The LP Lindenberg (also 1971, and sung in English, already with Steffi Stephan on bass) was likewise unsuccessful. In the following year, the fist LP in German was released: Daumen im Wind (produced by Lindenberg and Thomas Kukuck, who also produced the next five albums together), from which the single "Hoch im Norden" became a radio hit in northern Germany. The year 1973 brought a breakthrough with the album Andrea Doria and its catchy "Alles klar auf der Andrea Doria" and "Cello". Over 100,000 copies sold, and Lindenberg quickly received the largest record deal of any German-language musician up to that time. Lindenberg was earning a special place in the new German-language music of the 70s: Between internationally-oriented Krautrock and pop music, he found his niche. German-language rock had previously been confined to predominantly political message bands whose music was directed at a narrow audience.
Lindenbergs brash style, everyday subject matter ("Bei Onkel Pö…") and his feel for language were an unprecedented combination in German-language music. His pioneering work helped other artists such as Stefan Waggershausen and Marius Müller-Westernhagen get record deals of their own. In 1973 Lindenberg first went on tour with his Panikorchester (Panic Orchestra).
1976 was one of Udo Lindenberg's most productive years. Besides the LP Galaxo Gang he also published under the name Das Waldemar Wunderbar Syndicat I make you feel good, a first Best of Panik Udo and the first in a series of foreign-language publications No Panic, on which Lindenberg translated his songs to English. In the same year (and on another LP: Sister King Kong) with the song "Rock ’n’ Roll Arena in Jena", Lindenberg first mentioned a Panic Orchestra tour in the GDR. In 1976, Lindenberg discovered Ulla Meinecke and produced her first two albums. She was a guest artist and co-author of the 1977 LP Panische Nächte (Panic Nights) and the 1978 Dröhnland Symphonie. On Lindenbergs Rock Revue (1978) Lindenberg and Horst Königstein "Germanized" rock classics from Little Richard to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, and went on a big tour. The Nr.-1-Hit "We Gotta Get out of This Place" was also published with German lyrics.
The subsequent Dröhnland-Symphonie-Tour was staged by Peter Zadek as a big multimedia stage show with a plethora of costumed extras. The result was Lindenbergs first live album Livehaftig. In 1979, Der Detektiv was the second Rock Revue, in which more international hits such as "Candle in the Wind" by Elton John, "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf, "My Little Town" and "As Time Goes By" (from the film Casablanca) were "Germanized". Also 1997 was published "Belcanto - Udo Lindenberg & das Deutsche Filmorchester Babelsberg" which included hits like "Horizont", "Bis ans Ende der Welt" along with a song by Bertold Brecht and Udo's own interpretation of The Windmills of Your Mind - "Under the drunkard moon" ("Unterm Säufermond").
One of his most famous songs is Sonderzug nach Pankow (Special train service to Pankow), an adaptation of Chattanooga Choo Choo, released as a single on 2 February 1983. It originated from the refusal of eastern German authorities to allow Lindenberg a concert in the German Democratic Republic (GDR).
On June 3, 2011, Lindenberg performed at Kampnagel unplugged. The recording was later released as an album within the MTV unplugged series. Lindenberg was the 8th German artist in that series. The album became the second No.1 album for Lindenberg declared Platin status for 200,000 sold units after two weeks. The second single from the album "Cello" (feat. Clueso) went No.4 giving Lindenberg the highest chart position in German singles charts ever reached.
Lindenberg has worked collaboratively with various local and international recording artists (Eric Burdon, Helen Schneider, David Bowie, Tom Robinson, Keith Forsey, Gianna Nannini, and Nena) on a number of projects. He currently lives in Hamburg in the Hotel Atlantic (for several years now). His somewhat hoarse voice is the result of too much liquor and cigarettes. In 1989, he survived a heart attack. In 2010, he designed two stamps, themed on his songs "Andrea Doria" and "Sonderzug nach Pankow", for the Deutsche Post.
Ratten
Udo Lindenberg Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
wo die Giftfabriken blühen
wo das Wasser schwarz ist wie die Nacht
wo man uns langsam fertigmacht...
Sie haben uns den Dschungel geklaut
den Himmel verpestet
und die Flüsse versaut
die wälzen sich als stinkender Brei
Und wir sind die Ratten
in eurem Schatten
ihr großen Tiere, ihr Killervampire
Da, wo selbst ein Django flennt
weil Schwefel in den Augen brennt
die Luft voll Ätze und Monoxyd
und man die Sonne nicht mehr sieht...
Zwischen Oder oder Weser
Rhein, Main, Elbe oder Neiße
da wollen wir klares Wasser sehen
und nicht diese Blubber-Scheiße
Ja, sind wir denn Ratten
in eurem Schatten
ihr großen Tiere, ihr Killervampire
Ihr Vampire! Ihr Menschenfresser! Ihr Blutsauger!
Wo gelbe Wolken ziehen
wo Giftfabriken blühen
der saure Regen niedergeht
da, wo bald der Wind sich dreht!
In Udo Lindenberg's song "Ratten", the lyrics paint a picture of a polluted world filled with toxic waste and polluted skies. The opening lines describe a place where the clouds are yellow and the factories are producing poisonous chemicals. The water is black as night and slowly killing everything around it. The verses then speak of the destruction of the environment, the loss of the jungles and pristine waters. The chorus then depicts the people living in this desolate world as rats, living in the shadows of the killers who are responsible for it all.
The second verse describes the difficulty of living in this world, where even the air is poisonous and the sun can no longer be seen. The final verse ends with a call to action, asking for clear waters and an end to the pollution. Udo Lindenberg's "Ratten" is a powerful social commentary on the destruction of the environment and the devastating impact it has on humanity.
Line by Line Meaning
Wo die gelben Wolken ziehen
Where yellow clouds are drifting
wo die Giftfabriken blühen
Where the poison factories are flourishing
wo das Wasser schwarz ist wie die Nacht
Where the water is as black as night
wo man uns langsam fertigmacht...
Where they are slowly destroying us...
Sie haben uns den Dschungel geklaut
They stole our jungle
den Himmel verpestet
Polluted the sky
und die Flüsse versaut
And polluted the rivers
die wälzen sich als stinkender Brei
They roll by as stinking sludge
am zugepflasterten Strand vorbei
Past the paved-over beach
Und wir sind die Ratten
And we are the rats
in eurem Schatten
In your shadow
ihr großen Tiere, ihr Killervampire
You big animals, you killer vampires
Da, wo selbst ein Django flennt
Where even a Django cries
weil Schwefel in den Augen brennt
Because sulfur burns in their eyes
die Luft voll Ätze und Monoxyd
The air is full of acid and monoxide
und man die Sonne nicht mehr sieht...
And you can't see the sun anymore...
Zwischen Oder oder Weser
Between Oder or Weser
Rhein, Main, Elbe oder Neiße
Rhein, Main, Elbe or Neiße
da wollen wir klares Wasser sehen
There we want to see clear water
und nicht diese Blubber-Scheiße
And not this bubble bullshit
Ja, sind wir denn Ratten
Yes, are we really rats
in eurem Schatten
In your shadow
ihr großen Tiere, ihr Killervampire
You big animals, you killer vampires
Ihr Vampire! Ihr Menschenfresser! Ihr Blutsauger!
You vampires! You man-eaters! You bloodsuckers!
Wo gelbe Wolken ziehen
Where yellow clouds are drifting
wo Giftfabriken blühen
Where the poison factories are flourishing
der saure Regen niedergeht
The acid rain falls
da, wo bald der Wind sich dreht!
Where soon the wind will turn!
Contributed by Lily R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.