What Fun!
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The pop/reggae group What Fun!, based in Haarlem, the Netherlands, was founded in 1981 by lyricist and saxophonist John O'Hare, but really only got off the ground a year later with the addition of drummer Carl Cabenda, guitarist Nico Notebaart, keyboard player Ernst Renout, singer Martin Richardson and bassist Linda Rolinger. Success quickly followed in 1983 with the release of the single "The Right Side Won", which reached Number 3 in the Dutch hitparade in December of that year, and Number 1 in Belgium.
The single, together with most of the other repertoire, was composed by Martin and John. By the time the single was released, bass player Linda had been replaced by Els Geuzebroek, and three female backing singers had been added to the line-up: Sita Hes, Yolande Berendsen and Elsken Pompe. "The Right Side Won", inspired by the 'Falkland's War' between the UK and Argentina, made the UK Radio 1 playlist, but was quickly removed when the content of the lyrics became apparent. The single was banned from release in South Africa due to the fact that 'What Fun!' had both black and white members. The group toured intensively in the Netherlands and Belgium during the period 1983 to 1989 and two further singles ("Let's Get Digital" and "Many Men, Many Minds") and an LP ("Having Fun?") were released in the Benelux. In 1988, two new members joined the line-up: Christian Sade on trumpet and Patricia on tenor saxophone. By 1989 What Fun! had run out of steam and the members went their separate ways, only to reform again in 2005 with a new bass player, Jort van Kruiningen.
