Dave (singer)
Encyclopedia
Dave is the stage name of Wouter Otto Levenbach (born on May 4, 1944 in Amsterdam
), a Francophone
singer from the Netherlands
who had a string of number one hits in France in the 1970s. Despite his great success, he is still virtually unknown in his country of origin.
and a professor of English by trade; his mother was a classical dancer. He has two brothers, Marteen and Lucas, and a sister, Elsbeth. He learned how to play guitar
at 14 years of age. He liked to listen Gene Pitney
and Roy Orbison
, and was very heavily influenced by the Everly Brothers.
At 16, he became a very spiritual person who prayed frequently and even planned to study theology
; however, he eventually chose to study law
, because he liked to be the one who is listened to.
Among other things, he was inspired by Jack Kerouac
's On the Road
, a revolutionary novel which incited the young people of the world to leave to learn the life on the roads, and to communicate with others. Passionate about the sea and rivers (a love which he owes to his grandfather), he left the Netherlands
by boat in the autumn with 1,000 guilders in his pocket (about two months' living expenses).
He met Eddie Barclay
, the executive for Barclay Records
, in Saint-Tropez
in 1968; Barclay was responsible for launching Dave's career in show business
.
On February 26, 1969, he participates in the Nationaal Songfestival
, the Dutch pre-selection contest for that year's Eurovision Song Contest
with a song called Niets gaat zo snel, but did not win. In Summer 1969 he reached the Veronica
Top 40 charts for the first time with Nathalie, peaking at #28.
From 1971 to 1974, he was one of the actors in the musical Godspell
, making friends with actor
Daniel Auteuil
, who will become his best friend.
In 1974, he released Trop Beau, a French adaptation of The Rubettes
' hit Sugar Baby Love
; later, he released Vanina, an adaptation of Del Shannon
's Runaway
, adapted into French by Patrick Loiseau. These were followed in 1975 by Mon cœur est malade, Dansez maintenant and Du côté de chez Swann. His self-titled first album was released at the end of 1975. His later hits included Lettre à Hélène (1978), Comment ne pas être amoureux de vous (1978), and his first number one single, Allo Elisa (1979).
In the 1980s, his popularity waned following the advent of FM radio in France. He still had an audience due to live performances and his classic hits. However, he himself likened the ebb to a "crossing of a very pretty desert". In 1993, he released a new album, then in 1994, he made a comeback following the release of a greatest hits album, of which more than 200,000 copies were sold. He later recorded a new album entitled Toujours le même bleu, which included a title single from which enables him to hit the charts once again. It is also around this time that Dave revealed himself as a homosexual
.
In 1996, he appeared in a commercial for Dutch cheese
. He later became a co-presenter with Sheila
of the TF1
television program program Salut les Chouchous; after a year, he assumed the presenter duties alone. In 1997, publisher Lattès Editions published Dave's autobiography, Du côté de chez moi ("Around where I live"). An album Dave classique, was released, fulfilling his dream to record some classical compositions.
In 2003, he released another autobiographical book, Soit dit en passant... mes années paillettes, which dealt with his life as a showbiz celebrity in the 1970s. The book also revealed the love story which has united Dave with his lyricist and companion Patrick Loiseau for more than thirty years. The latter also participated in the work to share his version of the events.
In 2006, he released a new album under the name of "Dave Levenbach", Tout le plaisir a été pour moi. In September 2006, he played four special concerts at the Théâtre de l'Européen in Paris.
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
), a Francophone
Francophone
The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
singer from the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
who had a string of number one hits in France in the 1970s. Despite his great success, he is still virtually unknown in his country of origin.
Biography
His father was JewishJudaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
and a professor of English by trade; his mother was a classical dancer. He has two brothers, Marteen and Lucas, and a sister, Elsbeth. He learned how to play guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
at 14 years of age. He liked to listen Gene Pitney
Gene Pitney
Eugene Francis Alan Pitney, known as Gene Pitney , was an American singer-songwriter, musician and sound engineer. Through the mid-1960s, he enjoyed success as a recording artist on both sides of the Atlantic and was among the group of early 1960s American acts who continued to enjoy hits after the...
and Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
, and was very heavily influenced by the Everly Brothers.
At 16, he became a very spiritual person who prayed frequently and even planned to study theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
; however, he eventually chose to study law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, because he liked to be the one who is listened to.
Among other things, he was inspired by Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
's On the Road
On the Road
On the Road is a novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, written in April 1951, and published by Viking Press in 1957. It is a largely autobiographical work that was based on the spontaneous road trips of Kerouac and his friends across mid-century America. It is often considered a defining work of...
, a revolutionary novel which incited the young people of the world to leave to learn the life on the roads, and to communicate with others. Passionate about the sea and rivers (a love which he owes to his grandfather), he left the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
by boat in the autumn with 1,000 guilders in his pocket (about two months' living expenses).
He met Eddie Barclay
Eddie Barclay
Eddie Barclay was a French music producer whose singers included Jacques Brel and Charles Aznavour. He founded Barclay Records.-Life:...
, the executive for Barclay Records
Barclay Records
Barclay Records is a French record label founded in the mid-1950s by Eddie Barclay under the alias, Edouard Ruault. Eddie Barclay also founded the Riviera label in the early-1950s....
, in Saint-Tropez
Saint-Tropez
Saint-Tropez is a town, 104 km to the east of Marseille, in the Var department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. It is also the principal town in the canton of Saint-Tropez....
in 1968; Barclay was responsible for launching Dave's career in show business
Show business
Show business, sometimes shortened to show biz, is a vernacular term for all aspects of entertainment. The word applies to all aspects of the entertainment industry from the business side to the creative element ....
.
On February 26, 1969, he participates in the Nationaal Songfestival
Nationaal Songfestival
Nationaal Songfestival is the name for the Dutch preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest. It started in 1956. It was organized until 1969 by Dutch television Nederlandse Televisie Stichting . Then the broadcaster Nederlandse Omroep Stichting took over the event...
, the Dutch pre-selection contest for that year's Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 1969
The Eurovision Song Contest 1969 was the 14th in the series. It was the first time that the contest resulted in a tie for first place, with four countries each gaining 18 votes. Since there was at the time no rule to cover such an eventuality, all four countries were declared joint winners...
with a song called Niets gaat zo snel, but did not win. In Summer 1969 he reached the Veronica
Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began broadcasting in 1960, and broadcast from offshore for over fourteen years. It was set up by independent radio, TV and household electrical retailers in the Netherlands to stimulate the sales of radio receivers by providing an alternative to...
Top 40 charts for the first time with Nathalie, peaking at #28.
From 1971 to 1974, he was one of the actors in the musical Godspell
Godspell
Godspell is a musical by Stephen Schwartz and John-Michael Tebelak. It opened off Broadway on May 17, 1971, and has played in various touring companies and revivals many times since, including a 2011 revival now playing on Broadway...
, making friends with actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
Daniel Auteuil
Daniel Auteuil
Daniel Auteuil is a French film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Algiers, French Algeria.-Career:...
, who will become his best friend.
In 1974, he released Trop Beau, a French adaptation of The Rubettes
The Rubettes
The Rubettes were an English pop band assembled in 1973 by the songwriting team of Wayne Bickerton, then the head of A&R at Polydor Records, and his co-songwriter, Tony Waddington, after their doo-wop and 1950s American pop-influenced songs had been rejected by a number of existing acts...
' hit Sugar Baby Love
Sugar Baby Love
"Sugar Baby Love", recorded in autumn 1973 and released in January 1974, is a bubblegum pop song, and the debut single of the Rubettes. Written by Wayne Bickerton and Tony Waddington and produced by Wayne Bickerton, engineered by John Mackswith at Lansdowne Recording Studios, "Sugar Baby Love" was...
; later, he released Vanina, an adaptation of Del Shannon
Del Shannon
Del Shannon was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.- Biography :...
's Runaway
Runaway (Del Shannon song)
"Runaway" was a number-one Billboard Hot 100 song made famous by Del Shannon in 1961. It was written by Shannon and keyboardist Max Crook, and became a major international hit...
, adapted into French by Patrick Loiseau. These were followed in 1975 by Mon cœur est malade, Dansez maintenant and Du côté de chez Swann. His self-titled first album was released at the end of 1975. His later hits included Lettre à Hélène (1978), Comment ne pas être amoureux de vous (1978), and his first number one single, Allo Elisa (1979).
In the 1980s, his popularity waned following the advent of FM radio in France. He still had an audience due to live performances and his classic hits. However, he himself likened the ebb to a "crossing of a very pretty desert". In 1993, he released a new album, then in 1994, he made a comeback following the release of a greatest hits album, of which more than 200,000 copies were sold. He later recorded a new album entitled Toujours le même bleu, which included a title single from which enables him to hit the charts once again. It is also around this time that Dave revealed himself as a homosexual
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
.
In 1996, he appeared in a commercial for Dutch cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
. He later became a co-presenter with Sheila
Sheila (singer)
Sheila is a French pop singer, who became successful as a solo artist in the 1960s and 1970s and later fronted a disco act called Sheila and B. Devotion. Sheila has sold over 24,000,000 copies of records in France and was the top selling artist in France in the 1960s and 1970s...
of the TF1
TF1
TF1 is a national French TV channel, controlled by TF1 Group, whose major share-holder is Bouygues. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network...
television program program Salut les Chouchous; after a year, he assumed the presenter duties alone. In 1997, publisher Lattès Editions published Dave's autobiography, Du côté de chez moi ("Around where I live"). An album Dave classique, was released, fulfilling his dream to record some classical compositions.
In 2003, he released another autobiographical book, Soit dit en passant... mes années paillettes, which dealt with his life as a showbiz celebrity in the 1970s. The book also revealed the love story which has united Dave with his lyricist and companion Patrick Loiseau for more than thirty years. The latter also participated in the work to share his version of the events.
In 2006, he released a new album under the name of "Dave Levenbach", Tout le plaisir a été pour moi. In September 2006, he played four special concerts at the Théâtre de l'Européen in Paris.