Robert Watzke - by Nigel A. JAMES
Shadow Life!
Robert
Watzke
is a man of the Austrian mountains, but his Styrian
heart
beats to a very special sound, The Marvin Sound. The Sound of the
legendary Shadows, the group that was founded
by
the even more legendary Hank Marvin in 1958. And the thing that made
the group’s music so renowned
was
the great and celebrated electric guitar with its magical,haunting
and deep
moving tones.
And, with his compositions and interpretations, Hank Marvin succeeded
in putting himself and his group at the top of the list of the
all-time greats. A position that they still enjoy today!
Of course, it is impossible to separate The Shadows from Cliff Richards. They made two great films together, The Young Ones and Summer Holiday; they toured together, they played together, they became big together, and, for millions of people, they became the bedrock of a musical way of life. Cliff and the Shadows had millions of fans, and Robert Watzke, too, became one when he was still very young.
It
was while he was still in the 4th grade of high school that Robert
Watzke was introduced to the Shadows by a friend. Something happened
to him that definitely set the course for his future life. He took
the Shadow’s music to heart, and, after becoming fluent
in
the playing of the electric guitar, he founded his own group, The
Nobodies in 1973.
For
20 years the Nobodies continued to play. They not only took their
music to the remoter
corners
of the Austrian mountains, they also played in all the major cities
as well. Robert Watzke passed on to his audiences the music that the
Shadows had given him!
But
time goes on, and now, with the prospect
of
more time to spare, Robert intends traveling even more with his wife,
Annie. But there is one flexible destination that will always be on
the top of his agenda, and that is Shadow Mania, the concerts which
the Shadows still perform. And where the concerts go, Robert goes
too.
Of
course, there is a home life too. Robert is an expert cook, his
favourite dish, and the one that he’s best at, is Cordon Bleau; and
the best thing to drink with it, he says, is a glass of Styrian beer!
And,
at the end of the day? It is, of course, music. Robert has a record
collection that can only be envied,
but the record that he still enjoys the most is one which was written
by Hank Marvin and sang by Cliff Richards, The Day I Met Maria. And
his own music? From time to time, the Nobodies still come back from
the past and play in Styria. People there still talk about them; and
Robert’s guitar is still very much a very big part of his life!
