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Merricks
(Germany) Munich
There was some talk about the Merricks, and as I don't expect too many of you knowing them, here's a short introduction:

I first heard about them on the "Mit Sonnerschirmen fangen wir den Blütenzauber" compilation on the Frischluft label, which represented the "sound of young Germany" in the early nineties.

the prominent element of the Merricks sound is the trumpet, sometimes supported by a Saxophone and even a clarinet. This and the singing of Guenther Gottschling, one of Germany's best pop-voices, made up their uniqueness.

From Munich, they released two records on the local Sub-Up records in 89 and 90. The EP "In Amerika" had English lyrics but it was the "In unserer Stadt" LP (all in German) which brought them to my attention. It has the should-have-been-top-ten hit "Ich kann nichts dafuer" as well as a couple of other great songs such as "Larry Chesky".

The title track of the 7" EP "Der schoenste Tag im Jahr" on Blam-A-Bit was another hit, but this EP also was the start of the more dancey Merricks. The b-side song "Cheer Up" was a dance-floor filler, unfortunately in three clubs only.

I saw them live a couple of times in the early nintees and they always did great shows.

the second full length "In Schwierigkeiten" didn't make it on my turntable very often, the trumpet was gone and there were a lot more keyboards. The same is true for the mini-LP "Merricks in club 2", still good songs but somehow it wasn't really my cup of tea at that time. I never heard any of their newer stuff, so someone else may help out here.

there are a couple of side-projects to the Merricks: Mission Impossible, Schade Schokolade, Friend Ahoi, most of them unfortunately appeared on compilations only.

Peter Hahndorf for the Shalala mailing-list in November 1998

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Releases:
In Amerika (12") 1989
on Sub-Up
In unserer Stadt (LP) 1990
on Sub-Up
Der schönste Tag im Jahr (7") Jan 1991
on Blam-A-Bit - BLAM 009
- Der Schönste Tag Im Jahr
- Flug Ins Vogelthal (Teil C)
- Der Loge
- Cheer Up (You're On Holidays)
In Schwierigkeiten (LP) Jul 1993
on Roguish Records
Merricks in Club 2 (LP) 1993
on Viel leicht
The Sound Of Munich (CD) 1997
on
Escape From Planet Munich (LP+CD) 1999
on Sub-Up - SUBCD32
Silver Disc (CD) 2001
on Sub Up Records
On compilations:
on Frischluft Tonträger - FRL 002
- Jim Merrick
- So Ist Das Leben
on
- A Simple Game
Frischer Morgentau  (K7) Summer 1993
on Steinpilz Tonträger - STEIN 1
23 tracks in total, one side with songs sung in German, the other sung in English
- Nie wieder einsam
Last updated: 9-Apr-2005 © 1994-2024 TweeNet Creative Commons License