17 January 2021

Boudewijn de Groot

Dutch singer, songwriter, and actor Boudewijn de Groot (1944) is known as a troubadour with a Dylan-esque impact. In the 1960s and 1970s, he shot to fame in the Netherlands and Belgium with hits like 'Welterusten, meneer de president' (Goodnight Mr. President), 'Het land van Maas en Waal' (The Land of Meuse and Waal), and 'Jimmy' (1973). In the 1980s he started a new career as a composer of film music and as an actor. In the late 1990s, he made a very successful comeback as a singer.

Boudewijn de Groot
Dutch postcard by 't Sticht, Utrecht, no. AX 6631.

Boudewijn de Groot
Dutch postcard by Muziek Parade, Amsterdam, no. AX 6935.


Labeled as a protest singer


Boudewijn de Groot was born in 1944 in Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia).

In 1960, he met his future lyricist Lennaert Nijgh at the Coornhert Lyceum in Haarlem. At that time, De Groot was already singing in the style of Jacques Brel. Nijgh started to write his lyrics.

After their high school-period, they both went to the Dutch Film Academy. De Groot wanted to become a cameraman. There, Nijgh made the short film Feestje Bouwen/Building a party, for which De Groot wrote two songs. During a presentation, television journalist Ed Lautenslager became impressed with De Groot's talent and helped him to get a contract with record label Philips.

He also wins the preliminary of the Dutch talent show 'Nieuwe Oogst' (New Harvest). De Groot's first single, 'Strand' (Beach), appeared in 1964 and led to some media attention. His recurring appearances in the television show Kabaret Kroniek/Cabaret Chronicle made De Groot a minor national celebrity.

The singles 'Elegie Prenatale' (Elegy Prenatal) and 'De Morgen' (The Morning) are boycotted by most radio and TV stations because of the socially critical lyrics. His breakthrough came in 1966 with Lennaert Nijgh's adaptation of Charles Aznavour's song 'Une enfant de seize ans' (A Child of sixteen years), retitled 'Meisje van 16'.

He soon became a full-time singer and his first album was released by record label Decca. Much of Nijgh's lyrics included social criticism, so after the release of his first album in 1966 De Groot was labeled as a protest singer. This image was confirmed by his hit song 'Welterusten Meneer de President' (Goodnight, Mister President) on the Vietnam War.

During carnival 1967, 'Het Land van Maas en Waal' was released and shot to number 1. De Groot recorded songs like 'Verdronken vlinder' (Drown butterfly), 'Testament', and 'Beneden alle peil' (Below any level), which would later become successful but never entered the charts.

De Groot and Nijgh became influenced by the Flower Power movement during that time and created the album 'Picknick'. The songs sounded a lot like a mix of George Harrison's work on The Beatles albums and their own work. The album was well-received, and the single 'Picknick' was a hit. The duet 'Meester Prikkebeen' (together with Elly Nieman) entered the Top 10. 'Als de rook om je hoofd is verdwenen' (When The Smoke Around Your Head Has Gone) was a minor hit in 1968.

Boudewijn de Groot
Dutch postcard by 't Sticht, Utrecht, no. AX 6877. Photo: Decca.

Boudewijn de Groot
Dutch postcard by 't Sticht, Utrecht, no. AX 6939.

A definite comeback


In 1971, Boudewijn de Groot's record label released a compilation album Vijf Jaar Hits (Five Years of Hits). It sold over 100,000 copies and De Groot frequently appeared on the radio. Much of his old work was re-appreciated, and 'Als de rook om je hoofd is verdwenen' (When The Smoke Around Your Head Has Gone) became a hit again.

De Groot began working with Nijgh again, and they released the album 'Hoe sterk is de eenzame fietser' (How strong is the lonely cyclist) in 1973. The song 'Jimmy' became his greatest hit in 5 years, constituting a definite comeback. Boudewijn received two Dutch music awards, an Edison and a Gouden Harp.

In 1975, Boudewijn wrote the album 'Waar ik woon en wie ik ben' (Where I live and who I am) with his old classmate René Daalder. The single 'Ik ben Ik' (I Am Me) became a modest hit. De Groot moved to California a few months later for inspiration and did not return until 1977. He made no new records in this period but toured in Belgium and the Netherlands. One of the songs he wrote in California, 'Annabel', became a hit for singer Hans de Booy.

In 1980, his new album' Van een afstand' (From a distance) was released. It contained the single and the title song for the documentary film Een tip van de sluier/A tip of the veil (Frans Bromet, 1980). The single and film were not successes, but the album won an Edison. De Groot quit the music business in 1984 after the release of his 8th album, 'Maalstroom' (Maelstrom).

After his retirement in music, Boudewijn De Groot wanted to translate, compose film music and perform when asked. He composed the music for the TV series De familie Wijntak/The Wijntak family (1986) and for the films Lost in Amsterdam (Pim de la Parra, 1989), Let the Music Dance (Pim de la Parra, 1990) - in which he also acted, and a 1987 Dutch stage adaption of the hit musical 'Nunsense'.

In 1991, he acted in the musical 'Tsjechov', where he played the lead role of Anton Chekhov, and in 1995 in 'Het dagboek van Anne Frank' (The Diary of Anne Frank) where he played the role of Otto Frank. Under the pseudonym Frank de Groot, he has translated seven Stephen King novels and Scott Turow's 'Presumed Innocent' into Dutch.

De Groot appeared in the films How to Survive a Broken Heart (Paul Ruven, 1991), Affair play (Roeland Kerbosch, 1995) with Derek de Lint, and The Cold Light of Day (Rudolf van den Berg, 1996) starring Richard E. Grant. In 1996, De Groot released the album 'Een nieuwe herfst' (A new autumn). De Groot started going on tours again and he appeared in some TV-shows.

He started writing non-commercial albums along with Nijgh and released 'Het eiland in de verte' (The distant island) in 2003. Nijgh died in 2002. In 2007 De Groot issued his album 'Lage Landen' (Lowlands), which was recorded in Nashville. 'Lage Landen' reached the top of the charts in the Netherlands. After twelve years of touring in the Netherlands and Belgium, Boudewijn de Groot decided to take a sabbatical.

During 2009/2010 De Groot tours with his theatre show 'Wilde Jaren' (Wild years). In 2015 De Groot issued 'Achter Glas' (Behind glass). During the tour, he played songs from his post-comeback-era as well as rare older tracks. In 2016 De Groot formed the supergroup Vreemde Kostgangers (Strange Boarders) with Henny Vrienten (singer and bass-player of Doe Maar) and George Kooymans (singer and guitarist of Golden Earring). They successfully released two albums in 2017 and did sold-out tours consisting of collective songs and solo-material.

In 2018, De Groot released the album 'Even Weg' (Be right back), which he recorded with the tribute-band The Dutch Eagles. In 2020, De Groot appeared on the talk show De Wereld Draait Door/The world moves on to announce that he'll retire from performing after one last tour with Vreemde Kostgangers. Boudewijn de Groot is married to Anja Bak. He has three children; singer Marcel, actress Caya, and singer-actor Jim de Groot.

Boudewijn de Groot
Dutch postcard by Muziek Parade, Bussum, no. 7311.


Boudewijn de Groot performs 'Land Van Maas En Waal'. Source: The TeeVee Channel (YouTube).

Source: Wikipedia and Muziekencyclopedie.nl.

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