Dschinghis Khan

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For the song of the same name, see Dschinghis Khan (song).

Dschinghis Khan performing their song "Moskau".

Dschinghis Khan (Pronounced "Jingis" Khan) was a German pop band, created in 1979 to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest. The name of the band was chosen to fit the song of the same name, written and produced by Ralph Siegel with lyrics by Bernd Meinunger.

Appearing at the height of the disco boom and following on the heels of other German-produced bands such as Boney M, Arabesque, and Silver Convention, the band achieved wide popularity throughout the world, especially in Europe, Russia, Australia and Japan, though they went wholly unnoticed in the United States. Their songs invariably were themed on historical figures and exotic cultures and locales.

Though the group broke up in the mid-1980s, it has enjoyed a recent resurgence in popularity on the Internet due to the discovery of a video of them performing their hit song Moskau. The video and the song associated with it have become a popular topic on blogs and can be considered an Internet fad.

The original members of the group were:

The band re-formed in late 2005, with Stefan Track replacing Potgieter as the "Khan" character. They performed at the Olympiyski Arena in Moscow on October 17, 2005. On May 7th, 2006, Steve Bender (the member famous for his bald appearance) died of cancer.

The band, now under the name "The Legacy of Dschinghis Khan", has a tour scheduled for Winter 2006 - Fall 2007. In the tour, their show will consist of "Cirque du Dschinghis Khan", featuring other performers, including Mongolian circus acts. Their announced dates are listed on the official website of the group and are subject to change. Their planned German national tour dates in January 2007 will coincide with the release of their latest as-of-yet untitled LP and DVD. It will be their first release since 1999's "Die Großen Erfolge".

1 Discography
- 1.1 Longplay
- 1.2 Singles
2 Trivia
3 External links

[edit] Discography

[edit] Longplay

Dschinghis Khan (1979)
Rom (1980) ("Rome")
Viva (1980)
- Re-release of Rom without bonus tracks
Wir sitzen alle im selben Boot (1981) ("We're everybody in the same boat")
Helden, Schurken & der Dudelmoser (1982) ("Heroes, Rogues & the Dudelmoser")
Corrida (1983) ("Bullfighting")
Huh Hah Dschinghis Khan - Ihre Grössten Erfolge (1993)
Die Großen Erfolge (1999)

[edit] Singles

(only German releases)

Dschinghis Khan (1979)
Moskau (1979) ("Moscow")
Hadschi Halef Omar (1979) ("Hadschi Halef Omar")
Rom (1980)
Pistolero (1981)
Loreley (1981) ("Lorelei")
Wir sitzen alle im selben Boot (1981)
Klabautermann (1982)
Der Dudelmoser (1982)
Himalaja (1983) ("Himalaya")
Olé Olé (1984)
Mexiko (1985) ("Mexico")

[edit] Trivia

The song "Dschinghis Khan" is played at New York Rangers games following goals by rookie star Petr Prucha
The famous Korean group Koyote has also taken songs from the group and remixed them into rap/pop songs.
Their songs appear in the video games Taiko No Tatsujin, Pop'n Music, and Stepping Selection.
Moskau became an Internet phenomenon on many websites such as YouTube and YTMND.
Despite being a German band, only two of the group members (Steve Bender & Wolfgang Heichel) were Germans. Louis Hendrik Potgieter was born in South Africa, Henriette Heichel was Dutch, & Leslie Mándoki & Edina Pop were Hungarians.
All of the band members can speak English, and as a result, have performed English versions of the following songs (English titles are in parentheses): Dschinghis Khan (Genghis Khan), Moskau (Moscow), Sahara (Desert Land), Sierra Nevada, Die Fremden (The Strangers), Rom (Rome), Loreley, & Pistolero. In addition, the song "Rocking Son of Dschinghis Khan" has both a half-German/half-English version & a full English version, & the song "What Shall We Do With the Drunken Sailor?" is in English.