“Hold on!” With these words Dieter “Maschine” Birr, former frontman of the Puhdys, has been saying goodbye for a long time – even before the corona crisis, the Ukraine war and inflation caused many people to worry.
Now the musician has made a whole song out of his courage saying. And this can be found on the new album of the 78-year-old. Birr’s fifth solo work is called “Große Herzen” – the double album is a collection of very personal songs.
Older songs and new compositions
All compositions and lyrics on Part 1 are by Birr. They were created during the pandemic. Part 2 offers previously unreleased older songs, some of which are around 30 years old. “I had the offer to make an album and I sat down,” the musician told the German Press Agency. “The Corona period was pretty boring. I was happy when my wife sent me shopping.” The pandemic and its consequences are also strongly present in the lyrics of the album.
In the video for “Better Days”, “Maschine”, which has performed in front of thousands of fans for decades, runs through the deserted center of Berlin at night. “The world has changed. Everything at a distance. The invisible enemies give us no chance, no chance,” he sings thoughtfully, and: “Dead stages without songs. But I keep dreaming. Of applause and rock’n’roll. And from the end of these days anyway.” About the video shoot, which required special permission because of the lockdown, Birr says: “It was mystical, deserted – and very scary.”
Don’t give up hope, don’t lose heart – that’s what some of the songs are about. But also about gratitude: “The helping angels in white robes. Fight and save with a divine hand,” sings the rocker. He dedicates a song to those who accompanied him on his career without being in the limelight. So it says in “Roadies”: “Meter-high speaker towers for the sound thunderstorms. … And I bow very deeply and take off my hat.” The song is a “thanks to all brownies. You have to be born for that!” says Birr.
The first song on the record, on the other hand, is, as the musician describes it on his Instagram account, “a song against hate, for tolerance” – and: “a brisk number”. The chorus says: “Gloria, Gloria, my world needs no anger. … I wasn’t born to be a warrior.”
The song “If I Can Live Again” is less rocky, but just as personal. The 78-year-old states: “Of course I would do almost everything again. Also play with the same band. But peacefully to the last note.”
The voice of the Puhdys
Birr was the voice of the Puhdys from 1969 until the band broke up in January 2016. In the GDR, the combo was voted the most popular rock group twelve times. After a short break, things continued after the fall of the Wall – and success returned. In 2015, one of the most successful bands from East Germany surprisingly announced their dissolution.
After a long dispute over the song rights, an out-of-court settlement was reached last year on the authorship of the compositions. “I got my rights. That’s all I can say about it,” says Birr, and: “The bandage is off, but the wound hasn’t healed.” He still has no contact with the other band members. At the same time, the musician says: “The Puhdys were my life, the best time in my life.”
