In the chaos of the collapse of the Nazi regime, a number of prominent figures were able to slip away to lives of anonymity in South America. Such perpetrators of evil as Josef Mengele established themselves under false identities apparently beyond the reach of justice. Others were eventually brought to trial in the 1960s, Franz Stangl and Adolf Eichmann some of the more famous.

Klaus Barbie remained at liberty even longer, and his trial did not take place until the 1980s, when he was sent to face justice in France, spending his last years in a prison near the location of the crimes he had committed so much earlier.

The trial was big news at the time, and was still in the consciousness of a group of young Danes who got together a couple of years later. The Scandinavian songsters decided to join forces, and worked hard. They were a confused group, at one moment peddling the lightest of the lightweight, and the next engaging with existential angst.

Calling themselves Aqua, suggesting clarity while trapping the unwary, they finally were ready to unleash their first release on to the world.

Taken at face value “Barbie Girl” seems to describe a carefree life of trivial hedonism. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth. Let us look more closely.

Hiya, Barbie!

Hi, Ken!

You wanna go for a ride?

Sure, Ken!

Jump in!

The protagonist uses an alias for her friend. As is often done, a similar name is used, beginning with the same letter. Ken is one syllable and begins with K. So does Klaus. The ride is the adventure of their association.

I’m a Barbie girl in a Barbie world

Life in plastic, it’s fantastic

Klaus Barbie’s life in Peru and Bolivia was fake. He took the alias Klaus Altmann and lived a fake “plastic” life. The singer longs to be part of this life, and envies it.

You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere

Barbie is blonde, the colouring of the Aryan ideal of the Nazis.

Imagination, life is your creation

Klaus Barbie had created his life as Altmann while on the run.

Come on Barbie, let’s go party!

An invitation to a party – the Nazi Party?

I’m a blond, bimbo girl, in a fantasy world

Dress me up, make me talk, I’m your dolly

The singer subjects herself entirely to Barbie – the baddest of bad boys! She denies her own free will. She now talks only as Klaus Barbie controls her.

You’re my doll, rock’n’roll, feel the glamour and pain

Ken (Klaus) responds with a recollection of the cruelty and glory of his Nazi days. He revels in the glamour of his uniform, and suggests a sadistic pleasure in inflicting pain.

The whole song serves as a warning about how seductive infamy can be, and about how easily manipulated someone can become when blinded by admiration, much as the German people were in 1933. The girl is dazzled by this figure, even losing her own identity (she is referred to as “Barbie”, becoming one with her figure of admiration).

This song was a huge hit around the world. On the face of it, this is trivial, throwaway stuff, but so few of its listeners are aware of exactly what they are listening to.