Various ‘An Der Schönen Blauen Donau’

01 Bene Gesserit ‘Bathroom, Sunday Morning’ (1:08)
02 Look De Bouk ‘Dix Sections Du Fleuve’ (1:29)
03 Peter Kunz ‘Walwaltz’ (0:43)
04 Rainer Linz ‘Disrythmic Etude’ (1:24)
05 Jean-Claude Charlier Et Son Orchestre ‘Le Beau Danube Bleu’ (2:00)
06 F.A.R. ‘Il Bel Danubio Blu-Notte’ (2:11)
07 Fuoku ‘Black Wine (For Dear Mister Strauss)’ (1:41)
08 Frontal Rizzotto ‘Le Beau Gars Nu Bleu’ (2:10)
09 Pilvarta Kopilmop ‘Blu Blo Bli Ble Bla’ (0:31)
10 Dieter P. ‘A Corpse For Mermaids’ (1:07)
11 Victor Nubla ‘Le Beau Danube Bleu (Perquez)’ (1:33)
12 T.U.F. ‘Blue Danube’ (1:27)
13 48 Cameras ‘Dead Waters’ (1:37)
14 Sttellla ‘Le Beau Danube Bleu’ (1:02)
15 Les Souplards Torves ‘An Den Schönen Blauer Donau’ (2:03)
16 Monty Cantsin ‘Under The Williamsburgh Bridge’ (1:11)
17 Kaoru Todoroki ‘An Der Schönen Blauen Donau (Utsukushiki Aoki Donau)’ (1:51)
18 Finne C. Renfer ‘Cher Johann’ (1:27)
19 Morgan Fisher ‘Just Beneath The Surface Of The Water’ (2:10)
20 Fabio Martini ‘Variation For Four Clarinets On The Theme Of The Johann Strauss ‘s Blue Danube’ (1:49)
21 Pilvarta Kopilmop ‘Bla Ble Bli Blo Blu’ (1:16)
22 Dissidents ‘An Der Schönen Blauen Donau’ (1:58)
23 Lieutenant Caramel [Untitled] (1:24)
24 Det Wiehl ‘Gondless’ (2:54)
25 The Dead Goldfish Ensemble ‘The Blue Danube’ (2:02)
26 Bourbonese Qualk ‘Northern Soul’ (0:54)
27 Armando Velasco Torres ‘The Blue Blue Danube’ (2:00)
28 Guido ‘Ad Vienne Qui Pourra’ (2:00)
29 Klimperei ‘El Bé Débé’ (1:22)
30 Betsy Morales ‘Le Beau Danube Bleu’ (0:48)

Total time 47:00
LP released on Home Produkt, Belgium, 1986

From a Czech band named Dunaj (Danube in Czech) to Annea Lockwood’s 2005 Sound Map of the Danube, it seems the Donau (in German) is an inspiring river for musicians. Still, Johann Strauss’s 1866 Blue Danube (An der schönen blauen Donau op. 314) is hardly able to inspire anything but depression. Therefore this legendary ‘An Der Schönen Blauen Donau’ compilation LP was something of a provocative gesture from Belgium’s Home Produkt founder Patrick Stas. He commissioned new versions of the famous waltz to various avant-rock and radical mavericks from Europe, Australia, Japan and the US. The result, inspired of course by the landmark Miniatures 1980 compilation (and look who’s there track #19: Morgan Fisher himself – note he couldn’t make it to the one minute mark), is an exhilarating mix of poetic, grotesque, mysterious but mostly parodical cover versions. From 1982 to 1990, Home Produkt published underground acts like Jean Claude Charlier et Son Orchestre, Général Thi et Les Fourmis, Tara Cross or LOSP (aka Klimperei), and most are featured here, as well as people from the AYAA and ADN labels. A good point was to invite experimental composers to join in, like Lieutenant Caramel, F.A.R. or Monty Cantsin. The latter take advantage of the end of side 1 to display a gorgeous locked groove that could go on for ever – I let it go for 30 secs in the mp3. An utopian project, this LP is a gathering of tribes from areas as diverse as post-industrial music, post-RIO bands or independent, un-classifiable artists. The myriads of self-releases and independent labels at the time (mid-1980s) allowed such wide-ranging projects – though, as it were, they remained few.  A touchstone of an LP.

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