“Bylo vremya” (“In the past times”) (Nostalgia), June, 18, 2006.
Photo: Nostalgia

Thomas Anders on air on “Nostalgia” channel,
June, 18, 2006.

Vladimir Glazunov (V.G, presenter of “Nostalgia”): Hello, dear friends! My guest for today has sung in the church choir for 10 years, tutored piano playing and tried himself to learn guitar playing. When a young singer met a famous composer and producer Dieter Bohlen in the Hamburg recording studio on February, 1983, he couldn’t foresee that in some 2 years their songs would have led hit-parades all over the world. Today we have an ex-soloist of legendary band “Modern Talking” Thomas Anders in our studio. Hello, Thomas!

TA: Hello, nice to see you!

VG: Tatiana will help us today... Am I right saying that everything have started from church choir, or was it my mistake?
TA: No, I didn’t start singing in the church. I visited church, as everyone did, but I didn’t start singing in it. What I did – I performed a concert in the church; now is 2006, so, it was around 7 years ago.

VG: As I see, Thomas manages English very well! You do not speak German often; probably, English became more native?
TA: No, I speak German in Germany. Of course, I speak German with my family. I’ve been living in America for 3 years, and the whole world speaks English. To speak English is the easiest way.

VG: Right before the broadcasting I was told that a clip with young and singing Thomas and Dieter was on air. Do you have nostalgic feelings towards that time, towards “young” Modern Talking?
TA: Frankly speaking, no. If someone shows you 20-years old pictures, you don’t think that it was 22 years ago; you think that only 10 years have passed. During all these 22 years I was working, making music and Modern Talking. And still it is quite near. I don’t gaze at it, taking from an old case. This is development; for me it was not 22 years ago.

VG: We will not take it from old and put into new case, and will not imagine that it was 20 years ago. These memories are still alive in our memory. Let’s watch a clip...
VG: I danced now! I remembered old good discos and my youth... Today you can ask Thomas Anders any questions. I hope, any?
TA: Yes.

VG: The first call is from New-York. Hello, Olga!
Olga: Hello. Can I speak English? Hello, Mister Anders! At first, thank you for your talent and your voice. You’re one of the greatest singers at all!
TA: This is God’s gift, not mine.

Olga: You helped me to survive in harsh times. And we brought our love to you from Russia to America. We saw you in “Taj-Machal”. When will we see you again?
TA: Thank you. As I said, it is God’s gift; I didn’t work it out – my voice and talent are from nature. At the end of August we’re planning to make a show in New-York.

VG: Let’s say first of all that you’re planning a concert in Moscow, and it will happen tomorrow. And you can visit this concert... Your first visit to USSR – which year was it?
TA: As far as I remember, it was on September of 1988 (to be absolutely precise, it was on October, 1987 – www.thomas-anders.ru administration’s note). I had 5 shows in Moscow and 5 in St. Petersburg – at that time it was Leningrad. Life was quite different at that time. I remember a large room in the hotel. It was September, and it was a huge white bathroom with high walls – and no heating! I said to promoter: “It is impossible for me to stay here”. And he replied: “But Elton John lived here!” I said: “Maybe, it was summer, but now after the concert I’m sweated and I have to take shower. In some 2 days I’ll catch a cold and will not be able to sing – it is completely impossible! Give me a smaller room, but with the heating”.
We had lots of difficulties, I had to change hotel, and our biggest paper in Germany came out with headings: “Thomas Anders didn’t want to sleep on the bed after Elton John”. But in reality Elton John didn’t sleep on it as well, he also had to leave it, as I did, but the organizers tried to assure me that if Elton John was there, it would be ok for Thomas Anders as well. That was the first greeting from Moscow.

VG: Today I will ask you about your first acquaintance with Modern Talking, and Thomas will choose a winner, who’ll receive tickets and CD...
TA: This girl from New-York has no chances! (laughing)

Naira (Moscow): ...Who has, for Thomas’ opinion, the best male and female vocals?
TA: For me the best female “white” vocal is Barbra Streisand’s. It’s amazing what she did and still does! Celine Dion is very close to her. But it is very difficult to talk about voice, because it’s a matter of taste. Lots of people don’t like “right” tunes and “clear” voice. They like rock-singers and an aggressive manner of singing. But it’s not my style.

Dmitri (Podolsk): ...A question concerning “Shooting Star”. Is it true that it is a mixture of old songs’ fragments?
TA: Bohlen took a verse of unreleased song and added chorus to refrain.

VG: For sure, after the tremendous popularity of duo in Europe there have appeared some parodies, because the parody always follows popularity. How often have you been parodied?
TA: When you have a great success, there will always be those who would try to parody you; for me it’s a compliment.

VG: In Soviet Union it looked like this (Sergey Minaev’s performance with “Brother Louie”)... Didn’t you feel offended?
TA: He’s wearing very strange clothes, and performs in a strange way, but, as I see, people like it.

VG: Why there’re movie shots of “Once upon a time in America” in your clip “Brother Louie”?
TA: It was not a special idea. The problem is that the clip was shot in Munich, and we invited young girls and boys – it was a small studio, and we had to have around 300 people there. But on that exact day a blizzard has happened in Munich; it was a cold winter and very snowy, so, only 25-30 people came. We couldn’t consider 30 people as a “crowd”, that’s why, as you can see, we used mirrors which redoubled the number of people. We didn’t have possibility to make an ideal shooting, that’s why we needed some movie material. As far as this video had to appear quite fast, they just took some shots from the movie.

Sergey (Vologda): What are your plans for the future?
TA: How distant is the future you’ve meant? I stopped looking to the very distant future, because you might have some changes. I’ll promote my new album till the end of this year, making my show, trying to compose new songs – am doing till the end of this year. Everything still can happen. I’m making my show in Germany, it will start on September. It is a show about 80-s, and I’m its presenter, that’s why I have a lot to do for the next few months.

VG: You told us quite a moving story of how you were frozen in hotel. Were you afraid of visiting USSR for the first time? What were you warned about while your first visit?
TA: No, I was not scared. I had an invitation from government, and I knew that people wanted to see my performance. I couldn’t contact with people – there’re bodyguards, people from “Goskonzert”, an interpreter. I went to the concert from hotel – that’s it, I even had no possibility to communicate with common people. In 1989 I had a tour in Western Germany, and I had some problems on the border. There were some problems with my documents – they’re not adjusted correctly, and this guy told me that he couldn’t let me in; moreover, he could arrest me! I said: ok, try! If you’ll arrest me today, tomorrow all Germany and the whole Europe will write that you put me in jail only because of documents, which were filled incorrectly – that’s stupid! Think of it – what can you do? And suddenly everything became clear and nice.

VG: How did you go through that event – German Wall’s fall?
TA: At that time I was in Germany and had a tour in West Germany on September, and on November the wall was broken down. So, it was very close in time. Each Monday there were meetings, which grew bigger and bigger. I watched TV and was very moved by it. It was a dream that came true for us – for all Germans, Eastern and Western as well. Nobody could believe it could happen; we were hoping that two governments would come close to each other, and people would cross the border easier than before. But the fact that two (or one) countries could become one was truly amazing! It was an important milestone in the history.

VG: I cannot help asking you about Soviet Union. Describe it from the little Thomas’ point of view.
TA: We were taught that there’re two worlds. One side of this world, behind the border of East Germany, is the communism, and they want to change the world according to their own rules. Our governments taught how to live with your own point of view. And we were always afraid of what was happening (and what will happen) in Russia, East Germany and all their friendly powers. We always thought that we should be very diplomatic. Everyone should be diplomatic. But I felt myself in safety while coming here for the first time. As I said, I thought: “What could happen to me?” I had an invitation of government. It was another world, but now everything changed completely. Russia is quite different nowadays, but it is not another world anymore.

VG: Do you remember the events in 1991, when USSR ceased to exist and Russia appeared?
TA: I felt an uncertainty. It was a situation not comparable to any other situation before. Your country was strong, and if you know what your government is doing, and that your country is united, you don’t worry at ll. But we didn’t know what would happen with other countries during the process of separation – probably, there’ll be wars? All of it was strange. At first the wall was broken down. Hungary has opened its borders, then East Germany and Czechoslovakia. Then suddenly after the wall breakdown we found out that everything can happen. But in Russia it was so fast – in two years! It’s such a small period for history. We didn’t know what would happen during next few years. That’s why we felt so much uncertainty.

VG: So, let’s quit the political topics... (after looking through Thomas’ pictures in 90-s). Did you recognize a young and handsome guy?
TA: Yes. Now I grew older and bigger, but that’s life.

VG: Don’t you worry?
TA: Me? Why?

VG: Well, live broadcast, concert – there’re reasons for worrying. Or you imagine all spectators wearing underpants?
TA: No, I like studio environment; I’ve participated live broadcasting for 1000 times, and I had more than 5000 live shows. I do it every week.

VG: It was a story about a little Thomas; when he entered the stage, he was nervous to death, and someone advised him to imagine all audience wearing underpants – that would remove all nervousness...
TA: Yes, in Germany we tell it to the young artists to lessen their nervousness. And it means that we are the same. There’s a saying that all people look same in darkness. That’s why I’ll not ask my neighbor in the morning, when he goes to work: “Do you feel nervousness, going to work?”
Constantine (Yegorievsk): ...What about your relations with Dieter Bohlen? Why did you separate? And are you planning to record any albums together? What is happening to him?
VG: I think that this question is inevitable in any interview. I watch the video and cannot believe that there’re two quite different people on the screen, not associates.
TA: We have never been the same. We are like fire and water, absolute different.

VG: Probably, that’s why the duo will never reunite again.
TA: It was not our separation – he didn’t want to work with MT anymore. He felt that it lost its importance for him, and went away. You know, something like: “It’s not my business now”. 2 years ago he was very popular in Germany, and he was a TV-presenter of “DSDS” in Germany, something like your “Star Factory”. He was a part of jury, very famous and successful, and he thought that he didn’t need MT anymore.

VG: And do you like to be a TV-presenter?
TA: Oh yes, it’s the second part of my show. The first one was completed 2 years ago.

VG: Probably, you can see from aside some of my mistakes?
TA: No, you’re very professional. It needs to be natural and concentrated, and everything will be ok.

Yuri (Voronezh): Dieter Bohlen said that you’ll sing about love even when you’ll become 60-years old men. Will you continue this tendency?
TA: I’ll sing till I die.

VG: Lots of young people fell in love for the first time listening to “Cheri cheri lady”. What did you listen while falling in love?
TA: I don’t need music in order to fall in love. It happens naturally. I didn’t have any special song. But as for Claudia, my wife, I played the piano for her in my apartments, and I sang Barry Manilow’s “Mandy”. I think this was the last incitement to her. It can be very romantic, if your friend is musician who can play the piano and sing for you. I think that’s what all women are dreaming of. Frankly speaking, I don’t sing for Claudia every single day and I don’t play the piano either – it happens very, very seldom.

VG: Is it true that your first guitar was presented to you at the age of 5?
TA: No.

VG: If no, when?
TA: I’ve never played the guitar – only piano.

VG: When did you start going for music?
TA: When I was seven. My first lesson was in 7.

VG: Did your parents appreciate it?
TA: I’ve got a brother and a sister. And my parents think that children should learn playing some instrument. It’s a part of our culture. I liked it, but my sister not. That’s why she gave up studies after 5 years. But for my work it is very good.

VG: And you’ve never regretted?
TA: No! For me it’s the most wonderful instrument in the world.

VG: We have started to talk about image with our TV-viewer. When did you decide to change your image?
TA: I didn’t change the image, I just cut my hair. I think it was in early 90-s; in 1991 or in 1992 I cut them this much (shows around 5 sm. on fingers). Long hair is the remnant of the past and a part of fashion. I cannot imagine myself in 43 with the hair up to shoulders. It’s old-fashioned and not stylish at all. Each decade and each generation has its own style. Whenever it finishes, everything finishes as well. Don’t be too much concentrated on long hair, just keep up to your life; it’s just a one way road. And it is impossible for me as an artist (and not only artist) to wear long hair; it doesn’t fit me anymore.

VG: Are there any signs or symbols of past times that you miss?
TA: I don’t miss fashion. The only thing I miss is a bit of “craziness” – when you’re young, you’re much crazier. You can do something foolish without thinking too much. But as far as you grow you pay more attention to everything. That’s what I miss, but it’s just a tribute to the youth.

VG: Thomas, I’d like to thank you for the interview. Unfortunately, time has passed too quickly. I hope that you’ll come to us again during your next visit to Russia. Agreed?
TA: Thank you for your hospitality – time is not enough, as usual!