ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 20, 1984
By Steve Newton
Help I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone/The place is a madhouse, feels like being cloned/My beacon’s been moved under moon and star/Where am I to go now that I’ve gone too far/Soon you will come to know, when the bullet hits the bone
Anyone who’s been listening to rock radio or frequenting Top 40 nightclubs in the last couple of years has heard these lines. With the same hypnotic effect as their 1974 hit “Radar Love”, “Twilight Zone” brought Golden Earring back into the spotlight of commercial rock, and an eight-minute version of the song helped to make the LP Cut a near-platinum record in Canada.
When singer Barry Hay, guitarist George Kooymans, bassist-keyboardist Rinus Gerritsen, and drummer Cesar Zuiderwijk play the UBC SUB Ballroom tomorrow (Saturday) night, it will be in support of the Dutch quartet’s latest release N.E.W.S., which has already spawned the single “When the Lady Smiles”.
Last Friday vocalist Hay phoned me from L.A., where the band was touring with Florida rockers .38 Special. He talked about Twilight Zone–song and video–and shared a few remembrances of old days touring with the Who and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
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It was ten years ago that Golden Earring first hit it big in North America with “Radar Love”, and then two years ago with “Twilight Zone”. Was it hard to keep the band together during that eight-year stretch between hits?
Not really. We’re real pals; we’re just stuck with each other. And we were touring and everything. As a matter of fact, the band is now more together than ever.
You went into a bit of a jazzy/progressive vein for a while there didn’t you?
Yeah. Robert Jan Stips had a lot to do with that. He’s a jazz player, a keyboardist. These guest musicians, they had their little finger in the pie, you know. And I think it was interesting for our career. Nothing happened money-wise, but it sure was good experience. It got us where we are now.
When you finished recording “Twilight Zone” did you have the feeling that it would be a hit?
I knew it was going to be a hit the moment I heard it. And I’m saying this because it’s the truth. Usually I’m not really sure about those things, but when George [guitarist George Kooymans] played it I knew it right away.
Along with Billy Idol’s “White Wedding”, “Twilight Zone” must be one of the most covered Top 40 tunes in Vancouver’s rock clubs.
Really?
Yeah, bands are always playing it.
Wow. I’d love to see bands pick up on that.
Do you know whether bands play it at the clubs in Holland?
No, there’s hardly any bands that I know of in Holland that cover. Everybody’s trying to do their original stuff. We don’t have that club circuit where bands do Top 40 stuff.
What’s the music scene like in Holland these days?
It’s not really happening at all. I mean, it’s a small country. I’m pissed off that there’s hardly any competition at the moment. There was a band called Doenaar that was singing in Dutch. They were very, very successful, and they broke up and started a sort of Dutch wave scene. But that really didn’t tickle my palate, if you know what I mean, because basically we’re rock and rollers, and that was reggae music.
Now that’s all over, and I’m sitting back and waiting for a young, fresh band to jump out of Holland and do something. But I’m afraid it’s not gonna happen. I think it’s all up to us [laughs].
Getting back to “Twilight Zone” for a minute. Was that title inspired by the TV series with Rod Serling?
Yeah, we ripped it off. And on the new album we have a song called “Mission Impossible”.
I understand you toured Europe and North America with the Who during the early seventies, around the time of Who’s Next and Quadrophenia. Were they–and Keith Moon in particular–really as wild on the road as legend has it?
Yeah, they were pretty wild. Especially Moon. Townshend is anti-social, and Daltrey and Entwistle are just good blokes, you know. Moon was extremely social; a crazy and wonderful guy. Only the good die young.
Another band that you’ve toured with–which also had a tragic end–was Lynyrd Skynyrd.
We were on the road with them for a long time. We had a bus, and we toured England with them. I was real good buddies with Ronnie Van Zant. We got beat up together.
You got beat up together? How did that happen?
Well, we were drunk in a club, and we thought that the audience wasn’t really reacting to the band that was playing. We thought it was a great band. It wasn’t, of course. We started hassling and harassing people [laughs] and telling them to clap and applaud. And then we got beat up by the bouncers. We ended up in the Liverpool rain, bleeding and black-eyed and just laughing our asses off.
Wasn’t that a strange pairing, southern boogie with European hard-rock?
Well, I like to consider Golden Earring as a boogie band too, you know. It’s funny. At first I thought the combination was not going to work, but it does. Like the people that come out to see .38 Special, you can easily say that they love us. So we don’t have any problem in that department.
To hear the full audio of my 1984 interview with Barry Hay subscribe to my Patreon page, where you can eavesdrop on over 350 of my uncut, one-on-one conversations with:
Dave Martone, 2020
Ian Gillan of Deep Purple, 2006
Joss Stone, 2012
Glenn Tipton of Judas Priest, 2005
Jack Blades of Night Ranger, 1984
Vivian Campbell of Def Leppard, 1992
Colin James, 1995
Kim Simmonds of Savoy Brown, 1998
Tom Cochrane of Red Rider, 1983
Ed Roland of Collective Soul, 1995
Taj Mahal, 2001
Tom Wilson of Junkhouse, 1995
Mike McCready of Pearl Jam, 2003
David Lindley, 2002
Marty Friedman of Megadeth, 1991
John Hiatt, 2010
Nancy Wilson of Heart, 2006
Jeff Golub, 1989
Moe Berg of the Pursuit of Happiness, 1990
Todd Rundgren, 2006
Chad Kroeger of Nickelback, 2001
Steve Earle, 1987
Gabby Gaborno of the Cadillac Tramps, 1991
Terry Bozzio, 2003
Roger Glover, 1985
Matthew Sweet, 1995
Jim McCarty of the Yardbirds, 2003
Luther Dickinson of North Mississippi Allstars, 2001
John Rzeznik of the Goo Goo Dolls, 1995
Steve Hackett from Genesis, 1993
Grace Potter, 2008
Buddy Guy, 1993
Steve Lynch of Autograph, 1985
Don Wilson of the Ventures, 1997
Gordie Johnson of Big Sugar, 1998
Trevor Rabin of Yes, 1984
Albert Lee, 1986
Yngwie Malmsteen, 1985
Robert Cray, 1996
Tony Carey, 1984
Ian Hunter, 1988
Kate Bush, 1985
David Gilmour from Pink Floyd, 1984
Jeff Healey, 1988
Gord Downie of the Tragically Hip, 1996
Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi, 1993
Colin Linden, 1993
Kenny Wayne Shepherd, 1995
Justin Hayward of the Moody Blues, 1986
Elliot Easton from the Cars, 1996
Wayne Kramer from the MC5, 2004
Bob Rock, 1992
Nick Gilder, 1985
Klaus Meine of Scorpions, 1988
Jason Bonham, 1989
Tom Johnston of the Doobie Brothers, 1991
Joey Spampinato of NRBQ, 1985
Patterson Hood of the Drive-By Truckers, 2003
Andy Powell of Wishbone Ash, 2003
Steve Kilbey of the Church, 1990
Edgar Winter, 2005
Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde, 1990
Randy Hansen, 2001
Dan McCafferty of Nazareth, 1984
Davy Knowles of Back Door Slam, 2007
Jimmy Barnes from Cold Chisel, 1986
Steve Stevens of Atomic Playboys, 1989
Billy Idol, 1984
Stuart Adamson of Big Country, 1993
Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, 1992
Warren Haynes of Gov’t Mule, 1998
John Bell of Widespread Panic, 1992
Robben Ford, 1993
Barry Hay of Golden Earring, 1984
Jason Isbell, 2007
Joey Belladonna of Anthrax, 1991
Joe Satriani, 1990
Vernon Reid of Living Colour, 1988
Brad Delp of Boston, 1988
Zakk Wylde of Pride & Glory, 1994
John Sykes of Blue Murder, 1989
Alice Cooper, 1986
Lars Ulrich of Metallica, 1985
John Doe, 1990
Shannon Hoon of Blind Melon, 1992
Myles Goodwyn of April Wine, 2001
John Mellencamp, 1999
Mike Campbell of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, 1999
Kenny Aronoff, 1999
Doyle Bramhall II, 2001
Jon Bon Jovi, 1986
Dickey Betts of the Allman Brothers, 1992
Randy Bachman, 2001
Little Steven, 1987
Stevie Salas, 1990
J.J. Cale, 2009
Joe Bonamassa, 2011
Tommy Emmanuel, 1994
Rob Baker of the Tragically Hip, 1997
John Petrucci of Dream Theater, 2010
Eric Johnson, 2001
Stu Hamm, 1991
Gene Simmons of Kiss, 1992
Ace Frehley from Kiss, 2008
David Lee Roth, 1994
Allan Holdsworth, 1983
John Mayall of the Bluesbreakers, 1988
Steve Vai, 1990
Tony Iommi of Heaven and Hell, 2007
Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, 1996
Geoff Tate of Queensryche, 1991
James Hetfield of Metallica, 1986
Stevie Ray Vaughan, 1990
Rick Richards of the Georgia Satellites, 1988
Andy McCoy and Sam Yaffa of Hanoi Rocks, 1984
Steve Morse, 1991
Slash of Guns N’ Roses, 1994
Brian May from Queen, 1993
Dickey Betts of the Allman Brothers, 1991
Jake E. Lee of Badlands, 1992
Rickey Medlocke of Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1997
John Fogerty, 1997
Joe Perry of Aerosmith, 1987
Rick Derringer, 1999
Robin Trower, 1990
Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, 1994
Mick Ronson, 1988
Geddy Lee of Rush, 2002
Buck Dharma of Blue Oyster Cult, 1997
Michael Schenker, 1992
Vince Neil of Motley Crue, 1991
Vinnie Paul of Pantera, 1992
Joan Jett, 1992
Steve Harris of Iron Maiden, 1988
Sebastian Bach of Skid Row, 1989
Rob Halford of Judas Priest, 1984
Bill Henderson of Chilliwack, 1999
Paul Rodgers, 1997
R.L. Burnside, 1999
Guthrie Govan of the Aristocrats, 2015
Mick Mars of Mötley Crüe, 1985
Carlos Santana, 2011
Walter Trout, 2003
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Rob Hirst of Midnight Oil, 2001
Tommy Aldridge, 2001
Donald “Duck” Dunn, 1985
Mark Farner of Grand Funk, 1991
Chris Robinson of Black Crowes, 1990
Jennifer Batten, 2002
Mike Fraser, 2014
Leo Kottke, 2002
Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead, 2002
David Gogo, 1991
Booker T. Jones, 2016
Link Wray, 1997
James Reyne from Australian Crawl, 1988
Mike Rutherford of Genesis, 1983
Buddy Guy, 1991
Country Dick Montana of the Beat Farmers, 1990
Mike Cooley of the Drive-By Truckers, 2016
Gary Rossington of Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1986
Lindsay Mitchell of Prism, 1988
Buddy Miles, 2001
Eddie Money, 1988
Tom Hamilton of Aerosmith, 1983
Gaye Delorme, 1990
Dave Murray of Iron Maiden, 1984
Graham Bonnet of Alcatrazz, 1984
Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac, 2016
Doc Neeson of Angel City, 1985
Rik Emmett of Triumph, 1985
Sonny Landreth, 2016
Tosin Abasi of Animals as Leaders, 2016
Jeff Beck, 2001
Albert King, 1990
Johnny Ramone of the Ramones, 1992
Peter Frampton, 1987
Otis Rush, 1997
Gord Downie of the Tragically Hip, 1989
Leslie West of Mountain, 2002
Steve Howe of Yes, 2017
Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden, 1983
Uli Jon Roth, 2016
Poison Ivy of the Cramps, 1990
Stevie Ray Vaughan, 1985
Greg Lake of ELP, 1992
Robert Plant, 1993
Malcolm Young and Brian Johnson of AC/DC, 1983
Warren Zevon, 1992
Tal Wilkenfeld, 2016
Steve Clark of Def Leppard, 1988
Ronnie Montrose, 1994
Danny Gatton, 1993
Alex Lifeson of Rush, 1992
Ann Wilson of Heart, 1985
J.J. Cale, 1990
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Chris Cornell, 2008
Long John Baldry, 1985
Allan Holdsworth, 1983
Kim Mitchell, 1984
Warren Haynes of the Allman Brothers, 1994
Derek Trucks, 1998
Susan Tedeschi, 1998
Joe Satriani, 2018
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Ronnie James Dio, 1985
Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, 1984
Dick Dale, 2000
Greg Allman, 1998
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….with hundreds more to come
Golden Earring did play at the SUB Ballroom because of low ticket sales. I was at that concert and it was superb! Also, they had a bar there, so you could also drink, which made it better. The sound was way better than the gym also.
I first got into Golden Earring in ’65 (they were the Golden Earrings back then, and had formed in ’62). I caught them at Leeds Uni in England on their ‘Radar Love’ tour and they were very good – they had their own thing happening, which is something they’ve alway had happening – their own thing. I’ve had albums and DVDs over the years, watch them often on Youtube etc. You know, in 2017 they are still going strong in their part of the world (the Netherlands). The latest album, The Hague (the band is from Den Haag – The Hague) has only about half a dozen tunes but is great – real Earring stuff…and this is 55 years after the band formed.