Wonderland Burlesque's
Down The Rabbit Hole
Cartoons
Down The Rabbit Hole merely places a spotlight on something slightly unusual that's caught my interest. With the help of Wikipedia, YouTube, and other sites, I gather information and learn something new.
Today, we take a look at the techno-billy pop of Denmark's Cartoons.
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Original members included: Toonie (Martin Østengaard), Sponge (Jesper Dukholt), Shooter (Erling Jensen), Buzz (Dave Stevens), Puddy (Natasja Skov) and Boop (Karina Jensen).
Their cover version of Ross Bagdasarian's novelty song Witch Doctor reached #2 in the UK, and charted equally well throughout Europe (#2 in Ireland, #9 in Belgium, #12 in the Netherlands, #13 in Sweden, etc.) The group enjoyed further success in the UK with the Top 10 hit DooDah, which also proved popular throughout Europe (#3 in Belgium, #5 in Denmark, #9 in Italy, #10 in Sweden, etc.)
Their debut album, Toonage sold incredibly well, peaking at #2 in Denmark, #6 in Italy, #8 in Spain, #10 in Portugal, #12 in Sweden, #14 in Norway and #17 In the UK.
A further UK Top 20 hit, a remake of Jim Davidson's Generation Game's Aisy Waisy followed.
However, the group's second album, Toontastic, failed to match the success of its predecessor, charting only in Denmark (#7). And the string of singles which followed - Diddley-Dee, Little Red Ridinghood, Big Coconuts, Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep and a reworked cover of Les Humphries Singers' Mama Loo - met a similar fate. It seemed the writing was on the wall.
In 2001, Cartoons suddenly disbanded for unknown reasons. It was later revealed, during a Danish TV interview, that the group was set to tour the US, but these plans were cancelled due to the September 11th attacks. In 2005, the group came back together to promote their Greatest Toons album which included a new single, Day Oh. In addition, they performed a number of shows throughout Europe, including at Bonbonland and the Jelling Musikfestival.
In July 2016, Karina Jensen died of cancer, which she was originally diagnosed with in 2012. And in April 2019, Erling Jensen died of lymphoma at the age of 50. Since that time Jesper Dukholt, the sole original member, has soldiered on with a new cast of players, occasionally appearing at festivals and on package tours.
In 2020, they returned to the studio with original producer Kenneth Bager to record a new single, Shots, which was released in 2023, and, later that year, collaborated with Marnage to produce a faster version of DooDah.
In 2001, Cartoons suddenly disbanded for unknown reasons. It was later revealed, during a Danish TV interview, that the group was set to tour the US, but these plans were cancelled due to the September 11th attacks. In 2005, the group came back together to promote their Greatest Toons album which included a new single, Day Oh. In addition, they performed a number of shows throughout Europe, including at Bonbonland and the Jelling Musikfestival.
In July 2016, Karina Jensen died of cancer, which she was originally diagnosed with in 2012. And in April 2019, Erling Jensen died of lymphoma at the age of 50. Since that time Jesper Dukholt, the sole original member, has soldiered on with a new cast of players, occasionally appearing at festivals and on package tours.
In 2020, they returned to the studio with original producer Kenneth Bager to record a new single, Shots, which was released in 2023, and, later that year, collaborated with Marnage to produce a faster version of DooDah.
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Witch Doctor - Cartoons
Doo Dah - Cartoons
Aisy Waisy - Cartoons
Diddly Doo - Cartoons
Mama Loo - Cartoons
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