Have You Seen Triumvirat Live?

presdoug wrote: verslibre wrote: Doug, is that T'rat live show you mentioned a while back on YouTube? Unfortunately, not. The person who said he would check into seeing what station initially broadcast it never got back to me, and I have been checking youtube, to no avail.

Your last post was in 2010 so I don't know if you are still following the discussion.  Assuming you are, here are my thoughts. First off, you are an incredible Triumvirat fan.  Your obsession with finding video of this band is impressive.  Like you, I yearn for a live concert performance from that period. (That poor guy with the Rick Wakeman tape taken away at the last minute when he thought he had the Holy Grail!)  I keep thinking someday something will surface but I probably won't be happy with it because the video quality and direction won't be there. (Think Wakeman's Journey.. video).  I did enjoy the uTube videos though.  That level of quality would suit me.

As far as seeing them live, I did indeed see them live at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis (1974) opening for ELO.  Here is what I remember. (I would have been 16 at the time).  They were very casually dressed.  Jurgen had on a t-shirt (ugly color and worn) and he was very fat.  Hans looked cool (in shape with shaded glasses).  Helmut looked OK but seemed uncomfortable.  They played something that was long and I did not recognize it (maybe from Mediterranean Tales, I don't know). I wish I had the setlist from that show!

 

 Anyway, it seems like they played some of "Illusions" but not all of it.  Many of the synthesizer parts suffered and did not sound as good as the album but a few parts did sound good.  There were cables everywhere by Jurgen's feet (I was close, third row I think) and he bent over more than once to fiddle with them. Helmut sounded great (vocally) and his acoustic guitar sounded just like it did on the album and Hans faithfully reproduced his drum parts precisely.  The thing is, they were no big deal. I went to the concert to see THEM, not ELO. But there really was no show in the traditional sense.  I certainly don't remember any extravagant light show.  They played for less than an hour and that was it, no encore.

 

I went out to the lobby during intermission very disillusioned with the whole thing only to see them there.  Some guy (I'm quite sure he was a pimp) was hustling this blonde chick (I think she was a prostitute but an upscale one) on their behalf.  I could be wrong about the whole thing but I don't think I am.  Hans smiled at me but I really don't know how to act around celebrities (and I was just 16) so I just gawked at them.  I remember wishing I had brought my "Illusions" album with me so I could have had them autograph it.  Anyway, I went to the restroom and when I came back they were gone.

 

On a side note, ELO was very impressive.  Roll Over Beethoven had just broke and was on the radio and they were just very professional and very good.  At one point, Jeff Lynne was playing a saxophone that was as big as he was.  It was all so very, very long ago.  (I recently turned 57).

 

Those are my memories of that show and I don't remember them ever coming to St. Louis again.  Their music was a staple on K-SHE radio.  They usually played Side 1 of Illusions and select cuts off Side 2. 

 

You might try to get in touch with someone at K-SHE.  They may know something about bootleg music though I doubt there's any video.  The guy who would really know was recently let go--his name is Radio Rich (Dalton).  You might try looking him up on Facebook or LinkedIn.  He is more or less the Midwest region's rock historian.  Even rock stars know he knows everything about everything concerning 70s rock.

 

I appreciated the other post from the guy who basically outlined all the reasons for Triumvirat's lack of success.  They were just not represented very well and lacked the needed exposure to make it big.  And once prog fell out of fashion, they were doomed.  On their last two albums the songs were a lot shorter and "poppier" as they tried to adapt to changing tastes.  And that's when they lost their core audience.

 

One last thing. Triumvirat were light years ahead of ELP.  Everyone compared them to ELP but I always found ELP to be bombastic and even boring on many of their tracks while Triumvirat were fresh and focused (Brain Salad Surgery, aside). They were (and are) just a better prog band.

 

I hope you are able to locate some lost video of the Illusions tour and Spartacus for that matter.  That is something I simply would have to have in my collection.  I miss them and I'm angry that they didn't make it to the present with all of them still and alive and in good health (except for Helmut, of course).  No one appears to be maintaining their website and I don't think WebTV will see the light of day.  And if it really does consist of short pop songs as someone posted, I don't want it to be released. Nothing shorter than nine minutes, please.

You're welcome Doug!  Sorry I didn't realize it was you that posted the reasons for their lack of mainstream success.  I stumbled on this late last night and read the first 6 pages.  I know what you mean about them being something special.  Their music almost defies explanation in terms of how it makes me feel.  There is just something different about them.  One part traditional German music, one part a collection of keyboards, strong direct drumming, shimmering acoustic guitar and a slightly high-pitched vocalist all drenched in synthesizers with very intelligent arrangements equals Triumvirat.  And that whole tongue-in-cheek thing with the white rat.  Obviously, a play on their name that became their logo!  (Until New Triumvirat). And because they are considered a footnote in prog rock history, they truly are ours.  This is OUR music, this is what WE listen to and identify with.  The fact that they're not mainstream now makes them all the more precious.  I remember seeing Nektar in 2006 in St. Louis (long after their heyday) and it was just a handful of us, maybe 100.  And it was great because it was our band and our music.  A lot of that crowd was upset because they didn't play Remember the Future but I was OK with it because they played Side 1 of Recycled and it was great just to see them.

Thanks Doug.  Eloy's signature album is Ocean.  Go to uTube, I'm sure someone has posted it and you can listen for free.  It is very spacey and trippy.  At that 2006 show, Nektar opened with A Tab in the Ocean and did a good job with it.

yoursisnodisgrace wrote: Thanks Doug.  Eloy's signature album is Ocean.  Go to uTube, I'm sure someone has posted it and you can listen for free.  It is very spacey and trippy.  At that 2006 show, Nektar opened with A Tab in the Ocean and did a good job with it.   I forgot that Jurgen was classically trained (I think I knew it before this but now I'm not sure) but that really makes all the difference especially with arranging the music.  That is probably a monumental reason why that music has standed the test of time, for me (and I'm guessing for you).  I had a little more time yesterday to preview Ultrasonic and that R.I. show and without a doubt, the Ultrasonic show would be worth owning and playing on my home stereo.  How would I get that and this bootleg of the Chalmette, Louisianna show?  Is it posted on uTube?  Hopefully it  doesn't cost A Million Dollars!  : D

I have Ocean-excellent album. I will PM you about the Triumvirat boots, Joe. Sounds cool about Nektar.

I recently had a facebook chat with Russ Schenewerk, who had been in direct communication with quite a few members of Triumvirat. Russ was instrumental in shaping the official Triumvirat site on the net, and was a big motivator for the decision to remaster the Triumvirat back catalog in 2002.
            He mentioned to me that drummer Hans Bathelt told him that it was impossible for him to drum again, it had been so long since he did.
                  He also mentioned that Juergen Fritz is not one to think back to the past, much. When talking about the old Triumvirat, Fritz would reply, "I'm not sentimental." He is very forward looking, instead. When the album "The Web-Site Story" was pretty well completed, Fritz commented that he was not wanting it to be "Son of Spartacus".
              I e-mailed Juergen Fritz about possibly doing an interview about Triumvirat for prog archives, but got no reply.
                 It just goes to show how different people evolve and change with time. I guess I am living in the past, but every time I hear T'rat, I'm so glad I do so!

presdoug wrote: A new PA member, profmesser, has mentioned to me he has a master tape from a radio station of Triumvirat in concert dated "Dec. 18th, 1974" as part of a radio broadcast. He said the sound quality is very good. I will keep PA posted of any future developments on this.

My PMs with him have disappeared, for some reason, and he is no longer listed as a PA member. Very odd.


Edited by presdoug - November 27 2015 at 10:02

Please PM me when you get a chance. Thanks,  Joe

Triumvirat live ca. 1974-from left to right, Helmut Koellen, Hans Bathelt, Jurgen Fritz

A single culled from the two suites on the Illusions album, released in '74.