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CD
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BB 020CD
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"German Schlager? Not my cup of tea at all, back then!" recalls Marion Maerz, as she reflects on the beginnings of her career. Indeed, the first singles she recorded (under her maiden name Litterscheid) could only be described as "schlager." It was only after switching record companies that her big break materialized. In 1966, Marion (having dropped the Maerz) was catapulted to overnight stardom with the album Er Ist Wieder Da. Four years later, she and her producer Sigi E. Loch came up with the idea of the Burt Bacharach covers album complete with a chic new surname for Marion. It was the perfect opportunity to start over. Marion had her first chance to really show what she was capable of and Sigi Loch could make a name for himself as an innovative developer of talent. Loch chose 12 Bacharach songs and had them translated into German (some by popular German lyricist, book writer and librettist Michael Kunze). He brought Ingfried Hoffmann on board as arranger, Hoffmann having found international fame as an inspired jazz organist (for Klaus Doldinger, amongst others). What Loch and Marion Maerz had not counted on was the reaction of the "buying" public. The record gathered dust on the shelves and the anticipated follow-up productions were shelved before they could even be embarked upon. What a huge disappointment this proved to be for Marion Maerz, seeing the change in creative approach she had hoped for slip away. Today, connoisseurs consider this record (originally called Seite Eins: Marion Maerz singt Burt Bacharach, released in 1971 on Reprise Records) a musical masterpiece and for Marion Maerz the record represents a highlight in her career of which she remains immensely proud. If one should enjoy the great fortune to find a copy of the LP at a record fair or on the internet, then the price tag is sure to be a princely one. It has taken almost forty years for these 12 musical pearls to be polished up and re-released in appropriate fashion. At long last, the record has finally has come to earn the respect it most certainly deserves. The accompanying booklet contains an interview with Marion Maerz and recollections by the arranger Ingfried Hoffmann. Warning: all songs in German!
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