SOTD...

The lovely Jon posted a tribute on his blog yesterday to Falco, who would have turned 55 yesterday (he died in a car accident in 1998). Worldwide he was best known for his massive hits "Rock Me Amadeus" and "Der Kommisar". While I love these tracks, my favourite Falco song has always been this one.



"Jeanny" was very controversial when it was released just before christmas in 1985.

The song is about a relationship between a man and a girl named Jeanny. Severl critics said that the song glorifies rape and violence. An outcry in German language markets caused the song to be banned by some radio broadcasters or played with a preceding warning by others.

Several feminist associations also called for a boycott of the song. Some TV and radio stations in West Germany agreed and didn't play the song "for ethical reasons". In East Germany the song could not be played on radio - it was even banned from the nightclubs!

Typically, the scandal only helped to increase the sales of the single, which went # 1 in Germany and many other countries in Europe.

The lyrics don't actually contain any direct reference to the act of rape or abduction. It is left to the listener's imagination. Of course the controversial video only added gasoline to to flames.
Falco argued that it is about the musings of a stalker.

The song became the first part of a trilogy, with the songs "Coming Home (Jeanny Part 2, One Year Later)" and "The Spirit Never Dies (Jeanny Final") also becoming big hits.

Here is the (excellent and quite weird video):





And here is a cover/tribute version released last year on the 25th Anniversary edition of the album the single came from - by Hurts!