Fans of Bonn Folk Club, and indeed older fans of Bonn’s street music, might like to know that there will be a memorial concert today in memory of Hermann Josef Wolf – better known as ‘Fliege’ – who died on 19th January this year.

‘Fliege’ was a street musician with heart and soul – playing the guitar, singing and playing the harmonica –, Colleagues at the Menschensinfonieorchester where he played described him as “a great connoisseur of folk music, a man full of stories, told in his own unique way: sometimes crystal clear, sometimes hard to follow, but always authentic. In the 1970s, he often played on the street with Klaus the Violinist. The street was his natural stage; direct contact with people was his way of making music“

Illness forced a retreat from playing music in public and his last years were spent in a care home. I hope my picture captures a little of ‘Fliege’s’ spirit, personality and joy at playing music in front of people (and in this case dogs too!) It was taken at the June 2022 Folk Club meet (ironically the last public appearance too of Steve Perry)

R.I.P.