In '88 they have a small hit with "Alleen met Jou" (Only with you) and win the Baccara-trophy in the squad of Raymond Van Het Groenewoud.
In 1989 they participated in the preselection to determine the Belgian delegate to the Eurovision Song Festival. Clouseau finishes second (behind Ingeborg), but now has a foot in the door. The breakthrough comes immediately with the single "Anne" and an album "Hoezo ?" (How so?). Screaming teenagers all over the place and smashed record sales in Belgium are the consequence. The Netherlands follow, when "Daar Gaat Ze" (There she goes) becomes a big hit. The 2nd album "Of zo" (Or so) also proves to be very successful.
1990 is a year which can only be described as the year of "Clouseau-mania". Everything the boys touch turns to gold.
Manager Hans Kusters : "They really appeal to the teens. Simple songs, but also lyrics in the form of "She comes, she goes or she is". No fuss about apartheid or the nuclear missiles. Clean, cute, sometimes rocking, sometimes slowing, always charming melodies with innocent and easily recognizable love- and dance stories."
In 1991, the Benelux is getting too small for the group so they (or at least the record company) decide to try to storm the European market.
This time they are appointed to participating for Belgium in the Eurovisionsongcontest (where the finish very low with "Geef het op", despite the very high hopes Flanders was posing in them). They record a CD in English called "Close Encounters" (mainly consisting of adaptations of their own Dutch songs) of which they sell 200.000 copies in the slipstream of Roxette's European tour of 1992.
The 2nd English-language album "In every small town", however, is a complete commercial failure. Frontman Koen Wauters starts a career as a television presenter and race-pilot (Paris-Dakar), kicks a few old friends out of the band and refocuses on the Dutch market with the CD "Oker" (Ochre) in 1995.
On the album "Adrenaline", only the two Wauters' Brothers remain. The album shows a more adult Clouseau. They have successfully survived the hype and are starting to produce decent material again, without the necessity to "score" or match the sales figures of the 1989-1990 craze.
What about the band members that were left behind :
- Bob Savenberg has ventured to a successful solo career (e.g. the duet with Dutch singer Stef Bos in "Breek de stilte" and his solo CD "Vuur en Vlam"). He also presented "Ultratop" (the Belgian hitparade on VRT) and has a small company that builds websites. In 2001, he did the show "Popstars" for VT4.
- Tjenne Berghmans has played in about every other Belgian group (e.g. The Scabs, Betty Goes Green ...) since he left Clouseau.
- Karel Theys, formerly of the Employees, was at the base of another Kloot Per W project, de Lama's in 1993-94.
In 1997, they release a compilation album "Clouseau 1987-1997" and have a celebration on their 10 years of existence. Koen Wauters (although hard to recognize amidst all the publicity for Belgacom) finishes another Dakar at the beginning of 1997. He also continues his television career (Familieraad, Koen & The Gang, Wedden dat ...), and fights off a female stalker in his bathroom. In 1999, he marries Carolijn Lillipally (who was a VJ for MTV-Europe).
In 1999 Clouseau conquers Flanders for the umpteenth time, on this occasion with the new CD "In Stereo". In a production with a lot of violins by Jean Blaute (see RvhG, Kate's Kennel ..) and with songs that were written by people such as Frank van der Linden (of De Mens), Jan Leyers (of My Velma & Soulsister), Mark Vanhie (The Bet, Sarah) and others, and pulled by singles such as "Heb ik ooit gezegd" (a Van Morisson-cover) and "Altijd meer en meer" the group even makes it back again as a headliner at Marktrock (where it all had started). This leads them to a new live-album, simply called "Live", released in 2000.
In 2001 they opened with an album with nothing but slow songs for the Dutch market - entitled "Ballades" - but in recording their next album they deliberately stepped away from this trend in ever slower songs. En Dans - wrapped in a funny cover hand-drawn by Marcel Vanthilt, who also sings on one song - was released in November 2001, and contained much more uptempo songs, taking them back to the starting days of the band. Most striking track was certainly the title song "En Dans", Clouseau in an festive disco-outfit. However the first single that was taken from the album was a ballad "Ik Geef Me Over" (I surrender) with a video that caused some controversy due to the smoking habit of Koen. Through the usual visits to radio stations and a break-in into the BigBrother house, the CD certainly didn't miss it's start, as it deserved platinum for 30,000 copies in the presales, and entered the album-charts at n°1. On the live-front it remained fairly quiet, working towards two gigantic gigs in the Sportpaleis in Antwerp in the month of December.
The band released their latest CD Vonken & Vuur ("Sparks & Fire") in March 2007.
Band members (original line-up) :
- Koen Wauters (vocals)
- Kris Wauters (keyboard and guitar)
- Bob Savenberg (drums and backing vocals)
- Karel Theys (bass)
- Tjenne Berghmans (guitar).
Albums :
- Hoezo(Hans Kusters Music - 1989)
- Of Zo (Hans Kuster Music - 1990)
- Close Encounters (EMI - 1991)
- Doorgaan (tot je niet meer op je benen kan staan) (EMI- 1992)
- In Every Small Town (EMI - 1993)
- Oker (EMI - 1995)
- Adrenaline (EMI - 1996)
- In Stereo (EMI - 1999)
- En Dans (EMI - 2001)
- Live in het Sportpaleis DVD ("Live at the Sport Palace, Antwerp") (2003)
- Vanbinnen (2004)
- Clouseau in 't lang DVD ("Live at the Sport Palace, Antwerp") (2006)
- Vonken en Vuur (2007)
- Zij aan Zij (2009)
Compilations :
- Clouseau Live (Hans Kusters Music - 1991)
- Clouseau 1987-1997 (EMI, 1997)
- Live (EMI, 2000)
- Ballades (EMI, 2001)
Cara Lucia
Clouseau Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Steel me leeg voor mijn part
Neem maar mee wat je vindt in mijn hoofd
Herinneringen misschien
Aan het prille begin
Of een leugen die je graag gelooft
Tweemaal alleen
Ik voel de stilte branden in mijn keel
Ik proef nog 't zout op je huid
Maar je wandelt mijn leven uit
Cara Lucia kom terug
Cara Lucia ik kan niet zonder jou
Cara Lucia kom terug
Doe wat je moet
Bikkelhard, bitterzoet
Neem maar mee wat je vindt in ons bed
Liefdeskruimels misschien
Kantje Yang, boordje Ying
Of de veren van je zomerhoed
Twee maal alleen
Ik voel de stilte branden in mijn keel
Twee maal alleen
Ik proef nog 't zout op je huid
Maar je wandelt mijn leven uit
Cara Lucia kom terug
Cara Lucia ik kan niet zonder jou
Cara Lucia
The lyrics of Clouseau's song "Cara Lucia" express a profound sense of loss and heartbreak from the perspective of the singer who has been left behind by his love, Cara Lucia. He begs her to come back to him, to take whatever she desires from his heart and mind, to take with her all the memories of their past together. He reminisces about their happy moments, perhaps the beginning of their relationship, but also acknowledges that some of those memories might have been lies that she believed.
Throughout the song, the singer is tormented by his loneliness and the silence that burns his throat as he remembers the taste of her skin and the texture of her summer hat. He is aware that she is gone, but he cannot stop thinking about her, feeling incomplete and vulnerable without her. He invites her to return and do what she needs to do, even if it means taking away bits of their love and leaving him with nothing but bitter-sweet memories.
The lyrics of "Cara Lucia" are a powerful representation of the pain of separation and the struggle to let go of a lost love. The singer's vulnerability and raw emotions make the song relatable and deeply moving.
Line by Line Meaning
Plunder mijn hart
Take everything that's in my heart, without hesitation.
Steel me leeg voor mijn part
Empty me completely, take whatever you want.
Neem maar mee wat je vindt in mijn hoofd
Take whatever you can find in my mind.
Herinneringen misschien
Possibly memories from the past.
Aan het prille begin
From the very beginning.
Of een leugen die je graag gelooft
Or maybe a lie you like to believe.
Tweemaal alleen
Twice alone, feeling the emptiness.
Ik voel de stilte branden in mijn keel
The silence feels suffocating.
Ik proef nog 't zout op je huid
I can still taste the salt from your skin.
Maar je wandelt mijn leven uit
But you're walking out of my life.
Cara Lucia kom terug
Cara Lucia, please come back to me.
Cara Lucia ik kan niet zonder jou
I can't live without you, Cara Lucia.
Doe wat je moet
Do what you have to do.
Bikkelhard, bitterzoet
It may be tough and bittersweet.
Neem maar mee wat je vindt in ons bed
Take whatever you can find in our bed.
Liefdeskruimels misschien
Perhaps some crumbs of love.
Kantje Yang, boordje Ying
The contrasts of love.
Of de veren van je zomerhoed
Or even the feathers of your summer hat.
Twee maal alleen
Twice alone, feeling the emptiness.
Ik voel de stilte branden in mijn keel
The silence feels suffocating.
Ik proef nog 't zout op je huid
I can still taste the salt from your skin.
Maar je wandelt mijn leven uit
But you're walking out of my life.
Cara Lucia kom terug
Cara Lucia, please come back to me.
Cara Lucia ik kan niet zonder jou
I can't live without you, Cara Lucia.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Den DG Legionhardhouse
1995! Wat een topper!
Katelijn Isselee
Heel mooi liedje koen op ieder potje past een dekseltje ik gun het je van harte
ᗰᗩᖇIO ᐯᗩᑎ ᗷEᖇᑎEᐯEᒪᗪ
Ik ben een statiegelfles, maar mijn dopje is niet mee ingeleverd. 😢