Frl. Menke
Encyclopedia
Frl. Menke was one of the stars of the Neue Deutsche Welle
, a genre of German music originally derived from punk rock and New Wave music
, which also brought the German band Nena
("99 Luftballons
") into the international spotlight. Menke is best known for her hit single "Hohe Berge" (High Mountains), which was a Top 10 hit on the German single charts in 1982 and sold more than 2.5 million copies to date.
in Germany, namely the Neue Deutsche Welle
. It is very strange that this new genre, which dominated the German single charts from 1982–1984, mostly made groups or male singers popular. Menke was basically the only successful female artists, next to Ixi or Nena
(which actually was a band, too, but the female lead singer Nena was more prominent than her band).
Menke's most successful time in the music business was during the Neue Deutsche Welle
. She scored three successful hit singles and one self-named album. She sold more than three million records during 1982 and 1983.
Menke gave birth to two children at the end of the 80s and composed various jingles for radio stations and advertisement campaigns. She tried out for a comeback in 1992 with her second album "Ich Will's Gefährlich."
Throughout the years she has often recorded cover versions of her most successful singles. In 1990 she was remixed by the German band Masterboy
and in 1994 she recorded two techno music versions of "Hohe Berge" and "Tretboot in Seenot." She did another version of "Hohe Berge" for her 2005 album "Einwandfrei" and has recently recorded an industrial version in cooperation with the German band "The Seven Seals" in 2007.
Neue Deutsche Welle
Neue Deutsche Welle is a genre of German music originally derived from punk rock and New Wave music...
, a genre of German music originally derived from punk rock and New Wave music
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
, which also brought the German band Nena
Nena
Gabriele Susanne Kerner , better known by her stage name Nena, is a German singer and actress. She rose to international fame in 1983 with the New German Wave song "99 Luftballons". In 1984, she re-recorded this song in English as "99 Red Balloons". Nena was also the name of the band with whom she...
("99 Luftballons
99 Luftballons
"99 Luftballons" is a protest song by the German pop-rock band Nena from their 1983 self-titled album. Originally sung in German, it was later re-recorded in English as "99 Red Balloons" for their album 99 Luftballons in 1984...
") into the international spotlight. Menke is best known for her hit single "Hohe Berge" (High Mountains), which was a Top 10 hit on the German single charts in 1982 and sold more than 2.5 million copies to date.
Music career
Franziska Menke is the daughter of the well-known German songwriter, producer and publisher Joe Menke. She stepped into the spotlight in 1982 when her hit single "Hohe Berge" became an instant success. "Hohe Berge" was one of the first songs to start a new music genreGenre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
in Germany, namely the Neue Deutsche Welle
Neue Deutsche Welle
Neue Deutsche Welle is a genre of German music originally derived from punk rock and New Wave music...
. It is very strange that this new genre, which dominated the German single charts from 1982–1984, mostly made groups or male singers popular. Menke was basically the only successful female artists, next to Ixi or Nena
Nena
Gabriele Susanne Kerner , better known by her stage name Nena, is a German singer and actress. She rose to international fame in 1983 with the New German Wave song "99 Luftballons". In 1984, she re-recorded this song in English as "99 Red Balloons". Nena was also the name of the band with whom she...
(which actually was a band, too, but the female lead singer Nena was more prominent than her band).
Menke's most successful time in the music business was during the Neue Deutsche Welle
Neue Deutsche Welle
Neue Deutsche Welle is a genre of German music originally derived from punk rock and New Wave music...
. She scored three successful hit singles and one self-named album. She sold more than three million records during 1982 and 1983.
Menke gave birth to two children at the end of the 80s and composed various jingles for radio stations and advertisement campaigns. She tried out for a comeback in 1992 with her second album "Ich Will's Gefährlich."
Throughout the years she has often recorded cover versions of her most successful singles. In 1990 she was remixed by the German band Masterboy
Masterboy
Masterboy is a German eurodance group with notable success in Europe, Asia, Oceania and South America in the mid-1990s. They are one of the most representative group for 90's "high energy" eurodance phenomenon, when this genre crossed over from dance clubs to the pop music arena...
and in 1994 she recorded two techno music versions of "Hohe Berge" and "Tretboot in Seenot." She did another version of "Hohe Berge" for her 2005 album "Einwandfrei" and has recently recorded an industrial version in cooperation with the German band "The Seven Seals" in 2007.
Trivia
- Frl. Menke still tours GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
very often together with other bands and singers from the Neue Deutsche Welle era. - Frl. is the abbreviation for FräuleinFräuleinFräulein is the German language honorific previously in common use for unmarried women, comparable to Miss in English. Fräulein is the diminutive form of Frau, which was previously reserved only for married women. Since the 1970s, Fräulein has come to be used less often, and was banned from...
, which was the German equivalent for "MissMissMiss is an English language honorific traditionally used only for an unmarried woman . Originating in the 17th century, it is a contraction of mistress, which was used for all women. A period is not used to signify the contraction...
." However, the term is not used in Germany anymore. - Menke was voted one of the 10 most popular singers in 1982 by the very successful and influential German teenager magazine BravoBravo (magazine)Bravo is the largest teen magazine within the German-language sphere. The first issue was published in 1956, subtitled as "the magazine for film and television" . Marilyn Monroe's portrait graced the first published issue, the never-published dummy issue cover displayed Elvis Presley.-History:The...
- Menke has very often starred in different musicals in HamburgHamburg-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
since 2001 - Her debut album was re-released on CD for the first time in 1999, containing several extended versions, B-sides of her original singles, plus two previously unreleased songs ("Du Tarzan, Ich Jane" and "Schuljungenreport")
Chart Information
Two of Menke's hit single, "Hohe Berge" and "Tretboot in Seenot," are evergreens by now. Those songs are still being played by radio stations are especially popular among fans of the 80's.- Hohe Berge: #10 German single charts
- Traumboy: #39 German single charts
- Tretboot in Seenot: #24 German single charts
Singles
- 1980 Wie Du bist
- 1982 Hohe Berge
- 1982 Traumboy
- 1983 Tretboot in Seenot
- 1983 Messeglück in Düsseldorf
- 1984 Die Ganze Nacht
- 1990 Hohe Berge - Remix
- 1992 Ich Will's gefährlich
- 1992 Ich Hol Doch Keine Brötchen
- 1992 Himmel
- 1993 Frau Neben Mir