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)

Sterven op de planken
Clouseau Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Sterven op de planken
Zo stel ik me het einde voor
Èen laatste half gezongen zin
Dan komt het eind of het begin
De band speelt onverdroten door
En ook de meisjes van het koor
Die hebben niks gemerkt
Maar dat komt vaker voor

Sterven op de planken
Een goed moment om weg te gaan
Een laatste blik op het publiek
Ik was nooit meer dan wat muziek
Het is nu welletjes geweest
Ik ga voor 't einde van het feest
Tot ziens en niks te danken
Ik wil sterven op de planken
Ik wil sterven op de planken
Laat mij sterven op de planken
Zonder tranen, zonder weemoed
Niet omdat het mij verveelt
Ik geloof dat ik 'ns opstap
Voor de foto's zijn vergeeld
Sterven op de planken
Als het dan moet, dan moet het zo
Voor ik voorgoed m'n ogen sluit
Zing ik nog één keer iets te luid
Nog één keer huilen naar de maan
Met volle zeilen ondergaan
Er valt hier niks te janken
Ik wil sterven op de planken
Ik wil sterven op de planken
Ik wil sterven op de planken

Laat mij sterven op de planken
Maar niet meteen

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Clouseau's song "Sterven op de planken" (which translates to "Dying on the Stage") depict a desire to have one's final moments in life occur on a stage. The song expresses a romanticized view of ending one's journey by performing for an audience, with a last half-sung line marking the beginning or the end. The band continues to play tirelessly, and the backing chorus remains oblivious to the performer's intentions, symbolizing the disconnect between the public persona and the personal struggles experienced within.

The singer views dying on the stage as an opportune time to leave, taking one final look at the crowd. They acknowledge that they were never more than just music to their audience, highlighting a sense of insignificance. Nonetheless, they have decided that enough is enough and are ready to depart before the festivities conclude. The desire is to have a farewell without tears or nostalgia, not because they are bored or uninterested but rather before their presence becomes a faded memory seen only in old photographs. The idea of dying on stage is seen as a fitting end, perhaps intending to provoke a strong emotional response from the audience one last time, giving everything they have with full intensity.

Overall, the lyrics convey a longing for a dramatic and meaningful exit, capturing the essence of a performer's desire to make a lasting impact and be remembered.

Line by Line Meaning

Sterven op de planken
The desire to die on stage

Zo stel ik me het einde voor
This is how I imagine the end to be

Èen laatste half gezongen zin
One final half-sung line

Dan komt het eind of het begin
Then comes the end or the beginning

De band speelt onverdroten door
The band continues to play undaunted

En ook de meisjes van het koor
And even the girls from the choir

Die hebben niks gemerkt
Who haven't noticed anything

Maar dat komt vaker voor
But that happens more often

Een goed moment om weg te gaan
A good moment to leave

Een laatste blik op het publiek
One final glance at the audience

Ik was nooit meer dan wat muziek
I was never more than just music