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This January The Earring's three remaining members play five farewell shows in Rotterdam's Ahoy venue, for circa 15.000 people each evening, accompanied by a host of guests, celebrating a career with a host of highlights. With more demand than available days. I'm not there but will pay tribute to the band that was there for my whole life, from the moment I acknowledged music as more than a song that was put on by somebody else. The first song I can truly remember is 'I've Just Lost Somebody' in the spring of 1968. I think that a song like 'That Day' must have been there subconsciously, as I can not remember having heard it for the first time. To compair e.g., 1967's 'Sound Of The Screaming Day'. I know I did not know it when it charted, as it was on a compilation record I got as a present circa 1972 and it was a new song for me then.
In one of the very first WoNo Magazine's in 2001, yes 25 years ago, I wrote an article on the topic everyone has his or her own Golden Earring, as the band already existed for so long, that whole generations of popfans will have gotten acquainted with the band in a different era with a different song and backtracked from there. It also implies that the band will have sounded differently to everyone. Until the band more or less became a rock formula from the mid-80s onwards. Before that, it followed trends closely and reinvented itself multiple times and often very successfully.
So for me that start was 'I've Just Lost Somebody', followed by the rather lame 'Dong-Dong-Di-Ki-Di-Gi-Dong', the band's first number 1 hit of five, but one the whole band later wanted to forget about. The next single is the one that made a huge impact on me, 'Just A Little Bit Of Peace In My Heart', a song that deserved to be number 1, but was beaten by The Cats' 'Lea' and that other rock mini-opera, 'Eloise' by Barry Ryan. Songs that were stamped into my young boy's brain and remain favourites to this day.
So many hits followed, the string went on well into the early 2000s. As far as albums are concerned, I am far less enthusiastic. If I had to mention my favourite, it would probably be decided between 'To The Hilt' and 'Grab It For A Second', the latter a total flop compared to the money poured into it. Somehow, it is the one that I did play for more than a few times (but long ago at that). Truthfully, I have far too many Golden Earring albums, but glad to have them anyway. The singles though, most are good and some are so great.
To honour Golden Earring(s) I am going to dive into the singles and present my favourites here, in two goes. Before we start, Golden Earring(s) released its first single in 1965 and the latest in 2019. I missed the first years and some early singles I only got to know because of the four cd compilation 'The Devil Made Us Do It'. The same goes for much after 1991, when I had lost interest in the band. Most albums from 1982's 'Cut' onward, I do not possess. As I have no albums before 'Eight Miles High' and neither all right after.
Here, we go, a countdown from 25 to 1. I'll admit to being "lazy" by deciding not to go for that one pearl on an album that I might have overlooked. These are all (hit)singles.
25. Say When (2019)
In 2019 the band released what proved to be its last single. It is not a final blast but certainly a worthy goodbye. The band rocks like it can and all the members have their moment. Rinus Gerritsen plays a mighty bass, Cesar Zuijderwijk lays the firmest of foundations and the guitar (overdubs) are all over the place and almost absent. The two singers do what they have done for decades, blending their different voices like they should. Barry Hay is himself. George Kooijmans' voice has clearly aged.
24. Another 45 Miles (1969)
If I remember correctly, this is the single in which the 's' was dropped from the band's name and the first where Barry Hay plays his flute. All of a sudden a lot of rock bands had a flute, which stopped again after 1970. The lyrics to this song are a 'Radar Love' avant la lettre. Also here in this mostly acoustic single the driver is looking forward to coming home. Sung by George Kooijmans it means that the song has a different vibe from the more rock led Barry Hay songs. The bass is deep and almost nasty. Released as a stand alone single the reach to number 3 in the Top 40. It was also the last and only single with drummer Sieb Warner who would leave the band in 1970. Drummer Jaap Eggermont left after the first U.S. tour to become a world renowned producer, e.g. Stars on 45. His last single, 'Where Will I Be' does not "chart" here.
23. Hold Me Now (1994)
The song received its iconic status as it was the encore in what has proven to be the final show of Golden Earring in Ahoy 2019. One they barely sold out at the time. Again, a George Kooijmans sung ballad. By 1994 I was turned off the band, so it never made a real impression on me. Like the rest of this country the song grew on me over the years, with a spot in this list as a result. Almost 30 years after 'Please Go' the band still scored a number 11 hit.
22. No For An Answer (1980)
A song that did not make it into the Top 40 but one I've always liked. The band is rocking in a fairly uncomplicated way, straightforward with a chorus that is instantly recognisable and singable. Just like the guitar solo is a standard one and so nice. Singers Barry and George blend at the right moments, but Barry leads here. I truly can't understand why this did not chart. It should have.
21. Moving Down Life (1978)
The only single from 'Grab It For A Second', the Jimmy Iovine produced album that nearly flopped. It may have been a little too much of an American direction, while the songs as such certainly are not bad, as this single shows. It is a good rock song, where the band does what it was so good in. To my ears it sounds like the Earring should sound. 1978 however was not a good year for rockbands that were around for several years and with this album the band was not in sync, the Earring just behind the sign of the times. That may explain it. In 2026 this is classic Earring alright. It only got to #27 in the charts.
20. Quiet Eyes (1986)
The single with four different sleeves portraying each member solo. I have two of them and still on the look out for the others. The 1980s were a dark and often dismal affair musically. Quiet Eyes plays into this mood. It is a dark single for Golden Earring. The other side is that the band is able to write golden choruses and Quiet Eyes is no exception. Of course that typical bass sound is in the background and there is a warm Hammond organ accompanying the band. The song made it to number 9.
19. Buddy Joe (1972)
A single from the time the band was still experimenting by the song and Buddy Joe is no exception. With a sitar the intro and later playing the main riff Buddy Joe is very different. The same goes for the rhythm guitar. The pace is great though and Cesar is playing his signature drum fills, that would make him the best drummer this country has. The way the song is approached has a certain lightness because the way the guitars are played and mixed. It only gets its toughness in the verse with its muted guitar chords. Listening to the song in 2026, it is a lot better than I remembered it to be. With a number 4 position Buddy Joe was another big hit for the band.
18. Kill Me (Ce Soir) (1975)
I remember the song only as being called Ce Soir at the time. Perhaps the Kill Me was added for the English market. The song is so brooding. That made it really different from all the songs I knew at the time. It was a song I immediately liked. The darkness is everywhere on this song and yet it has this great pace that starts to shine through more and more as the song progresses. The violins made it different as well. Barry Hay is really shining here. 'Switch', the album, was the first with Robert Jan Stips, formerly (and now again) of Supersister, on keyboards. It reached to number 5.
17. In My House (1967)
The first of four Golden Earrings songs in this list. A song I was too young to know at the time and only got to know in the year 2000. I understand that it was mostly written by Rinus Gerritsen. It is a great pop track that has two faces. The pop rock and the mildly psychedelic interludes. It works great. The song is led by a piano and the solo is an organ both played by non-member Cees Schrama. Also it has to be noted that the band's composition is totally different. The singer is Frans Krassenburg and the drummer Jaap Eggermont. This would be the last single with Krassenburg, before Barry Hay entered the band. He can be proud of this final single though. It is a great pop song and got to number 10. All singles that charted after In My House for ten years all would be top 10 hits with 'Bombay' as the final one.
16. Long Blond Animal (1980)
The second representative of the album 'Prisoner Of The Night' here and its first single. At the time I was not convinced of the quality of this song, but that has definitely changed. This is a rock song that forever goes forward. The kind of song this band was so good at. It has a great little riff in between the lyrics of the verse. The "ah-ah" part is no doubt an explanation that the song kept growing in popularity. Barry Hay is shining in another rock song. The division between the two singers is mostly clear. The song did not make it beyond #19.
15. I've Just Lost Somebody (1968)
Here's the song that I remember as the first Golden Earrings song that I remember. A beautiful ballad with a lot of strings and a spinet or something like it. The song was written by Rinus Gerritsen although co-credited to Kooijmans. It was the last single with Gerritsen's name under it. Kooijmans took over and later Hay would be responsible for most lyrics. This song is so full of pining for a lost girlfriend and the music underscores it in a perfect way. That spinet (?) plays all the right sad notes, the dreamy vocals do the rest. It reached the charts twice. Number 8 in 1968 and number 13 in the "Naked" live version in 2005, forty years after the first chart position!
14. Slow Down (1981)
The only cover in this list. The band added Slow Down to the list of its second live album, '2nd Live'. It shows that Golden Earring was a great rock and roll band as well. Sounding a little like The Kinks did on its 1980 live album 'One For The Road'. Most likely a nod to the band it was before it charted first in 1965. I always liked this version of the Larry Williams song, as it is so utterly rock and roll. The single never charted. Why, I have no idea. I'm the proud owner of the single.
13. Weekend Love (1979)
Sort of out of the blue Golden Earring scored another big hit, hitting number 3. Kooijmans wrote and recorded the song at home and the demo never really got better in the studio, so what we hear is mostly the demo. The reason for the hit is obvious. Weekend Love is the kind of earworm that just never leaves you again. The end is not the strongest but by then the song has long made its point.
12. Holy Holy Life (1971)
The first Golden Earring single I bought. Most likely at a discount. I remember it premiering in 'Avro's Top Pop'. This was some pretty heavy shit alright. The double tracked riff is one of a killer kind. Golden Earring shows to be one of the great classic rock bands with this single. It is a logical follow up to 'Back Home' and is almost as good. The number 5 position was far too low for a great single like this. It was by the way, again a stand alone single. It also has a great ending, inspired by Small Faces, I'd say, but well before 'Stay With Me', Faces biggest hit was released.
11. Please Go (1965)
The band's first single and hit from 1965 and definitely one deserving to be in this list. Don't listen to the English, as it does not make a lot of sense. The pop feel is there however and is simply really infectious. At the time there was a fifth member, Peter de Ronde who plays the harmonica and guitar and can be heard on background vocals. Nobody was happy with the recording but it was released anyway and made the name for the band as it was in the charts for 20 weeks with #10 as peak spot. Although I got to know the song far beyond 1965, it has become one of my favourites because of that great pop feel.
Read on tomorrow when we continue with the top 10.
Wout de Natris - van der Borght
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