Recent Appearance by George Kooymans

[westen44]

I don't know Dutch, but they seem to be going over his accomplishments and, obviously, giving him some kind of award. 

[Basvarken]

He was made honorary citizen of the town of Rijksevorsel in Belgium, where he has been living for over 50 years.
In the interview he tells us he can't play anymore, because his hands are all crooked. But he did sing some parts for Vreemde Kostgangers* a half year ago.

He looks frail. And even talking seems to be hard for him.
ALS is a vicious disease...



* that project came to a grinding halt when one of the three musicians (Henny Vrienten) died of cancer in april 2022

[uwe]

Sigh, the "pretty one" from Golden Earring, fate can be a bitch.



I just hope that the available treatments (there is no cure for ALS) will grant him a life worth living as long as possible. He still has that nice smile of his.

[westen44]

George Kooymans and Frank Carillo released their second and final album in June 2022.  The album is called "Mirage."  There is a song named that on the album, too.  The album includes a song called "Seasons" which was originally written for Dutch band Earth and Fire in 1968.

"It wasn't a conscious effort to make a CD.  We just wanted to write and record because we love doing what we do.  After a while, we realized that we had enough material recorded to put out a new collection so here it is."

--George Kooymans & Frank Carillo

[westen44]

I just found the video by Earth and Fire singing the song George Kooymans wrote for them.  He isn't the only one with major physical problems, though.  Now that female singer has Parkinson's. 

[uwe]

You sure can recognize his voice which has held up nicely. I only realized relatively late that he sang quite a bit with Golden Earring, initially I thought his voice was that of a younger Barry Hay.

Tragic to hear that about Jerney Kaagmann. There was no getting away from Earth & Fire's dreamy, yet infectious mock reggae-pop Weekend in 1979/80, it was number one in several European countries, Germany among them.



Earth & Fire always had that slightly weird mix of rather PROGish arrangements while Jerney's vocal lines were pure pop sometimes even crossing the line to easy listening/Schlager. But suitably catchy.



Almost 25 years later, even the horrors of what German "stadium techno" outfit Scooter did to Weekend could not prevent it becoming a hit yet again, it reached number two this time.



I've never mentioned Scooter here. You can guess why: There is such a thing as national guilt and shame, let me tell you!  And we're not talking about a couple of boobs in a music vid either. Their Electro-Marschmusik is god-awful, yet they were and are widely popular, and not just in Germany either. We're talking 30 million records and more than 80 gold and platinum awards - bad taste is everywhere.

[westen44]

George Kooymans did well with vocals up to the end.  I sometimes heard fans complain a little that he couldn't hit the high notes like he used to.  But that's something to be expected.  Almost no one can do that.  On the "Tits 'n Ass" album there are a few songs on there where George even sounds a lot like Barry Hay.  I thought that approach worked well, although I'm not sure how or why it happened.  As for the T&A album itself, I see it very underrated all the time.  Maybe the title has something to do with it.  I don't know.  I'll admit they could have used a better title.  But T&A would at least be in my top 5 GE albums. 

I'm sorry that for the most part America missed out on Earth & Fire.  They were a unique band that I'm sure I would have liked listening to more.  BTW, I've been reading some reviews of Earth & Fire albums.  It seems that Jerney Kaagman was recommended to the band by Barry Hay who had known her in The Hague rock scene. 

As for Scooter, that's truly horrible music.  Not even naked women in a video can salvage it. 

[Basvarken]

The project (that I mentioned earlier) called Vreemde Kostgangers will release their final album in march of this year.
Henny Vrienten insisted they'd finish and release the album after his passing.

Here's the first single off that record

[uwe]

They're singing Dutch! Sounds nice and I'd be immediately reminded of Golden Earring if I heard it anywhere.

[westen44]

I'll be looking for the Vreemde Kostgangers music in the future.  It's something I probably wouldn't have known about if I hadn't seen the info here.  You never know what you can find until you try.  For example, both Barry's and George's first solo albums are now available here after being hard to find for many years. 

[Basvarken]

This project started as a one-off jam at the 65 birthday party of Cesar Zuiderwijk. The new album wil be their third (and last)
Vreemde KostGangers > Vrienten, Kooymans, de Groot.
Henny Vrienten was a pop icon in the 80s as lead singer / bass player of Doe Maar. Plus he write a lot of film scores.
Boudewijn de Groot is/was a folk singer who gained fame in the (early) seventies.

All three of them very famous in The Netherlands.
But nobody ever thought they'd join forces.

I'm not a big fan of Kooymans' singing though.
Rinus Gerritsen is the one I like/admire... ;-)

[westen44]

Rinus Gerritsen is also my favorite.  But George Kooymans never tried to be the lead singer.  His contributions vocally, nevertheless, were substantial.  That's one reason why even if the band tried to replace him, it couldn't be done.  Without George Kooymans there is no Golden Earring. 

[uwe]

He has a voice I so much co-identify with Golden Earring, he can do no wrong with me.

Golden Earring are the Dutch Scorpions - minus the cringe factor. A national institution and a good one at that. I respect them for their longevity and for sustaining an original line-up for half a century, the developments their music took over the years and their guts to always try something different and not (re)plow once-found furrows of success again and again. I'm really fond of them.

[westen44]

Another thing I might add is how important "Twilight Zone" was.  According to Rinus (on their site) the band would have broken up if that song hadn't been a success.  Obviously, George Kooymans is the one who wrote the song.  That song is also what caused me to become a fan.  I was in New Orleans when that song came out.  I would turn on MTV and "Twilight Zone" would come on.  My response was WTF?  I had never heard anything quite like that.  The bass and guitar were mesmerizing.  I also very much liked the vocals on it by both Barry and George.  Like everybody else, I had heard of Radar Love.  But I hardly even knew Golden Earring existed until Twilight Zone.  Through the years, I eventually bought all their albums.  Plus, I saw them in person once, something I've mentioned on this forum a few times already. Golden Earring played somewhere I was unfamiliar with way on the outskirts of Rotterdam.   

[westen44]

He has a voice I so much co-identify with Golden Earring, he can do no wrong with me.

Golden Earring are the Dutch Scorpions - minus the cringe factor. A national institution and a good one at that. I respect them for their longevity and for sustaining an original line-up for half a century, the developments their music took over the years and their guts to always try something different and not (re)plow once-found furrows of success again and again. I'm really fond of them.

That's a key point about them having the guts to do something different.  Frankly, I get so tired of bands just rehashing their music over and over.