The band made a breakthrough appearance at the 1999 Noorderslagfestival in Groningen, resulting in lots of record deal offers. Contracted by Sony's S.M.A.R.T. label, they released their first album Till Monkeys Fly in January 2000. Produced by Michael Schoots, former Urban Dance Squad drummer, the album hit the charts receiving nationwide airplay. Both the first single Feel Like Flying and the second one, Blue Days, became a 3FM megahit. Their festival appearances on Parkpop and Lowlands confirmed their image as a live-act.
Summer 2001 Here We Go, Stereo! was released as their second full-length record. Widely acclaimed, this record was their ticket to play at the Netherlands's largest festival: Pinkpop.
While working on their third album, Sony ended the record deal. With help from Dutch radio station 3FM and the producer of their first album, they signed a contract with PIAS, to release their 3rd album early 2005. The fresh and mature sound, combined with a more serious approach on songwriting got Another Day a slow start with Happy Family. The second single Love You More hits hard: they claimed 3rd spot on the Dutch Top 40; the album skyrocketed to 6th position in the Album Charts. A succesful club tour during autumn and winter 2005 resulted in the release of their first live DVD called Another Night. And the fans really found their true love back, voting Racoon to be Pinkpop's Gouden Tip ("Viewers Choice") for 2006, claiming a spot on the mainstage.
After this clubtour they decided to fulfill a long-lasting dream for the bands vocalist (Bart van der Weide) and went on a theatertour all across Holland, with the adition of a keyboardplayer (Manu van Os) and a re-write of most of the songs to slim them down a bit. They blew away most fans with the awsome sounding back to basics tour filled with emotions and a new track called Close Your Eyes.
After the theatertour Manu went on to join Di-rect for their theatertour. Currently the band is recording a new album
Members
- Bart van der Weide (vocals)
- Dennis Huige (guitar)
- Stefan de Kroon (bass)
- Paul Bukkens (drums)
Links
www.racoon.nl
Official fansite
PIAS Nederland
3FM
By Your Side
Racoon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bring some beers and come on over
The latest Ben Folds Five
Right by your side
We're a team, you know
And I'll never let you go
You can pick a hundred fights
I'm right by your side
Chorus:
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'
Smell the air, I swear it wasn't me now this time
We're gonna be, we're gonna be around 'till monkeys fly
Oehh, 'till they fly baby
I know that I ain't easy
It's difficult to please me
But you proved more than all right
Right by my side
You may mess up my hair
Torch it, shave it, I don't care
Because morale never dies when I'm right by your side
Right by your side
Chorus:
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'
Smell the air, I swear it wasn't me now this time
We're gonna be, we're gonna be around 'till monkeys fly
Ohh, untill they fly..
Bridge:
Because when I look around and I found out things ain't going right
I just smile and figure what the hell, just stick it in your pocket
Because all is fine and I'm all right
Smile a while and I see the light
And I find out everything's just fine
Right by your side
Chorus:
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight.
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'.
Smell the air I swear it wasn't me now this time.
We're gonna be around 'till monkeys..
Sit right up and sing along with every little part of this song
Smile upon a rainy day, because you know it ain't to stay
And everything will be just fine, because in time the sun will shine
And I'll be by your side
Oh yeah
The song "By Your Side" by Racoon is an ode to friendship and the bond that two people share when they stick together through thick and thin. The song opens on a Saturday and invites the listener to come over and hang out. The singer talks about their friendship and how they will never let go of their friend's hand, even if they pick a hundred fights. The chorus speaks of getting drunk with friends and having a good time. The bridge talks about how, even when things are not going well, the singer knows they will be alright because they have their friend by their side. The song ends with the singer expressing their unwavering support for their friend, promising to be there for whatever comes their way.
One of the most interesting things about the song is that it was originally written and released in Dutch in 2005. The English version was released in 2012, seven years after the Dutch version. The song's popularity in the Netherlands led to its English-language translation, which opened up a new audience for the band Racoon. Another interesting fact is that the band took their name from the character in the animated TV series "Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings." The band members saw the character "Racoon" as a symbol of childhood innocence, something they tried to convey in their music.
The song has become a staple at weddings, particularly in the Netherlands, where it was originally released. It has been described as a modern-day love song for friends, and has been used by many couples as their first dance at weddings. The music video for the song was filmed in a cozy-looking living room with the band playing acoustically. The video features shots of couples dancing, people drinking beer and having a good time, and the band members smiling and enjoying the music. The song has been covered by numerous artists, including Adele, who sang it during her debut album tour.
Chords (Capo on 4th fret):
Verse - G, D, Em, Cadd9
Chorus - G, D, Am, Cadd9
Bridge - Bm, G, D, A
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, It's Saturday, all right
It's Saturday and everything is going to be all right.
Bring some beers and come on over
Bring some beers and come over to my place.
The latest Ben Folds Five
Let's listen to the latest album by Ben Folds Five.
Right by your side
I will always be by your side.
We're a team, you know
You and I are a team.
And I'll never let you go
I will never let you go.
You can pick a hundred fights
You can pick a hundred fights with me.
I'm right by your side
I will always be by your side.
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight
It's too late but we're still talking too much tonight, probably about things we shouldn't be talking about.
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'
Have another drink with your favorite liquor.
Smell the air, I swear it wasn't me now this time
I smell something in the air and it wasn't me this time.
We're gonna be, we're gonna be around 'till monkeys fly
We will be around forever, even if it takes until monkeys fly.
I know that I ain't easy
I know I'm not easy to deal with.
It's difficult to please me
It's difficult to make me happy.
But you proved more than all right
But you have proven to be more than just all right.
You may mess up my hair
You can mess up my hair.
Torch it, shave it, I don't care
Burn it or shave it, I don't care.
Because morale never dies when I'm right by your side
I will always boost your morale when I'm by your side.
Because when I look around and I found out things ain't going right
When I look around and see that things are not going well.
I just smile and figure, what the hell, just stick it in your pocket
I just smile and think that everything will be okay, just put it aside for now.
All is fine and I'm all right
Everything is fine and I'm okay.
Smile a while and I see the light
If you smile for a bit, things will seem brighter.
And I find out everything's just fine
I realize that everything is just fine.
Sit right up and sing along with every little part of this song
Sit up and sing along with this song.
Smile upon a rainy day, because you know it ain't to stay
Smile on a rainy day because you know it won't last forever.
And everything will be just fine, because in time the sun will shine
Everything will be okay, eventually the sun will come out.
And I'll be by your side
And I will be by your side.
Oh yeah
Oh yeah.
Contributed by Sadie E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.