MTV Unplugged: Live aus dem Hotel Atlantic

Further cementing his status as one of his homeland's most esteemed rock stars, Udo Lindenberg joins the likes of Die Toten Hosen, Herbert Grönemeyer, and Die Fantastischen Vier on the select list of German acts invited to perform for MTV's legendary Unplugged series, with Live aus dem Hotel Atlantic. Recorded at the Hamburg venue in 2011, the 13-track collection sees the hugely influential '70s icon revisit some of his best-loved material in an acoustic setting that reveals, having recently turned 65, his gravelly whiskey-soaked tones are perhaps more captivatingly world-weary than ever. Although his only three German Top Ten hits, including his signature tune, "Sonderzug Nach Pankow," are ignored, the choice of songs is fairly representative of his 40-year career, with inclusions from 1971 solo debut Lindenberg (the Lynyrd Skynyrd-esque blues of "Good Life City") and his 1973 breakthrough Alles Klar auf der Andrea Doria (the string-soaked "Cello") right up to his recent 2008 chart-topper Stark Wie Zwei (the whistle-led blue-collar rock of "Mein Ding"). Joining him in front of the packed audible 800-strong crowd is a whole host of guest stars, and while Freundeskreis' rapper Max Herre's contribution to 1981's "No Future" provides the album's only real radical reworking, the likes of Jennifer Rostock's Jennifer Weist on the steel guitar-laden country-pop of "Gegen die Stromung" and dub-reggae vocalist Jan Delay on the West Coast rock of "Reeperbahn (What It's Like)" all help breathe new life into well-loved songs both classic and contemporary. For those wanting to listen to the whole experience, the double edition, featuring performances with soul singer Nathalie Dorra and children's youth orchestra Coole Elbstreicher, should do the trick. But with its well-matched collaborations and tasteful stripped-back arrangements, this single disc still contains enough to justify Lindenberg's reputation as godfather of German rock. ~ Jon O'Brien