How Sandy Dulfer and Dave Stewart created the famous song “Lily Was Here”

The instrumental composition “Lily Was Here” was created as a result of the collaboration of the famous British guitarist Dave Stewart and the talented saxophonist from the Netherlands Candy Dulfer. The composition was released in 1989 and became the musical accompaniment for the film, which was originally called “De Kassière”, and in the British box office was called “Lily Was Here”.

The history of the song Lily Was Here by the duo Dave Stewart & Сandy Dulfer

The melody gained great success and popularity among listeners, as evidenced by its rise to the top of the Dutch charts. In addition, “Lily Was Here” entered the top 20 charts in several European countries, as well as the charts in Australia and the United States of America, confirming its status as an international hit.

David Allan Stewart is a prominent British performer, songwriter and producer, best known for his contributions to the Eurythmics.

Candy Dulfer, a Dutch saxophone player and singer, inherited her passion for jazz from her father, also a saxophonist. Already at the age of 12, she performed at the famous North Sea Jazz Festival, at the age of 14 she organized her own musical group, and by the age of 18 she managed to perform as a warm-up artist at a Madonna concert.

To work on the soundtrack for the film “The Cashier,” Dave Stewart chose the young saxophonist Candy Dulfer, who until that moment had no experience in releasing solo commercial works. Candy's father, Hans Dulfer, a saxophonist, was also in the studio during the recording process, and later shared that the track was created in one single take at the very end of the day of recording the soundtrack. He described the process as a jam session, noting that the track was not originally intended to be included on the album.

Candy talked about how she spent a lot of time in the studio performing a variety of complex musical parts for the upcoming soundtrack. After she had finished and was preparing to leave to catch the train, Stuart suddenly remarked:

“I have another idea here. Something exciting could come from this.”

In a hurry and confusion, according to the saxophonist herself, she managed to create and record her part for the new track in just ten minutes.

Dave Stewart organized the recording of “Lily Was Here” at the moment when the musicians were about to leave, calling them back without even watching the film itself, so that the music itself conveyed its atmosphere. Stewart recalled:

“I started with a four-note intro and Candy responded by playing the saxophone. After that, I followed through the entire melodic series, Candy echoing each melody with her unique improvisations. At the end of the tune, I signaled for Candy to take over and she delivered a memorable solo that I still remember every note of, and she knew exactly how to finish it. Then I took up the melody again, to which Candy played in response, we continued again, and then switched roles. That's all! We finished mixing the song in literally five to ten minutes, so the whole process from idea to final mix took about fifteen minutes.”

Candy Dulfer shared her thoughts on “Lily Was Here”:

“This composition combines everything you need: a simple but soulful melody and spontaneity of performance. We were in the perfect place at the perfect time. In the modern world there is little left for instrumental hits, when the famous 'song without words' appears no more than once every two to three years. For me, this composition became the key to independence as an artist. Dave and I sometimes laugh about the question: 'Could we do something like 'Lily' again?' But we both understand that it is impossible to repeat this.”

In 1989, the track was released as a single in the Netherlands, where it quickly gained popularity and stayed at the top of the charts for five weeks. This success allowed the song to gain worldwide distribution, where it also gained recognition: it reached number six on the UK chart and number eleven on the US Billboard Hot 100.

The popularity of this single inspired Dulfer to create her first solo album, entitled “Saxuality”. The unusual combination of guitar and saxophone, masterfully performed by Stewart and Dulfer, created a unique sound and atmosphere of the composition, which was remembered by many music lovers around the world. “Lily Was Here” has become a striking example of a fruitful creative union of musicians from different countries and directions.