Yorick van Norden - The Jester

The Jester is the second album by Yorick van Norden (ex-The Hype). 'It's named after the court jester from Shakespeare's Hamlet. His name was also Yorick. And it's the first time my name appears in the history books. He played songs, told stories, brought music to the court of Prince Hamlet.'

The daily activities of Yorick van Norden differ little from those of his namesake. The famous quote from Hamlet, spoken during the excavation of Yorick's skull, could apply exactly to him, if it weren't for the fact that Yorick's modern namesake is alive: 'Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio: a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy […] Where are your gibes now? Your gambols? Your songs?' Yorick van Norden exudes zest for life. You don't have to ask, like Hamlet, where his songs are. They are on an album full of timeless pop inspired by the sixties and seventies, a true feast of melodies and lyrics. And yes, Yorick, the Jester also appears in the lyrics. 'I'll be Yorick the jester today,' sings Yorick 2:0 in Miss Serene . He has now taken on that role of entertainer on stage.

Since his first solo album Happy Hunting Ground was released on Excelsior in 2015, Yorick has certainly not been sitting still. A successful club tour with a support show for Neil Young in the Ziggo Dome as one of the highlights, as well as an election as Radio 2 Talent with his single Stranglehold . He also joined the backing band of Flemish singer Bent van Looy (Das Pop) and toured the Netherlands with Anne Soldaat (DaryllAnn) with Unsung Heroes. In this musical performance, the duo paid tribute to forgotten pop heroes, combined with their own work. As if that wasn't enough, he also performed fifty times with Frank Sinatra's album Watertown with the occasional collective Club Helmbreker at the De Parade theatre festival and performed as artistic band leader, singer and guitarist in theatre performances Pet Sounds 50: Tribute to The Beach Boys and The Summer of Love. When a terminally ill fan from Minneapolis managed to bring Yorick to the US with the help of crowdfunding in the hot summer of 2018, it was widely reported in the media.

Half of the song material on The Jester ('side 1') was recorded with the live band. 'The other half ('side 2') is a bit more introspective in nature. Those songs were less suitable for a band approach. I recorded those with Reyer Zwart, who wrote arrangements for wind and strings, and a bunch of classical musicians.' The album was produced by Yorick himself with Excelsior house producer Frans Hagenaars.

This new approach to band songs and orchestrated pieces was inspired by Yorick's desire for constant innovation. 'I always want to challenge myself.' These challenges are not limited to the performance, but also include the form and content of his compositions. For example, in the single Gonna Try For The Sun from his previous album, the challenge was to try to write a song with as few chords as possible, like his great example Harry Nilsson in Coconut . 'I managed to keep it to two chords, except for the bridge,' Yorick looks back with satisfaction.

With perhaps the poppiest song on the record, More Than Words – not to be confused with that rock ballad from the nineties – the challenge was the exact opposite: as many chords as possible. 'I just counted it. It has exactly 22 different chords. That fits well with that bouncing feeling of being in love that is sung about.' He thinks it's nice that the title was already taken. ' A Song For You also existed as a title, several songs even, by Gram Parsons for example or Leon Russell.' Don't forget that Yorick van Norden is also a bit of a pop professor, just like Leo Blokhuis. His contribution to his theatre programmes Pet Sounds 50: Tribute to The Beach Boys and The Summer of Love should therefore come as no surprise to anyone. By the way, Yorick regularly joins various radio and television programmes in the Low Countries as a pop music expert.

Another big challenge lies in the album's magnum opus , closing track Suite No. 2 , one of two suites on the album. It consists of four separate parts. 'Like my heroes Brian Wilson on Smile and Paul McCartney, first on Abbey Road and later on Red Rose Speedway by Wings, I also wanted to write a big medley.

For the artwork, Yorick drew his inspiration from the painting Stańczyk by the Polish painter Jan Matejko (photo: Nick Helderman). We see Yorick in a red court jester costume. There are also a few modern elements in the staged photo, which are initially not noticeable at all, because as a viewer you are under the illusion that you are looking at a medieval painting. The twelve-string Rickenbacker guitar in the corner, the guitar amplifier with the red light under the table. Even the type case of his first album appears in this setting. 'You can say the same for the music. In terms of songs and sounds, it may go back to the sixties and seventies. Yet the record could only have been made now in our time, if only because I was not around at all then.'