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The world's oldest rock band has retired.

Photon440

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From The Hague, Holland, Golden Earring is finished.

Dating back to 1961, the longest continuously playing band has hung up their guitars. Started as 'The Golden Earrings' when they were just teens, George Kooymans (13 years old) and Rinus Gerritsen (15 years old) were in the band to the very end. There were many personnel changes for the first few years but by 1970 with the current name shortened to 'Golden Earring', the core band of the two originators plus Barry Hay as lead singer and Cesar Zuiderwijk on drums kept on going until the end. If you remember 'Radar Love' or 'Twilight Zone', you know these players.

Ultimately it was health reasons, with Kooymans, (now 73) announcing early this year that he was fighting ALS, right before the band made an announcement that they would no longer be active, on Feb. 5 2021.

Although not extremely popular in the USA, they had a huge European following with about 200 concerts per year right to the end. With twenty-five studio albums, nine live albums and seventy-five singles (just fourteen of them failed to chart) they leave behind quite a legacy.

I've only got about half of their albums, but am slowly getting more. :)

 
From The Hague, Holland, Golden Earring is finished.

Dating back to 1961, the longest continuously playing band has hung up their guitars. Started as 'The Golden Earrings' when they were just teens, George Kooymans (13 years old) and Rinus Gerritsen (15 years old) were in the band to the very end. There were many personnel changes for the first few years but by 1970 with the current name shortened to 'Golden Earring', the core band of the two originators plus Barry Hay as lead singer and Cesar Zuiderwijk on drums kept on going until the end. If you remember 'Radar Love' or 'Twilight Zone', you know these players.

Ultimately it was health reasons, with Kooymans, (now 73) announcing early this year that he was fighting ALS, right before the band made an announcement that they would no longer be active, on Feb. 5 2021.

Although not extremely popular in the USA, they had a huge European following with about 200 concerts per year right to the end. With twenty-five studio albums, nine live albums and seventy-five singles (just fourteen of them failed to chart) they leave behind quite a legacy.

I've only got about half of their albums, but am slowly getting more. :)


Driving my Super Bee (a12) listening to Radar Love in the early 70's. To this day I hear that and it reminds me of that Bee, "...shifting gears..."
 
I thought they were done along time ago.
 
I've been drivin' all night, my hands wet on the wheel
And there's a voice in my head that drives my heel
It's my baby callin', sayin' I need you here
And it's a half past four and I'm shiftin' gear

When she is lonely and the longing gets too much
She sends a cable coming in from above
Don't need no phone at all
We've got a thing that's called radar love
We've got a wave in the air
Radar love

The radio's playin' some forgotten song
Brenda Lee's "Coming On Strong"
The road has got me hypnotized
And I'm speedin' into a nude sunrise

When I get lonely and I'm sure I've had enough
She sends her comfort coming in from above
We don't need no letter at all
We've got a thing that's called radar love
We've got a line in the sky

No more speed, I'm almost there
Gotta keep cool now, gotta take care
Last car to pass, here I go
And the line of cars go down real slow-woah
And the radio played that forgotten song
Brenda Lee's "Coming On Strong"
And the newsman sang his same song
Oh, one more radar lover gone

When I get lonely and I'm sure I've had enough
She sends her comfort coming in from above
We don't need no letter at all
We've got a thing that's called radar love
We've got a line in the sky
We've got a thing that's called radar love
We've got a thing that's called
Radar love

Songwriters: B. Hay, G. Kooymans
 
On the other hand, BOC (Blue Oyster Cult) is gearing up for the road yet again (celebrating their 50th!).
 
On the other hand, BOC (Blue Oyster Cult) is gearing up for the road yet again (celebrating their 50th!).

I saw B.O.C. in about 1981. The lead singer came out visibly drunk, and they freakin’ SLAYED! One of the best concerts that I’ve been to, and I’ve been to about fifty. I’d go see them again in a heartbeat.
 
I saw B.O.C. in about 1981. The lead singer came out visibly drunk, and they freakin’ SLAYED! One of the best concerts that I’ve been to, and I’ve been to about fifty. I’d go see them again in a heartbeat.
Buck's still got it, too - dude is a guitar legend.
 
Buck's still got it, too - dude is a guitar legend.

yup, they are so much more then Don’t Fear the Reaper.
Buried somewhere on Facebook is a great video that I watched a few years ago. This guys dad was sitting beside Buck on a plane. Bucks connecting flight is delayed, so the dad invites him over to the family home for supper and to kill time until his flight is ready. Buck shows up, hangs with the family, and cranks on the sons cheapie guitar. Very humble, very nice, seemed like a decent man. Some of his posts on YouTube are pretty good. He and his wife seem like nice, happy people.
 
Their other only hit in The United States was "Twilight Zone" back in the early 80s.




Fixed it for you. :)
For the US market, besides the above two singles, 'Candy's Going Bad', 'The Devil Made Me Do It', and 'When The Lady Smiles' also charted. In fact, 'Candy's Going Bad' didn't chart in any other country.
 
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I love Twighlight Zone. I have them on my Pandora list. Every time that song is on, it gets cranked. Its one of many songs I could listen to in an endless loop.
 
My girlfriend at the time, who later became my wife, and I had a thing called Radar Love.
 
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