Clouseau (a Belgian band) started as a group of friends back in 1984. Only … Read Full Bio ↴Clouseau (a Belgian band) started as a group of friends back in 1984. Only Karel Theys, the bass-player, had some previous experience in a band with The Employees. 1987 sees them coming out of the garage for the first time : they play Marktrock in Leuven en get a record deal for their first single "Brandweer".

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)

Give It Up
Clouseau Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You said you loved me
And you made it sound sincere
Now I'm just wishing you were here
Give it up, wish you were here

You wanna lose yourself
In someone else's eyes
How could you ever pass me by

(Chorus)

Give it up, give it up
Give it up, baby

There was a time
When you would turn to me and say
Baby you're always on my mind
But how could I know
That you would let me down some day
And leave me for some other guy

(Chorus)

Won't you stop denying
The love I know you feel for me

Baby keep on trying
It's time we face reality

Overall Meaning

In Clouseau's song "Give It Up," the singer addresses a former lover who had proclaimed their love but ultimately left them for someone else. The lyrics express the singer's longing for their ex-lover to come back and the feeling of being betrayed by someone they trusted. The song begins with the singer recalling the former lover's declaration of love, and how they now wish that person were still with them. The chorus repeatedly asks the ex-lover to "give it up" and return to the relationship. The verse then turns to the ex-lover's desire to find someone else, and the singer's confusion over how they could be discarded so easily.

The lyrics express a sense of desperation and pain that many people can relate to after a significant relationship has ended. The song highlights how we can feel helpless and betrayed when someone we love chooses to leave us. Despite the singer's attempts to encourage their ex-lover to come back, the song ends on a note of uncertainty, with the line "It's time we face reality." This line suggests that the singer has come to terms with the fact that the relationship might not be salvageable, and they need to accept the situation.

Line by Line Meaning

You said you loved me
You uttered those three magic words to me

And you made it sound sincere
You portrayed your love for me with extreme intensity

Now I'm just wishing you were here
Currently, I'm missing your presence

Give it up, wish you were here
Surrender and be present with me once again

You wanna lose yourself
You want to get indulged and consumed by

In someone else's eyes
You yearn to get lost in another person's view

How could you ever pass me by
How could you neglect, disregard or romp around me

Give it up, give it up
Let it go and accept the truth

Give it up, baby
Lay down all your emotions, come back

There was a time
A phase in the past

When you would turn to me and say
You used to rotate and express your fondness to me