Hier kommt Alex

"Hier kommt Alex"
Single by Die Toten Hosen
from the album Ein kleines bisschen Horrorschau
Released 1988
Genre Punk rock
Length 3:53
Label Totenkopf
Writer(s) Andreas Frege
Andreas Meurer
Die Toten Hosen singles chronology
"Alle Mädchen wollen küssen"
(1987)		 "Hier kommt Alex"
(1988)		 "1000 gute Gründe"
(1989)

"Hier kommt Alex" (Here comes Alex) is a song by German punk band Die Toten Hosen. It is the first single and the first track from the album Ein kleines bisschen Horrorschau. The song in concept introduces Alex, who is the central character on the concept album. The Alex in the song is Alex DeLarge, from the book A Clockwork Orange.

"Hier kommt Alex" is structurally and musically similar to the last track from the album, "Bye, Bye Alex".

Music video

The video was directed by Walter Knofel.

Inclusions in video games

The song appears as a bonus track in the game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. It is also available as downloadable content for Guitar Hero World Tour.

It is included in the European release of Rock Band, and as a downloadable track on the American version. Due to licensing issues the song isn't compatible with Rock Band 3 or Rock Band Blitz. According to the official Rock Band website the song will be taken down from DLC services as of June 30, 2013.[1]

Cover versions

The song has been covered by many artists, among them Samsas Traum on Endstation.Eden, Gatos Sucios on Punto limite, Thomas Baldischwyler for the compilation Pudel Produkte 8, Sonnenbrandt, Scala & Kolacny Brothers on the album Grenzenlos. British punk band UK Subs covered it in English as "Here Comes Alex".

According to an interview, Die Ärzte had spontaneously played the song on a benefit concert to attract more crowd, because people were leaving after a bad band.

Track listing

  1. "Hier kommt Alex" (Meurer/Frege) – 3:53
  2. "Achterbahn" (Roller coaster) (Rohde/Frege) − 3:35
  3. "Zum Chef (Später Dank)" (To the boss (Later gratitude)) (von Holst/Frege) – 2:10
  4. "Jo singt (Das Wort zum Sonntag)" (Jo singt (The word to Sunday)) (von Holst/Frege) – 0:46
  5. "Liebeslied" (Love song) (Breitkopf/Frege) – 3:50

Charts

Year Country Position
1988 Germany (Official German Charts)[2] 32

The Return of Alex

"The Return of Alex"
Single by Die Toten Hosen
from the album Love, Peace & Money
Released 1994
Genre Punk rock
Length 4:29
Label Virgin Records
Writer(s) Andreas Frege
Andreas Meurer
Matt Dangerfield
Die Toten Hosen singles chronology
"Kauf MICH!"
(1994)		 "The Return of Alex"
(1994)		 "Sexual"
(1994)

There's also an English version of the song, titled "The Return of Alex". This was released as a promo single for UK from the all-English album Love, Peace & Money.

Music video

The video was directed by René Eller and shows the band performing in a black-and-white TV-set.

Track listing

  1. "The Return of Alex" (Meurer/Frege, Dangerfield) − 4:29
  2. "So Long - Good Bye" − 3:13 (English version of "Schönen Gruß, auf Wiederseh'n")
  3. "I Fought the Law" (Sonny Curtis) − 2:35 (The Crickets cover)

In Popular Culture

2005 unplugged version

"Hier kommt Alex (unplugged)"
Single by Die Toten Hosen
from the album Nur zu Besuch: Unplugged im Wiener Burgtheater
Released 9 December 2005
Genre Punk rock, acoustic rock
Length 4:08
Label JKP
Writer(s) Andreas Frege
Andreas Meurer
Hans Steingen
Die Toten Hosen singles chronology
"Freunde"
(2005)		 "Hier kommt Alex (unplugged)"
(2005)		 "The Guns of Brixton (unplugged)"
(2006)

"Hier kommt Alex" was also released as a single from the 2005 unplugged album Nur zu Besuch: Unplugged im Wiener Burgtheater. The song is introduced with the first bars of the first movement of Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata".

Music video

The video contains live footage.

Track listing

  1. "Hier kommt Alex" (Meurer/Frege) − 4:08
  2. "Was zählt" (What counts) (Breitkopf, von Holst/Frege) − 4:04
  3. "You'll Never Walk Alone" (Rodgers/Hammerstein) − 2:45

Charts

Year Country Position
2005 Germany (Official German Charts)[2] 46
2005 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[3] 57
2005 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[4] 53

References

  1. ↑ http://www.rockband.com/forums/showthread.php?t=234236&p=5018349#post5018349
  2. 1 2 "Offiziellecharts.de – Die Toten Hosen – Hier kommt Alex". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Die Toten Hosen – Hier kommt Alex (MTV Unplugged)" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Die Toten Hosen – Hier kommt Alex (MTV Unplugged)". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 December 2014.

External links

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