Babe was a Dutch girl-pop band in the 1970s and 1980s. The producer was
Peter Koelewijn.
History
Babe was designed after
Luv'
Luv' were a Dutch girl group that scored a string of hit records in Continental Europe (Benelux, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France, Spain, Denmark, Norway and Finland) as well as Israel, South Africa, Rhodesia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada ...
, another very famous Dutch girl-pop band, mostly performing bubblegum pop.
The trio was formed by producer and performer Peter Koelewijn, and he produced all of their records. The only exception was the single ''Tick-a-thumps my heart'' which was produced by Hans van Hemert, the producer behind Luv'. Koelewijn had made this decision because he felt a change in sound was needed for the trio. However, fans did not appreciate the new sound, which was very much like Luv' because it no longer featured the recognizable solo vocals by Gemma Van Eck, but instead was sung in harmony by all three singers, so Koelewijn decided to take production back.
Initially the group consisted of Gemma van Eck, Rita van Rooy and Monique Hagemeyer. Hagemeyer was replaced in 1980 by Margot van der Ven. Van Eck decided to leave the trio in 1981 and was replaced by Marga Bult.
Although very popular at the time, Babe is considered the band in the Netherlands that had the most Top 40 hits without ever having a single placing within the top 10.
One of their singles, ''The Drunken Sailor'' was an old Irish sailor song, transformed into a bubblegum tune by Koelewijn.
In 1980 the trio participated in a famous song festival in Korea, performed for the Dutch Military in Lebanon, toured extensively through Indonesia, and made appearances in several TV-shows in then East-Germany and Poland.
The trio finally disbanded in 1986 after their fame had gotten less and their music did not find many fans any longer. They did a final performance at the TT van Assen.
Marga Bult continued with a fairly successful solo career, which included her entry to the
Eurovision Song Contest in 1987, where she performed "Rechtop in the wind" under the pseudonym
Marcha
Marcha (born Margaretha Hendrika Maria Groeneveld on 2 July 1956), also known as Marga Bult, is a Dutch singer and television presenter, who has been a member of the groups Tulip, Babe and Dutch Divas and is also known for her participation in th ...
. With 83 points she finished in a respectful 5th place in a field of 22 entries.
Discography
Albums
Babe 1980
Blitzers 1981
Shop Around 1983
Hollands Glorie 2003
Singles
Please me, please do 1979
(Never listen to a) Bouzouki player 1979
Wonderboy 1979
Ooh la la, I'm falling 1980
The drunken sailor/The Spanish shuffle 1980
The kiss (Viva los hombres) 1980
L.O.V.E. 1980
My Malaysia 1980
Mister Blitzer 1981
Tick-a-thumps my heart/Watch out for the big jump 1981
I'm a rocking machine 1981
Indian habits (Hooka Heya) 1982
Together in love again 1982
Explosive 1983
(Don't you ever) Shop around 1983
Dolly the doll 1983
Tommy is a winner 1984
Wanna do (what mamma said) 1984
Minnie the moocher 1984
Hot shot 1985
Tell him 1985
Dutch girl groups
Musical groups from Eindhoven
Musical groups established in 1979
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