Moskau (song)

This article is about the song by Dschinghis Khan. For the song by Rammstein, see Reise, Reise.

"Moskau"
Single by Dschinghis Khan
from the album Dschinghis Khan
LanguageGerman
English titleMoscow
B-side"Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan"
Released1979 (1979)
Recorded1979
StudioOlympia Studios Munich
GenreEurodisco
Length
  • 4:43
  • 5:58 (album)
LabelBMG
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Ralph Siegel
Dschinghis Khan singles chronology
"Dschinghis Khan"
(1979) 		"Moskau"
(1979) 		"Hadschi Halef Omar"
(1979)
Music videos
"Moskau" on YouTube
"Moskau" (2020 Moscow Edition) on YouTube
"Moscow"
Single by Genghis Khan
from the album Genghis Khan
B-side"Moscow (German Version)"
Released3 September 1980
Recorded1979
StudioOlympia Studios Munich
GenreEurodisco
Length4:30
Label7 Records / Image Records
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Norbert Daum
Music videos
"Moscow" on YouTube

"Moskau" (German for Moscow) is the second single by German Eurodisco group Dschinghis Khan (known as Genghis Khan in Australia and other countries)[1][2][3][4] released in 1979.

The band also recorded an English version, which they released in 1980 as "Moscow".

History

[edit]

"Moskau" achieved enormous popularity in the Soviet Union. A 15-second clip of the song's performance was shown as a part of the New Year holiday lineup on the state-run TV, leading to the immediate dismissal of the network's director.[5]

In 2006, the song made its video game debut as a playable song in Taiko no Tatsujin Portable 2. On September 15, the song was uploaded to YouTube,[6] and it quickly became an internet meme related to Slavs. Most prominently, the meme was circulated on the image macro site YTMND, accompanied by the song's chorus or variations of it.

The song was also played at the opening at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 in Moscow, Russia for Semi-Final 2.

"Moskau" is also a featured track in Just Dance 2014.

In 2018, Dschinghis Khan re-recorded "Moskau" with new lyrics for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which was hosted in Russia. For the German and English versions, the lead vocals were performed by former US5 member Jay Khan. Alexander Malinin and his daughter Ustinya performed the Russian version, titled "Moskva". The Spanish version, titled "Moscú", was performed by Jorge Jiménez and Marifer Medrano.[7]

Versions

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Moskau – the German-language version

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"Moskau", the German-language version of the song, appears on their 1979 self-titled album Dschinghis Khan and their 1980 album Rom. The album version is nearly six minutes long, while the single version is four and a half minutes long.[8]

Moscow – the English-language version

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The band, under their English-language band name Genghis Khan, released a version of the song with English lyrics entitled "Moscow" in Australia in 1980, the year of the 1980 Moscow Olympics.[1] Australia's Channel 7 used the song as the theme to their television coverage of the Moscow Olympics, and the single was issued locally in a die-cut Channel 7 paper sleeve.[9] The song became a massive hit in Australia, staying at #1 for six weeks.[10]

Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan

[edit]

"Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan" is the B-side of "Moskau", featuring Leslie Mándoki performing the chorus and Louis Hendrik Potgieter singing the final chorus. The song was also recorded in English and released as a single in 1979, with "Moscow" as the B-side.[11]

Track listings

[edit]
Original German 7" single
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Moskau"
4:43
2."Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan"
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
4:13
Total length:8:56
12" maxi single
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Moskau"
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
7:40
2."Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan"
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
6:10
Total length:13:50
International single
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Moscow" (English Version)
  • Christian Dornaus
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
4:30
2."Moskau" (German Version)
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
4:43
Total length:9:13
Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan" (English Version)
  • Dornaus
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
4:15
2."Moscow" (English Version)
  • Dornaus
  • Siegel
  • Meinunger
4:29
Total length:8:44

Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[20] Platinum 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Covers and remixes

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  • The song was covered in Japanese as "Mezase Moscow" (めざせモスクワ, Mezase Mosukuwa) by Dark Ducks in 1979. Another Japanese version by Baobab Singers was released that year, but with different lyrics that reference anime and tokusatsu titles that the voice actors under Production Baobab worked on.
  • The song has been covered by a German rock band named Attila der Partykönig.
  • The song has been covered by the German ska-punk band "Wisecräcker".
  • Sofia Rotaru had recorded a Russian cover version in preparation for the 1980 Summer Olympics, but due to West Germany joining the 1980 Summer Olympics boycott, it was never broadcast and had been ordered destroyed. A single copy was made by the studio workers, and has been made available since.[21]
  • In Finland "Moskau" was covered by Juhamatti with the title "Volga" in 1980. "Volga" has since been performed by artists such as Kari Tapio and Frederik.
  • Also in 1980, Cassiano Costa made the Brazilian Portuguese version, named "Moscou".
  • This song was also covered by Hong Kong pop singer George Lam as "Olympics in Moscow" (Chinese: 世運在莫斯科).
  • Georgie Dann made a Spanish version in 1980, with more success in Spanish-speaking countries than the original version.[22]
  • Swedish group Vikingarna recorded a cover in Swedish, "Moskva", in 1980.[23]
  • In live performances of their song "Sacrament of Wilderness", the symphonic metal band Nightwish plays a riff from "Moskau" at about the three-minute mark of the song.[24]
  • German black metal band Black Messiah covered the song on their 2006 album Of Myths and Legends.[25]
  • Estonian band Meie Mees covered the song as "Moskva" in 2000.
  • In China, a version with altered lyrics called "Fen Dou"[26] (奋斗) was made by Da Zhangwei (大张伟).
  • South Korean group Koyote played a portion in their single "Aza! Aza!" (아자! 아자!).
  • Since 2008 or earlier, Russian Armed Forces military bands have occasionally played the song at public events in Russia.[27] Channel One Russia's New Years 2013 program included a version of the song sung in both German and Russian by the Alexandrov Ensemble.[28]
  • A version sung by Lolita Milyavskaya in the 2010 Musical Film Morozko (Морозко), aired on Russia 1 on December 31, 2010. Nikolai Baskov stars in this one.
  • In the Czech Republic, the parody band Los Rotopedos produced a cover of the song in 2012. Los Rotopedos subsequently qualified to the top ten in the Český slavík song competition.[29]
  • In 2013 song was covered by a French band Dancing Bros. and used in the video game Just Dance 2014.
  • In 2018, Japanese DJ-producer Camellia remixed Moskau as a free-download bootleg in hands-up trance genre.
  • American power metal band Last Alliance covered "Moskau" in 2011. The song was made available as a free download in 2018 to celebrate the 2018 FIFA World Cup hosted in Russia.
  • In early 2020, Dutch DJ & Producer Thommy van Straalen started rising to fame after releasing a Big Room House Festival Mix as a collab with his neighbor Likkerstan 'LSTN' Ten Nogmeer. It was deleted midway through May after a copyright problem with Dschinghis Khan.
  • In 2020, Dutch hardstyle DJ & producer duo Da Tweekaz released their remixed version[30] of this song with Austrian DJ & producer duo Harris & Ford.
  • Klezmer-punk act Daniel Kahn, alongside Psoy Korolenko, released a trilingual Yiddish-, Russian-, and English-language cover, “Moskve,” in 2020.
  • German YouTuber Jarow made a cover of the song about Norwegian footballer Erling Haaland. It went viral on TikTok in 2021.
  • The song "Ami" by Rika Zarai is sung to the same melody as "Moskau".

References

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  1. ^ a b "Country=Australia, Genghis Khan* - Moscow (Vinyl)". Discogs website. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  2. ^ "Country=France, Genghis Khan* - Moscow (Vinyl)". Discogs website. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  3. ^ "Country=Colombia, Genghis Khan* - Moscu (Vinyl)". Discogs website. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  4. ^ "Country=Japan, Genghis Khan* - Moskau / Rocking Son Of Dschinghis Khan (Vinyl)". Discogs website. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Chin. Chin. Chinigs Khan". Zhurnal.ru. Archived from the original on 19 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  6. ^ Dschinghis Khan - Moskau. YouTube. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021.
  7. ^ "Moskau Moskau". Dschinghis Khan Official Website. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  8. ^ "Start - STEPPENWIND - Offizielle Dschinghis Khan Fanseite". Steppenwind.com. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  9. ^ "??". Corporate.olympics.com.au. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  10. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 122. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. ^ "Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan (English Version)/Moscow" at Discogs
  12. ^ "Dschinghis Khan – Moskau" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  13. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Dschinghis Khan" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  14. ^ "Dschinghis Khan – Moskau" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  15. ^ "Dschinghis Khan – Moskau". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  16. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Dschinghis Khan – Moskau" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  17. ^ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts" (in German). Offizielle Deutsche Charts. 1979. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  18. ^ "National Top 100 Singles for 1980". Kent Music Report. 5 January 1981. Retrieved 17 January 2022 – via Imgur.
  19. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 432. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  20. ^ "International Certifications" (PDF). Cash Box. 12 December 1980. p. 43. Retrieved 25 November 2021 – via World Radio History.
  21. ^ "София Ротару - "Здравствуй, Москва!" (Кавер версия песни Dschinghis Khan - Moskau) 1980" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 5 May 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  22. ^ "Georgie Dann - Moscú". 8 September 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2016 – via YouTube.[dead YouTube link]
  23. ^ "Kramgoa låtar ( 8) | Svensk mediedatabas". SMDB.kb.se. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  24. ^ "The Heavy Anglican: Pointless Nightwish video post + brief update". Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2011.
  25. ^ SirG (19 November 2006). "Black Messiah - Of Myths And Legends Review". Metal.de. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  26. ^ "大张伟 - 奋斗—在线播放—优酷网，视频高清在线观看". V.youku.com. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  27. ^ "Music Russian Military Band One". YouTube. 14 December 2008. Retrieved 20 November 2016.[dead YouTube link]
  28. ^ "Dschinghis Khan - Moskau - New year 2013". YouTube. 1 January 2013. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  29. ^ "Los Rotopedos - Moscau". YouTube. 1 November 2012. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  30. ^ "Da Tweekaz x Harris & Ford - Moskau (Official Video HD)". YouTube. 3 April 2020.
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