This Dutch underground figure's affably baffling admixture of flatfooted folksiness, lysergic effects, big brassy fanfares, stinging acid guitar,toothachingly twee string arrangements and generalized period rococo accouterments would probably come across as rather less mystifying if one is privy to the lyrical content, but for us non-Dutch speakers, well...some of its brainburning and some of it just lies there inert, but Picknick's overall peculiarity renders it perfect grist for the Mutant Sounds mill, regardless. De Groot would arrive at similarly inscrutable ends with his darker follow-up Nacht In Ontij, which can be found Here ...
***************NEW LINK POSTED SEPTEMBER 2012***************
Get it here
what a great thing!
ReplyDeletethanx a lot....
Looks like "The Fool" collective (who were Dutch but in the UK doing stuff like Clapton's guitar and the 2nd Incredible String Band cover and The Beatles Apple shop front) did that artwork.
ReplyDeleteColin H.
According to me, big brassy fanfares made this record very enjoyable !! Does any of dutch visitors can include english translation of lyrics ? Im pretty curious..
ReplyDeletefunny - although the music is neat, like most Dutch stuff my Dutch wife has exposed me to, I can't get into the sound of Dutch vocals... I love Nederbeat stuff where Dutch people sing in broken English, but their own language, not so much...
ReplyDelete...and yet, I must offer thanks again for your posting this, as I LOVE artwork 'The Fool' group did, and had never seen this cover before.
Colin H.
he's not an underground figure, though. already from the beginning of his career he was very popular in holland and belgium. these days he plays in a belgian soap about cops. great record!
ReplyDelete"I love Nederbeat stuff where Dutch people sing in broken English, but their own language, not so much..."
ReplyDeleteDutch sounds absolutely charrrrrming in my Finnish ears! I think I would never learn to pronounce those most exciting soundings properly.
wow, thanks so much! i was looking for this album so long :) xxx
ReplyDeleteI'm Dutch
ReplyDeletebut asking to translate those lyrics is something i cant do
most songs are very poethic and surrealaistic
translating those words into english would make a complete senseless wordbrew
or a f*cked up version of the song.
in this case i pity those who dont speak dutch
this is painting with words
think about jeroen bosch
I agree with Excellentie Punanius Caput. I was just looking at an English translation of Boudewijn's songs and the meaning gets so garbled.
ReplyDeleteI grew up with Dutch parents and relatives and am both US and Dutch citizen. I know the Dutch language, by ear, very well but only speak it passably on the street. Though the English version of Eva is obviously not totally correct, it helped me when i could not understand some parts of the song on CD (can't rewind and listen again and again to get it).
Eva is such a beautiful song, about God creating the earth, he being the artist.
I was trying to find the Dutch words for the woman who is singing in Travestie, but the lyrics just show Boudewijn's part. Is there a complete Dutch lyric available?
I have listened to Boudewijn's greatest hits CD so often now that I would love to see him play live if possible. Is he touring in 2010?
You Tube has some great BdG performances. You should view the one for Prikkebeen, filmed black and white in 1966 - so cool!
@ Excellentie Punanius Caput
ReplyDeletePoethic and surrealaistic sense in lyrics might have magnetized my question indeed. I believe that every language offers 'painting with words' unless we search
for those. Some more some less.
@ Hubert-Jan
There are actually some dates available.
I still love picnick fanfare so much that i've been using the brass as a ringtone for some time. WAV here
V !
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