Happy 70th Birthday Matthias Jabs!
Celebrating the lead guitarist of the Scorpions… Thank You Matthias!
Matthias Jabs was born on October 25, 1955 in Hannover, West Germany
Rock you like a hurricane!
Guitarist Matthias Jabs was born in Hannover, West Germany (now Germany). Most of the Scorpions were also born and raised in and around this famous city along the Leine. The band itself was formed sixty years ago in Hannover by guitarist Rudolf Schenker.
The Scorpions provided us with several memorable Hard Rock and Metal anthems, including the iconic ballad “Wind of Change”. Arguably, Jabs’ guitar work and playing style greatly contributed to the band achieving worldwide success. They are often called “The Ambassadors of Rock” and “The Heroes of Heavy Metal”.
“What’s wrong with Grandma?”
My late maternal grandmother was German. While she was born in the eastern part of the nation, her family later moved to Bad Oeynhausen, which is located around 50 miles (80 km) west of Hannover.
When I was very young, I did not know that my grandma was German, nor did I have any idea of what “German” was or meant. Sure, she always pronounced my last name with a “V”, but to me she was just “Grandma”…
All of this changed with a phone call when I was four years old. We were celebrating Christmas Eve at my grandparents’ house. Early in the evening, I was sitting in the kitchen with my mom and grandma when the phone rang. What happened over the next seven minutes would be both fascinating and profoundly confusing.
After picking up the phone, my grandma began speaking in a way that I had never seen, using words that I had never heard. I turned to my mom and asked, “What’s wrong with Grandma? Why is she talking like that?”
My mom smiled and said, “That’s German. Your grandma is German. She is speaking German. She is talking to your great-grandmother.” [My great-grandmother was calling to wish my grandma, Fröhliche Weihnachten! (Merry Christmas!), as the clock struck midnight back in Germany.]
Unfortunately, my mom’s words fell upon deaf ears. I just stood there bug-eyed, watching my grandma speak on the phone. My young mind was officially blown…
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