Friday, 11 July 2008

Elli Malou and Jean Lemon

Well I discovered both of these german singer/songwriter sometimes ago in June and I have been listening to their music a few times now.

About Elli Malou, I can say that her text really speak to me and also were some catchy tune which were nice companions of my days and nights. This might change again. The songs from her CD are really nice, but somewhat sad or melancholic. But the first songs I heard from her were some funny somewhat derisive(?) songs.

Jean Lemon has also a nice CD which I might like a little less, but which is still worth listening. He plays in a very rhythmic way the guitar, but this without being boring or annoying which is nice. His texts are also quite well written and cool,
though perhaps a little too cool, or perhaps I should say the images or poetic tools he used are a bit too far fetched sometimes. But don't get me wrong I like it. It's cool.

Thursday, 10 July 2008

Schließ Aug und Ohr

That's a nice little german songwriter song from the 1920's.



Schließ Aug und Ohr für eine Weil
Vor dem Getös der Zeit.
Du heilst es nicht und hast kein Heil
Als wo dein Herz sich weit

Die Stunde kommt da man dich braucht
Da sei du ganz bereit,
und in das Feuer das verrauscht
wird dich als letztes Scheit.

Dein Amt ist Hüten, Haaren, Sehen
In die Ewigkeit.
So bist du schon so im Weltgeschehen
Befangen und befreit.



More Info on the song can be found there. But the beginning is already interesting:

'Schließ Aug und Ohr“ galt während der NS-Zeit als eine Art „Besinnungslied“ unter den verbotenen und damit illegalen Jugendgruppen. Der Text stammt von dem jüdischen Dichter und Literaturwissenschaftler Friedrich Gundolf, zu dessen Studenten 1921 pikanterweise auch der berüchtigte spätere NS-Propagandaminister Goebbels zählte, der Gundolf verehrt haben soll.'



In other words, the song was a small song which was very often used in youth groups which were forbidden. The author was the jewish poet and literature academic Friedrich Gundolf. Goebbels is said to have belonged to a literature group and to have "adored" Gundolf.



The version I heard and really liked was sung by Rotwein und Pimpinelle. The guitar at the beginning was a very nice intro to the song.