Die Amigos

Born to parents of limited means, Bernd and Karl-Heinz Ulrich nevertheless received early encouragement once their dedication to music became clear. The family purchased a guitar for Karl-Heinz and a drum kit for younger brother Bernd, an outlay that proved worthwhile. By 1970 the siblings had assembled a set list and begun performing under the name Die Amigos, traveling through small villages and towns at a time when English-language repertoire ruled the market; they remained committed to German-language material.

In 1986 an entrepreneur in Cologne heard the duo, offered to finance a single, and encouraged them to record “Uns’re Parents,” which they submitted to various regional labels. The Austrian imprint Tyrolis backed two releases, yet commercial results remained modest. Convinced that self-sufficiency was essential, the brothers established their own Tonstudio and produced the albums Zwischen Libe und Wahnsinn, Herz an Herz, and Ich Steh Wider Auf.

Personnel shifts occurred repeatedly, yet Die Amigos cultivated a loyal following across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Canada. Their 2006 compilation Die Grossen Erfolge registered on European charts and became their broadest-reaching release to that point. Continued European touring accompanied steady songwriting and recording; in 2007 they scored their first German number-one single with “Der Helle Wahnsinn.” Two albums appeared in 2008—Es Lebe die Freundschaft and Ein Tag im Paradies—followed in 2009 by Zwei Herzen aus Gold and Sehnsucht, die wir Feuer Brennt.

Early in 2011 the duo received the German Echo Award. Later that year their seventeenth album, Mein Himmel auf Erden, debuted at number one in both Germany and Austria. The 2012 follow-up Bis ans Ende der Zeit repeated the feat, delivering consecutive chart-toppers in the same territories. Still that year they issued the seasonal collection Weihnachten mit den Amigos; Im Herzen Jung arrived in 2013. Sommerträume (2014), Santiago Blue (2015), and Wie ein Feuerwerk (2016) each reached the summit of the German, Austrian, and Swiss album charts.