Bonnie St. Claire

Bonnie St. Claire is a Dutch singer and actress who has a recording history that began in the 1960s and went through to the 1990s. She was part of the trio Bonnie, Debbie & Rosy, and part of the duo Bonnie & José (nl) with José Hoebee.

Life

St. Caire was born as Bonje Cornelia Swart in Rozenburg on 18 November 1949. She was born on a boat and is the daughter of a barge skipper. Her career began in 1966 when at a Peter Koelewijn concert, she was invited to come up on stage and sing with him.^[1]

In 1970 she had a hit with "I Won't Stand Between Them" which peaked at no. 6 in the Netherlands and spent eleven weeks in the charts.^[2] In 1979, she was part of a trio called Bonnie, Debbie & Rosy who released a single called "Oh Boy" which was written and produced by Peter Koelewijn.^[3] In addition to herself, the trio included Debbie aka Ria Schildmeyer, and Rosy Pereira.^[4][5] Later St. Claire would join José Hoebee as part of the duo Bonnie & José and would have a degree of success in the Netherlands. The two singers were under the same management and they soon became friends and started socializing with each other. In 1984 they enjoyed a top 40 hit with "Cassandra" which had previously been recorded by ABBA. They also recorded an album of Abba songs which was approved by Björn Ulvaeus.^[6][7]

St. Claire struggles with alcoholism for several decades. In 2004 she was sent for 20 days to jail after she caused a third accident while driving under the influence. In 2014 St. Claire broke the leg of her second husband during a fight around the use of alcohol. Their marriage endured.

In 2010, St. Claire and Gerard Joling had a hit in the Netherlands with "Morgen Wordt Alles Anders" as Bonnie & Gerard. The song peaked at no. 2 and spent nine weeks in the charts.^[8][9]

References

External links

• "Herinnering" by Bonnie & José: 30th anniversary
• Bonnie St. Claire at Imdb
• Bonnie St. Claire discography