Clouseau (band)

Belgian band

Clouseau

Kris (left) and Koen (right) in Affligem Belgium

Background information
Origin| Belgium
Genres| Rock, pop, dance
Years active| 1984–present
Members| Kris Wauters
Koen Wauters
Past members| Tjen Berghmans
Karel Theys
Bob Savenberg
Website| https://www.clouseau.be

Clouseau is a Flemish rock group, having success in Belgium and the Netherlands since being established in the late 1980s. Apart from a brush with English material in the early 1990s they perform in Dutch. Their biggest hits are "Daar gaat ze" ("There she goes", a #1 hit in the Netherlands in 1990, and rerecorded in English as "Close Encounters") and "Passie" ("Passion", a #1 hit in the Netherlands in 1995).[1]

## History

[edit]

### 1987–1991

[edit]

Clouseau was set up by Bob Savenberg, who named the band after Inspector Clouseau, a character he enjoyed imitating and after whom he had named his radio station.

Initially, Clouseau only performed at local venues. Singer Koen Wauters soon left the group to sing for another local band, but in 1987 he was persuaded to return.

The same year they were discovered at the Marktrock festival in Leuven, Belgium. Their first single "Brandweer" ("Firemen", also a pun that can be interpreted as "Burning again") sold 427 copies. Their television debut followed in November of that year.

In 1989 Clouseau participated in the Belgian tryouts for the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Anne". Clouseau came in second, but "Anne" became an enormous hit in Belgium and a (minor) hit in the Netherlands. The popularity of Clouseau in Belgium skyrocketed, and that year Clouseau produced its first album, "Hoezo?" ("Whaddayamean?").

In 1990 "Daar gaat ze" topped the singles charts in both Belgium and the Netherlands; several more hits followed. On 30 September, Tjen Berghmans left the group after a dispute. In October 1990, Clouseau released their second album, Of zo... (Or so...). In March 1991, Karel Theys departed, leaving Clouseau as a three-piece.

In May 1991, Clouseau represented Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1991, finishing 16th out of 22 with the song "Geef het op", but their participation resulted in a European breakthrough.

### 1991–1999

[edit]

Afterwards it was announced that Koen Wauters was called up for the army; because of his Clouseau-commitments he only had to serve four weeks and didn't need to shave his head. Fall 1991, Clouseau released their first English language album; Close Encounters (of which the title track is a translation of "Daar gaat ze") was a huge success in Germany. The Dutch fans were less keen on the idea of Koen Wauters singing in another language and rather bought the live-album that was released during this period.

In 1992 Clouseau released a Dutch-language album, Doorgaan (Keep on going). At the same time, they supported Swedish group Roxette on their European tour performing the Close Encounters-material.

The second English-language album, 1993's In every small town was recorded in Los Angeles. However, the album failed critically, receiving little attention outside the Benelux countries. Since then, Clouseau has refrained from producing English-language music (except for occasional singles, e.g. "Weather With You" (Crowded House cover) in 2000).

In 1995 they released the Oker album, which featured the single "Passie". In 1996, founder Bob Savenberg left the group. At the time he hosted the television format of the Ultratop 50. Bob Savenberg now works with upcoming artists as a manager.

In September 1996 Clouseau released the Adrenaline album, which was promoted with a large tour.

On 22 December 1998 singer Koen Wauters married the Dutch television journalist and one-time MTV-presenter Carolyn Lilipaly (they divorced in 2002). 1999 saw the release of In Stereo. Clouseau were heading for a new direction. A live album was released in 2000, and Clouseau were touring Belgium and the Netherlands.[2]

### 2000–2009

[edit]

In 2001, Clouseau released the disco oriented CD En Dans (And Dance); the artwork was designed by Marcel Vanthilt and the title track became a huge hit. Whilst the fans were waiting for new material, the two remaining bandmembers presented the 2003 and 2004 editions of Idool (the Belgian version of Idols) on VTM. In October 2004 they released the Vanbinnen (Inside) album.

Clouseau performing in December 2009

Since 2002 Clouseau are playing multiple Christmas shows at the Sportpaleis Antwerp. These concerts are a huge success with tickets selling out well in advance and each year's series surpassing the previous. In 2005, 13 shows attracted over 200,000 visitors in total. Due to Koen's Dakar-participation they couldn't add any further dates.

In 2006 Clouseau performed in Antwerp at the 0110 concerts for tolerance, organised by Tom Barman, singer/guitarist with dEUS. At that moment seven shows were added for that year's Christmas stint (Clouseau Speciale Editie).

The band released their latest CD Vonken & Vuur (Sparks & Flames) in March 2007 with "De Tegenpartij" ("The Opposition Party") being the first single. The Dutch release followed a month later.

Their 20th anniversary was celebrated with the tribute album Braveau Clouseau.

On 5 December 2008 Clouseau played the first of their Crescendo Christmas-shows.

In 2009 they expressed their tiredness of Belgian communal tensions in a pro-Belgium song, a novelty in Flemish commercial popular culture. They toured across railway-stations and festivals which included their first show in the Netherlands in nine years.[3]

### 2010–present

[edit]

In 2017 a documentary was aired in honour of their 30th anniversary.

In 2023, they gave a surprise performance at Pukkelpop. They posed as a Finnish power pop duo named Tarkastaja. After the first song, the brothers took off their masks and announced themselves to the audience.[4] During a ‘Back to the 80s, 90s & Nillies’ event that year, they performed a record of 125 times in the Sportpaleis in Antwerp, each time in front of an average of 15,000 spectators

To celebrate their 40th anniversary, the band announced ten Sportpaleis-concerts in December 2024 and January 2025.[5]

## Honours and awards

[edit]

* Radio 2 Summer Hit:
* Overall hit: 1989 (Anne)
* Best Dutch-language song: 1989 (Anne), 2002 (En dans), 2011 (Gek op jou), 2014 (Vliegtuig)
* Oeuvre prize: 2004
* Best videoclip: 2007 (Vonken & vuur), 2009 (Wat een leven)
* Best performance: 2008 (Crescendo concerts)
* ZAMU Music Awards
* Best Dutch-language artist: 1995
* Most popular band: 2001
* Best song: 2002 (En Dans)
* Best live-act: 2004
* TMF Awards
* Best pop: 1999, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2009
* Beste live-act: 2003, 2004
* Lifetime Achievement Award: 2007
* Radio 2 Hall of Fame
* 2005 (Anne), 2014 (Daar gaat ze)
* Music Industry Awards
* Best band: 2007, 2008, 2019
* Best live act: 2008
* Best Dutch-language artist: 2013
* QMusic Thx to You Awards 2021: Biggest Flemish band from 20 years of Q[6]

Clouseau-albums are regularly certified gold and platinum. One of their most successful albums is the best-of compilation Clouseau 20 from 2007, which has already achieved five-times platinum status.[7]

Flemish tribute bands include Cluzo and Kloezo.[8]

## Members

[edit]

* Tjen Berghmans (up to September 1990)
* Karel Theys (up to March 1991)
* Bob Savenberg (up to 1996)
* Kris Wauters
* Koen Wauters

## Band

[edit]

* Jos Michiels (Percussion)
* David Thomaere (Keyboards)
* Herman Cambré (Drums)
* Eric Melaerts (Guitar)
* Tom Lodewyckx (Guitar)
* Vincent Pierens (Bass Guitar)

## Discography

[edit]

Source:[9]

### Albums

[edit]

* Hoezo? (1989)
* Of zo... (1990)
* Close Encounters (1991)
* Live '91 (1991)
* Doorgaan (1993)
* In Every Small Town (1993)
* Het Beste van (1993)
* Oker (1995)
* Adrenaline (1996)
* 87- 97 (1997)
* In Stereo (1999)
* Live (2000)
* Ballades (2001)
* En Dans (2001)
* Live in het Sportpaleis DVD ("Live at the Sport Palace, Antwerp") (2003)
* Vanbinnen (2004)
* Clouseau in 't lang DVD ("Live at the Sport Palace, Antwerp") (2006)
* Vonken en Vuur (2007)
* Zij Aan Zij (2009)
* Clouseau (2013)
* Clouseau Danst (2016)
* Tweesprong (2019)[10]
* Jonge wolven (2022)[11]

### Singles

[edit]

Year  | Single  | Peak chart positions  | Album

|
|
|

BEL
(FL)
[12] | NLD
[13] | GER
[14]
1987  | "Brandweer"  | — | — | —  | Hoezo?
"Ze zit achter me aan"  | — | — | —
1988  | "Alleen met jou"  | 25 | — | —
"Mary-Lou"  | — | — | —
1989  | "Anne"  | 1 | 47 | —
"Dansen"  | 6 | — | —
1990  | "Daar gaat ze"  | 1 | 2 | —
"Louise"  | 9 | 12 | —
"Wil niet dat je weggaat"  | 12 | 9 | —
"Heel alleen"  | 3 | 18 | —  | Of Zo...
"Domino"  | 4 | 7 | —
1991  | "Ik wil vannacht bij je slapen"  | 27 | 28 | —
"Oh Ja"  | — | — | —
"Geef het op" (from Eurovision Songcontest 1991) | 4 | 13 | —  | 87*97
"Hilda"  | 7 | 29 | —  | Non-album single
1992  | "Close Encounters"  | — | — | 19  | Close Encounters
(European release)
"Anna"  | — | — | 51
"Louise"  | — | — | 82
"Nathalie"  | — | — | —
"Altijd heb ik je lief"  | 6 | 9 | —  | Doorgaan (Tot je niet meer
op je benen kan staan)
"Vanavond ga ik uit"  | 9 | 19 | —
"Ben je daar vannacht"  | 16 | 51 | —
"Als je me wil"  | 29 | — | —
"Afscheid van een vriend"  | 12 | — | —
1993  | "Live Like Kings"  | 9 | — | 78  | In Every Small Town
"Take Me Down"  | 9 | — | 93
"Worship"  | 22 | — | —
1994  | "Caroline"  | 31 | — | —
"I Live In Memories"  | — | — | —
"Piece of Candy"  | — | — | —
1995  | "Laat me nu toch niet alleen"  | 7 | 4 | —  | Oker
"Voorbij"  | 27 | — | —
"Swentibold"  | 18 | — | —
"Passie"  | 7 | 1 | —
"Zie me graag"  | 4 | 10 | —
"1 miljoen vlinders"  | — | 48 | —
1996  | "Samen"  | — | 26 | —  | Adrenaline
"Nobelprijs"  | 2 | 33 | —
"Je bent niets"  | 27 | — | —
1997  | "Dat ze de mooiste is"  | 18 | 78 | —
"Kom naar jou"  | — | 81 | —
"Door de muur"  | 25 | 69 | —  | 87 * 97
1999  | "Niets meer"  | — | 59 | —  | In Stereo
"Heb ik ooit gezegd"  | 7 | 68 | —
"Ik, jij, hij of zij"  | — | — | —
"Altijd meer en meer"  | 39 | — | —
"Hoe lang nog?"  | — | — | —
2000  | "Weather with You"  | — | — | —  | Clouseau Live
2001  | "Onvergetelijke nacht"  | — | — | —  | Ballades
"Ik geef me over"  | 13 | — | —  | En dans
"En dans"  | 15 | 81 | —
2002  | "Brandend avontuur"  | 50 | 100 | —
"Bergen en ravijnen"  | — | — | —
2004  | "Vanbinnen"  | 2 | — | —  | Vanbinnen
"Ik denk aan jou"  | 6 | — | —
2005  | "Hier bij jou"  | 10 | — | —
"Ik zie de hemel"  | 3 | 20 | —  | Ballades
2006  | "Weg van jou"  | 13 | — | —  | Vonken & vuur
"Vonken & vuur"  | 1 | — | —
2007  | "De tegenpartij"  | 4 | — | —
"Oogcontact"  | — | — | —
"Casanova (Wen er maar aan)"  | 35 | — | —
2008  | "Wat een leven"  | 11 | — | —  | Non-album single
2009  | "Leve België"  | 16 | — | —  | Zij aan zij
"Zij aan zij"  | — | — | —
2010  | "Als er ooit iets fout zou gaan"  | — | — | —
"De juiste vergissing"  | — | — | —
"Gek op jou"  | 23 | — | —  | Ballades 2010
2013  | "Vliegtuig"  | 1 | — | —  | Clouseau
2014  | "Kan het niet alleen"  | — | — | —
"Laatste keer"  | — | — | —
"Ziel"  | — | — | —
"Onvoorwaardelijk wij"  | — | — | —
2015  | "Zin om te bewegen"  | 9 | — | —  | Clouseau danst
2016  | "Droomscenario"  | 31 | — | —
"Vogel voor de kat"  | 48 | — | —
"Tijd om te leven"  | — | — | —
2017  | "Ik wil je terug" (live)  | 4 | — | —  | Clouseau30
"Helemaal alleen" (live)  | 35 | — | —
"Alles voor mij" (live)  | 25 | — | —
2019  | "Tijdmachine"  | 23 | — | —  | Tweesprong
"Heel mijn hart"  | 44 | — | —
"Tweesprong"  | 26 | — | —
2020  | "Wereld die nooit vergaat"  | 52 | — | —
"California"  | 44 | — | —
2021  | "Eén keer in een leven"  | 35 | — | —  | Jonge wolven
2022  | "Stil"  | 34 | — | —
"Vage herinnering"  | 36 | — | —
2024  | "Vuurwerk"  | 43 | — | —  | Non-album single
"—" denotes single that did not chart or was not released.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "3FM Artiesten - Clouseau". npo3fm.nl (in Dutch). 15 December 2023.
2. ^ "Clouseau door de jaren heen". clouseaufan.jimdofree.com (in Dutch). 30 December 2023.
3. ^ "Clouseau door de jaren heen: 125 Sportpaleis-concerten en vijf MIA's". pickx.be/nl (in Dutch). 20 January 2023.
4. ^ "Verrassing op Pukkelpop: Koen en Kris Wauters van Clouseau zitten achter "powerpopduo uit Finland" Tarkastaja". vrt.be (in Dutch). 19 August 2023.
5. ^ "En daar is prijs nummer zes: Remco Evenepoel krijgt ook Vlaams Sportjuweel". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 15 December 2022.
6. ^ "DIT ZIJN ALLE WINNAARS VAN DE THX TO YOU AWARDS!" (in Dutch). qmusic.be/ (published 2 December 2022). 12 November 2021.
7. ^ "Hans Francken (even) terug bij Clouseau op De Warmste Week: "Repertoire zit nog in mijn vingers"". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 20 December 2023.
8. ^ "CLUZO - Kom erbij en dans!". cluzo.be (in Dutch). 15 December 2022.
9. ^ "Clouseau". musicmeter.nl (in Dutch). 30 December 2023.
10. ^ "Tweesprong by Clouseau". Apple Music. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
11. ^ "Clouseau – Jonge wolven". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2 April 2022.
12. ^ "Clouseau - Flemish Chart". ultratop.be. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
13. ^ "Clouseau - Dutch Chart". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
14. ^ "Clouseau - German Chart". germancharts.de. Retrieved 9 February 2016.

## External links

[edit]

Media related to Clouseau (band) at Wikimedia Commons

* Official website (in Dutch)

Preceded by

Philippe Lafontaine
with "Macédomienne"

|  Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest
1991  | Succeeded by

Morgane
with "Nous, on veut des violons"

|
|

* v
* t
* e

Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest

Participation|

* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979
* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1995
* 1996
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* ~~2020~~
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

Artists|

* Roberto Bellarosa
* Bob Benny
* Blanche
* Lily Castel
* Vanessa Chinitor
* Ann Christy
* Clouseau
* Robert Cogoi
* Mélanie Cohl
* Copycat
* Lisa del Bo
* Barbara Dex
* Tom Dice
* Dream Express
* Eliot
* Frédéric Etherlinck
* Serge and Christine Ghisoland
* Gustaph
* Axel Hirsoux
* Hooverphonic
* Jacques Hustin
* Ingeborg
* Iris
* Ishtar
* Sandra Kim
* The KMG's
* Philippe Lafontaine
* Fud Leclerc
* Linda Lepomme
* Claude Lombard
* Jérémie Makiese
* Micha Marah
* Mony Marc
* Lize Marke
* Morgane
* Mustii
* Louis Neefs
* Nicole and Hugo
* Loïc Nottet
* Pas de Deux
* Pierre Rapsat
* Jacques Raymond
* Red Sebastian
* Nuno Resende
* Reynaert
* Kate Ryan
* Liliane Saint-Pierre
* Bobbejaan Schoepen
* Sennek
* Sergio and the Ladies
* Nathalie Sorce
* Emly Starr
* Stella
* Telex
* Laura Tesoro
* Tonia
* Urban Trad
* Jean Vallée
* Witloof Bay
* Xandee
* Jacques Zegers

Songs|

* "1 Life"
* "À la folie ou pas du tout"
* "Als het weer lente is"
* "L'Amour ça fait chanter la vie"
* "Avanti la vie"
* "Baby, Baby"
* "Because of You"
* "Before the Party's Over"
* "City Lights"
* "Copycat"
* "Dis oui"
* "Door de wind"
* "Envie de vivre"
* "Euro-Vision"
* "Fleur de liberté"
* "Geef het op"
* "Gelukkig zijn"
* "Goeiemorgen, morgen"
* "Le Grand soir"
* "Hey Nana"
* "Hou toch van mij"
* "Iemand als jij"
* "Ik heb zorgen"
* "J'aime la vie"
* "Je t'adore"
* "Jennifer Jennings"
* "Judy et Cie"
* "Laat me nu gaan"
* "Laissez briller le soleil"
* "Liefde is een kaartspel"
* "Like the Wind"
* "Love Kills"
* "Love Power"
* "Ma petite chatte"
* "Macédomienne"
* "A Matter of Time"
* "Me and My Guitar"
* "Messieurs les noyés de la Seine"
* "A Million in One, Two, Three"
* "Miss You"
* "Mon amour pour toi"
* "Mother"
* "Nous, on veut des violons"
* "O Julissi"
* "Un peu de poivre, un peu de sel"
* "Le Plus beau jour de ma vie"
* "Près de ma rivière"
* "Quand tu reviendras"
* ~~"Release Me"~~
* "Rendez-vous"
* "Rhythm Inside"
* "Samson"
* "Sanomi"
* "September, gouden roos"
* "Si tu aimes ma musique"
* "Sister"
* "Soldiers of Love"
* "Straatdeuntje"
* "Strobe Lights"
* "Ton nom"
* "Viens l'oublier"
* "La Voix est libre"
* "Waarom?"
* "Wake Up"
* "What's the Pressure"
* "With Love Baby"
* "Would You?"
* "The Wrong Place"

Note: Entries scored out signify where Belgium did not compete. Italics indicate an entry in a future contest.

* v
* t
* e

Eurovision Song Contest 1991

Countries|

* Austria
* Belgium
* Cyprus
* Denmark
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Iceland
* Ireland
* Israel
* Italy
* Luxembourg
* Malta
* Norway
* Portugal
* Spain
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Turkey
* United Kingdom
* Yugoslavia

Artists|

* Amina
* Atlantis 2000
* Baby Doll
* Sarah Bray
* Carola
* Clouseau
* Sergio Dalma
* Duo Datz
* Peppino di Capri
* Dulce
* Thomas Forstner
* Anders Frandsen
* Paul Giordimaina and Georgina
* Kim Jackson
* Samantha Janus
* Just 4 Fun
* Kaija
* Elena Patroklou
* Sandra Simó
* Stefán and Eyfi
* Can Uğurluer, İzel Çeliköz and Reyhan Karaca
* Sophia Vossou

Songs|

* "Anixi"
* "Bailar pegados"
* "Un baiser volé"
* "Brazil"
* "Canzone per te"
* "C'est le dernier qui a parlé qui a raison"
* "Comme è ddoce 'o mare"
* "Could It Be"
* "Could It Be That I'm in Love"
* "Dieser Traum darf niemals sterben"
* "Draumur um Nínu"
* "Fångad av en stormvind"
* "Geef het op"
* "Hullu yö"
* "İki Dakika"
* "Kan"
* "Lige der hvor hjertet slår"
* "Lusitana paixão"
* "A Message to Your Heart"
* "Mrs. Thompson"
* "S.O.S."
* "Venedig im Regen"

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* Czech Republic

Artists|

* MusicBrainz

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