After having released several singles “Live Is Life” achieved huge success in 1985, topping the charts of many countries, including Austria (eight weeks), Germany, France (seven weeks) and Sweden (four weeks). In France, the song is the 149th best-selling single of all time with about 857,000 units sold.
The song was created during a concert in Oberwart, on 2 September 1984, while the group celebrated its eleventh anniversary. It was recorded in a live version with the audience singing along in the verses. In the lyrics, the song expresses “the enthusiastic attachment of the group to the stage“. The song was performed during the 1985 charity campaign, “Austria für Afrika”.
In 1994, on the occasion of the 1994 FIFA World Cup, Opus released another version of “Live Is Life”, which made it again into the top ten in Austria.[citation needed] The song was re-recorded once more by the group in 2008, both in a solo version and featuring Jerry.
Maradona’s warm up
On 19 April 1989, during the warming up in Munich before the UEFA Cup semi-final return between FC Bayern Munich and S.S.C. Napoli, Diego Maradona did a keepie uppie exhibition, to the rhythm of the song, while the song was heard on the stadium’s loudspeakers. This has become a classic among football fans.
Vocabulary
| to release singles | kiadni kislemezeket |
| achieved success | sikert elérni |
| to top the charts | a zenei listák élére kerülni |
| anniversary | évforduló |
| to express | kifejezni |
| enthusiastic attachment | lelkes szeretet |
| stage | színpad |
| to perform | előadni |
| occasion | alkalom |
| to feature | szerepeltetni |
| semi-final | középdöntő |
| loudspeakers | hangszórók |
| to do a keepie uppie exhibition | dekázási bemutatót tartani |
| the rest | a többi |
