Mensch (album)

Mensch
Studio album by Herbert Grönemeyer
Released	August 30, 2002
Genre	Rock
Label	Grönland (EMI)
Herbert Grönemeyer chronology
Stand Der Dinge (2001) Mensch (2002) 12 (2007)

Mensch, released in 2002, is the 20th music release by prominent German rock/pop artist Herbert Grönemeyer. Mensch ("Human") is Grönemeyer's 11th full-length album of original compositions. The title track "Mensch" became Grönemeyer's first number-one single in Germany. The mood of the album reflects the recent death of his wife and one of his older brothers in the same week, and is rich with poetic imagery. The songs range from rock to ballads. The richness of the imagery and language, as well as the use of creative word play, can make the lyrics difficult to interpret by listeners who are not fluent in German. In Mensch Grönemeyer reflects on his own humanity as it relates to feeling loss. The song "Der Weg" in particular focuses on memories of his wife and the love they shared.

The full-length album was released in three versions:

• a copy-protected CD
• a 12" vinyl LP album
• a hybrid Super Audio CD, containing standard compact disc stereo, Super Audio CD high-resolution stereo, and Super Audio CD high-resolution multi-channel audio content.

The compact disc and the Super Audio CD (CD layer and high-resolution SACD stereo sections) contain a hidden track after about fifteen minutes of silence at the end of the last song. The album is almost entirely in German, with the hidden track in English.

Mensch was a huge success in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and sold nearly 4 million copies, making it one of the best-selling German-language records of all time. Being certified 21 x Gold in Germany, it is the best-selling album of all time in that region.^[1]

Track listing

1. "Mensch" – 4:01
2. "Neuland" – 3:43
3. "Der Weg" – 4:18
4. "Viertel Vor" – 4:23
5. "Lache, wenn es nicht zum Weinen reicht" – 4:42
6. "Unbewohnt" – 5:04
7. "Dort und hier" – 2:33
8. "Blick zurück" – 5:54
9. "Kein Pokal" – 4:32
10. "Zum Meer" – 5:45
11. "Demo (letzter Tag)" – 3:26

Charts and certifications

Chart positions Charts (2002) Peak position Year-end (2002) Year-end (2003) Year-end (2004) Decade-end (2000–09) All-time Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) 1[2] 2[3] 3[4] 69[5] 6[6] 20[7] Germany (Media Control Charts) 1[8] 1[9] 3[10] — — 1[11] Netherlands (MegaCharts) 38[12] — — — — — Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) 1[13] 4[14] 47[15] — — 120[16] Certifications Region Certification Sales/shipments Austria (IFPI Austria)[17] 8× Platinum 240,000^x Germany (BVMI)[18] 21× Gold 3,150,000^^ Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[19] 5× Platinum 200,000^x Summaries Europe (IFPI)[20] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^* ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone ^xunspecified figures based on certification alone Singles Year Title Chart positions Certifications AT [2] CH [13] DE [21] 2002 "Mensch" 1 2 1 BVMI: Platinum[22] IFPI CH: Gold[23] "Der Weg" 14 35 12 2003 "Demo (Letzter Tag)" 53 — 36 "Zum Meer" — — 81 See also List of best-selling albums in Germany References "Highest Gold Platinum certifications" (PDF). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2010-07-24. Ö3 Austria Top 40 (9 September 2002). "Austrian weekly albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Ö3 Austria Top 40 (2002). "Austrian annual albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Ö3 Austria Top 40 (2003). "Austrian annual albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Ö3 Austria Top 40 (2004). "Austrian annual albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Ö3 Austria Top 40 (2000–2009). "Austrian decennially albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Ö3 Austria Top 40. "Austrian all-time albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Media Control Charts (16 September 2002). "Chartverfolgung: Herbert Grönemeyer" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Media Control Charts (2002). "German annual albums chart" (in German). Charts.de. Retrieved 5 October 2012. Media Control Charts (2003). "German annual albums chart" (in German). Charts.de. Retrieved 5 October 2012. International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (Germany). "Best-selling albums of all time in Germany" (PDF) (in German). Musik Industrie. Retrieved 5 October 2012. MegaCharts (1 February 2003). "Dutch weekly albums chart" (in Dutch). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Schweizer Hitparade (15 September 2002). "Swiss weekly albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Schweizer Hitparade (2002). "Swiss annual albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Schweizer Hitparade (2003). "Swiss annual albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Schweizer Hitparade. "Swiss all-time albums chart" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. "Austrian album certifications – Herbert Grönemeyer – Mensch" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 5 October 2012. Enter Herbert Grönemeyer in the field Interpret. Enter Mensch in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Herbert Grönemeyer; 'Mensch')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 5 October 2012. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Herbert Grönemeyer; 'Mensch')". Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 October 2012. "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 2003". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 5 October 2012. Media Control Charts. "Chartverfolgung: Herbert Grönemeyer" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. Bundesverband Musikindustrie (2002). "German certification" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012. International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (Switzerland) (2002). "Swiss certification" (in German). Retrieved 5 October 2012.