Tumble Weeds "Favorites" (Simex Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Frans De Kok & Danny Schumer)
The group's debut disc, which featured Ton Masseurs on banjo, dobro, lead guitar, pedal steel and piano, as well as his sibling Ad Masseurs on drums and Ine Massuers as lead vocalist. (I'm not sure, but I think she was his wife...?) The other band members included James Bordes on 12-string guitar and John Koogje playing bass.
Tumbleweeds "Tumbleweeds" (BASF Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Ton Masseurs & Dick Swaneveld)
The lineup shifted and expanded for this one, settling into what would be more or less the band's permanent cast for the next few years: Mickey de Boer on bass, Ad Masseurs (drums), Berry Masseurs (guitar), Ine Masseurs (lead vocals), Ruud Masseurs (lead vocals and guitar), and Ton Masseurs as MVP, playing dobro, guitar, pedal steel... This edition of the band also featured pianist Gerard Stellaard, though he seems to have dropped out soon afterwards. The repertoire is heavy on American country covers, though it's an eclectic set with a lot of unusual choices, with "Bobby McGee" and "I Believe In Music" being the most mainstream hits, buttressed by more esoteric selections from Eddy Raven, Merle Haggard, Leon Copeland and others... The album also features a few of the band's originals, including two by Tons Masseurs, "Mojave" and "Tumbleweed Polka" and one by Ruud Hermans, the curiously-titled "Everybody Has His Own Dogs." (Hermans doesn't appear to have been on this album, but was in the band as a vcalist and guitar player on the subsequent album...)
Tumbleweeds "Sweet Memories" (BASF Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Robin Freeman & Ton Masseurs)
Following their same formula, this is mostly covers of American stuff, with an admirable mix of country oldies from the likes of Johnny & Jack ("Ashes Of Love") and Rose Lee Maphis ("Love Is The Look") and several newer twang influencers such as Mickey Newbury, Gram Parsons and Whitey Shaffer, as well as a couple of Ton Masseurs originals, "Close Up Steel" and "Between Two Doors" and two more from Rocky Topp, "Going Back To The Hard Times" and "It Might As Well Have Rained," all of which were staples of the Tumbleweeds repertoire.
Tumbleweeds "New Trail" (Polydor Records, 1977) (LP)
(Produced by Tumbleweeds)
A similar lineup, thogh with a slew of backup singers to provide a larger chorus, among them Brigitte de Boer, who went on to release a few solo records of her own. Several originals, including two more from Ton Masseurs ("I'm Walking Back To You" and "New Trail") and one from Ruud Hermans called "Things I Could Do." Some of the more intriguing cover tunes include "Paradise," by John Prine and Jesse Winchester's ever-evocative "Brand New Tennessee Waltz." One thing's for sure: these guys had good taste.
Tumbleweeds "Homework" (Polydor Records, 1979) (LP)
On what proved to be their final album, Tumbleweeds maintained their high standards in song selection, covering some oldies by Lefty Frizzell and Carl Smith, and a slew of newer, 'Seventies-vintage material, including two songs from Ronee Blakley, a couple Jonathan Edwards classics ("Don't Cry Blue" and "My Home Ain't In The Hall Of Fame") and admirably esoteric picks from cajun star Joel Sonnier and honkytonk secret weapon Carmol Taylor. Also a couple more originals by Tons Masseurs: the title track, "Homework" and one called "Horse Step."
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Tumbleweeds "The Best Of The Tumbleweeds" (Polydor Records, 1980) (LP)
A best-of set, generously programmed with fourteen tracks culled from the five albums above... About as good a snapshot as you're likely to get, particularly if you want to hear some of their original material.
Tumbleweeds "Favorieten Expres" (Universal Music, 2020)
Though, of course, for you digital age twangsters, this 26-song best-of CD might be even more fun...
The Dutch country band Tumbleweeds was largely a vehicle for multi-instrumentalist Ton Masseuers, who is credited as one of the first guitarists to play and popularize the pedal steel in Europe. Ine Massuers, who I think was his wife, was the band's featured vocalist, and also worked as a backup singer for several visiting country stars from America, most notably Dottie West, who became her friend and invited her on tour. The Tumbleweeds band performed and recorded together throughout the 1970s, though increasingly Ton Masseuers was drawn towards session work and producing sessions for other artists. [Note: Several other artists have used the Tumbleweed or Tumbleweeds name, mostly in the United States.]
