Album of the week: Reinhard Mey - Nach Haus

For the idea behind the album of the week, go here. (It is becoming more like the album of the month, but I'm defiantly carrying on as best as I can. ;-))       

Partly inspired by a very weak sense of patriotism (because of the recent Day of German Unity), partly inspired by my girlfriend asking me why so few German people listened to German music (as opposed to all Latinos who all listen to Spanish music), I recently picked up Reinhard Mey's latest album and gave it a spin.

Reinhard Mey, now already 81 years old, is perhaps German's most famous singer-songwriter and has released numerous albums and songs, some of which have become a staple of German culture. I already knew perhaps a dozen songs of him and always appreciated his music: exceptional musicianship, an authentic voice, pride in his craftsmanship and lyrics which were not run-of-the-mill lyrics, but at times thoughtful and tender, at times humorous and absurd, at times (especially when talking about political topics from which he has never shied away) searing and scorching.

His latest record is no exception, but there is perhaps a more melancholy feeling present, a feeling of (as Leonard Cohen put it shortly before his death) "putting your house in order". Already in the title song, he speaks of a homelessness and a yearning for a forgotten and lost paradise, which in the refrain turns into a coming home to his "Father"; the touching "Du hast mich getragen" summons the power of love which he claims even death can not overcome; the closing song "Nota bene"(set to a piece of music by Georg Friedrich Händel), he tells his children what will they find if they open the drawer with all his unfinished work. Given the age of Reinhard Mey, this might be not a big surprise, but the album at times has a feeling of a swansong (, which I hope not to become true).

Still, there also songs which cover the other typical terrain of his work: "Lageberericht" is a fiere political commentary; "Verschollen" a moving anti-war song,;"Misere Mei" a funeral accusation of the mistreatment of animals and "Zwischen Kontrollpunkt Drewitz und der Brücke von Dreilinden", which chronicles Germany since the Unification. All this goes to show that the album is lyrically varied, in spite of the at times melancholic touch.

I, for one, am quite taken with this album and Reinhard Mey's authentic and music form of diary keeping. What's more: I could show my girlfriend that there is German music worth listening to.

Stand-out tracks: "Misere Mei", "Du hast mich getragen", "Nota bene", "Das Rainen in den Blättern"