Cornelis Vreeswijk early in his career, promotional photo from Metronome Records

Cornelis Vreeswijk Swedish pronunciation (help· info), Dutch pronunciation (help· info) (August 8, 1937 – November 12, 1987) was a singer-songwriter, poet and actor who was born in IJmuiden in the Netherlands but moved to Sweden with his parents in 1949, at the age of twelve. He trained as a social worker and hoped to become a journalist but became instead a musician whose idiosyncratic humor and social engagement are still gaining him new fans. Image File history File links Cornelis_Vreeswijk,_promophoto_Metronome_Records. ... Image File history File links Cornelis_Vreeswijk,_promophoto_Metronome_Records. ... Image File history File links Sv-Cornelis Vreeswijk. ... Image File history File links Nl-Cornelis Vreeswijk. ... August 8 is the 220th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (221st in leap years), with 145 days remaining. ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... November 12 is the 316th day of the year (317th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 49 days remaining. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The term singer-songwriter refers to performers who both write and sing their own material. ... A poet is some one who writes poetry. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Velsen (population: 67,642 in 2004) is a municipality in the north-western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland, on both sides of the North Sea Canal. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... A social worker is a person employed in the administration of charity, social service, welfare, and poverty agencies, advocacy, or religious outreach programs. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Swedish career

Cornelis Vreeswijk explained in one of his few interviews that he had taught himself to sing and play in the fifties by imitating his first idols Josh White and Leadbelly. His first album, Ballader och oförskämdheter (Ballads and Insults, 1964), was a hit which immediately gained him a large following among the emerging radical student generation. In this period he also played with swedish jazz pianist Jan Johansson and his trio. His songs "Ångbåtsblues" (Yacht Blues) and "Jubelvisa for Fiffiga Nannete" (Cheering song for Fiffiga Nannette) are classics from theese recordings. His abrasive, frequently political lyrics and unconventional delivery were a deliberate break with what he was later to describe as a Swedish song tradition of pretty singing and harmless lyrics, "a hobby for the upper classes". Influenced by jazz and blues and especially by the singing style and social criticism of Georges Brassens, Vreeswijk "speak-sings" his "insults", and compels his listeners to pay close attention to the words. Josh White (born Josha Daniel White in Greensboro, North Carolina, February 11, 1914 or 1915; d. ... Leadbelly, also known as Lead Belly (born Huddie William Ledbetter; January 20, 1889 (although this is debatable) - December 6, 1949), was an American folk and blues musician, notable for his clear and forceful singing, his virtuosity on the twelve string guitar, and the rich songbook of folk standards he introduced. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... Jazz is an original American musical art form originating around the start of the 20th century in New Orleans. ... The blues is a vocal and instrumental form of music based on the full twelve note chromatic scale plus the microtonal intervals and a characteristic eight and twelve-bar chord progression. ... Georges Brassens (October 22, 1921 - October 29, 1981) was a French singer and songwriter. ...

His 1965 loose translation of Allan Sherman's masterpiece "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh" remains beloved to Swedes as "Brevet från kolonien" decades later, and could be said to have passed into folklore. 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... Allan Sherman (sometimes incorrectly Alan and Allen), November 30, 1924 – November 20, 1973, was an American musician, parodist, satirist, and television producer. ... Allan Shermans Camp Granada Game, released by Milton Bradley Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (also Faddah) is Allan Shermans best known song parody. ...

A political singer with a bohemian lifestyle, Vreeswijk remained controversial in the sixties and early seventies, idolized by his fans but disapproved of by many others for his "rude" language and persistent interest in "unsuitable" people like prostitutes and criminals. Some of his records were blacklisted by the public broadcasting company Sveriges Radio. During this period, he not only wrote and recorded songs now considered classics, such as "Sportiga Marie" ("Sporting Marie") and several affectionate salutes to the ever less employable "Polaren Pär" ("My Buddy Pär"), but he was an actor on the stage, receiving considerable critical acclaim, most notably as Pilate in the Swedish version of Jesus Christ Superstar, and as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof. He also appeared in movies, including Svarta Palmkronor (Black Palm Trees, 1968), which was filmed on location in Brazil. Spending four months in Brazil began Vreeswijk's lifelong interest in Latin American music and social and political conditions, later seen for example in his Victor Jara album of 1978. Prostitution is the sale of sexual services. ... Sveriges Radio (SR) - Swedish Radio Ltd - is Swedens national publicly-funded radio broadcaster. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Pontius Pilate (Latin Pontius Pilatus) was the governor of the small Roman province of Judea from 26 until 36? AD although Tacitus believed him to be the procurator of that province. ... Eric Kunze as Jesus in the recent U.S. touring version of Jesus Christ Superstar Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. ... Fiddler on the Roof is one of the most famous stage and film musicals. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Víctor Lidio Jara Martínez (September 23, 1932 – September 16, 1973) was a Chilean folk singer and activist. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ...

Later in his career, Vreeswijk was to gain increasing fame and a wider audience both for his songs and his other work. He published several volumes of poetry in his lifetime and left a considerable manuscript legacy of poems which have been published since. He also became an important musical interpreter of the works of other people, recording the songs of Carl Michael Bellman, Evert Taube, and Lars Forssell. His fresh, bluesy renderings of Bellman and Taube, who had up to then been classics belonging to the "harmless" tradition that Vreeswijk despised, were artistic and commercial successes which extended his fanbase. His own best-known songs of the later seventies and early eighties tend to be dark in tone, like "Sist jag åkte jumbojet blues" ("Last time I Went by Jumbojet Blues", a metaphorical bad trip) and "Blues för Fatume", both addressing heavy drug addiction. Even though in this period Vreeswijk was a prey of tabloid scandal and was in the news for his drinking problem and his debts (about both of which he spoke with frankness) rather than for his achievements, he remained highly creative and productive. Quatrain on Heavenly Mountain by Emperor Gaozong. ... Carl Michael Bellman (February 4, 1740 - February 11, 1795) was a Swedish poet and composer. ... (help· info) (March 12, 1890-January 31, 1976) was a Swedish author, artist, composer and singer. ... Lars Hans Carl Abraham Forssell (born January 14, 1928 in Stockholm, Sweden) is an author and a member of the Swedish Academy. ...

Vreeswijk's tombstone at Katarina kyrka.

Towards the end of Vreeswijk's life his reputation soared again, aided by the televising of some highly regarded nightclub shows, and by Agneta Brunius' TV documentary Balladen om den flygande holländaren (The Ballad of the Flying Dutchman) in 1986. By the time of his death from liver cancer at the age of fifty, Cornelis Vreeswijk had become an icon of the Swedish music scene, and he was honored with burial at the cemetery of Katarina kyrka, a national cemetery in Stockholm. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2592x1944, 863 KB) Summary Licensing I, Gabriel Ehrnst Grundin, took this photo on February 25, 2006. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2592x1944, 863 KB) Summary Licensing I, Gabriel Ehrnst Grundin, took this photo on February 25, 2006. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Hepatic tumors are tumors or growths on or in the liver (medical terms pertaining to the liver often start in hepato- or hepatic from the Greek word for liver, hepar). ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery is a place (usually an enclosed area of land) in which dead bodies are buried. ... Katarina kyrka (Church of Catherine) is one of the major churches in central Stockholm, Sweden. ... Stockholm panorama from the City Hall is the capital of Sweden, and consequently the site of its Government and Parliament as well as the residence of the Swedish head of state, King Carl XVI Gustaf. ...

Dutch career

In 1966, the Dutch broadcasting organisation VARA invited Vreeswijk to the Netherlands. He translated several of his songs into Dutch, and wrote a couple of new ones. One of his songs, "De nozem en de non", was released as a single, without much popular success. His first Dutch album was only released in 1972, after ten successful Swedish albums. 100,000 copies of Cornelis Vreeswijk were sold, and the single "Veronica" became a big hit after it was picked up by the pirate radio station Veronica. His old song "De nozem en de non" was then rereleased with much success. His later albums could not match the success of the first one, and Vreeswijk never achieved the fame in the Netherlands as he did in his home country Sweden. 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ... The Omroepvereniging VARA (VARA Broadcasting Association) is a public broadcasting organization in the Netherlands, founded in 1925 as the Vereeniging van Arbeiders Radio Amateurs (Association of Worker Radio Amateurs). ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Saint Veronica with her famous veil is part of Christianitys many legends. ...

Nowadays, only "De nozem en de non" is still known by the general public. Vreeswijk still has some fans in the Netherlands, however, and in 2000 the Cornelis Vreeswijk society was founded. This article is about the year 2000. ...

One reason for the lack of popularity in the Netherlands was the impression that Cornelis Vreeswijk was a bit old-fashioned. Because of his long stay in Sweden, the Dutch pronunciation and idiom that he had learned to speak in his youth were out-of-date in the seventies and eighties.

Although he was fluent in both Dutch and Swedish, the latter had become his real mother tongue. His Stockholm-accented Swedish was famously witty and expressive, and in an interview he once suggested that the process of learning the language in his teens might have energized his use of it: "It doesn't just fall over you like when you're a baby and fed daily with words and food. You become freer, less respectful. ... Swedish is such a different language. Pure, distinct, beautiful. It has few synonyms. But they're many enough for me."

References

The Swedish lists below are provided courtesy of Cornelis Vreeswijksällskapet, the Swedish Cornelis Vreeswijk society. The popularity of Cornelis Vreeswijk's songs in Sweden seems to be still on the rise, and many albums anthologizing his own recordings of them have been released since his death. These are not shown in the discography below, nor are the cover versions of his songs. The bibliography, on the other hand, is intended to contain all Swedish publications by and about Cornelis Vreeswijk (exclusively) to date. In popular music a cover version is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded song. ...

Swedish discography

• 1964 - Ballader och oförskämdheter
• 1965 - Visor och oförskämdheter
• 1965 - Ballader och Grimascher
• 1966 - Grimascher och telegram
• 1968 - Tio vackra visor och personliga person
• 1969 - Cornelis sjunger Taube
• 1970 - Poem, ballader och lite blues
• 1971 - Spring mot Ulla, spring! Cornelis sjunger Bellman
• 1972 - Cornelis live!
• 1972 - Visor, svarta och röda
• 1973 - Istället för vykort
• 1973 - Linnéas fina visor
• 1974 - Getinghonung
• 1976 - Narrgnistor och transkriptioner
• 1977 - Movitz! Movitz!
• 1978 - Cornelis sjunger Victor Jara
• 1978 - Narrgnistor 2, En halv böj blues och andra ballader
• 1978 - Felicias svenska suite
• 1979 - Vildhallon
• 1979 - Cornelis - Live. Montmartre-Köpenhamn Vol 1
• 1979 - Cornelis - Live. Montmartre-Köpenhamn Vol 2
• 1979 - Cornelis - Live. Montmartre-Köpenhamn
• 1979 - Jazz incorporated
• 1980 - Bananer - bland annat
• 1980 - En spjutkastares visor
• 1981 - "Alla har vi varit små" Cornelis sjunger Povel/1
• 1981 - "The gräsänkling blues" Cornelis sjunger Povel/2
• 1981 - Turistens klagan
• 1981 - Hommager och Pamfletter
• 1981 - Cornelis sjunger Povel
• 1985 - Cornelis Bästa
• 1985 - Mannen som älskade träd
• 1986 - I elfte timmen
• 1987 - Till Fatumeh, rapport från de osaligas ängder

1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1966 calendar). ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... This article is about the year. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Dutch discography

• 1972 - Cornelis Vreeswijk
• 1973 - Leven en laten leven
• 1974 - Liedjes voor de Pijpendraaier en mijn Zoetelief
• 1976 - Foto's en een souvenir: Vreeswijk zingt Croce
• 1977 - Het recht om in vrede te leven
• 1978 - Het beste van Cornelis Vreeswijk
• 1982 - Ballades van de gewapende bedelaar

1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... James Joseph Croce (January 10, 1943 – September 20, 1973), popularly known as Jim Croce, was an American singer-songwriter. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Swedish bibliography

Works by Cornelis Vreeswijk

• En handfull gräs, 1970.
• I stället för vykort, 1974. ISBN 91-1-731331-7
• Felicias svenska suite, 1978. ISBN 82-03-09752-9
• Till Fatumeh, 1987. ISBN 91-7608-384-5
• Till Fatumeh (paperback), 1989. ISBN 91-7642-471-5
• Sånger, ed. Jan-Erik Vold, 1988. ISBN 91-7608-399-3
• Dikter, ed. Jan-Erik Vold, 1989. ISBN 91-7608-439-6
• Osjungna sånger, 1990. ISBN 91-7608-488-4
• Skrifter, ed. Jan-Erik Vold, 2000:
  • I. Samlade sånger. ISBN 91-7324-770-7
  • II. Enskilda sånger. ISBN 91-7324-770-7
  • III. Dikter Prosa Tolkningar. ISBN 91-7324-771-5

1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

Works about Cornelis Vreeswijk

• Rolf Fridholm, Polarn Cornelis, 1989. ISBN 91-7029-016-4
• Klas Widén, Cornelis Vreeswijk: En förteckning över hans produktion med kort biografi, 1991.
• Ulf Carlsson, Cornelis Vreeswijk: Artist-vispoet-lyriker, 1996. ISBN 91-564-1025-5
• Rolf Fridholm, Medborgare! En vänbok om Cornelis, 1996. ISBN 91-88144-25-9
• Oscar Hedlund, Scener ur en äventyrares liv, 2000. ISBN 91-34-51809-6

1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

See also

• Allan Sherman's original "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh, a Letter from Camp"

Allan Shermans Camp Granada Game, released by Milton Bradley Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (also Faddah) is Allan Shermans best known song parody. ...

External links

• Swedish Cornelis Vreeswijk Society (Cornelis Vreeswijksällskapet)
• Dutch Cornelis Vreeswijk homepage
• "Brevet från kolonien", Vreeswijk's Swedish "Letter from Camp"
• Cornelis Vreeswijk at MusicBrainz