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"Rock Me Amadeus" is a novelty song recorded by Austrian musician Falco for his third studio album, Falco 3 (1985). The single was made available for physical sale in 1985 in German-speaking Europe, through A&M. "Rock Me Amadeus" was written by Falco along with Dutch music producers Bolland & Bolland. To date, the single is the only German language song to peak at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, which it did on 29 March 1986.

It topped the singles charts on both sides of the Atlantic. It was Falco's only number one hit in both the United States and the United Kingdom, despite the artist's popularity in his native Austria and much of Europe.

Background and production

thumb|upright=1|Graffiti by the artist [[Lushsux, at the Falco Staircase next to the Kettenbrückengasse subway station in the Austrian capital Vienna, depicting Falco in a Mozart outfit]]

Originally recorded in German, the song is about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, his popularity and his debts. A longer version (eight minutes), named the "Salieri Mix", appeared on the initial US release of the album Falco 3. The song was inspired by the movie Amadeus. The US release did not include an English translation, instead remixing the song with an English background voice-over

In the United Kingdom, where his "Der Kommissar" failed to make the charts, the song hit number one on 10 May 1986, becoming the first single by an Austrian act to achieve this distinction. "Vienna Calling" hit number 10 and three subsequent singles briefly charted.

In Canada, the song reached number one on 1 February 1986. (There, "Der Kommissar" had reached number 11 in January 1983, and "Vienna Calling" would hit number 8 in April 1986.)

"Rock Me Amadeus" would later be ranked number 87 in VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s and number 44 in VH1's 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders.

Music video

The song's music video, directed by Rudi Dolezal and Hannes Rossacher (DoRo), mixes elements of Mozart's time with 1980s contemporary society. Falco is shown in a 20th-century-style dinner jacket, walking past people in eighteenth-century formal wear. Later, he is shown dressed as Mozart, with wild colored hair, being held on the shoulders of men dressed in modern motorcycle-riding attire. At the end, the two crowds mix.

The Simpsons parody

In the seventh season episode of The Simpsons entitled "A Fish Called Selma", Troy McClure (and other cast members) stars in a Planet of the Apes musical theatre adaptation Stop the Planet of the Apes, I Want to Get Off!, featuring a musical-style parody of "Rock Me Amadeus", "Dr. Zaius".

Charts

Weekly charts

{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

|+Original version

!Chart (1985–1986)

!Peak<br>position

|-

!scope="row"|Australia (Kent Music Report)

|15

|-

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Canada (The Record)

|2

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)

|10

|-

!scope="row"|France (IFOP)

|79

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Italy (Musica e dischi)

|2

|-

|-

|-

|-

!scope="row"|South Africa (Springbok Radio)

|1

|-

!scope="row"|Spain (AFYVE)

|1

|-

|-

|-

|-

!scope="row"|US Billboard Hot 100

|1

|-

!scope="row"|US Hot Dance Club Play (Billboard)

|1

|-

|-

|}

{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

|+Canadian/American '86 mix

!Chart (1986)

!Peak<br>position

|-

|-

!scope="row"|Netherlands (Single Top 100)

|2

|}

{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

|+Sun Diego Remix

!Chart (2018)

!Peak<br>position

|-

|-

|}

Year-end charts

Original version

{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

!Chart (1985)

!Position

|-

!scope="row"|Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)

|5

|-

!scope="row"|Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)

|5

|}

{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

!Chart (1986)

!Position

|-

!scope="row"|Australia (Kent Music Report)

|69

|-

!scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)

|26

|-

!scope="row"|Canada Top Singles (RPM)

|22

|-

!scope="row"|South Africa (Springbok Radio)

|3

|-

!scope="row"|US Billboard Hot 100

|28

|-

!scope="row"|US Cash Box

|19

|}

Canadian/American '86 mix

{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

!Chart (1986)

!Position

|-

!scope="row"|Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)

|45

|-

!scope="row"|Netherlands (Single Top 100)

|38

|}

Certifications

See also

  • List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1986
  • List of Cash Box Top 100 number-one singles of 1986
  • Lists of number-one singles (Austria)
  • List of number-one singles of 1986 (Canada)
  • List of number-one hits of 1985 (Germany)
  • List of number-one singles from the 1980s (New Zealand)
  • List of number-one singles of 1986 (Ireland)
  • List of number-one singles and albums in Sweden
  • List of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 1980s

References

  • Song review at AllMusic