Pussycat (band)
| Company type | Music group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1975 |
| Founder | Toni Veldpaus, Betty Veldpaus, Marianne Veldpaus |
| Defunct | 1985 |
| Headquarters | Netherlands |
Area served | Europe, South Africa |
Key people | Toni Veldpaus, Betty Veldpaus, Marianne Veldpaus, Lou Willé, John Theunissen, Theo Wetzels, Theo Coumans, Hans Lutjens |
| Products | Country and pop music albums and singles |
Number of employees | Band members (varied) |
Pussycat was a Dutch ensemble specializing in country and pop music, fronted by the Veldpaus siblings: Toni (born 1953), Betty (1952–2024), and Marianne (born 1951). The lineup also featured guitarists Lou Willé (who was Toni's husband at the time), Theo Wetzels, Theo Coumans, and John Theunissen. Their 1975/1976 hit single "Mississippi" achieved number one status on various European charts, including the UK.
Career
Prior to establishing Pussycat, the Veldpaus sisters were employed as telephone operators in Limburg. Meanwhile, Theunissen, Wetzels, and Coumans performed together in a group called Scum. Lou Willé had previously played with Ricky Rendall and His Centurions before marrying Toni and forming Sweet Reaction, which ultimately transformed into Pussycat.
Their major success arrived with the track "Mississippi," composed by their guitar instructor Werner Theunissen. This single sold in excess of five million copies globally and secured the top position on the UK Singles Chart in October 1976. Subsequent notable releases included "Smile" (1976) and "Hey Joe" (1978), as well as songs like "If You Ever Come to Amsterdam," "Georgie," "Wet Day in September," and "My Broken Souvenirs." Over a span of about ten years, Pussycat produced roughly seventeen albums. In 1978, Hans Lutjens took over drumming duties from Coumans as the band continued extensive touring internationally, including performances in South Africa, and frequently appeared on West German television's Musikladen.
Following a brief period performing under the name Anycat, the sisters revived Pussycat in 1999 for live appearances. Although they considered releasing new material written by Theunissen, no new records were ultimately issued. They remained active through 2001.
The 2001 compilation 25 Years After Mississippi remained on the charts for seven weeks. Additional reunion concerts followed, culminating in the 2004 release of The Complete Collection, a box set comprising three CDs and a DVD.
In 2005, Pussycat collaborated with Dutch country band Major Dundee on the single "Somewhere Someone," which appeared on Major Dundee's album Young Gods. They also provided backing vocals for Dennis Jones' Dutch reggae rendition of "Mississippi" in 2007. In June 2023, previously unreleased demo recordings from 1983 were made available under the title Unreleased Demos 1983.
Betty Veldpaus died on 28 June 2024 at age 72.
Members
- Toni Veldpaus (married Willé) – lead vocals (1975–1985)
- Betty Veldpaus (married Dragstra) – vocals (1975–1985; deceased 2024)
- Marianne Veldpaus (married Hensen) – vocals (1975–1985)
- Lou "Loulou" Willé (Toni's then-husband) – guitar (1975–1985)
- John Theunissen – guitar (1975–1980)
- Ferd Berger – guitar (1981–1982)
- Kees Buenen – keyboards (1981–1982)
- Theo Wetzels – bass guitar (1975–1980)
- Theo Coumans – drums (1975–1978)
- Hans Lutjens – drums (1978–1980)
- Frans Meijer – drums (1981–1982)
Albums
| Year | Title | Details | Peak chart positions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NDL | AUS | BEL | GER | NOR | SWE | NZ | |||
| 1976 | First of All |
|
4 | 29 | — | 10 | 2 | 26 | 16 |
| 1977 | Souvenirs |
|
6 | 71 | 28 | — | 9 | — | 1 |
| 1978 | Wet Day in September |
|
16 | — | — | — | 15 | — | — |
| 1979 | Simply to be with You |
|
— | — | — | — | 38 | — | — |
| 1979 | The Best of Pussycat |
|
— | ||||||
| 1981 | Blue Lights |
|
10 | — | |||||
| 1983 | After All |
|
— | ||||||
| 1994 | The Collection & More |
|
60 | — | |||||
| 2001 | 25 jaar na Mississippi |
|
26 | — | |||||
Singles
1977 ... [table continues with similar formatting for subsequent singles] ...| Year | Title | Highest chart rankings | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NDL | AUS | BEL | GER | AUT | SWI | NOR | SWE | UK | NZ | SA | |||
| 1975 | "Mississippi" / "Do It" | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | First of All |
| "Mississippi" (German version) / "Lieb Mich" | — | — | — | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |
| 1976 | "Georgie" / "Take Me" | 1 | 74 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | 14 | 2 | First of All |
| "Smile" / "What Did They Do to the People" | 2 | 34 | 3 | 9 | 10 | 8 | — | — | 24 | 3 | 1 | ||
| "Ein Altes Lied"/ "Pasadena"(German) | "—" | "—" | "—" | "41" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" |
Non-album single | |
See also
- List of performers on Top of the Pops#List of performers on ''Top of the Pops''
- List of artists who reached number one on the UK Singles Chart
- List of country music performers
- List of bands from the Netherlands
External links
- Pussycat (band)
- Dutch country music groups
- Dutch pop music groups
- Musical groups from Limburg (Netherlands)
- Brunssum
- Female-fronted musical groups
- Sonopresse artists
- Musical groups established in 1975
- Musical groups disestablished in 1985
- 1975 establishments in the Netherlands
- 1985 disestablishments in the Netherlands