That's What We Watched On TV Year Ago # 14

I have thought long about whether I can write in this series about German-speaking crime film series. At last I have said myself, why not. Most from you will have never belonged from this series and I am sure also that these series were never emitted beyond the German-speaking space. Since by a translation would get lost a lot from the pun and the typical mood. Kottan ermittelt was an Austrian television series that was aired by Austrian and German television between 1976  and 1984. In the early episodes it started as a drama with the typical melancholic Vienna spirit and turned later into satirical appearance.

Major Adolf Kottan investigates for the Viennese security office. Kottan lives together with his wife Ilse and his mother who reads with pleasure crime films and develops theories on the perfect murder. Kottan is usually decayed and always roughly to his official assistant Schrammel who presents himself with pleasure as a pattern policeman, but Kottans Viennese Reviling does not understand.
Schrammel means to be able to educate further itself by the reading of crime films, and estimates particularly Mike Hammer-Romane of Mickey Spillane. Schrammel cannot always keep up intellectually with his colleagues.
Paul Schremser who has lost a leg by amputation will appeal later to the department leader and thereby Kottan early who stays at this time with inquiries abroad. Kottan uses him in the beginning as assistants, is much friendlier to him, nevertheless, than to Schrammel. His crutch is used by Schremser every now and then as a machine gun or is also used to bring brief to case. If three are unfully occupied professionally, they make music in the films together as a „Kottans Kapelle“ (playing their songs in a full playback).
Chief constable Pilch worries constantly about the respect of the police. His biggest enemies are in the first results a room aviation with whose hunt he falls several times from the window. Later he often fights with a coffee vending machine which was put up by major Kottan. Pilch accepts with the time more and more the trains of a mental patient.

It never was, actually, about the criminal cases, but how one can insert possibly many references and commentings in the respective episode. I remember one episode when the intro was the same as the intro from Rockford files. And Kottan lived in the same trailer Rockford did and working as a private eye. Songs were also often used to comment on scenes. For example, the investigators were called to a corpse. The name of the dead people was Irene - and in the background they played Leadbelly's Goodnight Irene.

In the 80s they got more and more anarchic by testing how far they could go with this series. In the episode emitted for the first time in 1981 on the German television 'Kansas City' the run writing ran in the first third: „Unidentified flying objects near Duisburg landed. Special broadcasting after this contribution …“ about the screen. Besides, it concerned a joke (by analogy with H.G.Wells' war of the worlds). The city of Duisburg was chosen because of the then popular scene commissioner Schimanski who solved there his cases. The ZDF news followed the radiation, however, in those was not reported about a such incident, then there were many reactions of German spectators who called at the police and partially immobilised the telephone networks. A complaint followed in ORF as well as an excuse on the part of the TV-station.

Have a good weekend.

Torn Mentor

Today's the decision on the Referendum to get independent from GB. Nowadays the headlines are filled with comments about pros and cons. I know that I don't have the right to add me in other people matters but I think the decision moves between rational and emotional guidelines. 300 years under the supremacy of the Englishmen might get the right to vote yes. The economic consequences speak against it. I don't know what is right or wrong but I know for sure: peoples voice should be respected in any way the Referendum will be decided. And everyone should deal with the result.

Wrong Club

The greater Manchester area based pop duo The Ting Tings released with their last single a pog song for the end of summer. Starting with a groovy bass line Katie White's voice appears and leads the song into a fantastic funk/disco/pop-groove.

Twanging Tuesday # 43

Today's track is one of the lost songs in rockabilly. Played in different styles by various artists. I couldn't find further information about the artists but anyway it's a song that is typical for what I call rockabilly.

Glenn Bond - When My Baby's Passing By

Too Much Blood

For sentimental reasons I grab out my old Rolling Stones records and give them a listen. After listening to a few songs I got a feeling like I'm listening to a mainstream radio station. Then I used to switch to another kind of music. Last time I was looking around for some alternative takes and remixes of their songs. And you can find galore. I think their songs are too good not to take an edit of them. Here's an example for this. Originally released in 1983 on 'Undercover' where they experimented with new sound 'Too Much Blood' was on of the best songs on this record and this dubby version make him even better.

Enjoy and have a good week.

Rolling Stones - Too Much Blood (Arthur Baker Dub Mix)

From The In-Box

A couple of new artists arrived throughout the last weeks that are worth to named in this series. Let's start on this rainy Sunday with Ryan David Orr. He's an American singer/songwriter based in Lakeside, Arizona. Learned to play fiddle and guitar in his youngest days. After some experiments in grunge music he returned to his folk roots. Rootstime Magazine, Holland describes his music this way: "Ryan David Orr has a warm, beautiful voice with which he intimates feelings of sorrow or joy...similar to that of Chris Martin (Coldplay), Damien Rice, or Ryan Adams." And I agree.

Ryan David Orr - Margaret
Ryan David Orr - Lucky Is Enough

London based LAZYFLUX showed up with their self called Alternative Trip Rock. They name Pink Floyd as their influence and right - on some songs they try to do it in this way. I'm not into long organ parts and that's what they should use it less. But Zanzibar Bazaar is a great song. Starting with a bubbling guitar they move more to the times when bands like Red Guitars were famous.

LAZYFLUX - Zanzibar Bazaar

The House The Old is the project of Imran Siddiqui, a singer/songwriter from Virginia. Nothing more or less a very good arranged rock song that should be played on classic rock stations. 'Missing' takes a stand against violence on women - a campaign he started over his homepage.

The House The Old - Missing

Meditative Jam is the way Jim Dennis describes his music. Located in California you may think it's inspired by the westcoast sound. But it's different. Based on blues pattern he plays longer improvisations on them. In the back there were drums that oscillate between early The Doors and zappaesc drumming. Worth to listen to.

Jim Dennis - Illumine The Reflection
Jim Dennis - Penetrating Light

Let's finish for today with Eddy Bayes. Like many other singer/songwriters he used to play in pubs in London in his earlier days. Since moving stateside he developed his very own style. Torn between the influences of John Martyn, Beck and Tracy Chapman he found his music home. His fine songs were supplemented by the cello played by Abi Loutoo.

Eddy Bayes - Sail On
Eddy Bayes - Roads

That's What We Watched On TV Year Ago # 13

It sounds maybe funnily that I write about a series which one should assign to the genre children's program. I was a teen when I first saw the first episode and was fascinated from the actors and the story. Catweazle is an odd, goat-bearded, anglo-saxon sorcerer who lives in 1066 and tries to fly with the help of a magic drink from henbane, hemlock, thimble and buttercups in vain. Instead, he is catapulted on the run before England attacking norman lascivious for murder in the 1970s when he jumps a charm calling in a river and appears from a marshy pool again. Catweazle is amazed about the electric inventions of the modern civilisation whose innovations he holds for powerful magic. In the first relay he makes friends with the farmer's son Harold Bennet who helps him to get over the malices of the modern world. Catweazle's spell "Salmei, Dalmei, Adomei" with which he arranges a lot of mix-ups was as famous as his loyal companion, toad Touchwood in our time. For me and my friends this series was then simply a cult. Why - this we cannot understand any more. Maybe it is just due to the fact that Catweazle was just different as all other what was offered us at that time. It went even so far that a friend who was a big fan of the principal character Geoffrey Bayldon is called till this day Geoff.

And here's a song from 1974 by an artist that looks and acts alike Catweazle.