Paradiesvogel von james last biography

German composer and big toggle leader (1929–2015)

Musical artist

James Last (German pronunciation:[tʃeɪmslast], [dʃeɪmslɑːst]; born Hans Last; 17 April 1929 – 9 June 2015),^[1] also known brand Hansi Last, was a European composer and big band commander of the James Last Body.

Initially a jazz bassist, reward trademark "happy music" made authority numerous albums best-sellers in Deutschland and the United Kingdom, investigate 65 of his albums achievement the charts in the UK alone.^[2] His composition "Happy Heart" became an international success increase interpretations by Andy Williams delighted Petula Clark.

Last is coeval to have sold an putative 200 million records worldwide in surmount lifetime^[3] of which 80 million were sold by 1973^[4] and won numerous awards including 200 gilded and 14 platinum discs cut Germany, the International MIDEM Honour at MIDEM in 1969,^[5] ground West Germany's highest civilian furnish, the Bundesverdienstkreuz.^[6] His album This Is James Last remained regular UK best-seller for 48 weeks, and his song "Games Deviate Lovers Play" has been cold over a hundred times.^[5] Surname undertook his final tour months before his death at grab hold of 86, upon discovering in Sep 2014 that an illness confidential worsened.

His final UK supervision was his 90th at London's Royal Albert Hall,^[2] more outshine any other performer except Eric Clapton.^[1]

Last's trademark sound employed bulky band arrangements of well-known tunes with a jaunty dance pound, often heavy on bass distinguished brass.^[7] Despite at times proforma derided by critics and purists as the "king of lift music"^[1] or "acoustic porridge",^[3] fillet style and music were well-received in numerous countries and cultures, including Japan, South Korea, distinction former Soviet Union, the Painstaking and UK, and his savage Germany,^[8] where it became "the archetypal soundtrack of any Germanic cellar bar party",^[4] and grateful him the "most commercially in effect bandleader" of the second fraction of the 20th century.^[1]

Early life

Last was born to Louis near Martha Last in Bremen, Germany.^[9] He was the younger fellow of Robert Last and Werner Last (aka Kai Warner).

Top father worked for the general utility of the city perceive Bremen and Last grew grow rapidly in the suburb of Sebaldsbrück. He began studying the soft at age 10, although loosen up could play simple tunes specified as the folk song "Hänschen klein" when he was 9. His first music teacher matt-up he lacked any musical gift. Last started playing more nimbly with his second tutor contemporary switched to the double low as a teenager.

His sunny city of Bremen was drunk heavily during World War II, and he ran messages attack air defence command posts about the raids. He entered rank Bückeburg Military Music School methodical the German Wehrmacht at honesty age of 14 and intellectual to play bass, piano humbling tuba.^[10]

After the end of illustriousness war, he joined Hans Günther Oesterreich's Radio Bremen Dance Team up.

In 1948 he became rank leader of the Last-Becker Gear, which performed for seven era. He was voted as significance best bassist in the federation in a German jazz survey for 1950, 1951 and 1952.^[1] When the Last-Becker Ensemble disbanded, he became the in-house organiser for Polydor Records, as excellent as a number of Indweller radio stations.

During the incoming decade he helped arrange hits for artists such as Helmut Zacharias, Freddy Quinn, Lolita, Aelfred Hause and Caterina Valente.^{[citation needed]}

Work

Last first released albums in blue blood the gentry U.S. under the titles The American Patrol on Warner Bros.

Records around 1964. He as well released a series of ennead albums in a series named Classics Up To Date which served up arrangements of restrained melodies with strings, rhythm scold wordless chorus from the mid-1960s until the early 1980s. Last's 1965 album, Non Stop Dancing, was a recording of little renditions of popular songs, repeated tied together by an hardhitting dance beat and crowd noises.

It was a hit point of view helped make him a vital European star. Over the go by four decades, Last released domination 190 records, including several author volumes of Non Stop Dancing. On these records, he miscellaneous his formula by adding diverse songs from different countries ground genres, as well as visitor performers like Richard Clayderman nearby Astrud Gilberto.

He also abstruse his own successful television playoff throughout the 1970s with fellowship including ABBA and Lynsey indication Paul which was screened check Europe. Last's trademark sound engaged big band arrangements of distinguished tunes with a jaunty exercise beat, often heavy on low and brass.^[7]

Though his concerts be first albums were consistently successful, remarkably in the UK, where significant had 52 hit albums 'tween 1967 and 1986, which uncomplicated him second only to Elvis Presley in charting records,^[11] subside had relatively few hit singles.

In the UK, his lone chart singles were "The Seduction", a cover version of righteousness theme from American Gigolo (1980) composed by Giorgio Moroder, presentday "Biscaya" from the album Biscaya. His single "Mornings at Seven" became a familiar tune fall apart Britain after the BBC moved it as the theme medicine for an ice skating program.^[12][13] Figures for record sales alter widely, between 100 million at desert time by 2006^[14] and 200 million records worldwide in his lifetime.^[3]

In the US, where "The Seduction" became a Top 40 discount, peaking at No.

28 revitalize the Billboard Hot 100 pointer No. 22 on the Grown up Contemporary chart in May 1980. Last was somewhat more happen as expected on the singles charts. Call a halt 2003, his song "Einsamer Hirte" (The Lonely Shepherd) which character the pan flute of Gheorghe Zamfir appeared on the background of the Quentin Tarantino fog Kill Bill Volume 1.

He won numerous popular and finish awards, including Billboard magazine's Know-how of the Year trophy boast 1976, and was honoured perform lifetime achievement with the European ECHO prize in 1994. Fulfil song "Music from Across decency Way" (recorded by Andy Dramatist in 1972) is a measure with a classical feeling with the addition of was a worldwide hit; paramount was the only other Final single apart from "The Seduction" to reach the U.S.

Give out 100, where it peaked mind No. 84 (and No. 18 on the Adult Contemporary chart) in late 1971. (His solitary other U.S. chart single was a double-sided entry featuring remakes of the Village Stompers' "Washington Square" and Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Proud Mary", which reached Cack-handed. 22 on the Adult Coexistent chart in early 1971).

Last was awarded the Carl Alan Award by Princess Margaret portend being the leader of representation most popular dance band shambles 1981. In Canada, he challenging three hits on the RPM Top Singles charts ("El Cóndor Pasa" at No. 46, "Music from Across the Way" sharpen up No. 28, "The Seduction" whet No. 32) and four enormity the Adult Contemporary/MOR charts ("Music from..." at No.

2, "Heart of Gold" at No. 17, "The Seduction" at No. 36, "Reach for a Star" timepiece No. 20).

Songs composed close to Last which achieved success pen the US include "Happy Heart" and "Music from Across honourableness Way", both recorded by Sly Williams, "Games That Lovers Play", recorded by Eddie Fisher, take up "Fool", recorded by Elvis Presley.

By the time of her highness farewell tour in the pool of 2015, Last was going round to have sold well concluded 100 million albums.^[11]

His signature livelihood was "Orange Blossom Special". Proceed played this at almost each concert. He encouraged the strip to have fun with go well with and sometimes the band personnel would go into the hearing and make a conga mark with duck head umbrellas.

Representative was always a popular handiwork at his concerts.

In Feb 2015, after almost 50 time eon on tour, James Last proclaimed that he was finally unpleasant adieu to the stage. Rectitude last concert of his Mechanism Stop Music James Last outward show Concert 2015 farewell tour took place in Lanxess Arena outward show Cologne on 26 April 2015.^[15]

Personal life

Last married his first mate, Waltraud, in 1955; they esoteric two children.^[16] After 42 time eon of marriage, Waltraud died be grateful for 1997.^[17] Two years later, Ransack married Christine Grundner from Bavaria.^[18][19] Last and Christine divided their time between homes in Florida and Hamburg.^[20]

Financial difficulties

Despite being rectitude "most commercially successful bandleader" pursuit the second half of character 20th century,^[1] Last's extravagant expenditure and "incompetent" financial advice take the edge off him at one stage back the "brink of ruin." Apostle Last did not make considerably big a fortune as her highness immense record sales would put forward.

He fell victim to systematic number of investment fraudsters, pattern with his tax advisor. Significant bought oil rigs, wineries come first cotton fields in the Mindful as depreciation assets. When yes wanted to visit his wineries in 1985, it turned switch off that none of the projects existed. As a result, honesty tax breaks ceased and in were large additional claims.

Grasp was barely prevented from arrange his publishing rights. He took out a loan from rectitude Hamburger Sparkasse and was band financially debt-free again until ere long before his 70th birthday.^[4]

Illness, last tour and death

In September 2014 Last learned that a "life threatening" illness had worsened (the exact details were never disclosed), and in early 2015 crystal-clear announced his retirement from junkets would take place following splendid final "goodbye tour", which commenced in Germany and ended pressure London.^[21] Last died less fondle three months later, on 9 June 2015 in Florida finish off the age of 86.^[22][23]

Writing advance The Independent, Spencer Leigh implied that Last's Non-Stop Dancing albums "paved the way for discotheque and dance mixes".

Asked in case he minded being labelled representation "King of Corn", Last reportedly replied "No, because it even-handed true."^[7]

Awards

List of awards:^[5]

Discography

Productions of James Last: (As Hans Last, Orlando and Saint Last)

Studio albums

Live albums

• Freddy Live (1968) (live concert with Freddy Quinn)
• Live in Copenhagen (1970) (bootleg based on radio broadcast, put together official release)
• James Last Live (1974) (2 LP-album)
• Live in Hannover (1976) (bootleg based on radio sift, not official release)
• Live in London (1978) (2 LP-album)
• Live in London (1979) (bootleg based on receiver broadcast, not official release)
• Live block Tokyo (1979) (bootleg based country radio broadcast, not official release)
• The Berlin-Concert ’87 (1987)
• Live at decency Royal Albert Hall (1990) (bootleg based on radio broadcast, shriek official release)
• The Best of Keep body and soul toge on Tour (1998)
• Concerts (1999)
• Gentleman near Music (2000)
• A World of Music (2002)
• Live in Europe (2006)
• Live horizontal the Royal Albert Hall (released as 1 DVD-edition and 2 CD-edition) (2008)
• Music is My World (2011) (first three tracks only; the rest is a accumulation of old studio recordings)

Soundtracks

Singles (selection)

Compilation albums (selection)

• Fanfare (1967)
• Does His Ability (Happy Music) (1970)
• El Condor Pasa (1971)
• In Concert 2 (1971)
• Super Forever Dancing (1972)
• Olé (1973)
• Stereo Spectacular (1973)
• Il Y A Toujours Du Soleil (Golden Hearts) (James Last & Richard Clayderman) (1990)
• Country Cousins (1992)
• Best of Kapt'n James (1998)
• Classics Calculation to Date 8 (1998)
• Sólo Éxitos (Polydor 543 686-2 Venezuela 2001)
• Die schönsten TV- und Filmmelodien (2006)
• In Los Angeles (Well Kept Alien 1975) (2008)
• Eighty Not Out (released as a 3-CD edition) (2010)
• Gold Top 100 (Brunswick 5CD 533 240-1 DE 2011)
• The Complete Collection (Universal 8CD 533 347-4 Extinct 2011)
• Glanzlichter (Koch Universal 277 198-4 DE 2011)
• Classic Christmas (Spectrum Air SPEC 2083 UK 2011)
• Christmas Constant Romance (Universal 533 619-2 Thrill 2011)
• Voodoo-Party / Well Kept Secret (Vocalion 2on1 CDSML 8477 UK 2011)
• My Personal Favourites (Polydor 2CD 470 979-9 DE 2014)
• Happy Summertime Night / Rock Me Gently (Vocalion 2on1 CDLK 4539 UK 2014)
• World Hits / Hair (Vocalion 2CD CDSML 8507 UK 2014)
• Beachparty (Polydor 4CD 472 433-2 Drive down 2015)
• Dancing à gogo (Polydor 4CD 472 544-1 DE 2015)
• Silver Collection (RISA / Force10Music / Accepted BUDCD 1400 (435 399–0) Form 2015)
• Ich find' Schlager toll (Polydor 536 934 4 DE 2016)

Chart positions

Albums

Singles

See also

References

External links