The day Udo Lindenberg rocked East Berlin

On the day of his East Berlin concert on October 25, 1983, the East German state security started tracking Udo Lindenberg as soon as he came through the Invalidenstrasse border crossing. Every step of the rock singer from the West was photographed. Exact times were recorded in Stasi documents: "Entry at 12:10. From 12:10 to 12:23, an interview with West German TV broadcaster," and so on.

"It is to be expected that a large number of young people from the capital and from the districts of the Republic will try to take part in this event, even if they are not in possession of a valid ticket," the Stasi noted in its mission paper ahead of the event. Preparations were made accordingly to tackle the presumably enthusiastic crowd, with 400 task force workers sent to the event.

GDR leaders were hoping for a good outcome from Udo Lindenberg's performance at the "Festival for World Peace." The famous rock star from the West was also an outspoken peace activist. By allowing him to perform, communist leaders hoped to portray themselves as committed to peace as well. But beyond politics, the fans were simply thrilled to finally be able to see their idol perform live.

But that was a fallacy: The tickets for the festival were issued by the communist Free German Youth association, so Lindenberg was facing 4,200 dutiful GDR youths and a number of officials at the concert. "Inside, there were only stiff animals on Valium who adhered to party principles; the real fans were outside, demanding their Udo," Lindenberg later recalled.

Udo Lindenberg sang four songs at the concert, including his anti-war anthem "Wozu sind Kriege da?" (What are wars for?). He did not perform his song "Sonderzug nach Pankow" (Special Train to Pankow), which had been so unpopular with functionaries in the run-up to the concert. Instead, he caused a furor with a remark that was not in line with the organizers' plans...

Lindenberg fulminated against NATO armament in the West. So far, so good. But then the star added: "German ground must never again be the source of war. Disband all rocket scrap metal in the Federal Republic of Germany and the GDR!" That didn't go down well, as it was precisely on this day that the decision had been made to station Soviet missiles in the GDR.

Meanwhile, there was major tumult going on outside. Hundreds of Udo fans weren't able to experience the concert — and that had consequences. Before, during and after the show, fans rioted in the streets, so the East German police had their hands full. For the Stasi, the whole event proved to be a huge operation, until Lindenberg finally crossed back to West Berlin at midnight.