Kayakhistory

Edward (and Syb): Best Of Britain

2012-01-29T21:57:00.009+01:00

Date: friday 27 january 2012. Location: Goudse Schouwburg, Gouda, Holland. After their previous collaboration in "Motel Westcoast", Edward Reekers and Syb 'Scaliger' van der Ploeg joined forces again for a journey through old pop hits. This time it was the great British pop history that was in the picture.

Apart from Syb and Edward, singers were Maarten Peters and young Brenda van Aarsen. They were accompanied by a great band, with a fabulous saxophone/trumpet/clarinet/flute/violin player called Hubert. Syb and Maarten also played acoustic guitar, and both Edward and Brenda played a nice bit of piano!

I must say that I enjoyed Motel Westcoast, but "Best Of Britain" was even better! Mainly because of the chosen songs, but also thanks to the complete lack of weak spots, both vocally and instrumentally. Of course Edward was great, but it's also thumbs up for the other singers. Syb was great in the Rolling Stones songs, Brenda was a very good Adele, and Maarten showed his love for the Beatles in a beautiful way. The sold out theatre had a ball!!!

On the setlist, amongst others: Beatles medley, Stones medley, Kinks medley, Who medley, Old And Wise (Alan Parsons), Don't Stop Me Now (Queen), Clocks (Coldplay), Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pink Floyd), A Salty Dog (Procol Harum), Don't Give Up (Gabriel/Bush), In The Air Tonight (Phil Collins), Sweet Dreams (Eurythmics), Roxanne (Police), Dreadlock Holiday (10cc), Music (John Miles)

1972-2012

2012-01-25T20:57:00.003+01:00

Kayak was founded in 1972, which is 40 years ago. Plans for the 'jubilee year' 2012:

* a couple of concerts in february ---> may
* a theatre tour after the summer
* a mini-album with 2 new tracks
* (hopefully) a book about the band...

More old pictures...

2012-01-18T20:29:00.004+01:00

Kayak in Toppop

2012-01-18T20:05:00.000+01:00

From 1970 until 1988, "Toppop" was a wellknown music show on Dutch TV. Comparable to the English "Top Of The Pops", the show had artists in the studio as well as showing videos. Over the years, Toppop hosted many famous artists. In fact, some Toppop footage is unique as it features yet unknown artists that became famous later. David Bowie, Queen, The Ramones, Cliff Richard and Elton John are just a few of the artists that came over to Holland to appear in Toppop.

Kayak were regular guests. Here is a list of Toppop appearances (dates are the first dates of broadcast):

16 september 1974 Wintertime (studio)

4 october 1974 Wintertime (studio)

13 june 1975 We Are Not Amused (studio)

14 november 1975 Chance For A Lifetime (studio)
23 november 1976 Do You Care (studio)
1 october 1977 Starlight Dancer (studio)

8 february 1979 Ruthless Queen (studio)
17 may 1979 Phantom Of The Night (studio)

31 march 1980 Anne (promo)
19 may 1980 Periscope Life (promo)
20 march 1981 Seagull (studio)

Kayak in the Toppop studio

Max Werner also appeared as a solo artist:
??? 1979 Rainbow's End (studio, not broadcast)
24 april 1981 Rain In May (studio)

And Pim Koopman appeared a couple of times as a member of Diesel (1980/88) and The President (1983/84).

Kayak and ELO

2012-01-18T17:03:00.005+01:00

In one of my older blogs, I mentioned the Queen/Kayak concert in 1974. In April 1975, Kayak supported another (future) famous band: The Electric Light Orchestra, or ELO.

(www.jefflynnesongs.com / Raul Monclus)

This tour poster mentions 4 dates, 3 of which with Kayak. However, the list of old live dates on the official Kayak website only has the concert in Arnhem on it. For whatever reason, Kayak did not do the other dates...

High Tide Formation

2012-01-17T17:50:00.001+01:00

Some real Kayak history now: High Tide Formation. This band was formed in Hilversum, Holland, in 1968. Members were Chiel van Praag (piano), Ron van der Werf (drums), Pim Koopman (guitar) and Ton Scherpenzeel (bassguitar). In march 1970, they released a single. The instrumental "Fluffy" was written by Chiel van Praag. "White Walls" was a Scherpenzeel-penned track, with drummer Van der Werf on vocals. Chiel van Praag plays the piano, but Ton Scherpenzeel does the solo. The single made it to the Dutch "tipparade", a list of singles that were 'bubbling under' the real top-40.

It was also released as a promo ('Not For Sale')

And to my surprise, this single was also released in Germany!

High Tide Formation also played live. Here are some pictures from a concert at a school party in 1969, where HTF played together with Pepper 'n' Soul.

Balderdash (1968)

2012-01-17T17:28:00.000+01:00

Before Kayak, old friends Ton Scherpenzeel and Pim Koopman already wrote and played music. Around 1968, they formed a band called Balderdash: Pim on drums, Ton on bass and Fons Disch on guitar.

In the last picture, there is a 'typical' Balderdash setlist visible behind Ton. Confirming the fact that Balderdash played mainly Jimi Hendrix songs (but also that they were already writing their own songs!) here is an overview:

HEY JOE (JIMI HENDRIX)

PURPLE HAZE (JIMI HENDRIX)

SUNSHINE OF YOUR LOVE (CREAM)

LA-LA-LA-LIES (THE WHO)

STONE FREE (JIMI HENDRIX)

COME ON UP (YOUNG RASCALS)

FIRE (JIMI HENDRIX)

THE WIND CRIES MARY (JIMI HENDRIX)

STRANGE BREW (CREAM)

£SD (PRETTY THINGS)

ME NEEDING YOU (PRETTY THINGS)

BLUE CONDITION (CREAM)

CAN YOU SEE ME (JIMI HENDRIX)

OUT IN THE STREET (THE WHO)

MANIC DEPRESSION (JIMI HENDIRX)

BACK HOME (CUBY & THE BLIZZARDS)

RED HOUSE (JIMI HENDIRX)

FOXY LADY (JIMI HENDIRX)

SWLABR (CREAM)

WHEN PEOPLE TALK (ROB HOEKE)

COLLISION (BALDERDASH)

EVERYBODY NEEDS SOMEBODY TO LOVE (SOLOMON BURKE, ROLLING STONES)

HIGHWAY CHILE (JIMI HENDRIX)

MAY THIS BE LOVE (JIMI HENDRIX)

COME AND SEE ME (PRETTY THINGS)

Kayak meets famous film director!

2012-01-14T15:04:00.005+01:00

In my blog of september 28, 2009, I mentioned the Kayak/Jan Akkerman tour of 1977. I included this picture from the tour programme:

This photo was taken in a session with photographer Gijsbert Hanekroot. Another picture from that session is this rather special one:

picture: Gijsbert Hanekroot

Please note that there are not five men (the amount of Kayak bandmembers in 1977) present on the stairs, but six! The sixth person, at the very back, is Anton Corbijn. Nowadays a world famous photographer (for U2, Metallica and Coldplay, to name just a few...) and film director, back in 1977 he was a 'pupil' of Gijsbert Hanekroot... (and 'ghost member' of Kayak...).

I got in touch with Gijsbert, and he told me that the original photo (not a re-print or so) is for sale. Mind you, if you are interested: you are not buying a lucky shot by some amateur photographer. Hanekroot is a respected Dutch photographer, who worked for various magazines since the 1960's. That, and the ghost appearance of a future worldwide celebrity, makes this a valuable piece of work!

Old magazine adverts

2012-01-13T19:17:00.000+01:00

Not much new Kayak-activity at the moment, so let's focus on some Kayakhistory again: a couple of advertisements from the Dutch "Veronica" magazine. The first one is from March 1973 (!), the second one is from May 1975.

Some more adverts from the very beginning, published in magazine "Muziekkrant Oor":

An advert from the UK, around 1974/75:

And this one is from 1981:

Last(?) concert of the ABH-tour

2011-12-12T20:58:00.003+01:00

On sunday 11 december, the Mezz in Breda saw the last concert of the Anywhere But Here Tour. A tour that was very pleasant for both band and fans. Let me just say that it was just another great concert, and that it was good to meet so many old friends in the audience!

Luckily, it was announced that Kayak will embark on a theatre-tour after the summer of 2012. And to make it even better, they have added a couple of gigs in early 2012. Looking forward to that!!!

Live in Amersfoort, 19 november 2011

2011-11-20T21:47:00.016+01:00

Not counting the 2 radio sessions, the concert in Dordrecht was the only one of the current tour that I witnessed. Time for some more! I picked the city of Amersfoort... The venue ("The Basement") was filled nicely, and the crowd was more than receptive! Of course, the good reaction from the audience had a positive effect on the band, who (bathing in sweat) enjoyed themselves thoroughly.

Poor Joost was sweating even harder when he was about to play the solo in "Before The Angels Fell", but his equipment failed completely. After switching the thing off and on again it seemed to work just in time for the second solo, much to the relief of Joost who received a supporting applause as a bonus...

(Pictures: Henry Krul)

Compared to the Dordrecht show, "Wherever She Goes" was no longer on the setlist. Instead, "Behind The Scenes" was played. And there was an extra encore: "Undecided".

Cees van Leeuwen

2011-10-22T14:15:00.002+02:00

Cees van Leeuwen (born april 29, 1951) was Kayak's bassplayer on the first 2 albums. Before Cees, Kayak had a French bassist called Jean-Michel Marion. But Van Leeuwen was the first one to play bass on a Kayak record.

After he left Kayak, Cees went on to finish his studies. He became a well known lawyer, specialising in legal matters in the entertainment business. In july 2002, he became the Dutch State Secretary of Education, Culture and Science, under prime-minister Balkenende. When the Balkenende-government collapsed in may 2003, Van Leeuwen recorded a CD-single as a sort of farewell. The charity single was called "Balkenende Blues". Van Leeuwen wrote it, and recorded it with the help of Ton Scherpenzeel.

After the Kayak-reunion in 2000, Van Leeuwen quite often visited a Kayak concert. On april 3, 2003, he visited the "Merlin"-show in Leiden. During the encores, Van Leeuwen joined the band on stage, and played bass on "Wintertime" (see pictures above). A couple of weeks later, the same thing happened at the famous Carré theatre in Amsterdam.

Nowadays, Van Leeuwen has his own Executive Search Company. The company La Search, of which he is the co-founder, is based in Amsterdam.

The Most Underrated Van In The World...

2011-10-10T19:03:00.005+02:00

Kayak on Radio 2 again...

2011-10-09T21:10:00.015+02:00

On saturday 8 october 2011, only a 12 hours after the end of the Dordrecht show, Kayak played in a pub in Utrecht. The performance was for the radioshow "Spijkers Met Koppen". They played 5 songs: Life Is Good, Passing Cloud, Anywhere But Here, Most Underrated Band... and Ruthless Queen.

I won a Kayak prize!!!

2011-10-09T21:05:00.002+02:00

After the concert in Dordrecht, I collected the prize that I won at the 'album pre-order-raffle': a drumskin that was used for the recordings of the new album (and it was visibly used!). It was already signed by Hans, and in Dordrecht I collected autogrpahs from Cindy, Ton and Edward too. Thanks, Kayak!

First show of the ABH tour: Dordrecht

2011-10-09T17:11:00.021+02:00

(all 'live' pictures on this page: Martijn Stadhouders/Bibelot)

Friday 7 october 2011 saw the start of the Anywhere But Here Tour, at the cosy "Bibelot" in Dordrecht.

Let me just say that I was pleasantly surprised. Surprised by a tight and enthousiastic band, that didn't make many mistakes for a première. Rob completely messed up the words to Sweet Revenge, in spite of the 'guide' that hung in front of him. He blamed his sunglasses for not being able to read the words...

Rob's 'guide' to Sweet Revenge... didn't help much!

Apart from that: fantastic, and a wonderful setlist with lots of new material and some unexpected oldies! My Heart Never Changed was -in my opinion'- a typical Max Werner song, but Cindy gave a brilliant performance!
The setlist:

Kayak on Radio 2

2011-10-02T10:49:00.007+02:00

To promote the new album, Kayak is doing some radio shows. The first one was at the 'TROS Muziekcafé' in Hilversum, for Radio 2. They played for almost an hour, with the following setlist:
Hunter And Prey, Credible Lie, Chance For A Lifetime, Passing Cloud, Starlight Dancer, Anywhere But Here, Ruthless Queen, Most Underrated Band In The World, Life Is Good.

new album, new single

2011-09-12T18:57:00.003+02:00

They are here: the album "Anywhere But here" and the download single "Life Is Good" (remix). Buy!

Fan meeting

2011-09-12T18:36:00.006+02:00

Last sunday, another fan meeting was organised. As usual, a fine event, with the following highlights:
* a rare showing of a complete 'Nostradamus'-concert from 2005

* the first time that the new album was played in its entirety (in public)

* the presence of Cindy, Joost, Rob, Jan and tourmanager Hans. Drummer Hans couldn't make it in the end, much to his regret.

* song-by-song comment from Cindy, Joost, Edward and Rob (if Rob ever stops making music, he can always become a comedian!)

* a skype connection with Irene and Ton, who thus 'virtually' joined the party for about 15 minutes...

* my great photographs (as always!)

I still find it incredible that band members take the time to join the fans, and that they are always available for a chat. Joost had just finished 2 weeks of non-stop working, Jan came rushing in from a performance, and I am sure that the others also could have had 'better' things to do on a sunday afternoon. But they all came, and took part in this intimate and relaxed event. Thanks guys (and girl...)!

New Kayak album in september!

2011-08-05T20:09:00.002+02:00

It has been quiet on my blog for a while; I moved to a new house, so I did not have much time. And there really wasn't very much Kayak news to tell. But that is going to change: september 2011 will see the release of the new Kayak album "Anywhere But Here"!

New compilation box: Dutch Invasion

2011-05-08T21:57:00.004+02:00

A new box with 10 CD's and one DVD is now available: "Dutch Invasion". Each CD is a compilation of a certain Dutch band, and Kayak is one of them. Other bands are Golden Earring, Earth & Fire, The Shoes, The Outsiders, Q65, The Cats, The Motions, Cuby & The Blizzards, Sandy Coast.

Tracks on the Kayak CD: Lyrics, Mammoth, See See The Sun, Wintertime, We Are Not Amused, Chance For A Lifetime, Still My Heart Cries For You, Do You Care, Starlight Dancer, Want You To Be Mine, Phantom Of The Night, Ruthless Queen, Anne, Lost Blue Of Chartres, Periscope Life, Beggars Can't Be Choosers, Total Loss, Seagull, The King's Enchanter, Who's Fooling Who

The DVD includes Toppop performance of "Starlight Dancer"

Hans Eijkenaar plays with Jan Akkerman

2011-04-25T19:33:00.033+02:00

On 23 april 2011, I was one of a very lucky 500 people who witnessed the presentation of the Eddy Christiani Award to Queen-guitarist Brian May. In a small theatre in Vlissingen, my all-time guitar hero accepted the award for his great contribution to the electric guitar. Much to my delight, he was kind enough to join Dutch singer Van Velzen and his band for "Don't Stop Me Now" and "Tie Your Mother Down", and he played his infamous "Brighton Rock"-solo!

In some of my earlier blogs I mentioned a link between Queen and Kayak. And 23 april 2011 added another one: the evening was hosted by Leo Blokhuis, who was also the MC at the Pim Koopman Tribute concert. Ex-Kayaksinger Bert Heerink did a rendition of Queen's "Who Wants To Live Forever", and the drummer in his band was Kayak's brand new drummer Hans Eijkenaar.

Hans was also a member of the band that accompanied one of the support acts: Jan Akkerman (winner of the Award in 2009). So on one night, I watched my favourite guitarist Brian May, and one current and one ex-member of my favourite Dutch band Kayak!
Hans playing with Jan Akkerman
Left: Leo Blokhuis. 3rd from left: Hans Eijkenaar

We Are One, World Peace Is Possible

2011-03-12T09:31:00.006+01:00

Recently, a single has been released featuring Ton Scherpenzeel (piano), Cindy Oudshoorn (vocals) and Hans Eijkenaar (drums). The single is called "We Are One", and it is composed by Ton. It is part of a campaign by the "World Peace Is Possible"-foundation. This foundation aims to bring world peace closer all over the world. You can find more info at http://www.worldpeaceispossible.com/

Pim Koopman Tribute DVD - Preview Party

2011-03-10T11:37:00.017+01:00

Sunday 6 march 2011 saw the release of the DVD from the Pim Koopman Tribute concert. Some dedicated fans organised a 'preview party' in the village of De Meern. The party was attended by around 90 fans, who created a fine atmosphere. Of course the DVD was played for the first time, once again showing the conflicting emotions (and beautiful music) of that night in november 2010. Highlight of the day: Michael Robinson -a close friend of Pim and one of the performers at the actual concert- delighted the audience with some great stories, and with another rendition of his 'Song For A Friend'. Just like at the Paradiso last year, he delivered an impressive performance. Another great thing was that almost the entire band attended this meeting, thus showing that they appreciated the initiative. Joost and Rob couldn't make it, but Ton and Irene showed up, as did Edward. Cindy and her Patrick were responsible for making the DVD in the first place, so they were present too (and took care of selling the first copies). New drummer Hans also walked in, as did Jan (who had just finished the sunday afternoon performance of the stage musical 'Soldier Of Orange'). Every member was happily available for a chat or for signing autographs, and Hans gave the impression that he felt very welcome as 'the new guy'... Special mention deserves the presence of Pim's partner Marrigje. It must have been difficult for her, but -as far as I can judge- she looked at it in a very positive way (and was very willing to take her old place behind the merchandise!).

Cindy and Ton walked on stage to thank the organisers, and Ton expressed his happiness about the continuation of Kayak, the new album and the upcoming tour. All in all a well-organised event which everybody enjoyed!

I am sure you will find the links to some good pictures when you work your way through the Kayak guestbook. Here are just a few snapshots that I took in my distinctive amateur way, and a couple of flix I stole from Bob Dijksen (hope you don't mind, Bob!).

Found it!

2011-02-10T19:17:00.004+01:00

In my blog of April 2007, I mentioned a rather strange promo 7", with "Mammoth" on one side, and a song by Lucifer on the other. It took me a while to find the actual single, but I found it!

A Tribute To Pim Koopman, Amsterdam

2010-11-23T18:33:00.038+01:00

On a cold evening in november 2010, the famous Paradiso in Amsterdam hosted the Pim Koopman Tribute Concert by "Kayak and Guests". A good crowd had turned up to pay tribute to Pim and to his music. Good for the band, and especially for Cindy who -with her partner Patrick- was largely responsable for organising the concert.

It goes without saying that it was a difficult night for the band. Especially Edward and Cindy could not hide their emotions all the time (as if they wanted to). But Also Rob Vunderink -not losing his dry humour- was touched by it all.

One of the most difficult tasks was reserved for Hans Eijkenaar. One of Holland's best drummers (and admired by Pim), he was invited to occupy the drum stool. And he did that in a perfect way!

I will try not to make this review too long. I will concentrate on the second half of the concert, in which the guest singers turned up. But first, here is the setlist of the first half, just to give you an impression (click to enlarge):

The instrumental "23" is a new Joost Vergoossen composition, referring to the date of Pim's death. A beautiful guitar/keyboard piece... The rest of the set is wellknown material, though "Well Done" (written by Pim after his mother's death) was a new addition. Songs like "Because I" and "Hold Me Forever" brought tears to the eyes of band members and audience...

After the break, the band (plus keyboardist Hans Voerman) was introduced by Leo Blokhuis, the unofficial Dutch 'pop professor'. From the balcony of the Paradiso, he spoke about Pim and introduced the guests of the night.

For more info about Pim's work with some of the guest artists, please visit my weblog "Kayak Projects". For now, let me say that Pim has worked with so many artists as a producer, writer or musician, and that much of his work was a far cry from Kayak. But all guests received a warm welcome from the Kayak fans, and they all did a very good job!

First of all, there was Pussycat. Or at least: lead singers Toni Willé and her sister Marianne, doing "Teenage Queenie".

The next artist was Alides Hidding, of Time Bandits fame. His funky "I'm Specialized In You" was the first song to 'swing away' the rather serious mood of the first half.

Okkie Huysdens, Pim's partner in The President, worked his way through their hit "You're Gonna Like It".

Then it was time for Caren from Maywood to climb the stage. With her uptempo "Rio", she kept up the joyful spirit.

Left photo (c) Bob Dijksen

Right photo (c) Fotografie Walter Goyen, http://www.h4p.com/

The Vitesse song "Rosalyn" was sung by Syb van der Ploeg, who needs no introduction...

José Hoebee (artist's name just José) did a rendition of her hit "I Will Follow Him", which kept up the good spirit on stage and in the audience.

A true highlight was the contribution of Michael Robinson. Pim Koopman not only produced a couple of records for this Irish/Dutch singer, but the two were also close friends. Robinson is not a very wellknown artist, so many of the fans didn't know what to expect. But with just his voice, his guitar and his own tribute song "Friend" he got the entire Paradiso absolutely silent for 4 minutes (followed by a long ovation). Very well done indeed, Mr. Robinson!!!

Photo (c) Fotografie Walter Goyen, http://www.h4p.com/

Then, it was time for a small reunion of Diesel , a band that featured Pim and Rob Vunderink (amongst others). Singer Jeroen Englebert, who also used to form a 'songwriting team' with Pim, gave us a great "Samantha" and (together with Rob) of course a rendition of Diesel's big international hit "Sausalito Summernight".

It was up to Kayak again to end the show. "Ruthless Queen", "Chance For A Lifetime" and "Starlight Dancer" were the perfect warm-up for a fitting and beautiful end: "Avalon", performed by all the artists. With a minute-long applause and a final bow to the giant picture of Pim at the back of the stage, this unique, sad, cheerful, serious, joyful, special evening came to an end...

photo above: (c) Fotografie Walter Goyen, http://www.h4p.com

The afterparty in the basement was a bonus... again: many tears of joy and sadness, hugs, kisses etc. It was good to see many ex-Kayak members walking around: ex-bassists Cees van Leeuwen, Bert Veldkamp and Peter Scherpenzeel were there. But also Peter's wife Katherine (ex-backing vocalist), guitarist Rob Winter, and 'Nostradamus'-members Marjolein Teepen and Marc Dollevoet. Other 'celebrities': ex-minister (and huge fan) André Rouvoet, Chiel van Praag (who was a member of High Tide Formation), Hans van Hemert (producer of Kayak's first demo recordings), and members of Syb van der Ploeg's band "De Kast".

Pim Koopman Tribute Concert

2010-11-11T21:37:00.001+01:00

Joost and Syb in "Symphonic Queen"

2010-09-20T20:22:00.003+02:00

Even more Kayak/Queen links: last saturday I saw Joost Vergoossen as an extra member of the Northern Netherlands Orchestra, in their concert "Symphonic Queen". In the theatre in Gouda (sold out), the orchestra performed classical arrangements of famous and less famous Queen tunes. Joost had to stick much to the original Brian May solos, but in "We Will Rock You" and the beautiful "Mother Love", he got the chance for his own interpretation. Well done Joost, and I enjoyed our chat afterwards!

Syb van der Ploeg (of Nostradamus-fame) was one of the lead singers, even dressing up in drag for "I Want To Break Free". Also, he did very well in "The ShowMust Go On".

Nothing to do with Kayak, but he deserves mentioning: American/South African singer Joseph Clark. one of the other lead vocalists. Great voice, nice guy and obviously a Queen fan. Fantastic rendition of the obscure Queen-oldie "Nevermore". Very well done, Joseph!!!

Marjolein Teepen in 'We Will Rock You'

2010-09-05T16:27:00.006+02:00

Since I was a kid, I have had two favourite bands: Kayak and Queen. There are a couple of parallels between the two, and on friday 3 september 2010, another parallel was added...

Marjolein Teepen joined Kayak in 2005 for the 'Nostradamus'-tour. Five years later, she was chosen as one of the leading players in the Dutch version of the Queen-musical 'We Will Rock You'. I was there at the première on 3 september, where Queen-guitarist Brian May joined her and the rest of the cast on stage. So, Marjolein has the honour of being the only person who has collaborated with Jeroen Kooistra's two most loved bands...

Picture above: The Dutch cast of 'We Will Rock You' meet the remaining members of Queen in London. Marjolein is on the left, Queen drummer Roger Taylor is next to her. Guitarist Brian May is 3rd from the right.

And some Johan history... The Vampires!

2010-08-05T13:15:00.005+02:00

(picture above: Johan standing on the right)

Johan Slager is 'in the picture' on this weblog at the moment. From Robert Schaap in the USA, I received some great pictures from the 1960's. The band that you can see here is called 'The Vampires', and had a young Johan Slager on lead guitar (and aformentioned Robert Schaap on rhythm guitar). They used to play a lot in dancings on the infamous Zeedijk in Amsterdam. Their setlist consisted of songs by the likes of The Shadows, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Thought I'd share these nice pieces of pre-Kayak history!

(these 2 pictures: Johan is second from right)
Thanks a lot to Robert/Bob (also known as Jim) Schaap!

Even more Johan activity...

2010-07-21T11:28:00.005+02:00

Every summer, the "Parade" tours through the 4 biggest cities of Holland. It is a theatre, dance and music festival, in a setting that looks a bit like a fair or a circus. Part of it is aimed at a younger audience. And it was in one of those childrens' shows that Johan Slager played the guitar. The three-piece band was more or less a vehicle for the two actresses, but they also had their own moment with a version of "I Want To Hold Your Hand" (lead vocals: Johan). It was great fun to witness Johan in yet another musical environment! See the pictures that I took on 19 july in the city of Utrecht...

Kayak projects

2010-06-27T11:52:00.000+02:00

I have decided to make a new weblog, dedicated to the work of Kayak's (ex-)members outside the band. With the upcoming "Tribute To Pim Koopman"-concert, I thought it was good to start with the endless list of artists with whom Pim worked. You can find the weblog at http://kayakprojects.blogspot.com/

Pim's drumsticks

2010-06-08T17:19:00.003+02:00

With thanks to Bob Dijksen for the pictures, here are some nice pieces of history: Pim Koopman's drumsticks from july 1975, given away after a concert at the famous 'Sarasani' on the isle of Texel, where Kayak played quite often in their early days. And one from october 2008, from the even more famous Paradiso, Amsterdam.

Johan Slager activity

2010-04-18T12:49:00.018+02:00

Sometimes, fans ask me if I know what ex-Kayak guitarist Johan Slager is up to nowadays. The answer is simple: he is still making music. He works at home in his studio, and he is a member of the 'houseband' for 2 Dutch pop choirs (along with Carwin Gijsing, who played in an embryonic Kayak).

(Pictures below: Johan doing his thing with the pop choirs...)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And: he enjoys himself in 2 bands, playing mostly in the Dutch pub circuit. One of the bands is a Bob Dylan coverband, with lead singer Michel van Dijk (Alquin, Brainbox, Ekseption, etc. etc.)

The other band is a rather recent collaboration with friends who also have a long history in the Dutch music scene. The band is called Sideman, and they focus on swinging rock and bluesrock. They play songs by almost everybody (Beatles, Stones, Dr. John, Mott The Hoople, Little Feat, Neville Brothers, the list is endless!). No pretentions, their main goal is a good time for band and audience! You can hear Sideman on http://www.youtube.com/

Sideman are (besides Johan on guitar and vocals):
- Vincent Hiemstra (vocals, guitar. Past bands: Workmates, Shoreline, Van Dijk's Dylan, Oscar Benton Bluesband etc.)

- Burt van der Meij (drums. Past bands: Bintangs, Carlsberg etc.)

- Werner Cornand (vocals, bass. Past bands: General Electric, Henk Westbroek, The Zoo, Personnel, Diesel etc.)

From the 1980's

2010-03-18T19:00:00.013+01:00

Journey through time...

Phantom Of The Night LP (Italy) with extra tracks

2010-03-18T09:08:00.008+01:00

The Italian issue of the LP 'Phantom Of The Night' is a bit special: it opens with the song 'Starlight Dancer', and ends with the short 'Starlight Dancer (conclusion').

Compilation CD's

2010-02-27T13:38:00.034+01:00

After drummer Pim Koopman passed away, for a couple of months I didn't feel like doing anything with this weblog. But life goes on, and so do I. Recently, there have been some questions about Kayak compilation CD's and their contents. I'll try to shed some light...

In 1988, EMI Holland released a CD, simply entitled "Kayak". It was released in their "Compact price"-series. Quite logically, it focuses on the years 1973-1975 (Kayak's time with EMI). The same CD was re-released in 1996, with only a slightly different sleeve, and a different title: "Gold Collection".

Tracks: Moments Of Joy, Chance For A Lifetime, Serenades, Life Of Gold, Mammoth, They Get To Know Me, See See The Sun, Patricia Anglaia, Wintertime, If This Is Your Welcome, Lyrics, Mireille, Trust In The Machine, We Are Not Amused, Reason For It All, His Master's Noise, Ballet Of The Cripple
---------------------------------------------------------------
Also in 1988, Vertigo/Phonogram released "The Best Of Kayak", with material from 1977-1981.

Tracks: Starlight Dancer, Want You To Be Mine, Ruthless Queen, Keep The Change, Phantom Of The Night, Anne, Periscope Life, Total Loss, Merlin, Seagull, Lyrics (live), Chance For A Lifetime (live), Irene (live), Eyewitness (live)
---------------------------------------------------------------
For many fans it is hard to understand that Kayak's most successful album,"Phantom Of The Night" was never released on CD in its own right (at least, not officially). In 1988, Phonogram thought it wiser to release an 18-track compilation of songs from Starlight Dancer and Phantom Of The Night.
Tracks: the 2 albums, minus Sweet Revenge, Dead Bird Flies Forever and First Signs Of Spring

Ten years later, they (sort of) corrected this mistake with the release of "3 Originals". This double CD has the complete albums Starlight Dancer, Phantom Of The Night and Periscope Life. And some extra tracks were added: Theme from Spetters, Ballad For A Lost Friend, Ivory Dance, I Want You To Be Mine (USA version), Irene (USA version)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Best Of Kayak was also released in North America, in 1996. Almost exactly the same sleeve as the European CD, but with different tracks. It was released by Renaissance Records, and rumour has it that Kayak gets no royalties at all from the Renaissance releases. This CD was re-released by Renaissance in 1999, under the title "Classics".

Notable about this CD: it has some tracks from the Eyewitness album, but they include the audience noises from the original LP (not featured on the Eyewitness CD).
Tracks: Keep The Change, Starlight Dancer, Ruthless Queen, Irene (live), Lyrics (live), Chance For A Lifetime (live), Phantom Of The Night, Want You To Be Mine (European version), Eyewitness (live), Anne, Merlin, Seagull, Total Loss, Periscope Life
---------------------------------------------------------------
In 1998, Dutch budget company Disky issued "Basic - Original Hits". Most songs are from the EMI-years, but Starlight Dancer and Ruthless Queen are also present. For some reason, this CD was released with 2 different sleeves.

The tracklist has some mistakes; Track 5 ('Trust In The Machine') includes the instrumental 'Mireille'. And track 8 ('Mireille' according to the tracklist) is actually 'Woe And Alas'...
Tracks: Ruthless Queen, They Get To Know Me, Mammoth, See See The Sun, Mireille, Trust In The Machine, Wintertime, His Master's Noise, Woe And Alas, Serenades, Lyrics, We Are Not Amused, If This Is Your Welcome, Chance For A Lifetime, Alibi, Reason For It All, Starlight Dancer
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Not a compilation in the true sense of the word: In 2000, EMI put the first 2 albums in a 2CD-box.

---------------------------------------------------------------
"The Singles +" was released by BR Music in 2001. It is a nice collection of all the singles that Kayak released before 1982. The "+" probably stands for the inclusion of Max Werner's solo hit "Rain In May".

Tracks: Lyrics, Mammoth, See See The Sun, Wintertime, We Are Not Amused, Chance For A Lifetime, Still My Heart Cries For You, Do You Care, Starlight Dancer, Want You To Be Mine, Ruthless Queen, Phantom Of The Night, Anne, Spetters (actually "Lost Blue Of Chartres"), Periscope Life, Total Loss, Seagull, The King's Enchanter, Who's Fooling Who, Rain In May (Max Werner solo)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are looking for a nice Kayak compilation, "Greatest Hits And More" (Universal, 2001) could be a good one. A double CD with 33 songs from 1973-2000. Includes the only song that Kayak sang in Dutch: "Boezem" (1976).
Tracks: CD1: Mammoth, Lyrics, See See The Sun, Wintertime, Mountain Too Rough, Chance For A Lifetime, Life Of Gold, Relics From A Distant Age, Evocation, Ivory Dance, Boezem, Nothingness, I Want You To Be Mine (USA version), Irene (USA version), Starlight Dancer, Dead Bird Flies Forever, Where Do We Go From Here

CD2: Ruthless Queen, Anne, Phantom Of The Night, No Man's Land, Stop That Song, Lost Blue Of Chartres, Periscope Life, Niniane, Seagull, Total Loss, Only You And I Know (live), Eyewitness (live), Frozen Flame, Close To The Fire Sweet Revenge (live), When Hearts Grow Cold (live)
--------------------------------------------------------------
Three years later, in 2004, Universal came up with yet another compilation CD: "The Universal Masters Collection". A rather random selection from the years 1976-1980.
Tracks: Starlight Dancer, Want You To Be Mine, Ruthless Queen, Do You Care, Relics From A Distant Age, Back To The Front, No Man's Land, Nothingness, Keep The Change, Dead Bird Flies Forever, Turn The Tide, Ballad For A Lost Friend, Stop That Song, Phantom Of The Night, Anne, Periscope Life, Total Loss

And EMI didn't want to stay behind: they also released a compilation in 2004: "The Very Best Kayak Album Ever" is the rather ambitious title... But at least it is a mix of songs that Kayak recorded for different record companies. And it has the long version of "Bulldozer", which makes it worth the purchase.
Tracks: Chance For A Lifetime, Wintertime, Anne, Mammoth, See See The Sun, Lyrics, Royal Bed Bouncer, Starlight dancer, Ruthless Queen, Trust In The Machine (incl. Mireille), Serenades, Reason For It All, Life Of Gold, Want You To Be Mine, We Are Not Amused, If This Is Your Welcome, Bulldozer (long version)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The year 2008 saw the celebration of "50 years of Dutch Popmusic". Nine "classic" bands were put back in the spotlight by Universal, with the release of a compilation CD. Kayak was one of them...
Tracks: Relics From A Distant Age, Do You Care, Back To The Front, Nothingness, Starlight Dancer, I Want You To Be Mine, Dead Bird Flies Forever, Turn The Tide, Sweet Revenge, Ruthless Queen, Phantom Of The Night, No Man's Land, Keep The Change, Lost Blue Of Chartres, Anne, Periscope Life, Stop That Song, Total Loss

---------------------------------------------------------------
As far as I know, the latest compilation is from 2009. And it's good-old Renaissance again, who released another (illegal?) compilation in the Americas. I think the proper title is "Phantom Of The Night - The Very Best Of Kayak". Some people actually thought that it was "The Best Of Phantom Of The Night", but that seems a bit strange if you look at the tracklist:
Keep The Change, Phantom Of The Night, Starlight Dancer, Want You To Be Mine (European version), Anne, Merlin, Chance For A Lifetime, Ruthless Queen, Periscope Life, Total Loss, Lyrics, Eyewitness (live, with audience sounds), Seagull, See See The Sun, Do You Care, Irene (Eyewitness version, with audience sounds), Still My Heart Cries For You, Wintertime, We Are Not Amused

---------------------------------------------------------------
And let's not forget the "Anniversary Box" from 2008. Apart from the brilliant Paradiso show, the box contains 2 CD's with tracks chosen by fans. Also includes an unreleased song ("Dear Lover"), and 3 songs that were previously available on Japanese CD's only.
CD1: See See The Sun, Lovely Luna, They Get To Know Me, Mountain Too Rough, If This Is Your Welcome, Life Of Gold, Still My Heart Cries For You, Relics From A Distant Age, Daughter Or Son, Phantom Of The Night, Daphne, Anne, Lost Blue Of Chartres, Love's Aglow

CD2: Frozen Flame, Forever, Icarus, Tradition, Avalon, The Last Battle, Friend Of The Stars, When Hearts Grow Cold (live), Broken White, Cried For Love, Love Lies, Never Before, Dear Lover.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pim Koopman 1953 - 2009

2009-11-24T20:32:00.004+01:00

Then after the last encore,

We'll play on for evermore...

Many pictures, not so many words...

2009-11-22T17:16:00.025+01:00

The concert in Barendrecht, on 20 november, was a very good one. A sold out theatre, a band in great shape, and very good sound (except for a crackle in a speaker in a couple of songs). No long review, here are some pictures instead... (click to enlarge). Thanks to Michel Felperlaan for some of these photos!

Pim and Rob V. in Concrete

2009-11-17T10:32:00.002+01:00

After "The Last Encore", Pim Koopman left Kayak, only to return in 1999. Between 1977 and 1999, Pim was involved in many solo projects. Best known are The President (with Okkie Huysdens) and Diesel, with Rob Vunderink. However, before Diesel, Pim and Rob had already worked together. In 1977 they released a single under the name Concrete. The single was titled "Oh Lord" (by Rob Vunderink), and the b-side was "Stop Wastin' Your Time" (by Pim Koopman). I guess Rob sang lead vocals and played guitar, whereas Pim probably did drums, keyboards and backing vocals...

I never had this single in my collection, until recently. In one of my favourite record shops in Utrecht, I found it for 50 eurocent. The single is not in perfect condition, and it comes without the picture sleeve. But of course I am happy to have it anyway!

Europe/Sfinx

2009-11-08T14:04:00.000+01:00

After the split in 1982, Ton Scherpenzeel started a new band. Initially, this band played some live shows under the name Kayak. But the new songs that Ton had written, were different in style from Kayak. Therefore, they decided to give the band a new name: Europe. This band had nothing to do with the Swedish band of the same name, that scored a worldwide hit with "The Final Countdown". The Dutch Europe was not that successful... They released 3 singles and one LP. The LP is now available on CD through www.fonos.nl.

The members of Europe: Ton Scherpenzeel (keyboards), Johan Slager (guitars), Bert Veldkamp (bass), Roger Wollaert (drums), and John Philippo (vocals). Singer Philippo sadly passed away in 2000.

The song "Right Before My Very Eyes" was the b-side of the single "Hideaway". It was not included on the LP, but it was a bonustrack on the cassette release (CD's were not invented yet...). Unfortunately, the Fonos CD does not have this song either...

In 1979, Ton Scherpenzeel and John Philippo already worked together; Ton produced the LP "Holy Cat" by John's band Sfinx.

Zoetermeer, 6 november 2009

2009-11-07T13:55:00.003+01:00

The concert at the 'Boerderij' in Zoetermeer was certainly not a perfect one. Not everything was played note perfect, and the sound engineer had his own bit of trouble. But there was enough to make up for that: the venue -one of the best ones in Holland- was filled almost to capacity (around 650 people), and that created a very nice atmosphere. The support act only made that atmosphere better; For Absent Friends have been around for quite a while, and they delivered a tight performance, with a mix of older and newer work.

I don't think that the mistakes was more of a problem to the band than it was to the audience; Kayak received very enthousiastic reactions during and after the concert. For the first time, I witnessed the shorter 'rock venue'-setlist. Four songs were dropped: Because I..., When The Seer Looks Away, Undecided and For All The Wrong Reasons. Always a pity to hear less songs than in the theatres, but the rest of the setlist obviously had more than enough great songs.

Enough time after the show to chat with the band members, who were once again very accessible and willing to sign autographs, smile for cameras, etc.

On to the next one!

Street Organ 'De Flamingo'

2009-11-02T19:46:00.005+01:00

Amongst all the new stuff, here are some nice pictures of the 'Flamingo', the street organ that played such an important part in "Mammoth", way back in 1973.

Kayak in Zaandam, 23 october 2009

2009-10-24T15:57:00.007+02:00

My second chance to see Kayak on their 2009 tour was at 'De Kade' in Zaandam. It was one of the few 'rock venues', as opposed to the seated theatres. Normally that would mean a shorter setlist with less ballads. But Kayak couldn't decide which songs to skip, so they just did the 'theatre set', including the halfway break. (See my Franeker review for setlist).

Compared to the opening show in Franeker, I saw a much more relaxed band. The few mistakes that were made, were laughed away, and Rob Vunderink proved himself a brilliant MC (and singer, and guitar player...). Apart from his funny remarks, he had a serious story this time. It was about his 17-year old son, who had been involved in a bus accident in Spain the week before. His injuries were serious, but luckily not life threatening. But one of his fellow students didn't survive the crash...

Back to the music. The sound was much fuller than last time, and it was good to hear Ton's keyboards so well, as well as all the backing vocals. Thanks to all this, the new material impressed me much more than it did before. Until now, I wasn't too keen on songs like Turbulence and Nobody Wins, but on stage these songs sound much more dynamic than on CD. Cindy really does a wonderful job all the way through! Let The Record Show, For All The Wrong Reasons and Because I... were other highlights from the LFU-stuff, as well as -of course- Before The Angels Fell.

Helped by a small but effective lightshow, the band gave a true pop/rock performance, which I seem to prefer to the quieter presentation at theatres. But that's just my opinion...Once again 'Sad To Say Farewell' was omitted. It is supposed to be on the setlist, but was it ever played so far during the tour??? Anyway, if Kayak goes on like this, I forgive them for the rather 'safe' setlist, and I will certainly enjoy their efforts again in Zoetermeer (6 november)!

For the Zaandam gig, I was joined by my good friend (and long-time fan) Mike from Lancashire, UK. He took the following pictures. They may not be HD quality, but in my opinion they perfectly show the enthousiasm of the band!

Kayak in Franeker, 10 october 2009

2009-10-11T14:12:00.020+02:00

Here are some pictures from the first "LFU" concert in Franeker. This includes the opening speech by Mr. André Rouvoet, Holland's minister of Family and Youth, and deputy prime minister. Mr. Rouvoet has been a fan for years, and doesn't hesitate to promote Kayak in the press and on television.

I'll write a review about the LFU-tour soon, hopefully after the Zaandam concert. The tracklist in Franeker was:

Rhea, Letters From Utopia, Coming Up For Air, Freezing, Irene, Close To The fire, Because I..., Merlin, When The Seer Looks Away, Niniane, Let the Record Show, Nobody Wins, (break),

Turbulence, Alienation, Undecided, Before The Angels Fell, For All The Wrong Reasons, Mammoth, See See The Sun, Act Of Despair, Selfmade Castle, Starlight Dancer, Chance For A Lifetime

Encore:Ruthless Queen, Full Circle. Also on the list was Sad To Say Farewell, but they forgot to play it...

UK Tour 1977 with Jan Akkerman and Kaz Lux

2009-09-28T20:20:00.008+02:00

In march 1977, famous Dutch guitarist Jan Akkerman and singer Kaz Lux went on a UK tour to promote their "Eli" album. Akkerman had already made a name in bands like Brainbox (also featuring Lux) and Focus. On their 1977 tour, they took Kayak with them as special guests. I don't have too much information about the tour, but it seems that it was aborted after a couple of shows.

The tour schedual (I think these are the shows that did take place):
02-03 Brighton, Dome
03-03 Hanley, Victoria Halls
04-03 Lancaster, University
05-03 Sheffield, University
06-03 Manchester, Apollo
08-03 Birmingham, Hippodrome
09-03 Oxford, New Theatre
10-03 Portsmouth, Guild Hall
11-03 Bristol, Colston Hall
12-03 Bournemouth, Winter Gardens
13-03 London, New Victoria Theatre

On eBay I recently bought a tourprogramme (without the dates, unfortunately), which also had two pages dedicated to Kayak. Does anybody have additional info about this tour? It was quite special, as it was one of the very few times that Kayak played outside Holland!

Please note that the band picture features a unique line-up: apparently Pim Koopman had already been replaced by Charles Schouten, but Bert Veldkamp is still in this picture. Did he also do the UK tour, or was Theo de Jong a member of Kayak by then???

New Kayak Fansite

2009-09-18T22:01:00.002+02:00

A nice new Kayak fansite was launched recently. At http://www.kayakmusic.com/ you will find a nice design, coupled with valuable news and info. Still constantly under construction, but a very promising website!

Edward Reekers promo CDR's

2009-08-26T19:43:00.007+02:00

To promote his latest album, Edward issued two CDR-singles to radio stations in Holland. Both "I Love You Anyway" and "Child Of The Water" came with picture insert.

The "Not Quite Farewell"-tour 2009

2009-07-08T19:08:00.000+02:00

You may know that Kayak will tour Holland again in the autumn of 2009, to celebrate the new album "Letters From Utopia".

Some theatres billed this tour as a 'farewell tour'. You can read a statement from the band about this on the official website http://www.kayakonline.nl/. You can also find the tourlist there.

Kayak in Nederpopzien

2009-04-29T16:30:00.021+02:00

In 1973, Kayak was the first band to appear in a new music show on Dutch TV: "Nederpopzien". In 1975, Kayak also featured in the final show. I am happy to be the owner of the two shows on DVD. Above you see some pictures from 1973, including the admission ticket. (Thanks to Frank Lieffering and Johan Slager).

Songs 1973: See See The Sun, Hope For A Life, Mammoth, They Get To Know Me, Lyrics, Reason For It All, Tune Nederpopzien (played by Kayak)

Songs 1975: If This Is Your Welcome, Alibi, Mountain Too Rough, Bulldozer, Said No Word, Wintertime, Moments Of Joy, We Are Not Amused, Bury The World

In November 1973, Dutch music paper "Oor" featured a special about Kayak's Nederpopzien performance. It had interviews with the band and their manager, Frits Hirschland. It was on this occasion that the interviewer misunderstood Max Werner's last name, calling him Max Werler. The band adapted this, and called him "Max Werlerofzoiets" ("Maxwerlerorsomethinglikethat") on the back sleeve of the first LP.

His Master's Noise???

2009-04-16T10:25:00.000+02:00

In 1974, the second Kayak LP was released. The original title was "His Master's Noise". But the story goes that this suggested title would lead to problems with the record company "His Master's Voice". In the end Kayak chose for the simple title "Kayak". The LP is also known as "Kayak II" and "Alibi".

But did you know that there was also a different sleeve intended for this album? Here you find the picture of the originally intended sleeve. Sorry that it's such a bad quality picture, but it's the only one I could trace...

According to Max Werner and Johan Slager, a deciding factor in the choice for the sleeve was Beach Boys producer Terry Melcher. He was working in the same studio as Kayak at the time. When asked for his favourite sleeve design, he immediately chose the wellknown 'hand' sleeve. (Thanks to Johan Slager for this additional info).

New USA Compilation CD

2009-03-12T14:45:00.003+01:00

A couple of days ago, a brand new compilation CD was released in the USA. The title is "Phantom Of The Night - The Very Best Of Kayak". The label is Renaissance Records (which probably means that Kayak knows nothing about this release, and won't receive any royalties? The same thing happened with the previous Renaissance compilation CD)

The CD has 19 songs:

Keep The Change, Phantom Of The Night, Starlight Dancer, Want You To Be Mine, Anne, Merlin, Chance For A Lifetime, Ruthless Queen, Periscope Life, Total Loss, Lyrics, Eyewitness, Seagull, See See the Sun, Do You Care, Irene, Still My Heart Cries For You, Wintertime, We Are Not Amused

Close To The Fire Demos (1995)

2009-02-16T12:52:00.012+01:00

In the 1990's, Ton Scherpenzeel and Pim Koopman worked together again after a long time. They collaborated on a couple of songs, without thinking about a possible Kayak reunion. Working with Ton and Pim were: Rob Winter (guitar, later to join Kayak), Arthur Polini (backing vocals (and bass???)) and singer Alex Toonen. Arthur and Rob had played together in the band of Dutchman Robby Valentine, whose second album was produced by Pim. Alex Toonen (better known as A.T.) was lead singer of Dutch progband For Absent Friends from 1988 until 1998.

No record company seemed interested in the demos, so nothing really happened. That is, until 1997, when Max Werner offered his vocal talents. Nothing was wrong with A.T.'s vocals, but Max' voice brought back the Kayak feel. The rest is history...

Alex Toonen (with For Absent Friends, 1994) Arthur Polini playing bass (with Robby Valentine, 1992)

Recorded songs (all written by Ton Scherpenzeel):
Close To The Fire
All Over Again (later appeared on "Night Vision")
Dream Child
Two Wrongs
Crusader
Frozen Flame
Love Lies (Max Werner version later used as Japanese bonustrack)
Here Today
Cried For Love (Max Werner version later used as Japanese bonustrack)
Worlds Apart

I don't think anybody will sue me for bringing you this taster: "Here Today", beautifully sung by Alex...

http://www.box.net/shared/008et21ccx

There also seem to be demo recordings with Max Werner's vocals. I have never heard these recordings, but I was told that some songs actually benefit from not yet having the full production and arrangements that the final versions had.

DVD Pre-release party

2008-12-08T18:35:00.018+01:00

On sunday 7 december 2008, youth centre "Azotod" in De Meern was the location for the 'pre-release-party' of the Anniversary DVD. It was the very first time that the DVD of the complete Paradiso concert was shown. The party was organised by a couple of dedicated fans, and they had done a great job. A very relaxed atmosphere in a nice setting, and -to make it even more special- Cindy, Pim and Edward were present on behalf of the band. A good time was had by all, as these pictures show (oh, by the way: fantastic DVD!!!)

As a present, MC Peter Lek gave the band members a CDR (compiled by... eeh me, actually) with pictures from the rich Kayak history.

Another Kayak compilation CD

2008-10-23T11:32:00.007+02:00

Whilst the fans are waiting for the new Kayak DVD and the accompanying 'fans choices' CD's, yet another Kayak compilation CD (with 18 tracks) has seen the light of day. In 2008, it was 50 years ago that the first real Dutch rock and roll song was released; the start of "Nederpop" (Dutch pop music). This is celebrated with TV specials, special concerts and CD's. Kayak are one of the "Classic Bands" in Dutch pop that deserved the release of a compilation CD.

There is also a various artists-compilation CD, featuring "Ruthless Queen". But more special is the release of a 'rarities'-compilation. That one has "Fluffy", by pre-Kayak band High Tide Formation!

Kayak-trio at "Tour de Terras"

2008-10-20T18:47:00.006+02:00

It wasn't announced on the official Kayak site, but on 30 august 2008 a 'trimmed down' Kayak performed at the "Tour de Terras" festival in Deventer, Holland. The line-up was Cindy, Rob and Edward. They played a set of 4 songs, which was repeated a couple of times on different locations in the city. "Ruthless Queen" was played, "Undecided" and "Want You To be Mine". Anybody knows what song nr. 4 was???

Here are some pictures that I found on the Internet and that I got from Harry Janssen (Thanks, Harry!)

Pre-Nostradamus tunes from 1999

2008-08-20T16:45:00.006+02:00

Ton Scherpenzeel has worked regularly with Dutch theatre company Opus One. Their 1999 production "Klokkenluider van de Notre Dame" ("The Hunchback Of Notre Dame") was one of the musical productions for which Ton wrote the music. And this is an interesting one: some of the themes that Ton wrote were later used again for the Kayak album "Nostradamus".

The track "Het Hof Der Wonderen" ("The Court Of Miracles") evolved into "Dance Of Mirrors", as you can hear here:
http://www.box.net/shared/4i7knjmapu

and the Nostradamus Overture (as well as some other parts) was based on "Verlaten En Alleen" ("Lost And Alone"):
http://www.box.net/shared/uy555mdpi9

Is this a new discovery? Is Ton guilty of self-plagiarism? I don't think so; In interviews and in one of his blogs on the Kayak site, Ton has explained this recycling of tunes: the Opus One productions are only performed for a short time, and it is very unlikely that they will ever get a re-run. And the music was released on CD, but the CD's were only sold to a handful of people. Ton really liked the tunes, and he thought it a shame if nobody would ever hear them again. He therefore decided to re-use them for Kayak.

Copyright on the tunes: 1999 Ton Scherpenzeel / Opus One
More info on Opus One: visit www.opusone.nl

Kayak and Orchestra, 25 april 2008

2008-04-26T19:40:00.017+02:00

The first part of the "Coming Up For Air" tour ended in Leeuwarden. But on 25 april, Kayak played a combi-concert with the Thomas a Kempis Orchestra from Zwolle (Cindy's hometown). In a magnificent theatre (with a huge stage!), more than 900 people were there to watch this special occasion. Roughly speaking half of them were Kayakfans, the other half came especially for the orchestra.

The orchestra played a couple of rocking instrumentals (a great Van Halen guitar intro, Queen's 'We Will Rock You' and 'Innuendo', a Santana medley). Edward helped them out in 'MacArthur Park' and 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale', Cindy and Joost did 'Hold Me Forever', and Cindy sang 'Acid Queen' from the rockopera Tommy. The first part ended with Cindy, Edward and Orchestra doing an excerpt from Jesus Christ Superstar.

After the break, Kayak played: Merlin, Ninane, Freezing, Selfmade Castle, Lyrics/Wintertime/Mammoth/See See The Sun, Irene, Alienation (with orchestra), Chance For A Lifetime, Act Of Despair, Undecided, Coming Up For Air, Ruthless Queen (+ orchestra) and for the encore: Starlight Dancer (+ orchestra).

Here are some photos from this special concert, in which Kayak impressed the audience with a great performance! (click to enlarge)

(and here's a picture I stole from the website of the orchestra: www.thomasorkest.nl, picture taken by Robin Schoemaker)

Tickets from 2008

2008-04-25T10:16:00.016+02:00

I had ordered myself not to see too many Kayak concerts in 2008. In the end, I still managed a few (8 to be precise)...

(a 'Sold Out' message, stuck on the door at De Romein in Leeuwarden. "A true Kayak rarity" Ton replied laughing, when I presented it to him to have it autographed...)

Kayak singles from far, far away...

2008-04-05T11:11:00.003+02:00

Kayak records were not only released in Holland. Very often the band didn't know about it, but Kayak singles can be found all over Europe, in Japan, South America and South Africa. I don't have many foreign singles, but here are 4 different ones from South Africa: One Way Or Another/Periscope Life, Seagull/The Sword In The Stone, Merlin (edit)/Can't Afford To Lose and Boogie Heart/Now That We've Come This Far.

From Peru: Want You To Be Mine

Spanish promo for Starlight Dancer

New album Edward Reekers in the making

2008-04-01T19:56:00.004+02:00

Since a couple of weeks, Edward Reekers has been working on a new solo-album (working title: "Child Of The Water"). One of the people helping him out is Syb van der Ploeg (backing vocals). From what I heard, the album will have most songs written by Edward, and two covers (one being a Midge Ure song called "Breathe")

(picture: Edward at work, 28 march 2008)

Zaandam, 28 march 2008

2008-03-29T17:03:00.013+01:00

Together with my friends Mike and Julie from England, I went to see the gig in Zaandam. Most of the 2008 Kayak shows that I have seen so far, were in theatres. This time, it was a small but atmospheric rock venue.

What can I say? A very enthousiastic and inspired performance, combined with the usual craftsmenship. As always, a good time was had by all...

Here are some photos from the soundcheck and the actual concert (click to enlarge).

Kayak non-album tracks from 1990 - now

2008-03-24T11:02:00.008+01:00

If you have all Kayak studio albums on vinyl, you still miss a few songs. And even the CD re-releases with bonustracks don't cover everything. Here is an overview of 'special tracks' from 1990 until the present day. I have only included songs that were released officially.

* Ivory Dance '94: Not surprisingly, a remake of 'Ivory Dance'. Bonustrack on the 'Eyewitness' CD.

* Cried For Love: Bonustrack on the Japanese edition of the 'Close To The Fire'-album. In 2008, this song was included on the "Anniversary Box".

* Love Lies: See 'Cried For Love'.

* Never Before: Japanese bonustrack on 'Night Vision'", later also on "The Anniversary Box" (2008)

* Merlin Medley: not a song in its own right, this mix of Merlin-tracks was included on the promo CD-single 'Friendship And Love'.

* Beat The Clock: Bonustrack on the CD-Single 'Undecided'.

* Dear Lover: Only available on the "Fans Choices" CD in "The Anniversary Box" (2008).

Kayak non-album tracks from the eighties

2008-03-24T10:37:00.010+01:00

If you have all Kayak studio albums on vinyl, you still miss a few songs. And even the CD re-releases with bonustracks don't cover everything. Here is an overview of 'special tracks' from the 1980's. I have only included songs that were released officially.

* Theme From 'Spetters': Kayak did the soundtrack of this Dutch film. The theme tune was released as a single. The tune can be found on CD: 'Greatest Hits And More' and '3 Originals'. Mind you: the compilation 'The Singles' has a song called 'Spetters', but that is in fact 'Lost Blue Of Chartres' (which was also in the film).

* Total Loss: a single from 1980. It was a bonustrack on the original 'Periscope Life' CD. The song is also on 'Greatest Hits And More' and 'The Singles'.

* What's Done Is Done: B-side of 'Total Loss'. On CD, this song can only be found on the (hard to find) original CD of 'Periscope Life'.

* Monte Carlo Rallye: In 1981, (the management of) Kayak and Earth & Fire sponsored the Dutch Opel Team in the famous Monte Carlo Rallye. A joint single was released, on which Kayak did a version of 'Total Loss' with different lyrics. This version is not included on any Kayak CD!

* The Car Enchanters: A promo single from 1981, for Sikkens Paints. The tune of 'The King's Enchanter', but with lyrics about some new kind of car paint. The original single is quite rare, but the song is a bonustrack on the 'Eyewitness' CD.

Kayak non-album tracks from the seventies

2008-03-24T09:42:00.010+01:00

* We Are Not Amused: A single from 1975. Included on many Kayak compilation CD's. Also a bonustrack on the CD of the second album.

* Boezem: The 'Week of the book' is an annual event in Holland. Book buyers receive a present in the shape of a free book. There is also a special present for the younger people. In 1976, that free gift for the youth was an LP called 'Zing Je Moers Taal'. The album was compiled by Holland's best known DJ/presenter, Ad Visser (of 'Toppop' fame). Many well-known Dutch artists performed poems written by Dutch authors. Kayak did a poem by Harry Mulisch.

On CD, the song is included on the compilation 'Greatest Hits And More'.

* Ballad For A Lost Friend: Same melody as 'Boezem', but with English lyrics. In the USA it was on the 'Starlight Dancer' LP. In Holland, it was released in 1978 as b-side of the single 'Phantom Of The Night'. Included on the CD's '3 Originals' and 'Universal Masters Collection'.

* Irene (USA Version): Originally on the USA-LP 'Starlight Dancer', and the b-side of the Dutch 'Starlight Dancer'-single. This USA-verison (is it a demo?) is different from the one on the Dutch LP. It is also a bonustrack on the '3 Originals' CD.

* I Want You To Be Mine: The USA-LP 'Starlight Dancer' has this alternate version of 'Want You To Be Mine'. And the CD '3 Originals' has the American version on it, but with some minor differences (probably a different studio outtake?).

* Ivory Dance: Instrumental, b-side of the single 'Ruthless Queen'. On CD: '3 Originals' and 'Greatest Hits And More'.

Richard Zoer replaced Jan on bass

2008-03-18T18:44:00.004+01:00

At the gigs of 29 february, 1 and 7 march, Jan van Olffen had other commitments. He was replaced by Richard Zoer. I was there in Spijkenisse (7 march) and I was amazed by the professional way in which Richard coped with this challenge. Well done Richard!!! (photo: Arjen van Stel)

CD-Singles

2008-02-11T21:27:00.001+01:00

Kayak has not released many CD-singles. I think these are all of them...

This one is a single by De Kast, the Dutch band that played an important role in the Kayak reunion in 2000. The version of Ruthless Queen is played live by De Kast and Kayak together, at a concert in Arnhem (Holland).

The first "Coming Up..." concert

2008-01-08T20:32:00.000+01:00

On friday, 4 january 2008, it was time for the first of many "Coming Up For Air"-concerts. It was also the first day that -at the venue- the new album was for sale, so nobody really knew what to expect.

Kayak immediately tried to 'rock our socks off', with 3 new songs in the first 20 minutes. It is still very hard to judge the material (at the time of writing, I still have not heard the album completely...), but the new stuff seemed to have quite a heavy basis. And that would mean that Kayak has not chosen to copy anything they did in the past. Some of the new songs -at first impression- could almost be compared to bands like Arena or the Dutch gothrockers Within Temptation. And Cindy's voice really suited this kind of music! Edward, as usual, was the master of the softer songs.

I was not too impressed by the sound and the stage presentation in the first half. It was a typical "premiere", and everybody just tried to play as faultless as possible. Indeed, not many mistakes were made, but the whole thing looked and sounded a little 'stiff'. But I guess that's nothing more than logic.

After the break, the sound was better (at least, from where I sat), and the band seemed to loosen up more. Almost every song was accompanied by video images. Very often, this worked more than OK. Sometimes, I found myself looking at the screen constantly and almost forgetting that there was a band playing 'live' at the same time. And on other moments, it was strange to see Bert Heerink, Max Werner or other ex-members in large pictures, whilst hearing Edward, Cindy or Rob singing...

From the new album, I think 9 songs were played. The 'oldies' in the show were not very surprising: Ruthless Queen, Starlight Dancer, Only You And I Know, some songs from Merlin and Nostradamus, and a medley of the very early singles. But it was certainly good to hear 'first-timers' like Sad To Say Farewell and Where Do We Go From Here.

I hope to be able to give a better review after I have got used to the new songs. In the meantime, here are some pictures, and a positive review from a regional paper. The headline says: "Kayak steamrolls into the new year". The author was very impressed by the heavier new stuff, and also liked the 1973/74 material. He was not too keen on the 'bombastic, orchestral and ballet' stuff from Merlin and Nostradamus...

The pictures were taken by my good friend Max Demont from Switzerland, who traveled 900 kilometers (and back) to see 2 Kayak shows. More of his pictures can be seen at: http://www.rire-sous-cape.ch/counting-out-time/kayak.htm

Coming Up For Air Tour

2007-11-14T19:24:00.000+01:00

January 2008 will see the release of the brand new Kayak album "Coming Up For Air".

In that same month, the "35th anniversary tour" will start. I already have tickets for the concerts in Zoetermeer and Spijkenisse, but somehow I think this is just the beginning...

Edward Reekers solo singles (vinyl) / Euro Song Contest 1984

2007-08-24T21:56:00.003+02:00

Apart from being in Kayak, Edward Reekers was always busy in the music scene. Singing on other people's records, doing songs and spoken word for (cartoon) movies and children's TV-shows, doing commercials and jingles, etc.

He also released quite a few solo singles, as well as two solo albums. Here you find a couple of 7" solo singles from Edward. Sometimes under his own name, sometimes as a member of a project (in this case "Friends" and "Style"). The single "Flaming Star" has Edward's name on it, but the picture also shows the members of the band he had with him at the time, called Concord.

In 1984, Edward took part in the Dutch preliminary rounds of the Eurovision song contest. He played 2 songs: "Dief In The Nacht" (Thief In The Night) and "Doe Wat Je Voelt" (Do What You Feel). They ended at 6th and 7th place. I am still not sure if these songs were ever released as a single, but you can see and hear Edward's 1984 performances on YouTube.

The big winner that year was female singer Maribelle. Her song "Ik Hou Van Jou" (I Love You), won the contest, and "Maar Vanavond" (But Tonight) was the runner-up. The latter was composed by Edward. Maribelle represented Holland at the Eurovision Song Contest in Luxembourg with "Ik Hou Van Jou". She reached the 13th position.

Kayak and Queen in 1974

2007-07-14T16:12:00.000+02:00

On 8 december 1974, British rockband Queen played at the Congresgebouw in The Hague, Holland. Kayak were support act (although some people say it was in fact a 'combi-concert', organised by EMI Records).

Queen were a relatively new band at the time. Like Kayak, their first album was released in 1973. At the end of 1974 they had just had their first European hit with "Killer Queen". Of course, later Queen became one of the biggest bands of all time. But at the The Hague concert in 1974, probably more people were there for Kayak, and not so much for Queen...

The members of Kayak don't really have special memories of this gig, although Max Werner does remember getting some 'presentation-tips' from Freddie Mercury, and Johan Slager seems to recall that Queen-guitarist Brian May watched part of the Kayak show backstage, and complimented Kayak afterwards. Ton Scherpenzeel mainly remembers Queen playing 'loud and not quite subtle'...

(the photo shows Johan Slager in action at that concert, with Queen monitors in front of him)

Ton Scherpenzeel Solo Albums

2007-07-08T12:27:00.000+02:00

As a solo-artist, Ton Scherpenzeel made 3 albums. The first one was "Le Carnaval Des Animaux", in 1978. This was an adaption of the famous classical piece by Camille Saint-Saëns. On this album he was assisted by (amongst others) Theo de Jong on bass and Max Werner on drums. The original LP was released by Ariola Records. Years later, www.fonos.nl took care of a re-release on CD.

In 1984, Ton was a member of British band Camel. For his second solo album "Heart Of The Universe" he worked with singer Chris Rainbow (Camel, Alan Parsons Project), and Camel-guitarist Andy Latimer played on one track. The original LP and CD were released by CNR Records. The CD has been unavailable for years, but some time ago Ton re-released it independently.

Under the pseudonym "Orion", Ton released an instrumental CD called "Virgin Grounds" in 1991. The music on this CD was composed for a TV documentary called "Conquer The Arctic".

Rarity???

2007-04-20T17:28:00.000+02:00

Every now and then, a Kayak rarity is discovered. This particular single is one that I had never seen before: a single with "House For Sale" (1975) by Dutch band Lucifer on the A-side, and Kayak's "Mammoth" on the B-side. It was offered for sale on eBay, but my Swiss friend Max made a higher bid than I did, so he ran away with the single. Anybody else who has this for sale??? It is obviously a Dutch promo, and the cat. nr. is 1A 006 26412. It was released by Bovema Negram...

Meeting Johan and Max (again...)

2007-02-25T14:37:00.000+01:00

On 24 february 2007, I was invited to Johan Slager's house. It was good to see Johan and his family again, and as a 'bonus', Max Werner came along as well! We had a beer and a chat, and as always it was early hours before we knew it! A big thanks to the Slager family for their hospitality!

(More photos at http://maxwerlerofzoiets.blogspot.com)

Kayak at Omrop Fryslan

2007-02-21T21:13:00.000+01:00

On the afternoon before the concert in Drachten, Kayak did a radio interview for Omrop Fryslan, a regional station in the northern province of Friesland. Cindy, Ton and Edward also did a couple of live songs: First Signs Of Spring and When Hearts Grow Cold. (Pictures courtesy www.omropfryslan.nl)

The final Kayakoustic concert in Drachten

2007-02-20T20:49:00.000+01:00

On 16 february, 2007, Kayak played their final Kayakoustic show in Drachten. Apart from seeing another great concert, I had the honour of being invited to the afterparty (along with some more die-hard fans). It was good to share a beer with these great guys and girls! Also nice: meeting my old Swiss mate Max (who had travelled almost 1000 kilometers to see this concert) and my English pals Judith and David. And it was also nice to see ex-Kayak-bassplayer Bert Veldkamp and 'Scaliger' Syb van der Ploeg in the audience.

Max Demont arrived in time to witness the soundcheck. So instead of the usual concert photos, here are some pictures from the soundcheck... Merci, Max!

I'd like to thank Kayak for a fantastic Kayakoustic tour, the chats, the autographs, and for being so kind to the fans! Luckily, there are plenty of new plans for 2007/2008. See you all soon!!!

More offensive pictures...

2007-01-07T15:27:00.000+01:00

The pictures from my previous post can now also be seen at the official Kayak website (with my full consent). I promised Ton not to use the 'naked in the Jeep' photo (but I can't guarantee that others will not publish it!). But, thanks to archivists like Johan Slager and Frank Lieffering (thanks, guys!), I have even more pictures, featuring Kayak posing (in)voluntarily...

(Above: Did you know that German Schlager singer Heino auditioned as Kayak's singer???)
(Below: no comment...)

Ton Scherpenzeel's weblog of 7 january 2007

2007-01-07T11:18:00.000+01:00

Did you read Ton Scherpenzeel's weblog on the official Kayak site? Here's what he is talking about...

De Advokaatjes/The Plan

2007-01-02T21:24:00.000+01:00

In 1981, it was decided that Irene, Bert Veldkamp and Bert's girlfriend (also called Irene) should record a single in Dutch. There was a fourth person involved, but I still have not found out who that is. The single was meant for the Dutch "carnaval" festivities. Dutch carnaval is a yearly event, often accompanied by silly music with nonsense lyrics. Not to anyone's surprise, the single (released under the name "De Advokaatjes") didn't chart. The songs on the single were composed by Ton and Irene, but they used the pseudonym "T&I Klare". The titles of the songs: "Knijp 'Es In Mijn Nek" and "Ik Durf Onder Ede Te Verklaren". There is some video footage of the making of the song, and at least it seems that the makers had a good time recording the song. My copy of the single is autographed by one of the Irenes. During the "Merlin - Bard Of the Unseen"-tour, she (by this time Bert Veldkamp's ex-wife, by the way) ran the merchandise stand...

Also in 1981, Ton released a solo-single as "The Plan". On his own website, Ton states that he only was the producer, but it is clear that he wrote the two songs (together with Irene), sang lead vocals and played most (all?) instruments. The song "If This Ain't Love" isn't bad at all, but it didn't impress the radiomakers or the single buying public enough to make the charts.

Kayakoustic in Zoetermeer, 9 december 2006

2006-12-21T21:29:00.000+01:00

At the "Boerderij", a venue perfectly fit for bands like Kayak, the band did another of their 'electric' Kayakoustic concerts. This particular one was a pretty good one, with all members in great form, and with a very receptive audience. As a happy Pim Koopman said after the gig: "this is exactly the reason that we still do live shows!!!". I also caught very satisfied reactions from Cindy, Ton and Edward. And it was certainly one of the best shows for the merchandise stand!

Some nice-to-know things:
* The Kayakoustic shows so far have had people in the audience from Holland, Germany, Norway, the UK, Spain, Venezuela and the USA. And probably from other countries???

* The concert in Hoogezand (23 november) was recorded for -hopefully- a CD release. But there were some problems with the recordings... Kayak still hope that the recordings can be used, but they will also record the Ermelo show of 31 january 2007.

* The Zoetermeer setlist (slightly different than the ones before): Intro See See The Sun, What's In A Name, Only You And I Know, Anne, Hold Me Forever, You're So Bizarre, First Signs Of Spring, Daughter Or Son, Epilogue-The Fate Of Man, See See The Sun, Wintertime, Royal Bed Bouncer, When Hearts Grow Cold, Merlin, The King's Enchanter, Branded, Lyrics, Act Of Despair, Starlight Dancer, Chance For A Lifetime, encore: Want You To be Mine/Ivory Dance, Ruthless Queen.

Ten Ride Ticket

2006-11-18T21:20:00.000+01:00

By 1971, Ton and Pim had formed a new band. They had two names: "Alta Quies", and "Ten Ride Ticket". Under that last name, they recorded some demos. Besides Ton (keyboards, bass, vocals) and Pim (drums, vocals), members were Carwin Gijsing (trombone, piano, vocals) and Johan Slager (guitars, vocals). Of course, Johan, Pim and Ton went on to form Kayak in 1972...

The titles of the demo recordings:

1. Lost In Hell (Koopman)
2. Questions Of A Thousand Dreams (Scherpenzeel)
3. Scadia (Koopman)
4. Gentle Season (Gijsing)
5. Green-Eyed Morning (Koopman/Scherpenzeel)
6. Catch Your Dreams (Koopman/Scherpenzeel)
7. Children Unite (Scherpenzeel)
8. It's Your Problem (Koopman)
9. Still Try To Write A Book (Koopman)
10. ... (incl. bits of "Peter And The Wolf") (Prokofiev/Koopman/Scherpenzeel)

35 years later, Johan and Carwin still work together for Dutch choir "Da Capo"...

Kayakoustic in Burgum, 4 november 2006

2006-11-05T22:00:00.000+01:00

Way up north, in a picturesque village called Burgum, some people decided that they wanted to have Kayak playing in their local party centre. On 4 november, their efforts had result: "De Pleats" was nicely filled with around 350 people. The venue itself had a nice atmosphere. It was not really a theatre, but more or less an old stable, transformed into a nice small concert hall.

The positive atmosphere apparently reflected on Kayak, as they played relaxed and solid. Not without mistakes, but these mistakes were laughed away by everybody.

Again, no long review. But one thing deserves mention: Kayak had decided that "Stop That Song" didn't really work out as well as they had hoped. In Burgum, the song was no longer on the setlist. Instead, they had worked hard for one day and a half on a 'new entry': "Daughter Or Son". For this song, Kayak certainly didn't take the easy way out. After the first verse in doo-wop style, the keyboards joined in, and gradually the song built into a climax of instruments and almost Beach Boys-like vocals from Edward, Cindy, Ton, Pim and Rob. The band were visibly relieved that the song went well, and I must say it takes the 'acoustic' half of the show into a higher level.

Again, the audience appreciated Kayak's efforts. The variation in vocals and harmonies makes the show very attractive, apart from the obvious musical skills of the players.

A good time was had by all, and I'm looking forward to my next 'electric Kayakoustic' show in Zoetermeer...

The setlist:

Various LP Sleeves

2006-10-10T21:18:00.000+02:00

In the vinyl Era, Kayak released a couple of compilation LP's in Holland. "The Best Of Kayak", with songs from the first three albums, was released in a black sleeve, and also in a sleeve with a picture of the band.

Another compilation LP: "Pick Of The Basket". And in Argentina, "Starlight Dancer" was released with the Spanish title "Danzante De Estrellas". (Some other LP's also received this Spanish treatment).

In the USA, "See See The Sun", "Royal Bed Bouncer" and "Phantom Of The Night" got different sleeves than in Europe. And then, of course there is the USA-version of "Starlight Dancer": a compilation of songs from the European "Starlight Dancer" and "Last Encore".

Kayak in Alphen (again...)

2006-10-09T21:40:00.000+02:00

On october 7, Kayak paid a visit to Alphen aan den Rijn once again. I won't bore you with yet another lengthy review. The most remarkable facts:
* A nice crowd in a sold-out theatre
* The acoustic part featured a real grand piano all the way through. This added a lot to the 'acoustic feel', and Ton visibly enjoyed playing the real ivories...
*Also thanks to the grand piano, "Ivory Dance" was very special, and "Land On The Water" breathtaking!
* An extra bit of 'fingerpicking' from Joost (as well as a big mistake from him in "Merlin"!)
* "Epilogue-The Fate Of Man" is a new addition to the set (at least, it was new to me...)
* "Merlin" included the a capella middle piece for the first time
* Chatting with Ton, Edward and Cindy after the show. Talking about Kayak's future plans...

Kayaknotquiteacoustic in Alphen, 20 september 2006

2006-09-21T11:02:00.001+02:00

The city of Alphen aan den Rijn had the annual "Jaarmarkt"-festivities again. Each year, more or less famous artists are invited to perform there. This year, Kayak was part of an open-air event with 3 other artists. Just to give you an idea: first there was Floortje, runner-up of 2006 "Idols"-competition in Holland. She can actually sing, but her fans are mainly (very) young boys and girls. The third artist was Brace, a Dutch R'n'B singer. Again, an artist for the younger people. And in between, there was Kayak... The MC of the night announced them as a band that started in 1972 (correct), and immediately concluded that this was music for people older than 45 (correct???), almost apologizing to the kids for having to listen to this bunch of oldies before their hero Brace would play. He then added that Bert Heerink was the lead singer (...). Anyway, to my surprise most youngsters stayed on "Paradise Square" when Kayak took the stage. The weather was amazing, and many people of all ages joined the schoolkids. In the end, I think there were around 1500 spectators, in the age of 6 to 66. But the main question remained: Would Kayak be able to cope with the challenge of playing for people who could have been their grandchildren?

The answer is: yes they certainly would. The opener "What's In A Name" was received with neutral applause; the kids obviously had to get used to the sight (and noise!) of real guitars, drums etc.. But after that, each song received more and more response from the crowd. And frankly speaking, this fully electric show was -in my opinion- better than the two acoustic ones that I witnessed so far. The stage was big, there were not too many changes of instruments, so the show had a good pace. Some songs from the acoustic set worked just as well (or better) in an electric setting. And with the exception of "Royal Bed Bouncer", all songs were played perfect or almost perfect. The vocals were great, with Jan now also singing backing vocals! Joost was the only one not singing. Mind you, the fourth artist of the night was singer/radio presenter/pub owner/politician Henk Westbroek. Joost was in Henk's band, doing guitar and backing vocals! (see picture). In fact, Joost is a better singer than Henk Westbroek (but then again, so are you and I...).

Like I said, the show was received positively by everyone. Kayak convinced the audience with their professionalism and their great tunes. I am sure the band left Alphen with a good feeling!

As you can read from the setlist, this was a unique concert: Ruthless Queen wasn't played! Of course Kayak had planned it as the encore. But immediately after the last tones of "Chance For A Lifetime", the MC entered the stage to thank Kayak and announce Brace in one breath. Even the organisers of the evening were surprised; the evening was running ahead of schedule, so there was no need at all for this hurry! But no-one could stop this madman, so this was an abrupt ending, after 75 minutes of enjoyment.

Setlist (maybe not in the correct order): Intro See See The Sun, What's In A Name, Only You And I Know, Anne, See See The Sun, Ivory Dance, Royal Bed Bouncer, Wintertime, Merlin, The King's Enchanter, Branded, When Hearts Grow Cold, Lyrics, Act Of Despair, Starlight Dancer, Chance For A Lifetime.

Unfortunately, I will not be seeing Kayak in Haarlem, Veldhoven and Harderwijk. But on 7 october, the band will visit Alphen again, this time for a show in a decent theatre. I'll report from that occasion as well!

Kayakoustic in Delft, 14 september 2006

2006-09-16T14:03:00.000+02:00

The second Kayakoustic show was at Speakers in Delft. After an entertaining support act, Kayak climbed the stage at around 10pm. Unfortunately, only around 150 people had found their way to the venue, but that didn’t spoil the enthusiasm in the band. The setlist was more or less the same as in Harlingen. “Wintertime” and “The King’s Enchanter” were skipped, as the show had to end before midnight.

The sound was clearer and more balanced than in Harlingen. Ton’s keyboards could actually be heard, and the vocals (Edward, Cindy and Rob, but also great backing vocals from Ton and Pim) were perfect. Also nice to hear Jan's various bass sounds! Only Edward sounded a bit hoarse now and then, but that didn’t influence the overall performance.

Like I said, it was more or less the same as Harlingen. The differences: the lightshow in Delft worked, Edward played the recorder in vain (couldn’t be heard…), and he completely forgot the lyrics to “Act Of Despair”. Ton, Pim and the audience helped him to get re-started, and then the usual perfect rendition followed.

What struck me: the crowd, small as it was, was genuinely interested. During the many quiet passages, nobody took the opportunity to talk about the weather or make other disturbing noises. No beer glasses were scattered, no shouting, breaking wind or the other obvious ‘concert crowd sounds’.

The merchandise stand sold ‘Kayakoustic’ t-shirts for the first time, in all shapes and colours. Of course, they also sold Kayak CD’s, but unfortunately there is no ‘Kayakoustic’ album (yet…?).

Kayakoustic in Harlingen, 24 august 2006

2006-08-25T17:48:00.000+02:00

The first of the "Kayakoustic" shows was in Harlingen, way up in the north. When I arrived at around 5 pm, it was raining cats and dogs. Ton and Pim were already there, inspecting the stage. And that stage (located outside the organising pub) was small, to say the least...

For a while, Pim was afraid that they would not be able to play at all, due to the conditions. But an hour later it was dry, and with the rest of the band arriving one by one, it looked that the Kayakoustic-première would actually take place...

At 9.45 pm, it was showtime. Everybody climbed the small stairs to the stage, and off it went. I will not bore you with a long review, but let's just say that it was a very good concert, taking all the conditions into consideration. Being the first time, there were obviously quite a few mistakes. And the lightshow collapsed about 5 times, and the band didn't have proper sound on stage (the sound to the audience was quite good actually).

Most people in the audience had only come because there was a free concert, and probably didn't know what to expect. They were first presented with 40 minutes of semi-acoustic material. To me, acoustic shows have a risk of becoming dull. But Kayak avoided that risk by varying in instrumentation and vocals. Jan played all kinds of bass instruments, Ton switched between keyboards and accordeon, Edward proved himself a Kazoo-professional, and Pim just tried to play as quietly as possible...

The accoustic songs: Intro See See The Sun, Only You And I Know, Stop That Song, Anne, Hold Me Forever, What's In A Name, You're So Bizarre, Land On The Water, First Signs Of Spring, Want You To Be Mine, Ivory Dance, See See The Sun.

After a short break, it was time for the 'electric' part of the show: Royal Bed Bouncer, Wintertime, When Hearts Grow Cold, Merlin, The King's Enchanter, Branded, Lyrics, Act Of Despair, Starlight Dancer, Chance For A Lifetime and the encore: Ruthless Queen.

The performance maybe wasn't perfect yet, but the enthusiasm of the band was great to see. The audience was pleased with what they heard, and I think they really loved lead singers Rob, Cindy and Edward. It was nice to see them all listening so interested and impressed to, for example, Edward in "Act Of Despair" or Cindy in "When Hearts Grow Cold".

The die-hard Kayakfans present immediately discussed the playlist after the show. For me, the highlights were Lyrics, Act Of Despair (amazing Edward performance!), Merlin, and the beautiful Land On the Water! I was not too keen on Hold Me Forever and Want You To Be Mine, but that's just a matter of taste...

I am pretty sure that the Kayakoustic show will sound much better in a theatre environment, with everything arranged in the proper way. This particular outdoor gig was more or less a try-out. But all credits to the whole band; they played with spirit and joy, and that reflected on everybody.

Who knows, I will also upload a review soon of a theatre show...

Pre-Kayak single by Edward

2006-08-17T21:22:00.000+02:00

Before he joined Kayak, Edward Reekers already was a big fan of the band. But Kayak was certainly not his debut as a singer! In 1975, young Edward recorded a single with his band Tacit. The title was "Mademoiselle Michelle". Besides being the lead-singer, Edward also was the writer of the b-side: "The Essential Link". I'm afraid the single didn't really sell well; When I asked Edward about it, he replied that "probably 3 copies were sold..."

Periscope Life 12-inch

2006-07-30T15:12:00.000+02:00

Probably the only Kayak Maxi-single around: this USA promo…

Old pictures

2006-07-27T22:20:00.000+02:00

Pictures of the line-up that made the first Kayak album...

New Max Werner weblog

2006-05-25T22:24:00.000+02:00

Today I started a new weblog, dedicated to Max Werner. If you are interested in this great artist, please visit http://maxwerlerofzoiets.blogspot.com

Ton Scherpenzeel Solo Singles

2006-05-24T13:54:00.001+02:00

Here's a couple of pictures of Ton's solo singles (vinyl only).

Compilations

2006-04-13T19:13:00.003+02:00

The official Kayak website has pictures of some compilation CD's, but not all of them. Here are some more: Basic/Original Hits came out in 1995 with two different sleeves. It was released by Disky, and has 16 songs. "Classics" was released in the USA in 1999 by Renaissance. I would not call it a bootleg, but I seem to remember that Kayak did not approve of this release, and doesn't get any royalties from it (then why don't I call it a bootleg???). The "2 in 1" is exactly what it says it is: two albums in a 2CD box. The first two Kayak albums, without any bonustracks. Released by EMI in 2000.

Bootleg CD's

2006-04-13T19:08:00.000+02:00

Two of the most interesting unofficial Kayak CD's were made in Russia (or in Belarus? I'm not sure). These are single album CD's of Phantom Of the Night and Periscope Life. Officially these albums are only available on CD as part of the "3 Originals" box.

"Phantom..." has one bonustrack: Ballad For A Lost Friend

"Periscope..." has Theme From Spelters (???) and Ivory Dance as bonustracks.

Remember: these are not official releases, and Kayak will not benefit of your purchase!

Fan and Idol (2)

2006-03-26T15:45:00.001+02:00

In march 2006, it was time for another visit to Johan Slager's studio. In brief: beer 'n' crisps, listening to rare recordings, fun, and good stories from the past. Thanks, Johan (and Astrid)!

(see http://kayakpicdisc.blogspot.com for a photo of Johan and his "Phantom" picture disc)

Fan and Idol (1)

2006-03-26T15:35:00.000+02:00

It is my experience that Kayak-members (current and past) are nice people. They take time to chat with the fans, and to answer questions. In the case of Max Werner and Johan Slager, I even had the honour of meeting them in private several times. Of course, I was quite nervous when I met them for the first time, but both guys are so friendly and without any arrogance, that it now feels like like visiting a good friend.

I don't have many pictures of my visits to Max and Johan. But here is one that was taken in november 2001, when me and my Swiss mate Max Demont, visited Max Werner at his place. From left to right: me, Max Werner, Max Demont (thanks to Max D. for the picture).

Phantom Of The Night Picture Disc

2006-02-27T14:14:00.000+01:00

CALLING ALL OWNERS OF A "PHANTOM OF THE NIGHT" PICTURE DISC!!!

In 1978, Janus Records (USA) released "Phantom Of The Night" as a picture disc LP. A limited edition of 3000 copies was released. I wonder where all these picture discs are??? Please let me know if you have a copy, and I will compile a list of worldwide owners! Thanks!

YOU CAN SEE THE LIST AT ITS OWN BLOGSPOT: HTTP://KAYAKPICDISC.BLOGSPOT.COM

Please help me, and send me your numbers!!!

Singles sleeves 1980 - 1981

2006-02-25T20:59:00.000+01:00

The last batch of vinyl singles with picture sleeve...

Meerlo, 14 july 1973

2006-02-22T21:30:00.001+01:00

On july 14, 1973, Kayak played at the Midsummer Popfestival in Meerlo, Holland. Other artists: Dizzy Man's Band (Holland), Colin Blunstone (U.K.) and others. Here are 2 pictures from that show.
This show was apparently recorded for broadcast on Dutch radio. In 2005, the Fonos label released a 'Dutchpop' compilation CD, with "Mammoth" from this concert. Fonos also hoped to release the entire show, but has not provided any details since...

Singles sleeves from 1977-1979

2006-02-21T11:57:00.001+01:00

This is a strange one! A Dutch single (not a promo), but I don't think this one was ever officially released? I found this single at a record fair, but it is the only copy I have ever seen. Does anybody have additional info on this one?!