Gerhard Augustin

Gerhard Augustin (7 September 1941 – 17 March 2021) was a German music producer. He was the first professional disc jockey in Germany and co-founder of the music program Beat-Club. Augustin helped generate a shift in German culture by introducing various genres of music at a time when schlager was the standard by giving exposure to krautrock bands such as Amon Düül II and Popol Vuh.

Life and career Augustin was born in Hagen, Germany on 7 September 1941. Augustin's love for music began at 15 years old when he heard Elvis Presley's song "Don't be Cruel" on the AFN Bremerhaven in 1956.

In the early 1960s, he received a green card to live in New York City for two years. He became well-known in Bremen and northern Germany.

In 1965, Augustin met Michael Leckebusch at his Twen Club. Leckebusch, a former trumpet player in a theatre band in Hamburg, came to work for Radio Bremen TV. He signed the bands Amon Düül II, Popol Vuh, and Can to the label. He later hosted a public radio show in Bremen.

In 2015, Augustin's handprints were added to the Mall of Fame in Bremen with Uschi Nerke who hosted Beat-Club and Musikladen.

Health and Death On 17 March 2021 Augustin died at the age of 79 in Bremen, where he had lived for about 15 years. A year and a half prior, Augustin had suffered a stroke from which he never fully recovered.

Production credits

Singles

1972: Ike & Tina Turner – "Up In Heah" / "Doo Wah Ditty (Got To Get Ta)" 1972: Ike & Tina Turner – "Chopper" 1972: Ike Turner – "Think" / "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" 1972: Ike Turner – "Right On" / "Tacks In My Shoes" 1972: Demon Thor – "East And West" / "Ant Hill" 1973: Missing Link – "Friday On My Mind" / "Kid's Hunting" 1973: Demon Thor – "For One Little Moment" / "Good Morning" 1973: Demon Thor – "Pink Mary" / "The Army (Part II)" 1974: Ike & Tina Turner – "Sexy Ida (Part I)" / "Sexy Ida (Part II)" 1976: Patrick Gammon – "Party Hardy" 1978: Days – "Love Only Hurts" / "(Roll Up To The) Mystery Tour"

Albums

1970: Popol Vuh – Affenstunde 1972: Missing Link – Nevergreen! 1972: Tommy Fortman – Demon Thor (Anno 1972) 1972: Ike Turner – Blues Roots 1972: Ike & Tina – Feel Good 1972: Delf Jacobs – Meine Lieder 1974: Demon Thor – Written In The Sky 1974: Tommy Fortmann – Sunshine In Deep Darkness 1974: Ike & Tina Turner – Sweet Rhode Island Red 1978: Patrick Gammon – Rawness 1978: Popol Vuh – Nosferatu 1978: Popol Vuh – Brüder des Schattens – Söhne des Lichts 1982: Gammarock – Spread The News* 1990: Popol Vuh – Florian Fricke 1993: Patrick Gammon – Outch Baby* 1994: Popol Vuh – Movie Music* 1996: Ike Turner – My Bluescountry* 1997: Amon Düül II – Flawless 1997: Popol Vuh – Shepherd's Symphony – Hirtensymphonie* 2000: Amon Düül II – Phallus Dei (reissue)* 2000: Amon Düül II – Utopia (reissue) 2000: Amon Düül II – Lemmingmania* 2000: Amon Düül II – Tanz Der Lemminge (reissue)* indicates albums credited as Executive Producer

Books

1986: Tina Turner 1989: Die Beat-Jahre: Musik in Deutschland - d. sechziger Jahre [The Beat Years. Music in Germany in the sixties]