366Art | Armand

Today is the birthday of Armand, an eccentric Dutch protest singer. The editing above and his portrait in the reference work / birthday calendar with 366 important Dutch people below are made by me, Frieke.

Armand was born on April 10, 1946, in Eindhoven as Herman George van Loenhout. His father was a machine fitter, a true worker. Armand was very musical as a child and didn't want to study to work at Philips like his father. His father actually didn't like the fact that Armand had become an artist. In 1967, he broke through as an artist with the song Ben ik te min?  This song was the B-side of the song Een van hen ben ik. The song was in the top 40 for fourteen weeks and is considered a classic from the Dutch hippie era.

Armand was a protest singer and was therefore also called the Dutch Bob Dylan. With his songs, he fought against cruise missiles, drug policy, big capital, but above all against bourgeois attitudes. He was a fervent user of hashish, a concentrated form of cannabis, and never went out without his hash pipe, his chillum. In 1967, he also wrote the song Blommenkinders With this song, he wanted to show that he no longer wanted to be the rebellious protest singer who railed against society, but rather a gentler "flower child."

Armand released a total of fifteen albums and dozens of singles. After his album Nachtbraken, he increasingly disappeared into anonymity. Armand broke with major record companies to have more artistic freedom. In 1994, the album One of eur kind, was released, which was only available for purchase at his performances.

Armand had a lung condition and pancreatitis. But that didn't stop him from performing. Even in his last years, Armand traveled far and wide in his old American car. Young artists like Lucky Fonz, The Kik, and Ali B approached the singer frequently for joint performances and songs. He remained a welcome guest at major festivals, but his health deteriorated visibly.

On June 12, 2015, his last work with The Kik, the album Armand & The Kik was released. A mini-tour with The Kik followed at various music venues. Unfortunately, Armand passed away on November 19, 2015, at the age of 69, from pneumonia.