Supersister
Encyclopedia
Supersister was a Dutch
band from The Hague
, Netherlands
, playing progressive rock ranging
from jazz to pop. The most predominant band members were Robert Jan Stips
(keyboards, vocals), Sacha van Geest (flute), Marco Vrolijk (drums) and Ron van Eck (bass).
The band started as Sweet OK Sister in 1968 as a school band with singer and songwriter Rob Douw,
who soon thereafter left. The remaining members continued as a more serious musical quartet under the
name Supersister. Their style was progressive rock (in Canterbury Scene
style) in which Stips' keyboard play played a dominant role.
Their debut was the 1970 album
, Present from Nancy, with charting singles
such as "She Was Naked", "A Girl Named You", and "Radio". After three albums (Present from Nancy (1970), To the Highest Bidder (1971), and Pudding en Gisteren (1972)) van Geest and Vrolijk quit. The remaining crew, together with new members Charly Mariano (wind instruments) and Herman van Boeyen (drums) released the album Iskander in 1973, which is a jazz-rock oriented concept album
based upon the life of Alexander the Great.
In 1974, Stips and van Geest released a final album, Sweet Okay Supersister, which marked the end of the band.
The band reunited in 2000, after a request by the Progfest festival for a performance in Los Angeles
. The four 1970-1973 period band members decided to accept and the result was the requested performance, as well as a short tour through the Netherlands in late 2000 and early 2001. To mark the occasion a rarities album was released, called M.A.N. featuring live and studio recordings from 1969-1973. The reunion abruptly came to an end when van Geest unexpectedly died in the summer of 2001. The reunion concert at the Paradiso
in Amsterdam
was recorded and later released on CD (Supersisterious, 2001) and DVD (Sweet OK Supersister, 2006), which also featured several old and new documentaries, photographs and unreleased audio tracks.
There was a picture featured on the video
for "(They Long to Be) Close to You
", with Karen Carpenter
posing next to a Supersister poster.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
band from The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, playing progressive rock ranging
from jazz to pop. The most predominant band members were Robert Jan Stips
Robert Jan Stips
Robert Jan Stips is a Dutch musician born in The Hague the 4 February 1950.He initially found fame as a keyboard player, arranger and producer with the group Supersister. This led to an invitation to join Golden Earring, one of the most successful Dutch groups of the time.In 1975 Stips appeared on...
(keyboards, vocals), Sacha van Geest (flute), Marco Vrolijk (drums) and Ron van Eck (bass).
The band started as Sweet OK Sister in 1968 as a school band with singer and songwriter Rob Douw,
who soon thereafter left. The remaining members continued as a more serious musical quartet under the
name Supersister. Their style was progressive rock (in Canterbury Scene
Canterbury Scene
The Canterbury scene is a term used to loosely describe the group of progressive rock, avant-garde and jazz musicians, many of whom were based around the city of Canterbury, Kent, England during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
style) in which Stips' keyboard play played a dominant role.
Their debut was the 1970 album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, Present from Nancy, with charting singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
such as "She Was Naked", "A Girl Named You", and "Radio". After three albums (Present from Nancy (1970), To the Highest Bidder (1971), and Pudding en Gisteren (1972)) van Geest and Vrolijk quit. The remaining crew, together with new members Charly Mariano (wind instruments) and Herman van Boeyen (drums) released the album Iskander in 1973, which is a jazz-rock oriented concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
based upon the life of Alexander the Great.
In 1974, Stips and van Geest released a final album, Sweet Okay Supersister, which marked the end of the band.
The band reunited in 2000, after a request by the Progfest festival for a performance in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. The four 1970-1973 period band members decided to accept and the result was the requested performance, as well as a short tour through the Netherlands in late 2000 and early 2001. To mark the occasion a rarities album was released, called M.A.N. featuring live and studio recordings from 1969-1973. The reunion abruptly came to an end when van Geest unexpectedly died in the summer of 2001. The reunion concert at the Paradiso
Paradiso (Amsterdam)
Paradiso is an iconic rock music venue and cultural center in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.-History:It is housed in a converted former church building that dates from the nineteenth century and that was used until 1965 as the meeting hall for a liberal Dutch religious group known as the "Vrije...
in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
was recorded and later released on CD (Supersisterious, 2001) and DVD (Sweet OK Supersister, 2006), which also featured several old and new documentaries, photographs and unreleased audio tracks.
There was a picture featured on the video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "(They Long to Be) Close to You
(They Long to Be) Close to You
" Close to You" is a popular song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. It was first recorded by Richard Chamberlain and released as a single in 1963 as "They Long to Be Close to You," without parentheses. However, it was the single's flip side, "Blue Guitar," that became a hit...
", with Karen Carpenter
Karen Carpenter
Karen Anne Carpenter was an American singer and drummer. She and her brother, Richard, formed the 1970s duo The Carpenters. She was a drummer of exceptional skill, but she is best remembered for her vocal performances of idealistic romantic ballads of true love...
posing next to a Supersister poster.