Moti Special

Moti Special was a german New Wave band, formed in 1981 in Hamburg, by danish guitar player Nils Tuxen, romanian keyboard player Michael Cretu, bassist/vocalist Manfred "Thissy" Thiers and drummer Reinhard "Dickie" Tarrach. All of the members had previous experience as session musicians. Thiers decided on the name of the band after visiting an Indian restaurant in London, where he had the "special" (extra spicy) dish of the house. It was not until 1985 that the band became successful. Although their first single, "Stop! Girls Go Crazy", did not chart, the follow-up, "Cold Days, Hot Nights", was a major hit in Europe, reaching number 3 in Germany. The third single "Don't Be So Shy" made it to number 9. The band's first album "Motivation" reached number 20 on the charts in that same year. Michael Cretu left the band to pursue his solo career and production work with various artists, including his wife, 80s superstar sensation Sandra. Nothing was heard of from the band again until 1989, when a new single was released. The album, along with its title-track "Dancing For Victory" were not that well-received as the first album was. By then, only Tuxen and Tarrach were still in the band, being the only original members left. Michael Cretu has since had a successful career, as a solo artist, collaborator, writer, producer, and most notably, as the creator of Enigma. He also recorded an album with Manfred Thiers as Cretu And Thiers. Their album "Belle Epoque" was released in 1988. Manfred Thiers is still working as a session bass player, and in 2005 performed on the album "The Voice of Leonard Bernstein", alongside Leonard Bernstein, José Carreras, and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, as well as many other great performers. More importantly, he is also a member of Schiller-live Band (Weltreise/Voyage, Leben/Life and Tag und Nacht/Night and Day live tour). In 2006, official remixes of "Cold Days, Hot Nights" (by DJ/producer Arnold Palmer) took the track, now re-titled simply as "Cold Days", into the Top 5 of the official german dance charts. A subsequent full release has yet to materialise despite the track's considerable success in german clubs.