I’ve been enjoying a new rabbit hole of late: the growing pile of free podcasts on Spotify. Like its music collection, the array of podcast topics are vast. There’s history, news analysis, true crime — the sky’s the limit.
My favorite so far is a series called “Wind of Change.” I’m not a big believer in conspiracy theories, but I enjoy learning about them and this is a big one.
The episodes follow New York writer Patrick Radden Keefe as he explores rumors that “Wind of Change,” a huge hit for German rock band The Scorpions, was actually written by the CIA to stir pro-democracy feelings in the Soviet Union.
Mood Music:
As you go through each episode, the question of whether this happened doesn’t seem to matter much. What makes this great are the people he talks to along the way.
There are musical acts touring the Communist Block, not always realizing their gigs had been engineered behind the scenes by the CIA, hoping to spread pro-West propaganda.
There’s the CIA operative who suggests some musicians knowingly conspired with the agency and the GI Joe collector who made a display of The Scorpions for an exhibit about groups and individuals who actively promoted freedom. The guy hadn’t even heard the “Wind of Change” theory when he created it. He just assumed the band was taking up the mantle.
My favorite episodes focus on the Moscow Music Peace Festival, a 1989 event I remember watching on pay-per-view. The festival — featuring The Scorpions, Ozzy, Mötley Crüe, Skid Row and Bon Jovi — was put together by Doc McGee, manager of all the bands at the time, to promote an anti-drug message.
The story goes that Doc McGhee, a prolific drug runner on the side, put on the festival to get out of jail time on drug charges. The catch was that it would be held in Moscow, where it would spread pro-West sentiment, per the wishes of the CIA.
It was during that event, the official story goes, that Scorpions singer Klaus Meine was inspired to write “Wind of Change.”
Keefe interviews McGhee, one of his former drug-smuggling associates, other musicians that played the peace festival and finally Meine himself.
With everything happening in the world right now, it’s a welcome distraction.
Do yourself a favor and check it out.
Everyone needs something different and new to distract themself during this time. Thank you for sharing the podcast, hope I will learn something new and will have a great time listening to it.