Focus are a Dutch progressive rock band formed in Amsterdam in 1969 by keyboardist,vocalist,and flutist Thijs van Leer,drummer Hans Cleuver,bassist Martijn Dresden,and guitarist Jan Akkerman. The band have undergone numerous formations in its history;since December 2016,it has comprised van Leer,drummer Pierre van der Linden,guitarist Menno Gootjes,and bassist Udo Pannekeet. They have sold one million RIAA-certified albums in the United States.
Jan Akkerman is a Dutch guitarist. He first found international commercial success with the band Focus,which he co-founded with Thijs van Leer. After leaving Focus,he continued as a solo musician,adding jazz fusion influences.
"Popscene" is a song by English alternative rock band Blur,released as a non-album single on 30 March 1992. Despite its relatively low chart placing,it has since become critically praised and regarded as one of the pioneering songs of the Britpop genre.
Thijs van Leer is a Dutch musician,singer,songwriter,composer and producer,best known as the founding member of the rock band Focus as its primary vocalist,keyboardist,and flautist. Born and raised in Amsterdam among a musical family,van Leer took up the piano and flute as a child and pursued them at university and music academies.
"Hocus Pocus" is a song by the Dutch rock band Focus,written by keyboardist,flautist,and vocalist Thijs van Leer and guitarist Jan Akkerman. It was recorded and released in 1971 as the opening track of their second studio album Moving Waves. An edited version was released as a single on the Imperial,Polydor and Blue Horizon labels in Europe in 1971,but failed to chart outside of the Netherlands(NL#09).
Krezip is a Dutch pop rock/alternative rock band from Tilburg,Netherlands,formed in 1997. It was notable for the band members' young ages during their original breakthrough. The band has had several successful albums and singles in Belgium,Luxembourg,and the Netherlands. The band name has no meaning.
Focus 3 or Focus III is the third studio album by Dutch rock band Focus,released as a double album in November 1972 on Imperial Records. Recorded after touring in support of their previous album,Focus II (1971),the album saw the band write extended pieces and is their first with bassist Bert Ruiter in the group's line-up.
Focus II is the second studio album by Dutch progressive rock band Focus,released in October 1971 on Imperial Records. Following the departure of original bassist Martin Dresden and drummer Hans Cleuver in 1970,the band recruited Cyril Havermans and Pierre van der Linden,respectively,and prepared material for a new album. Focus recorded Focus II in London in April and May 1971 with Mike Vernon as producer. The album features "Hocus Pocus" a hard rock song featuring keyboardist Thijs van Leer's yodelling,scat singing,and whistling,and "Eruption",a 22-minute track inspired by the opera Euridice by Italian composer Jacopo Peri.
"Different World" is a song by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It is the opening track from their 14th studio album,A Matter of Life and Death (2006),and was released as the second single from the album. It was released on 14 November 2006 in the United States,and 26 December 2006 in Europe. The song has been stated by the band to be a tribute to Thin Lizzy due to the low sounding melodies sung by Bruce Dickinson that are reminiscent of those Phil Lynott would sing. It was also played first every night on the band's A Matter of Life and Death Tour.
Cyril Havermans is a Dutch musician,best known for being in the progressive rock band,Focus.
Cyril is the first solo album by Dutch singer-songwriter Cyril Havermans. It was recorded in 1973 after Havermans left Dutch progressive rock band Focus. The parting was amicable and came about partly as a result of Havermans' desire to include more vocal content. His erstwhile band-mates contribute much instrumentation to the album.
Focus Plays Focus is the first studio album by Dutch rock band Focus,released in September 1970 on Imperial Records. It is the only album recorded by the group's original line-up consisting of organist and vocalist Thijs van Leer,bassist Martin Dresden,drummer Hans Cleuver,and guitarist Jan Akkerman. It was renamed In and Out of Focus for the international re-release of the album from 1971 onwards which included their debut single "House of the King".
Hamburger Concerto is the fourth studio album by the Dutch progressive rock band Focus,released in April 1974. It peaked at #20 on the UK charts. The title track is based on Variations on a Theme by Haydn by Johannes Brahms. The composition also incorporates the first two verses of the Dutch Christmas carol O Kerstnacht,schoner dan de dagen at around 15 min.
Mother Focus is the fifth studio album by the band Focus,released in 1975 on Polydor in Europe,on Atco Records in North America and on EMI in Japan.
At the Rainbow is the first live album from the Dutch rock band Focus,released in October 1973 on Imperial Records. The album was recorded at the Rainbow Theatre in London on 5 May 1973. A studio album was initially slated for release,but it was shelved due to disagreements within the band. At the Rainbow was released instead.
Ship of Memories is the sixth studio album from the Dutch rock band Focus,released in 1976 on EMI-Bovema. It's a compilation album. During a period of group inactivity,longtime associate Hubert Terheggen asked their producer Mike Vernon to select previously unreleased material for official release. Compiled without any active involvement by any band member,the recordings date from January 1970 to mid-1975,and largely during unproductive recording sessions in 1973 for a follow up studio album to Focus 3 (1972).
Focus X is the eleventh studio album by the Dutch progressive rock band Focus,released on 5 November 5,2012 by Eastworld Recordings.
Live at the BBC is a live album by the Dutch progressive rock group Focus,recorded on 21 March 1976,and broadcast on Radio 1 in the BBC Concert Series,but released only in 2004 by Hux Records,in CD format.
"House of the King" is an instrumental by the Dutch rock band Focus. It was released as a single in January 1971 and reached No. 10 on the Dutch charts and sold well across Europe. In the UK,it was issued on both the group's first album,In And Out of Focus and the 1972 double album Focus 3.
