The Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft (DAF) is an influential industrial /… Read Full Bio ↴The Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft (DAF) is an influential industrial / Neue Deutsche Welle band from Düsseldorf, formed in 1978 in Wuppertal, Germany featuring drummer/synth player Robert Görl, vocalist Gabi Delgado-Lopez/Gabi Delgado, guitarist Wolfgang Spelmans, Kurt Dahlke "Pyrolator", Michael Kemner, bassist and bassist/keyboardist/saxophonist Chrislo Haas. The band's name is a term that had originally been used in West Germany, without irony, in the early years of the Cold War, at the height of German popular enthusiasm for all things American, and as humoristic counterpart to the "deutsch-sowjetische Freundschaft" (german-soviet-friendship) parole used in the German Democratic Republic. (GDR, or DDR in german)

DAF's most famous song is the grimly sarcastic "Der Mussolini" from the album "Alles Ist Gut", a pulsing dance song featuring the lyrics "Dance the Mussolini, move your behind, clap your hands, and now the Adolf Hitler, and now the Jesus Christ, and now the communism ...". The song caused a scandal amongst the more humourless elements of German liberal society.

In interviews they claimed to not target anything or anyone specific while creating lyrics to be taken as a parody of words and phrases floating around in the public media. "Sato-Sato" and "Der Mussolini" are both examples of songs written around Delgado-Lopez's fascination with the sound of a particular word.

The album "Alles Ist Gut" (All Is Well) received the German "Schallplattenpreis" award by the "Deutsche Phono-Akademie", an association of the German recording industry.
Following that they released two more similar albums called "Gold und Liebe" and "Für Immer", all produced by legendary Conny Plank.

After experimenting with more mainstream attempts of their particular style of contemporary dance music on the 1986 album "1st Step to Heaven" but with limited success DAF split up (1986).

A few months before the 2003 invasion of Iraq DAF released "Der Sheriff (anti-amerikanisches lied)" (An Anti-American Song) criticizing perceived American imperialism.

In the hiatus of DAF 1985-2002 both Robert and Gabi had their own careers. DAF was more or less resurrected by Gabi alone when he toured in 1994-5 as DAF OPD (On Public Demand) touring with classic and remixed DAF material. Following the success of that partial comeback he started Daf.Dos with Wotan Wilke. They released two more techno oriented albums and toured much until Gabi and Robert reunited for the album "Fünfzehn Neue DAF lieder" in 2003.

Notable is also Robert Görls contribution to Eurythmics first album In the Garden where he unmistakably plays the drums on the tracks Belinda and Caveman Head.

Gabi Delgado continued releasing music under his own name, creating the following albums: 1 (2013), X (2014), and 2 (2015).

Gabi Delgado died in March 2020, thus ending his career, but forever immortal in the music and style he created, which would inspire and spawn whole music genres in decades to come.

Osten Währt Am Längsten
Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Osten währt am längsten. Der osten währt am längsten.
Und der osten ist am besten. Und der westen ist am besten.
Der luxus ist im westen. Der westen ist zufrieden.
Er leckt sich seine wunden. Und der luxus ist im westen.
Doch der osten währt am längsten. Der osten währt am längsten.
Der osten ist am besten. Der westen ist am besten.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft's song Osten Währt Am Längsten speak to the cultural and economic divide between East and West Germany. The phrase "Osten währt am längsten" translates to "the East endures longest" and carries the implication that the East has a resilience and endurance that the West lacks. This could be a reference to the fact that East Germans were forced to endure the challenges of living under Soviet rule and a communist government, while the West enjoyed the economic benefits of liberalism and free markets.

The song also comments on the relative levels of luxury in the East and West. The West is portrayed as being wealthy and comfortable, but also complacent and self-satisfied. In contrast, the East is described as enduring but also superior in some way. This could be interpreted as a critique of the materialism and consumerism of Western culture, while also acknowledging the difficulties and hardships that come with living in a post-war socialist state. Overall, the lyrics are a commentary on the differences between East and West Germany and the various cultural and economic forces that shaped them.

Line by Line Meaning

Osten währt am längsten. Der osten währt am längsten.
The East lasts the longest. The East lasts the longest.

Und der osten ist am besten. Und der westen ist am besten.
And the East is the best. And the West is the best.

Der luxus ist im westen. Der westen ist zufrieden.
Luxury is in the West. The West is content.

Er leckt sich seine wunden. Und der luxus ist im westen.
He licks his wounds. And luxury is in the West.

Doch der osten währt am längsten. Der osten währt am längsten.
But the East lasts the longest. The East lasts the longest.

Der osten ist am besten. Der westen ist am besten.
The East is the best. The West is the best.

Contributed by Lily K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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