17 Hippies

The band was founded in 1995 in Berlin by Christopher Blenkinsop (bouzouki, ukulele and vocals), Carsten Wegener (bass), Lutz "Lüül" Ulbrich (banjo and guitar), Kristin "Kiki" Sauer (accordion and vocals) and Reinhard "Koma" Lüderitz (bagpipes). They first used the name 17 Hippies in the fall of that year.[1]

In 1996 they began to organize their own series of free concerts called Hippie Haus Tanz (Hippie House Dance). At this time Antje Henkel (clarinet), Elmar Gutmann (trumpet), and Ulrike "Rike" Lau (cello) joined the band. In 1997 Henry Notroff (clarinet) and Dirk Trageser (guitar & vocals) also were added, and live recordings of different concerts and rehearsal room sessions were compiled into their first CD Rock'n'Roll 13. In 1998 they played at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas and then toured in Texas and Louisiana. Later that year Uwe Langer (trombone) joined the band and they played in Paris for the first time.

They established their own record label and in 1999 released their second CD Wer ist das? (Who is that?). The French label Buda Musique released a compilation of both CDs called Berlin Style, which was then also released in Italy. Volker "Kruisko" Rettmann (accordion) joined the band.

In 2001 the band wrote the score for the German movie Grill Point (Halbe Treppe) by Andreas Dresen and they performed in a cameo role in the film. A tour of Budapest, Prague, Vienna and France took place, and the second French album Sirba was released, featuring their first radio hit "Marlène". Kerstin Kaernbach (violin) also was added to the band lineup. Their first studio album Ifni was released in 2004. An extensive tour of Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Morocco and France ensued. Daniel Friederichs (violin) became the last member to join the current lineup. In 2006 the band made a tour of Japan and Spain and composed the music for the play Kasimir and Karoline, staged at the Deutsches Theater in Berlin.

In 2007, a second studio album, Heimlich (Secretly), was released in Europe and North America. In September they embarked on their first US tour, playing in Chicago, New York, Washington and Bloomington. In December they played at the Olympia in Paris. In 2008, their earlier albums were released in the UK by Proper Records, they toured the US twice, and they played festivals in Germany, France, the UK, Canada, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland, Greece, and Algeria.

In 2009 they released their third studio album El Dorado, the first of their albums to be released worldwide. Again the band went on an extensive world tour, that took them to 14 countries including China, the US, Israel and Jordan. Concert highlights included appearances at WOMAD in Charlton Park (UK), and a sold out show at the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris. In 2011 they performed a concert at the WOMAD New Zealand, in Taranaki, New Zealand. A one-hour broadcast was later played on Radio New Zealand National on 1 July 2011.[2]

In 2011 JD Foster co-produced their album Phantom Songs. Since then they have added Mexico to their list of countries visited, recorded an album for children called Titus and recorded their first album with percussionists, including Aly Keita, Harald Grosskopf and Tunji Beier, called Biester (Beasts).

Their style is a unique mix of Eastern European melodies and rhythms, with French chanson and American folk music. They sing mainly in German, English and French. In France their music is known as Berlin Style.[3]

• Rock’n’roll 13 : 1997 | CD, Rent a Poet
• Texas Radio : 1998 | MC, Rent a Poet
• Wer ist das? : 1999 | CD, Rent a Poet
• Sirba : 2002 | CD, Buda Musique
• Soundtrack for the film Halbe Treppe : 2002 | CD, Rent a Poet
• 17 Hippies play Sexy Ambient Hippies : 2003 | CD, Rent a Poet
• Ifni : 2004 | CD, Rent a Poet
• Live in Berlin : 2005 | DVD, Rent a Poet
• 17 Hippies Play Guitar : 2006 | CD, Hipster Records
• Live in Berlin : 2006 | CD, Hipster Records/Proper Music
• Heimlich : 2007 | CD & LP, Hipster Records/Proper Music
• El Dorado : 2009 | CD & LP, Hipster Records/Proper Music
• Phantom Songs : 2011 | CD & LP, Hipster Records/Proper Music
• 17 Hippies chantent en français : 2013 | CD, Buda Musique
• 17 Hippies für Kinder - Titus träumt : 2013 | CD, Rent a Poet
• Biester : 2014 | CD & LP, Hipster Records/Proper Music
• Anatomy : 2016 | CD & LP, Rent a Poet
• Metamorphosis : 2016 | CD, Rent a Poet
• Kirschenzeit : 2019 | CD & LP, Rent a Poet
• 9.000 Nächte : 2022 | Download & App, Rent a Poet

• 17 Hippies für Kinder : 1999 | Tyfoo Musikverlag, Berlin
• Realbook, Volume 1 : 2001 | Tyfoo Musikverlag, Berlin
• Realbook, Volume 2 : 2001 | Tyfoo Musikverlag, Berlin

• 17 Hippies Homepage
• List of concerts played by the 17 Hippies
• List of musicians who have played with the 17 Hippies (in English)
• Interview with Christopher Blenkinsop, HitQuarters Jul 2009