Cartoons, also known as Cartoons DK, are a Eurodance band from Denmark, best known for their song "DooDah!" and their cover of the 1958 novelty song "Witch Doctor", both hits released in 1998.
Cartoons | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Cartoons DK The Scooters (late 1980s–1997) |
| Origin | Denmark |
| Genres | Eurodance |
| Years active | 1997–2007, 2018–present |
| Labels |
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| Members |
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| Past members |
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| Website | https://cartoons-world.com/ |
Cartoons were originally called the Scooters in the late 1980s, and played rockabilly music from the 50s and 60s. In 1994, the Scooters released the album Live at Woodstock, and in 1997, they changed their name to Cartoons.
History edit
Cartoons started out as the Scooters in the late 1980s, playing rockabilly music from the 50s and 60s. In 1994, the Scooters released the album Live at Woodstock, and in 1997, they changed their name to Cartoons. Their musical genre switched from rockabilly to "technobilly", their own expression of rock and roll mixed with Eurodance; many of their songs are remakes of old rockabilly hits that they covered as the Scooters. The group wears outlandish plastic costumes and wigs in live performances as caricatures of 1950s American rock and roll stars.
They were first signed to FLEX Records, moving later to EMI Denmark.
Their most notable single to date is "Witch Doctor", which reached number two in the UK Singles Chart.[1] It features a combination of the original's "oo-ee-oo-aah-aah" chorus (albeit lacking the record's double-speed playback of the chorus), driving dance beat and occasional guitar breaks.
They had further success in the UK with the Top 10 hit "DooDah!" (a cover version of the American folk song "Camptown Races", albeit with completely different lyrics), the Top 20 hit "Aisy Waisy", which was performed on Jim Davidson's Generation Game, and a Top 20 debut album, Toonage (later rereleased with additional songs as More Toonage).[citation needed]
Their second album, Toontastic!, did not match the success of its predecessor, but several notable hits were released from it, including "Diddley-Dee", "Little Red Riding Hood", "Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep", "Big Coconuts" and a reworked cover of Les Humphries Singers' "Mama Loo".[2]
In 2001, the group disbanded for unknown reasons. In 2017, it was revealed by Toonie and Sponge on a Danish TV interview that they were to tour in the US, but their plans were cancelled at the advent of the September 11th attacks, and they felt like they could not have fun with their project anymore; as such, it was dropped.
In 2005, they made a brief comeback to promote their Greatest Toons release. It includes a new single, "Day Oh", both released by CMC Entertainment. The group has performed a number of shows throughout Europe since then, including at Bonbonland and the Jelling Musikfestival. They disbanded again in 2007.
In July 2016, Karina Jensen died of cancer, after having a double mastectomy in 2012. She was survived by her husband and two children.[3] In April 2019, Erling Jensen died of lymphoma; he was 50 years old.[4]
In 2018, they returned once again to perform at the "We Love the 90s" festival in Aalborg, Denmark. In 2020, they returned to the studio with original producer Kenneth Bager to record a new single. The group now features brand new members, with Jesper Dukholt being the sole original member.
A new single, "Shots", was released in February 2023.
Members edit
True to their name, the personnel of Cartoons has cartoon-inspired nicknames. The original line-up was:
- Toonie – lead vocals and backing vocals
- Sponge – bass vocals, saxophone and keyboards
- Shooter – lead guitar and backing vocals
- Buzz – double bass
- Puddy – backing vocals
- Boop – backing vocals
Discography edit
Albums edit
Studio albums edit
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BEL [5] |
DEN [6][7] |
NLD [8] |
NOR [9] |
SPA [10] |
SWE [11] |
POR [12] |
ITA [13] |
UK [1] | |||||
| Toonage | 25 | 2 | 24 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 17 | ||||
| Toontastic! |
|
— | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. | |||||||||||||
Compilation albums edit
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN [18] | |||||||||||||
| Greatest Toons |
|
20 | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. | |||||||||||||
Singles edit
Main artist edit
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [19] |
BEL [5] |
DEN [20] |
FRA [21] |
IRE [22] |
ITA [23] |
NLD [8] |
NZ [24] |
SWE [11] |
SPA [25] |
GER [26] |
UK [27] |
EUR | ||||
| 1998 | "DooDah!" | 31 | 5 | 3 | — | 21 | 9 | 56 | 31 | 10 | 19 | — | 7 | 15 | Toonage | |
| "Witch Doctor" | — | 9 | — | 22 | 2 | — | 12 | 31 | 13 | — | 68 | 2 | 11 | |||
| "Yoko" | — | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 51 | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Let's Go Childish" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1999 | "Aisy Waisy" | — | — | — | — | — | — | 34 | — | — | — | — | 16 | 54 | ||
| "The X-Mas Single" | — | — | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | 43 | — | — | — | — | More Toonage | ||
| 2000 | "Diddley-Dee" | — | — | — | — | — | 40 | — | — | 46 | — | — | — | — | Toontastic! | |
| "Mama-Loo" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 2001 | "Big Coconuts" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005 | "Day Oh" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Greatest Toons | |
| 2023 | "Shots" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. | ||||||||||||||||
Featured artist edit
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| DEN | |||
| 1999 | "Selv en dråbe" (as part of a charity single in aid of Kosovo) |
1 | Grænseløs Greatest |
References edit
- ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 96. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ [1] Archived February 17, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Dansk sangerinde er død af kræft – Ekstra Bladet". Archived from the original on 10 September 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
- ^ "Erling Jensen from Cartoons has passed away: it Was only 50 years". JellyPages.com. 7 April 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
- ^ a b "ultratop.be - Discografie Cartoons". Ultratop. ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- ^ "Cartoons / Toonage" (in Danish). TOP20.dk. Archived from the original on 13 June 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- ^ "Cartoons / Toontastic" (in Danish). TOP20.dk. Archived from the original on 12 June 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- ^ a b "Discografie Cartoons - dutchcharts.nl". dutchcharts.nl.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "norwegiancharts.com - Discography Cartoons". Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- ^ "Hits of the World: Spain (AFYVE/ALEF MB) 04/17/99". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 19. Nielsen Business Media. 8 May 1999. p. 47. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ a b Hung, Steffen. "swedishcharts.com - Discography Cartoons". Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- ^ "Hits of the World: Portugal (Portugal/Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa) 08/03/99". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 33. Nielsen Business Media. 14 August 1999. p. 79. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ "Hits of the World: Italy (Musica e Dischi/FIMI) 04/10/99". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 15. Nielsen Business Media. 10 April 1999. p. 48. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ xfactor,matia. "Cartoons - Toonage (1998)". Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- ^ "Listen - Danmarks Officielle Hitliste - Udarbejdet af AIM Nielsen for IFPI Danmark - Uge 52". Ekstra Bladet (in Danish). Copenhagen. 27 December 1998.
- ^ a b "Certified Awards Search: Cartoons". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original (To access, enter the search parameter "Cartoons" and select "Search by: Keyword", with the other two set to "All") on 17 January 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- ^ xfactor,matia. "Cartoons - Toontastic (2001)". Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- ^ "danishcharts.dk - Danish charts portal". danishcharts.dk. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ "australian-charts.com - Discography Cartoons". australian-charts.com.
- ^
- For "DooDah!": "Hits of the World: Denmark (IFPI/Nielsen Marketing Research)". Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 32. Nielsen Business Media. 8 August 1998. p. 51. ISSN 0006-2510.
- For "The X-Mas Single": "Hits of the World: Denmark (IFPI/Nielsen Marketing Research)". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 51. Nielsen Business Media. 18 December 1999. p. 71. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ "lescharts.com - Discographie Cartoons". lescharts.com.
- ^ "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
- ^ "italiancharts.com - Cartoons - Diddley Dee". italiancharts.com.
- ^ "charts.org.nz - Discography Cartoons". charts.nz.
- ^ "spanishcharts.com - Spanish charts portal". spanishcharts.com.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Cartoons - Witch Doctor". austriancharts.at.
- ^ "Cartoons". UK Singles Chart. The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 January 2012.