I follow the Moskva… Down to Gorky Park… Listening to the wind of chaaaaaaaaaange….
Disclaimer: I’m a child of the ’80s and the son of a political refugee from an Eastern Bloc communist country, so this topic might be more interesting to me than it is to you (great way to start a post, right?). But I still think it’s pretty freaking interesting.
The world is closing in… Did you ever think… That we could be so close, like brothers…
What would you say if I told you that a *song* helped lead to the downfall of communism in Eastern Europe and the USSR?
And what would you say if I told you the *CIA* wrote that power ballad?
Well, that’s the exact premise of an amazing podcast I listened to last summer called Wind of Change (it’s on iTunes and Spotify under that title in the podcast section).
The future's in the air… Can feel it everywhere… Blowing with the wind of chaaaaaaaange…
The podcast starts with a rumor that’s been passed around CIA circles that the Scorpions’ hit song from 1990 “Wind of Change” was actually written by the CIA. If you don’t know the song (it’s an absolute banger), check out the video I embedded below. But it’s arguably the most famous song ever in Eastern Europe and many Eastern Europeans say it’s the most important song ever to them. I vividly remember watching the Berlin Wall come down with my family when I was a kid and watching my cousin cry while we listened to Wind of Change (on cassette!!). I’m getting chills just writing this…
Walking down the street… Distant memories… Are buried in the past, forevvvvvvvvvvvvver…
Throughout eight episodes, the podcast explores:
the inner workings of the CIA (did you know the CIA has operatives that work for real businesses that you know and their salaries are refunded by the government? Also, look up the term “rollback”)
how the CIA has used music for political purposes (Billie Holliday and Louie Armstrong are two real examples)
how 90’s hair bands intersect with Manuel Noreaga
how a 1990 benefit concert in the USSR was very likely a CIA operation
…and ultimately whether or not the CIA wrote “Wind of Change”
Taaaaaaake meeeeeeeee… To the magic of the moment on a gloooooorryyyyyyyyyy night… Where the children of tomorrow share their dreams… With you and me… (with you and me!)
I’m a podcast junkie and listen to TONS of podcasts while I’m out running (I’m weird, I know), and Wind of Change has by far been one of my favorites that I’ve listened to over the last couple of years. And not just because the hair on the back of my neck stands up when I hear this intro whistle by Klaus Meine.
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