Wind of Change
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Wind of Change" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Single by Scorpions | ||
| from the album Crazy World | ||
| Released | 1991 | |
| Recorded | 1990 | |
| Genre | power ballad, hard rock | |
| Writer(s) | Klaus Meine | |
| Producer(s) | Keith Olsen | |
| Chart positions | ||
|
||
| Scorpions singles chronology | ||
| "Passion Rules the Game" (1989) | "Wind of Change" (1991) | "Send Me an Angel" (1991) |
- For other uses, see Wind of Change (disambiguation).
"Wind of Change" is a 1990 power ballad written by Klaus Meine, vocalist of the Scorpions. The lyrics celebrate the political changes in Eastern Europe at that time - such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, the increasing freedom in the communist bloc (which would soon lead to the fall of the USSR), and the clearly imminent end of the Cold War.
It appeared on their 1990 album Crazy World, but did not become a worldwide hit single until 1991, when it topped the charts in Germany and across Europe, and hit #4 in the United States and #2 in the United Kingdom. It later appeared on 1995 live album Live Bites, on their 2000 album Moment of Glory, with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and on their 2001 unplugged album Acoustica.
Many listeners of the song who are not acquainted with Moscow are often confused by the meaning of the opening lines of the song, which is:
- I follow the Moskva
- Down to Gorky Park
- Listening to the wind
- of change
The Moskva is the name of the river that runs through Moscow, and Gorky Park is the name of an amusement park in Moscow. The Scorpions were inspired to write this song on a visit to Moscow in 1989, and therefore included references to the aforementioned landmarks.
In 2005 the viewers of the German television network ZDF chose this song as the song of the century. It is the most sold song in Germany ever and usually played TV shows presenting video footage of the fall of the Berlin Wall. It is widely known as the song of the German reunification (and fall of socialism in Eastern Europe generally), even though it only rose to popularity two years later.
The band also recorded a Russian-language version of the song, under the title Ветер Перемен (Veter Peremen).
Popular UK soccer show Soccer AM uses Wind of Change as its tribute to UK troops overseas.
