35th anniversary of "Bonnie en José in Zweden" (TV special): Tribute to ABBA's music!!!

On May 27th, 1986 Dutch TV channel NCRV broadcast "Bonnie en José in Zweden", a special filmed in Stockholm and the surrounding area. Bonnie St Claire and José Hoebee performed cover versions of ABBA songs in Dutch: "Chiquitita", "Herinnering" (Andante, Andante), "Ligt dat nou aan jou, of aan mij" (Why Did It Have To Be Me?), "Zoals vrienden doen" (The Way Old Friends Do) and "Flierefluiter" (The Piper). 

Credits:

Special thanks to Silja Line/Finnjet

Clothing: Tom Touch, O'Neill

Production: Albert Hol, Will Hoebee

Local producer: Peter Ohlsson

Video editing: Dick Verkeke

Camera: Tjeerd Broekhuizen

VTR: John Davelaar

Directed by Bert van der Veer

Double Entertainment/NCRV - 1986

These tracks were taken from the ladies' LP entitled "Herinnering" released by RCA Records in late 1985 (see article posted on December 7th, 2020). At the time, Bonnie & José were respectively married to Albert Hol and Will Hoebee. The two couples were involved in the artist management company "Double Entertainment". 

Last autumn, the Herinnering album was reissued by CD-Licious on CD thanks to a successful crowdfunding campaign. This Deluxe Edition featured bonus tracks and a DVD (including the TV special).

DVD menu (including Bonnie & José in Zweden) as part of the Herinnering 2020 reissue

Read the article posted on November 20th, 2020: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Bonnie & José's Herinnering (2020 edition): officially out today and media coverage!!! (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

The TV special was a logical step in the duo's career after a series of ABBA-oriented projects.

In 1984, Bonnie and José decided to team up to cover songs of the Swedish Fab Four in Dutch long before the revival of interest in the music of the quartet. Their first duet single "Cassandra" peaked at #24 on the Top 40 and #19 on the Nationale Hitparade in the Netherlands (see article posted on July 7th, 2019). In 1985, they were involved in the AbbaCaDaBra TV musical (see article posted on March 16th, 2020). Later that year, they put out the single "Zoals Vrienden Doen" (the cover of ABBA's The Way Old Friends Do). The track became the signature song of the duo. It reached #36 on the Top 40 and #18 on the Nationale Hitparade (see article posted on August 3rd, 2020). Then they put out a full-length album. 

The highlights of the TV special were the "Herinnering" video (filmed in ABBA's Polar Studios in Stockholm) and the appearance of Björn Ulvaeus (member of the legendary pop band) who gave an interview in which he approved the recordings of the ladies. 

Björn Ulvaeus

The broadcast of "Bonnie en José in Zweden" was mentioned in the press (including in the Privé section (entertainment news) of De Telegraaf and in AVRO Gids).

 "Privé" section of De Telegraaf on May 27th, 1986, the day of the broadcast of the ladies' TV special. Click here to read the article online

AVRO Gids

As the Herinnering album hit the stores, José gave birth to a beautiful son named Tim on October 14th, 1985. In an article published in Weekend magazine in April 1986 about the singer's motherhood, Bonnie & José's TV special was also announced.  

Click on the images to enlarge them:

Source: Beeld en Geluid, YouTube, Delphner.nl, Facebook (Jos Theuns - José Hoebee Mijn Idool, Herinnering - Bonnie & José), Luv' weblog archives

We Luv' Sheila - Venue d'Ailleurs: the singer's most personal and emotional album

April 2nd, 2021 saw the release of Sheila's long-awaited album entitled "Venue d'Ailleurs" by Warner/New Chance. 

Venue d'Ailleurs is available in several formats (CD, CD/DVD (limited edition), Cassette, Vinyl) and on the major online platforms (including Spotify, Deezer and iTunes/Apple Music). 

Click here to buy a copy of the album or to download it. 

Information on the Discogs database: Sheila - Venue D'ailleurs | Références | Discogs

French chanteuse Sheila will celebrate her 60th anniversary as a recording artist next year in November 2022. In the 1960s and 1970s, the yé-yé girl scored hit after hit in her homeland. Among her chart-toppers were "L'École est Finie" (1963), "Vous les Copains" (the French cover version of Manfred Mann's "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" in 1964), "Petite Fille de Français Moyens" (1968) and "Les Rois Mages" (the cover of "Tweedle Dee Tweedle Dum" originally performed by Middle of the Road in 1971). Her success helped her producer Claude Carrere to launch his own record company in 1967. 

Between 1977 and 1980, Sheila's career reached another level. She updated her bubblegum repertoire by performing disco tracks sung in English. Three American backup singers/dancers (Dany Mac Farlane, Freddy Stracham and Arthur Wilkins) known as B. Devotion were hired to accompany her. Sheila & B. Devotion conquered the record charts all over the world. Their most successful singles were "Love Me Baby" (1977), "Singin' In The Rain" (a disco cover of the Gene Kelly classic from late 1977), "You Light My Fire" (1978) and "Spacer" (1979).

Overview of Sheila's disco years (1977 - 1980): All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Spotlight on Luv's former label mates: Sheila & B Devotion!!! (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

The release of the iconic LP entitled "King Of The World" (including Spacer) on June 27th, 1980 was a milestone in Sheila's career. This opus was written and produced by the one and only Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers of the American R&B band Chic (who also worked with Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, Debbie Harry, Madonna and Duran Duran). Last year, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this legendary album, Warner Music France reissued it in three Deluxe formats. King Of The World was also available on the major online platforms.

Read my article about the 40th anniversary of King Of The World: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): 40th anniversary of King Of The World by Sheila & B. Devotion (Luv's former label mates) (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

The Luv' ladies (Patty Brard, Marga Scheide & José Hoebee) were the label mates of Sheila & B. Devotion at Carrere Records. Both groups appeared on the same popular European TV shows (including Musikladen in Germany, TopPop in Holland, Top Club in France and Aplauso in Spain). In October 1979, Luv' signed an exclusive and lucrative record deal with CNR (a label affiliated with Carrere). Prior to this contract, Luv's previous label Philips/Phonogram already licensed the rights for some records (including You're the Greatest Lover, Trojan Horse and With Luv') to Carrere in Germany.  Ooh, Yes I Do by Luv' came out practically at the same time as Spacer by Sheila & B. Devotion in November 1979 (see news posted on November 10th, 2019).

Luv's signature with CNR/Carrere on October 7th, 1979 - first row above (from left to right): Arranger-conductor Piet Souer, Carrere Netherlands director Bart van der Laar, CNR director Ruud Wijnants and Luv's manager Pim ter Linde - second row below (from left to right): José Hoebee, Marga Scheide and Patty Brard

Luv' receiving gold records in Mexico (May 1980) - From left to right: Patty Brard, Manager Pim ter Linde, Record executive Bart van de Laar, Mexican director of Discos Musart, José Hoebee and Marga Scheide

Venue d'Ailleurs by Sheila is a masterpiece of French pop music and is considered the artist's musical autobiography. The album is eclectic and very contemporary. It includes emotional tracks like "La Rumeur" (about a terrible rumour that spoiled a great part of Sheila's life), "Cheval d'amble" (dealing with the unexpected death of her son four years ago), uptempo songs like "Law Of Attraction" (written by Nile Rodgers) and "Tous Yéyé" as well as "7ème Continent" (about ecological issues). 

7ème Continent

Tous yé-yé

La Rumeur

In addition to her collaboration with Nile Rodgers on one of the above-mentioned songs, Sheila had the honour to work again on two tracks with the legendary record producer Keith Olsen (Pat Benatar, Santana, Scorpions...) before his passing: "Ooh La La" and "It's Not Over" (a duet with Jason Scheff of Chicago). In 1981, after the Disco Sucks movement in the USA, Sheila chose a pop-rock style and recorded an album entitled Little Darlin' (produced by Olsen and featuring a single of the same name which peaked at #49 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA). It was her last successful international project. 

Sheila took four years to release Venue d'Ailleurs and wanted the crème de la crème of session musicians, songwriters and producers. The album was recorded at the ICP studios in Brussels, Belgium and The Echo Bar recording studios in North Hollywood, CA for the songs produced by Keith Olsen. French bestselling author and film director Yann Moix wrote the liner notes for the CD booklet. 

In April and May, the songstress went on a hectic promo tour in the French media (radio (RTL, Europe 1, France Info, France Bleu, Sud Radio), television (France 2, BFM TV, CNews, Culturebox, KTO) and the press (Le Parisien, Libération, La Voix du Nord, La Nouvelle République, Télé 7 Jours, Télé Poche, Nous Deux). 

Venue d'Ailleurs received positive reviews. On April 3rd, it entered the French SNEP Albums chart at #11 and stayed 5 weeks on this list. On April 10th, it peaked at #4 on the Walloon Ultratop chart in Belgium (its current position is #168). On April 11th, it stayed at #25 on the Swiss hit parade (Alben - Schweizer Hitparade) for one week.

We ❤️ Sheila and are proud of her most ambitious project!!!

Source: Sheila's official website and social media, Wikipedia, YouTube, Luv' weblog archives, Lescharts.com

Anton: Portrait of Luv' & José's ally!!!

Next week, the Luv' ladies will be celebrated twice on the SPOTLIGHT! radio show hosted by Anton van Stekelenborg-Poirters on DitisHelmond. 

On May 26th, between 2.00 pm and 3.00 pm, Luv's long-time fan and expert René Moonen will be the guest on the program to discuss the impressive career of Holland's greatest girl group between 1977 and 2019. Classic hits performed by all the line-ups of the group will be played on this occasion.

On May 27th, listeners and fans' requests will be played non-stop between 2.00 pm and 3.00 pm. 

The two radio shows will be broadcast live via http://ditishelmond.nl/radio-live.

The host of the SPOTLIGHT!, Anton has been an ally of Luv' and José Hoebee for a long time. In addition to his activities as a radio personality, Anton works at the preHistorisch Dorp, an archaeological open-air museum in Eindhoven focusing on the Iron Age and Middle Ages in the province of North Brabant. 

Moreover, Anton is also an all-around singer. Since 1999, he has been fronting the party band Dutch Show Company (aka DSC). 

I had the honour to interview the multitalented vocalist in 2011 for my former website. Click on the following link to read my interview with him: Interviews (tripod.com)

Prior to Dutch Show Company, Anton was a solo artist from 1982 until 2000. He recorded songs under the pseudonym "Robin McRay". He sang in musicals like Little Shop Of Horrors and La Cage Aux Folles as well as the Dutch Passion play. 

Anton has been a huge fan of Luv' and José Hoebee for many years.  Here's what he told me in his interview when asked when he first met José and the other Luv' members: "I was a huge fan of Luv’ and it was until 2005 that I met the other ladies (Marga and Patty). José was my favourite. I met her for the first time in December 1981 at the Discotheque Hollywood in Eindhoven. She had just released her first solo single "I’m so sorry". Later as I worked at Free Record Shop in Eindhoven, she entered the store with her husband to buy batteries for her son's walkman. In 1996, she attended my CD release party at the Dancing Rendez Vous"

Since the comeback of the original Luv's line-up in the mid-2000s, Anton has been a reliable ally of the ladies. He and his DSC colleagues have been performing at Luv' & José's fan club meetings since the late 2000s. 

Dutch Show Company (featuring Anton) at Anny Schilder & José Hoebee's fan club meeting in Best (2009)

DSC & José at the fan club meeting in Oirschot (2011)

Anton & José

When Will Hoebee passed away in 2012, DSC had to cancel José's fan club meeting. However, Anton kept on supporting José. 

Anton & José at the CD release party of Flemish singer Mieke held in Hilversum on October 17th, 2012. 

DSC became so to speak the house band of Luv's meet 'n greet afternoons.

When Luv's 1980-1981 line-up (José Hoebee, Marga Scheide and Ria Thielsch) briefly reunited for a fan club meeting in Eindhoven seven years ago, Anton and his DSC Angels were there to perform. 

DSC with José Hoebee & Marga Scheide (2013)

Read the article posted on May 26th, 2013: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Luv's 1980-1981 lineup (briefly) reunited (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

On October 11th, 2015, José Hoebee's matinee with Dutch Show Company took place at Musis Sacrum in Eindhoven. The singer and the band performed several tracks from her back catalogue (Luv' and solo) as well as other evergreens. 

Read the article posted on October 13th, 2015: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Pics: José's matinee with Dutch Show Company (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

José & DSC (2015)

Four years ago, Anton supervised Luv's 40th-anniversary party at the Quatre Bras restaurant in Best. José and he even appeared on "Brabants Bont", a program on Omroep Brabant (a Dutch local broadcaster) to promote this big event. 

Read the article posted on July 7th, 2017: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): José & Anton on Brabants Bond (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

Anton & José on Brabant Bont (2017)

On July 9th, 2017, the Luv' singers celebrated their jubilee with their fans. Once again, Anton and his DSC girls gave a wonderful performance. 

Two years later, after Chimène van Oosterhout replaced Ria Thielsch, Luv's fan club meeting took place at the same location. The trio's long-awaited reggaeton single "With Him Tonight" (recorded in Miami, Fl) premiered on that occasion. Dutch Show Company once again was present. 

Photos by Co Rnz:

Chimène, Marga & José with DSC

In addition to these public events, Anton has often used in recent years his position as a radio DJ on Brabantian stations (Rozo Radio, Omroep Best and Omroep Helmond (currently DitisHelmond) to promote Luv' and José. 

Anton & José in Omroep Helmond studio for a broadcast of the "Maandag Middag Matinee" radio show on April 29th, 2019

Last year, a Luv' special aired on "Maandag Middag Matinee" on Omroep Helmond. 

Read the article posted on February 11th, 2020: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Maandag Middag Matinee: Luv' special (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

Last Autumn, Anton set up a Meidengroepen Top 50 (a list of the 50 favourite songs by girl groups chosen by listeners) on Mandaag Middag Matinee. Luv' scored seven songs on this list including "Ooh, Yes I Do" reaching #1. Bonnie & José's iconic duet "Zoals Vrienden Doen"  peaked at #40.

Read the article posted on November 17th, 2020: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Meidengroepen Top 50 revealed: Ooh, Yes I Do at #1 as well as six other Luv' tracks and Bonnie & José's duet on the list!!! (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

A few days later, Anton hosted a special Maandag Middag Matinee show to celebrate the reissue of the Herinnering album by Bonnie St. Claire & José Hoebee on CD and DVD. Franklin van Liempt (the initiator of the crowdfunding project that led to the new Deluxe edition of Herinnering) was invited on the show.

Read the article posted on November 24h, 2020: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Maandag Middag Matinee: Herinnering special (including a short phone interview with José Hoebee) (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

We want to thank Anton for his loyalty to Luv' and José!!!

Source: Luv' weblog archives, Facebook (Anton van Stekelenborg-Poirters)

Jan Roos & Dennis Schouten mention Patty's partnership with Coop on RoddelPraat

Dutch media personality Jan Roos and his sidekick Dennis Schouten often diss Patty Brard in the "Patty Patty Patty" section of their RoddelPraat show on YouTube.

On May 12th, the duo discussed La Brard's partnership with Dutch supermarket chain Coop for the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 (read the article posted on May 8th: All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): Patty's partnership with Coop Supermarkets for the #ESC2021 (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

According to Jan Roos, Patty must be desperately in need of money to accept this collaboration with Coop. 

Earlier this week, Dennis Schouten announced on his Instagram account that he suffered from a neurological dysfunction known as "transient ischemic attack (TIA)". The young man was replaced by his sister Celine on RoddelPraat. We wish him a speedy recovery!

Source: RoddelPraat (YouTube), Dennis Schouten's Instagram Account

Rob Kemps (Snollebollekes): the other celebrity from Best with the Midas Touch!!!

Rob Kemps (frontman of the highly popular Dutch party band Snollebollekes) and José Hoebee have something in common. The two celebrities are from Best, a small town in North Brabant near Eindhoven. 

Read the article posted on January 24th, 2021:

All About LUV' (past, present, future and more): From Best With Luv'... (luvgirlgroup.blogspot.com)

José's son used to be a schoolmate of Rob. In late 2019, the songstress posed with the leader of Snollebollekes and his music publisher Robin Logjes as well as Luv's producer Hans van Hemert for a photograph at the Quatre Bras restaurant in Best. José has always been proud of the exceptional career of the young entertainer and is strongly supportive of his accomplishments. 

Rob Kemps, José Hoebee, Robin Logjes and Hans van Hemert on November 4th, 2019 at Quatre Bras

After José's incredible success in the late 1970s with Luv' and in the 1980s as a solo artist, Rob is currently the most popular celebrity from Best. Since 2013, he has scored hit after hit on the Dutch charts with Snollebollekes. His biggest achievements are his huge live shows that attract tens of thousands of people in large venues (including GelreDome in Arnhem). Due to the Covid-19 virus, he has been obliged to reschedule his mega concerts. In the autumn, he is supposed to be back on stage. More information at Snollebollekes | Facebook

Two days ago, due to the forthcoming UEFA European Football Championship, Rob presented a new version of his party hit "Links Rechts" as part of an advertising campaign for the Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo. 

In addition to his activities as a performing artist, Rob is also a lucky media personality. In March, he signed a 3-year deal with Talpa Network (that owns SBS6, Net5, Veronica and SBS9) after his successful participation in the TV quiz De Slimste Mens on KRO-NCRV/NPO 2 and the BNNVARA's show Matthijs Gaat Door. 

In the second semester of this year, Rob will host the Dutch version of the game show "The Wheel" (a TV format originally from BBC One). Despite his contract with Talpa, the young man has recently teamed up with Matthijs van Nieuwkerk (from NPO). This unexpected duo will appear on a TV show about French chansons filmed in France that will be broadcast on one of the NPO channels. 

Earlier this week, the multitalented entertainer replaced Sander Lantiga on De Coen & Sander Show on Radio 538 (part of the Talpa group). 

Source: Google Nieuws, José Hoebee Fan page (Facebook), YouTube, Omroep Brabant, Mediacourant, RTL Boulevard

De Grootste Liefhebber: Bert & Vief's funny & arty electro-rock cover version of Luv's Greatest Lover

Recently, Dutch singing duo Bert & Vief put out an album entitled "Bert & Vief’s Google Translate Hits" including funny cover versions of twelve classic hits by Dutch artists that have been literally translated from Dutch to English or vice versa. This album features De Grootste Liefhebber, an electro-rock cover of Luv's signature song "You're the Greatest Lover" from 1978.

Here's Bert & Vief's rendition:

Source: Bert & Vief on social media (YouTube, Instagram, Facebook)

Patty Brard on "Deze Quiz Is Voor Jou"

Richard Groenendijk & Patty Brard on Deze Quiz Is Voor Jou

Yesterday, SBS6's panel game "Deze Quiz Is Voor Jou" (hosted by Linda de Mol and featuring Patty Brard as one of the contestants) drew 797.000 viewers (market share: 14.7%). The program reached #8 on SKO's Dag Top 25 (the daily list of the 25 most popular TV shows conceived by Dutch audience measurement company Stichting KijkOnderzoek).

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Une publication partagée par Richard Groenendijk ®️official (@richard_groenendijk)

                   

Dutch media news website Mediacourant.nl referred to Patty's appearance on the TV quiz as an embarrassing moment. Several TV guides (including Mikro Gids) mentioned this panel show. 

Prior to the broadcast of Deze Quiz Is Voor Jou, Patty discussed her participation in this game show on a recent Shownieuws podcast. She was ashamed of how bad she performed during the taping of the TV program. "I took part in a quiz hosted by Linda de Mol and people will surely think: "Patty Brard go back to school," the diva said. "I'm not good when I'm under pressure. I'm nervous when I hear the clock ticking," she added. 

Due to this misadventure, La Brard refused to take part in another game show "The Wheel" hosted by Snollebollekes singer Rob Kemps on SBS6. However, when she interviewed Rob on the phone for the Shownieuws podcast (see news posted on May 8th, 2021), the young entertainer convinced the ex-Luv' singer to appear on his panel game. 

Source: SBS6, SKO, TV Gids, Mikro Gids, Shownieuws Podcast, Instagram