George Kooymans

George Kooymans (born 11 March 1948 in The Hague, Netherlands; died 23 July 2025 in in Rijkevorsel, Belgium) was a Dutch songwriter, guitarist and vocalist remembered for co-founding Golden Earring and being the band's guitarist and vocalist from 1961 to 2021. Kooymans co-founded the band as The Tornado's in The Hague, Netherlands, in late 1961. The band had to call it a day in February 2021 after sixty years due to Kooymans' tragic diagnosis with the neuro-muscular disease ALS, which has rendered him unable to perform.