Posted in: News, Trivia Q & A | 2 Comments | Posted on May 21, 2022 by Mary Anne

Q. Where was the band Golden Earring originally from?

A. Holland

Golden Earring was formed in 1961 in The Hague (Holland) by 13-year-old George Kooymans and his 15-year-old neighbour, Rinus Gerritsen. Originally called The Tornados, the name was changed to The Golden Earrings when they discovered that the name The Tornados was already in use by another group. The name The Golden Earrings was taken from a song called Golden Earring performed by the British group The Hunters, for whom they served as opening and closing act. Initially a pop-rock band with Frans Krassenburg on lead vocals and Jaap Eggermont on drums, The Golden Earrings had their first chart success with their debut single “Please Go”, recorded in 1965. It reached number 9 on the music charts in the Netherlands.

The following year, the band earned their first number one hit in the Netherlands with the song “Dong Dong Diki Digi Dong.” In the United States, ground work for entering the US market was being laid by East Coast FM radio Disc Jockey and music critic—Neil Kempfer-Stocker, who is credited as the first radio DJ to champion the band stateside. This single was followed by a successful psychedelic album Eight Miles High, which featured an 18-minute version of the title track, itself a cover of the 1966 hit song by The Byrds. The live version, which could last 45 minutes, was considered by some to be a highlight in their first and second American tours, in the middle of the hippie and flower power era in the same year Woodstock was organised: 1969.

In 1970, drummer Cesar Zuiderwijk joined the band, completing what has become Golden Earring’s classic (and longest-enduring) lineup. Cesar was known to use a catapult to launch himself over his drum-kit at the culmination of his drum solos. The band enjoyed brief international superstar status in the 1970s when the single version of “Radar Love”, from the Gold-certified album Moontan became a hit in both Europe and the USA. Golden Earring embarked on their first major US tour in 1969 - 1970, and were among the first European bands to do so. Owing to American influences, their music evolved towards hard rock, and they performed along with Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Procol Harum, and Eric Clapton. Between 1969 and 1984, Golden Earring completed 13 US tours. During this period, they performed as the opening act for Santana, King Crimson, The Doobie Brothers, Rush and .38 Special. During 1973–74, when “Radar Love” was a hit, they had Kiss and Aerosmith as their opening act.

Golden Earring celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2011 and have been performing almost continuously since their founding in 1961. They have had the same unchanged line-up of the same four musicians and friends since 1970, augmented from time to time with a fifth member (Dutch keyboardist and leader of legendary band Supersister, Robert Jan Stips). Along with the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, the Moody Blues and Germany’s The Lords, Golden Earring are one of the oldest rock bands that are still performing today, and Golden Earring has arguably the most stable lineup of these veteran bands. (Texas band ZZ Top holds the record for stable membership, but is a younger band, being formed in 1969.