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| Hermes House Band | |
|---|---|
 Hermes House Band in 2018 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Genres | Dance-pop, Eurodance |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Members | Miss Sally Mr. Jop Bas Vegas Sjoerd de Freeze Lex Flex Dieter Uboot Tropical Danny |
| Past members | Judith Ansems Jaap Reesema Robin McMaas Gerben Kline Willing Dirk Bates |
| Website | hermeshouseband |
The Hermes House Band is a Dutch pop group, established in 1982 by members of the Rotterdamsch Studenten Corps, a fraternity/sorority in Rotterdam, Netherlands. They have released more than 25 albums and singles.
History
The band rose to fame in 1994 in both the Netherlands and Belgium, with their cover of Gloria Gaynor's hit single, "I Will Survive"; and as of 2018 over 1.5 million copies of the single has been sold. It was reported that when Gloria Gaynor first heard a crowd sing this version of the cover of her song while performing at a company party in the Netherlands she was "not amused". In 1998, the single became a hit in Germany, and lead singer Judith Ansems was asked to promote the song there. That year it also reached number one in France, largely because it became the anthem of the national football team and that year France went on to win the FIFA World Cup. Today, in popular French culture, it is still associated with the 1998 World Cup victory. The band landed a local recording contract with Polydor and alongside Ansems, former singers Jop Wijlacker and Robin Maas, the band was asked to record other covers, including "Country Roads" and "Que Sera Sera". These were issued in Germany under HHB International. Several of these singles were also released in the Netherlands.
Their biggest hit in the United Kingdom was their cover of "Country Roads", released shortly before Christmas 2001. It peaked at No. 7 on the UK Singles Chart, and remained in the top 10 for five weeks. It reached number 1 on the Scottish Singles Chart in December 2001 and again in January 2002.
In 2002, the Hermes House Band joined forces with DJ Ötzi to cover "Live Is Life", originally by Opus. This single reached No. 2 in the French chart, and No. 50 in the UK.
In 2010, the former lead singer of the band, Jaap van Reesema, won the third series of the Dutch version of X Factor.
In 2018, the band reached No. 1 in France again with their version of "I Will Survive" after the French football team repeated their winning performance in the 1998 FIFA World Cup.
Band members
Current members
- Miss Sally – vocals
- Mr. Jop – vocals
- Bas Vegas – bass guitar
- Sjoerd de Freeze – keyboards
- Lex Flex – drums
- Pelle Soontiëns – saxophone
- Tropical Danny – guitar
Former members
- Judith Ansems – vocals
- Jaap Reesema – vocals
- Robin McMaas – vocals
- Gerben Kline Willing – trumpet
- Dirk Bates – trumpet
Discography
- The Album (2002)
- Get Ready to Party (2004)
- Greatest Hits (2006)
- Rhythm of the Nineties (2009)
- Champions - The Greatest Stadium Hits (2010)
References
- "Hermes House Band - Get ready to party".
- Anne-Martijn van der Kaaden (18 October 2018). "Gloria Gaynor vond die cover van de Hermes House Band maar niets". NRC. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
- Kaaden, Anne-Martijn van der (18 October 2018). "Gloria Gaynor vond die cover van de Hermes House Band maar niets". NRC. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 251. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 - Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
- "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 - Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
- "Jaap Siewertsz van Reesema winnaar X Factor 2010". 29 May 2010. Archived from the original on 3 August 2016. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
- "De Rotterdamse Hermes House Band staat op 1 in de Franse hitlijst met een 20 jaar oud nummer - dankzij de WK-titel van Les Bleus". Business Insider Nederland (in Dutch). 25 July 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2019.