Ihre Kinder (Germany) - Werdohl, 1971 [1993, Kuckuck Schallplatten]

Originating from Nuremberg, and formerly a beat band in existence since the mid-1960's known as Jonah & The Whales, Ihre Kinder established themselves in 1968 as a unique and very German band on the edge of pop but with folk and progressive tendencies. As such, their sound had little appeal outside their homeland. They had a few hit singles early on, but their polit-rock aesthetic didn't really catch the ear of the pop fan, and vice versa, they were generally too pop styled to appeal to progressive fans. Their debut LP was virtually a collection of pop songs, and is only likely to appeal to those fond of German beat.

Their albums after this, the first three released by Kuckuck, are the only ones from their output really worthy of any attention. Though, having said that LEERE HÄNDE was still rather patchy! 2375 004 (also known as "Jeans Cover") was possibly the best, though WERDOHL contained their most experimental works. After this, their long-serving lead guitarist Muck Groh left, eventually turning up in Aera a few years later. The rest of the band continued without him recording ANFANG OHNE ENDE, which we haven't heard.

As such, Ihre Kinder can be seen as innovators in using the German language in rock music, and even though initially Deutsche Grammophon dropped them as they didn't know how to market them, it seems that they were the financial buoyancy Kuckuck needed in their early days. The major songwriters in the band: Sonny Hennig and Ernst Schultz both went onto solo careers. Sonny also formed Ihre Kinder & Meistersinger, and Ihre Kinder themselves have reformed on numerous occasions since. The LIVE '82 album amounted to a selection of their more pop oriented numbers.

(The Crack in the Cosmic Egg)