Centerfold was a Dutch female pop trio that scored a string of hit records in the

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 ...

during the mid to late 1980s. The original line-up consisted of

Laura Fygi Laura Fygi (born 27 August 1955) is a Dutch jazz singer. Fygi's father was a Dutch businessman, a director of Philips, and her mother an Egyptian belly dancer. She was raised in Uruguay, until her father's death in the late 1960s, when she mo ...

, Rowan Moore and Cecilia de la Rie.

Biography

Debut single and Playboy shoot

Their first single ''Bad Boy'' was accompanied by a spicy photoshoot for the Dutch ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' in 1984. The ladies performed their song naked in the popular TV-show

TopPop ''TopPop'' is the first regular dedicated pop music television series in the Dutch language area. The Netherlands broadcaster AVRO aired the programme weekly, from 22 September 1970, to 27 June 1988. Presenter Ad Visser hosted for its first fift ...

, and soon Centerfold became a household name through their sex kitten image.

Breakthrough

The single ''

Dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in times ...

'' marked the breakthrough of the group and reached Number 6 in the

Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 ( nl, Nederlandse Top 40) is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica ...

and Number 19 in the Belgium

Top 30 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...

. Also other European countries showed interest, and Centerfold performed the song for the German TV show WWF Club. More hits followed, such as ''Up and Coming'' and a cover of the

Golden Earring Golden Earring (originally known as The Tornados) was a Dutch rock band, founded in 1961 in The Hague as The Golden Earrings. They achieved worldwide fame with their international hit songs "Radar Love" in 1973, which went to number one on th ...

classic ''

Radar Love "Radar Love" is a song by the Dutch rock band Golden Earring. The single version of "Radar Love" reached #10 on the ''Cash Box'' Top 100 and #13 in ''Billboard'' in the United States. It also hit the Top 10 in many countries, including the United K ...

''.

Björn Ulvaeus Björn Kristian Ulvaeus (; born 25 April 1945) is a Swedish singer, songwriter, producer, a member of the musical group ABBA, and co-composer of the musicals ''Chess'', '' Kristina från Duvemåla'', and '' Mamma Mia!'' He co-produced the films ...

and Benny Anderson of

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...

fame wrote a follow-up single for the girls, ''Bitch When I See Red''. In 1987, a debut album titled ''Man's Ruin'' saw the light of release, which fared reasonably well in the Dutch album charts.

New line-up

In 1988, Cecilia de la Rie decided to leave the group and was replaced by Sandra Noach. In this new line-up, they released a single in April 1989, ''Play the Game''. Shortly after the release, Noach committed suicide, which ended the group indefinitely. The already recorded second album ''Whistling at the Wolves'' was canceled by the record company.

Life after Centerfold

Rowan Moore and Laura Fygi founded The Backlot and made one album called ''The Backlot'' and two singles: ''Tower of Love'' (#76 in the Dutch Single Top 100) and ''The Goodbye''. Cecilia de la Rie started a new group called Red Cinder and released a mini-album in 1992. Both bands did not live a long life. Red Bullet Records released a ''Best Of'' CD of the group in 1992.

went on to become a highly acclaimed jazz singer. Rowan Moore made her debut as a television moderator for Dutch broadcasting association

VPRO The VPRO (stylized vpro; originally an acronym for , ) is a Dutch public broadcaster, which forms a part of the Dutch public broadcasting system. Founded in 1926 as a liberal Protestant broadcasting organization, it gradually became more soc ...

and commercial TV.

Discography

Singles

*1984 ''Bad Boy'' (Netherlands #41) *1984 ''Pump It Up'' *1985 ''Rough'' *1985 ''Sexual Wonder Land EP'' (Japanese release) *1986 ''Dictator'' (Belgium #19 / Netherlands #6 / Netherlands Dance Charts #3) *1986 ''Up and Coming'' (Belgium #30 / Netherlands #28) *1986 ''Radar Love'' (Belgium #11 / Netherlands #14) *1987 ''Bitch When I See Red'' *1987 ''S.O.S. Mozambique'' (Netherlands #18 - Dutch Artists Sing for Mozambique) *1987 ''Intimate Climate'' (Netherlands #36) *1988 ''Money'' (Netherlands #50) *1989 ''Play the Game'' (Netherlands #35)

Albums

*1987 ''Man's Ruin'' (Netherlands #67) *1989 ''Whistling at the Wolves'' (canceled) *1992 ''Best of Centerfold'' *1998 ''Man's Ruin (incl. bonus tracks)'' (reissue)

References

External links

Unofficial tribute site

Centerfold at Discogs
{{authority control Dutch dance music groups Dutch girl groups Eurodisco groups