A 1990 Power Ballad and Historical Scrutiny

The two-minute introduction to German hard rock legends SCORPIONS ...

The Wind of Change was a power ballad by The Scorpions, released in 1990.

The Scorpions, pictured here, are better remembered for Rock You Like a Hurricane, but TWoC was also a good-sized hit for them.

The Berlin Wall had come down and the Soviet Union itself was on its last legs -- it would be dissolved formally the following year. The lyrics to TWoC make explicit reference to this situation.

There is at least a little bit of evidence now that the lyrics were written within the bureaucratic bowels of the CIA, perhaps in the headquarters building in Langley, Virginia. It isn't by any means dispositive. But it is a possibility.

Should lovers of the classic power ballads be ticked off or disillusioned by this? Should they knock that off their list of favorites?

Nah. After all, it did no harm: and of how much of the output of that building can one say that?

I do think government should stop subsidizing the arts, though. ;-)

More:

https://slate.com/culture/2020/05/wind-of-change-podcast-review-scorpions-song-cia.html

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