Autobahn (song)
Encyclopedia
"Autobahn" is a song by German electronic band Kraftwerk
, composed by Ralf Hütter
and Florian Schneider
of the band, with Emil Schult
collaborating on the lyrics. It is co-produced by Conny Plank
, and was the band's first track to use sung lyrics. It is designed to capture the feel of driving on a motorway.
"). The refrain was often mistaken for the English phrase "Fun fun fun on the Autobahn." Band member Wolfgang Flür
later commented: "No! Someone else told me that they [the misinterpreters] thought the way we speak in German, 'Fahren,' which means driving, sounds like the English word, 'fun.' 'Fahren fahren fahren,' 'fun fun fun
.' That is wrong. But it works. Driving is fun. We had no speed limit on the autobahn, we could race through the highways, through the Alps, so yes, fahren fahren fahren, fun fun fun. But it wasn't anything to do with the Beach Boys
! We used to drive a lot, we used to listen to the sound of driving, the wind, passing cars and lorries, the rain, every moment the sounds around you are changing, and the idea was to rebuild those sounds on the synth."
Unlike many of the band's most popular songs, the band has never released the song in any other language.
The arrangement also included acoustic elements such as guitar and flute.
The band have continued to perform the song live regularly throughout their career. Live arrangements have evolved continuously as the band have adapted the instrumentation and equipment they use on stage.
. This was edited to a more modest 4 minutes and released as a single, giving the band an unexpected Top 40 hit in the USA, and other countries, the first of their career. A differently edited version, at 3 minutes duration, was released in the UK, reaching #11, and was later included on the UK compilation LP Exceller 8
. The song also reached #12 in Canada (Vertigo VE-203).
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
, composed by Ralf Hütter
Ralf Hütter
Ralf Hütter is the lead singer, keyboardist, and reportedly leader of the electronic-music band Kraftwerk. Since the departure of Florian Schneider in 2008, he is also the group's sole remaining founding member....
and Florian Schneider
Florian Schneider
Florian Schneider-Esleben is one of the founding members of electronic music band Kraftwerk. He left the band in November 2008.-Career:...
of the band, with Emil Schult
Emil Schult
Emil Schult is a German painter, poet and musician.He is most famous for his collaborations with the electronic music band Kraftwerk. He has created most of their sleeve designs since 1973...
collaborating on the lyrics. It is co-produced by Conny Plank
Conny Plank
Konrad "Conny" Plank was a German record producer and musician. He was born in Hütschenhausen. His creativity as a sound engineer and producer helped to shape some of the most important and innovative recordings of postwar European popular music, covering a wide range of genres including...
, and was the band's first track to use sung lyrics. It is designed to capture the feel of driving on a motorway.
Lyrics
The lyrics of the song are in German, the main refrain being "Wir fahren fahren fahren auf der Autobahn" (English: "We drive drive drive on the AutobahnGerman Autobahnen
The German autobahns are the nationally coordinated motorway system in Germany. In German, they are officially called Bundesautobahn , which translates as federal expressways...
"). The refrain was often mistaken for the English phrase "Fun fun fun on the Autobahn." Band member Wolfgang Flür
Wolfgang Flür
Wolfgang Flür is a German musician, best known as a member of the electronic group Kraftwerk, from 1973 to 1987, playing electronic percussion...
later commented: "No! Someone else told me that they [the misinterpreters] thought the way we speak in German, 'Fahren,' which means driving, sounds like the English word, 'fun.' 'Fahren fahren fahren,' 'fun fun fun
Fun, Fun, Fun
"Fun, Fun, Fun", written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, was a hit single by The Beach Boys that was released in 1964 on the band's album Shut Down Volume 2.- Composition :...
.' That is wrong. But it works. Driving is fun. We had no speed limit on the autobahn, we could race through the highways, through the Alps, so yes, fahren fahren fahren, fun fun fun. But it wasn't anything to do with the Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
! We used to drive a lot, we used to listen to the sound of driving, the wind, passing cars and lorries, the rain, every moment the sounds around you are changing, and the idea was to rebuild those sounds on the synth."
Unlike many of the band's most popular songs, the band has never released the song in any other language.
Composition
The instrumentation used on the song's 1974 recording was highly innovative at the time and is notable for the significant influence it had on many subsequent genres of electronic popular and dance music. Notable aspects of the arrangement included:- Electronic percussion pads, played by Wolfgang Flür.
- Use of a classic 'MoogMoog synthesizerMoog synthesizer may refer to any number of analog synthesizers designed by Dr. Robert Moog or manufactured by Moog Music, and is commonly used as a generic term for older-generation analog music synthesizers. The Moog company pioneered the commercial manufacture of modular voltage-controlled...
bass' sound to play the bass line, playing an octave riff with added analogue echo. - Liberal use of phasingPhasingIn the compositional technique phasing, the same part is played on two musical instruments, in steady but not identical tempo...
on synths to play the chords. - Use of a vocoderVocoderA vocoder is an analysis/synthesis system, mostly used for speech. In the encoder, the input is passed through a multiband filter, each band is passed through an envelope follower, and the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated to the decoder...
to process some of the vocals. - Use of the so-called 'motorikMotorikMotorik is a term coined by music journalists to describe the 4/4 beat often used by "Krautrock" bands such as Neu! and Kraftwerk...
' 4/4 drum beat in the song's final section.
The arrangement also included acoustic elements such as guitar and flute.
The band have continued to perform the song live regularly throughout their career. Live arrangements have evolved continuously as the band have adapted the instrumentation and equipment they use on stage.
Release
A version of the song lasting over 22 minutes was recorded as the title track of the album AutobahnAutobahn (album)
Autobahn is the fourth studio album by German electronic band Kraftwerk, released in November 1974. The 22-minute title track "Autobahn" was edited to about 3 minutes for single release and reached number 25 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, and performed even higher around Europe, including...
. This was edited to a more modest 4 minutes and released as a single, giving the band an unexpected Top 40 hit in the USA, and other countries, the first of their career. A differently edited version, at 3 minutes duration, was released in the UK, reaching #11, and was later included on the UK compilation LP Exceller 8
Exceller 8
Exceller 8 is the title of a 1975 compilation album of music by Kraftwerk. It was released by the Vertigo label in order to capitalize on both the summer chart success of the single "Autobahn" and the imminent release of the next Kraftwerk album Radio-Activity — by this time Ralf Hütter and Florian...
. The song also reached #12 in Canada (Vertigo VE-203).
Charts
| Chart (1975) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Singles Chart Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
12 |
| German Singles Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
9 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
20 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
11 |
| U.S. Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
25 |
Cover versions
- The Dutch death metalDeath metalDeath metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
band GorefestGorefestGorefest was a Dutch band from the Zeeland region of the Netherlands which was founded in 1988 as a death metal outfit by De Koeyer, Harthoorn, van Schaik and Hoogendoorn.-History:...
has covered the song. - Faux latinoLatinoThe demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
band Señor Coconut made a merengueMerengue (dance)Merengue El camino1ro de Secundaria-In popular culture:* Merengue was mentioned as a song performed between Babs and Charlie in the song by Steely Dan....
arrangement of the song for their album of exotic-style Kraftwerk cover versions, El Baile AlemánEl Baile AlemánEl Baile Alemán is a 2000 album by Señor Coconut Y Su Conjunto . It is an album of Kraftwerk covers done in a Latin American style.Although mostly note-for-note covers, some tracks add embellishments such as "cha-cha-chas"...
. - Balanescu QuartetBalanescu QuartetThe Balanescu Quartet is an avant-garde string quartet founded in 1987 by Alexander Bălănescu that achieved fame through the release of several complex cover versions of songs by German experimental electronic music band Kraftwerk on their album "Possessed"....
also recorded a string-quartet cover version of this song on their 1992 album Possessed. - Rick MoranisRick MoranisFrederick Allan "Rick" Moranis is a Canadian comedian, actor, musician, and a magician. Moranis came to prominence in the late 1970s on the sketch comedy show Second City Television, and later appeared in several Hollywood films including Strange Brew; Ghostbusters; Spaceballs; Little Shop of...
released a parody of Autobahn on a comedy music record in the early 1980s. - The Canadian band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy PlanetShadowy Men on a Shadowy PlanetShadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet were a Juno Award-winning Canadian instrumental rock band, formed in 1984. They remain best-known for the track "Having an Average Weekend," which was used as the theme to the Canadian sketch comedy TV show The Kids in the Hall...
has covered the song.