Rock Me Amadeus

This song, with lyrics in German, is about the classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). Mozart was a child prodigy who performed his first musical tour at the age of five. His last three years were his most successful and he had an extremely excessive lifestyle. The basic concept is the suggestion that Mozart was the rock'n'roll rebel of his day. Some of the lyrics in "Rock Me Amadeus" reflect this. Here's an English translation: He was the first punk ever to set foot on this earth He was a genius from the day of his birth He could play the piano like a ring and a bell And everybody screamed: Come on, rock me Amadeus With a bottle of wine in one hand and a woman in the other His mind was on rock and roll and having fun Because he lived so fast he had to die so young But he made his mark in history Still everybody says: Rock me Amadeus

Falco's real name was Johann Holzel. Born in Vienna, Austria in 1957, he was an established artist in German-speaking territories long before "Rock Me Amadeus" was released, but it was his first huge international hit. In most countries it was also his only hit, but he continued to have success in mainland Europe. Falco ended up a tax exile and died in a car crash in February 1998 at age 40.

Like Falco, Mozart was also from Austria. He teamed up with brothers Rob and Ferdi Bolland to write a song about Mozart because they felt he was Austria's son. The Bollands also wrote and recorded "In The Army Now," later a #2 hit in the UK for Status Quo, and "Love House," a Top 40 hit in the UK and Germany for Samantha Fox.