Gerard-René-Gordon

De Toppers, sometimes billed as Gerard-René-Gordon, are a Dutch supergroup of pop singers who are especially popular together in concert. The group is a trio comprised of Gordon (born Gordon Heuckeroth on July 6, 1968, in Amsterdam), René Froger (November 5, 1960; Amsterdam), and Gerard Joling (April 29, 1960; Alkmaar, Netherlands), all of whom were successful on a solo basis prior to teaming up. The trio first experienced success together with "Live at the Arena," an in-concert medley featuring the three singers on the Froger album Live at the Arena (2005). Released as a single in late 2004, "Live at the Arena" was a smash hit, going all the way to number three on the Dutch singles chart. In the wake of this initial hit single together, the trio assembled a medley show and began performing in concert as De Toppers. They made their commercial recording debut as such with Toppers in Concert (2005), a full-length live album comprised primarily of medleys. Released on EMI, the album was a commercial blockbuster, reaching number three on the Dutch albums chart and spawning the Top Ten single "Over de Top!" An annual series of similarly fashioned live performances and recordings followed, including the albums Toppers in Concert 2006, Toppers in Concert 2007, and Toppers in Concert 2008, all of which reached either numbers one or two on the albums chart. In 2008 Joling left the group and was replaced by Jeroen van der Boom (June 22, 1972; Nijmegen, Netherlands). De Toppers were selected to represent the Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 in Moscow with their song "Shine," a smash hit in the Netherlands that reached number two on the singles chart. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide