ERIK VAN NEYGEN

Dutch-singing country singer who scored several hits in the seventies & eighties.

As so many artists, he is noticed for the first time in the slipstream of Johan Verminnen. He makes his debut in 1970 with the group Pendulum, whose "It's a beautiful day" turns out to be a one-time hit.

After the split in 1971, Van Neygen teams up with Raymond van het Groenewoud and forms the group Louisette. This group is in retrospect labeled as the first real Flemish rock group. They bring all time-evergreens like "Maria, Maria, ik hou van jou" and "Zij houdt van vrijen" to the world. The record of Louisette has surprisingly little success and Van het Groenewoud and Van Neygen go their own separate ways.

From the middle of the seventies onward, he becomes a popular solo singer. In "Wit-lof from Belgium" it is noted that "Van Neygen evolved from dutch country to an at times very well-succeeded crossover of pop & country. Part of this evolution is due to the cooperation with Jeroen Le Compte (son of the mad doctor and songwriter for Flemish singers)." His most tasteful singles are "Stille brieven" of 1978 and "Hotel Stil Verdriet" of 1981. This last one is an original song by Elvis Costello, in a translation by journalist and film-maker Eric Didden.

Things are growing a bit quieter around him in the middle of the eighties, when he suddenly is thrown in the spotlights once again due to an affair he has with an (at that time) unknown female singer called Sanne Denotté. He devotes himself (with success) to establishing her career. The result is a monster hit. The duet of Erik Van Neygen & Sanne "Veel te mooi" (much too beautiful, a translation of an originally Juguslav song) of 1990 sells over 75.000 copies.

In the 90's, the career of Sanne (who you also migh know as the Snow-White that refused the kiss by the fair prince in a musical, as featured on CNN) faired a bit better than Eric Van Neygen's (other hits of her include "Oostendse wind", "Het huis dat tussen rozen staat", and "De ballade van het geluk" (music of Gerard Lenorman). The two artists married and had a baby in 1996.

In 2000, Sanne & Erik Van Neygen gave their last concerts as a singing couple. About 10 years after Eric van Neygen discovered her at a concert, and the immediate success of their first collaboration, they have decided to halt it. "This decision was made because I have so more work to do for my art-gallery, and because Sanne has an exhausting job in education. We have always done our music trying to achieve the highest quality, and if the circumstances don't permit to achieve that, it's better to stop than compromising on the quality.

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Albums :
- Erik Van Neygen (Parsifal, 1976)
- Stille brieven (Racoon, 1978)
- Alles gaat door (1980)
- Hotel Stil Verdriet (Ariola, 1981)
- Nooit meer alleen (1982)
- Met kloppend hart (1983)
- Desperado in de stad (1985)
- Op weg naar huis (Assekrem, 1988)
- Erik Van Neygen (1989)
- Het huis aan het water (1990)
Compilations :
- Het beste van Erik van Neygen (1983)
- Eriks beste (1990)
- Eriks beste deel 2 (1991)
- Erik Van Neygen 1979 - 1984 (Masters Serie) (1997)

Records of Eric Van Neygen & Sanne
- Mee met de zon (1992)
- Veel te mooi. De mooiste van Eric & Sanne (1995)
- Onderweg (1999)

Websites :
- fanclub-website by Leen Vuyghe devoted to Erik & Sanne.
- bio & picture-gallery of Erik & Sanne at the Flemish showbizzsite

Forum :
- Read the messages/questions about Erik van Neygen
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