Alen J. Matković (born 20 July 1970), known professionally as Alan Michael, is a Yugoslav-born Polish-Dutch singer, songwriter and record producer. He is known for his participation in the 1987 Sopot International Song Festival and for being one of the songwriters of the Dutch Eurovision Song Contest entries "One Good Reason" (1999) and "One More Night" (2003).
Alan Michael | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Alen J. Matković |
| Born | 20 July 1970 Rijeka, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia (present-day Croatia) |
| Origin | Zandvoort, Netherlands |
| Genres | Pop music |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, producer |
| Labels | |
Biography
editMatković was born on 20 July 1970 in Rijeka, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia to a Polish mother and a Yugoslav father.[1] He moved to the Netherlands in his early childhood and grew up in Zandvoort, North Holland.[2] Matković began playing piano at the age of six, and recorded his first single when he was twelve years old.[1][2] His second single, "Is That You", was released by the record label WEA in 1987.[1][3]
In the same year, he represented the Netherlands in the Sopot International Song Festival with the song "Romeo and Juliet", alongside Maywood with the song "Stay with Me".[4] For his performance, he was awarded the "FIDOF Award".[1][4] Due to his participation in the Sopot Festival, Matković gained popularity in Poland, and "Romeo and Juliet" was released on single by the Polish record label Arston.[3][4][5] One year later, he released his self-titled debut album with the Polish record label Pronit.[1][3] The songs "Sandy" and "Dreams of Love" from this album also appeared on his second album The Winning Edge, and were released on single by CBS Records International in 1989.[3]
Following the release of The Winning Edge, Matković was signed to the Hilversum-based record label Red Bullet.[1] In 1992, a third studio album, titled One for a While, was released.[1][3] Despite successes in Eastern Europe, such as a gold record in Poland, Matković never broke through as a singer in the Netherlands.[6][7] In April 1993, he featured in the television documentary Hoera, een hit ("Hooray, a hit") by the Dutch broadcaster VARA, which documented his efforts to produce a hit in his home country.[2][7][8]
A few days before the documentary was broadcast, Matković had competed in the Nationaal Songfestival – the Dutch national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest – as one of the songwriters of the entry "Medeleven", which finished in fourth place.[9][10] He subsequently began pursuing a career as a songwriter and founded his own recording studio, AM Studios, in Zandvoort.[1] Between 1997 and 2005, he competed in the Nationaal Songfestival six times, winning it twice as a songwriter of the entries "One Good Reason" (1999) and "One More Night" (2003).[11] The songs finished in 8th and 13th place in the Eurovision Song Contest, and "One More Night" received a Marcel Bezençon Award for the best entry according to previous winners of the contest.
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Alan Michael | |
| The Winning Edge |
|
| One for a While |
|
Singles
edit| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Is That You" / "Love Hit Me" | 1987 | Non-album singles |
| "Romeo and Juliet" / "Now Is the Time" | ||
| "Say You Love Me" / "Kocham cię we śnie" | 1988 | Alan Michael |
| "Sandy" / "Dreams of Love" | 1989 | The Winning Edge |
| "Tenderness" (with Sophie Proix) | ||
| "Don't Dream It's Over" | 1992 | One for a While |
| "The One You Love" | ||
| "Leef en laten leven" | 1993 | Non-album single |
Songwriting discography
editCharting singles
edit| Title | Year | Artist | Peak chart positions[12] | Co-written with | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NLD (100) | NLD (40) | ||||
| "Ik wil graag dat je weet" | 1998 | Noomen | 92 | — | Belinda Anholt |
| "One Good Reason" | 1999 | Marlayne | 30 | 24 | Tjeerd van Zanen |
| "Libera" | Cristina | 74 | — | Cristina Power | |
| "So Much Love" | 2001 | Ebonique | 54 | — | Tjeerd van Zanen |
| "If I Had You" | Boy Band | 40 | — | — | |
| "One More Night" | 2003 | Esther Hart | 26 | — | Tjeerd van Zanen |
| "Dance Dance Dance" | Jody Bernal & Alessandra da Silva | 45 | — | Alessandra da Silva | |
| "She'll Take Your Breath Away" | 2004 | Charly Luske | 40 | — | Charly Luske |
Eurovision Song Contest entries
edit| Year | Country | Song | Artist | Result | Marcel Bezençon Awards | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Points | |||||
 Netherlands
|
"One Good Reason" | Marlayne | 8 | 171 | — | |
| Netherlands
|
"One More Night" | Esther Hart | 13 | 45 | Artistic Award | |
Nationaal Songfestival entries
edit| Year | Song | Artist | Co-written with | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place | Points | ||||
| "Medeleven" | Ruth Jacott | Gerrit den Braber | 4 | 63 | |
| "Samen sterk" | Mrs. Einstein | Tjeerd van Zanen | 5 | 57 | |
| "One Good Reason" | Marlayne | Tjeerd van Zanen | 1 | 248 | |
| "So Much Love" | Ebonique | Tjeerd van Zanen | 2 | 54 | |
| "One More Night" | Esther Hart | Tjeerd van Zanen | 1 | 170 | |
| "She'll Take Your Breath Away" | Charly Luske | Charly Luske | 4 | 59 | |
| "When Forever Ends" | Johnny Rosenberg | Johnny Rosenberg | 3 | 47 | |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h "Alan Michael". Info Music 80902k.pl (in Polish). 19 July 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ a b c "Vara kijkt in keuken van de Nederlandse showbusiness". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). Delpher. 1 April 1993. p. 11.
- ^ a b c d e "Alan Michael". Discogs. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
- ^ a b c "Zanger Alan Michael verovert Oost-Europa". De Telegraaf (in Dutch). Delpher. 25 August 1987. p. 3.
- ^ Jankowiak, Anna (9 July 2009). "Interview with Alan Michael". Opinia. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ Hermens, Martin (17 August 1993). "Liedjesschrijver Alan Michael knokt om aan de bak te komen: 'Ik heb overal succes, behalve in Nederland'". Limburgs Dagblad (in Dutch). Delpher. p. 7.
- ^ a b Bloemkolk, Jos (1 April 1993). "Wil jij misschien m'n kijkdoos zien". Het Parool (in Dutch). Delpher. p. 31.
- ^ Breure, Bernice (1 April 1993). "Hoera, een hit". Nieuwsblad van het Noorden (in Dutch). Delpher. p. 2.
- ^ "Liedjes voor Songfestival geselecteerd". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). Delpher. 28 December 1992. p. 13.
- ^ "Ons lied wordt gekozen". De Telegraaf (in Dutch). Delpher. 26 March 1993. p. 2.
- ^ "Biografie Tjeerd van Zanen". Muziekencyclopedie (in Dutch). Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
- ^ "Alan Michael". Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Retrieved 30 October 2022.