10 Jahre Record Service

Artists

Album Info

Release Date: 1985

Label: Warner Communications

Title on label and spine: Grete's Hits
Made in Germany by WEA Musik GmbH, a Warner Communications company
℗ + © 1985 RS-Creative Stars for Alsdorf and for the rest of the World outside of Alsdorf
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Arno Steffen (from the progressive rock band Triumvirat, among others) is behind most of the material on this album. It was produced as a gift for employees, dealers and customers of the pressing plant ‘Record Service’ (based in Alsdorf, Germany) on the occasion of its 10th anniversary.
The album was released in a gatefold cover and with an enclosed 16-page booklet in LP format. It is a 1-LP set, although a third side (side C) is indicated on the inside of the cover bearing a song "Hetze, Hetze" (fun version of "Codo …Düse, Düse im Sauseschritt" by Tauchen/Prokopetz). This side C is also described as ‘the unpressed side’ (die nicht gepresste Seite) and in the notes a competition is mentioned in which you can win a VHS recorder as the main prize.
All conversations and songs on this album are performed in German, with the exception of a message from Elliot Easton, guitarist of the Boston band The Cars. Arno Steffen is involved in all the material, either as backing vocalist or lead singer. He also produced the album. The lyrics of the better-known songs have been humorously rewritten especially for this album. For example, Arno Steffen sings a version of Van Halen's ‘Jump’ (here called ‘Dampf’), where the lyrics read: Hörst du sie pressen, pressen, pressen, pressen // unsere Record-Maschin' // das beste der Scene // cant you see what I mean!
The label bears the title ‘Grete's Hits’, which in German is a satirical misspelling or malapropism of the English ‘Greatest Hits’. The label code is also given in a humorous way: ‘LC 17+4’.
A rare album, although nowadays only fans of Arno Steffen or collectors of unusual vinyl should seek this out.

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