David Bowie's Berlin Trilogy

 I have in the past couple of years, belatedly and rewardingly, become a wholehearted and fully-fledged adherent to the notion that David Bowie was perhaps the most important and influential solo artist ever to emerge from Britain. Even now, I think that many people under-estimate just how good he was.

Bowie's period of greatest creativity and consistency arguably spanned the years between, let us say, 1969 and 1984. He maintained a remarkably high standard allied to what, looking back, seems a prodigious work-rate. It seems barely credible that he managed to cram so much into the time available. Writing and recording, not to mention touring and engaging in various side-projects as producer and collaborator. That's before we even get on to his acting career! This productivity and prolific output remain one some of the most notable aspects of the Bowie story.

For what it's worth, my personal view is that his work in the period 1970-73 remains his most vital and his most enduring. The other clearly identifiable series of works which attracts most praise, comment and scrutiny is the so-called 'Berlin Trilogy', released between 1977 and 1979, in the form of the albums 'Low', 'Heroes' and 'Lodger'. 

I approached this blog article with a vague sense that the trilogy had received slightly excessive praise, that the critics had grasped hold of these records out of relief, following Bowie's musical excursions and meanderings of the mid-1970s. Anyway, in order to confirm or refute my tentative analysis, I resolved to review the three LPs and commit my conclusions and observations to blog form.

Of course it is debatable whether the sounds unveiled on 'Low' were genuinely new or revelatory to the music-listening public at large. Groups such as Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream and, to a lesser extent, Can and NEU!, had acquired some attention on both sides of the Atlantic, so this brand of experimental work came as less as a shock than some might might have us believe. This, however, was an established, mainstream rock "superstar".

It is worth mentioning how much of the material on 'Low' is instrumental - 'Speed Of Life' and 'Sound and Vision' (sort of !) for example. Bowie was clearly sufficiently enamoured with this type of music to take this step. It was also a sign of his confidence and comfort with the new technology which he was utilizing.

'Low' has its hard edges too, and an uncompromising side to it . Songs such as 'Breaking Glass' display no little aggression. It may be that some of the rhythmic vigour was a legacy of the 'Station to Station' album. The directness could also have been prompted by the shadow of punk, which was making a genuine impact in Britain in 1976/77.

By and large the synthesizers and the experimental features do not come across as gimmicky. Bowie and his colleagues managed to make it sound as though this was a perfectly logical new direction, but also a matter of wrapping some familiar Bowie hallmarks in dynamic new clothes.

Like its two successors, 'Low' is not quite as 'experimental', not quite as much of a departure as might be deduced from some of the comments one hears and reads. Traditional song structures and musical basics still just about predominate, although songs such as 'Always Crashing In The Same Car' and 'Be My Wife' would have been regarded as unusual by more vanilla circles in 1977.

There is a uniformity of sorts to the musical palette of 'Low'. Meaty, big drums and sinuous bass lines, overlaid by keyboards and guitars. A few years ago this recipe might have assailed my ears as 'synthetic' or 'soulless', but I know better now.

The second half of the record is where much of the interest resides. 'A New Career in A New Town' is quite radical-sounding, with the influence of Can detectable in its quieter moments. As with most of other other numbers, there is plenty going on to hold the attention.

'Warszawa' is on on another level, both emotionally and sonically, to what surrounds it. A brooding 'semi-instrumental', bearing the stamp of Brian Eno. Making clever use of 'wordless vocals', it is perhaps the centrepiece of the album. Like other parts of the album, it is distinctly 'central European' in its influences.

'Art Decade' is almost a continuation of 'Warszawa'. As for 'Weeping Wall', there once again is that irresistible, intangible pull, atmospheric in a way that even the other quasi-instrumentals cannot quite manage.

The closer, 'Subterraneans', which was apparently inspired by East Berlin, is appropriately unsettling and stark, and features a great and evocative saxophone solo. 

To be fully appreciated and understood, 'Low' has to be listened to in its entirety and 'in sequence'. Only this way can one grasp and comprehend where Bowie was in 1977, and where his thoughts were leading him. The result is a measure of his imagination, his curiosity and his restless energy. My esteem for this work has been elevated a notch.

'Heroes' commences with 'Beauty and The Beast', which in part appears to take up where Side One of 'Low' left off.  Robert Fripp's guitar contributions add something to the mix, literally.

The title track of 'Heroes' is, of course, justly celebrated and revered, and it does embody those traits which made David Bowie so important and rewarding. The song is even sometimes cited as a "hinge" uniting two eras of rock music, or at least signifying a change.

I would say that this record feels considerably less "Berlin" in character and substance than 'Low', There could be more than one reason for this perception. The overall mood is more cheerful and less foreboding, perhaps reflecting what was going on in Bowie's mind and life. Also, what instrumental fare there is on 'Heroes' is different to that which formed the backdrop to 'Low' - although 'Sense Of Doubt' tries its best!

Other instrumental passages on 'Heroes' are more purely ambient in nature; 'Moss Garden' is the main example of this. 'Neukoln' on the other hand is more avant-garde than menacing; great saxophone part, too.

Whether all this makes it a more pleasant and congenial LP to listen to is still I guess a matter of personal taste or inclination. To me, it lacks a little of the gravitas and measured mastery which were so palpable with 'Low'.

So, it is a more buoyant and 'ebullient' record than the one which came before it, but this does not equate to 'better' or 'superior'. It lacks the philosophical depth and emotional power of 'Low', notwithstanding the presence of the 'Heroes' song itself.

It would not be surprising if the initial energy which was summoned up on 'Low' could not be sustained, leading to a slightly different type of record. Who knows, Bowie may have wanted it that way....

To be frank, I have never really associated 'Lodger' with the other two, and it often seemed that the reason for its existence was that it was an album which followed those other two, and journalists and others could therefore speak in terms of a 'trilogy'. If anything, my mind links 'Station to Station' with the series more than 'Lodger',

Also in my recollections, 'Lodger' has been linked to the musical trends of 1979 and beyond, rather than connection with some thematic or stylistic continuity from before. This may be because 1979 was the year when I first became truly interested in music on anything more than a superficial level. I was too young to remember the hype and chatter about 'Heroes' or 'Low', and the profound outpourings of critics and observers would have gone completely over my head, anyway. It was interesting to see how 'Lodger', more freed from the aforementioned preconceptions, would stand up.

The 'world music' content and orientation have been cited (Middle Eastern, African), but they hardly jump out at me. If Bowie was indeed exploring such genres, it would be typical of his ceaseless search for inspiration and knowledge. It would also be characteristic if those styles were absorbed into his musical framework in a subtle manner. 'Yassassin' does have quite an impact, the first truly impressive track on the album.

After a sluggish beginning the pace and the intensity pick up; 'Red Sails' maintains some momentum, with echoes of the German group NEU!. 

'D.J' reminds me of Talking Heads, and it presages some of the material which would be found on the 'Scary Monsters....' record. The song has some conviction to it, and this goes a long way.

Some of the songs ('Look Back In Anger') are illustrative of the artist's uncanny knack of anticipating trends (or alternatively of harnessing forces already present underground). Quite a lot of 1980s music can be heard in 'Lodger', as with the two previous albums, but presented here in more digestible and compact form.

Sound-wise 'Boys Keep Swinging' starts almost like 'son-of Heroes'.  I remember this song being played heavily on British radio in that year of 1979. It bears some Bowie trademarks, the relatively simple 'rock n roll' melodic and rhythmic foundation, the enigmatic lyrics and the backing vocal arrangements and 'horns'. It was the obvious choice as a single. Traces of 'Diamond Dogs' and 'Blue Jean' can also be heard within it, methinks.

The album does rather tail off after 'Boys Keep Swinging'. The track sequencing perhaps left a little to be desired?

So, how do I sum up the Berlin Trilogy? The three works each possess their own identity. 'Low' remains the most substantial and impactful, the most radical and the one which adheres most recognisably to the Berlin 'concept' (if indeed there was a concept), in artistic terms at least. 

'Heroes' is also excellent, but appraisal may have been skewed ever so slightly by the hold which the signature tune has on our collective consciousness.

'Lodger' is good in parts, but it lacks the edge and the breadth of ideas which propel the other two records towards some kind of greatness.

Above all, these three albums show Bowie's fearlessness, his openness to new ideas, the vigour of his quest and his refusal to settle for easy options or to tread water artistically. Overrated, underrated, it is almost irrelevant. These are important collections, and they should be experienced by every serious student of rock music. Their legacy continues to be heard and felt in our music and culture in 2022. 

Sonnenallee - 1999 film

I recently watched Sonnenallee, a 1999 German comedy film, directed by Leander Haussman.

This is a movie which I had been wanting to see for some little time, and I was glad that I did.  The work tells the story, set in the late 1970s, of a group of people living in East Berlin, very close to the East/West border. Indeed, the street on which they reside is "bisected" by the Berlin Wall itself. Some have friends or relatives living in the West.

The younger people are obsessed with "forbidden" Western rock and pop music.  One of the characters devotes much of his time endeavouring to obtain, by "unofficial" means, a copy of the Rolling Stones' Exile On Main St. album.

The main character, Micha, is preoccupied with his efforts to win the heart of the beautiful Miriam. Alexander Scheer excels in the role of Micha, and it is his performance which helps make Sonnenallee so endearing and entertaining.

As I watched the picture I found myself trying to work out which parts of the script were satirical and which were intended literally. The writers were undoubtedly poking fun at some of the GDR's shortcomings and absurdities, but I also gained the impression that they were seeking to get across the notion that the state had its plus points.  They may have been hoping to go beyond stereotypical portrayals, and in places could actually have been satirizing the West's often simplistic depictions of East German society.

There are some great "set piece" scenes in the film, some revolving around music, others looking at peculiar or noteworthy aspects of life in the GDR.  I enjoyed the parts which examined the issue of the smuggling of contraband from West to East.

Quite apart from the historical and political sub-texts, this is simply a very engaging and enjoyable film. I am admittedly highly receptive to the subject matter here, but I found this much funnier than most Western films of its type.

The Berlin Wall - Frederick Taylor

The Berlin Wall, by Frederick Taylor, is a very readable account of the existence of that infamous symbol of the Cold War.

The author is quite trenchant in his opinions and his sympathies, and throughout he puts forward vehement criticism of the East German regime in particular.

I liked the mixture of material contained in the book, which alternates the grand strategy and political machinations with more personal and intimate stories and case studies of how individuals were affected, and their lives shaped, by the Wall.

Of particular merit are the chapters which examine the build-up to the Wall's construction, the tense period which followed, and the dramatic events of 1989 which culminated in the fall of the structure.

Overall, I found this book to be a stimulating and forthright analysis, refreshing in its directness and its sympathetic inclinations.

The Tunnel (2001 film)

Der Tunnel (The Tunnel) is a German film, released in 2001, and directed by Roland Suso Richter.

The movie is set in the 1960s, and is loosely based on the true story of a group of people in West Berlin who excavate a tunnel under the Berlin Wall in order to allow some relatives and friends to escape from the East.  We follow the often precarious tunneling operations, the hazardous border crossings made by members of the team and the efforts of the East German authorities to infiltrate and thwart the escape plan.

My view is that the film is not especially profound in its insights, and it is relatively sparing in its use of the philosophizing which often permeates films which deal with similar topics. However, it is well made, quite moving in places, with sober, grey and austere visuals. In addition, the acting is generally of a good standard.

Although I found myself rooting for the tunnelers and their friends, some of the tone of the film is ambiguous. Those who have escaped to West Berlin don't always find things as wonderful and straightforward there as might be imagined. 

This is a film which demands close attention, because there are necessarily plenty of nuances in the plot, especially in the parts where people are captured, interrogated and/or blackmailed by the East German secret police.

One feature of the film which stuck with me was the distrust and paranoia which appeared to be prevalent on both sides of the Wall. The tunnelers were suspicious of everybody, and took rigorous security measures in a bid to safeguard their plans.

As this picture progressed, I found myself becoming emotionally involved, and feeling for the participants. Their fear and anxiety were palpable, but so were their resolve and determination. I also found the blackmail by the East most unsettling, and recognized that the people affected by this were placed in an impossible position, and it is unfair for us to judge them too harshly.

Perhaps the most powerful scene in the film is the one where border guards shoot a young man, the boyfriend of one of the tunnelers, who is trying to escape to the West. Ordinary people caught in the crossfire, and used as pawns in the game. That scene I found quite unflinching, in depicting the pitiless nature of the struggle.

Heino Ferch delivers an excellent, authoritative and believable performance as the main character Harry. A resourceful, resilient and humane person who rarely seemed to lose heart or his nerve.

The ending to the movie is tense, emotional and adroitly captured and paced.

This is an entertaining and, in places, compelling film.

Funeral In Berlin - Len Deighton

The Cold War is such an inherently captivating and dramatic setting that is tempting to say that even a writer of mediocre talents should be capable of turning out a moderately praiseworthy spy novel set in the period. In reality, a high degree of suppleness.finesse and knowledge is required to write a convincing and exciting one, and but few are endowed with these capabilities. One of the people possessing these talents is Len Deighton, author of Funeral In Berlin.

The initial plot of Funeral In Berlin centres on a plan to arrange the defection of an eminent Soviet scientist to the West, via certain "intermediaries".  However, the waters become muddied, as the murky and equivocal backgrounds of some characters are gradually unfurled. The shadow of the death-camps, collaboration and war-crimes soon descends. On several levels, I detected echoes of this book in Frederick Forsyth's later novel The Odessa File.

The beginning of the story is suitably enigmatic, helping to convey the shifty, subterranean world of espionage.  The eccentricities, the double lives, the solitude, the boredom and the loneliness. There is shrewdly sparse exposition, dropping miniscule morsels, for instance leading the reader to be inquisitive about the importance, or otherwise, of various characters.

Many of the spy thrillers of the era portray London as a grim, monochrome and austere place.  Funeral In Berlin partially follows this trend, but there are a few definite splashes of Swinging Sixties optimism and style. In this novel, Deighton also creates a vivid sensation of a Berlin full of contrasts, vibrancy and character, more freewheeling and "technicolour" than is often depicted.

Another intriguing aspect of the story is the series of references to the development of the post-war German psyche, at what some might describe as a transitional point between the aftermath of the war and the blossoming of the new, modern, prosperous Germany.  A time of tension, opportunity and confusion, where the ambition and self-confidence of certain people helps to mask their deep-seated fears or guilt.

I would say that the plot of Funeral In Berlin is less intellectually arduous than some other espionage thrillers, but the storyline is no less clever for all that. Rather than being rigidly taxing and impenetrable , it consists of a series of fluid jigsaw pieces, each carrying strong hints, with a few different permutations available. It is simply a case of the segments becoming joined, although some elements of the overall picture are still a little ambiguous, and left to the imagination of the reader, at the end.

This was the first Len Deighton work which I have read, and I was greatly impressed by his whimsical style in painting pictures with words, and scene-setting. Real care is exercised in fleshing out the characters to make them seem plausible and human, and a clever ploy is to emphasize traits or eccentricities of players, which eventually turn out to be red herrings, but enhance the overall tapestry and atmosphere.

A nice touch was the series of chess analogies, both by way of the quotations introducing each chapter, and the references to the game in the "dialogue".  One of those things which contributes towards lifting something above the ordinary.

I didn't find Funeral In Berlin to be quite as suspenseful or pulsating as some thrillers which I could mention, but then again it probably wasn't intended as a thriller, but a spy novel.  Judged on those terms, it is a very enjoyable, well conceived and astutely structured novel....

Emil and The Detectives - Erich Kastner

I must have read dozens of books during my childhood, and the appeal of many of them was quite ephemeral. However, a few stood out as having a lasting impact, still evoking fond memories today, but also carrying greater moral weight, as opposed to simple pleasure, escapism and wonder. One of these was the wonderful "Emil and the Detectives", by the German author Erich Kastner, published circa 1929. Reading this story seemed to be an obligatory aspect of the education of children of my generation, and we turned out alright, didn't we?

On a whim, or possibly due to some other sub-conscious yearnings, I recently purchased the book, and it is interesting to note the messages and morals which are more clearly discernible in my adulthood.

The book follows the adventures of the young Emil, who has some money stolen by a mysterious stranger whilst travelling from his home to Berlin to visit relatives. Upon arriving in the big city, he follows the culprit, and is then joined by other boys in efforts to apprehend the thief.

Some themes emerge quite quickly in the early chapters. The sense that the world was still a very big place, as exemplified by the awe employed in descriptions of Berlin, and the regular references to "provincial" concerns. The depiction of families in smaller towns and cities as more close-knit than in the bustling metropolis, with their retention of simpler, less materialistic values.

A sub-text which also suffuses "Emil and the Detectives" is the relationship between the establishment, or ruling classes, and the "little people".  Emil and his associates are wary of contact with authority figures, both out of fear, and also a suspicion that such elements are more interested in protecting the position of the rich and powerful than serving the rights of the populace at large.

I feel that the book also captures some of the alienation of many people in the inter-war years, feeling daunted and "left out" by social and economic changes and upheavals, society becoming ever more fragmented and impersonal because of industrialization and technological advancements. In the end, timeless human qualities and virtues are seen to over-ride and conquer these challenges.  Essential decency and integrity are appreciated, valued and rewarded.

There is also some gentle examination of "generational issues", not surprisingly when most of the characters in the story are children or teenagers! It is insinuated that those from humbler backgrounds have more amicable relations with their parents and wider family, who are more inter-dependent than those hailing from the more "exalted" strata of society...

The undercurrent which I detected was of the author's sympathy for, and solidarity with, the downtrodden and the disenfranchised, with an inference that such people, despite their travails, maintain a dignity and an honesty in their endeavours which is often absent from other echelons. This point is implied with much finesse and subtlety by Kastner.

When dissected in socio-political terms, "Emil and the Detectives" poses questions, albeit in a benign and often cryptic fashion.  However, to me its main conclusions and outcomes are hopeful and optimistic, to the effect that justice and love will usually prevail in the end....