Conny Vandenbos

Conny Vandenbos
Vandenbos in 1981
Background information
Birth name	Jacoba Adriana Hollestelle
Born	(1937-01-16)16 January 1937 The Hague, Netherlands
Died	7 April 2002(2002-04-07) (aged 65) Amsterdam, Netherlands
Occupation	Singer
Website	www.connyvandenbos.com

Jacoba Adriana Hollestelle (16 January 1937 – 7 April 2002), known professionally as Conny Vandenbos, was a popular Dutch singer. She had her first radio hit in 1966 and continued to make hit recordings throughout the 1970s. She represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 1965 with the song "'t Is genoeg".

Career

Vandenbos at the Nationaal Songfestival in 1965

Vandenbos made her solo debut in the KRO radio programme Springplank, a showcase for young talent, in which she performed French chansons. After her performance at the Belgian Knokkefestival in 1961, Conny signed a recording contract with Philips. In 1964, she made a television series Zeg maar Conny ("Call me Conny") for the Dutch public broadcaster NCRV.

In 1965, she represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest held in Naples, Italy, with the song "'t Is genoeg", finishing in eleventh place. One year later, Vandenbos finally achieved chart success with her first hit single, "Ik ben gelukkig zonder jou". In the early 1970s, Conny parted company from Philips and signed with Basart Records in January 1973. During her contract at Basart, several albums were released and her singles charted frequently on the Dutch pop charts.

During this period, most of her hits were Dutch translations of foreign songs such as "Een roosje, m'n roosje", which was a translation of "Daisy a Day" by Jud Strunk. She also released a German version of the song. In 1980, while back with Philips Records, Conny released an album of songs by Janis Ian titled Conny Vandenbos zingt Janis Ian. A duet with Janis Ian, "Don't Leave Tonight", reached number 17 in the Dutch charts in December 1980.

In 1976, she received an Edison Golden Harp for the album Zo wil ik leven. In 1993, she was awarded a gold disc for her album De 14 grootste hits van Conny Vandenbos. In the 1990s, her singing career was put on hold due to lack of record sales and to her other activities, such as hosting radio shows at various national and regional radio stations (Radio Noordzee and Radio West). In 2000, she was honoured with a tile in the Rotterdam Walk Of Fame.

Personal life

In 1959 Conny married Wim van den Bos. The couple had a daughter. In 1965 this marriage ended, but since she was now known under the name Conny van den Bos, she decided to keep that name. However, the name was now written together as Conny Vandenbos. She now considered this a stage name, no longer the name of her ex-husband. Her second marriage was to Ger Faber, bass player of the band Leedy Trio, with whom she had one son.

Vandenbos died in Amsterdam on 7 April 2002, two weeks after it was announced that she was suffering from lung cancer.

External links

• Official website

Media related to Conny Vandenbos at Wikimedia Commons