After seeing Kate Bush live on stage in London, a little over a year ago, my bucket list was almost totally executed. There was only one thing left to do: get me a copy of her elusive 1983 single 'Night of the swallow'. A track from her excellent fourth album 'The Dreaming' (1982), it was only released in Ireland and copies of the single never made it to the Netherlands at the time. By now, the single almost always fetches premium prices.
In July this year, I finally got hold of a decent copy of 'Night of the swallow', after seeing a copy in Utrecht in April. That copy featured a torn square on the front sleeve; this copy is in excellent state. I have nothing more to ask for - which is probably why my record collection is growing less fast by now.
My collection: 7" single no. 5790 Found: Discogs.com, received July 23, 2015 Tracks: 'Night of the swallow' / 'Houdini'
By all accounts, Ricky Wilde's I am an astronaut was a hit in Scandinavia, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that the song was covered a few times by Scandinavian artists. Unfortunately those singles are exceedingly hard to find - except if you're willing to part with considerable sums of money. But sometimes, in these days of the internet, you can get lucky.
I found a copy of Linus Wahlgren's 'Jag är en astronaut' (on yellow vinyl, no less!) on Discogs, the website where people not only describe their records, but also buy and sell them. Linus Wahlgren was born 10 September 1976 in Gustavsberg, Värmdö,
Sweden. He is an actor an musical artist.
My collection: 7" single no. 5789 Found: Discogs.com, received July 9, 2015 Cost: 4 euro Tracks: 'Jag är en astronaut' / 'Svart på vitt'
Eurovision singer Daniela Simons followed up her 1986 Eurovision single 'Pas pour moi' with several other singles. 'Found you out' was released in 1989 and sounds nothing like the Eurovision song. It is an attempt to reach the charts with danceable music.
It's a nice enough song, but it didn't chart anywhere, as far as I know. But I am open to any suggestions on where to find more information about this single.
My collection: 7" single no. 5784 Found: Fun Records, Berlin, received April 24, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Found you out' / 'Loving somebody'
The sleeve of this single makes much of the fact that Dutch singer Judy sang her cover of Nicole's 1982 Eurovision winner 'Ein Bisschen Frieden' in 6 languages. She was obviously old enough to pronounce Dutch, German, French, English, Spanish and Italian convincingly, even if the lyrics were probably written down phonetically for her.
As a cover version, this doesn't add much to the original song, it's just without the naive charm that would make Nicole win the Contest. This single comes across as a cynical ploy to cash in to someone else's success... but failing because it flopped of course. The less said about this single's B-side - in which Judy introduces herself in six languages - the better.
My collection: 7" single no. 5779 Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, April 16, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Ein Bisschen Frieden' / 'Introduction'
The Dutch entry for the 1981 Eurovision Song Contest, Het is een wonder by Linda Williams can easily be qualified as 'forgettable' and it's hard to see why anyone would think it had a chance on the Eurovision stage.
It's even harder to think of a reason why Linda Williams was made to record an English version of the song. 'I am the lady'. It is a weird piece of history, this single, and I'm happy to have found a copy - but it is a weird release in many ways.
My collection: 7" single no. 5768 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'I am the lady' / 'Don't need your flowers'
Greek singer Yiannis Dimitras represented his country during the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest. His song was called 'Feggari kalokerino' ('Summer moon' in English), a ballad in which he tells the moon about how it makes him feel. During his performance on the Eurovision stage, he was accompanied on the piano by actress and pianist Sofia Houndra, who was not credited on-screen.
The song did pretty well in the Contest: it ended up on 8th place in a field of 20 competitors. The single was released in Europe by Philips. The record company chose to use a sleeve design similar to the one used for Cyprus competitors Island in the same year.
My collection: 7" single no. 5767
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Feggari kalokerino' / 'Feggari kalokerino (instrumental)'
In 2010, Plastic Bertrand confessed that he didn't sing his biggest hit, 'Ça plane pour moi', himself. It is quite astonishing, then, that the singer, who was born in Brussels, still managed to stay in the music business long enough to participate in the 1987 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest.
In that year, he represented Luxembourg with the song 'Amour amour'. Unfortunately, that song wasn't nearly as surprising and exciting as that famous 1977 punk single. At the close of voting, the song had received just 4 points, finishing 21st in a field of 22 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5761 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Amour amour (Version Française)' / 'Amour amour (English version)'
Cyprus is hardly a superpower in music: there are no real big stars from the island and in Eurovision it has never managed to win, despite receiving those 'douze points' from Greece almost every time. In 1987, Alexia Vassiliou represented the country with this very decent pop song, 'Aspro-mavro'. The title means 'black and white'. The lyric describes how a girl remembers a man she saw on a train - but she can only bring the memory back by playing the piano.
At the close of voting, the song had received 80 points, placing 7th in a field of 22 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5758 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Aspro-mavro' / 'Please me lover'
Six years ago (wow, how time flies) I wrote about 'Hora' by Avi Toledano, a single I'd bought in 1982, just months after he'd participated in the Eurovision Song Contest. WIth my modest budget it was a feast to get any Eurovision song that wasn't a winner. Little did I know that three decades later I would be buying Eurovision singles in spades.
I came across this version of the single recently. I'd seen it before, but this version is usually rather expensive because of its inclusion of a French version. This time, however, the disc was a steal at just one euro. And so, it finally arrived into my collection.
My collection: 7" single no. 5755 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Hora (Version Française)' / 'Hora (Version Hébraïque)'
Wolfgang Ziegler was born in Rostock on October 8, 1943. His first solo album 'Halt mich' was released in 1988 on the East German Amiga label. It featured a cover version of Johnny Logan's 1987 Eurovision winner 'Hold me now', entitled 'Halt mich fest'.
That single was released in the Western part of Germany, and although it didn't become a hit, it is a decent version of that song. It is every bit as (over)emotional as the original track. The big success arrived a year later, when the next single 'Verdammt' was released. By the time Wolfgang's second solo album was released, Germany was no longer separated between East and West.
My collection: 7" single no. 5752 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Halt mich fest' / 'Nächte in Berlin'
I wrote about the disappointment of the United Kingdom's 1986 Eurovision Song Contest entry 'Runner in the night' before, and how its tinny sound and unruly synthesizers ruined what could theoretically have been a good song.
So why extend the horror even more? Well, there was a maxi single release at the time, and it features an extended version that, because of its approach of the song, manages to make it slightly more enjoyable than it was. There aren't many remixes of Eurovision entries, even from the Eighties, so this makes a rather interesting release after all.
My collection: 12" single no. 656 Found: Fun Records, Berlin, received August 29, 2014 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Runner in the night (extended)' / 'Runner in the night', 'Runner in the night (ballad)'
Armando António Capelo Diniz da Gama was born on April 1, 1954 in Luanda, Angola. He grew up in a colonial family in Angola and moved to Portugal in 1971. He studied at the Portuguese music conservatory in Luanda and managed to sell over five million records in Portugal alone during his career which now spans four decades.
In 1983 he represented Portugal at the Eurovision Song Contest with 'Esta balada que te dou' ('This ballad that I give you'). Gama describes the end of a relationship, all the while dedicating "this
pretty ballad" to his former lover and explaining that there is nothing
wrong with being sad. At the close of voting, it had received 33 points, placing 13th in a field of 20 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5750 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Esta balada que te dou' / 'When love has gone'
When Milan Popović, a.k.a. Daniel performed the song Julie for Yugoslavia at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1983, it was an unlikely contender for a Europe-wide hit. But it became exactly that, hitting the charts in Norway and the Netherlands, among other countries.
In fact, the song inspired a cover version as well, as is proven by this single. A certain Martin, hailing from the Netherlands, recorded a Dutch language version of Julie, featuring a woman on the cover. Probably this Martin didn't have a pretty face. This version was not a hit, of course, even if the B-side is comical for its attempt at drama.
My collection: 7" single no. 5741 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Julie' / 'Nu heeft hij spijt'
Rose Rengel, Paul Braukmann and Gerry Braukmann formed Rainy Day, the band that represented Switzerland at the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest with 'Welche Farbe hat der Sonnenschein'. The song asks the question: "What colour is the sunshine?". The group ask us 'how to paint
it?' They say that there are many colours, the way we see the world
depends on our feelings.
The song was not very successful at the Contest: at the close of voting, it had received 30 points, placing 16th in a field of 19 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5733 Found: Discogs.com, received February 25, 2015 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Welche Farbe hat der Sonnenschein' / 'Die Stadt'
I have bought a lot of Eurovision singles over the past year (as you can see on this blog), but so far it has been difficult to buy all the singles of one particular year. But I finally did it recently, as this single completes the year 1980 for me. Well... almost, because this copy unfortunately came without the picture sleeve. But for now, this will certainly do, because the track 'Huilumies' is one of my favourites of the year.
'Huilumies' (Finnish for 'A flute man') is sung from the perspective of the tititular 'flute man', who
sings that while he may not be able to express his feelings in words, he
is able to do so with his flute. At the close of voting, it had received 6 points, placing last in a field of 19 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5730 Found: Discogs.com, received February 25, 2015 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Huilumies' / 'Vie minut valoon'
Lara Crokaert was born on January 9, 1970 in Etterbeek, Belgium. She began singing, dancing and taking piano lessons at a young age, and began formal music lessons at age eight. She began writing and performing her own songs during her ten years of formal music study.
In 1988, the RTL TV channel in Luxembourg invited Fabian to represent the country at the 33rd Eurovision Song Contest, held that year in Dublin, Ireland. The song was a composition of Jacques Cardona and Alain Garciac entitled 'Croire' ('Trust'). At the close of voting, it had received 90 points, placing 4th in a field of 21 competitors. The single became a hit in Europe, selling nearly 500,000 copies.
My collection: 7" single no. 5618 Found: Marktplaats.nl, received February 14, 2015 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Croire' / 'Trust'
'Sata salamaa' ('One hundred lightnings') was performed by Finnish singer Vicky Rosti on the 1987 Eurovision Song Contest. On this single the original Finnish version is backed with an English version entitled 'Firenight'. The song is sung from the perspective of a woman telling her lover that,
regardless of the adversity (the "hundred lightnings" of the title)
they face in their love, 'There's a thousand worlds out there, and one
of them is ours' - in other words, they will triumph in the end. At the close of voting, the song had acquired 28 points, finishing 15th out of 22 competitors.
Vicky is still active in the Finnish music scene, as a member of the band Menneisyyden Vangit.
My collection: 7" single no. 5616 Found: eBay.com, received February 12, 2015 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Sata salamaa' / 'Firenight'
Ketil Stokkan was born on April 29, 1956 in Harstad, Norway. As well as being a singer in the Norwegian band Zoo, Ketil performed as a solo singer, most notably in the Eurovision Song Contest - twice.
His first appearance was in 1986 with his self-penned song 'Romeo'. The Contest was held in Bergen, Norway that year, after the previous year saw the Bobbysocks win with the rather retro La det swinge. The song became more significant for the appearance onstage of a drag queen, a member of the Norwegian drag troupe "Great Garlic Girls", dressed in stylised clothing reminiscent of the 18th century, thus representing the first occasion on which a sexual minority was visible onstage. At the close of voting, 'Romeo' had received 44 points, placing 12th in a field of 20. Stokkan returned on the Eurovision stage in 1990 with the unsuccessful 'Brandenburger Tor'. But I am still looking for a (cheap) copy of that single...
My collection: 7" single no. 5612 Found: eBay.com, received February 12, 2015 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Romeo' / 'Vi overlever regnet'
The white sleeve of this single informs the reader only that the disc contains 'Dishwasher', which was used in the Dutch radio show 'Avondspits'. Having listened to this show all through the Eighties, there's no small chance that I heard this tune every day for years. And indeed, the tune sounds very familiar.
General Public formed when Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger decided to continue working together in a new ventur after the breakup of their previous band The Beat. They recruited Mickey Billingham, Mick Jones, Horace Panter and drummer Stoker and signed to Virgin Records. 'Dishwasher' is an instrumental mix of General Public's track 'Burning bright', from their debut album 'All the rage' (1984). The single actually reached number 38 in the Dutch singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 5609 Found: Kringloop Hebbes, Rijswijk, February 7, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Dishwasher' / 'General public'
Released in 1988, 'Roses are red' is a typical Eighties production, sounding a lot like the Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis productions for Janet Jackson. The song was actually produced by L.A. & Babyface. It was the band's only single to reach the UK singles chart, peaking at number 6.
The song was taken from the band's debut album 'The Mac Band featuring the McCampbell Brothers', also released in 1988. They released two further albums, 'Love U 2 the limit' (1990) and 'The real deal' (1991), after which they called it quits.
My collection: 7" single no. 5608 Found: Kringloop Hebbes, Rijswijk, February 7, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Roses are red' / 'Roses are red (instrumental)'
