Little Testament

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Small Testament is the seventh music album by singer and songwriter Hannes Wader from 1976.

Little Testament
Studio album by Hannes Wader

Publication
(s)

1976

Label (s) Philips

Genre (s)

Chanson / singer-songwriter

Title (number)

4th

running time

38 min 11 s

occupation

production

Hannes Wader

chronology
The Portrait (1975) Little Testament Hannes Wader sings workers' songs (1977)

Origin and meaning

The album can be seen as an interim balance sheet by the songwriter. Textually and musically, there is a summary of the previous work and an outlook on the upcoming work. This is particularly evident in the title track Little Testament , which can be seen as a snappy and biting look at his 10-year career that he just couldn't get around. He also deals with his opponents, especially the journalists who, in the course of the investigation against him for "supporting a criminal organization", almost destroyed his career with their media boycott (see The 1970s: Wader and Politics ). Hannes Wader, who was quite battered by the incidents, takes them to court with bold and aggressive images, which sometimes makes a bitter impression. The song was influenced by the French poet François Villon .

Track list

  1. The coup - 18:54
  2. Already tomorrow - 4:14
  3. Long Twilight Hotel - 6:58 am
  4. Little Testament - 8:05

Song info

In the nearly nineteen-minute title Der Putsch , Wader says goodbye to the tradition of talking blues. It is the continuation of the title The Tanker King , which can be found on the album 7 songs and is about a crazy employee of a department store. The text again represents the extreme variant of this type of music. In his typical way, Wader interweaves interesting collages with current, political analysis. He revived this tradition twice: on the album Not only me alone and on 10 songs , which was linked to the album 7 songs . On Not only me alone he sings the titles Fulfilled Life and The Buffalo , on 10 songs he performs The Invisible One .

In his song, Already Tomorrow , the songwriter makes the interrelationships between nature and humans, as well as the environment and society, an issue. The wildness and rawness of nature stand for the harshness of life and Wader wants to express his desperation about society and politics.

In visions, the protagonist of Hotel zur Long Dusk sees himself as a boy who is still innocent and unconcerned. In another room, as an old, embittered man at the end of his life, he sees himself marked by life. Wader shows how life and society draw a person and even belief in God can no longer stabilize him.