03-03-2013, 19:55
online listen
biggest selling artist in German history
Antony and Bono both get a featured roll
Bono track was the only thing I liked
1.3 from me and not rated by allmusic
from the album - Mensch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qto_sD51H74
released Feb 26th, 2013
![[Image: MI0003399776.jpg?partner=allrovi.com]](http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG_250/MI0003/399/MI0003399776.jpg?partner=allrovi.com)
Bio - from allmusic
Perhaps best known to international audiences for his performance in Wolfgang Petersen's
highly-acclaimed film Das Boot, Herbert Grönemeyer is celebrated in his native Germany as one
of the most successful rock singers of his generation. Born in Göttingen on April 12, 1956,
Grönemeyer first earned attention as an actor, beginning his career in the 1977 German telefilm
Die Geisel. His debut LP, Ocean Orchestra, appeared a year later to little notice, and the
follow-up, Grönemeyer, attracted scant attention as well. In 1981, he landed the role of Lt.
Werner in the World War II epic Das Boot, which emerged as an international commercial and
critical hit, earning six Academy Award nominations. Grönemeyer nevertheless walked away from
film to concentrate on his music career.
In 1984, he signed to EMI and issued Bochum, which went on to become the biggest-selling
German-language LP in music history to date. A gravel-voiced, blue-collar stadium rocker best
likened to American acts such as Bob Seger and John Mellencamp, Grönemeyer also favored topical
lyrics that mirrored his growing influence as an activist. In the mid-'80s, he led protests
against ozone-depleting CFC gases, and in 1992 founded the anti-racism group Ich Bin ein
Ausländer (I Am a Foreigner). Albums including 1986's Sprünge and 1988's à kept Grönemeyer atop
the German charts, and in 1991 he recorded his first English-language effort, Luxus, which
failed to accurately translate the intricacies and nuances of his original lyrics. He became
the first German act to appear on MTV Unplugged in 1995, and a year later again tried to crack
the English-language market, with Chaos.
In the wake of 1998's Bleibt Alles Anders, Grönemeyer suffered extraordinary personal tragedy
when his wife Anna and his brother Wilhelm both died of cancer within the same week; he dropped
from sight in the weeks and months to follow, although in 1999 he co-founded his own label,
Grönland, which boasted a vast and eclectic catalog including the complete output of the
pioneering Krautrock outfit Neu! Grönemeyer finally resurfaced in 2002 with a new LP, Mensch, a
deeply personal effort informed by his recent losses. The title track went on to become his
first-ever number one single, and the album sold in excess of 3.2 million copies at home,
making it Germany's highest-selling album of all time. Time Magazine awarded Grönemeyer the
title of "European Hero" in 2005 on behalf of his humanitarian efforts, which by this time
included his work leading the Deine Stimme Gegen Armut (Your Voice Against Poverty) campaign.
The following summer he recorded "Zeit Dass Sich Was Dreht" (Celebrate the Day), the official
anthem of World Cup 2006. In 2007, Grönemeyer re-recorded What's all this, Luxus and Chaos for
an English audience, although the venture wouldn't prove as successful as his domestic career,
which continued to blossom with the release of his twelfth album, aptly titled 12, that same
year.
12's follow-up came four years later in the shape of Schiffsverkehr, which included a powerful
title track that proved the singer had lost none of his musical passion. Herbert Grönemeyer
played in front of over half a million people while touring the album throughout 2011.
Album Review - from allmusic
On his 14th studio album, German singer Herbert Grönemeyer presents a set of 13 English-
language tracks -- ten of them re-adaptations of older songs: "Flugzeuge im Bauch" becomes
"Airplanes in My Head," "Glück" is reworked as "All That I Need," and "Zum Meer" is turned into
"To the Sea." On three tracks, Grönemeyer is supported by high-profile guest artists: Antony
Hegarty is featured on "Will I Ever Learn" (one of three original compositions), James Dean
Bradfield of the Manic Street Preachers appears on "To the Sea," and U2 frontman Bono drops by
on "Mensch" (the original version of which was one of Grönemeyer's biggest hits, topping the
charts in Germany and Austria).
Track Listing
1. Mensch
2. All That I Need
3. Will I Ever Learn (Feat. Antony Hegarty)
4. Keep Hurting Me
5. To The Sea (Feat. James Dean Bradfield)
6. Because Of You
7. Before The Morning
8. I Walk
9. Airplanes In My Head
10. Behind The Glass
11. Same Old Boys
12. The Tunnel
13. Mensch (Feat. Bono)
biggest selling artist in German history
Antony and Bono both get a featured roll
Bono track was the only thing I liked
1.3 from me and not rated by allmusic
from the album - Mensch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qto_sD51H74
released Feb 26th, 2013
Bio - from allmusic
Perhaps best known to international audiences for his performance in Wolfgang Petersen's
highly-acclaimed film Das Boot, Herbert Grönemeyer is celebrated in his native Germany as one
of the most successful rock singers of his generation. Born in Göttingen on April 12, 1956,
Grönemeyer first earned attention as an actor, beginning his career in the 1977 German telefilm
Die Geisel. His debut LP, Ocean Orchestra, appeared a year later to little notice, and the
follow-up, Grönemeyer, attracted scant attention as well. In 1981, he landed the role of Lt.
Werner in the World War II epic Das Boot, which emerged as an international commercial and
critical hit, earning six Academy Award nominations. Grönemeyer nevertheless walked away from
film to concentrate on his music career.
In 1984, he signed to EMI and issued Bochum, which went on to become the biggest-selling
German-language LP in music history to date. A gravel-voiced, blue-collar stadium rocker best
likened to American acts such as Bob Seger and John Mellencamp, Grönemeyer also favored topical
lyrics that mirrored his growing influence as an activist. In the mid-'80s, he led protests
against ozone-depleting CFC gases, and in 1992 founded the anti-racism group Ich Bin ein
Ausländer (I Am a Foreigner). Albums including 1986's Sprünge and 1988's à kept Grönemeyer atop
the German charts, and in 1991 he recorded his first English-language effort, Luxus, which
failed to accurately translate the intricacies and nuances of his original lyrics. He became
the first German act to appear on MTV Unplugged in 1995, and a year later again tried to crack
the English-language market, with Chaos.
In the wake of 1998's Bleibt Alles Anders, Grönemeyer suffered extraordinary personal tragedy
when his wife Anna and his brother Wilhelm both died of cancer within the same week; he dropped
from sight in the weeks and months to follow, although in 1999 he co-founded his own label,
Grönland, which boasted a vast and eclectic catalog including the complete output of the
pioneering Krautrock outfit Neu! Grönemeyer finally resurfaced in 2002 with a new LP, Mensch, a
deeply personal effort informed by his recent losses. The title track went on to become his
first-ever number one single, and the album sold in excess of 3.2 million copies at home,
making it Germany's highest-selling album of all time. Time Magazine awarded Grönemeyer the
title of "European Hero" in 2005 on behalf of his humanitarian efforts, which by this time
included his work leading the Deine Stimme Gegen Armut (Your Voice Against Poverty) campaign.
The following summer he recorded "Zeit Dass Sich Was Dreht" (Celebrate the Day), the official
anthem of World Cup 2006. In 2007, Grönemeyer re-recorded What's all this, Luxus and Chaos for
an English audience, although the venture wouldn't prove as successful as his domestic career,
which continued to blossom with the release of his twelfth album, aptly titled 12, that same
year.
12's follow-up came four years later in the shape of Schiffsverkehr, which included a powerful
title track that proved the singer had lost none of his musical passion. Herbert Grönemeyer
played in front of over half a million people while touring the album throughout 2011.
Album Review - from allmusic
On his 14th studio album, German singer Herbert Grönemeyer presents a set of 13 English-
language tracks -- ten of them re-adaptations of older songs: "Flugzeuge im Bauch" becomes
"Airplanes in My Head," "Glück" is reworked as "All That I Need," and "Zum Meer" is turned into
"To the Sea." On three tracks, Grönemeyer is supported by high-profile guest artists: Antony
Hegarty is featured on "Will I Ever Learn" (one of three original compositions), James Dean
Bradfield of the Manic Street Preachers appears on "To the Sea," and U2 frontman Bono drops by
on "Mensch" (the original version of which was one of Grönemeyer's biggest hits, topping the
charts in Germany and Austria).
Track Listing
1. Mensch
2. All That I Need
3. Will I Ever Learn (Feat. Antony Hegarty)
4. Keep Hurting Me
5. To The Sea (Feat. James Dean Bradfield)
6. Because Of You
7. Before The Morning
8. I Walk
9. Airplanes In My Head
10. Behind The Glass
11. Same Old Boys
12. The Tunnel
13. Mensch (Feat. Bono)
