I morgon är en annan dag - Christer Björkman

Released in 1992, this single is a historic one of sorts, since it's the last Eurovision entry from Sweden to be released on the 7" vinyl format. In the early Nineties, vinyl was on its way out, because record companies placed all their bets on compact discs instead. Well, we know what happened next: most record companies are out of business now.

'I morgon är en annan dag' is a beautiful ballad, which is not something you hear from Sweden when they win. 'Waterloo', 'Diggi loo diggi ley', 'Fangad av en stormvind', 'Take me to your heaven' and even Euphoria were uptempo, so it's rather surprising the Swedes sometimes come up with a ballad. When they do with beauties like this, they earn the respect of those viewers like me, who think that the real treats in Eurovision are not found among the winners, but with the runners-up.

My collection: 7" single no. 5593
Found: KG Records, Sweden, received August 1, 2014
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'I morgon är en annan dag' / 'Demain il y a un autre jour'

Fade to grey - Phase One

Released in 1992, this single is a cover of Visage's Eighties hit 'Fade to grey'. The version comes with all the things you'd expect from an early Nineties dance track: monotonous rhythm from a box, dull synths and iffy vocals.

The vocals are apparently delivered by Katrina Baird, an English vocalist and dancer who is based in Rome. The song was recorded and mixed at MKS Studio in Italy according to the sleeve. The single, however, was made in Belgium. Some optimistic soul on Discogs.com is asking 75 euros for the CD-single, which was also released at the time. Good luck...

My collection: 7" single no. 5621
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, August 10, 2014
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Fade to grey (radio mix)' / 'Fade to grey (instrumental mix)'

Kingston town - UB40

'Kingston town' was originally released in 1970 by Lord Creator, a calypso and soca artist from Jamaica. In 1989, the song was covered by UB40 on their album 'Labour of love II', another album filled with covers in their familiar reggae stylee.

The UB40 version reached number 1 in France and the Netherlands, and was a top 10 hit in many other European countries. I never really liked the song until very recently, and so I decided to snap up a copy after all.

My collection: 7" single no. 5480
Found: Kringloop Hebbes, Den Haag, July 25, 2014
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Kingston town' / 'Lickwood'

Non ho l'eta'... [1990 version] - Gigliola Cinquetti

Re-recording songs is seldom a good idea. Too many artists have re-recorded their hits from the beginning of their career, and it usually signalled a lack of creativity or it was motivated by legal complications involving greedy record companies.

Gigliola Cinquetti decided to re-record 'Non ho l'eta' in 1990. I have found no information why she did it, but one would guess it was prompted by Italy's Eurovision win that year, when Toto Cotugno performed 'Insieme: 1992' in Zagreb and won the Contest. She went on to present the 1991 edition together with Toto. This version is unfortunately not as charming as the original track from 1964.

My collection: 7" single no. 5477
Found: Kringloop Hebbes, Den Haag, July 25, 2014
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Non ho l'eta'... [1990 version]' (Gigliola Cinquetti) / 'Gli occhi miei' (Dino)

Popcorn - Techno Talk

Although the intro of this version of Popcorn sounds a lot like Belgian techno collective Technotronic's 'Pump up the jam', this track is actually produced and arranged by Theo Werdin, a  producer and sound engineer from Bad Homburg, Germany.

I bought a damaged copy of the 3" cd single some 10 years ago, so it was nice to find a 7" single of the same version now. The dub edit included on this 7" single does not appear on that cd-single, so it is an exclusive track.

My collection: 7" single no. 5363
Found: Fun Records (Germany), received July 5, 2014
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Popcorn (single edit)' / 'Popcorn (dub edit)'

Popcorn - Coba

The timeless melody 'Popcorn', composed by Gershon Kingsley, has been covered many times, with varying success. Thanks to my recent order with Fun Records, I managed to find two singles from 1990. This is the first one, released by the unknown German act Coba. This particular copy was released 'for promotion only', as is printed on the back sleeve. One has to wonder whether this single was even released commercially.

The tune is kept intact, but suffers from typical Nineties production values, and so this 'fresh hot mix' has gone quite stale in time.

My collection: 7" single no. 5362
Found: Fun Records (Germany), received July 5, 2014
Cost: 1,75 euro
Tracks: 'Popcorn (Fresh hot mix)' / 'Dago's Popcorn Rezept'

Hiroshima - Wishful Thinking

Here's another track I already had on 7", but with added Nineties pleasure. 'Hiroshima' by Wishful Thinking was re-released with a 90's mix after German singer Sandra had released her cover version of the song as a single. This single - which comes with a promotional fact sheet, by the way - presents both the original version of the song plus a remix by Dave Morgan.

Who's Dave Morgan, you ask? He was a guitarist with Electric Light Orchestra from 1981 to 1986 and also the original writer of the song, recorded by Wishful Thinking back in 1970.

My collection: 7" single no. 5354
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 24, 2013
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Hiroshima (originalversion)' / 'Hiroshima (90er mix)'

Kids in America - Radio Wendy

I don't buy a lot of 7" singles these days, but every now and again I find something online that I've been looking for. This single first came to my attention last year. It was another cover version of Kim Wilde's 'Kids in America' - and there are loads of cover versions of that song! - but this particular one has never surfaced online as an mp3 or anything. The single was for sale but upon ordering the seller found out he couldn't find the single he was offering. At the time, he was the only one.

Earlier this month, I looked again and there were actually three sellers for this single! I picked one, ordered it, and two weeks later it was in my mailbox. It turns out Radio Wendy was signed to an independent record company in San Diego, California. Not much more information than that, even the year of release can't be traced. It is a nice cover version, but nothing too spectacular I'm afraid. It's been done before.

My collection: 7" single no. 5346
Found: Discogs.com, received August 27, 2013
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Kids in America' / 'Growing old'

Moments of pleasure - Kate Bush

I would describe my latest vinyl acquisition as a shocker. I never knew that 'Moments of pleasure' by Kate Bush, released in 1993 as the second single off her album 'The red shoes' was released on a 7" single. But it was, albeit only on this jukebox version and never commercially.

Having always thought that only 'Rubberband girl' got a 7" version (and there's a jukebox version of that one too) this is quite a revelation for me. I'm lucky to have found a copy on eBay and win the auction too at such a low price. You'd think that hordes of Kate Bush fans are after this great single, but apparently not...

My collection: 7" single no. 5345
Found: eBay.co.uk, received July 9, 2013
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Moments of pleasure' / 'Moments of pleasure (instrumental)'

Running up that hill - Sweep featuring Linda Carriere

Not content with just one disc, Sweep and Linda Carriere released several 12" singles of their cover of 'Running up that hill'. This second 12" features just two remixes of the track, featuring a sort of budget Shaggy clone (as if Shaggy himself isn't cheap enough already).

Repetitive and a bit of an insult to the original track, it's no wonder Sweep disappeared from the music scene directly after this one release.

My collection: 12" single no. 645
Found: unknown, 199X
Cost: unknown
Tracks: "Running up that hill (Running status mix)' / 'Running up that hill (Killer Bee mix)'

Running up that hill - Sweep featuring Linda Carriere

Most people who are fan of a certain artist don't have much interest for cover versions of their favourite artist. I tend to act differently: for most of the acts that I have more than a passing interest in, I like to collect as much cover versions as I can. It does mean that you need a lot of perseverance and in some cases lots of endurance too. Some cover versions are dreadful, others can turn out to be quite nice.

Unfortunately, Sweep's 1993 version of Kate Bush's 'Running up that hill' does not fall into the latter category. It's a rather unimaginative take on what was a very innovative pop song back in 1985. The vocals by Linda Carriere are sometimes ridiculous, but she does manage to hold a few notes. Which I guess is a positive point.

My collection: 12" single no. 644
Found: unknown, 199X
Cost: unknown
Tracks: 'Running up that hill (Jam's Labyrinth mix)', 'Running up that hill (1993 mix)' / 'Running up that hill (laser mix)', 'Running up that hill (radio edit)'

If you could read my mind - Aurora

Sung by Marcella Detroit (of Shakespear's Sister fame), 'If you could read my mind' was a pretty nice cover version of a song originally performed by Gordon Lightfoot (and also covered by Viola Wills in 1980). Aurora released only one album in 2001, from which several singles were released. Three singles were a hit, but this, the fourth single drawn from the album, failed to chart.

Upon hearing these remixes I wasn't too impressed. The Roksolid dub in particular has nothing to do with the original track, and that's a shame. But still, it's good to have this disc, as it represents a full collection of remixes of a pretty much forgotten gem.

My collection: 12" single no. 642
Found: Discogs.com, received March 1, 2013
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'If you could read my mind (Coloursound club mix)' / 'If you could read my mind (If you could funk my head mix)', 'If you could read my mind (Roksolid dub)'

You only tell me you love me when you're drunk - Pet Shop Boys

I don't have many Pet Shop Boys 12" singles, even though I really like their music. Most of their remixes have been released on cd - I think - so whenever I see a 12" single by them I cross off my list: 'Do I have all the tracks?'. If not, I go to the next question: 'Is it cheap'? If not, I have no trouble leaving it be.

So this double 12" set ended up in my collection because it contained one remix I didn't have yet and because it was dirt cheap. When I finally received it today I concluded that it was a good buy: the outer sleeve looks a bit boring (see the picture) but the two inner sleeve are actually quite attractive, featuring a photograph on one side each (picturing one member of the duo each) and the same dark brown colour on the other side. Well designed. But then, all of the Pet Shop Boys sleeves have been well designed.

My collection: 12" single no. 641
Found: Discogs.com, received March 1, 2013
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'You only tell me you love me when you're drunk (Brother Brown's newt mix)' / 'You only tell me you love me when you're drunk (Attaboy still love you when we're sober mix)' // 'You only tell me you love me when you're drunk (The T-Total mix)' / 'You only tell me you love me when you're drunk (Brother Brown's newt dub)'

Sweet love - Fierce

'Sweet love' was a cover version of the 1986 Anita Baker track by the female trio Fierce, consisting of Chantal Alleyne, Aisha Peters and Sabrina Weathers. The group sang R&B tracks and had four hits in the UK, including this one. The original version was released on their only album, 'Right here right now' (1999) and produced by Jeremy Wheatley and Magnus Fiennes, while the single version, entitled 'Sweet love 2K' was produced by Stargate.

This double 12" release features remixes by Rhythm Masters and Trouser Enthusiasts. And there lies the answer to the question 'why did I buy this?'. The UK collective Trouser Enthusiasts have made some excellent remixes and this is one of them. It's very hard to get hold of them all but this 12" was pretty cheap when I found it online.

My collection: 12" single no. 640
Found: Discogs.com, received March 1, 2013
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Sweet love (Rhythm Masters vocal mix)' / 'Sweet love (Trouser Enthusiasts dub)' // 'Sweet love (Trouser Enthusiasts mix)' / 'Sweet love (Rhythm Masters dub)'

Reactive - Sixteen Deluxe

The American band Sixteen Deluxe are a "psychedelic noise-pop band", according to their own biography, from Austin, Texas. Formed in 1994, they played for seven years together before breaking up in July 2000 after Carrie Clark left the band. Apparently they reformed ten years later - the website sixteendeluxemusic.com has been abandoned almost as soon as it was started but still gives that information from 2010.

This 7" single became part of my collection after I found out a cover of Kim Wilde's 'Kids in America' was featured on the B-side. There are many cover versions of Kim's debut hit, but this is a pretty hard to find one. It isn't actually too bad, if you're expecting the dozenth punk-inspired cover version.

My collection: 7" single no. 5300
Found: Discogs.com, received February 2, 2013
Cost: 4 euro
Tracks: 'Reactive' / 'Kids in America'

Swingtime - Black

After two years of absence from the music scene, Black returned in 1993, free from his contract with A&M records and owner of a new self-owned company called Nero Schwarz ltd. His comeback album was called 'Are we having fun yet?', taking a stab at his moody, melancholy image. The album was full of quirky sounds and well written pop songs, but unfortunately this music was not picked up by the general public. A concert in Rotterdam at the time was visited by only 60 people. I was one of them, and I also bought all of the cd-singles released from that album.

Little did I know that in Spain a 7" single was released as well. I found out about this some eight years after the fact, when I started corresponding with other Black fans. And I tried for the last decade to find this single. Especially since it contains an otherwise unreleased B-side track. It was on my 'want list' on Discogs.com for two years. And then, suddenly, last Monday morning I found an e-mail from Discogs saying that an item was for sale on my wantlist. I ordered it within minutes. Only five days later, I held a copy of that great sought after item in my hands. Bliss.

My collection: 7" single no. 5295
Found: Discogs.com, received August 10, 2012
Cost: 8 euro
Tracks: 'Swingtime' / 'Quiet side of the road'

Moments of pleasure - Kate Bush

With a still from the movie 'The line, the cross & the curve', EMI Records could have chosen a better picture for the sleeve of this fantastic 12" single. The one they picked was a bit tasteless, especially since 'Moments of pleasure' is such a beautiful, emotional song. The movie retold the fairy tale of the red shoes, featuring a lot of dance scenes because Kate is forced to dance by the shoes she put on.

Anyway, the 12" single - which was the last 12" single by Kate Bush ever released - features a poster sleeve and one exclusive track which was never officially released on CD: the instrumental version of 'Moments of pleasure'. You can hear the orchestra in its full glory, showing how beautifully crafted these melody lines really are.

Truth be told, I have been feeling a bit sad and this song is the perfect soundtrack for such feelings. It's also one of the most beautiful tracks Kate Bush has ever committed to tape.

My collection: 12" single no. 187
Found: HMV, 1993
Cost: 4 pounds
Tracks: 'Moments of pleasure' / 'Moments of pleasure (instrumental)', 'Home for Christmas'

A million love songs - Take That

'A million love songs' was the penultimate single from Take That's debut album and was written by lead vocalist Gary Barlow at the age of 15. The single peaked at number 7 in the UK Singles Chart.

The song has also been voted by critics and music fans as the greatest ballad of all time. That seems a bit odd, but considering the numbers 2 and 3 were 'Everything I do' by Bryan Adams and 'Always' by Bon Jovi, you can just about figure out the blandness of the general public. So... greatest ballad of all time? Not really. A nice little song nonetheless.

My collection: 7" single no. 5301
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 14, 2012
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'A million love songs' / 'A million love songs (Lovers mix)'

In the springtime of his voodoo - Tori Amos

For a mere eight years I was well into Tori Amos. All that time she released five great albums, until the disastrous covers album 'Strange little girls' ended that great run and introduced a decade of wishy-washy albums, finally descending into that career nosedive called the - gasp - Christmas album.

I should have suspected that Tori Amos was not entirely artistically correct when her third album 'Boys for Pele' spawned a few very bad remix efforts. The number one hit 'Professional widow', in which the original song was mangled beyond recognition, was an offence, and it was followed by this 12" single featuring four half-decent remixes of 'In the springtime of his voodoo'. I couldn't foresee what would happen next, I bought this one out of curiosity more than anything.

My collection: 12" single no. 636
Found: Delft, 1996
Cost: 20 guilders
Tracks: 'In the springtime of his voodoo (Hasbrouck Heights club mix)', 'In the springtime of his vooodo (Quiet mix)' / 'In the springtime of his voodoo (Sugar dub)', 'In the springtime of his voodoo (Hasbrouck heights single mix)'

Come undone - Duran Duran

When the cd-single became the preferred format in the late Eighties, vinyl was quickly pronounced dead by the record companies, not realising they were digging their own graves at the time. But before they did, there were some efforts made to sell vinyl discs, for instance with exclusive tracks.

This 12" single of Duran Duran's 1993 single 'Come undone' for instance features the 'TV synth strings' mix of 'Come undone', which was not available on either of the two (!) cd-singles available in the UK. But it is suspicious that this 12" single was released in Italy in. So buying this in a shop in Amsterdam two years after its release was a bit of a fluke...

My collection: 12" single no. 237
Found: Concerto, Amsterdam, 1995
Cost: 2,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Come undone (edit)', 'Ordinary world (acoustic version)' / 'Come undone (FGI Phumpin' 12"), 'Come undone (La fin de siecle)', 'Come undone (TV synth strings)'