<p>In the weekly Amsterdam magazine Echo, I read that in the Anthony theatre a contest of the torch song would be held on 7 and 8 of March 1987. A small theatre in the Amsterdam Red Light District and offered a stage for singing, theater and cabaret. Enquiries made it clear that the le&shy;vens&shy;lied / smartlap (torch song / tearjerker) is a typical Dutch culture. The lyrics of a tearjerker are inspirated directly from the harsh realities of daily life: sad, sentimental or melodramatic with false sentimentality, alcoholism, disease and death in a family and animal cruelty. An essential part of the real tear jerker: it has a bad end.</p>
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<p>The participants had to sing two songs in Dutch language at the festival. Pure coincidence that I knew the song &ldquo;Oh, Amsterdam Wat Ben Je Mooi&ldquo; (Oh, Amsterdam What Are You Beautiful) written by Manke Neelis (1920-1993). I&rsquo;ve sung it a few times in a bar on Rembrandt square corner Halvemaansteeg. The first time I heard that song was when I lived in the East of Amsterdam. On the ground floor was in a CD shop and the apartment was above the shop. From early in the morning again and again a cassette tape with Amsterdam songs was playing. Most of the day that music came out of the loudspeaker in front of the door of the shop as sort of welcome serenade to me. One day I had enough of it and bought that tape. That&rsquo;s why I had an Amsterdam song for that evening. It was not really a tearjerker. For a second song I had to invent something.</p>
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<p>I can&rsquo;t remember how I got the idea to translate Strangers In The Night. But it was one of the songs I often sung in Curacao. To a lesser degree I Want To Give (English words Gene Nash) was a same case. Of this song &nbsp;also I made a translation; &ldquo;Zolang Ik Leef&rdquo; (As long as I live). Originally is &ldquo;Ahora Que Soy Libre&rdquo;, written by Eduardo Carballo (a.k.a. Juan Eduardo) &amp; Enrique De Jesus (Juan Marcelo). But I chose Vreemden in de Nacht.</p>
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<p>Reporter Gerrit den Ambtman wrote about my performance in the Algemeen Dagblad of Tuesday, March 10, 1987 with the heading:</p>
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<p>"A song contest at the Red Light District. (...)</p>
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<p>William Anthony transcends the preliminary round though. The last year from Cura&ccedil;ao to the Netherlands arrived singer has made his own translation of Strangers in the Night by Frank Sinatra: Vreemden in de nacht.</p>
<p>The misery around the Central Station cannot be overlooked in this adaption. In the second song he sets things right. He sings Oh Am&shy;ster&shy;dam, wat ben je mooi &nbsp;(Oh Amsterdam, what are you beautiful), written by Manke Neelis, with warm voice. When a day later he should perform for the final battle he had forgotten the backing tape. He hurries back home and came back in time to let Vreemden in de nacht in the night bustle around again. This time he doesn&rsquo;t have a second song because he has no live musical accompaniment. The jury doesn&rsquo;t accept that. An accordion player in the room offers help. Unrehearsed keeps the timid rookie liking Amsterdam. He still got an honorable mention. (...) The audience remains willing, even if William Anthony for the text of his Vreemden in de nacht continues consulting the paper."</p>