Did Kraftwerk translate The Man-Machine into French?

April 19, 2008 6:28 PM

When I was younger I was told that Kraftwerk's Man-Machine/Mensch-Maschine album had a French-language version (L'homme-machine, presumably) that was never released. Does anyone know whether this is true or not?

Note: I know about the rare red vinyl pressing of The Man-Machine that came out in France, that's not what I'm looking for but the entire album sung in French.

posted by Kattullus to Media & Arts (4 answers total)

Kraftwerk said it themselves when discussing the problems they had attempting different language versions of "Tour De France," which included terminology so specialized as to defy attempts to translate it and have it work within the structure of the song.

Apparently at least one Kraftwerk song was attempted in Portuguese, Spanish and Italian, but I couldn't tell you which one.
posted by Dee Xtrovert at 6:48 PM on April 19, 2008

Best answer: I just googled your query in German and found this page where somebody (called 'feelflow') confirms that Die Mensch-Maschine was not released in French or Russian, only in German and English.
According to him, people thought there might be a French and Russian release as the title on the cover appears in all four languages.
posted by jp021272 at 9:46 AM on April 20, 2008

Response by poster: Thanks jp021272, that makes sense as the origin of a myth. Though the story as I heard it was that Kraftwerk had recorded French vocals for the songs on Die Mensch-Maschine, but I'll take it as gospel from now on that L'homme-machine only exists in alternate realities from the one we live in and not in a vault in Germany.
posted by Kattullus at 9:15 PM on April 20, 2008

Response by poster: Recorded the vocals in French and not released them, that is.
posted by Kattullus at 9:16 PM on April 20, 2008