[Music] RIP Frank Farian

[sully]

I bloody loved the album Nightflight to Venus.

Always sad when we lose great talents like Frank.

 

[Sid and the Sharknados]

The weirdest Boney M thing I've come across is that they did a Europop version of Iron Butterfly's 17 minute psych classic In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida on the b-side of one of their singles, and mimed to it one time on German TV

I was going to say that it's at least 5 times better than the original, on the basis that it's 5 times shorter, but I actually unironically like that.

Boney M get a bit of stick as being the uncool end of disco,

Who the HELL from!? Actually, ignore that question, such people don't deserve the attention.

 

[Man of Harveys]

As well as being a cat that really was gone, there was a man who knew how to choose great songs to cover and from a crazy wide and eclectic range. I didn’t know until yesterday that Brown Girl In The Ring started life as a Jamaican nursery rhyme, say.

Well worth a listen to the originals of songs like Sunny or Mary’s Boy Child and then how those songs sounded after he’d worked his magic on them - pure genius.

 

[Pavilionaire]

Ra-Ra-Rest In Peace,
Sorry that your life has ceased

 

[Man of Harveys]

Pa Pa Pascal Gross
He’s the one we love the most
He does his turn and just carries on

 

[POSKETT AT THE VALLEY]

Pa Pa Pascal Gross
He’s the one we love the most
He does his turn and just carries on

And Mary’s boy child Solly March was born on Christmas Day

 

[Brovion]

Without Boney M we would have a completely different Solly chant! RIP

"Ra Ra Solly March,
Lighting up the Wembley arch"

EDIT: Bugger, beaten to it!

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

"Farian sold over 850 million records and earned 800 gold and platinum certifications."

This is insane.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

You’re not wrong. Also partly responsible for, arguably, the greatest ever TOTP performance; Bobby Farrell is at his peak in this song and also this performance.

Let’s face it, who hasn’t thought….f*** it, it’s Thursday…I think I’ll do a massive line of coke, don a silver cat suit and matching furry cape and prance around incongruously to my colleagues and completely out of time with the music in front of the nation. We’ve all been there.

I dont think I will ever tire of listening to, or watching, this. Educational as well.

 

[Man of Harveys]

Without Boney M we would have a completely different Solly chant!

Nor would we fight forever more because of Boxing Day.

 

[Bakero]

Whilst lip-synching to a little ginger german

I've got a friends in Hamburg and know a little German. He's not ginger though.

 

[Brovion]

Nor would we fight forever more because of Boxing Day.

True. Certainly we never sung that when the Harry Belafonte or Andy Williams versions came out!

 

[Man of Harveys]

I dont think I will ever tire of listening to, or watching, this. Educational as well.

Too right. No less a figure than the great and distinguished historian Simon Sebag Montefiore - crazy name, crazy guy - described Boney M’s Rasputin as a “fine introduction to Russian court politics of the early 20th century”, according to Wikipedia.

 

[WATFORD zero]

I've got a friends in Hamburg and know a little German. He's not ginger though.

Between you and me, a little like Bobby's singing, I'm not convinced it was entirely natural

RIP Frank

 

[Lenny Rider]

You’re not wrong. Also partly responsible for, arguably, the greatest ever TOTP performance; Bobby Farrell is at his peak in this song and also this performance.

Let’s face it, who hasn’t thought….f*** it, it’s Thursday…I think I’ll do a massive line of coke, don a silver cat suit and matching furry cape and prance around incongruously to my colleagues and completely out of time with the music in front of the nation. We’ve all been there.

As previously alluded to, the irony, and perhaps a forerunner to MV, was that Bobby Farrell merely danced and mimed, never sang on any of the records, I once read somewhere it was Frank himself provided the male vocals for Boney M.

 

[OzMike]

RIP respectfully, though I don't like Boney M music.

 

[Lenny Rider]

"Farian sold over 850 million records and earned 800 gold and platinum certifications."

This is insane.

Yet sadly Rob Pilatus committed suicide, penniless, 7 years after Milli Vanilli had to hand their Grammy back.

Fine lines

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Yet sadly Rob Pilatus committed suicide, penniless, 7 years after Milli Vanilli had to hand their Grammy back.

Fine lines

The global reaction to Milli Vanilli was quite bizarre, given that other bands had 'singers' over the years who didnt sing on records and/or live. Maybe it was because neither of them sang? Maybe a change in the times? At least with Boney M two out of four did.

As an aside, according to wiki and equally sad, Rob Pilatus death was was from an overdose of alcohol and prescription drugs and ruled accidental.

 

[ROSM]

As previously alluded to, the irony, and perhaps a forerunner to MV, was that Bobby Farrell merely danced and mimed, never sang on any of the records, I once read somewhere it was Frank himself provided the male vocals for Boney M.

Indeed it was. One of the other singers mimed too. However both did live concert vocals.

This was the era of bands like 5000 volts who had a blonde lead singer who actually mimed to the vocals of Tina Charles (who later had her own successful career)

 

[Man of Harveys]

Quite simply he knew what made great commercial recordings and the look was a huge part of that. The impact of Boney M’s look was huge, same goes for those Milli Vanille guys. ‘‘Twas ever thus.