Cindy and Bert

[[File:Buchvorstellung des neuen Bildbandes "Auf ein Bier mit Stars & Sternchen – das Beste aus 35 Jahren RUND UM DEN BECKER TURM" Bild 5.JPG|thumb|The pop singers Ingrid Peters (left) and Cindy Berger (right) during the book launch of "On a beer with stars and starlets – the best of 35 years around the BECKER TOWER".|250px|right]]

'''Cindy and Bert''' were a [[Germany|German]] [[schlager]] vocal duo from [[Völklingen]], [[Saarland]] consisting of '''Jutta Gusenberger''' (born 26 January 1948) and '''Norbert Berger''' (12 September 1945 – 14 July 2012<ref>[https://www.welt.de/article108336044/Eil-Cindy-Bert-Saenger-Norbert-Berger-ist-tot.html welt.de]</ref>). They were most successful in the 1970s, and are known for their participation in the 1974 [[Eurovision Song Contest]].

== Background == One of the labels that the duo recorded for was the [[BASF (record label)|BASF]] label. One single they recorded for the label was "Ich fand eine Hand" which was released in 1971.<ref>''Record World'', September 25, 1971 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/71/Record-World-1971-09-25.pdf Page 56 RECORD WORLD INTERNATIONAL, GERMANY, '''Cindy & Bert''']</ref> == Early career == Gusenberger and Berger started singing together in 1965, and were married in 1967. They signed a recording contract in 1969, with singles being regularly issued, notably "Der Hund von Baskerville", an unlikely cover version of [[Black Sabbath]]'s "[[Paranoid (Black Sabbath song)|Paranoid]]" which has become a collector's curiosity. Their most successful period came between 1972 and 1975 when they placed eight singles on the German chart, including their biggest hit "Immer wieder Sonntags" which reached #3.

== Eurovision Song Contest ==

Cindy and Bert's first attempt to represent Germany at Eurovision came in 1972, when "Geh' die Straße" finished in second place in the [[Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1972|national selection]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://natfinals.50webs.com/70s_80s/Germany1972.html |title=ESC National Finals 1972 |access-date=5 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100122233248/http://natfinals.50webs.com/70s_80s/Germany1972.html |archive-date=22 January 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The following year they performed two songs in the final, but could only manage eighth and ninth place.<ref>[http://natfinals.50webs.com/70s_80s/Germany1973.html ESC National Finals 1973]</ref> They got their chance in 1974 when, unusually for Germany by internal selection, their song "[[Die Sommermelodie]]" was chosen as the country's entry for the 19th [[Eurovision Song Contest 1974|Eurovision Song Contest]], held in [[Brighton]], England, on 6 April. "Die Sommermelodie" had been considered a particularly weak song choice by German observers. It also happened to have been chosen for a contest which featured a number of already internationally established performers ([[Olivia Newton-John]], [[Gigliola Cinquetti]], [[Mouth and MacNeal]]), and launched the winning group [[ABBA]] into global superstardom, so its poor showing – one of four songs to share last place – did not come as a surprise.<ref>[http://www.esc-history.com/details.asp?key=333 ESC History 1974]</ref> Cindy and Bert entered the German selection again in [[Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978|1978]], their two songs finishing fourth and fifth.<ref>[http://natfinals.50webs.com/70s_80s/Germany1978.html ESC National Finals 1978]</ref>

== Later career ==

Cindy and Bert divorced in 1988, with Cindy starting a solo career as '''Cindy Berger''' while Bert moved into production. As a soloist, Cindy participated in two further Eurovision selections, in [[Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1988|1988]] (finishing second) and [[Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1991|1991]] (seventh). The couple reunited in the mid-1990s and began performing on the nostalgia circuit in addition to releasing new material. Cindy continues to release solo material, her latest album being ''Von Zeit zu Zeit'' in 2008.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120928103225/http://www.musicline.de/de/artist/Cindy+&+Bert/morefacts Musicline.de Biography] (German)</ref>

== Charting singles == <small>(Indicates highest position on [[German Singles Chart]])</small><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Cindy+%26+Bert/single?sort=exit |title=German Charts database |access-date=5 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005201133/http://musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Cindy+%26+Bert/single?sort=exit |archive-date=5 October 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> * 1972: "Geh die Straße" (#36) * 1973: "Immer wieder Sonntags" (#3) * 1973: "Hallo, Herr Nachbar" (#37) * 1973: "Ich komm' bald wieder" (#10) * 1974: "Spaniens Gitarren" (#11) * 1974: "Aber am Abend (da spielt der Zigeuner)" (#12) * 1975: "Ich suche einen Schatz" (#36) * 1975: "Wenn die Rosen erblühen in Malaga" (#13) * 1979: "Darling" (#37)

== References == {{reflist}}

== External links == * [http://www.cindyberger.de/ Cindy Berger website]

{{s-start}} {{succession box | before=[[Gitte Hænning|Gitte]]<br>with ''[[Junger Tag]]'' | title=[[Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest]] | years=[[Eurovision Song Contest 1974|1974]] | after=[[Joy Fleming]]<br>with ''[[Ein Lied kann eine Brücke sein]]'' | }} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cindy and Bert}} [[Category:German musical duos]] [[Category:Male–female musical duos]] [[Category:BASF (record label) artists]] [[Category:Eurovision Song Contest entrants]]