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
Lieber Tee
Die Ärzte Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wenn der Wind den Schnee zusammen jagt
Brauen wir uns einen heißen Saft
Seht, in meinen Augen spiegeln sich alle Dinge umgedreht
Hier im Nebel sind wir alle gleich
(Dann kommt der Fuchs und frisst sie alle, alle auf)
Neulich rief mich Harry an und sagte, dass er fliegen kann
Da flog er los, er flog ein Stück
Doch dann brach er sich das Genick
Und das kommt nur von diesen Drogen (Drogen)
Ich sag euch, nee, nee, nee, da trink ich doch lieber Tee
Gestern traf ich Sylvia, die sagte
Ach, da bist du ja
Und sie wirkte leicht benommen
Sie redete und redete und redete und redete
Auch das tut nur von Drogen kommen (Drogen)
Ich sag euch, nee, nee, nee, da trink ich doch lieber Tee
Vorhin begegnete ich Frank, der sah so aus, als wär er krank
Und er hatte es sehr eilig
Er sah mich ziemlich glasig an und rannte gegen einen Schrank
Auch da waren Drogen dran beteiligt (Drogen)
Ich sag euch nee, nee, nee, da trink ich doch lieber Tee
Und nachts, wenn es dunkel wird
Wenn man infolge der Lichtverhältnisse nichts mehr sehen kann
Nach Sonnenuntergang im Finstren sitzen seltsame Gestalten
Die zu allem Überfluss noch ihre Sonnenbrillen tragen
Auf orange-geblümten Sofas
Und da rauchen sie dann Haschisch, Haschisch
Aber das ist streng geheim
The first verse of Die Ärzte's song Lieber Tee talks about taking refuge in a warm drink like hot tea during a snowstorm. The lyrics mention how everything is equal and obscured by fog. This verse, in essence, talks about how people come together and seek comfort in familiar warm drinks, as it gives a sense of warmth and security during the times when everything else is vague and uncertain. The phrase "Von woanders kommt die Kraft," which translates to "where does the strength come from?" also implies that in times of distress, people usually resort to their inner strength to get through situations they might not be comfortable with.
The second verse narrates three unrelated drug-related incidents. The first incident involves Harry, who claimed he could fly, which the singer concludes is a result of drugs. The second incident involves Sylvia, who was incoherent while speaking, which the singer once again attributes to drugs. The last incident involves Frank, who appeared sick and ran into a closet while the singer's perception is that he was under the influence of drugs. In all three incidents described in this verse, the singer comments on the harmful effects of drugs and how they cause erratic behavior that can sometimes result in serious physical harm to the individual.
Overall, the song Lieber Tee can be interpreted as a warning against drug abuse and an exhortation to choose healthier options like drinking tea instead. The song narrates how drugs can result in dangerous and harmful behavior and can lead to unforeseen consequences.
Line by Line Meaning
Von woanders kommt die Kraft
Our strength sometimes comes from unknown sources
Wenn der Wind den Schnee zusammen jagt
Winter days and nights can be harsh
Brauen wir uns einen heißen Saft
Let's prepare ourselves something warm and comforting
Seht, in meinen Augen spiegeln sich alle Dinge umgedreht
Sometimes things can appear in a completely different way than they actually are
Hier im Nebel sind wir alle gleich
In the mist, we are all the same and indistinguishable
(Dann kommt der Fuchs und frisst sie alle, alle auf)
But beware, because sometimes danger comes and preys upon us
Neulich rief mich Harry an und sagte, dass er fliegen kann
My friend Harry claimed he could fly
Ich sprach, das ist doch glatt gelogen
I responded that it was an obvious lie
Da flog er los, er flog ein Stück
But he actually flew a short distance
Doch dann brach er sich das Genick
Unfortunately, he broke his neck
Und das kommt nur von diesen Drogen (Drogen)
And that happened because he was under the influence of drugs
Ich sag euch, nee, nee, nee, da trink ich doch lieber Tee
I refuse to engage in that kind of behavior, I'd rather have a cup of tea
Gestern traf ich Sylvia, die sagte
Yesterday, I met Sylvia who said
Ach, da bist du ja
Oh, there you are
Und sie wirkte leicht benommen
She seemed slightly disoriented
Sie redete und redete und redete und redete
She kept talking and talking and talking and talking
Auch das tut nur von Drogen kommen (Drogen)
And that behavior can only be explained by drug use
Vorhin begegnete ich Frank, der sah so aus, als wär er krank
I recently saw Frank, who looked like he was unwell
Und er hatte es sehr eilig
He seemed to be in a hurry
Er sah mich ziemlich glasig an und rannte gegen einen Schrank
He looked at me with a glassy stare and walked into a cabinet
Auch da waren Drogen dran beteiligt (Drogen)
And once again, drugs were involved
Und nachts, wenn es dunkel wird
And at night, when it gets dark
Wenn man infolge der Lichtverhältnisse nichts mehr sehen kann
When it's so dark that you can't see anything
Nach Sonnenuntergang im Finstren sitzen seltsame Gestalten
Strange figures sit in the dark after the sun sets
Die zu allem Überfluss noch ihre Sonnenbrillen tragen
And annoyingly, they still wear sunglasses
Auf orange-geblümten Sofas
On sofas with orange flowers
Und da rauchen sie dann Haschisch, Haschisch
And there, they smoke hashish, hashish
Aber das ist streng geheim
But that's a well-kept secret
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JAN VETTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jeeper0311
Was gibt es besseres als die ganzen geilen Lieder der Ärzte nochmal durchzustöbern...? GEIL
Jeeper0311
@Tobias Schächtele wohl wahr wohl wahr
Tobias Schächtele
Heißt das nicht "die ganzen geilen Lieder der "Die Ärzte" "? XD
SvenX
jub
pyr0pete
Hier im Nebel sind wir alle gleich
Aber das ist streng geheim!
Nieder mit der Jagd
Da kommt der Fuchs und frisst uns alle, alle auf!
Katrin Müller
I´m luvving it
MCWaxMax
"Dann kommt der Fuchs und frisst euch alle alle auf" :D
El Cattivo
aus welcher Lesung war das noch von Klaus Kinski?
T Stawi
Bester Ärzte Song.