Peter Koelewijn

Peter Koelewijn (1977)

Peter Cornelis Koelewijn (* 29. December 1940 in Eindhoven as Peter Cornelis Van Elewijck ) is a Dutch singer, music producer and radio DJ . Since the 1960s, songs he sang or produced have regularly appeared in the Dutch hit lists. He is considered a pioneer of Dutch-speaking rock music.

biography

Youth up to the 60s

Koelewijn was born in 1940 in the Stratum district of Eindhoven into a family of fish sellers. He was initially given his mother's surname, as his father was married to another woman at the time. After graduating from school, he first worked as a journalist for a local newspaper and as a temporary worker in his family's fish trade, but soon began to be more interested in music. While still at school he founded his first band with guitarists Karel Jansen and Roelof Egmond and singer Anneke Grönloh . Some time later Harry van Hoof and drummer Peter van der Voort joined the band as additional members, while Grönloh left the band.

In 1960 Koelewijn brought out the boogie-woogie number Kom van dat dak af (in German roughly: "Come down from the roof") with the band now called Peter en zijn Rockets . This song was the first real rock 'n' roll single in Dutch and became a huge success in the Netherlands and Belgium .

In the following years Peter en zijn Rockets brought out various rock 'n' roll singles, including a single with Anneke Grönloh. Koelewijn soon began to focus on producing records by other artists. During this time he worked for bands and artists such as Q65 ( You're the Victor ), Armand ( En nou ik ), Conny Vandenbos ( Ik ben gelukkig zonder jou ), Bonnie St. Claire , Egbert Douwe ( Kom uit de bedstee mijn Ranste ) and Ronnie en de Ronnies ( Beestjes ). Koelewijn wrote the song Oei oei oei, dat was me weer een loei for football player Johan Cruyff , which made it to number 21 on the Dutch charts in 1969.

Together with Radio Veronica -DJ Joost den Draaijer and Polydor boss Freddy Haayen, Koelewijn released the hit single Ome Sjakie under the name De Praatpalen . Maar dan kom ikke followed in the spring of 1969 . In the following year, the three recorded another number as The Freddies , this time in English: Comedy is over now made it to number 40 on the Dutch Veronica Top 40 hit list for a week .

1970s

Peter en zijn Rockets appearing on Op full toeren (1971)

In the early 1970s, Koelewijn tried his hand at radio DJing alongside his activities as a singer and producer. He could be heard for a while on Radio Luxembourg's Dutch-language program . As a producer, he worked with Ria Valk , Nico Haak , Willeke Alberti , Bonnie St. Claire, Ciska Peters , Herman van Keeken , Louis Neefs and Ronnie Tober, among others .

In 1970 he started the duo Hal Dorado together with his bandmate Harry van Hoof , which only resulted in two singles: The Bull and I (1970) and 240024 (1974) . Furthermore, he began to become more active again with the newly formed Rockets during these years . The first project was a new recording of the number Kom van dat dak af. Other successful singles from this time were Mij ​​oh mij , Robbie , Veronica Sorry (together with Piet Souer) and Angeline, m'n blonde sexmachine . He also produced (Like a) Locomotion in 1973 , Left Side's biggest hit.

In 1977 Koelewijn released his acclaimed solo album Het Beste In Mij Is Niet Goed Genoeg Voor Jou , which contained many songs with strong personal references. Among them were well-known numbers like KL 204 (Als ik God was) and Je Wordt Ouder Papa .

At the end of the 1970s, Koelewijn founded his own production and management company called Born Free . He recorded the number Een heel gelukkig Kerstfeest with the artists under contract with Born Free (besides himself, among others, Rob de Nijs and Saskia & Serge ) . During this period he cooperated with the producer Hans van Hemert, who was best known for songs he wrote for the pop group Luv ' . In 1979 he founded the girl group Babe , for which he wrote and produced almost all songs.

80s

Peter Koelewijn (1981)

In 1981 Koelewijn began to perform again with an accompanying band and recorded a number of records, of which Klap maar in ever handen was a number 1 hit in the Dutch charts. In addition to his solo projects, he had several hits with the babe singer Marga Bult during this time . A few years later he also wrote the song Rechtop in de wind for Bult , with which she came fifth in the 1987 Eurovision Song Contest . From 1983 to 1985 he worked again as a disc jockey, this time for the public broadcaster KRO on the Hilversum 3 station . From October 1983 to September 1984 he moderated the program Het leven begint na zeven and then until 1985 Hitjes en Datjes . He always called himself "Peterensky Koelewensky, the man with the beautiful blue eyes, floppy ears, flat feet and the dark brown voice". He was not allowed to play his own songs during the broadcasts, but occasionally accompanied other pieces live on the guitar.

In 1989 Koelewijn had another hit with Kom van dat dak af that this time he re-recorded with Dutch rappers MC Miker G & DJ Sven .

On the occasion of his fiftieth birthday, a best-of album was released in 1990 with songs he had produced called Koelewijn behoeft geen krans (“Koelewijn does not need a wreath”).

Since the 1990s

At the beginning of the 90s, Koelewijn landed another number 1 hit as a producer with the song Als Dick me hullep nodig heb by Johan & de Groothandel . He reached another position at the top of the charts in 1995 together with Rob Peters, the director of the music label RPC under the name Gompie : Alice, who the fuck is Alice? was also in the German charts at number 2. As a producer, he worked successfully with artists such as Grant & Forsyth , Lee Towers or the Belgian artists Helmut Lotti , Lisa del Bo and Michael Junior .

In 2007 he was awarded the “Radio 2 Zendtijd Prijs” in the Carré Theater in Amsterdam during a gala concert with various artists whose songs and albums he produced. Shortly afterwards, this resulted in the CD Peter Koelewijn, mijn mooiste liedjes.

On November 13, 2009, after 25 years, another solo album by Peter Koelewijn was released: Een Gelukkig Man contained 13 songs in Dutch. In 2011 Koelewijn appeared as a participant in the third season of the show De beste zangers van Nederland .

In recent years Koelewijn has been involved as a board member of the Buma Cultuur Foundation as well as in the organizations PALM ( Professionele Auteurs Lichte Muziek ), GONG ( Genootschap van Onafhankelijke Nederlandse Geluidsproducers ) and the Stemra , which advocates the interests of music producers and composers.

Controversial song about Anne Frank

In 1966 Peter Koelewijn wrote the song Anne Frank to a melody by Gaby Dirne. Polydor released the number in 1967 as a single, sung by the duo Laura Bordes and Yvonne de Nijs. The Rabbi Avraham Soetendorp and many others complained about the song on the television program Farce Majeure a photo of Laura Bordes was torn. This eventually led to the plate being withdrawn from the market. An incomplete radio recording still exists today and was released in 2002 by the Theater Instituut Nederland on the CD Uringende kwesties (for example: "Urgent Issues"). A full version of the song can now also be found on the YouTube platform .

Awards

• Golden Lion of Radio Luxembourg 1975
• Radio 2 Zendtijd Prize 2007
• Blijvend Applause Prize 2011
• TROS Kompas Œuvre Award

Trivia

• In the Jommeke comic Het brein van Gobelijn , reference is made to the song Kom van dat dak af when the monkey “Choco” climbs onto a roof.
• In the Dutch edition of the comic book Asterix in the Orient , reference is also made to the song when the character “Kakofonix” begins to sing the song and it then starts to rain.
• In the Dutch version of the Canadian cartoon series My Dad the Rock Star , Peter Koelewijn lends his voice to the character “Skunk”.

Discography

Albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)	Remarks
		NL
1977	Het best in mij is niet goed genoeg voor jou	NL9 (9 weeks) NL
1981	Peter Live	NL1 (16 weeks) NL	Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets
1984	Diep Water	NL35 (3 weeks) NL
1987	Het best van	NL45 (8 weeks) NL
1991	Koelewijn hoeft geen krans - Een halve eeuw Peter Koelewijn	NL54 (8 weeks) NL
1992	Het very best van Peter Koelewijn 1960-1992	NL51 (6 weeks) NL
2018	The Golden Years Of Dutch Pop Music	NL80 (1 week) NL

Other albums (selection)

• 2011: Nederlandstalige Popklassiekers (NL:gold)

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)		Remarks
		NL	BE F
1960	Kom van dat dak af	-	BE F1 (28 weeks) BE F	Peter en zijn Rockets
	Let me go	-	BE F9 (8 weeks) BE F	Peter en zijn Rockets
	Marijke	-	BE F19 (8 weeks) BE F	Peter en zijn Rockets
1971	Kom van dat dak af	NL8 (12 weeks) NL	BE F9 (11 weeks) BE F	Peter en zijn Rockets; Maxi single
1972	Mij ​​Oh Mij	NL15 (10 weeks) NL	-	Peter en zijn Rockets
1973	Angeline (m'n blonde sex machine)	NL8 (12 weeks) NL	BE F5 (13 weeks) BE F	Peter en zijn Rockets
1974	Robbie	NL14 (9 weeks) NL	BE F24 (1 week) BE F	Peter en zijn Rockets
	Veronica, sorry	NL8 (9 weeks) NL	-	Peter en zijn Rockets
1977	Ever Wordt Ouder Papa	NL21 (5 weeks) NL	-
1981	Klap maar in hand	NL4 (10 weeks) NL	BE F15 (5 weeks) BE F	Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets
	Kom van dat dak af (Live)	NL14 (7 weeks) NL	BE F18 (4 weeks) BE F	Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets
1982	Zolang De Moter Loopt	NL19 (5 weeks) NL	-	Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets
1983	Een Hete Zomer	NL16 (5 weeks) NL	-	Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets
	De Tijger is going	NL27 (5 weeks) NL	-	Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets
1984	De Sprong In Het Duister	NL27 (4 weeks) NL	-
1989	Kom van dat dak af	NL20 (6 weeks) NL	-	with Miker-G & DJ Sven
1996	Oranje Is Oranje Blijft ...	NL26th gold (2 weeks)NL	-	Sales: + 50,000

gray hatching : no chart data available for this year

Other singles (selection)

• 1961: 24,000 kisses
• 1972: De wolf (Peter en zijn Rockets)
• 1978: Kl 204
• 1979: Brigitte - miss sex-appeal / Bonnie
• 1983: Ik ben geen jo-jo (Peter Koelewijn en zijn Rockets)
• 1985: As het anchor het houdt wint het schip van de storm (with Marga)
• 1986: Parlez-vous français? (Peter Koelewijn en De Rockets)
• 1987: De loop van een geweer
• 1991: Kl 204 (as ik god was)

Guest Posts

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)	Remarks
		NL
1975	Rocco (Don't Go)	NL28 (5 weeks) NL	Bonnie St. Claire & Unit Gloria feat. Peter Koelewijn
1988	Gelukkig Kerstfeest	NL35 (3 weeks) NL	with the artists for het Ronald McDonald huis

Web links

Commons : Peter Koelewijn  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Official website of Peter Koelewijn

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Honderd keer pop in je moerstaal. In: musiqolog.nl. February 27, 2017, accessed August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
2. ^ Eddy Jansen: Peter Koelewijn keert terug naar de regio Eindhoven. In: ed.nl. August 1, 2017, accessed August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
3. ↑ Peter & Zijn Rockets. In: rateyourmusic.com. Accessed August 29, 2018 . 
4. ↑ Peter En Zijn Rockets - Kom Van Dat Dak Af. In: discogs.com. Retrieved August 29, 2018 . 
5. ↑ Mathijs Pennings: Oei oei oei (dat was me weer een loei) ': Peter Koelewijn over Johan Cruijff de zanger. In: omroepbrabant.nl. March 24, 2016, accessed August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
6. ↑ De Praatpalen. In: nldiscografie.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
7. ↑ The Freddies. In: nldiscografie.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
8. ^ Herinneringen aan de Hitparade van Radio Luxembourg. In: mediapages.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
9. ↑ Hal Dorado. In: discogs.com. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
10. ↑ ^{a b} Peter Koelewijn. In: jbproductions.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
11. ^ Babe [NL]. In: muziekweb.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
12. ↑ Legendary Peter Koelewijn nog tot 7 September 2015 in het witte paard te Blankenberge. In: weebly.com. July 19, 2015, accessed August 30, 2018 (Dutch). 
13. ↑ Peter Koelewijn - Albums from 1990 to 1999
14. ↑ Peter Koelewijn brings his own DVD uit. In: trouw.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
15. ^ Peter Koelewijn. In: nporadio2.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
16. ↑ Koelewijn rocks na vijftig jaar nog steeds. In: nu.nl. November 8, 2009, accessed August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
17. ^ Herman Roggeveen: Do, Peter Koelewijn and George Baker also in Beste Zangers. In: http://nlpop.blog.nl . February 25, 2011, accessed August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
18. ↑ Patrick van den Hanenberg: Geen sprankje lucht of light bij muzikaal eerbetoon aan 'Anne'. In: volkskrant.nl. May 6, 2008, accessed August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
19. ↑ Laura en Yvonne - Anne Frank. In: youtube.com. Retrieved August 29, 2018 . 
20. ↑ ^{a b} Awards. In: peterkoelewijn.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
21. ↑ Blijvend applause Prijs 2011: Peter Koelewijn. In: stichtingblijvendapplaus.nl. Retrieved August 29, 2018 (Dutch). 
22. ↑ ^{a b c} Chart sources: NL Singles NL Singles2 NL Albums BE1 BE2
23. ↑ ^{a b c} Awards: NL