Conny Plank - The end of a legend...

Remember Conny Plank? The unique German engineer and producer, who helped to start the legendary Brain Label in 1971? Who worked and produced with a lot of Kraut bands like Guru Guru, Kraftwerk, Jane, Grobschnitt and many many more? Who run the controls for "Autobahn" as well as for "Vienna" from Ultravox or The Eurythmics or...

Conny was my friend. We started out with the LP "Grobschnitt" in winter of 1971 in Hamburg at the famous Windrose Studios. Conny came from a small studio near K-Town, Germany, I came from the vaults of the Beat and Underground area. After that production we split for a while: he went off to build his own studio, I went off on the road with Grobschnitt. But our ways soon crossed again. In 1975 we recorded "Jumbo" in his new studio in Neunkirchen. In 1977 we recorded "Rockpommel's Land" there. Then in 1978 our legendary "Solar Music Live" followed.

The band between Conny and me was never cut. He always wanted me as an engineer for his studio, I always wanted to stay on the road with Grobschnitt. In 1986 I mixed my 5th solo album "Changing Skies" with him in Neunkirchen. One year later he died of cancer. His last wish was fulfilled: on his funeral they played "All along the watch tower" by Jimi Hendrix.

Now 30 years later I succeeded in remixing again "Rockpommel's Land" from two of the original 2" 24-track reels from 1977, after succeeding in shooting at eBay a dBx 180 noise-reduction in Florida and after baking these old tapes, Conny had laid his hands on three decades ago. It was a very special start of 2006 for me, you can imagine...

Last week the past touched me in a very special way: Conny's loving wife Christa is seriously ill. So right now the famous Conny Plank Studio still lead by her until some months ago is to be sold completely. The desk on which we mixed our productions, all outboard gear, each single unit now is listed for sale.

If you want to throw a final eye on this famous German production place, just check out:

www.plankstudio.de

There it all happened. There it all was done. And there it all ends...


- Eroc

(Just another sound-dog)

 

That's a real shame the studio is being sold off. Conny Plank's name came up twice in the last couple of days; the reissue of the great Ultravox album Systems Of Romance which he produced, is due on 8th May, and he also got a namecheck by Secret Machines in an interview with David Bowie, whose sound reminded him of Conny Plank productions. At least his influence is living on, but that's a big piece of musical history which is being sold. Sad to hear the studio is no more.

 

Thanks for posting this, Eroc. Plank was so important in the development of German music that it would take pages to even discuss. I suggest we use this thread to do just that!

 

I am a little aware of what Conny has done, and that he build his own studio.
He was a very innovative man.
It's a shame that this place has to shut down.

 

Ultravox ----> is one of my fav's, this is how i know the name Conny Plank.

 

Kraan Live is one of my favorite records ever!

 

There are just so many. Listen to the work he did with Neu!, Gomorrha... I mean, the list is like an encyclopedia!

 

I bought a number of Brain LPs in the 70s... Grobschnitt, Thirsty Moon, Satin Whale. Definitely an important stopping off point for me, musically. Thanks for the post.

Frank G

 

Btw, Eroc, can't wait to hear the new Rockpommel's Land!!!

Back to Conny Plank:

His engineering blows my mind so often. The wonderful, cosmic, space vibe that he could pull out of the control room. Those old Brain albums, for instance, hold such a special place in my heart. And much of it is due to his tremendous, innovative thinking. He captured music in a way that has aged so well! Classic recordings sought out worldwide by collectors to this very day! And that great music will always be sought out! It is often music that is timeless in spirit. And like the finest wine, only grows better as the years carry forward.

 

Conny Plank also produced the great sounding album's Lovedrive (Scorpions) and Jinxed (Rory Gallagher).

 

Conny Plank was a genius. I can't believe the PlankStudio is gone... So much for my dreams of recording there...

 

Thank you very much for posting this. I've always wanted to know more about Conny Plank, and there seems to be very little information about him on the web. I really enjoyed the albums he did with Roedelius/Moebius/Neumeier et al. Plank was a true innovator, and those albums sound like nothing else before or since.

 

Conny always was one of us. On one hand he used to say "here each band gets the sound they deserve". On the other hand he was unbelievable tolerant and open minded for everything.

I remember the following: when I arrived at his place somewhen in 1975 loaded with a huge pile of 2-track tapes, on which I had recorded each single instrument at home step by step according to a clicktrack, for to syncronize the whole stuff step by step to 16-track in Conny's Studio for mixing my album Eroc 2, he yelled out: "Man, I've never seen a nut like you, doing each track step by step and then putting it together on multitrack. How do ya think you can manage that?" I said: "Well, just by synchronizing each tape via headphones with a special phasing-method I have trained at home for weeks now."

He laughed and handed me the key for the studio and said: "Right on, you've got all time you want. If you need me just call, I'm over in the farmhouse." And so I copied all my tapes over to the 16-track machine without any synchronizer, just with a headphone and my two hands. Then I mixed the album. Meanwhile Conny spent a little "holiday" in his farmhouse or outside on the meadow, glimpsing into the control-room from time to time: "How does it work out...?"

When it all was finished we had a listen to the whole production, then we had a final beer together and then I left the place. Conny was waving until I dissappeared around the corner. He hadn't charged me a single penny for this whole week in his studio...

- Eroc

 

That's a new meaning of of the term "multitrack"
Tom Scholz (Boston) had trouble just to synchronize two 24-track reels. He should have contact You!

 

The URL for the direct insight to Conny's Studio was changed recently. Now it's here:

http://www.vintage-music-equipment.de/connys-studio/about-connys-studio/

- Eroc

 

The end of Conny's Studio

Now it's over. On June 1st 2006, Christa Fast, Conny Plank's wife has passed away. Christa always was the "good soul" of the studio and suceeded in managing the whole business for many years after Conny's death in 1987. Those who know Christa will never forget her and her great kindness and warmth. She was as much important as Conny himself for that unbelievable great feeling you always got while working in this unique production place. I know what I'm talking about.

Now the wholesale of the studio is going on and nothing will be left except a memory in the end. But one of the best ones, you can bet...


[Christa Fast * 06. April 1942 – † 01. June 2006]

 

Sad news, indeed. Sorry to hear this, Eroc.

 

Sad. One of the all-time greatest record producers, IMO, and I guess she was a big part of supporting his work. As long as we have the discs in our collections, Conny and his studio will never be forgotten.

 

His name will live on forever, for sure.

 

Now July 10th w/ 16 page booklet

01. Slow Motion
02. I Can't Stay Long
03. Someone Else's Clothes
04. Blue Light
05. Some of Them
06. Quiet Men
07. Dislocation
08. Maximum Acceleration
09. When You Walk Through Me
10. Just For a Moment

11. Cross Fade (Bonus Track)
12. Quiet Men (Full Version) (Bonus Track)

 

Kraftwerk built their own Kiling Klang studio before their major hits (Autobahn, Radioactivity, etc...) - if I'm not mistaken - and their "Kling Klang" sound is quite different from the Conny sound of their first two LPs.
Plus Kraftwerk would spend months in Kling Klang shaping their sound; if Plank had stayed with them all the way, he probably would not have had the time to make so many great albums he did with Can, Neu!, Harmonia, LA Dusseldorf, Eurythmics, etc etc etc etc...

 

...which directly contradicts fomer Kraftwerk drummer Wolfgang Flur's account in his autobiography "Ich war Roboter (I was a robot)". He states that Conny Planck never got paid fairly for all the work he did with the band, FWIW.

 

Oh yes, you're right, he did produce Autobahn. My mistake.

 

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My favourite Ultravox Mark I album is Systems Of Romance especially the opening track "Slow Motion" and "Maximum Acceleration". (Am listening to the Island Masters CD as I type.) Let's hope the new remastering is good. Conny also produced Ultravox Mark II's first two Chrysalis albums. Was looking at the U.K. 12 inch single of "Vienna" and was reminded of the German version of "Mr. X" on the b side, "Herr X".

Was looking at Conny's credits on various CAN and CAN solo LPs in my collection. Noticed on Holger Czukay's Movies album Conny is credited with playing cemetery synthesizer violin on: "Witches Multiplication Table". Conny was definitely an innovator.

Eroc, thanks for the thread.