with Danny as a fairly successful duo, the original Finnish version of the same song was a huge hit and they worked together on and off for 18 (!) years. She died of pneumonia (probably not unrelated to her chronic alcoholism) in 2002.

[Wisarut]

Now, I have found Thai version Genghis Khan by Royal Sprite at imeem.com -> Just listen and Enjoy!

http://www.imeem.com/people/m6YwHps/music/NzWvZ0nw//

[jpatokal]

Now, I have found Thai version Genghis Khan by Royal Sprite at imeem.com -> Just listen and Enjoy!

http://www.imeem.com/people/m6YwHps/music/NzWvZ0nw//

Lol! (Or should that be "Ho-ho-ho"?) Is there a music video for this? :D

[jpatokal]

OK, this is just beyond bizarre.　Deadpan description from Wikipedia:

Japanese idol unit Berryz Kobo has also released a cover of the song, albeit with toned-down lyrics, which do not make mention to the more explicit details pertaining to war, rape or the consumption of alcoholic beverages found in the 1979 original.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/04/Berryzjingisukansinglev.jpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCPpCB3zN8k

Live version completed with utterly brainless interview (trust me, you miss nothing by not understanding Japanese):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgrFeSBH1_Q

:confused::eek::confused::eek:

[Wisarut]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/04/Berryzjingisukansinglev.jpg

Well, thsoe idols (or bimbos if you want to call) are "Edible" afterall! :D;):p:cool::rolleyes::)

[Sunthorn]

Why pick at the rabbit food when one can wolf down an all-you-can-eat' buffet? ;) But seriously! Never ceases to amaze me what folks find so beguiling about such underaged pasty-faced anorexic examples of vacuous urban femininity.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/04/Berryzjingisukansinglev.jpg

[jpatokal]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/04/Berryzjingisukansinglev.jpg

Well, thsoe idols (or bimbos if you want to call) are "Edible" afterall! :D;):p:cool::rolleyes::)
The freaky thing is their age -- the oldest member of the group was born in 1991, and the youngest in 1994. That means they were 17 to 13 years old when that picture was taken :eek:

[ncr]

Now, I have found Thai version Genghis Khan by Royal Sprite at imeem.com -> Just listen and Enjoy!

http://www.imeem.com/people/m6YwHps/music/NzWvZ0nw//Nice, K. Wisarut. :)

As an update on the whereabouts of the original Dschinghis Khan (http://rateyourmusic.com/artist/dschinghis_khan) -

http://bp0.blogger.com/_8bUJIyy3Ecc/R8m9cg7jICI/AAAAAAAABws/jLaVgOEgrSo/s320/1979%2B-%2BDschinghis%2BKhan.jpg
1979

Sadly Karl-Heinz "Steve" Bender (http://rateyourmusic.com/artist/steve_bender) (the bald guy in the blue suit) passed away in May 2006, aged 59, having long suffered from cancer. Main dancer and Genghis Khan impersonator Louis Hendrik Potgieter (with the cape and the long goatee) had already died in 1993 (other sources say 1996) in his native South Africa, from AIDS, and just 42 (45) years old.

So there's 4 surviving members of the group:

*Wolfgang Heichel (German) (black suit)
*Henriette Heichel (Dutch, once married to Wolfgang) (red dress)
*Leslie Mándoki (Hungarian) (green suit)
*Edina Pop [Marika Kesmarky] (Hungarian) (yellow dress)

http://g-ec2.images-amazon.com/images/I/51OkMoF7RwL._SS500_.jpg

The group dissolved around 1985 (not counting two singles releases in 1986 under the name "Dschinghis Khan Family", with only 3 of the original members remaining). However, lately there was a comeback and reunion concert in Moscow (fittingly!) in December 2005, still with Steve, but without Leslie Mándoki, and backed up by a troupe of young dancers/singers called "The Legacy of Genghis Khan". Apparently to great fan acclaim; later shows in Mongolia and Kazakhstan followed, as well as an album.

On the cover of the 2007 release "7 Leben" [7 lives] (pictured above) standing 2nd, 3rd and 4th from the left are Wolfgang, Henriette and Edina.

According to the German Wikipedia, they are still active and plan to release a new album in 2009, coinciding with their 30th stage anniversary.

[ncr]

OK, this is just beyond bizarre.And this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risako_Sugaya), too:

Risako Sugaya (菅谷 梨沙子, Sugaya Risako, born April 4, 1994 in Zushi, Kanagawa, Japan) is a Japanese pop singer, idol, and a member of Japanese musical group Berryz Kobo.

--- Well, I have to say I also have many idols who are just 14 years old.

[ncr]

The freaky thing is their age -- the oldest member of the group was born in 1991, and the youngest in 1994. That means they were 17 to 13 years old when that picture was taken :eek:In February 2007, Berryz Kobo made news headlines after it was announced that the group would be holding a concert at Saitama Super Arena on April 1. Not only were the tickets for the two performances sold out (a total of 20,000 seats) almost two months before the premiere, but the event also marked a historical record in that the band officially became the first to perform in the arena whose members average age did not exceed 14 years (thereby dethroning Morning Musume, whose average was 16).

[...]

Graduated members

* Maiha Ishimura (Graduated from Berryz Kobo and Hello! Project on October 2, 2005 to continue her schooling full-time) :)

[ncr]

OK, this is just beyond bizarre. Deadpan description from Wikipedia: Japanese idol unit Berryz Kobo has also released a cover of the song, albeit with toned-down lyrics, which do not make mention to the more explicit details pertaining to war, rape or the consumption of alcoholic beverages found in the 1979 original. One wonders what they sing about, then?
Genghis Khan was a friendly caring old man who drank chamomile tea and told his grandkids funny stories, bursting out in fits of laughter? :confused:

Are you able to translate anything?

[jpatokal]

Found the Japanese lyrics (http://music.goo.ne.jp/lyric/LYRUTND62100/index.html), so let me give it a shot:

チャンスを待つよじゃ
あいつに負ける
ウッハ　ウッハ
二度とは燃えない　嵐が吹くぜ
ウッハ　ウッハ

[If you] bide your time, then
you'll lose to him
Uhha uhha
A storm like this will never come again
Uhha uhha

キラキラ輝く御殿
ひとめぼれしたあの女
黄金(こがね)をつかむのさ　ウッハ

Blinky blinky sparkling throne
Taken with that woman at first sight
And grabs the gold too uhha

※ジンジンジンギスカン
ヘイ　ブラザー　ホー　ブラザー
ナイス　ブラザー　ゴー　ブラザー
ジンジンジンギスカン
ヘイ　ライダー　ホー　ライダー
ナイス　ライダー　ゴー　ライダー
若者ならワッハハハー
チャンスだ今　ワッハハハー
一緒に手をかざせ※

Jin jin jingis kan
Hey brother ho brother
Nice brother go brother
Jin jin jingis kan
Hey rider ho rider
Nice rider go rider
Since he's young wahahaha
Now's the chance wahahaha

打ったら攻めろ
むかえ撃ちつぶせ
ウッハ　ウッハ
あとにはひかない　突撃ジンギスカン
ウッハ　ウッハ

Strike and attack
Destroy the other side
Uhha uhha
He won't pull back, Jingis Kan attack
Uhha uhha

骨までしゃぶる悪玉を
右や左で切りきざみ
勝利をつかむのさ　ウッハ

A bad guy down to the bone
Striking down left and right
He'll pull off a victory uhha

(and repeat)

[ncr]

Thanks!

So in other words, the lyrics are completely content-free. (Well, what did we expect.)

[jpatokal]

Thanks!

So in other words, the lyrics are completely content-free. (Well, what did we expect.)
Well, there wasn't all that much content in the original either... :p