German Girls A Go-Go!

 I've always been more of a Yé-yé girl (french 60's pop music), but I have started to discover some real gems in German from girl groups and garage bands. Compilations based on French, Japanese, and Italian female artists are aplenty at the library's music department, but I have yet to find one dedicated to German girls! The German market was big in the 1960's and 70's for Anglo and English pop stars who would make phonetic Deutsche renditions of their hits for that market. So here you go!

Sei Mein Baby - Suzanne Doucet

Bilingual cover of Be My Baby by the Ronettes is a fun find from Lost Nuggets of the 60's: Girls in the Garage. Doucet is a true German artist who gained fame with this hit single, and has since moved on to recording ambient new-age music.

Danke Schoen -Brenda Lee

This classic song of thanking a lover for an affair first appeared on my radar through listening to Las Vegas lounge music. This 1964 version by Brenda Lee captures the fun, free-spirited feel of the girly German sound.

Innenstadt - Petula Clark

Not to be confused with Ingolstadt, the town in Frankenstein, Innenstadt is the classic hit-the-town track we all know and love recorded in German released in 1964. 

Weit, Weit, Weit - Marion Maerz

"Was kümmert mich des Winters Frost, Und ob es draußen stürmt und schneit? Im Auge blinkt die Träne mir, Denk’ ich an ihn, der weit, weit!" This classic song of love lost in winter sung by Marion Maerz, German girl singer who started out in the 1960's and rose to fame with her appearance on television show Ready Steady Girls!

Geh' Vorbei - Dionne Warwick

The extremely talented Warwick recorded her big hit Walk on By in german language to much aplomb! This R&B German gem is a killer track worth a listen. And I can even play it on piano!

Du Hast den Farbfilm Vergessen - Nina Hagen

This proto-punk 70's song by the superstar of the scene, Nina Hagen sang this song critiquing the bleak and grey life in the Eastern Bloc. The lyrics translate to "You forgot the color film" and was a subtle attack on the heavy-handed regime.

Ich hab das Gluck - Francoise Hardy

The queen of the Yé-yé scene not only recorded her songs in French and English but also Deutsch! This recording of J'ai de la chance was familiar to me from her reissue album Le Premier Bonheur du Jour. The song roughly translates to "I'm Lucky". Love it!