German singer/songwriter Hans Hartz was born in the port city of Husum in 1943. In 1967 he fronted the Hamburg-based, skiffle-infused skirt band Lake. He released his debut (and most popular) album, Sturm, in 1982, which featured the popular single "Die Weißen Tauben Sind Müde." The record went platinum and established the gravel-voiced crooner as a big player in the regional pop circuit. Nur Steine Leben Lang arrived in 1983, followed by Musik aus der Ferne in 1985. In 1991 Hartz landed an international hit with "Sail Away," a song that attracted a great deal of attention through its use in a television advertisement for Beck's beer. Hartz continued to tour and record throughout the '90s. He died from complications due to lung cancer in 2002. ~ James Christopher Monger