He is the only artist to score a #1 Hit in the U.S. with a German language song, and his albums and singles have sold about 60 million copies worldwide.
Early Years
Born in Vienna, studying at the Vienna Music Conservatory in 1977 which he left after one semester to pursue a career in music, he lived for a short time in West Berlin while singing in a jazz-rock band. When he returned to Vienna he was calling himself "Falco," reportedly in tribute to the East German ski jumper Falko Weißpflog, and playing in the Austrian bands Spinning Wheel and Hallucination Company. En route to becoming an international rock star in his own right, he was bass player in the Austrian hard rock-punk rock band Drahdiwaberl (from 1978 until 1983). With Drahdiwaberl he wrote and performed the song "Ganz Wien" which he would also include on his debut solo album Einzelhaft.
Individual success
Falco's first hit was "Der Kommissar" from the 1982 album Einzelhaft. A German language song about drug consumption that combines rap verses with a sung chorus, Falco's record was a number-one success in many countries but failed to break big in the U.S. The song, however, would prove to have a life of its own in two English-language versions. British Rock band After the Fire recorded an English cover version, loosely based on Falco's lyrics and also called "Der Kommissar" (with "uh-oh" and "alles klar Herr Kommissar" the only other lyrics held over from the original). This time, the song shot to number three in the United States (their only major hit there) in 1983, though it failed to crack the UK Top 40. The band - who had been together more than a decade - broke up almost immediately thereafter. That same year, American singer Laura Branigan recorded a version of the song with new English lyrics, under the title "Deep in the Dark" on her album Branigan 2.
After a second album, Junge Roemer, failed to provide a repeat to his debut single's success (outside of Austria and Germany, where the album topped the charts), Falco began to experiment with English lyrics in an effort to broaden his appeal, and chose a new production team. The result would be the most popular album and single of his career.
Falco recorded "Rock Me Amadeus" inspired in part by the Oscar-winning film Amadeus, and the song became a worldwide hit in 1986. This time, his record reached #1 in the U.S. and UK, bringing him the success that had eluded him in that major market a few years earlier. The song remained in the top spot of the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks and his album, Falco 3, fittingly peaked at the number three position on the Billboard album charts. Unheard of at the time for a white performer, much less a European one, the Austrian rapper's single climbed to the upper reaches of the Billboard Top R&B Singles Chart (only a few years earlier called the "Black Singles" chart), peaking at number 6. Falco 3 peaked at number 18 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Ultimately, "Rock Me Amadeus" went to the #1 spot in over a dozen countries including the Soviet Union and Japan. Follow-up single "Vienna Calling" was another international pop hit, peaking at #18 of the Billboard Charts and #17 on the U.S. Cash Box Charts in 1986. A double A-side 12" single featuring remixes of those two hits peaked at #4 on the U.S. Dance/Disco charts.
"Jeanny" the third release from the album Falco 3, brought the performer back to the top of the charts across Europe. Highly controversial when it was released in Germany and the Netherlands, the story of "Jeanny" was told from the point of view of a rapist and possible murderer. Several DJs and radio stations refused to play the ballad, which was ignored in the U.S., although it became a huge hit in many European countries, and inspired two sequels on later albums.
In 1986, the album Emotional was released, produced by Rob and Ferdi Bolland (Bolland & Bolland). On the Album were "Coming Home (Jeanny Part 2, Ein Jahr danach)" and the song "Kamikaze Cappa" which was written as a tribute to the late photojournalist Robert Capa. "The Sound of Musik" was another international success, and a Top 20 U.S. Dance hit, though he failed to make the U.S. pop charts. He also went on "Emotional-Tour" which was a world tour where he ended up in Japan at 1987. In 1987, he sang a duet with Brigitte Nielsen "Body Next to Body" and the single was a Top 10 hit in the Germanic countries. The Album Wiener Blut was released in 1988 but it did not get much publicity outside Germany and Austria.
After "Jeanny," there were a number of European hits, but Falco was rarely heard in the U.S. and the UK. His 1992 U.S. comeback attempt, the album Nachtflug with the song "Titanic" won a number of awards, but failed to chart in America.
Death
Falco died of severe injuries received from a collision with a bus in his Mitsubishi Pajero near the city of Puerto Plata, in the Dominican Republic on 6 February 1998, just two weeks before his 41st birthday. While it was initially reported that the autopsy showed high blood levels of alcohol and cocaine, this was disputed. At the time of his death, he was working on a comeback into the music world.
He was buried in the Zentralfriedhof (Central Cemetery) in Vienna, Austria.
Years active: 1974 -1998
Crime Time
Falco Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Welcome to Crime Time
Lost Angeles irgendwann spät Abends
Er war einer jener Abende
Nicht viel vom Glanz des Rodeo Drive übrig
Geblieben war
Viel mehr schien sich die von der Strapaze des Tages
Zu überlegen, welchem der beiden Männer sie wohl zuerst
Die Kehle zudrücken sollte
Der eine Mann war Bill A. Hemingway
Seine Freunde nannten ihn Philosopher
Der andere Mann war ich
Oh oh oh crime time
Oh oh oh crime time
Yeah yeah yeah kill to survive
Yeah yeah yeah run for your life
Oh oh oh crime time
Oh oh oh crime time
Yeah yeah yeah bullets and pain
Yeah yeah yeah it's crime time again
Wir saßen in Hemingways apartment
Dicht an den schwarzweiß besiedelten Blocks nahe der
Central Avenue
Dicht genug zu spüren
Wie sehr sich die Sonne bemühte in ihrem täglichen Untergang
Beide Seiten den Strassen zu belichten
Es war wenig außergewöhnliches an Hemmingway
Wenn man von seinen Händen und seinem Lächeln absehen konnte
Seine Hände beschrieben in ihrer Bewegung einen Nachtfalter
Dem der Tag schon viel zu lange schien
Sein Lächeln konnte man fast mögen
Solange man lebend dazu Gelegenheit hatte
Oh oh oh crime time
Oh oh oh crime time
Yeah yeah yeah kill to survive
Yeah yeah yeah run for your life
Oh oh oh crime time
Oh oh oh crime time
Yeah yeah yeah bullets and pain
Yeah yeah yeah it's crime time again
Jetzt lächelte Hemmingway
Denn er wusste dass seine Gloria mich zu ihm geschickt hatte,
Um ein sehr privates Problem zu klären
Ich war das private Problem und seine
38er Automatik zielte geradewegs auf meinen Solarplexus
Oh oh oh crime time
Oh oh oh crime time
Yeah yeah yeah kill to survive
Yeah yeah yeah run for your life
Oh oh oh crime time
Oh oh oh crime time
Yeah yeah yeah bullets and pain
Yeah yeah yeah it's crime time again
The song Crime Time by Falco paints a gritty picture of a night in Lost Angeles. The singer, in the company of a man named Hemingway, is facing off with another man. The song seems to be narrated from the perspective of the singer who is feeling on edge and unsure of their fate. The reference to "Crime Time" gives a sense of urgency and danger to the situation. They are in a dark apartment in a less desirable part of town, known for its heavy crime rate. The lyrics describe the air as being thick with the stress of the day, and the two men are both feeling it. The introduction paints a harsh picture of the world and sets the tone for the rest of the song. The lyrics create an image of the two men waiting for a confrontation, and the uncertainty of what might happen.
The lyrics dive deeper into the personalities of the two men. Hemingway is described as having hands that move like a night moth and a smile that could be loved as long as you were still alive. The other man, who was unnamed, was dangerous and armed with a .38 automatic pointed at the singer's solar plexus. Hemingway is portrayed as an enigmatic figure, who is aware of the danger they are in, but perhaps enjoying the thrill of it. The lyrics leave the audience wondering what led the singer to this situation and what the outcome may be.
Line by Line Meaning
Hello folks
Introducing the song to the audience
Welcome to Crime Time
Inviting the listener to a world of crime
Lost Angeles irgendwann spät Abends
Setting the stage for the events of the song: Los Angeles at night
Er war einer jener Abende
Emphasizing that it was a special evening
Nicht viel vom Glanz des Rodeo Drive übrig
The glamour of Rodeo Drive has faded away
Geblieben war
What remained was
Viel mehr schien sich die von der Strapaze des Tages
The exhaustion of the day seemed to be
Gequälte Luft
Agonizing the air
Zu überlegen, welchem der beiden Männer sie wohl zuerst
Contemplating on which one of the two men to strike first
Die Kehle zudrücken sollte
To choke by the throat
Der eine Mann war Bill A. Hemingway
Introducing the character Bill A. Hemingway
Seine Freunde nannten ihn Philosopher
Indicating that his friends had a special nickname for him
Der andere Mann war ich
Indicating that the singer is the other man
Oh oh oh crime time
Refrain of the song, emphasizing the theme of crime
Yeah yeah yeah kill to survive
Emphasizing the need to kill in order to survive
Yeah yeah yeah run for your life
Stressing the importance of running for survival
Wir saßen in Hemingways apartment
Describing the setting of the events
Dicht an den schwarzweiß besiedelten Blocks nahe der Central Avenue
Describing the location of the apartment
Dicht genug zu spüren
Close enough to feel
Wie sehr sich die Sonne bemühte in ihrem täglichen Untergang
Noting how the sun tries hard to set every day
Beide Seiten den Strassen zu belichten
Illuminating both sides of the street
Es war wenig außergewöhnliches an Hemmingway
Noting that Hemmingway is not an extraordinary character
Wenn man von seinen Händen und seinem Lächeln absehen konnte
Except for his hands and his smile
Seine Hände beschrieben in ihrer Bewegung einen Nachtfalter
Describing the motions of Hemmingway's hands as that of a moth
Dem der Tag schon viel zu lange schien
Indicating that the moths' journey has been long
Sein Lächeln konnte man fast mögen
Describing Hemmingway's smile as almost likable
Solange man lebend dazu Gelegenheit hatte
As long as there was a chance of living
Jetzt lächelte Hemmingway
Describing Hemmingway's smile in a different context
Denn er wusste dass seine Gloria mich zu ihm geschickt hatte, Um ein sehr privates Problem zu klären
Explaining the reason for the artist's presence in Hemmingway's apartment
Ich war das private Problem und seine 38er Automatik zielte geradewegs auf meinen Solarplexus
Revealing the climax of the story, where Hemmingway points a gun at the singer
Yeah yeah yeah bullets and pain
Emphasizing the violence and pain associated with crime
Yeah yeah yeah it's crime time again
Refrain of the song, emphasizing the recurring nature of crime
Lyrics © Budde Music Publishing GmbH, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Johann Hoelzel, Robert Bolland, Ferdinand Bolland
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Libor Synthesizer
on Out of the Dark
super muzika ,nádhera