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.
Don't Cry For Me
BZN Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There she lived like a back streetgirl,
Queen of the wildside, Mexican hero.
On a raid with her guy called Diego,
She was caught, he could fly away,
And now Maria, weeps like a willow.
Don't cry for me, my Maria,
'cause it will mend with time,
This lonely heart of mine.
I'll be waiting for you, my Maria,
Forever and a day,
So wipe your tears away.
A stricken look on those needy faces,
When the news spread from town to town,
Thousands were crying, cry for a hero.
The moments of burning passion,
She remembers the nights of love,
And now Maria, weeps like a willow.
But every night, beneath her window, you can hear Diego sing.
Don't cry for me, my Maria,
'cause it will mend with time,
This lonely heart of mine.
I'll be waiting for you, my Maria,
Forever and a day,
So wipe your tears away.
I'll be waiting for you, my Maria,
Forever and a day,
So wipe your tears away.
The lyrics of BZN's song "Don't Cry For Me" tell the story of Maria, a woman who lived in the slums of El Paso and was a "back street girl" and "Mexican hero". She was caught with her lover Diego during a raid, but he managed to escape while she was left behind. Maria is now mourning the loss of Diego and weeping like a willow. However, every night under her window, she can hear Diego singing to her, telling her not to cry and that he will be waiting for her forever.
The song paints a vivid picture of the struggles faced by those who live in poverty and the pain of losing a loved one. Maria's story is one of resilience and the power of love to give hope in even the darkest of circumstances. The haunting melody and emotive lyrics of "Don't Cry For Me" capture the sense of loss and longing that is at the heart of this powerful ballad.
Overall, "Don't Cry For Me" is a touching and melancholy song that speaks to the universal human experience of love and loss. It reminds us that even when everything is against us, the bonds we form with those we love can sustain us through even the toughest of times.
Line by Line Meaning
In the slums of dark El Paso,
In the poverty-stricken area of El Paso,
There she lived like a back streetgirl,
Maria lived like a girl who grew up in the streets.
Queen of the wildside, Mexican hero.
She was seen as a hero for the Mexican people, especially those who lived in the wildside.
On a raid with her guy called Diego,
During a criminal activity with her partner, Diego,
She was caught, he could fly away,
Maria was caught but Diego managed to escape.
And now Maria, weeps like a willow.
Maria cries a lot because of what happened.
But every night, beneath her window, you can hear Diego sing.
Diego sings to Maria every night.
Don't cry for me, my Maria,
Don't be sad for me, Maria,
'cause it will mend with time,
because I will heal with time,
This lonely heart of mine.
I will get over the pain of being away from her.
I'll be waiting for you, my Maria,
I'll be waiting for you, Maria,
Forever and a day,
for eternity,
So wipe your tears away.
Don't be sad, try to be happy again.
A stricken look on those needy faces,
People who were poor looked sad and desperate.
When the news spread from town to town,
When the news of Maria's capture spread around the towns,
Thousands were crying, cry for a hero.
Thousands of people cried for Maria, who they saw as a hero.
The moments of burning passion,
The moments of intense love,
She remembers the nights of love,
Maria remembers the time when she was in love with Diego.
And now Maria, weeps like a willow.
Maria still cries a lot because of what happened.
But every night, beneath her window, you can hear Diego sing.
Diego still sings to Maria every night despite the distance.
I'll be waiting for you, my Maria,
I'll be waiting for you, Maria,
Forever and a day,
for eternity,
So wipe your tears away.
Don't be sad, try to be happy again.
Contributed by Isaiah T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.