Pigalle (The Great Mousetrap)
Pigalle (The Big Mouse Trap) is the title of a German-language hit by Heinz Gietz and Hans Bradtke . He sings about the Parisian entertainment district of Pigalle . With the American singer Bill Ramsey , the song became a number one hit in the Federal Republic of Germany.
history
Since 1959, the former GI Bill Ramsey has ironically targeted the small weaknesses of the people in the economic miracle of Germany with his songs. The hunt for celebrity souvenirs with souvenirs, the lust for pleasure in the song Every day a different party . With his song Souvenirs Ramsey had conquered the top of the German charts in 1959 and was thus promoted to the top line of pop singers in Germany.
For Ramsey's first record in 1961, Heinz Gietz composed the Foxtrot Pigalle (The Great Mousetrap) . The text was provided by Hans Bradtke, who last wrote the number one text Calcutta lies on the Ganges for Vico Torriani in 1960 . The text on Pigalle was again critical of society; this time it contained tips about the emerging desire to travel abroad: “Anyone in the world who is self-respecting has been there. Pigalle, that's the name of the big mousetrap in the middle of Paris. ”Since the beginning of the 20th century, Pigalle was a well-known Parisian entertainment district, home to many artists and the Moulin Rouge variety theater .
The production of the new single began on January 6, 1961. Initially, the B-side title Café Oriental was recorded in the Hamburg Music Hall . For the production of the A-side with Pigalle (The Big Mouse Trap) , the company moved to the exhibition studio in Cologne. Manager was Kurt Feltz , the arrangement had delivered Heinz Gietz. Ramsey's singing was accompanied by the Adalbert Luczkowski Orchestra . In the same month, the single was released by the Polydor record company , which had previously released Ramsey's records, with catalog number 24 428 on the market.
At first it seemed as if the B-side title would win the race for the new single , similar to souvenirs . The music market included the title Café Oriental in the top 50 shortly after the record was released on January 14, 1961. Pigalle did not appear there until 28 days later, on February 11th . But in contrast to the B-side, which only climbed to 16th place, Pigalle reached number one in the top 50 on April 1 and was able to hold its own for three weeks. Pigalle was listed on the music market for a total of 15 weeks, Café Oriental was only listed there for nine weeks.
With his song Pigalle , Bill Ramsey appeared three times in films: As a waiter in The Adventures of Count Bobby (April 1961), as Fiorelli in Adieu, Lebewohl, Goodbye (August 1961) and as the singer of Pigalle in The Hazy Osterwald Story (September 1961 ). In Germany Pigalle Dick Robby on the budget label Baccarola and in Austria by Peter Körber on Danubia gecovert . The title should not be confused with the composition of the same name by Georges Ulmer from the late 1940s, which was sung by Paul Anka , among others .
literature
- Angelika & Lothar Binding: The large binding single catalog , Volume 2, 3rd edition, Heidelberg 1994.
- Günter Ehnert (Ed.): Hit balance sheet German chart singles 1956-1980. Taurus Press 1987, ISBN 3-922542-24-7 .