Talk:Boney M.

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[edit] I Found Out

I only just found out about Boney M because of PBS documentary called "Touching The Void" in wich a stranded climber suffering from exposure and starving can't stop "Brown Girl In The Ring" (laa lala lala) from repeating in his head. He HATES the song. :) A great survival story, check it out. [09:45, 18 July 2005 67.175.129.212]

[edit] "Painter Man"

The song Painter Man was written by Pickett and Phillips of the band The Creation and was a hit for them long before Boney M covered it. I am unconvinced that it is about Andy Warhol as it would have been written in the early 60's. Maybe Boney M dedicated it to him but I think the text of the article needs to be checked and confirmed - LC [09:43, 12 December 2005 217.205.224.154]

[edit] Farian controversy

That bit about some of the group members not singing themselves seems written from an American perspective. In Europe it was widely published in the 1970s that Bobby was merely miming to Farian's voice. Boney M was one of the earliest groups known to do this, but it wasn't very controversial then and didn't hinder their success, as far as Europe is concerned anyway. Farian may have repeated this fact in 2003, but it wasn't news then. Similarly, the Milli Vanilli "scandal" was mainly an American thing. In Germany, it was considered acceptable that "producer music" just works this way: Studio musicians play and sing the music, and later some photo models are casted to present it on television, who may or may not be completely different people than the original musicians, who remain laregely anonymous. When the "revelation" that Milli Vanilli worked this way too reached us from the United States, the reaction was mostly "so what". The "controversy" paragraph ought to be rewritten to reflect these different perceptions. Regards Anorak2 11:56, 1 January 2006 (UTC)

It could be argued that there are substantial differences between the cases of Milli Vanilli and Boney M. This article (and that on Maizie Williams) implies that whilst the voices of Williams and Farrell were often not included in the final mixes by Farian, I think it's understood that they did actually sing live and in studio recordings.

Milli Vanilli, on the other hand, could be considered a far more elaborate "deception". Yes it was true that the fact they were (unlike Boney M) hugely successful in the US market and also won a Grammy played its part in creating the scandal. But unlike Williams and Farrell of Boney M, the two members of Milli Vanilli never sung a note either on record or in concert whilst they were Milli Vanilli. And it went further than that too. Everton4Life 10:43, 19 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "Felicidad" link

I'm not sure about the linking of Felicidad to Feliz Navidad. True: both songs were sung by Boney M, but as I remember, both are different songs. Regards clintie [12:38, 25 January 2006]

[edit] FOPAS deleted

Is the fact that some office workers dressed up and performed a Boney M hit at their Christmas party *really* worthy of mention in Wikipedia.....? ChrisTheDude 14:15, 20 February 2006 (UTC)

I have deleted this paragraph, if they are notable they can have a page of their own and perhaps a link to it from here, but I doubt theyre noteable Htaccess 11:15, 25 February 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Popularity outside the West - wording

"Boney M...became one of the few western bands at that time which became well-known outside of Europe and the USA, including Africa, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and South-East Asia." I have some issues with the precise wording of that sentence.

First of all, "Europe and the USA"? Not Australia or Canada? And even at the time, western bands were quite well-known in Japan -- look at all the "live in Japan" albums that were standard for hard rock bands, like Deep Purple or Judas Priest. Maybe the sentence should read "one of the few western bands at that time which became well-known outside the West."

Also, couldn't "Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka" just be shortened to "South Asia" or "the Indian subcontinent"?

-- drumwolf [19:22, 25 April 2006 63.206.223.196]

[edit] Corrections made

I've made changes to the article in response to the "Painter Man", Farian controversy, "Felicidad" link, and non-Western regions comments above. Wasted Time R 12:43, 31 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Charts

I deleted the sentence claiming that they are the only pop group to have two singles on the all time best seller chart in the UK — This is an impossible claim without a quantity (top 10, top 50, etc.) and needs citation. 68.174.85.46 13:44, 17 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Boner M?

Someone must have vandalised the article. It's got Boner M everywhere where it should say Boney M.--Jcvamp 20:06, 23 December 2006 (UTC)

One Way Ticket Song When was it release???????????????

[edit] Children of paradise

Any idea about the story behind "childeren of paradise" —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rav 672 (talk • contribs)

It seems to be a biblical reference to Adam and Eve and the story of original sin and their being banished from paradise. In essence, we are also Children of Paradise. Consider the verse:
We are children of paradise
When the lord created us all his work was through
Then the children of paradise
Did the only thing they really shouldn't do
Seems to be a reference to the snake tempting Eve with the apple. As does:
We are the children of paradise
Who didn't obey
When we followed the wrong advice
We wandered astray
I always took it to be a 'message' song. It was released round the same time as their We Kill The World song which had an ecological message.
-- clintie 14:07, 25 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Worldwide Sales

I have changed the claim that says they sold 150 millions albums as the source given states 150 records, not albums (so this would include albums, singles, EPs, etc). However, I still find the figure of 150 million a little hard to believe, especially since the band were not really successful in the US apart from a minor hit that grazed the top 30. I know the band were huge in Europe in the late 70s, but the figure quoted is not from a reputable source as it seems to be their management or promotion company which hardly makes them unbiased. If you want to cite a reliable source for sales figures, it has to be from a certifiable and unbiased source (such as the BPI, RIAA, etc). MassassiUK 22:17, 29 July 2007 (UTC)

Yes, this is a totally unrealistic figure and needs to be properly cited from an impartial source. Boney M's management company are not an impartial source so the information about worldwide sales should not be included in the article until a more reputable source can be found. It is still okay to include information about any silver/gold/platinum awards for sales of individual records though, as long as they can be verified from an official source.79.65.52.66 17:57, 20 September 2007 (UTC)