Kraftwerk are a German electronic band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the genre. The group began as part of West Germany's experimental krautrock scene in the early 1970s before fully embracing electronic instrumentation, including synthesizers, drum machines, and vocoders. Wolfgang Flür joined the band in 1973 and Karl Bartos in 1975, expanding the band to a quartet.
Radio-Activity is the fifth studio album by German electronic music band Kraftwerk, released in November 1975. The band's first entirely electronic album is also a concept album organized around the themes of radioactive decay and radio communication. All releases of the album were bilingual, with lyrics in both English and German. The album was accompanied by single release of the title track, which was successful in France and Belgium.
The Man-Machine is the seventh studio album by German electronic music band Kraftwerk. It was released on 28 April 1978 by Kling Klang in Germany and by Capitol Records elsewhere. A further refinement of their mechanical style, the album saw the group incorporate more danceable rhythms. The album has a satirical bent to it. It is thought to address a wide-range of themes from the Cold War, Germany's fascination with manufacturing, and humankind's increasingly symbiotic relationship with machines. It includes the singles "The Model" and "The Robots".
The Mix is the tenth studio album by the German electronic music band Kraftwerk. It was released on 10 June 1991 by Kling Klang and EMI in Europe and by Elektra Records in North America. It features entirely re-arranged and re-recorded versions of a selection of songs which had originally appeared on Kraftwerk's albums Autobahn (1974) through Electric Café (1986). Some of the songs, such as "The Robots" and "Radioactivity", feature new additional melodies and/or lyrics.
"Vienna" is a song by British new wave band Ultravox, released on 9 January 1981 by Chrysalis Records as the third single and the title track from their fourth studio album of the same name. The new wave ballad, which features Midge Ure on lead vocals, is regarded as a staple of the synth-pop genre that was popularised in the early 1980s, and remains both the band's signature song and their most commercially successful release.
"Talk" is a song by the British rock band Coldplay. Built around a motif from Kraftwerk's 1981 song "Computer Love", it was written by all members of the band and appeared on their third album, X&Y. In the United States, the song entered at number 86 on the Billboard Hot 100 and elsewhere in the world its success varied. It peaked at number one in the Netherlands on both the Dutch Top 40 and Single Top 100 charts, becoming the band's first number-one single there.
"Das Model" is a song recorded by the German group Kraftwerk in 1978, written by musicians Ralf Hütter and Karl Bartos, with artist Emil Schult collaborating on the lyrics. It is featured on the album, Die Mensch-Maschine.
"No One" is a song recorded by Belgian/Dutch Eurodance band 2 Unlimited, released in September 1994 by Byte, ZYX and PWL as the second single from their third album, Real Things (1994). Co-written by bandmembers Ray Slijngaard and Anita Dels, it was a top 10 hit in at least six countries, as well as on the Eurochart Hot 100, where the song reached number ten. It features a reference to "That's the Way Love Goes" by Janet Jackson and the accompanying music video, directed by La La Land, features the band performing on the beach by Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
"Blue Savannah" is a song by English synth-pop duo Erasure from their fourth studio album, Wild! (1989). Written by members Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, the song was released as a single in Japan on 25 January 1990 and was issued in the United Kingdom the following month. Alfa Records released it in Japan as the album's lead single, Mute Records released it in Europe as the album's third single, and Sire Records released it in the United States as the album's second single. The music video for the song was directed by Kevin Godley, featuring a mysterious blue hand painting Bell and Clarke completely blue. Considered one of the band's signature songs, the duo still perform it regularly in concerts. It has been described as an uplifting love song; the instrumentation is crisp and heavily synthesized, accented with sweeping, programmed piano.
"Radioactivity" is a song by the German electronic music band Kraftwerk. It was released in February 1976 as the only single from their fifth studio album, Radio-Activity (1975).
"Autobahn" is a 1974 song by German electronic band Kraftwerk, released as the lead single from their studio album of the same name. The song was composed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider of the band, with Emil Schult collaborating on the lyrics. It was co-produced by Conny Plank, and is the band's first track to use sung lyrics. Recorded in 1974, the song is designed to capture the feel of driving on a motorway. "Autobahn" is Kraftwerk's biggest hit in the US, reaching number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Are You Ready" is a song by Australian rock band AC/DC. It is featured on the band's 1990 album The Razors Edge. A live version of the song recorded on the tour of the same name appeared on one of AC/DC's two live albums of 1992, Live: 2 CD Collector's Edition. The song peaked at number one in New Zealand, becoming the band's only number-one hit there, and has been certified gold for sales exceeding 5,000. The song also peaked at number 16 on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, number six in Ireland, number 14 in Finland, and number 18 in Australia. Music & Media magazine called the song "the best example of a rhetorical question". "Are You Ready" was used as the official theme for WWE SmackDown on Fox.
"You Have Placed a Chill in My Heart" is a song by British pop duo Eurythmics. It was written by group members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart, and appears on the duo's sixth studio album, Savage (1987). The song was released in May 1988 by RCA as the fourth and final single from the album in the United Kingdom and as the second in the United States. In the first, it was the only single from the album to reach the top 20 on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 16. The music video for the song was directed by Sophie Muller.
"Any Dream Will Do" is a popular song written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice for the 1968 musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. It is generally the beginning and the concluding song of the musical, sung by the title character of Joseph.
"We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" is a song by English singer-songwriter Morrissey from his third studio album, Your Arsenal (1992). It was released as the lead single from the album on 27 April 1992 by His Master's Voice (HMV). It was the first Morrissey single to be co-written with guitarist Alain Whyte and produced by glam rock guitarist Mick Ronson, known for his work with David Bowie as one of the Spiders from Mars. The song peaked at No. 17 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 9 in Ireland.
"Sailing on the Seven Seas" is a song by English electronic music band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), released on 18 March 1991 by Virgin as the first single from their eighth studio album, Sugar Tax (1991). Along with 1981's "Souvenir", it is the band's highest-charting UK hit to date, peaking at number three on the UK Singles Chart. It also charted at number three in Austria and Sweden, number five in Ireland and number nine in Germany. The single was the first to be released by OMD without co-founder Paul Humphreys, who had left to form his own band the Listening Pool.
"It's Alright" is a song by English boy band East 17, released in November 1993 by London Records as the sixth and last single from their debut album, Walthamstow (1993). The song was written by band member Tony Mortimer, and produced by Phil Harding, Ian Curnow, Richard Stannard and Neil James Stainton. The single version, labelled the "Guvnor mix", begins with a slow ballad-like intro for the first minute, before converting to the techno-house sound for the rest of the track. It reached number three on the UK Singles Chart and became a number-one hit in Australia, France, Ireland, Israel, and Switzerland. The accompanying music video was directed by Chris Clunn and Lawrence Watson, depicting the band performing onstage. In 2011, English singer and songwriter Kim Wilde recorded a cover of the song for her 12th album, Snapshots (2011), which charted in Germany.
"Let There Be Love" is a song by Scottish rock band Simple Minds and first single from their ninth studio album, Real Life (1991). The song was written by Charlie Burchill and Jim Kerr and released by Virgin Records on 11 March 1991. The song became an international hit, reaching the top 10 in Ireland, Denmark, Belgium, Greece, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. It was the most successful in Italy, where it peaked at number one. The official music video for the song was directed by Andy Morahan.
"Das Boot" is the title theme to the film and TV series Das Boot, composed and produced by Klaus Doldinger, and released as a single in 1981. In 1991, the song was covered by German DJ and producer Alex Christensen and his dance music project U96. This techno version was U96's debut single, released by Polydor from the album of the same name (1992).
"Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" is a 1983 instrumental single by Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto recorded for the film of the same name. The song has become a staple of Christmas music in the United States and Japan. A vocal version, "Forbidden Colours", features former Japan frontman David Sylvian and charted in the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart and Irish Singles Chart.
