In the early Seventies, the band switched to hard rock and had its first successes, including a brace of Top 40 hits. After original singer Veerman left and drummer Keizer took his place behind the microphone, the band made a musical U-turn and opted for commercial radio pop, adding female co-vocalist Annie Schilder and laying the foundation for their status as the most popular Dutch band ever (in terms of hit singles and albums). BZN has had over 50 hits in the Dutch hit parade to date.
BZN's claim to fame started with the song "Mon Amour" (1976), which held the #1 hit parade ranking for over 5 weeks. Outside of the Netherlands the band has had some success as well, amongst which several hits in South Africa (such as "Yeppa" in 1990) and minor successes with their French-language songs in Canada.
Through the years there have been many lineup changes, the most important of which have been the departure of Schilder in 1984 (replaced by Carola Smit) and in 1988 of the brothers Cees and Thomas Tol (keyboards), who until then had been responsible for most of the music and lyrics. The band remained nevertheless successful, making their last major change in strategy when they decided to write in Dutch instead of English as of 2003.
BZN are also responsible for the initial success of singer Jan Smit (singer), who was discovered by BZN at the age of 10 and went on to have pop and schlager successes in The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium.
On February 15 2006, BZN announced they would do one final tour and then call it quits. This goodbye tour is scheduled to last until June 2007.
Across The U.S.A.
BZN Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In such a big white silver bird
To see the earth below from high above
Oh boy, it thrills me do you know
High speed travelling to the U.S.A.
We see the Westcoast down below
And when the wheels will touch
Hello, my crazy lazy days
And then I'm playing on the old guitar
I don't care much for money
It's all for you my honey
If I can only be in L.A.
Won't you go let me show
It's all to happen across the U.S.A.
I don't care much for money
It's all for you my honey
If I can only be in L.A.
Won't you go let me show
It's all to happen across the U.S.A.
I buy myself an old limousine
Run down the highway 65
And we'll fly up to the mountaintops
Where we enjoy the countryside
And then I'm playing on the old guitar
I don't care much for money
It's all for you my honey
If I can only be in L.A.
Won't you go let me show
It's all to happen across the U.S.A.
I don't care much for money
It's all for you my honey
If I can only be in L.A.
Won't you go let me show
It's all to happen across the U.S.A.
The lyrics of BZN's Across the U.S.A. tell the story of someone traveling to America, particularly to California, and enjoying the sights and sounds of their new surroundings. The singer expresses their joy at seeing the earth from high up in the air as they fly in a “big white silver bird.” They are particularly taken by the West Coast and look forward to landing in California. They express their desire for a carefree life, playing an old guitar, and enjoying the countryside. They buy an old limousine and drive down Highway 65, enjoying a scenic drive up to the mountaintops. All of this is done solely for the pleasure of being with their loved one.
The lyrics convey a sense of excitement and joy at the prospect of a new adventure, particularly in America. This is highlighted with the refrain of "I don't care much for money, it's all for you my honey,” indicating that the singer’s main motivation is to share new experiences with their loved one. The song also taps into the popular mythology of America as a land of freedom and endless possibility. With lyrics like “It's all to happen across the U.S.A.,” the song conjures up the idea of the American Dream and the excitement that it holds for people from all over the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Got on board at 5 p.m.
I boarded the plane at 5pm.
In such a big white silver bird
The plane was big, white, and silver.
To see the earth below from high above
I was thrilled to see the view of the Earth from up in the air.
Oh boy, it thrills me do you know
I was excited and thrilled during the flight.
High speed travelling to the U.S.A.
We were traveling to the USA at high speed.
We see the Westcoast down below
We saw the West Coast of the US from the plane.
And when the wheels will touch
When the plane landed
The Californian ground
We arrived in California.
Hello, my crazy lazy days
I was looking forward to relaxing in California.
And then I'm playing on the old guitar
I played guitar during the trip.
I don't care much for money
I wasn't concerned about spending money.
It's all for you my honey
I was doing everything for my loved one.
If I can only be in L.A.
I really wanted to be in Los Angeles.
Won't you go let me show
I wanted to show my loved one around Los Angeles.
It's all to happen across the U.S.A.
I was excited about all the experiences we would have on our trip across the USA.
I buy myself an old limousine
I bought an old limousine for the trip.
Run down the highway 65
We drove down Highway 65.
And we'll fly up to the mountaintops
We also enjoyed the mountains during our trip.
Where we enjoy the countryside
We had fun exploring the countryside.
Contributed by Maria F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.