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
Tango the Night
Falco Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mit Champagner ein Couplé
Nur deine Leidenschaft
Der Leib
Die Glut
Die Kraft
I kiss your lips
Your body's swaying in the pale moonlight
We dance until the break of day
We'll tango the night away
Olé
Was weißt denn du, was Liebe ist?
Wenn alles du beim Tanz vergißt
Nur deine Leidenschaft
Der Leib
Die Glut
Die Kraft
I kiss your lips
I hold you tight
Your body's swaying in the pale moonlight
We dance until the break of day
We'll tango the night away
Olé
Ein tête-à-tête im Séparée
Mit Champagner ein Couplé
Olé
I kiss your lips
I hold you tight
Your body's swaying in the pale moonlight
We dance until the break of day
We'll tango the night away
Olé
Kiss your lips
I hold you tight
Your body's swaying in the pale moonlight
We dance until the break of day
We'll tango the night away
Olé
We'll tango the night away
Olé
The lyrics to Falco's song "Tango the Night" are a passionate and sensual invitation to dance the night away with someone. The singer is in a sophisticated and private setting: a séparée with champagne, where he is completely focused on his partner's body and their shared passion. The repetition of "nur deine Leidenschaft, der Leib, die Glut, die Kraft" emphasizes the physical nature of their connection, while the tango itself is a symbol for the intensity and drama of their relationship.
The chorus features the singer kissing his partner's lips and holding them close while they dance to the tango until dawn. The final stanza emphasizes the idea that in the midst of their dancing and passion, everything else fades away except for their connection. The repeated use of "Olé" feels like a victory cry, as if they have triumphed over the rest of the world with their love.
Overall, "Tango the Night" is a powerful celebration of sensuality and connection through dance, and the lyrics paint a vivid picture of a passionate and intimate experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Schwung gepflegt I'm Séparée
Gracefully swaying in a separate area
Mit Champagner ein Couplé
Sipping champagne as a couple
Nur deine Leidenschaft
Only your passion
Der Leib
The body
Die Glut
The fire
Die Kraft
The strength
I kiss your lips
Kissing your lips
I hold you tight
Holding you close
Your body's swaying in the pale monlight
Your body moves gracefully in the moonlight
We dance until the break of day
We dance until morning
We'll tango the night away
We'll dance the tango all night long
Olé
Ole
Was weißt denn do, was Liebe ist
What do you know about love
Wenn alles do beim Tanz vergißt
When you forget everything while dancing
Ein tête-à-tête I'm Séparée
An intimate conversation in a separate area
Fade out
The song fades out
Lyrics © Budde Music Publishing GmbH, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing, 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