The Triumvirat poster was all over America after the release of ‘Pompeii’ album and one of the most frustrating things for me was that the band’s producer and keyboard player, Jürgen Fritz, wouldn’t tour or do any live gigs at that time!
I never understood why. They had toured with their previous line up and had supported Fleetwood Mac on a major American tour... which was by all accounts a great success. With the promotion that Capital Records were doing, it would have been a perfect time to go and do gigs. Maybe there were reasons that I wasn’t aware of but I feel it was an opportunity missed, nice poster though.
When the album was being recorded, Jürgen would be in control of everything from where to record, right through to the final mix and it was certainly his baby.
The only track that was picked up by radio was ‘The Hymn’ because it was probably the most accessible track on the album. It was featured on a toothpaste ad and I remember that we all got an extra payment for it. Jürgen knew about my desire to write and he would often ask for my opinion about his lyrics which I was happy to offer. I had little or nothing to criticise and it was made clear that he would be writing everything on this album, so I had no opportunity to contribute.
Just once though, he got brain-freeze and he was asking for help. It was the at the end of the song where he wrote. ’and very soon the sound increased, sometimes a melody can heal disease’ this is where he got stuck. I thought of the line from the hymn ‘All Creatures Great and Small.’
“All creatures great and small had heard about the hymn, They didn’t know the words but they knew how to sing”
Yes, it’s only a small contribution and not enough for a credit, obviously, but I do think it is perfect for that moment. Of course, Jürgen might have a small lapse of memory about this but my memory is clear! It’s a great song!