'Sonderzug - Hey Honey, keine Panik', mixed media and acrylic on canvas, 39,5 cm x 50 cm, signed, 2011 (according to certificate), titled, canvas mounted, copy of certificate enclosed, Provenance: Walentowski Galleries, Hamburg.
In reference to his political and critical song lyrics ''Sonderzug nach Pankow'', Udo Lindenberg created the painting ''Hey Honey, keine Panik''. In bright shades of red and yellow, the train speeds towards Berlin-Pankow. On top of the locomotive: Udo Lindenberg, casually seated, smiling mischievously, in his typical outfit, with a cigar and a glass of liqueur in his hand. Characteristic of Lindberg's painting is his unusual style of painting. A mixture of cartoon and caricature with concise lettering and bright colours, here executed with diluted watercolours. Particularly striking is the strong brilliance of the colours in which the artist depicts the witty yet very profound motif. His cult hit ''Sonderzug nach Pankow'' is politically charged and closely interwoven with German history. After the GDR regime refused Lindenberg's request to perform in the GDR in 1979, the rock musician came up with the idea of releasing the song ''Sonderzug nach Pankow'' in 1983 as a reaction to this rejection. In the song, he addresses the then Chairman of the Council of State Erich Honecker directly and in an ironic way. Lindenberg portrays Honecker as a hypocritical man who presents the government's ideology in public but secretly listens to West German radio: ''Honey, I think you're actually quite relaxed too. I know, deep down inside, you're actually a rocker too.'' Udo Lindenberg's confrontation course was successful. In the same year, Lindenberg made his first and, until the fall of the Wall, only appearance in the DDR.
