De Leeuw gained national fame in the late eighties and early nineties with television shows for the public broadcasting company VARA. Though satire was only a part of these shows and much of its humour was essentially harmless he came into publicity with satire about Dutch show business personalities who were often ridiculed.
Besides, many obscure musical acts were featured in his shows, many of which managed to gain national fame after they had been in De Leeuw's programme (e.g. Twarres and AIDS suffering singer Rene Klijn). VARA has since continued his shows apart from a few interruptions, often with considerable success.
In the early nineties, Paul de Leeuw also had some shows celebrating the new year. In the 1993-1994 show he ridiculed the new commercial television channel RTL 5 by announcing another new channel, "RTL 6" (RTL six, beter dan niks (at least better than nothing)). This led to a trial by the RTL company, who demanded that De Leeuw withdraw his joke.
He and his partner, Stephan Nuger, have adopted two children: son Kas (adopted in October 2001) and son Tobey (adopted in December 2002).
Paul de Leeuw has had many hit singles in The Netherlands. He is most famous for: Vlieg met me mee (#2), Ik wil niet dat je liegt / Waarheen, waarvoor (#1), and 'k Heb je lief (#3). Since the beginning of his television and singing career he released albums and singles, always becoming a big success.
In 2006, he recorded the song "Mijn Houten Hart" (My Wooden Heart) with Raffaela, which was later released as a single and peaked at #18 in the Dutch Singles Top 100, becoming one of his smallest hits.
Eurovision Song Contest 2006 incident
De Leeuw is, despite being famous for a long time in the Netherlands, best-known internationally for presenting the results of the Dutch televote in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. De Leeuw was supposed to present the televote by simply thanking the presenters, performers and fans, before giving the result but instead the openly gay De Leeuw gave his mobile number to the male presenter Sakis Rouvas live on-air, and made other comments which somewhat lengthened the Dutch results.
De Leeuw also made a reference to gay culture when he remarked that Rouvas and his female co-presenter Maria Menounos reminded him of Will & Grace. As the results were live and required for the contest to continue, De Leeuw could not be cut off until he finished giving the voting results.
De Leeuw's actions resulted in negative comments from the commentators, with the BBC's Terry Wogan calling the act "pathetic" and asking "Who selected this eejit?" during the United Kingdom coverage of the contest. Other commentators, like the Portuguese Eladio Climaco, didn't translate properly the gay remarks and said he was saying that they really look like Greeks. Parts of the dialogue were also shown on the German comedy show TV total.
The dialogue between De Leeuw and Rouvas
Rouvas: Hello Netherlands! Paul...
De Leeuw: Hello Greece, kalisperma everybody! [note that sperma means sperm in many languages, at least both in Dutch and Greek]
Rouvas: Kalispera Paul. [kalispera means 'Good evening', which was supposed to be said]
De Leeuw: You look like Will... [stops, likely due to the cheering of the crowd behind him] You look like Will & Grace, you two. So here are the votes, the Dutch votes. Let's come. [In an extremely high tempo] One, Ukreene (sic), two, Russia, Germany, three, Ireland, four, Greece, five, Lithuania, six, Finland, seven points! [resumes normal tempo]] Now the eight points. Are you ready Chaci, tzatziki, cichaci?
Rouvas: Yes, haha.
De Leeuw: Are you ready? Eight points... I like your blouse... The eight points are for Bosnia-Hoshegovina (sic). Yeah.
Rouvas: Bosnie-Herzegovine, huit points.
De Leeuw: Yes, I say. And the ten points, Zhacki, Zhicka, Chucka, are from (sic) Armenia!
Rouvas: Armenie, dix points.
De Leeuw: Ok, and Chacki, do you have my mobile number now or after twelve points?
Rouvas: Give it to me now. I bet it's 69 69 69. [In Greece, mobile numbers always begin with 69, but the rest of the 69's are a sexual innuendo, since Rouvas did not seem to like Paul's lines.]
De Leeuw: Ok, 00... [interrupted by Rouvas' remark] no no no no no... I'm not the French guy! [Probably refers that Rouvas was once interviewed for a French magazine, in which the interviewer assumed that Rouvas was gay and directed his questions accordingly.] Its 00 31 6 24 74 44 32 10 dial 1. Twelve points goes to, I'm very proud to say, Turkey! Twelve points.
Rouvas: Turquie, douze points.
Mr. Blue
Paul de Leeuw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the only sound's the wind that fills the tree
Even colder comes the moon and though it never seems too soon
Sudden stillness as a rainbow starts to freeze
Ah, Mr. Blue, I'm here to stay with you
And no matter what you do, when you're lonely
I'll be lonely too
And no matter what you do, when you're lonely
I'll be lonely too
A young girl she's shaded, bares the scars that never faded
Of the baby that was born on Christmas Day
While the heavens sing their song, a child's life is never long
'Cause the food supplies will only last a day
REFREIN
Patriot emotion is the cause of the commotion
After all there's really no one here to blame
Soldiers taking orders 'cause they must defend the borders
Of our nation and the other side's the same
REFREIN
I come to you at night, when the world is sleeping tight
And lie beside you till the early morning dew
You can hear me, you can see me, you can feel me when you grief
For the letter she left addressed to you
REFREIN (2x)
I'm lonely too
The lyrics of Paul de Leeuw's song Mr. Blue express a deep sense of loneliness and despair in different situations. The first verse talks about the winter sounds that are almost like a death cry from an old man. The only sound that you can hear is the wind filling the trees, which symbolizes emptiness and desolation. As the moon rises, everything becomes even colder, and there's stillness that precedes the start of a new cycle. This is a metaphorical representation of the rainbow freezing, which means that the promise and hope of better things vanishes. The chorus repeats the singer's message to Mr.Blue, telling him that he'll stay beside him and be lonely just like him, no matter what the circumstances.
The second verse talks about a young girl who has scars that never faded from giving birth to a child on Christmas day. While the heavens sing their songs, the baby's life is short-lived because the food supplies will only last a day. This is a commentary on the harsh realities of life, where hope is often short-lived, and people have to experience hardships without any solace or justice. The third verse talks about patriotism and the disruption it causes when soldiers take orders to defend their borders. Ultimately, it's the common people who suffer, and there's no real blame or solution in sight.
Overall, the song Mr. Blue is a poignant commentary on the tragedies of life and the loneliness that people feel in different circumstances. The singer's message to Mr.Blue is a reminder that we are all human beings who experience similar emotions, and despite the lack of solutions, we can still endure together.
Line by Line Meaning
Winter sounds are crying, like the old man is slowly dying
The sounds of winter are melancholic, as though imitating the slow death of an old man
And the only sound's the wind that fills the tree
The only audible sound is the wind, rustling through the tree branches
Even colder comes the moon and though it never seems too soon
The moon shines down, and despite the lack of anticipation, a sudden chill fills the air
Sudden stillness as a rainbow starts to freeze
A stillness suddenly engulfs the surroundings, as if even the rainbow has frozen in time
Ah, Mr. Blue, I'm here to stay with you
The artist addresses Mr. Blue, offering their loyalty and companionship
And no matter what you do, when you're lonely
The singer promises to be there for Mr. Blue in his times of loneliness, no matter his actions
I'll be lonely too
The singer empathizes with Mr. Blue, acknowledging their own loneliness as well
A young girl she's shaded, bares the scars that never faded
A young girl bears the burden of unhealed scars from the child she bore on Christmas Day
Of the baby that was born on Christmas Day
The scars the girl bears are a result of her giving birth on Christmas Day
While the heavens sing their song, a child's life is never long
The heavens may sing, but the life of a child is fleeting and too brief
'Cause the food supplies will only last a day
Food supplies are scarce and fleeting, not enough to sustain life for longer than a day
Patriot emotion is the cause of the commotion
Patriotic emotion is the root cause of all the chaos and strife
After all there's really no one here to blame
Ultimately, there is no one to be held responsible for the troubles
Soldiers taking orders 'cause they must defend the borders
Soldiers follow orders to protect the nation's borders, obligated to do so
Of our nation and the other side's the same
This scenario of soldiers following orders is the same on both sides of the conflict
I come to you at night, when the world is sleeping tight
The artist visits Mr. Blue in the quiet and stillness of the night
And lie beside you till the early morning dew
The artist remains close to Mr. Blue until the early morning hours
You can hear me, you can see me, you can feel me when you grief
Mr. Blue can perceive the singer's presence through his sorrow and grief
For the letter she left addressed to you
The singer offers solace and comfort for the letter Mr. Blue received
REFREIN (2x)
Chorus repeated twice
Ah, Mr. Blue, I'm here to stay with you
The artist addresses Mr. Blue, offering their loyalty and companionship
And no matter what you do, when you're lonely
The artist promises to be there for Mr. Blue in his times of loneliness, no matter his actions
I'll be lonely too
The singer empathizes with Mr. Blue, acknowledging their own loneliness as well
Contributed by Violet S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@marcod5027
Dit blijft zo'n iconisch moment. Prachtig nummer en weergaloze uitvoering samen.
@t-bonejay8050
Wonderful lyrics, beautiful voice.As a singer-songwriter I personally feel his death was a great loss but through our memories this young man lives on and on..
@renebobtail296
Rene will never be forgotten
@Shakudo4385
Ik was een kleine jongen, zittend op een kussen voor de tv toen ik dit zag, en ik ben dit nooit vergeten. Wat een statement!
@Lotje250
Hetzelfde geldt voor mij. Ik was klein toen mijn moeder zei dat ik even moest komen kijken. Ze zei dat deze zanger overleden was aan aids, niet veel later. Ik heb het refrein half onthouden, net opgezocht, en ik kwam hierop uit. Nog steeds even mooi als vroeger!
@remo8133
Precies het zelfde !
@oPBo
Nou inderdaad, zat toen aan de nibbits chips
@psk_pjd
Mijn moeder vertelde me precies hetzelfde. Welk jaar was dit? Begin jaren 90 toch?
@marietvandebroek6993
Ik was een tiener maar zat in Vlaanderen ook op een kussen voor tv met open mond te kijken. Onvergetelijk!
@0956y
Dit nummer komt af en toe gewoon nog in me op. Zo mooi gedaan, echt een parel