Die Ärzte were formed in 1982 by Jan Vetter (alias Farin Urlaub), Dirk Felsenheimer (alias Bela B.) and bassist Hans Runge (alias Sahnie). Bela and Farin had previously played together in the punk band Soilent Grün; after that band broke up they decided to form a band playing fun songs, in contrast to the mostly political bands of the punk scene at that time. While deriving from that punk scene, their early music was heavily influenced by pop and rock and roll, especially The Beatles, whom Farin heard a lot as a child due to his mother playing their records.
In the first two years they mostly played in clubs of their hometown of Berlin. Their first release was a contribution to the sampler "20 schäumende Stimmungshits" (roughly, "20 exuberant mood hits"), which contained a strong alcohol theme. In 1983 they won a rock contest in Berlin; with the prize money they recorded their debut EP "Uns gehts Prima" ("We're doing great"). Finally Columbia Records signed them, and they released their first LP "Debil" in 1984 and the second one ("Im Schatten der Ärzte") a year later.
After the second record they parted ways with Sahnie due to internal problems. On the third record he was replaced by producer Miccey Meuser; later Hagen Liebig, better known as The Incredible Hagen, played bass for them during live performances until their breakup.
In 1987 the German Federal Centre for Media Harmful to Young Persons put the songs Geschwisterliebe ("Sibling Love", a song about incest, from Die Ärzte), Claudia hat 'nen Schäferhund ("Claudia has a German Shepherd", about zoophilia, from "Debil") and Schlaflied ("Lullaby", about a monster coming and eating you after falling asleep, also from "Debil") on the German List of Media Harmful to Young People. This prohibited the band from performing the songs live and, more importantly, promoting the two albums, and shops from openly displaying the records in their shelves. After several trials against shops that still openly sold the records a lot of shops removed Die Ärzte completely from their stock. The result was a drop in record sales and big financial problems for the band. In response they released the compilation "Ab 18" ("Adults Only") with all their songs on the index and some other old and new tasteless songs, and the greatest hits album "Ist das alles?"("Is this everything?" but also can be translated as "Is this the end?"). The album and the new singles were fairly successful, partly because of growing media interest due to the previous censorship.
The following album "Das ist nicht die ganze Wahrheit" ("That is not the whole truth") was even more successful, climbing into the top 10 in the German album charts. They decided to go out on a high note in 1988, breaking up after doing one last tour and recording a live double album that became their first number one in the album charts.
Neither Farin's new band King Køng nor Bela's Depp Jones were really successful, so in 1993 they decided to do a reunion. As bass player they invited Rodrigo Gonzales, who was guitarist in Depp Jones and a friend of Bela. Their comeback single was Schrei nach Liebe ("Cry for Love"), their first ever political song, that they published as a statement against what was perceived as growing racism and right wing extremist violence in Germany at that time.
The album was more diverse than ever, with ballads, punk, rock and traditional German sounds. Both album and single became big hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The follow-up "Planet Punk" was also very successful.
In 1996 they wanted to make an EP just about hair, but they wrote too many songs for an EP and made the Album "Le Frisur" ("The Hairdo") instead. It was slightly less successful than its predecessors. Apart from their own tours they also supported Kiss in that year, a dream come true for Bela and Rod.
1998 was perhaps the most successful year of their career, the single "Männer sind Schweine" ("Men are Pigs") being their first Number 1 single in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and the album 13 also being Number 1 in Germany and Switzerland. After a lot of promotion and touring in that year they decided to take a break, deciding also to never play again "Männer sind Schweine" at a concert due to the too great success this song had. They did not like the upcoming unwanted and rather unoriginal remakes by other bands as e.g. "Frauen sind Schweine" ("Women are pigs") and also did not like to see their song played at mass tourist beach parties at places like Mallorca/Spain.
In 2000 they came back with another very successful album, "Runter mit den Spendierhosen, Unsichtbarer!", and two top 10 singles. As the third single from the album they released the 30-second-song "Yoko Ono", which, according to the Guinness Book of Records, is the shortest single ever released - another example of their sense of humour. On their tour in 2001 they sold the limited Album "5, 6, 7, 8 Bullenstaat" consisting of short punk songs that were written and recorded while recording the full length album published a year before, and some cover songs published in 1994 on a tour only EP.
After that they again took a break: Bela did some acting, Farin recorded his first solo album (Endlich Urlaub!). In late 2002 they did an MTV Unplugged in a school auditorium together with the school band. After that they made a new double album Geräusch that was released in 2003. On the next tour a Live DVD was recorded and published one year later.
On 2 November 2007, Die Ärzte released their latest album, Jazz ist anders ("Jazz is nothing like this", literally "Jazz is different").
In August 2011 the band announced that they are working on a new album which is set to be released in 2012 with a tour called "Das Ende ist noch nicht vorbei" ("The end is not over yet") following in the summer 2012.
The official homepage for Die Ärzte is www.bademeister.com
Der Optimist
Die Ärzte Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Doch wenn sie glaubt, dass sie einfach so 'nen ander lieben kann
Ist sie im Irrtum, was fällt ihr eigentlich ein
Das werd'ich unterbinden, werd'ein Mittel finden
Damit sie zurückkommt, und dann werd'ich sie verwöhn
Sie wird nur noch an mich denken, wird mir ihre Liebe schenken
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Herr Bundeskanzler, ich weiß, sie haben es schwer
Und nur wegen etwas Schmiergeld schreit schon wieder die ganze Welt
Dass sie korrupt sind, das ist ganz und gar nicht fair
Denn dass sie niemals entgleisen werden sie der Welt beweisen
Und ihre Pflicht tun, es gibt kein Grund, hier argzuwöhn'
Politik ist was Handfestes und sie woll'n nur unser Bestes
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Das wird schön
Und das Ozonloch betrübt uns wirklich sehr
Doch man wird es wieder schließen oder es einfach zuschießen
Mit Atombomben die zieht man dann aus dem Verkehr
Denn Kriege wird es nicht mehr geben, wir werden alle überleben
Umweltverschmutzung, die wird sich nicht mehr erhöhn
Weil wir alle den Müll trennen, und Motoren nur bleifrei brennen
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
Das ist schön
"Is ja gut kleiner, hör auf zu Krakehlen jetzt hier"
"Ach menno"
In Die Ärzte's song Der Optimist, the singer is seemingly obsessed with possessing someone they love. They declare that although their partner is no longer alone, they will not be able to love anyone else and the singer will find a way to ensure that they come back to them. The chorus repeats the phrase "Das wird schön" (That will be beautiful), suggesting that the singer believes they will have a happy ending once their partner is back under their control.
In the second verse, the scene changes to the political sphere, with the singer addressing the German Chancellor. They defend the Chancellor against accusations of corruption from the world, believing that they will prove themselves to be worthy of their position by fulfilling their duties. The chorus repeats again, this time advocating for the beauty of politics and supporting the actions of those in power.
The final verse takes a turn towards environmental issues, with the singer expressing concerns about the ozone hole and pollution. However, instead of seeking viable solutions, they suggest a radical solution involving the use of atomic bombs to close the hole and ensure that everyone survives. The chorus repeats once more, promoting the beauty of a world free of war and pollution. The song ends with a parent chastising the singer for their ramblings, bringing them back to reality.
Overall, the song presents a stark contrast between the singer's unrealistic, controlling, and idealistic attitudes towards love, politics, and the environment with the reality of the situation. The chorus serves as a sort of mantra for the singer, who believes that everything will be beautiful and perfect if everything goes according to their plan. However, this only highlights their delusion and inability to truly understand the complexities of the world around them.
Line by Line Meaning
Da geht mein Baby und sie ist nicht mehr allein
My baby is leaving me, but she's not alone anymore
Doch wenn sie glaubt, dass sie einfach so 'nen ander lieben kann
But if she thinks she can just love someone else, she's mistaken
Ist sie im Irrtum, was fällt ihr eigentlich ein
She's mistaken, what is she thinking?
Das werd'ich unterbinden, werd'ein Mittel finden
I will prevent this, find a way
Damit sie zurückkommt, und dann werd'ich sie verwöhn'
So she comes back to me and I can spoil her
Sie wird nur noch an mich denken, wird mir ihre Liebe schenken
She will only think of me, give me her love
Herr Bundeskanzler, ich weiß, sie haben es schwer
Mr. Chancellor, I know you have it tough
Und nur wegen etwas Schmiergeld schreit schon wieder die ganze Welt
And just because of a bribe, the whole world is shouting again
Dass sie korrupt sind, das ist ganz und gar nicht fair
That they are corrupt is completely unfair
Denn dass sie niemals entgleisen werden sie der Welt beweisen
Because they will prove to the world that they will never derail
Und ihre Pflicht tun, es gibt kein Grund, hier argzuwöhn'
And do their duty, there is no reason to be suspicious
Politik ist was Handfestes und sie woll'n nur unser Bestes
Politics is something tangible and they only want what's best for us
Und das Ozonloch betrübt uns wirklich sehr
And the ozone hole really upsets us
Doch man wird es wieder schließen oder es einfach zuschießen
But we will either close it or seal it off
Mit Atombomben die zieht man dann aus dem Verkehr
With atomic bombs, we'll remove them from circulation
Denn Kriege wird es nicht mehr geben, wir werden alle überleben
Because there will be no more wars, we will all survive
Umweltverschmutzung, die wird sich nicht mehr erhöhn'
Environmental pollution will no longer increase
Weil wir alle den Müll trennen, und Motoren nur bleifrei brennen
Because we all separate our waste and engines only burn lead-free fuel
Das ist schön
That's nice
Is ja gut kleiner, hör auf zu Krakehlen jetzt hier
Alright kid, stop squawking here
Ach menno
Oh man
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Bela B. Felsenheimer
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind