Doe Maar (the band name can be loosely translated as 'go ahead' or 'do as you say') recorded five studio albums, with the latter four hitting number one in the Dutch album charts.
Having emerged from a hippie community in the south of The Netherlands in the late 1970s, Doe Maar's self-titled 1979 début album was not much of a success. Founding member and original bass player Piet Dekker left the group. Ernst Jansz (vocals, keyboards), Jan Hendriks (guitar) and Carel Copier (drums) were briefly joined by stand-in bass player Joost Belinfante (of hippie/folk outfit CCC Inc.) before Henny Vrienten was recruited as the permanent new bass player in 1980.
The second album, Skunk, was released in the summer of 1981, preceded by the lead single Sinds 1 Dag Of 2, which didn't enter the charts until radio DJ Frits Spits had pretty much singlehandedly changed the song title into the more catchy 32 Jaar ('32 Years'). Single and album were reasonably succesful, but not more than that. At the end of the year drummer Carel Copier was replaced by René van Collem, who was 20 years of age at the time, more than a decade younger than the rest of the band.
March 1982 saw the release of the album Doris Day en andere stukken and the lead single, Doris Day, which - almost overnight - sparked off 'Doe Maar-mania', a craze unequaled for a Dutch band in their home country, including hysterical and fainting teenage girls during live performances and a brief domination of teen fashion in The Netherlands, with the fluorescent 'phosphor green' and 'lollipop pink' trade mark colours of the Skunk album and a huge market of Doe Maar memorabilia: pins, badges, sweatbands and what not.
Doe Maar were now referred to as 'the Dutch Beatles': very different music, but similar (if not worse) madness.
The Doris Day album had only just disappeared from the top of the Dutch album charts when the two-year old Skunk album hit number. The stand-alone single De Bom ('The Bomb') topped the singles charts in November 1982. Typically, the band's young fans hardly seemed to understand what an apocalyptic song it was: "Work on your future... before the bomb drops."
The band members were shocked and not seldomly frightened or depressed by their sudden popularity. They were in their mid-thirties; the hordes of teenage girls that suddenly invaded their private lives were everything but their peers. Doe Maar wrote particularly gloomy songs about topics that you would expect to appeal to 'thirty-somethings' rather than teenagers. Jansz and Vrienten, in particular, received tons of love letters from teenage girls, but also death threats from Dutch Neo-Nazis. They needed bodyguards. Meanwhile, the Dutch music press dismissed Doe Maar as a teenybopper phenomenon: the band was first sneered at and later mostly ignored by Holland's music critics.
In May 1982 the band fired its youthful drummer, René van Collem. His successor, Jan Pijnenburg, was involved in car accident shortly after he was hired. Somewhat bizarrely, the band then hired René van Collem as a stand-in for another six months of live concerts. The definitive Doe Maar line-up was now complete: Ernst Jansz (vocals, keyboards), Henny Vrienten (vocals, bass), Jan Hendriks (guitar) and Jan Pijnenburg (drums). Years later, René van Collem would express his bitterness over the fact that Pijnenburg can be seen on almost all of the band's famous group pictures and is generally regarded as the Doe Maar drummer (especially after the 1999-2000 and 2008 reunions), in spite of the fact that the drum parts on the studio albums are almost exclusively Van Collem's work. He also played the lion's share of the band's live shows.
The particularly dark 4us ('Virus') album was released in March 1983 and immediately rocketed to number one, just like its lead single Pa ('Dad'), a rather bitter song about generation gaps. 'Doe Maar-mania' was now at its peak and (during live shows) frequently out of control. The band decided to stop doing interviews, announced complete radio silence and attempted to focus on their next album, but had to conclude that there was no more inspiration. Doe Maar had burned out.
The announcement that Doe Maar was going to call it quits caused grief beyond belief amongst a generation of Dutch teenage girls. The Dutch Kindertelefoon ('Kids Phone') had to deal with countless brokenhearted young girls who phoned in, not seldomly to announce their imminent suicides.
The band did two emotional 'farewell' shows in Den Bosch's Maaspoort hall on 14 April 1984. Since then, Henny Vrienten and Ernst Jansz have pursued successful solo careers, mostly in the context of music composition for television and cinema. The band members remained friends and continued to play together on private occasions.
After more than fifteen years of absence - in which their work was rehabilitated by a new generation of music critics - Doe Maar decided to re-unite for one final album: Klaar (which means as much as 'finished' or 'done') was released in 2000. A string of sixteen reunion concerts at Rotterdam's Ahoy sports palace was announced. 175,000 tickets were sold in an eyewink, in many cases to the teenage girls of the early eighties, now thirty-somethings.
In 2007 a theatre musical about the band's music toured the Netherlands and won several important theater awards. The success of 'Doe Maar - The Musical' was followed by another reunion show, at De Kuip football stadium in Rotterdam. 50,000 tickets sold out within the hour, three more concerts were added... and also sold out in no-time. In an interview on 20 June 2008, Henny Vrienten said: "This is no longer a 'reunion'. Doe Maar is back, for real." Doe Maar still performs regularly in The Netherlands, mostly at festivals.
Bäng
Doe Maar Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wat is er met mij aan de hand
Ik ben bang
Ga nog even zitten, blijf
Tot het onweer overdrijft
Ik ben bang
Zou wel willen gillen
Diep onder de dekens
Maar ik kan niet slapen
Ik ben bang
Engte-diepte-hoogtevrees
Van nare dingen die ik lees
Ben ik bang
Niemand die me helpen kan
Ik snap er zelf ook niets van
Ik ben bang
Pa..paniek van binnen
Voor torren, slangen en spinnen
Ik zie mezelf van de tiende
naar beneden vallen
Ik ben bang
Bang voor jou en bang voor mij
Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn
Moeder laat het lampje aan
'Tis donker hier
Massa's mensen om mij heen
Toch voel ik mij stikalleen
En zo bang
Als ik in de spiegel kijk
En alweer wat ouder lijk
Ben ik bang
Bang voor wat moet komen
En in mijn diepste dromen
Ren ik voor mijn leven
Maar ik kom niet verder
Ik ben bang
Bang voor jou en bang voor mij
Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn
Moeder laat het lampje aan
Het is donker hier
Bang voor wat moet komen
En in mijn diepste dromen
Ren ik voor mijn leven
Maar ik kom niet verder
Ik ben bang
Bang voor jou en bang voor mij
Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn
Moeder laat het lampje aan
Het is donker hier
Bang voor jou en bang voor mij
Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn
Mama laat het lampje aan
Het is donker hier
The song "Bang" by Dutch band Doe Maar talks about the experience of feeling afraid and anxious. The lyrics highlight different aspects of fear: from phobias, such as a fear of spiders or heights, to a more general anxiety about life and the future. The song's narrator appears to be struggling with the intensity of their own emotions, as they confront their fears and seek solace in the presence of loved ones.
The use of repetition in the chorus ("Bang voor jou en bang voor mij / Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn / Moeder laat het lampje aan / Het is donker hier") creates a sense of urgency and vulnerability. The plea for the mother to leave the light on underscores the idea that even as adults, we can feel like helpless children when faced with our deepest anxieties.
Overall, "Bang" is a powerful and relatable portrayal of the many ways that fear can shape our lives and our perceptions of ourselves and the world around us.
Line by Line Meaning
Waar is m'n gezond verstand
I am experiencing fear and anxiety that is causing me to question my own rational thinking.
Wat is er met mij aan de hand
I am unsure why I am feeling this intense fear and anxiety.
Ik ben bang
I am afraid.
Ga nog even zitten, blijf
I need someone to be with me through this fear.
Tot het onweer overdrijft
Until my fear subsides.
Kijk mijn handen trillen
I am physically reacting to my fear and anxiety.
Zou wel willen gillen
I feel like screaming my fear out loud.
Diep onder de dekens
I want to hide away and feel safe.
Maar ik kan niet slapen
Even though I am exhausted, my fear is preventing me from sleeping.
Engte-diepte-hoogtevrees
I have specific fears, such as fear of enclosed spaces, heights or depths.
Van nare dingen die ik lees
Reading or hearing about unpleasant things causes me anxiety.
Ben ik bang
I am scared.
Niemand die me helpen kan
I feel like there is no one who can help me with this fear.
Ik snap er zelf ook niets van
I don't understand why I am experiencing such intense fear.
Pa..paniek van binnen
I am experiencing panic internally.
Voor torren, slangen en spinnen
I have specific fears such as insects, snakes and spiders.
Ik zie mezelf van de tiende naar beneden vallen
I experience intrusive thoughts of falling from a height.
Ik ben bang
I am afraid.
Bang voor jou en bang voor mij
I am afraid of others and their actions as well as my own.
Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn
I am afraid of death and physical pain.
Moeder laat het lampje aan
I seek comfort in having a light on.
'Tis donker hier
I feel completely alone and in the dark.
Massa's mensen om mij heen
Even though there are many people around me, I feel isolated in my fear.
Toch voel ik mij stikalleen
Despite being surrounded by people I feel completely alone in my fear.
En zo bang
And I am so scared.
Als ik in de spiegel kijk
When I look in the mirror.
En alweer wat ouder lijk
And I see myself aging.
Ben ik bang
I am afraid.
Bang voor wat moet komen
I am afraid of what the future holds.
En in mijn diepste dromen
Even in my deepest dreams.
Ren ik voor mijn leven
I am constantly trying to escape and run from my fear.
Maar ik kom niet verder
But I cannot overcome my fear.
Ik ben bang
I am afraid.
Bang voor jou en bang voor mij
I am afraid of others and their actions as well as my own.
Bang voor dood en bang voor pijn
I am afraid of death and physical pain.
Mama laat het lampje aan
I seek comfort in having a light on.
Het is donker hier
I feel completely alone and in the dark.
Contributed by Luke G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@AngelineMam
Een van de beste nummers van deze cd. Een hele goede tekst en weer die geweldige muziek van Doe Maar. Ze zijn en blijven de beste band ooit.
@emilepeters8063
Deze clip niet eerder gezien, ben toch een kind van de jaren 80 😂. Ernst Jan “speelt” de sax solo die destijds door mijn vader is ingespeeld voor dit nummer. Gaaf album, herinner me al die buttons en sweetbandjes nog. Lagen met dozen bij de Johnnie Hoes studios in Weert.
@BoukevanDijke
Wat een gedweldige band! Veel beter dan de huidige top 40 songs, dit is muziek die echt iets bedoelt, gezongen door een groep die echt achter de muziek staat!
@hnsja
Doe Maar is de beste band die Nederland ooit heeft voortgebracht
@creaturanoctis
Erg goed nummer en nog gewoon helemaal actueel. Lekkere baslijn ook (zoals in al hun nummers). Hier kunnen de meeste Nederlandse bands een voorbeeld aan nemen!
@Gritasa
DOE MAAR IS GEWELDIG! Haha, Ze hebben nog steeds fans van alle leeftijden! Ik ben 17 en vind ze geweldig, mijn ma heeft nog een paar cd's van hun. GEWELDIG zijn ze gewoon x'D, Leuke muziek altijd..
@michelsijtsma5308
17 en inmiddels 31 alweer?
@sjoperdje
Grappig om dit weer te horen, toen ik iets van 8 was vond ik het te gek!
@throwflow
nog steeds ongeëvenaard na al die jaren
@Bianca-bs9sv
Fan!!1972