Frank Dostal
Encyclopedia
Frank Dostal is a German songwriter
and music producer. In the late 1960s he was a singer with the rock bands The Rattles
, who were consistently successful in Germany during the 1960s, and Wonderland
. In the late 1970s, he was a co-writer for the internationally successful vocal duo Baccara
produced by Rolf Soja. Today, he is on the supervisory board
("Aufsichtsrat") of the German performance rights organisation
GEMA
.
. Before taking his Abitur
exams, he left school to become a rock singer. With a band called The Faces he won a talent contest. He joined The Rattles and, in 1968, founded Wonderland with fellow ex-Rattle Achim Reichel
. With Wonderland, he sang lead vocals and played bongos
, bass guitar
and organ
. He also wrote the lyrics to Reichel's compositions for the band. The two of them later produced records for children, including "Die große Kinderparty" ("The great children's party").
Later, Dostal devoted himself exclusively to writing lyrics. In the second half of the 1970s, his lyrics frequently appeared on the German Hit Parade
. He worked for Father Abraham ("Das Lied der Schlümpfe", the German version of "The Smurf Song"), Nana Mouskouri
, the Goombay Dance Band
and many others.
Dostal came to international fame as the co-writer
s of songs of the vocal duo Baccara
produced by Rolf Soja: "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie
", "Sorry, I'm a Lady
", and "Parlez-vous français?
".
Frank Dostal is married to Mary McGlory, a former bass guitar
player of Liverpool
all-female beat group The Liverbirds
. They have two children.
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and music producer. In the late 1960s he was a singer with the rock bands The Rattles
The Rattles
The Rattles are a rock band from Germany. Their biggest selling record was their 1968 recorded song, "The Witch", which sold over one million copies globally.-Career:...
, who were consistently successful in Germany during the 1960s, and Wonderland
Wonderland (band)
Wonderland were an Irish/British girlband, formed by Louis Walsh and Westlife band-member Kian Egan. The band were put together after auditions were held for five females in July 2008. Its five members were Jodi Albert, Sharon Condon, Corrina Durran, Leigh Learmont and Kasey Smith...
. In the late 1970s, he was a co-writer for the internationally successful vocal duo Baccara
Baccara
Baccara was a female vocal duo formed in 1977 by Spanish artists Mayte Mateos and María Mendiola . The pair rapidly achieved international success with their debut single "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie", which reached number one across much of Europe...
produced by Rolf Soja. Today, he is on the supervisory board
Supervisory board
A supervisory board or supervisory committee, often called board of directors, is a group of individuals chosen by the stockholders of a company to promote their interests through the governance of the company and to hire and supervise the executive directors and CEO.Corporate governance varies...
("Aufsichtsrat") of the German performance rights organisation
Performance rights organisation
Performance rights organizations provide intermediary functions, particularly royalty collection, between copyright holders and parties who wish to use copyrighted works publicly such as shopping and dining venues. Legal consumer purchase of works, such as buying CDs from a music store, confer...
GEMA
Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte
Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte is a performance rights organization from Germany. It is the only such institution in Germany and a member of BIEM and CISAC...
.
Biography
Frank Dostal was born in Flensburg and raised in HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. Before taking his Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
exams, he left school to become a rock singer. With a band called The Faces he won a talent contest. He joined The Rattles and, in 1968, founded Wonderland with fellow ex-Rattle Achim Reichel
Achim Reichel
Achim Reichel is a musician, producer and songwriter from Hamburg, Germany. He is known for his 1991 single "Aloha Heja He", and serving as the frontman for the 1960s beat group The Rattles, who, among other achievements, were selected to open for The Beatles on the Fabs' last-ever tour of Europe...
. With Wonderland, he sang lead vocals and played bongos
Bongo drum
Bongo or bongos are a Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of single-headed, open-ended drums attached to each other. The drums are of different size: the larger drum is called in Spanish the hembra and the smaller the macho...
, bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
and organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
. He also wrote the lyrics to Reichel's compositions for the band. The two of them later produced records for children, including "Die große Kinderparty" ("The great children's party").
Later, Dostal devoted himself exclusively to writing lyrics. In the second half of the 1970s, his lyrics frequently appeared on the German Hit Parade
Hit parade
A hit parade is a ranked list of the most popular recordings at a given point in time, usually determined by sales and/or airplay. The term originated in the 1930s; Billboard magazine published its first music hit parade on January 4, 1936...
. He worked for Father Abraham ("Das Lied der Schlümpfe", the German version of "The Smurf Song"), Nana Mouskouri
Nana Mouskouri
Nana Mouskouri , born Ioánna Moúschouri on October 13, 1934, in Chania, Crete, Greece, is a Greek singer who has sold about 300 million records worldwide in a career spanning over five decades, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. She was known as Nána to her friends and...
, the Goombay Dance Band
Goombay Dance Band
The Goombay Dance Band is a German based band of the 1970s created by Oliver Bendt. The band is named after a small bay on the Caribbean island of St...
and many others.
Dostal came to international fame as the co-writer
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
s of songs of the vocal duo Baccara
Baccara
Baccara was a female vocal duo formed in 1977 by Spanish artists Mayte Mateos and María Mendiola . The pair rapidly achieved international success with their debut single "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie", which reached number one across much of Europe...
produced by Rolf Soja: "Yes Sir, I Can Boogie
Yes Sir, I Can Boogie
"Yes Sir, I Can Boogie" is a 1977 hit single by the Spanish vocal duo Baccara.Written by Frank Dostal and Rolf Soja, and produced by Soja, this typical slice of disco was a major hit across Europe and became the duo's sole number one single in the UK, spending a single week at the top in October 1977...
", "Sorry, I'm a Lady
Sorry, I'm a Lady
"Sorry, I'm a Lady" is a song co-written by Rolf Soja and Frank Dostal, performed by the Spanish duo Baccara.-Charts:...
", and "Parlez-vous français?
Parlez-Vous Français?
"Parlez-vous français?" was the Luxembourgish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978, performed in French by Spanish disco duo Baccara...
".
Frank Dostal is married to Mary McGlory, a former bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
player of Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
all-female beat group The Liverbirds
The Liverbirds
The Liverbirds were a British all-female beat group, based in Liverpool, active between 1963 and 1968. The hard-rocking quartet was one of the very few female bands on the Merseybeat scene...
. They have two children.