Rowwen Hèze is a Dutch folk rock band fronted by Jack Poels. They hail from… Read Full Bio ↴Rowwen Hèze is a Dutch folk rock band fronted by Jack Poels. They hail from the small town of America in the southern Dutch province of Limburg. Rowwen Hèze are known for Poels' poetic lyrics as well as upbeat folk songs in a Tex-Mex vein, sung in the Limburg dialect. Their music is heavily influenced by Tex-Mex and polka music.

Many of the lyrics are sketches of provincial everyday life: a young bird falling from its nest, a famous person in the village, a local funeral, scenes from the local pub or just waking up with a hangover.

Established in 1985, the band called themselves The Legendary Texas Four until Jack Poels joined as the new frontman. He joined on the condition that he wanted to add at least one song in the Limburg dialect to the band's repertoire. The other members agreed. Rowwen Hèze was born.

Rowwen Hèze translates loosely as 'Rough Hesen' and was the nickname of a notorious character from the village, Christiaan Hesen (1853-1947). Under this new name, the band started covering songs from Thin Lizzy. The band also wrote Dutch party songs for the annual carnival in the southern Netherlands.

The band saw two members leave in the early years. Mart Deckers (drums) and Geert Hermkes (accordeon) left the band. The line-up that was formed in 1991 is still intact today and has been unchanged for 29 years and counting.

- Jack Poels (lead singer, guitar)
- Tren van Enckevort (accordeon, piano, trombone)
- Jan Philipsen (bass)
- Theo Joosten (guitar, mandoline, tin whistle, percussion)
- Jack Haegens (trumpet, trombone, percussion)

The band's 1992 performance at Limburg's Pinkpop Festival was a breakthru moment. The band's set was shown live on Dutch television. At the time, the band had four studio albums under its belt: Rowwen Hèze (1987), Blieve loepe (1990), Boem (1991) and the live album, In de weiIn De Wei (1992). Their party anthem, Bestel mar (1992) hit #13 in the Dutch Top 40, still their highest charting single.

This pattern of three studio LPs and a live album repeated itself in the 1990s: Station America (1993), Zondag in het Zuiden (1995) and Water, lucht en liefde were followed by a 1999 live album entitled 't Beste van 2 werelden (1999), this time a recording of Rowwen Hèze semi-acoustic theatre incarnation.

The steady stream of albums continued in the 21st century.

Studio albums

Vandaag (2000)
Dageraad (2003)
Rodus & Lucius (2006)
Zilver (2010)
Manne van staal (2011)
Geal (2012)
Hemel op aarde: De liedjes (2013)
Vur altied: Ballades & Beer (2016)
De liefde, de muziek, de herinnering (2017)
Voorwaartsch (2019)
Onderaan beginne(2021)

Live albums:

D.A.D.P.G.S. (2003)
Andere wind (2004)
Saus (2008)
Wear of gen wear: Slotconcert 2019 (2019)

Compilation album:

Kilomeaters: 't beste van 20 joar Rowwen Hèze (2005)

Official site: www.rowwenheze.nl

Niks an de hand
Rowwen Hèze Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Niks an de hand
zoe zuj 't altied motte zien
Cees brengt de krant
en verder niemand op de bien
ongeaangerakt
speciaal vur meej gemakt
lat ze mar ien vur ien kome

die mus op 't hek
denkt 't zelfde als ik
dit is lang neet gek
en ze makt zich lekker dik
onaangerakt
speciaal vur meej gemakt
lat ze mar ien vur ien kome

vurbeej deze bocht
is enne hiele drukke weag
dat haj ik bedocht
mar vandaag is alles leag
onaangerakt
speciaal vur meej gemakt
lat ze mar ien vur ein kome

dit moment allein vur meej
en wat d'r gistere waas
gen idee, dat is vurbeej

beej bekker Lei
ruuk ik 't versgebakke broed
din het lekker grei
mienne honger din is groet
onaangerakt
speciaal vur meej gemakt
lat ze mar ien vur ien kome

deze daag vertelt vuel van vroeger
mar nog mie van wat d;r allemoal giet kome
straks, bin mar ni schow

wuurdt 't allemoal wir beater,
ok vur ow

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Rowwen Hèze's song "Niks an de hand" tell a story of a simple, yet peaceful moment in the singer's life. The scene is set in a small village or town, where the only regular visitor is Cees, the newspaper delivery man. The singer is content with this regular simple routine and takes pleasure in the small things that occur, such as a bird sitting on a fence or the smell of freshly baked bread at Bekker Lei's bakery. The singer is aware that this moment is fleeting and that tomorrow is unpredictable, but this only adds to the appreciation they feel for the peace in this moment.

The song captures the themes of contentment, simplicity, and the beauty of the present moment. The singer is not worried about the past or future, but instead fully embraces the tranquility of the present. The lyrics also convey the importance of finding joy in the smaller things in life and how living in the moment can provide a sense of fulfillment that larger accomplishments may not.

Overall, "Niks an de hand" is a song that encourages living in the present and finding beauty in everyday life. The simplicity of the song's message and the peacefulness of the melody make it a testament to the beauty of a life lived in the moment.

Line by Line Meaning

Niks an de hand
Nothing is wrong

zoe zuj 't altied motte zien
That's how it always has to be seen

Cees brengt de krant
Cees delivers the newspaper

en verder niemand op de bien
And no one else is around

ongeaangerakt
Untouched/Unaffected

speciaal vur meej gemakt
Specially made for me

lat ze mar ien vur ien kome
Let them come one by one

die mus op 't hek
That sparrow on the fence

denkt 't zelfde als ik
Thinks the same as I do

dit is lang neet gek
This is far from crazy

en ze makt zich lekker dik
And it puffs itself up nicely