Photo of the Day 2010-03-23: Chaka Khan

Happy Birthday, Chaka Khan (57)!

Chaka Khan
Hotel Ramada
Hamburg, Germany
May 25, 1989

Her mocking smile says it all

Every once in a while, I am going through a Marlene Dietrich phase, watching movies (or my favourite parts of them), re-reading books (I just ordered some more from Amazon), listening to some songs, but most of all looking at photographs, Dietrich's face perfectly sculpted by light. I love those precisely constructed compositions for their artificiality and irreality and probably for the same reasons they are the exact opposite of my own photographic style. But then the perfect images cannot grab my attention for very long and I turn towards the rarer to find candid photos that might reveal the woman behind the image.

Looking up from reading Steven Bach's Marlene biography I contemplate the empty space on my wall and whether a Marlene photo or poster would be the appropriate decoration that could keep me inspired. I am rather unfit to make simple decisions like this and it takes me ages to actually get these things done (as if a poster could not be removed ;). And I sure cannot think about it without having the complete lyrics of Suzanne Vega's "Marlene On The Wall" spinning 'round in my head, a song forever engraved in my memory. Although many think Vega's second album "Solitude Standing" featuring the breakout hit "Luka" is her best, I personally prefer her self-titled debut to any other album she made. Maybe I just have a knack for debut albums (like Patti Smith's "Horses"). But then it is exciting to hear something fresh and - literally - unheard of.

When Suzanne Vega's first album came out in 1985, everyone that I knew loved it. The music may not be up to par with the elegantly crafted lyrics but the clever arrangements and the distinctive guitar sounds produced by Lenny Kaye make them sound interesting, even more than 20 years later. To promote her album, Vega went to Europe and did some small-club gigs, the kind that is mostly targeted at journalists to "spread the word". She debuted in Hamburg at the Café Schöne Aussichten, a perfect location for such a rather intimate performance. Opening the show with her a cappella rendition of "Tom's Diner", she displayed a healthy dose of self-confidence from the first minute on. Her witty between-songs banter and her flawless performance charmed everyone in the room.

Between soundcheck and concert, I had the opportunity to take some pictures of Suzanne Vega. I opted for a park bench outside the venue, even though that meant using the (until this day) much-hated flashlight. For me, both the portraits and the live photos reflect the excitement and the lightheartedness of that moment where bigger success was on the horizon but everyone was simply enjoying it, there and then.

Suzanne Vega
Café Schöne Aussichten
Hamburg, Germany
October 15, 1985

This pic actually sucks. But it was the kind of "let's take a quick visual note: who, where, when". Still works ;)

Suzanne Vega
Café Schöne Aussichten
Hamburg, Germany
October 15, 1985

Suzanne Vega live
Café Schöne Aussichten
Hamburg, Germany
October 15, 1985

I'm a sucker for dimples...

newspaper article in Hamburger Morgenpost
published October 19, 1985
text and photo by Moni Kellermann

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Links:
Suzanne Vega Official Website
video: Suzanne Vega - Marlene On The Wall (live, Bukarest, 2009)
Poolside Marlene (my current fave Dietrich pic)
video: Marlene Dietrich - Hot Voodoo - live performance from the movie "Blonde Venus" (1932)

Photo album: Bongwater 1991-03-07

A catchy album name can make me want to listen to the music. "The Power of Pussy" is a no-brainer, as far as I am concerned. And its impact cancels out the dull band name for me - Bongwater? I wouldn't care.

In March 1991 Bongwater came to Germany during their European tour to promote the album. I met them before their gig at the Japanese-styled Hotel Nippon which by design (ha ha) inspired Kramer and Ann Magnuson to channel their inner John & Yoko. They donned the hotel bathrobes and posed on the bed - it is always nice to work with professional posers who know what to do in front of a camera :)

Bongwater - Kramer and Ann Magnuson
Hotel Nippon, Hamburg, Germany
March 7, 1991

And that was just the warm-up. Their show at the Kleine Markthalle (which is an intimate 200-capacity room above the regular venue) was nothing but spectacular - I hope you get an idea from my photos!

But even if it is on my "best concerts I've ever seen" list out of thousands I've seen overall, I will always remember it for something else. And I'm not sorry if I now will have to start talking about boobs again!

It's the only gig ever where a performer teased me and made sure I would NOT take what easily would have been the "photo of the day". As it was a really small stage, Ann Magnuson was very much aware of me being there with my camera. So, during the sequence when she was sporting that bra outfit, she waited for a moment when I was just watching and NOT aiming my cam at her, turned in my direction and - for a split second - flashed her boobs! She knew that I was unable to take that photo and grinned. And I am still grinning back! :D

Ann Magnuson (Bongwater)
Markthalle Hamburg, Germany
March 7, 1991

Although I didn't get to take THAT photo, I came up with an exceptional number of really good ones which you can drool over in this album here:

Bongwater (click photo to view album)

As for further watching, I recommend the totally underrated 1987 movie "Making Mr. Right" by Susan Seidelman (of "Desperately Seeking Susan" fame) starring Ann Magnuson and John Malkovich. You can get it from Netflix here or - if you are in Germany, buy a copy for just 8 Euros from Amazon.

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Links:
Ann Magnuson Official Website

Photo album: Emily Remler live 1985-06-11

After digging out the old contact sheets, I decided to put more than those 2 pics online from the previous post. I still have to break free from the typical newspaper or magazine publishing style of limiting myself to one or two photos, especially if they are from a live show. I have the tools (a film scanner and this blog) but my mind still has some catching up to do.

Emily Remler live 1985
photos by Moni Kellermann

I am presenting you the photos in chronological order here and I think there is more than one picture that captures the sensuality that I saw and heard.

Oh, and I am even more frustrated than a few days ago when I think about my favourite Emily Remler albums not being available for purchase, not even as mp3 on Amazon or so. She was a great guitar player and deserves to be discovered by a generation who did not get a chance to see her live or buy her albums then. So, what's the bottom line? A few crappy vids on YT and illegal downloads from youknowwhereshare? D'oh!

Click on the photo to see the whole album.

Photo of the Day 2009-08-10: Emily Remler live 1985

Emily Remler
live Fabrik Hamburg, 1985-06-11

When I asked my favourite German jazz guitar player Ali Claudi back in 1981 why there are no great women guitar players, he told me to check out Emily Remler. So I did. Which at that time did not mean firing up YouTube or checking torrents but walking to a record store, begging to have an album being imported which you had no chance to pre-listen to and which then was totally overpriced.

I bought all her 80's albums and still listen to two of them, Transitions (1983) and Catwalk (1984). Both albums are great to listen to from start to finish but are sadly out of print (Hello, Concord? Stop being so ignorant and re-issue those albums and shove those stupid compilations). I prefer Catwalk over any other Remler album simply for the fact that it showcases her own compositions. You can easily find out whether you will like her and her music: Here is a very short YT video of her playing "Mocha Spice" (from Catwalk). To me that is everything I like about Remler condensed in two minutes. If you like that, chances are you will like a whole album.

In the summer of 1985, Remler had teamed up with fellow jazz guitar legend Larry Coryell and was touring the European Jazz Festival circuit. As often in this case, they performed at the Hamburg Fabrik. I am not a big fan of too many jazz guitar players, Coryell being no exception, but of course I had to see Emily Remler perform. The audience consisted of the usual suspects, i.e. jazz enthusiasts and amateur fretboard molesters, male, of course. I spent the concert right at the left front of the stage and took some nice pics. Halfway through the performance, I kind of had it with the dudes worshipping that dude on stage and between two songs shouted "Catwalk". Remler heard it and turned to Coryell, beaming like a schoolgirl and whispering "She knows my song!". That was so cute!

After the show, I went backstage and chatted with the duo and took one photo of them. I never printed it but today, while preparing this blog post, decided to add it here as a "bonus photo", just like you would add a bonus track to a digital release of an album. I planned to display it in smaller format to not distract any attention from the live photo. Then I saw the writing on the wall (literally). I really discovered it today, 24 years later and didn't pay any attention to it when I was taking the photo. See for yourself:

Emily Remler and Larry Coryell
backstage Fabrik Hamburg, 1985-06-11

"Drugs will kill you" - Emily Remler died of an accidental heroin overdose while being on tour in Australia five years later. Spooky, eh?