"Wind of Change" is a song by West German rock band Scorpions, recorded for their eleventh studio album, '' Crazy World'' (1990). The

power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. ...

was composed and written by the band's lead singer

Klaus Meine Klaus Meine (born 25 May 1948) is a German singer and songwriter, best known as the longtime frontman of the hard rock band Scorpions. Meine and guitarist Rudolf Schenker are the only two members of the group to appear on every Scorpions album ...

and produced by Keith Olsen and the band. The lyrics were composed by Meine following the band's visit to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

at the height of

perestroika ''Perestroika'' (; russian: links=no, перестройка, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg) was a political movement for reform within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s widely associated wit ...

, when the enmity between the communist and capitalist blocs subsided concurrently with the

promulgation Promulgation is the formal proclamation or the declaration that a new statutory or administrative law is enacted after its final approval. In some jurisdictions, this additional step is necessary before the law can take effect. After a new law ...

of large-scale socioeconomic reforms in the Soviet Union. "Wind of Change" was released as the album's third single on 21 January 1991 and became a worldwide hit, just after the failed coup that would eventually lead to the

end of the Soviet Union The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the So ...

. The song topped the charts in Germany and across Europe and peaked at number four in the United States and at number two in the United Kingdom. It later appeared on the band's 1995 live album '' Live Bites'', their 2000 album with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, ''

Moment of Glory ''Moment of Glory'' is an album by German hard rock band Scorpions. It was recorded in collaboration with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and released in 2000. The album features re-arranged songs from the Scorpions repertoire, as well as cla ...

'', and on their 2001 "

unplugged Unplugged may refer to: *Acoustic music, music not produced through electronic means * "Unplugged" (B.A.P song), 2014 * "Unplugged" (''Modern Family''), a 2010 episode of ''Modern Family'' Albums and EPs * ''Unplugged'' (5'nizza album), 2002 * '' ...

" album '' Acoustica''. The band also recorded a Russian-language version of the song, under the title "" ("Veter Peremen") and a Spanish version called "" "(Winds of Change)". With estimated sales of 14 million copies sold worldwide, "Wind of Change" is one of the best-selling singles of all time. It holds the record for the best-selling single by a German artist. The band presented a gold record and $70,000 of royalties from the single to

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to the country's dissolution in 1991. He served as General Secretary of the Com ...

in 1991, with Soviet news sources claiming the money would be allocated to children's hospitals.

Background and writing

said in an interview that the time 1988/1989 in the Soviet Union was characterized by the mood that the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

was coming to an end, the music was the unifying factor between the peoples.SWR Online
''Die „Scorpions" — Deutschlands erfolgreichster Rockexport''
the interview could be heard on 14 May 2010 in ''SWR1 Leute'' (Baden-Wuerttemberg). The memories of this time are also transported in the music video for the song. Meine was inspired by his participation in the Moscow Music Peace Festival on 13 August 1989, at Lenin Stadium, where the Scorpions performed in front of about 300,000 fans: The lyrics celebrate ''

glasnost ''Glasnost'' (; russian: link=no, гласность, ) has several general and specific meanings – a policy of maximum openness in the activities of state institutions and freedom of information, the inadmissibility of hushing up problems, ...

'' in the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War, and speak of hope at a time when tense conditions had arisen due to the fall of Communist-run governments among

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

nations beginning in 1989.Bienstalk, Richar
Scorpions' 'Wind of Change': The Oral History of 1990's Epic Power Ballad
''Rolling Stone''. 4 September 2015 The opening lines refer to the city of

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

's landmarks:

I follow the Moskva Down to Gorky Park Listening to the wind of change

The Moskva is the name of the river that runs through Moscow (both the city and the river are named identically in Russian), and Gorky Park is an urban park in Moscow named after the writer

Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and social ...

. The song also contains a reference to the

balalaika The balalaika (russian: link=no, балала́йка, ) is a Russian stringed musical instrument with a characteristic triangular wooden, hollow body, fretted neck and three strings. Two strings are usually tuned to the same note and the thir ...

, which is a Russian stringed instrument somewhat like a guitar. The balalaika is mentioned in the following lines:

Let your balalaika sing What my guitar wants to say

Klaus Meine and Rudolf Schenker are owners of the

trade mark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from oth ...

''Wind of Change''.

Composition

"Wind of Change" opens with a clean guitar introduction played by Matthias Jabs, which is played alongside Klaus Meine's flat whistle. The song's guitar solo is played by Rudolf Schenker.

Claim of CIA creative input

The song is the subject of the podcast ''Wind of Change'', released 11 May 2020, which raises questions regarding the song's origin.

Patrick Radden Keefe Patrick Radden Keefe (born 1976) is an American writer and investigative journalist. He is the author of five books—''Chatter,'' ''The Snakehead,'' '' Say Nothing,'' ''Empire of Pain,'' and ''Rogues''—and has written extensively for many publ ...

, the '' New Yorker'' author and host of the podcast investigates the allegation that the song was written by or connected to the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

, citing a rumor originating allegedly from inside the agency. In a

Sirius XM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. It was formed by the 2008 merger of Sirius Sat ...

interview with

Eddie Trunk Edward Scott Trunk (born August 8, 1964) is an American music historian, radio personality, talk show host, and author, best known as the host of several hard rock- and heavy metal-themed radio and television shows. Biography Trunk was born on ...

on 13 May 2020, Meine stated "It's a fascinating idea, and it's an entertaining idea, but it's not true at all".

Legacy

The song became associated with the

Revolutions of 1989 The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Natio ...

and the

Fall of the Berlin Wall The fall of the Berlin Wall (german: Mauerfall) on 9 November 1989, during the Peaceful Revolution, was a pivotal event in world history which marked the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the figurative Iron Curtain and one of the series of eve ...

also in 1989 and was performed by the Scorpions at the

Brandenburg Gate The Brandenburg Gate (german: Brandenburger Tor ) is an 18th-century Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical monument in Berlin, built on the orders of Prussian king Frederick William II of Prussia, Frederick William II after Prussian invasion ...

on 9 November 1999, during the 10th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall. In 2005, viewers of the German television network ZDF chose this song as the song of the century. "Wind of Change" is featured in the films ''

In Search of a Midnight Kiss ''In Search of a Midnight Kiss'' is a 2007 American independent romantic comedy film written and directed by Alex Holdridge. It was listed on the National Board of Review's Top 10 Independent Films of 2008, won the Independent Spirit John Cassavet ...

'' (2007), ''

Gentlemen Broncos ''Gentlemen Broncos'' is a 2009 American comedy film written by Jared and Jerusha Hess and directed by Jared Hess. The film stars Michael Angarano, Jemaine Clement, Jennifer Coolidge, and Sam Rockwell. Plot Benjamin Purvis lives with his mot ...

'' (2009), ''

The Interview ''The Interview'' is a 2014 satirical alternate history action-comedy film co-produced and directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg in their second directorial work, following ''This Is the End'' (2013). The screenplay was written by Dan Ster ...

'' (2014), and ''

Love Island Love Island may refer to: Film * ''Love Island'' (1952 film), an American film directed by Adam Lloyd starring Todd Wathen and Eva Gabor * ''Love Island'' (2014 film), directed by Jasmila Žbanić Music * ''Love Island'' (album), a 1978 album ...

'' (2014), and the video game ''

SingStar Rocks! The following is a list of '' SingStar'' games released for the PlayStation 2 video game console. The tables list the songs available in each game, with the country of availability indicated by two-letter country codes. For games that were locali ...

'' (2006). The song can be heard in the opening scene of the action comedy film '' The Spy Who Dumped Me'' (2018). The song is also featured in television shows ''

Melrose Place ''Melrose Place'' is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on Fox from July 8, 1992, to May 24, 1999, for seven seasons. The show follows the lives of a group of young adults living in an apartment complex on Melrose Place, i ...

'', '' Chuck'', and ''Car Share'' and '' Nutri Ventures'' parody version. As of 2022, the Scorpions still perform the song live but with lyrical changes in light of the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...

. The opening lines are changed to "Now listen to my heart / It says Ukraine, waiting for the wind to change." Meine stated, "It's not the time with this terrible war in Ukraine raging on, it's not the time to romanticize Russia."

Track listings

European 7-inch single :A. "Wind of Change" – 5:10 :B. "Restless Nights" – 5:44 European maxi-CD single # "Wind of Change" – 5:10 # "Restless Nights" – 5:44 # "Big City Nights" (live) – 5:10 UK CD single # "Wind of Change" # "To Be with You in Heaven" # "Blackout" (live) US and Canadian 7-inch single :A. "Wind of Change" – 5:10 :B. "Money and Fame" – 5:06

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wind of Change (song) 1990 songs 1991 singles 1990s ballads Anti-war songs Cold War in popular culture Dutch Top 40 number-one singles European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Glam metal ballads Hard rock ballads Mercury Records singles Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in Germany Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Switzerland Protest songs Reactions to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine Revolutions of 1989 Scorpions (band) songs SNEP Top Singles number-one singles Song recordings produced by Keith Olsen Songs about Russia Songs written by Klaus Meine Vertigo Records singles