40 Year Itch: Fist Strike

On January 29, 1974 Can recorded a 14 and a half minute instrumental version of  "Tony Wanna Go" in a session for BBC 1 Radio DJ John Peel. The experimental German rock band was still reeling from the loss of vocalist Damo Suzuki who had recently married a German girl , become a Jehovah's Witness and quit music until 1983.

Can bassist Holger Czukay summarizes the band's reaction to its new line-up:

   For the rest of the group it was the feeling of a powerful fist strike into one's stomach. We tried out many other singers,but nobody suited to us anymore. So guitarist Michael Karoli and space organist Irmin Schmidt and sometimes me filled the gap. SOON OVER BABALUMA(Released in November, 1974) was the last album which was recorded straight onto stereo without a multi-tracking machine. An era came to an end..