Jan Pijnenburg

Jan Pijnenburg was born in Vught, North Brabant, in the Netherlands, at the end of 1955 (29 December 1955 according to Dutch Wikipedia). He grew up in a musical family; both of his parents played the piano. NOS reported that his love of drumming started at the age of three, when he saw a tin toy drum kit in a toy shop.

After finishing havo (senior general secondary education) he studied graphic design, a course he did not complete. He then completed the pop music teacher (popdocent) training at the conservatory in Rotterdam.

Pijnenburg played in many Dutch bands before Doe Maar. In Lucifer he succeeded Henny Huisman as drummer, and he later played with Hollander, Sweet d'Buster and Long Tall Ernie and the Shakers. Just before joining Doe Maar he toured Germany with the rock band Die Gebrüder Engel.

In 1982 he replaced René van Collem as Doe Maar's drummer. After his first concert with the band he was badly hurt in a car accident and spent months in rehabilitation while Van Collem stepped back in. He returned in January 1983 and played in the band's best-known line-up with Henny Vrienten, Ernst Jansz and Jan Hendriks until Doe Maar split in 1984, with a farewell concert in Den Bosch on 14 April 1984. He plays on the live album Lijf aan Lijf (recorded June 1983, released November 1983) and on the single Macho.

After the split he drummed with The Magnificent 7, alongside Henny Vrienten, and with the reincarnated Shocking Blue, and he played on several tracks of Vrienten's 1992 solo album Mijn Hart Slaapt Nooit.

He rejoined Doe Maar for the 2000 reunion, drumming on the studio album Klaar and at the sixteen sold-out concerts at Ahoy in Rotterdam, and again in 2008 for the band's big reunion concerts, including De Kuip in Rotterdam.

Pijnenburg was married to the journalist Angeline van den Berg. Early in the 2000s (2002, according to AD) the couple moved to Andalusia in southern Spain, where they bought a derelict farmhouse in a remote natural area without electricity or running water. Over the years they rebuilt it into a largely self-sufficient home with a house, a music studio and guest accommodation. Van den Berg described their life there in her book Berichten uit de Sierra. He ran the music studio and lived in Spain until his death.

No public statements of his political or religious views have been reported. Friends and colleagues remembered him for his musicality and humour. Harry Niehof described him as thoughtful, soft-spoken and very funny, and Henny Vrienten once called him the best and funniest drummer he had worked with.

Although he was Doe Maar's drummer for only about two years in its first run, those were the band's most crucial years, when Doe Maar was among the most popular groups in Dutch pop history. His playing is preserved on Lijf aan Lijf, Macho and the reunion album Klaar, and he was part of the reunion concerts at Ahoy in 2000 and De Kuip in 2008 that introduced the band to a new generation.

In 2013 Doe Maar received an Edison in recognition of its musical achievements since 1978, as reported by NOS. No individual awards for Pijnenburg have been reported.

Recordings with Doe Maar include the live album Lijf aan Lijf (1983), the single Macho, and the 2000 studio album Klaar. He also played on Henny Vrienten's solo album Mijn Hart Slaapt Nooit (1992). Early in 2026 he gave an interview to the local radio station ZFM Zandvoort about his career and life in Spain, and he said he was working on a manuscript.

Jan Pijnenburg died unexpectedly on Thursday 12 November 2026 at his home in Andalusia, Spain, aged 70. According to Dagblad van het Noorden, as reported by AD and Omroep Brabant, he had been to a few shops that morning, lay down on the sofa for an afternoon nap after coming home and did not wake up. The cause of death has not been made public. His death was reported on 13 November 2026 and confirmed to ANP by his friend Harry Niehof.