Culture

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Tens of thousands in rock ecstasy

Headlines like that dotted papers after the first two concerts in Münster, which marked the beginning of a German-Austrian tour. Germany's respected if somewhat conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung showed irritation: "How is it possible that five laughably unmanly and hairy creatures can induce thousands of young people to this frenetic hip-swinging and head-bobbing?"

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Unbridled enthusiasm

The last concert of the 1965 tour was held at Berlin's Waldbühne venue. Some 22,000 fans had tickets, but many others made their way into the arena by breaking through barricades. After 25 minutes, the concert was called to an end because audience members had destroyed the benches for seating. Fans proceeded to clash violently with police, resulting in 80 arrests and countless injuries.

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Legendary affairs

Rumors of countless sexual conquests followed the Stones wherever they went. German model Anita Pallenberg was engaged to Brian Jones, but she also had an affair with Mick Jagger. Her longest relationship, though, was with Keith Richards (pictured), with whom she had three children.

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Mick and Uschi

Uschi Obermaier met Mick Jagger at a Santana concert. The same night, the rock star and the German 1968-generation icon made out until they fell under the table. Looking back, Obermaier said: "Just imagine, that's your idol! That's Mick Jagger lying there! It was a really strange feeling: his lips, all of that. And then this other feeling: He is just a man."

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Lasting influence

There's hardly a rock musician in the world - including in Germany - that hasn't borrowed something from the Rolling Stones. Wolfgang Niedecken, frontman of the Cologne group BAP, calls himself a friend of the band. British music and styles influenced amateur and professional bands across the country - as did the Stones' sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll credo.

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Always ready to shell out

Between 1965 and 2007, the Stones performed over 100 concerts in Germany alone. During the 90s, demand was somewhat weaker, but otherwise the tickets sell like hotcakes. In 2006, two concerts in Nuremberg and Leipzig had to be cancelled. Keith Richards had fallen from a palm tree on Fiji and suffered a head injury.

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

The ravages of time

The rockers, most of whom will soon turn 70, may look a bit older, but otherwise possess a kind of eternal youth. Former US president Bill Clinton once said that Keith Richards is the only creature other than cockroaches that could survive an atomic war. The four musicians are pictured at the 2008 Berlin International Film Festival, where a Martin Scorsese film about the band was shown.

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Museum head and first-class fan

In April, the town of Lüchow in Lower Saxony became home to the world's first Rolling Stones museum. The idea was Ulli Schröder's. She has been not only a fan of the group for ages, but also an exhibitor of works by hobbyist painter Keith Richards. This urinal in Stones design is among the museum's roughly 5,000 display objects, which also include guitars, golden albums and a pool table.

50 wild years - the Rolling Stones

Hopes for 2013

The Stones wanted to go on an anniversary tour this year. But it has been pushed back to 2013 - possibly with bassist Bill Wyman, an original member of the group in the 1960s. Will there be an announcement that it's the band's last tour? Maybe - but who would actually believe that?

Author: Tobias Oelmaier / gsw | Editor : Kate Bowen

Elvis Presley in Germany

Arrival in Friedberg

He came, he saw and he rocked: It was 1958 when the King arrived in Bremerhaven on the USS General Randal to complete his military service. From there he continued by train to Friedberg, in central Germany, where his fans and the press prepared a rousing reception.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Service in the spotlight

On October 2, the King moved into his room in building 3707 of the Ray Barracks. He would spend the next 18 months in the tank division of the military. However, Presley enjoyed some privileges with his superiors and performed only limited service. The King moved quickly from his barracks to a hotel room and later an apartment in Bad Nauheim, near Friedberg.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Elvis and the paparazzi

Elvis' grandmother Minnie Mae, his father Vernon and two bodyguards followed him to Germany. At first, they lived in the Grunewald Hotel in Bad Nauheim, then moved to Goethe Strasse 14. It was only at home that Elvis was able to get some peace from his fans who were waiting outside his house round-the-clock to catch a glimpse of him. He's pictured here reading a popular German youth magazine.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Visit from a colleague

When Bill Haley begins his European tour in Frankfurt in October 1958, Elvis visited his colleague in the dressing room. He constantly had the press in tow. Haley and Presley were seen as the fathers of rock and roll. The older generation of Germans at the time was somewhat suspicious of the new music from America, while the youth were very excited by the new sounds from across the Atlantic.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Wooden Heart

The popular German soldier's farewell song, "Muss i denn zum Städtele hinaus," is at least 200 years old. Presley recorded his own version called "Wooden Heart." The King sang the song in English but with a German chorus written out phonetically. The song was first heard in 1960 in the movie "GI Blues," which was a tribute to Presley's army service in Germany.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Fun first, soldier second

During his military service in Germany, Elvis preferred expensive cars and beautiful women over the regimented life of a soldier. In this photo, Uschi Siebert, the Hessian state beauty queen of 1958, gives him the keys to a BMW 507 sports car, which racecar driver Hans-Joachim Stuck drove to victory many times.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Bringing back memories

Angelika Springauf was one of those teenagers who besieged Elvis' home in Bad Nauheim. Decades later, she poses proudly with a photo of herself and the King. Diehard fans in the town still keep the memory of the rock and roll legend alive.

Elvis Presley in Germany

The look of love

In Germany in 1959, Elvis met his future wife. Priscilla Beaulieu was 14 years old when her stepfather, an air force officer, was deployed to Bad Nauheim. Currie Grant, manager of the Eagles Club and a friend of her family, took Priscilla to parties in Elvis' home at Goethe Strasse 14. Their wedding, pictured here, took place eight years later.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Enduring memory in Germany

Since 2002, Bad Nauheim and Friedberg have organized an annual European Elvis Festival. Visitors from around the world celebrate the legend with Cadillacs, Elvis impersonators and lots of rock and roll. The fans regularly visit the statue of the King - the 1.75-meter granite column standing outside the Grunewald Hotel where Elvis lived for a few days.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Who is the real Elvis?

Franz Nübel, a baker, is one of many Elvis impersonators in the world and goes by the alias Eifel Elvis Jack Favor. In 2004 he set a new world record for continuously singing Elvis songs: 42 hours, 16 minutes and eight seconds. He was allowed to take a 15-minute break every four hours. At the end, he could only croak.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Elvis in private

Want to see Elvis' wedding crockery from Graceland with a signed menu, the green duffel bag in which he picked up his fanmail, or one of his most famous glitter costumes? With over 2,000 original pieces, three Dusseldorf collectors fulfilled their dream and opened the largest private Elvis collection outside the United States in December 2011. It's a must-see for real Elvis fans.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Collector's luck

True fans are not satisfied with Elvis albums alone - they need Elvis collectibles. The King's pompadour was sold at auction for $18,300, his school report sold for $8,000 and his first contract with RCA sold for $65,000. However, for those on a budget there is everything from Elvis figurines to good luck charms.

Elvis Presley in Germany

Going home

On March 2, 1960, Evis Presley's military service in Bad Nauheim came to an end. He flew back to the US and would never return. However, residents and visitors alike are reminded of the King at every turn, with the Elvis monument, Elvis Square and even a walk of fame. And at the 11th European Elvis Festival from August 16-19, the King comes back to life in his European home.

Author: Suzanne Cords / ps | Editor : Kate Bowen