Rufus Zuphall

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Rufus Zuphall
General information
origin Aachen , Germany
Genre (s) Progressive Rock , Krautrock , Artrock
founding 1969, 1999
resolution 1972
Founding members
Klaus Guilder
Günter Krause
Helmut Lieblang (until 2011)
Udo Dahmen (until 1999)
Current occupation
flute
 Klaus Guilder
Guitar, vocals
 Günter Krause
Gero Körner (from 1999)
Bass, violin
Uwe Böttcher (from 2011)
Drums
 Roland Hegel (from 1999)

Rufus Zuphall is a German progressive rock band from Aachen .

history

The band was founded in 1969 by Günter Krause (guitar, vocals), Helmut Lieblang (bass), Klaus Gülden (flute) and Udo Dahmen (drums). In their pieces, the musicians fuse British folk , blues and rock with jazz and classical elements to create their own, often instrumental, style. A special feature of this group, which is usually referred to as the " Krautrock band ", is the use of the flute , which sometimes leads to comparisons with the English band Jethro Tull . In addition, their music lives from free song structures, psychedelic elements and the tendency to long-lasting pieces. The songwriting duo Helmut Lieblang (lyrics) and Günter Krause (music) harmonized right from the start, so that the majority of the repertoire of this band came from their pen.

Due to the proximity to the border, Rufus Zuphall initially played more in the Netherlands and Belgium , where she celebrated her breakthrough at the jazz festival in Bilzen in 1970 in front of 30,000 spectators . In addition to musicians like Black Sabbath and Cat Stevens , she was the only amateur band to delight the audience on the main stage. In December 1970 she recorded her first LP Weiß der Teufel within three days , the title track of over 17 minutes (with built-in “Summertime”) soon being considered a classic of the genre. Other pieces such as suckling pig or the Knight of Third Degree became famous. Despite poor distribution conditions, the LP was a sales success.

On the second album the range of instruments is expanded, and with it the expression and the range of styles. In addition to the still prominent flute, the clavinet , mellotron and 12-string guitars round off the overall sound, which on the one hand has developed in the direction of harder rock, but on the other hand also particularly savored the lyrical moments. Overall, the second album seems more extreme, the arrangements more solid than on the previous one. Before their planned third LP, Avalon , was finished, the musicians decided to go their separate ways for musical and personal reasons. The half-finished LP was only released over 20 years later as Avalon and On , filled with live recordings from 1970 and 1971. After the separation, Udo Dahmen and Manfred Spangenberg tried to keep the band alive with a new flutist and guitarist which ultimately failed, so that Rufus Zuphall finally dissolved in 1973.

In 1999 the former members decided to reunite and played a concert at Wilhelmstein Castle in Würselen near Aachen with the original line-up, enhanced by the Hammond organ and electric piano player Gero Körner . Udo Dahmen left it at this one concert due to lack of time. He was replaced by Roland Hegel as drummer , briefly represented by Horst Schiffers . In 2000 Rufus Zuphall released the CD Colder than Hell - Live 2000 on the label Forty-Five. Most recently, the double CD Outside the Gates of Eden was released on the Long Hair label in December 2007 , a live recording from the “Spirit of 66” club in Verviers / Belgium. This recording was produced by Deutschlandradio ( Deutschlandfunk ). The band played or still plays in various clubs and at numerous festivals, such as the Millennium Open Air in Altenburg , the Herzberg Festival or the Woodstöckchen Open Air in Gressenich .

Discography

  • 1970: the devil knows
  • 1970: Walpurgis Night / Suckling Pig (7 ")
  • 1971: Phallobst
  • 1994: Avalon and On
  • 2000: Colder than Hell (live)
  • 2007: Outside the Gates of Eden (live)

Web links