De Spelbrekers

De Spelbrekers (Theo Rekkers and Huub Kok) were a Dutch singing duo, known for their participation in the 1962 Eurovision Song Contest.

1940s and 1950s

Rekkers and Kok met during World War II at a munitions factory in Bremen, Germany, where they were working as forced labour. They formed De Spelbrekers in 1945, as the war ended.^[1] Their recording career began in 1950, and they released numerous singles during the decade, the most successful being "Oh wat ben je mooi" which reached #5 on the Dutch chart in 1956.^[2]

Eurovision Song Contest

In 1962, De Spelbrekers took part in the Dutch Eurovision selection, and won with the song "Katinka", which went forward to the seventh Eurovision Song Contest, held in Luxembourg City on 18 March.^[3] In a field of 16, "Katinka"was one of four songs (the others being the entries from Belgium, Spain and Austria) which failed to score. This was the first year in which any songs had failed to register at all on the Eurovision scoreboard.^[4] Nevertheless, "Katinka" proved a success within the Netherlands, and has gone on to become one of the country's better-remembered and recognised Eurovision entries.^[5]

Later career

The duo never managed to recapture the success of "Oh wat ben je mooi" and "Katinka", and after years of releasing further singles to ever-declining interest, they decided in the mid 1970s to move into music management, their clients including André van Duin, Ben Cramer and Saskia & Serge.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Musiek Centrum Nederland biography (Dutch)
2. ^ De Spelbrekers discography
3. ^ ESC national finals database - 1962
4. ^ ESC History - 1962
5. ^ Dingadong.nl

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Greetje Kauffeld with "Wat een dag"	Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 1962	Succeeded by Annie Palmen with "Een speeldoos"