Tiger B. Smith

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Tiger B. Smith (Holker Schmidt)

Tiger B. Smith (born August 21, 1952 in Bad Camberg , Hessen as Holker Schmidt, † December 20, 2016 in Hünstetten - Bechtheim , Hessen) was a German rock musician and front man of the band of the same name from Bad Camberg.

Holker Schmidt founded his first group “Groove” in 1965, which was followed in 1968 by the formation “Whiteface”. In 1969 he built up the group "Second Life" from which Tiger B. Smith eventually emerged. This was followed by the solo project "Jon Bear", the founding of the " Strassenjungs " in 1977 , and in 1984 joining the group "Tokyo" as a singer and guitarist. In the years 2001 to 2015 there was a reunion of Tiger B. Smith with Schmidt, Traut and a changing line-up.

Life

In 1969 the 17-year-old Holker Schmidt introduced himself to the Frankfurt record label Bellaphon Records with the idea of ​​the band name Tiger B. Smith . After playing some of the self-written songs to the producer on his western guitar, he got a record deal.

In 1972 Schmidt founded the band "Tiger B. Smith" in Frankfurt am Main , which consisted of the musicians Holker Schmidt (vocals, guitar), Claus Meinhardt (bass) and Karl-Heinz Traut (drums). Their music style consisted of progressive fuzz / blues rock with long instrumental passages. In terms of contemporary history, music is assigned to the Krautrock genre .

Yugoslavia tour (1973) v. l. No. Traut, Schmidt, Meinhardt

This was followed by the band's international long-playing record debut in 1972. The album "Tiger Rock" was released. Two years later the LP "We're the Tiger Bunch" was released. The band gained national fame and went on extensive tours through Germany and other European countries, played at festivals and played concerts with groups such as " Deep Purple ", " Scorpions " and " Suzi Quattro ". With a real tiger on a leash, Holker Schmidt appeared on television and the rock formation was given a double page in the youth music magazine “ Bravo ”. The tours in what was then Yugoslavia were sold out and had their climax in front of over 10,000 fans in the capital Belgrade . Various radio interviews and appearances on TV programs followed. The American television station AFN broadcast a 45-minute Tiger Special. In Südwestfunk a 45-minute documentary was aired Tiger, with Udo Lindenberg for interviews. In the ORF in Vienna , a 45-minute program was also produced about the band.

In 1977 Holker Schmidt founded the first German punk band " Strassenjungs " with producer Axel Klopprogge before he was hired as the frontman of the band "Tokyo" in the mid-1980s. The single "Fly Like An Eagle" composed by Holker Schmidt reached number 2 in the radio charts. After a year, the Tokyo band broke up and Schmidt opened his own recording studio under the name "Woodland Studios", in which around 80 CD's were produced from 1980 to 2000. Among other things, the remixes for the single "Lick It" by 20 Fingers feat. Roula produces.

In 2001 the Tiger B. Smith reunion took place. Schmidt, Traut and Frank Esper on bass and Horst Lakner on keyboards mainly toured through Hessen. In 2002 the CD "Mensch sein" was published, on which German-language texts could be heard for the first time. In 2010 the "Christmas Rock Ballads" followed, a self-interpretation of well-known Christmas rock classics. The highlights of this stage were the 35-year-old Tiger B. Smith Jubilee concert and the performance at the Hessenfest 2010 in Berlin , whose guests included Chancellor Angela Merkel , Roland Koch and Michael Boddenberg .

Holker Schmidt succumbed to cancer on December 20, 2016 at the age of 64 and was buried in the cemetery in Hünstetten-Bechtheim, Hesse. The band then broke up.

Discography

  • 1972: Tiger Rock - Vertigo Records
  • 1974: We're the Tiger Bunch - Bacillus Records, Bellaphon
  • 1989: Rosita (United Forces) - Metal Enterprises
  • 2001: Being human - Woodland Records
  • 2005: 35 Years Jubilee Concert (DVD) - Woodland Records
  • 2010: Christmas Rock Ballads - CMV

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Tiger B. Smith. Retrieved June 10, 2018 .
  2. ↑ biography | Tiger B. Smith. Accessed June 10, 2018 (German).
  3. ↑ Tiger B. Smith - discography, line-up, biography, interviews, photos. Accessed June 10, 2018 .
  4. ^ Tiger B. Smith. Retrieved June 10, 2018 .
  5. ↑ The Book of Seth: Tiger B. Smith - Tiger Rock. Retrieved June 10, 2018 .
  6. ↑ CLEAR SPOT. Accessed June 10, 2018 .
  7. ^ Tiger B. Smith. Retrieved June 10, 2018 .
  8. ↑ Baretta, Sandro & Brifaut, France: Star Alphabet: Biographies and photos of international show stars . In: See, understand, design photos . Publishing company for reference works (1976), Wiesbaden 1976, ISBN 3-540-21929-3 , pp. 59-80 , doi : 10.1007 / 3-540-27493-6_4 .
  9. ↑ biography | Tiger B. Smith. Accessed June 10, 2018 (German).
  10. ↑ http://www.flk-ransel.de/index_htm_files/Tiger_Smith_Info.pdf
  11. ↑ biography | Tiger B. Smith. Accessed June 10, 2018 (German).
  12. ↑ 20 Fingers feat. Roula - Lick It (Remixes). Retrieved June 10, 2018 .
  13. ↑ Deezer. Retrieved June 10, 2018 (American English).
  14. ↑ Rock in May - with Tiger B. Smith | Club ring Oberjosbach. Retrieved June 10, 2018 .
  15. ^ Berlin - Summer Festival of the Hessian State Government | Tiger B. Smith. Accessed June 10, 2018 (German).
  16. ^ VRM GmbH & Co. KG: Farewell to a tiger . ( wiesbadener-tagblatt.de [accessed on June 10, 2018]).
personal data
SURNAME Smith, Tiger B.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Schmidt, Holker (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German rock musician and front man of the band of the same name
DATE OF BIRTH August 21, 1952
PLACE OF BIRTH Bad Camberg
DATE OF DEATH 20th December 2016
Place of death Hünstetten - Bechtheim , Hessen