# Why do Germans at Oktoberfest sing John Denver's 'Take Me Home, Country Roads'? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 20, 2012, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341 "2012-10-20T18:12:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2012, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/61 "2012-10-22T20:52:25Z")
It was the song that launched JD to stardom. The Germans are folksy, back-to-nature type folks. It’s a folksy, back-to-nature type song. A match made in … WEST VIRGINIA ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/62 "2012-10-23T00:27:56Z")
> [@panamajack](#): > > I always wondered how the f\*\*\* [this song](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-aDN5Q_Jkw) got to be a popular German drinking song. My friends said that even people who spoke no English would yell out the part that’s missing in that version. > > Here’s an example from some Germans in [Mallorca](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F4brYFh8BI). Dear God, I have not laughed that hard in weeks. Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/63 "2012-10-23T03:19:24Z")
> [@sahirrnee](#): > > Then again there is the _other_ Alice, the one with the pills. Go ask her, she’ll know. I would, but Alice doesn’t live here anymore . ---
**Author:** ![Nom\_de\_Plume](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85f322/32.png) [@Nom\_de\_Plume](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nom_de_Plume)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/64 "2012-10-23T06:10:10Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Alice? Who the fuck is Alice? 😕 My wife and I laughed the first time we heard this on the radio we heard this on the radio while driving in Germany. It was a mix of the original 70’s song ‘Living Next Door to Alice’ with somebody shouting “Alice? Who the fuck is Alice?” Then, we’d hear everybody at festivals shouting the same thing, little kids included. It was hilarious No idea why that song was so popular on Germany. I don’t remember it being very big in the US. ---
**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/65 "2012-10-23T06:22:54Z")
This looks similar to love for [“Summer of 69”](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14756009) in Nepal. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/66 "2012-10-23T07:01:45Z")
> [@Indian](#): > > This looks similar to love for [“Summer of 69”](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14756009) in Nepal. Is this the right time to share my old band’s version of that song? [http://www.mister-rik.com/mp3/summer\_of\_69.mp3](http://www.mister-rik.com/mp3/summer_of_69.mp3) (One of the few songs I didn’t sing lead on. I"m doing the terrible high harmony behind my guitarist.) ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/67 "2012-10-23T07:19:13Z")
> [@Indian](#): > > This looks similar to love for [“Summer of 69”](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14756009) in Nepal. Supposedly All Night Long is really popular in Iraq. And who knew those country roads would take you back to…San Juan?! > **[TriniJungleJuice](https://www.trinijunglejuice.com/tjjnews/articles/172/1/New-2008-Chutney-Soca-DHitman-amp-Bunji-Garlin-Country-Rum-Dig-It-or-Ditch-It/Page1.html)** > > An entertainment joyride around the World! Experience the best of Carnival and Caribbean entertainment - Photos, Videos, Events and Reviews. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/68 "2012-10-23T14:42:04Z")
> [@Nom\_de\_Plume](#): > > My wife and I laughed the first time we heard this on the radio we heard this on the radio while driving in Germany. It was a mix of the original 70’s song ‘Living Next Door to Alice’ with somebody shouting “Alice? Who the fuck is Alice?” Then, we’d hear everybody at festivals shouting the same thing, little kids included. It was hilarious > No idea why that song was so popular on Germany. I don’t remember it being very big in the US. I can’t say for the rest of the US, but it was always a crowd pleaser when played at the rundown ive bar I used to frequent in West Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/69 "2012-10-23T15:02:35Z")
It’s funny how things catch on. You might as well ask why an entire generation of Americans (and quite a lot of the rest of the world) went mad for a [pop song sung in Romanian](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqFWDElfmWA). (Don’t recognize it? Give the video about 45-50 seconds. You will. Oh yes you will.) ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/70 "2012-10-23T16:38:47Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > It’s funny how things catch on. You might as well ask why an entire generation of Americans (and quite a lot of the rest of the world) went mad for a [pop song sung in Romanian](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqFWDElfmWA). > > (Don’t recognize it? Give the video about 45-50 seconds. You will. Oh yes you will.) Moldovan. Hope they made decent money out of it. Oops, apparently they did sing it in Romanian despite being Moldovan. ---
**Author:** ![Tristan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tristan/32/18058_2.png) [@Tristan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tristan)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/71 "2012-10-23T16:46:10Z")
> [@Balance](#): > > I’m just going to pretend that the name of that game translates to “Wheel of Upskirts”. If it doesn’t, it certainly should. And I am deeply disappointed at the camera usage there. TERRIBLE angles. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/72 "2012-10-23T16:49:06Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > Wasn’t it actually Olivia Newton-John who had the biggest hit with it, though? She has German connections. Her grandfather was German physicist Max Born, one of the fathers of quantum mechanics. Where in the world did you get that idea? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/73 "2012-10-23T16:50:13Z")
> [@Nom\_de\_Plume](#): > > No idea why that song was so popular on Germany. Because it’s fun to yell “Fuck”? > [@](#): > > I don’t remember it being very big in the US. It wouldn’t be allowed on the radio here. Pity. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/74 "2012-10-23T16:54:57Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > It’s funny how things catch on. You might as well ask why an entire generation of Americans (and quite a lot of the rest of the world) went mad for a [pop song sung in Romanian](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqFWDElfmWA). > > (Don’t recognize it? Give the video about 45-50 seconds. You will. Oh yes you will.) The current Gangnam mania is another case in point. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2012, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/75 "2012-10-23T19:05:31Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > And “Whisper of the Heart” is by Miyazaki, the anime director best known in … West Virginia! Coincidence … or CONSPIRACY!!! The utter lack of proof suggests that you’re correct. How else could there be so little evidence as to its veracity unless there was a concerted plot to make it appear to be absurd ? I find it frightening myself, I 'm even regretting that I’m going to post this, as it will probably mean me being put under surveillance at the very least, assasinated, or slandered as a madman otherwise. You’re a brave man **EC** , I’ll try not to let you down . If WE don’t stand up to THEM, then who will ? ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/76 "2012-10-24T03:29:55Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > Yeah…sorry, can’t blame that one on the Germans. With much shame: Hermes House Band is Dutch:(. I’d never heard of them before, but after 15 minutes on youtube all I have to say is how on earth could there be any shame in a klezmer version of I Will Survive? That was pure distilled awesome. ---
**Author:** ![yohan\_go](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yohan_go/32/3620_2.png) [@yohan\_go](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yohan_go)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/77 "2012-10-24T11:03:11Z")
Here is Slovenian karaoke version of Country Roads, if anyone is interested: [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWeg1XKulj0](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWeg1XKulj0) ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2012, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/78 "2012-10-24T19:58:23Z")
Listening now to the Ajax (Amsterdam) v Manchester City Champions league soccer match, and it sounded like the Toots and the Maytals version (no, not that type of ‘version’, reggae afficianados) was being played and sung along to by, presumably, the home fans. That was just before the end of half time… ---
**Author:** ![denquixote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@denquixote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/denquixote)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/79 "2012-10-25T00:57:49Z")
Two words: David Hasselhoff There is just no accounting for taste. When I was stationed there in the late '60’s the most popular song on the local jukebox was “I Never promised You a Rose Garden.” ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2012, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341/80 "2012-10-25T01:36:21Z")
> [@mascaroni](#): > > Listening now to the Ajax (Amsterdam) v Manchester City Champions league soccer match, and it sounded like the Toots and the Maytals version (no, not that type of ‘version’, reggae afficianados) was being played and sung along to by, presumably, the home fans. That was just before the end of half time… Only because Toots and the Maytals are awesome. It’s kind of hard to get a stadium full of soccer fans to sing [Pressure Drop](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rb13ksYO0s)though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-germans-at-oktoberfest-sing-john-denvers-take-me-home-country-roads/638341.md?page=5)