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Opus (band)
Encyclopedia
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
-rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
group from Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. Formed in 1973, the group remains active today. The band is especially well known for its 1985 single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
release, "Live Is Life
Live Is Life
"Live Is Life" is a popular song originally recorded in 1984 by Austrian pop-rock group Opus. It was successful and was covered by many artists throughout the years.-Background and writing:...
."
History
In 1985 Opus released "Live Is Life," which topped the chartsRecord chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
in many countries; it was a #1 hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
for seven weeks in late 1985 and early 1986. A live recording of the song made the Top 40 in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1985. It reached #6 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
on August 3, 1985, and stayed in the charts for 15 weeks. The track is popular as a sing-along song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
for crowds at sports events in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Another standout track from Opus was the power ballad "Flyin' High," a live version of which appeared both on the Life is Live album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, and on their successful US release, Up and Down. At a concert in the mid 1980s, fellow Austrian rock star Falco
Falco (musician)
Johann Hölzel , better known by his stage name Falco, was an Austrian pop and rock musician and rapper. He had several international hits: "Der Kommissar", "Rock Me Amadeus", "Vienna Calling", "Jeanny", "The Sound of Musik", "Coming Home " and posthumously, "Out Of The Dark"...
joined Opus on stage for a rendition of "Flyin' High."
Opus remains active, "Live is Life" remaining its pinnacle release to date. The band also has had success with other songs in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
Members
- Herwig Rüdisser (Vocals)
- Ewald Pfleger (Guitar)
- Petra Douglas Charles Welby (Glockenspiel)
- Kurt-Rene Plisnier (Keyboard)
- Günter Grasmuck (Drums)
In Popular Culture
"Live is Life" has been included in such ventures and projects as: the official goal-scoring song for the New York IslandersNew York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
2010-2011 season, the Current TV
Current TV
Current TV, or Current, is a media company led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and businessman Joel Hyatt. Comcast owns a ten percent stake of Current's parent company, Current Media LLC....
series Deadliest Journeys on the episode "Siberia", and the soundtrack to the 2011 film Take Me Home Tonight.
Cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s of this song have also been performed by Starkoo, Laibach
Laibach (band)
Laibach is a Slovenian avant-garde music group associated with industrial, martial, and neo-classical musical styles. Laibach formed June 1, 1980 in Trbovlje, Slovenia . Laibach represents the music wing of the Neue Slowenische Kunst art collective, of which it was a founding member in 1984...
, the Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
band Tormentor, the Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n band Kuldne Trio ("Laip on Laip") and Dolapdere Big Gang. Additionally, as a guest, DJ Ötzi
DJ Ötzi
DJ Ötzi is the stage name of Gerhard Friedle , an Austrian entertainer and singer. Successful mainly in German-speaking countries, he is best known in the English-speaking world for his 2001 cover version of the Bruce Channel song "Hey Baby".-Biography:DJ Ötzi was born Gerhard Friedle in St...
released a version with the Hermes House Band
Hermes House Band
The Hermes House Band is a Dutch pop band, established in 1984 by members of the Hermes fraternity/sorority in Rotterdam, Netherlands. They have released more than twenty five albums and singles.-History:...
in 2002, which reached #50 in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
chart.
Albums
- Daydreams (1980)
- Eleven (1981)
- Opusition (1982)
- Up and Down (1984)
- Live Is Life (live) (1984)
- Solo (1985)
- Opus (1987)
- Magical Touch (1990)
- Walkin' On Air (1992)
- Jubileé (live) (1993)
- Love, God & Radio (1996)
- Flyin' Higher - Greatest Hits (Best-Of) (2003)
- The Beat Goes On (2004)
- Back to Future - the Ultimate Best-Of (2008)
Singles
| Year | Title | Top-Position | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... |
D Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
CH Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... |
IT Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... |
US United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
FR France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
|||||||||
| 1982 | "Flyin' High" | 5 | 45 | 5 | - | - | - | - | |||||||
| 1985 | "Live Is Life Live Is Life "Live Is Life" is a popular song originally recorded in 1984 by Austrian pop-rock group Opus. It was successful and was covered by many artists throughout the years.-Background and writing:... " |
1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 32 | 1 | 6 | |||||||
| 1985 | "Flyin' High (live version)" | ? | 37 | 5 | - | - | - | - | |||||||
| 1987 | "Whiteland" | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | ||||||||
| 1988 | "Faster and Faster" | 12 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||
| 1992 | "Gimme Love " | 9 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||
| 1994 | "The Power of Live Is Life" | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||