Nimm mich mit Kapitän... 

O, the memories. Nothing like some Seemann’s Lieder and Seemann’s Garn to refresh memories of life "up north" or of some horrendous Herring-fishing trips on the high seas of the North Sea or for that matter the immigration-sea-crossing to Canada some decades ago.

That is what Fiete Münzner and Uta Carina stimulated with song and humour from the Waterkant on Saturday April 26, 2008 in the Schwaben Club. Both are familiar names in the German Clubs in Ontario and Quebec, where both have appeared in the past.

Kapitän Fiete Münzner with Uta Carina & Joe Lindlau [photo: Herwig Wandschneider]

Fiete and Uta are making the rounds this time from the Schwaben Club in Kitchener via St Catherines and Mississauga to Ottawa. If they have not been there yet, make sure you contact the clubs to reserve tickets for a hilarious North German evening.

They arrived from Germany at noon on the day of their performance in Kitchener, after some extensive overnight flight delays in Amsterdam and a rerouting via Paris. "Schade, leider keine Zeit zu einem Besuch zum Montmartre …." said Fiete. You would have never known that they sat in planes for so long. It seemed to challenge and stimulate them to an evening of dynamite humour and lively performances.

People were there from Niedersachsen, Schleswig Holstein, Mecklenburg, Bremen, from Denmark and Holland, schunkelnd, singing and clapping. Most knew the tunes complete with text, including yours truly, who well remembered the "…Reeperbahn Nachts um Halb Eins...", "Ein Schiff wird kommen…", "Nimm mich mit Kapitän...", etc.

What was knew was that some of the old familiar songs are being re-made in Germany to hot new tunes and rythms, such as "Que Sera Sera …." and "Cindy oh Cindy …", which were well done - complete with transition from old to new style - by Uta Carina. Imagine: The young folks are now learning the text that their grandparents knew so well!

The "orchestra" was directed by well-known musician and Kapellmeister Joe Lindlau, who accompanies the performers on their entire tour using his own high quality stereophonic equipment. Thanks to this team effort, the evening went without a hitch in spite of the last minute arrival.

Fiete and Uta took turns, but also sang in duos, interspersed with Jokes and Seemann’s Garn, some familiar, but always funny and so naturally presented by this "Kapitän der Guten Laune". During Intermission, the public could purchase some of their recordings, including a video "Geschichten aus der Hafenbar". The video was sold out in the first few minutes!

Hopefully they will be back next year, so if you missed them this time around …. Keep your eyes open next year.

At the Schwaben Club in Kitchener, the evening was flawlessly organized by Monica Anstett, Cultural Director for the club.

See also: Ein gelungener Abend