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 nĀ°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)
Liefde Is Weerloos
Clouseau Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Liefde is hopeloos koud
als ik jou niet heb
Je kijkt niet eens om,nu
Zeg me waarom,nu
Waarom je vandaag vertrekt
wist ik maar met 1 gebaar
een nieuw begin voor ons verhaal
samen met jou
Het snijdt me vanbinnen
nooit was ik zo sprakeloos
geen dag wil ik zonder jou
hoe moet ik beginnen
je hart te herwinnen
dat hart waar ik zo van hou
Er komt een dag waarop je ziet
dat jij je hart hier achterliet
tot die dag duurt mijn verdriet
tot aan die dag
is liefde zo hopeloos koud
Er komt een dag waarop je ziet
dat jij je hart hier achterliet
en wie weet krijg ik een brief
waarin je schrijft
Liefde is weerloos
Liefde is hopeloos koud
als ik jou niet heb
The lyrics to Clouseau's song Liefde Is Weerloos describes the feeling of being in love and the pain and emptiness that comes with losing that love. As the song title suggests, love is depicted as being defenseless and vulnerable. The first few lines start off by emphasizing the coldness of the situation, suggesting that love without the person you love is simply hopeless. The lack of attention from the loved one makes the singer feel uncertain and doubtful. The lyrics also show his desire to go back in time and rewrite their love story, hoping for a better ending, one together.
The chorus repeats the phrase "Er komt een dag waarop zie" or "there will come a day when you see" which suggests that someday, the loved one will regret leaving and will realize the impact of their absence. It is this hope that keeps the singer going and holding onto the love that he so desperately wants to keep. The song ends with the same hopeless sentiment as it began, with the singer still in pain and unsure of how to proceed, despite the glimmer of hope that the chorus brings.
Line by Line Meaning
Liefde is weerloos
Love is defenseless
Liefde is hopeloos koud
Love is hopelessly cold
als ik jou niet heb
if I don't have you
Je kijkt niet eens om, nu
You don't even look around, now
Zeg me waarom, nu
Tell me why, now
Waarom je vandaag vertrekt
Why you're leaving today
wist ik maar met 1 gebaar
If only I knew with one gesture
een nieuw begin voor ons verhaal
a new beginning for our story
Ik herschreef het helemaal
I rewrote it completely
samen met jou
together with you
Het snijdt me vanbinnen
It cuts me inside
nooit was ik zo sprakeloos
I was never so speechless
geen dag wil ik zonder jou
I don't want a day without you
hoe moet ik beginnen
How should I start
je hart te herwinnen
to win back your heart
dat hart waar ik zo van hou
that heart I love so much
Er komt een dag waarop je ziet
There will come a day when you see
dat jij je hart hier achterliet
that you left your heart here
tot die dag duurt mijn verdriet
Until that day, my grief lasts
tot aan die dag
until that day
is liefde zo hopeloos koud
love is so hopelessly cold
en wie weet krijg ik een brief
and who knows, I might get a letter
waarin je schrijft
wherein you write
Liefde is weerloos
Love is defenseless
Liefde is hopeloos koud
Love is hopelessly cold
als ik jou niet heb
if I don't have you
Contributed by Samantha H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@katelijnisselee2602
Prachtige tekst zalig liedje waar zoveel waarheid in zit