The Fatal Flowers were back, for a short while. The story of the best band coming from Holland!

The Fatal Flowers 1986

Introduction

Early this year, all of a sudden life crept back into The Fatal Flowers. 35 Years after their formation, and almost 30 years after their disbanding, a reunion was announced. It was not a comeback, which was stated explicitly. The best band Holland had ever seen was about to go on tour again!

The Fatal Flowers

In the beginning of the 1980’s Dutch pop music was ruled by the Dutch language. The English rock, very popular at the end of the 1970’s, with bands like Herman Brood & His Wild Romance, Ivy Green, New Adventures, The Meteors and Vitesse, did still exist, but had somewhat faded into the background. But a band like Urban Heroes did rather well. Dutch hard rock was popular (internationally) thanks to Vandenberg. Bands like Nits survived the 1970’s. And of course, moloch Golden Earring kept on thriving in the 1980’s with hits like Twilight Zone and When The Lady Smiles. Quite remarkably, a relatively large number of disco influenced bands, like Time Bandits and Spargo, were doing very well. Within new-wave and goth circles Clan Of Xymox became a big name.

The Fatal Flowers

In the summer of 1984 two events would prove to be highly influential on the development of Dutch pop music:

• Claw Boys Claw released their debut Shocking Shades Of Claw Boys Claw
• Richard Janssen founded The Fatal Flowers

Combined with other bands like L’Attentat and Blue Murder (and at times even The Thought, which was built from the ashes of The Rousers) the term ‘Amsterdam guitar school’ (also known as ‘Amsterdam Guitar Mafia’) was born. The term obviously referenced the city, but also to a genre: melodious guitar rock, which combined psychedelica with rock. The Do It Yourself (DIY) punk ethic was endorsed whole heartedly.

Within the genre The Fatal Flowers stood out. Musically, career wise, image wise and professionally The Fatal Flowers were miles ahead on their peers. According to founder Richard Janssen the band was considered an outsider, because of their professionalism. The band’s drive was laughed at. Janssen insisted that on days without shows, the band still rehearsed. Day in, day out. And it paid off. Very quickly The Fatal Flowers was the best live-band Holland had ever seen. I saw them many, many times in those days, just as I saw Claw Boys Claw on a regular basis.

Location DDL studios Amsterdam

The band recorded and rehearsed in DDL (De Domme Lul, which translates into something like ‘The Stupid Cock’) studios along the Brouwersgracht in Amsterdam. With Martin Cramer (the band’s steady sound man and technician), Luc Suèr (sound man) and Richard Janssen and Henk Jonkers (both members of The Fatal Flowers), the studio is built and set up. The studio quickly turned into a professional studio/rehearsal space, which is still operational to this day.

The first show was on November 23rd, 1984. The very next day Erwin Wolters left the band, and was replaced by the great guitar player Dirk Heuff. The band played regularly and got a lot of publicity for it. The concerts were all great, so word of mouth ensured good, and growing, attendance numbers.

The band was known for their professionalism and musicality (although Richard Janssen’s good looks certainly did help). Early 1985 the band signed with management firm The Syndicate of Melody. Things went fast now. Record label WEA (Warner Bros.) was very eager to sign the band. So, early 1985, the band signed a deal and the recording adventure could start.

Following, is the band’s history, told alongside the timeline of their releases.

The Fatal Flowers – Fatal Flowers

EP: Fatal Flowers

The first release followed rather quickly. The band left for London and recorded a couple of songs at the Brittania Row Studios. Production was done by Craig Leon, who had done work for The Ramones and Blondie. However, the band was dissatisfied with the initial mix.

After altering the mix, all of the six songs were released on the EP Fatal Flowers in June 1985.

Line-up

• Richard Janssen – vocals and guitar
• Marco Braam – bass and vocals
• Henk Jonkers – drums and vocals
• Dirk Heuff – guitar

Songs

All songs written by Richard Janssen, unless stated otherwise.

• Midnight Train *
• Crying Over Sin **
• Billy ***
• Rip Off
• Fatal Flower
• We Thought They Loved You ****

The Fatal Flowers – Fatal Flowers – Singles: Billy

Singles

To promote the EP the song Billy was released as a single.

Review

A surprising debut. Billy and Fatal Flower in particular, stand out. Both are near perfect pop songs and could be seen as a template for their real debut a year later.

Rating

And then…

The EP is successful, even though it’s limited to their own crowd of people. Dutch critics are mixed. Music paper OOR is against, monthly Vinyl is pro, NRC is pro and de Volkskrant is against. In an opinion piece that is published in music magazine OOR around that time, it is asserted that there seems to be an ongoing argument among critics, which is ruled by Pavlov-reactions. When A says yes, B, by definition, says no, etc. Well…

Luckily, this childishness doesn’t impact The Fatal Flowers. The band performs a lot and plays a legendary show on November 12th, 1985, at the Rotterdam Pandora Festival.

In 1986 the band continued performing, during which new material was tried out. When Green On Red drops out from the bill of the 1986 edition of the Dutch Pinkpop Festival at the very last time, the organization frantically searches for The Fatal Flowers, but they can’t be reached. Instead, they manage to get a hold of Blue Murder, so they take the stage. It could have been great: The Fatal Flowers and Claw Boys Claw both appearing on the same line-up.

Fatal Flowers – Younger Days

Album: Younger Days

In September 1986 the band records their debut album at the ICP-studio in Brussels, Belgium. Vic Maile, known for his work for Tom Robinson and Motörhead, is hired as a producer.

The album is released in October 1986. In the US the album is released by the Atlantic label. Due to the ‘offensive’ nature of Well Baby, pt. 1, that part is deleted from the American release.

Line-up

• Richard Janssen – vocals and guitar
• Marco Braam – bass and vocals
• Henk Jonkers – drums and vocals
• Dirk Heuff – guitar
• Extra:
  • Cor Willemse – keyboards

Songs

All songs written by The Fatal Flowers, unless stated otherwise.

• Deep Inside
• Good Enough
• Ballroom
• Nowhere To Lay My Head
• Younger Days
• Well Baby (pt. 1&2)
• Gimme Some Truth *
• Blackspot
• For Christ’s Sake
• Here’s Your Song

The Fatal Flowers – Younger Days – Singles: Younger Days, Well Baby (part 2)

Singles

Two singles are culled from the album. The first single, Younger Days, is a modest hit in The Netherlands. The second single, Well Baby (part 2), is released in 1987.

Review

Well, what can I say about this album? It’s my favorite album of all Dutch bands I know. The production is clear. The band is tight, concentrated, yet spontaneous. The level of the songs has increased dramatically. The album has not one lesser song on it. My favorite was (and still is) Well Baby (pt. 1&2), which tells the tale of a man who kills his family in a daze of complete madness. The beginning of the song (pt. 1) sets the story:

Sleep tight little girl, daddy’s watching over you
He’s gonna kill your mummy first, and then he is gonna kill you too
And then he’ll lay down in his bed put his .44 against his head
And no one’s gonna trouble us no more

© 1986 The Fatal Flowers

Next up are the lamentations of a man who doesn’t understand what’s going on, what his role is and cannot comprehend what happened to his family. A number of observations are really beautiful, in all their heart wrenching plainness:

Mum and dad came to see me today
Daddy says he’s got nothing to say
And mummy just stares she’s got this funny look in her eyes
Sun rises there’s a knock on my door
Warden says got no time no more
I get to smoke one last cigarette
But he knows I don’t smoke, never have

© 1986 The Fatal Flowers

I don’t subscribe to the decision to scrap pt. 1 from the American release. It really is an injustice to the song and makes the lyrics stand on their own.

Rating

And then…

At the time Dutch television show VARA’s Nachtshow was an illustrious show. The band’s performance there provided the band with a lot of publicity.

At the end of 1986 the band deserved the title ‘best band in Holland’, which de facto turned them into the face of the ‘Amsterdam guitar school’. Claw Boys Claw in particular was the one band to come close to that title with their exciting mix of rock, punk, rockabilly and blues. Claw Boys Claw is also incapable of delivering bad shows, but compositionally and professionally The Fatal Flowers were next level.

The Fatal Flowers – Younger Days – Rolling Stone review – Who says the Dutch can’t rock?

The band isn’t only well-liked in The Netherlands. American Rolling Stone magazine published a praising review to Younger Days.

In January 1987, Marco Braam leaves the band. Geert de Groot is added to the line-up of the band. One of the first things he has to do is travel to Spain to record a video to the Well baby (part 2) single.

On June 8th, 1987, The Fatal Flowers play Pinkpop. I vividly remember walking onto the field and my favorite Dutch band had just started their set.

The band won an Edison (Dutch music award) for the Younger Days album. Mid September the band reconvened in their own DDL studio to work on new material.

At the end of the year, the band leaves for a tour of Germany and Scandinavia, where they were very well received.

The Fatal Flowers – Johnny D. Is Back!

Album: Johnny D. Is Back! – An Album By The Fatal Flowers

Early 1988 the band travels to the Nevessa studio’s in the American town of Woodstock. The band managed to hire Mick Ronson (primarily known for his work on Bowie’s The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars) for production. It emphasizes the band’s status, that they were able to effortlessly bill themselves next to Ronson, who loved the band.

The second album Johnny D. Is Back! is released in April 1988 and is met with great enthusiasm.

The album is a concept album, about the fictitious rock star Johnny D., who is dragged on stage against his will to make a comeback everyone seems to want.

Once again, the American release differs from the European. The American version contains a remix of Second Chance.

The Fatal Flowers – Johnny D. Is Back! – Back cover

Line-up

• Richard Janssen – vocals and guitar
• Geert de Groot – bass and vocals
• Henk Jonkers – drums and vocals
• Dirk Heuff – guitar
• Extra:
  • Cor Willemse – keyboards
  • John Sebastian – guitar and harmonica on Johnny D. Is Back!, Second Chance and Moving Target
  • Ann Lang – background vocals on Second Chance, Moving Target and Too Free
  • Howie Brownie – saxophone on Second Chance and There Were Time
  • Jay Ungar – violin on Dear Friends
  • Gregg Bauer – piano on Round And Round

Songs

All songs written by Richard Janssen, unless stated otherwise.

• Johnny D. Is Back!
• Round And Round *
• Second Chance *
• Moving Target *
• There Were Times
• The Dance *
• Rock And Roll Star
• Too Free **
• Dear Friends *

The Fatal Flowers – Johnny D. Is Back! – Singles: Movin’ Target, Rock And Roll Star, Second Chance

Singles

Three singles are culled from the album. Only Rock And Roll Star is a (very) modest hit. Remarkable that Moving Target is titled Movin’ Target on the single.

Review

Despite the fact that Younger Days was my preferred record, the new sound appealed to me. It radiated a kind of warmth and soul. I can’t single out a bad song on this album as well. As a result of their live reputation, the band sounds like a well oiled machine, who knows when to step it up and when to pull back in their energy, which makes for a well balanced sound.

Things don’t end well for the main character, Johnny D.. The last song, Dear Friends, is situated at his funeral.

There ain’t nothing like a funeral;
Food and drinks for free

…

But I’m sure that even my funeral
Is gonna get a bad review

© 1988 Richard Janssen

Is the last remark aimed at the Dutch press who seemed to wage an internal war at the expense of The Fatal Flowers?

Rating

The Fatal Flowers – Woodstock 1988

And then…

Almost at the same time as the album’s release, Dirk Heuff decided to leave the band. He couldn’t (or didn’t want to) handle the stress of endless touring and rehearsing anymore. The day his decision is announced to the band, Richard Janssen is scheduled to give an interview. He can’t hide his disappointment and reveals some of the inner workings of the band. They started out as a group of friends, but that has changed into a working relationship.

The tour that was scheduled, needed to be postponed. It commenced after Rene van Barneveld (who played with the Urban Dance Squad) was hired as a temporary replacement and had learned the material. The band did yet another elaborate tour and appeared in many shows.

The band’s success continued: The Fatal Flowers receive a Dutch music award, the Zilveren Harp, for their album Johnny D. Is Back!.

In the meantime the search for a definite replacement for Dirk Heuff was still ongoing. The real substitute was found in, at that time just 17 year old, Robin Berlijn, a guitar wonder who seemed able to replace Dirk Heuff excellently. Subsequently, Rene van Barneveld returned to the Urban Dance Squad, which would turn the music world upside down a year later with their debut album Mental Floss For The Globe.

Midway through 1989 management team The Syndicate Of Melodies dissolves itself, upon which the band hired Flying Dutchman to represent them. More seriously, the Dutch branch of record company WEA closed down. When it becomes clear that the band was basically left with no money to record their next album, the band decided to leave WEA. In the meantime, the band had started work on a new album, which would once again be produced by Mick Ronson. Ronson even played with the band on stage on August 13th, 1989. Because the band still hadn’t signed a new record deal by the end of 1989, the management team paid for the recording costs at the Powerplay studio in Maur, Switzerland (a 15 minute drive from Zürich).

The Fatal Flowers – Pleasure Ground

Album: Pleasure Ground

In March 1990 the third album, Pleasure Ground, is released. The band signed a deal with record company Mercury. The new album sounds harder and more aggressive, in part due to new guitar player Robin Berlijn.

Armed with a new album, the band, and the record company, strove to make the final breakthrough. And it seemed to be in the cards, now more than ever before.

Line-up

• Richard Janssen – vocals and guitar
• Geert de Groot – bass and vocals
• Henk Jonkers – drums and vocals
• Robin Berlijn – guitar
• Extra:
  • Cor Willemse – keyboards
  • Mildred Douglas – background vocals on Pleasure Ground, Rage Out and Both Ends Burning
  • Terts Brinkhoff – accordeon on Speed Of Life
  • John Boyce – cello, violin on A Real Good Life
  • Rene van Barneveld – slide guitar on Funky Street

Songs

All songs written by The Fatal Flowers, unless stated otherwise.

• How Many Years
• Some Day
• Funky Street *
• Better Times
• Pleasure Ground
• A Real Good Life
• She’s Doin’ Fine
• Burning
• Rage Out
• Speed Of Life
• Both Ends Burning **

The Fatal Flowers – Pleasure Ground – Singles: Better Times, Both Ends Burning, How Many Years

Singles

Three singles are culled from the album. None of them entered the charts.

Review

Contrary to Johnny D. Is Back! the sound was more aggressive. At first, I wasn’t really impressed. The ‘indie’ feel had vanished. It seemed less adventurous musically, but the songs themselves were great. To his credit, Robin Berlijn was more than able to fill Dirk Heuff’s shoes. The young player proved to be excellent at his instrument.

Rating

The Fatal Flowers – Dutch pride in gossip magazine Weekend

And then…

The following tour is a success, followed by an equally successful tour through Germany. On June 24th, 1990, the band played the Dutch festival Parkpop. Richard Janssen announced the last song using the words “once more The Fatal Flowers”. The words had meaning.

Like a bolt from the blue, Richard Janssen announced his departure directly following the gig. Henk Jonkers, Geert de Groot and Robin Berlijn decided that the band should call it a day. Using the title “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” the outside world is let in on the demise of the best band The Netherlands had ever had. The Fatal Flowers were no more.

As the title of the official announcement states, Richard Janssen in particular, had grown increasingly dissatisfied with The Fatal Flowers. It had become a job. The group of friends were estranged. Money was tight throughout their career. The record label seemed to have stopped promoting the band abroad. The prospect of yet another tour in all the little bars and youth centers across Holland, followed by another one and another one, in fear of declining ticket sales, was a prospect Richard Janssen wasn’t looking forward to.

After the breakup

After a long silence about Richard Janssen and his activities, seemingly out of nowhere, Shine’s debut album, called Boys, is released in May 1993. Shine is the new musical project in which Janssen once again proves his ability to write great songs and sing really well. After releasing a couple of EP’s, second album, Modern Popmusic, is released in October 1995, followed by the end of Shine.

In October 1996 the first (and only) album by Rex, Love Baby Love, is released. By and large, it’s an acoustic album, that doesn’t resemble anything Janssen did before. After a short tour and a couple of radio performances, Rex was put to rest already.

The Fatal Flowers – Younger Days – The Definitive Fatal Flowers

Compilation: Younger Days – The Definitive Fatal Flowers

On July 3rd, 2002, the double-cd Younger Days – The Definitive Fatal Flowers is released. The first disc contains a cross section of their most important work. The second disc contains alternative takes and radio recordings from The Fatal Flowers era.

The local (read: Dutch) press was ecstatic.

To promote the album The Fatal Flowers reconvened at the Blauwe Theehuis in Amsterdam’s Vondelpark to play an acoustic set:

Setlist
How Many Years / Burning / Garden Party / Johnny D. Is Back! / Billy / Younger Days / Just A Girl / Who Loves The Sun

All former long-serving band members were present: Richard Janssen, Robin Berlijn, Geert de Groot, Henk Jonkers, Dirk Heuff and Marco Braam.

Songs

Disc 1

• Fatal Flower
• Billy
• Deep Inside
• Good Enough
• Well Baby, pt 1&2
• Nowhere To Lay My Head
• Younger Days
• Johnny D. Is Back!
• Moving Target
• Rock & Roll Star
• There Were Times
• How Many Years
• Some Day
• Better Times
• She’s Doin Fine
• Pleasure Ground
• Speed Of Life

The Fatal Flowers – Wall painting

Disc 2: sessions & demo’s

Singles

No singles were released from the album.

Review

The cd release was badly needed, because The Fatal Flowers’ albums hadn’t been available in the shops for quite some time. A great disservice to the band, their music and the public.

Once again, the compilation shows just how good the band was and how impressive their legacy truly is. Disc 2 contains a number of gems I listened to regularly.

Rating

And then…

The band announced the performance at the Blauwe Theehuis as a one-time reunion. The band kept their promise and subsequently disappeared from the radar. After playing in Ellen ten Damme’s band for a short while, Richard Janssen seemed to have fallen off the face of the earth. He had retired from music completely.

The Fatal Flowers – Younger Days – Fonos

The availability of The Fatal Flowers material was once again scarce. The compilation wasn’t available anymore. Since I desperately desired to own an official copy of Younger Days on cd, I contacted Fonos. Unfortunately shut down nowadays, Fonos took it upon themselves to release Dutch (pop)music on compact-disc, in order to preserve the Dutch legacy. If the customer was able to prove that requiring a desired item through the usual channels was impossible, the item was remastered and subsequently burnt onto cd, the original artwork was photocopied . Albums were rather pricy, but the intention was great.

After emailing back and forth, I could persuade Fonos that Younger Days met their criteria and I finally received the album on cd on November 5th, 2005.

The Fatal Flowers – Reunion Tour

Reunion

On January 16th, 2019, The Fatal Flowers announced they were going to perform again. It was explicitly stated it was “a reunion, not a comeback”. In other words: no new music.

But still, The Fatal Flowers back together again! During the month of June the band would tour The Netherlands. On June 27th the band would play their final gig at the Paradiso in Amsterdam.

When ticket sales started, interest was high. Many shows sold out, including both of the shows I was to go to: Alkmaar on June 15th, 2019 and Paradiso on June 27th, 2019. A second Paradiso show was announced, which also sold out, on June 28th, 2019, to be followed by putting the band back to sleep again.

The Fatal Flowers 2019 – With Nina, Jan, Sue & Wiel

It turned out that all band members had remained active within music. All, but Richard Janssen. He had a job at a German theater at Munich, where he was happy.

The proposed reunion was backed up with money, a plan and a clear timeline. A recent heart attack had changed Janssen’s attitude: ‘why not?’ instead of ‘why?’. It would turn out to be a pleasant time, as the band members would soon experience. But first, rehearsals! The band was consistent, never unprepared: one month was used to prepare the band so they could show themselves in the best possible way to the hungry crowds.

The meet-up with the audience was great. Around the time I saw the band for the first time in over 30 years, they were well rehearsed and they were truly wonderful. As impossible as it seemed, they were even better at Paradiso, probably due to the fact of the coming goodbye, but the band was magnificent, the audience beyond themselves with joy and the band visibly moved and somewhat astounded by their success.

The end of the second encore was touching as the band handed over their instruments to the next generation of musicians. The children finished the encore. A moving symbolic gesture.

Who knows what the future may bring, but 35 years after the first beginnings the best band The Netherlands had ever seen, were back on stage. To be honest: it sure tasted like more, much more.

The Fatal Flowers – Radio Sessions 1985-1990

Compilation: Radio Sessions 1985-1990

Officially released on June 30th, 2019, after the last shows of the reunion tour, the double album (available on vinyl and streaming only) was on sale during the final shows of the tour.

Songs

Singles

No singles were released from the album.

Review

Well, what can I say? Just like the second disc of the compilation Younger Days – The Definitive Fatal Flowers, this is pure gold. An indispensible album for those who love The Fatal Flowers and those who are curious about the best band Holland ever knew.

Rating

The Fatal Flowers – Paradiso 27-06-2019

And then…

On July 2nd, 2019, Robin Berlijn wrote on the band’s Facebook page:

THANKS THANKS THANKS!

On behalf of the Flowers

To all fans and supporters we have met during the FF 2019 tour:

From Groningen to Weert, from Hengelo to Bergen op Zoom, we have regularly and happily wondered about the many people who reacted so enthusiastically to our return, after such a long time.

The reactions were heartwarming, and you really helped us in making this tour a huge success. Thank you!

And now we all go our own way again… me, I will go swimming in the Waddenzee, and then finish my first solo album.

Until who knows when!

Robin Berlijn.

On behalf of all Flowers: Richard Janssen, Hank Jonkers and Geert de Groot.

In closing

It was great. The memory lasts and I am truly happy to have been able to see the band one more time. I will keep on playing and listening their music. I sincerely hope there will be others doing that as well. I hope future generations will discover the band again and again.

What do you think of The Fatal Flowers? Let me know!

Video/Spotify
This story contains an accompanying video. Click on the following link to see it: Video: The Fatal Flowers were back, for a short while. The story of the best band coming from Holland!. The A Pop Life playlist on Spotify has been updated as well.