Les Sauterelles
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1962) - Francois Garzoni -- drums - Peter Furrer -- bass, guitar - Tony Quero -- guitar, backing vocals - Günther Sohr -- guitar - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Vera Vescoli -- vocals
line up 2 (1962-64) NEW - Otto Bumbacher -- drums, percussion (replaced Francois Garzoni) - Tony Quero -- guitar, backing vocals NEW - Otto Richard -- bass, backing vocals (replaced Peter Furrer - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Vera Vescoli -- vocals
line up 3 (1964) - Tony Quero -- guitar, backing vocals NEW - Peter Steffen -- drums, percussion (replaced Otto Bumbacher) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Vera Vescoli -- vocals
line up 4 (1964-65) NEW - Bruno Merz -- guitar, backing vocals (replaced Tony Quero) NEW - Jürg Stocker -- drums, backing vocals (replaced Peter Steffen) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Vera Vescoli -- vocals
line up 5 (1965-66) - Bruno Merz -- guitar, backing vocals NEW - Freddy Mangili -- bass, vocals (replaced Otto Richard) 1965-66) - Jürg Stocker -- drums, backing vocals (replaced Peter Steffen) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Vera Vescoli -- vocals
line up 6 (1966) NEW - Heinz "Enzo" Ernst -- bass, backing vocals (replaced Freddy Mangili) - Bruno Merz -- guitar, backing vocals (replaced Tony Quero) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar NEW - Mandi Trapletti -- drums, percussion (replaced Jurg Stocker)
line up 7 (1966) NEW - Kurt Dude Durst -- drums, percussion, backing vocals, (replaced Mandi Trapletti) (1965-68 - Heinz "Enzo" Ernst -- bass, backing vocals - Bruno Merz -- guitar, backing vocals (replaced Tony Quero) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals , rhythm guitar
line up 8 (1966-67) NEW - Rolf Antener (RIP) -- guitar, backing vocals (replaced Bruno Merz) - Kurt Dude Durst -- drums, percussion, backing vocals NEW - Heinz "Enzo" Ernst -- bass, backing vocals (replaced Freddy Mangili) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar
line up 9 (1967) - Rolf Antener (RIP) -- guitar, backing vocals - Kurt Dude Durst -- drums, percussion, backing vocals NEW - Willy Oeschlin -- bass, backing vocals (replaced Heinz "Enzo" Ernst) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar
line up 10 (1967-68) - Rolf Antener (RIP) -- lead guitar, backing vocals - Kurt Dude Durst -- drums, percussion, backing vocals NEW - Fritz Trippel -- keyboards NEW - Peter Rietmann (RIP 2009) -- bass, backing vocals (replaced Willy Oeschlin) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar
line up 11 (1968-69) - Rolf Antener (RIP) -- lead guitar, backing vocals - Kurt Dude Durst -- drums, percussion, backing vocals - Peter Rietmann (RIP 2009) -- bass, backing vocals - Fritz Trippel -- keyboards - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar NEW - Bernadett Wälle -- vocals NEW - Fioretta Wälle -- vocals
line up 9 (1969) - Rolf Antener (RIP) -- lead guitar, backing vocals NEW - Werner Fröhlich -- bass (replaced Peter Rietmann) NEW - Mike Stoffner -- drums, percussion (replaced Kurt Durst) - Fritz Trippel -- keyboards (1968) - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Bernadett Wälle -- vocals - Fioretta Wälle -- vocals
line up 12 (1969-70) - Rolf Antener (RIP) -- guitar, backing vocals NEW - Roberto Carlotto -- keyboards (replaced Fritz Trippel) NEW - Turo Paschayan -- bass, back vocals, (replaced Werner Fröhlich) - Mike Stoffner -- drums, percussion - Toni Vescoli -- vocals, rhythm guitar - Bernadett Wälle -- vocals - Fioretta Wälle -- vocals
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- The Blues Sounds (Peter Rietmann) - Brainticket (Werner Fröhlich) - Counts (Kurt Durst) - The Countdowns (Peter Rietmann) - The Dynamites (Rolf Antener and Peter Rietmann) - Foxfire (Freddy Mangil) - Peter Glazmann (solo efforts) - The Lombego Surfers (Peter Rietmann) - Krokodil (Kurt Durst) - The New 4 (Freddy Mangil) - Trio Raindrops (Freddy Mangil) - The Red Dynamites (Peter Rietmann) - The Slaves (Peter Rietmann) - Smile (Kurt Durst and Peter Glazmann) - The Starlights (Kurt Durst) - Toad (Werner Fröhlich) - Trio Coronados (Freddy Mangil) - The Valentinos (Freddy Mangil) - Toni Vescoli (solo efforts) - Barry Window and the Movements (Peter Rietmann)
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: New To Heaven Company: Blick / Decca Catalog: 36
36 36 Country/State: Basel, Switzerland Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: gatefold sleeve; small sticker on back cover; not pristine, but nice keeper copy Available: 1 Catalog ID: 1017 Price: $200.00
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They're essentially unknown outside of their native Switzerland and to a lesser degree Germany. Showcasing an almost Spinal Tap-like roster of band members (it appears a sizable chunk of the Swiss population passed through the band at one time or another), and cursed with the hideous tag "The Swiss Beatles" ... C'mon, these guys never had a chance.
By the time the band got around to releasing their sophomore album - 1968's "New To Heaven" the band's ever-changing line-up featured the talents of former The Dynamites lead guitarist Rolf Antener, drummer Kurt Durst, keyboardist Fritz Trippel, bassist Peter Rietmann (also an alumni of The Dynamites), and front man/singer/rhythm guitarist Toni Vescoli. By 1968 the band had already gone through nine line-ups with Vescoli being the only remaining member of the original line-up.
Unlike their debut LP which reflected their beat band roots and was cover heavy, the sophomore release reflected major changes in direction and artistic growth. Adapting to changing public tastes, with the exception of 'Silly Damsel' (which was actually one of the standout performances), the band's early beat band sound was all but abandoned, replaced with a mixture of commercial pop ('Dream Machine'), and English influenced pop psych numbers ('Montgolfier' and 'Hello, One Kiss, Goodbye'). Unlike some of the earlier singles, with the exception of the instrumental 'Hotel Continental' and the closer 'Auf Wiedersehn', the performances were sung in English. Which leads to the one characteristic that might turn off some listeners. As lead singer Vescoli sang with a heavy accent. Personally, I found myself quickly getting acclimated to his voice and on the stronger numbers it really wasn't a big deal. That wasn't the case for some of the weaker material such as the hysterically inept spoken word cover of 'Where Have All the Flowers Gone'. Ultimately you'll have to judge it for yourself. Outside of Vescoli's accent, these guys were accomplished musicians, clearly having earned their dues through years on the club circuit. Guitarist Antener was particularly good - check out his performance on 'Dream Machine'. Is it a classic album ? Nope, but for an LP that was recorded over the span of two weeks with little in the way of financial resources, the overall results are far more impressive that you would have expected. Well worth tracking down.
"New To
Heaven" track listing: 1.) Montgolfier ( Rolf Antener - Toni Vescoli - Erwin Ernst Kunz) - 2:43 In spite of the Vesicle's heavily accented vocals, 'Montgolfier' offered up a surprisingly engaging slice of classic pop-psych. Full of breezy lysergic touches and waves of shimmering backing vocals (loved the chipmunk sounds), this one just had 1967 dripping out of it's aural pores. Easy to see why it was tapped as what was to be the band's final single. rating: **** stars 2.) Big Old Sun (Kurt Dude Durst - Peter Rietmann) - 2:04 'Big Old Way' was certainly commercial in a European way, but I've always wondered why so many European bands are attracted to American styled country music. Add in what sounded like a Jews harp and you had a track that did very little for me. rating: ** stars 3.) Hippie Soldier (Toni Vescoli) - 2:28 An acoustic folk ballad, with a blatantly anti-war lyric, I've always found it somewhat humorous to remember the Swiss are the kings of neutrality. The children's' chorus was a nice touch. rating: *** stars 4.) Hello, One Kiss, Goodbye (Rolf Antener - Heinz Ernst) - 2:00 Built on an Antener heavy metal riff and what sounded like a toy piano, 'Hello, One Kiss, Goodbye' was another album highlight. This one was so good you didn't even notice Vescoli's accented vocals. rating: **** stars 5.) Good News Times (Toni Vescoli - Kloeren) - 2:18 Talk about highs and lows. On the heels of one of their best tunes, the supper club jazzy 'Good News Times' was best described as horrible. I'm guessing this is what Swiss musicians thought speakeasy jazz sounded like. rating: * star 6.) Where Have All the Flowers Gone (Pete Seger - Erwin Ernst Kunz) - 1:45 With Vescoli giving the song a camp spoken word reading on top of what was almost a sound collage, it was hard to figure out if this was meant to be deep and meaningful, or simply goofy. I'll give it an extra star for being so strange, rating: *** stars 7.) Silly Damsel ( Rolf Antener - Kurt Dude Durst - Peter Rietmann - Toni Vescoli) - 3:44 In spite of the dumb title, 'Silly Damsel' was a nice slice of mid-'60s beat rock. Powered by nice solos from keyboardist Trippel and guitarist Antener, it was easy to imagine the band playing this when they were slogging it out on the club circuit. One of the album highlights. rating: **** stars
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2) Built on strumming acoustic guitars and some tasteful orchestration, 'Heavenly Club' was a pretty, radio--friendly ballad which probably explains why it was released as the lead-off single. The song's also unique in their catalog given guitarist Antener handled the lead vocal rather than Vescoli. With the 45 topping the Swiss charts for a couple of weeks and generating interest throughout the rest of Europe, London's Parrot subsidiary even floated it as an American 45 (catalog number 45-1019) YouTube has a surprisingly enjoyable 2006 live performance of the tune from the reunited band: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukwglcxgNAw rating: **** stars 2.) Homage (instrumental) (Bach - Toni Vescoli - Erwin Ernst Kunz) - 2:27 Nice adaptation of the Bach tune with a funny lyric that name checked a slew of classical composers. Always wondered why arranger Erwin Ernst Kunz felt the need to grab a writing credit. rating: *** stars 3.) Hotel Continental (instrumental) (Fritz Trippel) - 2:40 Keyboardist Trippel (referred to on the album credits as "Little Fritz"), had been a hardcore jazz musician before joining the band. That background explains why his jazzy instrumental 'Hotel Continental' seemed so out of place on the album. Best described as forgettable. rating: ** stars 4.) Dream Machine (Toni Vescoli) - 2:28 Probably their best known song, I certainly wasn't expecting to hear a blend of fuzz guitar and country-rock influences from a Swiss pop outfit, but sure enough, it permeated 'Dream Machine'. Antener's standout performance. Great tune that clearly showed American bands didn't own the genre. rating: **** stars 5.) It's All Over Now Baby Blue (Bob Dylan - Erwin Ernst Kunz) - 3:32 Given the dozens of covers I've heard, I had zilch in the way of expectations for their cover of this Dylan classic. While you won't forget the original, I'll tell you their horn-powered cover was actually very good. Yeah, the Erwin Ernst Kunz orchestration got a little heavy towards the end, but all told, this was a pleasant surprise. rating: **** stars 6.) Auf Wiedersehn (Rotter - Brodsky) - 1:15 Schlager ... yech. rating: * stars
The album spun off a pair of singles, selling big in Switzerland and to a lesser extent Germany.:
- 1968's 'Heavenly Club' b/w 'Dream Machine' (Decca catalog number D 19 950) - 1968's 'Montgolfier' b/w 'Big Old Sun' (Decca catalog number D 19 973)
Amazingly, Les Sauterelles are still active with a line-up featuring Kurt Durst, Freddy Mangili, Toni Vescoli, and lead guitarist Peter Glanzmann. I haven't heard it, but they even released an album of new material in 2013 "Today". The band have a website at: htps://www.sauterelles.ch/index.php (be warned it is in German)
Durst has a website at: http://www.duededuerst.ch/index.html Late-inning guitarist Glanzmann has a site at: http://www.glanzguitar.ch/ Freddy Mangil's site: http://www.foxfire.ch/ Vescoli's site: http://www.vescoli.ch/
Unfortunately, guitarist Antener died of cancer in the mid-'90s. Bassist Reitmann also died of cancer in August 2009.
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