Schlagerstars – Chris Roberts

Charmer with a permanent smile

In the 1970s, Chris Roberts was one of the nation's most successful pop singers. Because his father came from what was then Yugoslavia, and the legal situation during the Nazi era prohibited marriage between a German and a Yugoslavian, the son, born Christian Franz Klusácek in Munich in 1944, was considered stateless. When he was offered naturalization at the age of 21, he declined, as this would have automatically subjected Chris to compulsory military service. It wasn't until 2016, at the age of 72, that Chris Roberts applied for German citizenship so he could finally exercise his right to vote in Germany.

The bright-eyed man had actively participated in the Beat era in the 1960s and played drums in a cover band for four years. In 1966, he was discovered by producer Hans Bertram .

His first singles, still focused on beats, received little attention, but in 1968, the trained electromechanic achieved a top-twenty hit with " Wenn Du einmal einsam bist " (140,000 units sold). When he again made waves with " Der große Hit, " he also caught the attention of BRAVO . At the gala sponsored by BRAVO (August 23, 1969) at the "teenage-fair '69," a trade fair for young people in Düsseldorf, Chris made his first appearance before a large audience alongside Roy Black, Karel Gott, Graham Bonney, Manuela, France Gall, the Lords, the Equals, and Barry Ryan.

Unfortunately, the general public is left out. According to BRAVO issue 37 from 1969 , "BRAVO offered its gala to German television for free broadcast. German television declined."

In 1970, his first LP, " Die Maschen der Mädchen ," was released. The back cover reads: "Chris possesses what you can't learn: personality, charm, youth, and a voice that resonates, at least since 'Die Maschen der Mädchen,' when his fan mail exceeded the thousand mark per week."

According to the BRAVO chart lexicon, between 1970 and 1980 Chris Roberts brought 22 songs into the BRAVO reader hit list. 21 of them even made it into the top ten; one, " I'm in love with love " , spent a whole week at number one! Chris unleashed a veritable fireworks display of hits: " The girls' stitches " (number 5), " A girl made to measure " (number 5), " My name is Hase " (number 4), " Have I already told you today that I love you ?" (number 2), " You can't always be 17 " (number 4), " You, just say you " (number 6), " Do You Speak English " (number 3), " When will we lie in our arms again, Barbara ?" (number 6).

In 1973, Chris proved emphatically that he was capable of more than just good humor. When a 14-year-old girl died in the crush at an event in Munich's completely overcrowded Löwenbräukeller, Chris dedicated the song " Warum " to her and donated all the proceeds from the album to her relatives.

Over the course of his career, Chris Roberts released 18 studio albums, sold eleven million records, and set a record that many of his fellow singers envied. With 60 appearances on the ZDF hit parade , the top dog among TV hit shows of the time, he was a more frequent guest than any other singer.

But the cinema also books the charmer with the permanent smile. While the roles—like the entire films—with titles like " Aunt Trude from Buxtehude, " " When the Great Aunts Come, " or " Always Trouble with the Reverend ," aren't particularly demanding, they still find their audience.

When hit successes failed to materialize in the early 1980s, Chris Roberts shifted his focus to producing and writing song lyrics.

Chris Roberts has received many awards and honors during his career. In 1970, 1971 and 1975 he was awarded the Golden Europe He also received the Golden Tuning Fork three times: in 1981, 1984 and 1985. Radio Luxembourg awarded him the Silver Lion in 1973, after Chris had already received the Bronze Lion in 1971. BRAVO OTTO He received gold awards in 1971 and 1972. In the second election in 1972, readers awarded him another OTTO, this time in silver. A special honor was the Starschnitt ( Star Cutout), which BRAVO printed in eleven parts in 1971.

On July 2, 2017, Chris Roberts succumbed to lung cancer at Berlin's Charité hospital. He was 73 years old.