Tommy was born in Copenhagen. He started his musical career as an organist in his own group "The Colours" at 14 years of age, and in the years to follow he played in many pop and beat groups. He played piano with various orchestras and groups, sometimes going under the name of "Boogie-Woogie-Tommy". He broke through when in 1965 he became a member of the group Sir Henry And His Butlers, writing many of their most popular hits. In 1976 he also began performing solo, and with great success. His hit album "Tommygun" was released in 1977. At the same time he was in high demand as a producer at his record company EMI, and was involved in projects for among others Lecia & Lucienne.
He really hit his stride in 1979 when he won the Danish Melodi Grand Prix with Disco Tango (Danish lyrics) (English lyrics) which he coauthored with Keld Heick. It became a megahit both in Denmark and in other European countries. He represented Denmark at the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 with the song, and ranked number 6.
He participated in the Danish Melodi Grand Prix again in 1980 with "Bye-Bye", and once again he won the competition in 1981, singing Krøller eller ej (Danish lyrics) (literally "Curls or not", but translated as "Straight or Curly Hair") with Debbie Cameron. It ranked number 11 at Eurovision Song Contest 1981. This song was also coauthored with Keld Heick.
He participated in the Danish Melodi Grand Prix a number of other times during the 1980s (1982, 1984, 1985 and 1987) without winning the competition. He had a big hit in 1989 with the duet Du skælder mig hele tiden ud (translated, "You're Always Yelling at Me"), sung with Annette Heick, Keld Heick's daughter. They followed up this success with two more singles and a Christmas album.
Top success was once again his in 1993 at the Danish Melodi Grand Prix when he performed Under stjernerne på himlen (Under the stars of the sky), another song coauthored with Keld Heick. However, the success was fleeting, and the tides turned for him at the Eurovision Song Contest 1993 when the song received only 9 points, giving him a ranking of 22 out of 25. The poor ranking caused Denmark to be disqualified from the following year's contest. Tommy was blamed for Denmark's defeat, and he suffered greatly as a result.
The 1990s were lean years for him as a performer and recording artist. He had a comeback of sorts on account of a disco-version of Krøller eller ej released in 1999, as well as the release of a compilation album. He toured the country's discotheques at that time and found cult interest in his old hits among a new, younger public.
Tommy lived life in the wild and fast lane as "King of the Grand Prix". He had great success and great failures. He had a problem with alcoholism. It took its toll on him and he died at the age of 53 from a heart attack at amusement park Bakken, where he was head of musical entertainment during the past several years.
Tommy competed eight times in the Danish Melodi Grand Prix. He and the musical group Hot Eyes were the only two acts ever to win the competition three times.
A tribute show to Tommy— The Tommy Seebach Show— tours Denmark and continues to bring his music to old and new fans.
Du' det dejligste
Tommy Seebach Lyrics
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På kanten af mit hvide klaver
Tegner med røg de toner i luften
Som jeg komponerer
Og det sku′ bli' en sang
Der sagde de ting jeg aldrig siger
Hvad du betyder
Alt hvad du gi′r
Men det så svært at få det sagt
Alle de kønne ord får jeg ødelagt
For hvordan sku' jeg kunne tilegne dig
Ord der klinger lidt smukt
Dem jeg finder på har alle de andre jo brugt.
Det er så svært at få det sagt
Der sad jeg så med alle sanser vakt
Kradsede ned en enkelt besked
Jeg si'r den kort som den var:
"Du′ det dejligste jeg har".
Tangenterne for enden
Af min finger falder til
Min melodi til dig den lyder
Præcis som jeg vil
Med ordene går det knapt så let
Skønt jeg har prøvet tit
At skrive dig sange
Et vers der var dit
Men det så svært at få det sagt
Alle de kønne ord får jeg ødelagt.
For hvordan sku′ jeg kunne tilegne dig
Ord der klinger lidt smukt
Dem jeg finder på har alle de andre jo brugt
Det er så svært at få det sagt
Der sad jeg så med alle sanser vakt
Kradsede ned en enkelt besked
Jeg si'r den kort som den var:
"Du′ det dejligste jeg har".
The song "Du' Det Dejligste" by Tommy Seebach is a beautiful love ballad that reflects the difficulty of expressing love and affection through words. The first verse sets the mood with a cigarette smoke that draws out the notes of a song that the singer is composing on his white piano. He is struggling to put words together that can capture the depth of his emotions, and he hopes that the song will convey everything that he cannot say. The song itself is a heartfelt confession of love for someone special, and it speaks of how much that person means to the singer and how much joy their presence brings into their life.
Throughout the song, the difficulty of expressing love is highlighted, and the inability to find the right words is likened to finding a new sound on the piano. The second verse indicates that the singer has tried to come up with different ways to express his love for the person, but he feels that all the beautiful words have been used before, and the new ones just don't sound right. In the end, he manages to write one message that expresses everything he wants to say, simply stating that the person is the loveliest thing he has ever known.
Overall, the song is a beautiful expression of love and the difficulty of finding the right words to express it. The composition and lyrics work together perfectly to create a romantic and heartfelt ballad that speaks to anyone who has ever struggled with expressing their feelings for someone special.
Line by Line Meaning
En smøg der ryger sig selv
A cigarette that burns itself
På kanten af mit hvide klaver
On the edge of my white piano
Tegner med røg de toner i luften
Drawing with smoke the notes in the air
Som jeg komponerer
As I compose
Og det sku' bli' en sang
And it is going to be a song
Der sagde de ting jeg aldrig siger
That tells the things I never say
Hvad du betyder
What you mean
Alt hvad du gi'r
All that you give
Men det så svært at få det sagt
But it's so hard to say it
Alle de kønne ord får jeg ødelagt
All the beautiful words get destroyed
For hvordan sku' jeg kunne tilegne dig
Because how could I dedicate you
Ord der klinger lidt smukt
Words that sound a little beautiful
Dem jeg finder på har alle de andre jo brugt.
Those that I come up with have all been used before
Det er så svært at få det sagt
It's so hard to say it
Der sad jeg så med alle sanser vakt
I sat there with all my senses awake
Kradsede ned en enkelt besked
Scratched out a single message
Jeg si'r den kort som den var:
I'll say it shortly as it was:
"Du′ det dejligste jeg har".
"You're the most beautiful thing I have".
Contributed by Eva A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.