Vera Palm

German singer Vera Palm remains unknown to the vast majority of Germans despite making some classy recordings in the mid-to-late 1960s. Her 1968 single Weil mein Daddy dich gut leiden kann in particular is considered a gem of the German girl pop genre.

She was born Dorothée Schmitz. Her singing career began in earnest when she won the Swimming Hitparade (Schwimmende Schlagerparade), organised by Neue Revue magazine in 1966.

As a result of her win she was offered a contract with Hit-Ton, whose releases were distributed by the German Vogue label. It was here that she was given a surname, Palm.

Her first single on the new label, Capito, was something of a booby prize. The Schlager track boasted the singer’s win on its cover, though this wasn’t enough to win over the record-buying public. However, it is the B side, the rather amusingly titled Ich bin sauer wie die Zitrone, that has won more lasting popularity. The song tells the story of Vera’s frustration at a love that must remain secret. “I am sour like a lemon, would rather be sweet like a melon,” she trills.

The follow up, issued later that year, Er gab ‘ne Party, was a cover of Crispian St Peters’ international hit Pied piper.

1967 kicked off with the release of Am Abend, which also failed. Again the flip, the laid-back Sunday love, has found acclaim amongst fans.

A further single, Tina, Gina, Susi und ich, was issued later that year on the MCM label. It told the tale of a playboy lover who has the four girls in tow. But our Vera puts her foot down with the ultimatum: “I can have many others, and you’ll see that’s true if you kiss another girl.”

She issued one further release, Liebe und Treue, under the name of the Vera Palm Singers, in 1968. The B-side, Es war ein Tag wie jeder Andere, was a cover of the Tony Hatch/Jackie Trent composition Beautiful in the rain.

Sadly, a lack of sales meant that Vera was quietly dropped by the label.

Although she soon joined the Deriphon label, her stay proved long enough only to cut one single, the swing-influenced Sei ein Mann, Boy, in 1969.

With thanks to Jens Keller for additional sound files and research.

Vera had to wait until 1968 for her next release – but it was worth waiting for. Weil mein Daddy dich gut leiden kann, a version of Two Much’s It's the hippy-hippy-world, is undoubtedly her finest moment. Complete with roaring car sound effects, the song tells the story of how Vera’s father has let her borrow his red sports coupe because he approves of her boyfriend. The dramatic effects have all the makings of a ‘death disc’, only without the tragic ending.