I continue to think that music is a good way of starting to understand a language. It takes work, but parsing the lines to a simple song can be a fun way to get into some new, perhaps offbeat, vocabulary. Sometimes songs are a good window into nonsense words, or idiomatic facets of language that even conversation neglects.
With the help of my friends, I recently discovered a great Dutch gem from 1980 which could serve exactly this purpose. It’s also, just, great to listen to. The artist is Danny Boy, an adolescent rapper in suspenders, and the concept was inspired by early rap records (particularly Joe Bataan’s “Rappo Clappo,”) that were becoming more popular in the Netherlands at that time.
Danny Boy was, really, just around for the fun of it, but he hasn’t been forgotten. A track on Dutch rapper Extince’s new record references the nonsense “Repper-de-Klep” chorus of Danny Boy’s almost-hit. And…I’m pretty sure that might be Danny Boy himself in the video, in the blazer and glasses? Then again, it could just be another blazered Dutchman. You decide.
