Customer Reviews

Star Collection

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's pretty good, and it has a lot of their better known hits (Moskou, Mexico, Samurai). I just wish "The Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan" was on it. I was kinda bummed when I found out it wasn't (The songs on the back are listed in German, by the way in case you were wondering why I didn't consult the track listing. I thought it could have been under another, more foreign name, you see).

Overall, though, a good purchase if you want to hear the German equivalent of ABBA.

Gran coleccion una gran recopilacion de los mejor de este grupo. super album

Can you imagine a crazy version of the Village People dressed like Klingons, singing songs in German to a beat suspiciously similar to yodel?

No???

Then you must check out...Dschinghis Khan!

This extremely corny band was very popular (no kidding) in Europe, Australia and other places around 1979-83. One of the band members looked like Yul Brynner. Their first song, also called "Dschinghis Khan" is still something of a classic. As is the dance act, which you can check out on Youtube. Other somewhat tolerable songs on this greatest hits album are "Pistolero", "Moskau" , "Hadschi Halef Omar" and "Samurai". There are also less tolerable songs about Aladdin, Ivanhoe, king Tut and Madagascar (!).

Apparently, the point of Dschinghis Khan was to mimic Boney M, another German band known for its curious lyrics. I can't say Ralph Siegel (the man behind Dschinghis Khan) was very successful in this. Boney M were better, had a more modern sound, and performed their songs in English. Dschinghis Khan were very much children of their times. But yes, many Germans actually *liked* this kind of music 30 years ago. In my opinion, Dschinghis Khan don't really work on CD. Half of the fun with these songs are the unimitable performances with "Brynner" and the Santa Claus character, not to mention the weird costumes (even gay men in Frisco would think twice before dressing like this!). By all means, buy this album, but you might want to browse Youtube once and in a while, just to get attuned to the vibes...

If you have the right sense of humour, you might actually like this band. But one thing is certain. Genghis Khan (the real one) would probably have them thrown to the Siberian tigers!

I don't think I'd appreciate this collection if it wasn't for the Moskau video on YouTube. If you haven't seen it, do a search on that site for Moskau and you'll see them in all their glory.
The first CD has some of the faster songs, the second is a bit little slower. Even if you don't speak a word of German, it's fun to try and sing along while breaking the sound barrier in your car.
I don't buy many CDs any more, but this one was totally worth it.

FYI. This CD is made in Germany. I don't know if I'm the only one to experiance this problem, but the plastic jewel cases from Europe tend to explode when you open them the first time. (The hinge shatters and the plastic knobs in the center you use to secure the CD went flying everywhere) It happened with a couple of Russian CDs I bought before this at local ethnic stores, so I don't know if it's someone who makes them over there or if it happens in transport to America, but be warned about that.

This album left me pretty disappointed. After hearing "The Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan," "Oh Miguel" (both not on this album), "Moskau" and "Loreley," I was pretty sure that this album would be awesome. Maybe it will grow on me, but as of yet I'm just not wowed by it like I was expecting to be.