City Songs - Amsterdam

Although I grew up in the Dutch countryside, my Mom came from Amsterdam, and consequently we had plenty of family visits there. Much later, I went to Amsterdam on my own, looking for comics, books, and music—priorities changed over the years!

Nowadays, whenever I go back to the Low Countries, I try to sneak in at least one day in Amsterdam to visit friends and attend concerts...

Over the years, I got interested in songs about Amsterdam and even got a few CDs, but most of the content is sung in Dutch.

So, as a follow-up to Bangkok's City Songs, Amsterdam had to be next, but this time with a more international character.

Even so, I did include a few Dutch songs, but not the most obvious ones.

However, first I need to provide some background information. Despite what most people might think, Amsterdam is NOT the capital of the Netherlands (that's Den Haag!), and until World War II, there was a significant number of people of Jewish descent (since the 16th century) living there. This is important because they had an impact on the language, as Amsterdam slang still contains a lot of Yiddish words!

One of them is Amsterdam's unofficial nickname, Mokum, which is Yiddish for 'city' or 'place'.

And that brings us immediately to our oldest song here, a jazzy instrumental called Midnight in Mokum by The Ramblers, from 1946!

The Jewish connection continues with klezmer, a lively, traditional instrumental music style created by the Ashkenazi Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, which has seen a revival over the years. Therefore, I also selected A Chassid in Amsterdam by the Amsterdam Klezmer Band, a great tune.

The Amsterdam dialect can be difficult for Dutch people from other parts of the country to understand. Luckily, Dutch rappers Osdorp Posse put together an intriguing overview of those slang words with Orgineel Amsterdams!

Another Dutch jazz tune from 1961 is Amsterdam Blues by The Diamond Five.

We have a few more Dutch artists, but they sing in English, such as Funky Amsterdam by Big John Russell, from 1975, and, from 1988, there's the title track from a Dick Maas horror flick, Amsterdamned by Loïs Lane!

Other songs are provided by Brainbox (Amsterdam, the First Days, with Jan Akkerman!) and Wally Tax's Tax Free (Amsterdam).

A more tropical Amsterdam is presented by Sail-Joia, the band with the Portuguese brothers Lameirinhas, and sung in Portuguese: Amsterdaô Tem Coracão

From the Netherlands, we move on to one of its neighbours, namely Belgium.

One of Belgium's most well-known singers is probably Jacques Brel. His Amsterdam has been covered at least 20 times by artists such as David Bowie and Scott Walker, but in my opinion, none of these beats the original 1964 live performance by Brel himself, sung in French, of course. Interestingly, Brel also released several Dutch/Flemish versions of his songs, but never of his Amsterdam, as far as I know.

Another classic Belgian artist from back in the day was Kris de Bruyne, whose lyrics suggested visitors check out the bookshops and Van Gogh paintings in Amsterdam.

Fellow patriot Raymond van het Groenewoud came up with a surrealistic vision of a homesick (for the Sahara!) camel wandering around Amsterdam's famous Leidse Plein (Leiden Square).

Ray Wylie Hubbard sings about the Last Train To Amsterdam, whereas the Counting Crows reminisce about On A Tuesday In Amsterdam Long Ago.

The Girls Of Amsterdam are praised by Sailor, an Amsterdam Dog by Sean Tyla & His Gang, and the Moon over Amsterdam serenaded by The Mavericks.

The remaining Amsterdams are sung by Jaya the Cat, Then Thickens, U.N.P.O.C., Kevin Coyne, and (last but not least) John Cale.

 Enjoy!

 

P.s. With thanks to Richard for his recommended A'dam tracks!