1. Fr… Read Full Bio ↴Two musicians from The Netherlands are known as Frank Boeijen:
1. Frank Boeijen is a Dutch singer/songwriter, who was the front man of popular (and eponymous) pop group De Frank Boeijen Groep from 1980 until 1991, the year he went solo. As leader of De Frank Boeijen Groep, Boeijen was one of the pioneers of Nederpop; along with the likes of Doe Maar en Het Goede Doel. After the peak of Nederpop passed, Boeijen broke new ground by touring theatres with his band and bringing pop music to new auditoriums and audiences. As a solo artist, he has kept to this theatre based approach of his music and maintained a productive pace.
Frank Boeijen was born in Nijmegen, The Netherlands on November 27, 1957, as the last in a family of ten children. His father was a typesetter in a factory. His older brothers were into American pop music; in the Boeijen household, Bob Dylan and Neil Young were often to be found on the record player (years later, Boeijen would write a song about this, appropriately titled Robbert Zimmerman). Young Frank learned to play the guitar. After finishing high school, Boeijen started a musical collaboration with guitarist Wout Pennings. Boeijen en Pennings released an album together in 1977. The songs of the album were re-recorded and the album was re-released a year later, with Rob de Nijs acting as producer. It was appropriately titled Boeijen en Pennings. To fulfil live engagements, drummer Henk Wanders en bass player Nels Busch joined the duo.
Pennings left the band in 1979 and was replaced with guitar player Wil Theunissen. The name was changed into the Frank Boeijen Groep. The b-side of their fist single, a song entitled Verjaardagsfeest was picked on up by radio disc jockey Frits Spits, who played the record a lot during his evening show. The group released their debut album, simply entitled Frank Boeijen Groep, album later that year. On the base of the airplay of Verjaardagsfeest, the album reached the Tipparade.
Nederpop, pop music with Dutch vocals, was becoming a mainstream success in the early eighties, and the Frank Boeijen Groep hitched a wagon to that train, when their single Linda, reached the Top Forty. Zwart Wit, another single, written after a racial murder had taken place in Amsterdam, became a number one hit. 1982's Twee and 1983's 1001 Hotel became big sellers.
In 1984, the Frank Boeijen Groep was awarded the Zilveren Harp by Conamus. In that same year, album Kontakt was released. Lead guitarist Wil Theunissen quit the group later that year and replaced with Maarten Peters, who himself was replaced two years later by Ger Hoeijmakers. In 1985, the group released Foto Van Een Mooie Dag. Single Kronenburg Park -- named after Kronenburger Park a park in Nijmegen, Boeijen's place of birth and residence -- became a huge success. Follow up, In Nature, released in 1986, didn't do as well, but still sold respectively.
Towards the end of the eighties, Boeijen's music fell somewhere in between het levenslied of André Hazes, the chansons of Ramses Shaffy and the pop of Doe Maar. According to Frank Boeijen and his manager Paul Schouwenaars the group had outgrown clubs and tents. With the release of album Welkom In Utopia in 1987, the group decided to tour Dutch theatres. The Welkom In Utopia tour started in the Stadsschouwburg in Amsterdam in September of the same year. Two more albums were released: studio album Een Zomer Aan Het Eind Van De Twintigste Eeuw (1989) and live album Hier Komt De Storm. During these years, Frank Boeijen dated Sky Channel presenter Amanda Redington. The two would marry in 1990. The album Dans In Slow Motion, released in 1988, was written for her. In juni 1994 scheidden ze weer van elkaar.
In the spring of 1991, Boeijen announced the ending of his group. In November of that year, he released his first solo album Wilde Bloemen. The musicians on the album were drummer Norman Bonink, guitar player Peter van Benthem and bass player Michel van Schie. Van Schie was replaced by touring bass player René te Voortwis, and pianist Ton Snijders was also recorded. Wilde Bloemen featured several duets with other well known Dutch musicians, among them were: Twee Gezichten, a song written and recorded with Henk Hofstede of The Nits); and Het IJs, written and recorded with Henny Vrienten of Doe Maar).
In the summer of 1993, Boeijen recorded Jazz in Barcelona; an album concerned with the break up between him and Amanda Redington. The subsequent theatre tour was a big success, with sold out shows every evening. Traces of Boeijen's break up were also to be found on next album De Ontmoeting (1994 - an even more spare and intimate affair than Jazz In Barcelona. De Ontmoeting also featured a single, Twee Mannen Zo Stil, with music and lyrics by Boeijen and Stef Bos. Although the single failed to mount the charts, over the years it became a Nederpop classic, often played at funerals. In the same year, Boeijen produced an album for Liesbeth List, the female voice of Ramses Shaffy's recordings. In 1995, another live album, Stormvogels, hit the shelves.
Boeijen returned with two new albums in 1997: a greatest hits compilation, Het Beste En Het Mooiste and an album of new material, Vaderland. The year before, Boeijen had travelled extensively through Asia, and a lot of the songs, although concerning Boeijen and The Netherlands, were written from a distant perspective. In 1999, De Ballade van de Dromedaris, recorded in Peter Gabriel's Real World Studio's appeared, followed by live album Door De Jaren Heen, containing several duets with Ramses Shaffy, Liesbeth List and Stef Bos. Both albums were big sellers. In 2001, Heden, was released. Drummer Norman Bonink left the group to join BLØF. He seat was filled by Oscar Kraal. Helder contained a collaboration between Boeijen and BLØF front man Paskal Jakobsen, single Geen Gevaar. The song was released in the summer of 2002. In the same year, Boeijen won an Edison award as best singer.
2. Frank Boeijen is also the name of the keyboardist for the Dutch group The Gathering.
Vriend
Frank boeijen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
En 's middags om twee uur donker werd
Ze stond bij het raam en keek naar buiten
Niet dat ze zich verveelde als zo vaak wachten op de voordeurbel
Misschien dat er iemand vandaag langskomt
O anders kijk ik vandaag wel naar de teevee
Of ik schrijf een verhaal ja daar haal ik het wel mee
Als vriend
De auto's stonden stil aan de kant van de straat ze zag gezichten
Achter een wit autoraam als zoekeres die iets zochten
En half verloren stapten ze naar buiten en grepen naar de grond
met rode handen en gooiden in het rond
Oh
Misschien dat er iemand vandaag langskomt
O anders kijk ik vandaag wel naar de teevee
Of ik schrijf een verhaal ja daar haal ik het wel mee
En vanavond vroeg naar bed en morgen leef ik verder met de tijd
Als vriend
Zo als die jongen die bij haar boven woont
Ze ziet hem vaak als ze door de voortuin loopt
Maar hij heeft zo'n raar gezicht en je weet nooit wat het is maar het lijkt
Alsof hij naar haar kijkt iets wil zeggen en zich dan weer bedenkt
Oh misschien dat die jongen vandaag langskomt
O anders kijk ik vandaag wel naar de teevee
Of ik schrijf een verhaal ja daar haal ik het wel mee
En vanavond vroeg naar bed en morgen leef ik verder met de tijd
Als vriend
The lyrics to Frank Boeijen's song Vriend depict a lonely woman who is waiting for something to happen in her life. She is staring out of the window during a dark and snowy day, hoping that someone will visit her or something exciting will occur. She even considers watching TV or writing a story to pass the time. The sight of people outside of their cars struggling with the weather only adds to her sense of isolation. She mentions a man who lives above her who always seems to be watching her and wanting to say something but never does. She ponders if he may be the one to visit her, but ultimately she resigns herself to the fact that she will continue living her life alone, relying only on herself as a friend.
The song delves into the theme of loneliness and isolation, and portrays the struggle of individuals who feel alone despite the presence of others around them. The woman in the song is yearning for a human connection, yet unable to find it, resorting to entertaining herself in any way possible. The man on the upper floor appears as a symbol of hope or possibility, yet ultimately fades away as a potential suit for the woman's loneliness. Boeijen's insightful lyrics capture the emotive setting of the song, leaving the listener with a poignant sense of wistfulness and missed opportunity.
Line by Line Meaning
'T was op die dag dat het heel hard sneeuwde
It was on that day when it was snowing heavily
En 's middags om twee uur donker werd
And in the afternoon it became dark at two o'clock
Ze stond bij het raam en keek naar buiten
She stood by the window and looked outside
Niet dat ze zich verveelde als zo vaak wachten op de voordeurbel
Not that she was bored as she often waits for the doorbell
Misschien dat er iemand vandaag langskomt
Perhaps someone will come by today
O anders kijk ik vandaag wel naar de teevee
Otherwise, I will watch TV today
Of ik schrijf een verhaal ja daar haal ik het wel mee
Or I write a story, that's enough for me
En vanavond vroeg naar bed en morgen leef ik verder met de tijd
And early to bed tonight, and tomorrow I continue to live with time
Als vriend
As a friend
De auto's stonden stil aan de kant van de straat ze zag gezichten
The cars were parked on the side of the street, she saw faces
Achter een wit autoraam als zoekeres die iets zochten
Behind a white car window searching for something
En half verloren stapten ze naar buiten en grepen naar de grond
And half lost, they walked out and touched the ground
Met rode handen en gooiden in het rond
With red hands, they threw things around
Oh
Oh
Zo als die jongen die bij haar boven woont
Like that boy who lives above her
Ze ziet hem vaak als ze door de voortuin loopt
She often sees him when she walks through the front yard
Maar hij heeft zo'n raar gezicht en je weet nooit wat het is maar het lijkt
But he has such a strange face, and you never know what it is, but it seems
Alsof hij naar haar kijkt iets wil zeggen en zich dan weer bedenkt
Like he's looking at her, wants to say something, then changes his mind
Oh misschien dat die jongen vandaag langskomt
Oh, maybe that boy will come by today
O anders kijk ik vandaag wel naar de teevee
Otherwise, I will watch TV today
Of ik schrijf een verhaal ja daar haal ik het wel mee
Or I write a story, that's enough for me
En vanavond vroeg naar bed en morgen leef ik verder met de tijd
And early to bed tonight, and tomorrow I continue to live with time
Als vriend
As a friend
Contributed by Taylor F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.