MIEK & ROEL

Folkduo with social critical dutch lyrics in the sixties and seventies.

The group came into being when Raoul van Bambost of the Ghent-based skiffle & rock'n'roll outfit The Ropes discovered the student in Fysical Education Monique Holvoet in 1965. Raoul became Roel, Monique became Miek and together they became a folkduo in some talent contests. They were an overnight success with a third place in "Ontdek de Ster" doing their interpretation of Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the wind", and with their first song in dutch called "Limburgblues" at the Folksong-festival in Deurne.

Moreover, they quickly met the important Vogue-producer Roland Verlooven (later best known for his work with Clouseau, Mama's Jasje and the likes) and with the blues & skiffle-guitarist Roland Van Campenhout. The three of them recorded the album "Je Kan Nooit Weten" in 1967. Propelled by the single "Wie Wil Horen" (with Roland on harp, and without Miek's voice since all four tracks were already taken), this LP was an introduction that led Miek en Roel immediately to the top of the "Kleinkunst"-scene of the time.

The duo contributed to the songs themselves, but they could also count on the songwriting capabilities of Niki Bovendaerde, Miel Swillens, Walter Ertvelt en most of all Miel Appelmans (this last on is the Miel behind "Folkcorner Den Appel", the best known folk-import CD-shop in Belgium). On a musical level, they took a big example in the prostest folk of the sixties, and especially singer Tom Paxton. In 1972, the duo even recorded a complete album with nothing but translated songs of Paxton (best known songs from that album are "Koop een Geweer", "Niet slecht bedoeld" and "Zij is ver van hier").

Just before the recording-sessions of the second album "Mijn jeugd rijdt op jacht", Roland parted ways with the duo (he went to London, and to his own Bluesworkshop), which led many to believe that the song "Dus Naar Amerika" (so you're going to America) would be a lash towards him. As Roel van Bambost wrote in the liner notes of "Het beste van Miek en Roel" : "It is a song about fictitious characters (not about Roland!), who thought that everything was better the other side of the Atlantic. It was intented as an ironic piece, but not everybody has understood it that way."

In 1968-1970 the popularity of the duo was at its peak, caused by the song "Bert en Bertje" (the title-tune of a TV-series with the same name), by their victory at the humour-festival of Heist, and by songs such as "Jan met de Pet", "Het verdronken land van Saeftinge" and "Jij en Ik". This success even made Miek & Roel suspicious in the eyes of the then very leftist audiences. Miek (in "de Komplete Kleinkunstgeschiedenis" of Manu Adriaens) : "They had nothing to reproach us, because we were living almost a bohomian lifestyle : I had resigned from my job as a gymnast-teacher and we lived in a really small flat. But still they were harassing us. After shows they came complaining that we drove a car for instance. We sang those protest-songs with a lot of conviction, but our good intentions were questioned all the time. Either we went too far, or we didn't went far enough". They also replied to the critics in songs, such as "De Grote Revolutie" (The big revolution, about how many were creating a lot of noise, but didn't change much at all) and "Voor wie ons soms geweld aandoet" (for those that do us wrong).

In the seventies, the genre of the protestsong slowly declined into oblivion (and was replace musically by dutch rock with a face of its own). Roel van Bambost went to work for the BRT (flemish television) for a number of film-review programs (Première ...à, and Miek went back to her school. Through a number of "Best Of"-collections and a CD "Cafard with mainly new work in 1992, the interest in the duo kept on simmering on to this day.

In 2000, they did a series of about 15 concerts entitled the "Komplete Kleinkunstkollektie", together with Dimitri Van Toren, Miel Cools, Bart Herman and Bart Van den Bossche. Roel in het Nieuwsblad (13/01/2000) : "The people haven't forgotten about us, we discover - to our own amazement - during these shows. The public are not only the fans from the sixties that come crawling out of their couch. There are also young people there. Perhaps their parents dragged them along. But still, there is genuine interest in what we do ... to an extent that we consider putting up some festive gig for our 35th anniversary in music (after Ontdek-de-Ster). And there are plans for a new cd".

Band members :
- Roel van Bambost
- Monique Holvoet

Buy CD's of this band at

Albums :
- Je kan nooit weten (LP, Vogue, 1967)
- Mijn jeugd rijdt op jacht (LP, Vogue, 1968)
- Miek en Roel (LP, Vogue, 1970)
- Miek en Roel zingen Tom Paxton (LP, Vogue, 1972)
- Cafard (CD, 1992)
Compilaties :
- In de Tijd van (LP, Vogue, 1976)
- Miek en Roel (LP, 1979)
- In 't Nieuw (LP, Vogue, 1980)
- Jij en Ik (2LP, CNR, 1987)
- Verzameld één (CD, Ariola Express, 1992)
- Verzameld twee (CD, Ariola Express, 1992)
- Het Beste van Miek en Roel (BMG, 1995)

Websites :
- some lyrics of the songs of Miek & Roel
- some tabs at guitarfiles.be