Wölli und die Band des Jahres

From 1985 to 2000, Wolfgang Rohde played drums for Die Toten Hosen, one of Germany's biggest, longest-running punk bands. When a car accident left him injured and unable to hold his drumsticks, Rohde (known to most Die Toten Hosen fans as "Wölli") was forced to leave the band, with Stephen "Vom" Ritchie taking his place instead. Wölli spent the next decade running his own record label, Goldene Zeiten, and lending a helping hand to younger German groups. More importantly, he began reinventing himself as a singer/songwriter, focusing on his voice instead of his diminished percussion abilities. Ten years after his accident, he released his "solo" album under the name Wölli und die Band des Jahres, with various friends and members of his record label playing backup. ~ Andrew Leahey