Dave (singer)
| Dave | |
|---|---|
Dave in 2012
|
|
| Born |
Wouter Otto Levenbach May 4, 1944 Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Residence | Paris, France |
| Occupation | |
| Years active | 1963–present |
| Partner(s) | Patrick Loiseau |
| Awards |
 Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau
|
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Labels | Columbia |
Dave is the stage name of Wouter Otto Levenbach, OON (born May 4, 1944), 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.
Dave was born in Amsterdam. His father was Jewish and an English teacher 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 became a very spiritual person who prayed frequently and even planned to study theology; however, he eventually chose to study law.
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 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 participated 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.
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