The band was founded on January 20, 1966 by Cologne students, initially as a political cabaret. The group grew out of the Cologne APO [Non-parliamentary Opposition in Germany (Außerparlamentarische Opposition APO)] around the SDS [German Socialist Students' Union], its political orientation evolving over the years towards a clearly dialectical and Marxist position. Independently of each other, group members joined the DKP [German Communist Party] between 1970 and 1973. On September 6, 1970, the band performed at the Fehmarn Festival following Jimi Hendrix; this was their last performance. In 1973, Floh from Cologne performed as part of a West German delegation at the 10th World Youth Festival in East Berlin. From 1980, part of the band (with Vridolin Enxing as chairman) was active in Rock gegen Rechts [Rock against the extreme right]; in the same year, the band was awarded the Deutscher Kleinkunstpreis with Gerhard Polt. After more than 3,000 concerts in Germany and Europe, Cologne Floh disbanded in May 1983 after a farewell tour. The farewell concert in Cologne's sports hall attracted 6,000 spectators and lasted 14 hours, with the participation of numerous musicians such as Hannes Wader, Dieter Süverkrüp, Franz-Josef Degenhardt, Hanns-Dieter Hüsch, Die 3 Tornados, BAP and Ina Deter. In 2023, the group was awarded the Holger Czukay Honorary Prize by the City of Cologne for its lifetime artistic achievement. With the rock band cantata "Mumien", the group reacted in 1974 to the 1973 putsch in Chile, notably by setting to music the last speech of deposed president Salvador Allende. In the same year, the band worked with Hans Werner Henze on alternative musical settings of Chilelied (Cet été chilien était doux; 1974), lyrics: Rudi Bergmann (* 1950), first performed on May 31, 1974 in Essen (Grugahalle: memorial concert for Víctor Jara, at the same time a demonstration of solidarity with the resistance in Chile). "Mumien" has not yet been reissued on vinyl, and the only CD version (with the album "Vietnam") dates from 1995.
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