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Rock music in the Eastern block fought between survival and playing with the communist regimes. Some of them were banned and fuelled the main stream opposition against the regimes, some of them supported the regimes and fully enjoyed the advantages of being on the "good side" - state contracts, concerts, involvement in the public life.
Klaus-Renft-Combo band was created in 1958, in Leipzig, then in Eastern Germany. For a while, they supported communist party politics - SED (Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands) - with songs as "Chilean Metal" or "That's How Neruda died Too". But, songs like "Doubts" and "The Rock Ballad of Little Otto" criticized the Wall and contributed to the disbanding of the group and the emigration of its members to the Federal Republic. (Photo: concert from May 7, 2009, in Alexanderplatz, on the occasion of the events celebrating 20 years from the the fall of the Berlin Wall)
More luckier, the Pudhys, enjoyed the favors of the communist regime. Considered as "The Beatles of DDR" (in comparison with the "Rolling Stones" - the bad boys from Renft), they played until the end of the regime the role of exemplary socialists. Peter Meyer, the leader of the band, used to say: "We aren't the party types. We prefer drinking milk and cola over alcohol". This non-conflictual attitude brought them lots of advantages. In the 70s-80s, they sold over 16 million records, almost one for each citizen of the DDR, were rewarded with state honors, television and film contracts and toured constantly the Eastern block. The later STASI records revealed later (August 1993) that it was a price - as usual - for such advantages. Peter Meyer had provided between 1973-1989, as Stasi informant (Inoffizieller Mitarbeiter) information about artists and media personalities.
Klaus-Renft-Combo band was created in 1958, in Leipzig, then in Eastern Germany. For a while, they supported communist party politics - SED (Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands) - with songs as "Chilean Metal" or "That's How Neruda died Too". But, songs like "Doubts" and "The Rock Ballad of Little Otto" criticized the Wall and contributed to the disbanding of the group and the emigration of its members to the Federal Republic. (Photo: concert from May 7, 2009, in Alexanderplatz, on the occasion of the events celebrating 20 years from the the fall of the Berlin Wall)
More luckier, the Pudhys, enjoyed the favors of the communist regime. Considered as "The Beatles of DDR" (in comparison with the "Rolling Stones" - the bad boys from Renft), they played until the end of the regime the role of exemplary socialists. Peter Meyer, the leader of the band, used to say: "We aren't the party types. We prefer drinking milk and cola over alcohol". This non-conflictual attitude brought them lots of advantages. In the 70s-80s, they sold over 16 million records, almost one for each citizen of the DDR, were rewarded with state honors, television and film contracts and toured constantly the Eastern block. The later STASI records revealed later (August 1993) that it was a price - as usual - for such advantages. Peter Meyer had provided between 1973-1989, as Stasi informant (Inoffizieller Mitarbeiter) information about artists and media personalities.
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