Robbie van Leeuwen: Difference between revisions

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|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1944|10|29|df=yes}}

|birth_place = [[The Hague]], Netherlands

|genre = [[Rock and roll]], [[Rock music|rock]], [[synth-pop]]

|instruments = {{flat list|

*[[Guitar]]

*[[sitar]]

}}

|years_active = 1964-present 1994

|past_member_of = [[The Motions (band)|The Motions]], [[Shocking Blue]], [[Galaxy-Lin]], Mistral

}}

'''Robbie van Leeuwen''' (born 29 October 1944) is a Dutch musician<ref>{{cite web|title=Robbie van Leeuwen|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/949195/Rob-Van-Leeuwen/filmography|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726131346/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/949195/Rob-Van-Leeuwen/filmography|url-status=dead|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=[[The New York Times]]|publisher=[[Baseline (database)|Baseline]] & [[All Movie Guide]]|date=2014|archive-date=2014-07-26}}</ref> who was a [[guitar]]ist, [[sitar]]ist, background vocalist and main songwriter for multiple Dutch bands, including [[The Motions (band)|The Motions]] and especially [[Shocking Blue]], with whom he landedrecorded the world-wideworldwide hit ''"[[Venus'' (Shocking Blue song)|Venus]]". In 1967, he played guitar on the only single ever released by "The Six Young Riders" titled "Let the Circle Be Unbroken".<ref>[https://nederbeat.info/index.php?page=artist&id=341]{{dead link|date=December 2020}}</ref> As of January 2023, he is the only surviving member of Shocking Blue's best known four-piece lineup.

== Career ==

Van Leeuwen formed [[The Motions (band)|The Motions]] in 1964 with [[Rudy Bennett]], [[Henk Smitskamp]], and [[Sieb Warner]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Top 40 |first=Stichting Nederlandse |title=Motions {{!}} Top 40-artiesten |url=https://www.top40.nl/top40-artiesten/motions |access-date=2023-12-27 |website=Top40.nl |language=nl}}</ref> They were the first [[Nederbeat]] band to achieve chart success, and had their first major selling single in 1965.<ref name=":0" />

In 19701967 he was infounded the band [[Shocking Blue]], which had a No. 1 hit in 1969 with the single "[[Venus (Shocking Blue song)|Venus]]". His best-known compositions are Shocking Blue's most famous songs: "Venus", which was in 1970 a US and UK No. 1 hit and was later covered by [[Bananarama]] and "[[Love Buzz]]", which was covered by [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]] and released as their first single, and "[[Scorpio's Dance|Daemon Lover]]".<ref>{{Cite web |date=May 10, 2018 |title='Love Buzz': The psychedelic sounds of Dutch rock superstars Shocking Blue |url=https://dangerousminds.net/comments/love_buzz_the_psychedelic_sounds_of_dutch_rock_superstars_shocking_blue |website=DangerousMinds}}</ref> In 1974 he left Shocking Blue and released the successful single "Long Hot Summer" with his new band [[Galaxy-Lin]]. He was the founder and main composer for this band which released two albums: "Galaxy Lin" in 1974 and "G" in 1975. The singer was Rudy Bennett, with whom van Leeuwen had already collaborated in another band, called [[The Motions (band)|The Motions]]. Galaxy-Lin disbanded in 1976.

Together with [[Rick van der Linden]], vanVan Leeuwen founded "Mistral" in 1977. This group scored three hits during this period, "Jamie", "Starship 109" and "Neon City". The main instrument used was the synthesizer. The group produced three more singles in 1980, but these were not as successful as the earlierprevious onessingles. In 1984 he released two more singles under the name "Cat's Eye". Except for producing two singles for former Shocking Blue singer [[Mariska Veres]], a 1977 song titled "Too Young" and a 1994 song titled "Body and Soul", Robbie van Leeuwen withdrew from the music business and moved to [[Luxembourg]].

== Personal life ==

In 2013 he received the Buma Lifetime Achievement Award. As of 2018 he, again, lives in the Netherlands, in [[Wassenaar]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Heemelaar |first=Nico |date=2017-04-20 |title=Het mysterie Robbie van Leeuwen |language=nl |work=[[Algemeen Dagblad]] |url=https://www.ad.nl/den-haag/het-mysterie-robbie-van-leeuwen~a1d7972c/ |access-date=2023-10-28}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.muziekencyclopedie.nl/action/entry/Robbie+van+Leeuwen|title=Muziekencyclopedie - Robbie van Leeuwen|website=www.muziekencyclopedie.nl}}</ref> In January 2019 he was interviewed on Dutch television during a broadcast of the daily talkshow 'De Wereld Draait Door' in connection with his 75th birthday in October of the same year. It was his first interview in years since Van Leeuwen is known to be very media-shy. Several bands played compositions by Van Leeuwen in 'De Wereld Draait Door' after this broadcast during the coming weeks that followed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://tvblik.nl/dwdd/de-wereld-draait-door-199|title=DWDD|website=TVblik}}</ref>

== Discography ==

=== '''The Motions''' ===

'''Albums'''<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Motions Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-motions-mn0000479965 |access-date=2023-12-27 |website=AllMusic |language=en}}</ref>

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* 1966 - "Every Step I Take" / "Stop Your Crying"

* 1966 - "[[It's the Same Old Song]]" / "Someday Child"

* 1967 - "I Want You, I Need You" / "[[Suzie Baby]]"

* 1967 - "Wonderful Impressions" / "Nellie the Horse"

* 1967 - "Tonight We'll Be Stoned" / "One Million Red Balloons"