Bots is a

Dutch language Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic language spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language The Germanic languages are a branch of the Indo-Europea ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

rock group from the southern city of

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. The band was formed in 1974 by Hans Sanders and is mainly known for the song "Zeven Dagen Lang" ("Sieben Tage Lang" in German, "Seven Days Long" in English). The first albums were produced by

Peter Koelewijn Peter Koelewijn (born 29 December 1940 in Eindhoven) is a founding father of Dutch-language rock and roll. Koelewijn is also a successful producer and songwriter for other Dutch artists. His most famous song is "Kom van dat dak af". Biography Pe ...

. In 2005 a new version of "Zeven Dagen Lang" was recorded with the rapper

Ali B Ali Bouali, known professionally as Ali B (born 16 October 1981), is a Dutch-Moroccan rapper. He is one of the most well known rappers in the Netherlands and he has performed together with Akon and Dutch artist Marco Borsato. In 2007 he made an ...

on the occasion of the Muziek10Daagse. On 3 November 2007 Hans Sanders died at the age of 61.

Line-up

* Bonkie Bongaerts : guitar, piano, vocals * Frans Meijer : drums, bongos * : guitar, vocals * ; guitar, piano, vocals * Noudt Janssen ; bass guitar, vocals *

Peter de Vries Peter De Vries (February 27, 1910 – September 28, 1993) was an American editor and novelist known for his satiric wit. He has been described by the philosopher Daniel Dennett as "probably the funniest writer on religion ever". Biography De ...

: bass guitar * Piet Engel : flute, saxophone * Sjors Van De Molengraft : flute, saxophone

Other musicians

* Anton Wannemakers : bass guitar * Bert Smaak : drums * Broer Bogaart : drums * Erik van Donkersgoed : backing vocals, guitar * Floris Teunissen Van Manen : drums * George Koenraad : backing vocals, drums * Sjoerd Van Bommel : drums

Biography

1970s

Bots was formed in 1974 by Bonkie Bongaerts and Bertus Borgers. After leaving the band ''Dirty Underwear'', Hans Sanders – stuck with a band with no

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

and no

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

support – chose to team up with Bonkie Bongaerts and form the new group Bots (

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

''botsen:'' "to clash" / BO-nkie Bongaer-TS). In 1975 the band recorded its first album, ''Van Kwaad Tot Erger'' (''From Bad To Worse''), with producer

. The album places Bots in the centre of attention and the band also makes its debut on national TV. The singles "Het Lied Van De Werkende Jeugd" ("The Song Of The Working Youth") and "De Man" ("The Man") are released. The band tours frequently, also in Belgium. By this time Hans Sanders started to claim texts and lyrics he did not actually write. This was only discovered in 1981 when gold-record awards resulted in increased payments for Hans Sanders but not for the other band members. In 1976 the song "Zeven Dagen Lang" ("Seven Days On End"), a cover version of the

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

folk song '' Son ar Chistr'' popularised by singer-songwriter

Alan Stivell Alan Stivell (; born Alan Cochevelou on 6 January 1944) is a French, Breton and Celtic musician and singer, songwriter, recording artist, and master of the Celtic harp. From the early 1970s, he revived global interest in the Celtic (specifically ...

and Bots' best known song today, ended up on the album ''Voor God En Vaderland'' (''For God And Country''). Co-producer of the album was Peter Koelewijn. The single reached number 23 in the charts. Themes on the album included feminism, racism, solidarity and militarism. The music showed influences of both folk and pop. In 1977 Bots toured

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

. Bots recorded the poem "Rond" ("Round") by

Bert Schierbeek Lambertus Roelof (Bert) Schierbeek (18 June 1918, Glanerbrug, Overijssel – 9 June 1996, Amsterdam) was a Dutch writer. He won numerous awards throughout his career, amongst them the 1991 Constantijn Huygens Prize. During the German occupatio ...

. In 1978 the third Bots album, ''Wie Zwijgt Stemt Toe'' (''Silence Lends Consent''), and is also recorded with

. The band's lineup includes Sanders and Bongaerts expanded with sax and flute player Piet Engel, Peter de Vries (bass) and Frans Meijer (drums). The single "Popmuzikant" ("Pop Musician") hit the charts. Together with Eindhoven-based theatre group Proloog, Bots created the musical Barst. In 1979 Bots worked with Proloog on the Bots Rood Show. This musical theatre production was not very successful. Bots also played in

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. They started with Dutch-language songs but soon they are asked to sing in German.

1980s

In 1980 Bots recorded the album ''Je Voelt Pas Nattigheid Als Je Droog Komt Te Staan'' (''You Won't Smell A Rat Until You Come Across One'') with producer

. In the autumn the band's first German-language album came out. ''Aufstehn!'' (''Stand Up!'') contains German versions of songs like "Zeven Dagen Lang" (de:"Sieben Tage Lang" en:"Seven Days On End") and Ali. The songs were translated by German authors

Günter Wallraff Günter Wallraff (born 1 October 1942) is a German writer and undercover journalist. Research methods Wallraff came to prominence thanks to his striking journalistic research methods and several major books on lower class working conditions an ...

, Henning Venske and Peter Tobiasch. In 1981 Bots sold over 400,000 copies of ''Aufstehn!'' and its followup ''Entrüstung'' (''Indignation'', also Ent-Rüstung = ''Dis-Armament'' (correctly: en:disarmament = de:Abrüstung) ). The songs were translated by German authors Günter Wallraff,

Dieter Hildebrandt Dieter Hildebrandt (23 May 1927 – 20 November 2013) was a German Kabarett artist. Biography Hildebrandt was born in Bunzlau, Lower Silesia, Weimar Germany (now Boleslawiec, Poland) where he attended school. In World War II he became a Flakhe ...

Hanns Dieter Hüsch Hanns Dieter Hüsch (6 May 1925, in Moers – 6 December 2005, in Windeck-Werfen) was a German people, German author, cabaret artist, actor, songwriter and radio commentator. With a working life of more than 53 years on the German cabaret stage a ...

and Henning Venske. The success also had a downside and there were many changes in the band's lineup. Bots now includes Broer Bogaart (drums) and Noudt Jansen (bass). In 1981–1982 there was a major dispute within the band and between the band and producers/record companies. Hans Sanders had been holding back money from everyone. Due to these disputes, the band's lineup changed completely. The band has not been supported by a major record company nor recorded a popular hit since. In 1983 the third German-language ''Schön Krank'' (''Considerable'' (slang) ''Sick'') was recorded, with very little success or sales. The band was on the road a lot and played for free in front of half a million people at the ''Künstler Für Den Frieden'' (''Artists For Peace'') festival in West Berlin. This was the last (desperate) action publicly recorded from the band (which could hardly be referred to as 'Bots' any longer). From 1985 until 1988 Sjoerd van Bommel was the band's drummer. In 1986 the German-language record ''Lass Die Sterne Stehen'' was released. In 1988 the band played in

1990s

In 1990 the Dutch-language album ''Paradijs'' (''Paradise'') was recorded and released on the Free label in May. The album was produced by Sanders and keyboard player/singer Kees Buenen. Bots sporadically performed in their hometown,

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,PSV Eindhoven Philips Sport Vereniging (; en, Philips Sports Association ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional football department, whi ...

wins the national championships, Sanders re-recorded his classic "Zeven Dagen Lang" and turned it into "Zeven Jaren Lang" ("Seven Years On End"). Former BOTS band members and fans were insulted by the way Sanders rewrote the song and publicly tried to claim Bots' heritage.

2000s

In 2001 Bots still tours (drives around) but seldom plays. During the Folkwoods Festival in August the band's lineup included Sanders, Buenen, George Koenraad (drums/vocals), Erik van Donkersgoed (guitar/vocals) and Anton Wannemakers (bass). In 2007 lead singer Hans Sanders dies. The band is looking for a replacement to sing the rest of the numbers written for the new album.

External links

* in Dutch and German * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bots (Band) Musical groups from Eindhoven Musical groups established in 1974 1974 establishments in the Netherlands