Nothing beats a good instrumental track from time to time. This 'golden oldie' appeared as background music in a commercial on a local radio station I listened to a lot during the Eighties. In time, I found out the name and artist behind the music, and then I found out that it was actually released when I was just born.
I have no idea who hides behind the stage name Duke of Burlington, but this track was a success in the Netherlands nonetheless: it peaked at number 11 in the autumn of 1970.
I'd just discovered Amy Grant's albums 'Lead me on' and 'Heart in motion' when she started to release singles from her new album 'House of love'. One of those singles was 'Say you'll be mine'. I bought it on the hunch that this material might be just as good. I was not too disappointed: the songs were a bit on the bubblegum pop side, but still nice and melodic.
Grant didn't score a big hit with this: it roamed the UK singles chart for only two weeks in the autumn of 1994, peaking at number 41.
I wouldn't be surprised if this song was responsible for the war in Yugoslavia that would break out a couple of years later. It must rank as one of the worst winners in the history of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Riva, a group of five fronted by singer Emilija Kokić debuted on Zagrebfest in 1988. They performed their song 'Rock me' in Serbo-Croatian as the last act on the 1989 Eurovision Song Contest. When they unexpectedly won the Contest, BBC TV commentator Terry Wogan described it as 'the death knell' for the Contest. The group parted ways in 1991 after being unable to build on their sudden success with this unlistenable song.
My collection: 7" single no. 3599
Found: Record fair, Rijswijk, March 14, 2009
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Rock me baby (Original version)' / 'Rock me baby (English version)'
In 1993, it became increasingly difficult to find 7" vinyl singles of songs that were released as a single. More often than not, I could only find a cd-single version. It became quite a challenge to still find vinyl singles and I always had a sense of victory when I succeeded. This was one of those proud achievements.
Taken from the album 'Dusk', The The released 'Slow emotion replay' as the second single from that album. While 'Dogs of lust', single number one, was released as a limited edition 7" single in the UK, this one was only released on two different cd-singles. I found this Spanish promotional 7" with just one track on one side: the other side was not even playable. Which made this item all the more desirable, because a one-sided 7" single is a rarity in itself.
This was the last single released by the Communards before Richard Coles and Jimmy Somerville split up. The upbeat song comes with a serious message: 'There's more to love than boy meets girl / For love is strange and uncontrolled and it can happen to anyone'. Not surprisingly for this band the subject of the song was gay rights.
The B-side of this single is also interesting: it's a cover of the 1934 song written and composed by James F. Hanley. It was performed in the Broadway revue 'Thumbs up!'. The most famous version was performed by Judy Garland.
My collection: 7" single no. 2382
Found: House of Rhythm, London, July 1, 1995
Cost: 60p
Tracks: 'There's more to love' / 'Zing went the strings of my heart'
Cheap Trick made a name for themselves with the big hit 'I want you to want me'. I thought it was a very irritating song, and it had its effect: I hated the band for a long time. It took some getting used to that 'If you want my love' was actually a rather accomplished pop/rock ballad.
When I bought the single, it was in the middle of the period I've described on this blog a couple of times before: when my sister and I decided to buy different singles. She hated this song, I liked it. So I bought it - and she wasn't impressed with my choice.
My collection: 7" single no. 145
Found: Studio Echo, Den Haag, 1982
Cost: 5,5 guilders
Tracks: 'If you want my love' / 'Four letter word'
Adam Ant was one of the big names of the Eighties. That statement alone says a lot about how he was perceived by the general public circa 1990: almost forgotten. After having been out of the charts since 1985, he had a brief comeback with 'Room at the top', which reached number 13 in the UK singles chart in 1990. The next single was 'Can't set rules about love', which peaked at number 47.
I didn't hear this song until three years later, when I got my hands on a promotional instore video of various artists. I wasn't impressed by the video, but the song was nice enough. I spent several years trying to find the single.
My collection: 7" single no. 2868
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, 1997
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Can't set rules about love' / 'How to steal the world'
I'm not the world's biggest Belinda Carlisle fan, but I do have a few singles by her. And this is one of them: a rather attractive limited edition picture disc 7", bought during a holiday in England.
The interesting thing is, I've forgotten all about the A-side track 'In too deep' but I still remember the B-side track '(We want) The same thing'. I know why, too: I once saw her perform that song live in Bournemouth, in the middle of the summer, with Ricky Wilde backing her on guitar. It was an extremely happy sunny day.
My collection: 7" single no. 2714
Found: HMV, London, July 4, 1996
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'In too deep' / '(We want) The same thing'
The Dutch band Kayak formed in 1972. Their early single 'Mammoth' featured on this blog a couple of months ago. 'Want you to be mine' was released five years later, in 1978. It's a more straightforward rock song, sounding rather a lot like much of their work around that time.
I don't remember how I got to hear this song, but I know I was very impressed when I did. I went searching for the single and found it within a few months.
My collection: 7" single no. 850
Found: All that music, Leiden, May 27, 1989
Cost: 3 guilders Tracks: 'Want you to be mine' / 'Golddust'
The Swedish brothers Per, Richard and Louis Herrey were the first act to perform on stage in Luxemburg during the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest. The nonsensical title harked back to previous winning entries such as 'Boom bang-a-bang', 'Ding-a-dong' and 'La la la'.
I thought it wasn't a very spectacular song, and would have thought that Italy's Alice & Franco Battiato with 'I treni di Tozeur' would win. Instead, this song went away with victory. It's one of many occasions when I felt really disappointed with the winner in the Contest. I did buy the single, though, starting a tradition of buying winning songs in that year - although I would 'forget' to buy it in later years. The B-side is interesting for its lyric about an obsessive fan.
My collection: 7" single no. 234
Found: Wouters, Den Haag, 1984
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Diggi loo / Diggi ley' / 'Every song you sing'
Nick Kamen was born as Ivor Neville Kamen on April 15, 1962 in Harlow, Essex, England. He was first brought to the public's attention in 1984 when Ray Petri featured him on the front cover of the UK magazine The Face. A year later, he appeared in a Levi's commercial. In 1986, he released his debut single 'Each time you break my heart', written and produced by Madonna and Stephen Bray.
In 1990, he released his fourth album 'Move until we fly'. It contained the self-penned 'I promised myself', which would be his biggest hit in Europe. The single topped the chart in Austria and Sweden, and reached number 6 in the Netherlands.
My collection: 7" single no. 1636 Found: April 20, 1992 Cost: 3 guilders Tracks: 'I promised myself' / 'You are'
Tanita Tikaram was born in Münster, Germany on August 12, 1969 as the daughter of Fatimah Rohani of Malaysian descent and Indo-Fijian British Army officer Pramod Tikaram. She grew up in Basingstoke, England. She released her debut album 'Ancient heart' when she was only nineteen years old.
'Cathedral song' was the third single taken from that album. It reached number 48 in the UK singles chart. Like other tracks on the album, it was a moody, guitar-based song.
My collection: 7" single no. 765 Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, March 11, 1989 Cost: 3 guilders Tracks: 'Cathedral song' / 'Sighing innocents'
Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice wrote the musical Evita in 1976. The best known song from that musical is of course 'Don't cry for me Argentina', recorded by Julie Covington and Madonna, amongst others. The same melody line was used for this single, 'Oh what a circus', performed by David Essex. Like 'Argentina', this song was taken from the musical 'Evita'.
Essex had a hit with this single: it reached number 3 in the UK and number 18 in the Netherlands. It didn't become quite the classic that 'Don't cry for me Argentina' is now. My copy of the single was bought at Beanos, a wellknown record shop in the South of London. It's housed in a custom Beanos sleeve - probably because the original sleeve has gone missing.
My collection: 7" single no. 2889
Found: Beanos, East Croydon, London, October 29, 1997
Fay Lovski was born as Fay Luyendijk in Leiden on September 11, 1955. Her music career started in 1980 with the album 'Sound on sound', named after the recording technique she used to make her songs.
'Don't feed the animals' was a single taken from her third album 'Origami' (1983). Like the majority of her singles it didn't make the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 2138
Found: Grammofoonplatenwinkel, Utrecht, August 2, 1994
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Don't feed the animals' / 'Palmtree luxury'
Hard to believe, but it's now 32 years ago that a French-language song won the Eurovision Song Contest. Amina came close in 1991, but it's been mainly English songs since 1977. Between 1956 and 1977, 11 songs in French won the contest. And this was the last one: 'L'oiseau et l'enfant' by Marie Myriam.
She was born as Miriam Lopes on May 8, 1957 in Braga, Portugal. She represented France in the 1977 Eurovision Song Contest and won with 15 points more than the number 2, 'Rock bottom' by Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran for the United Kingdom.
My collection: 7" single no. 3609
Found: eBay, France, received March 20, 2009
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'L'oiseau et l'enfant' / 'On garde toujours'
Level 42 was founded in 1979 by Mark King, Mike Lindup, Rowland Gould and Phil Gould. 'Hot water' was a single taken from their fifth album 'True colours'. The single was a big hit in the Netherlands, peaking at number 3. By comparison, it fared worse in the UK, where it only got to number 18.
When this single charted, it was played on the radio so often that I didn't need to buy the single. I went on to buy some Level 42 singles in the Nineties, but this one never got into my collection. On my birthday in 2007, my wife (who was then still my girlfriend) gave me this single, which she'd gotten from a Kringloop store while looking around there. It was really funny, because I don't think she knew I didn't have this yet and probably had no clue what this song sounded like. I'm glad to have it now.
My collection: 7" single no. 3614 Found: Birthday present, Den Haag, August 31, 2007 Cost: nothing Tracks: 'Hot water' / 'Standing in the light'
As Genesis had been recording and touring constantly in 1977 and 1978, it was decided by the members Tony Banks, Phil Collins, and Mike Rutherford to take the majority of 1979 off. Banks and Rutherford started working on solo material, while Collins made an attempt to save his marriage by following his wife to Canada. This didn't work, and so Collins returned to the UK and started working on solo material of his own, as well as new songs for Genesis.
'Turn it on again' appeared on their comeback album 'Duke' (1980) and subsequently became a live favourite. It peaked at number 8 in the UK, whereas it only made number 38 in the Netherlands.
My collection: 7" single no. 52
Found: Rapsody, Den Haag, 1980
Cost: 3,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Turn it on again' / 'Behind the lines part 2'
Kenny Young is an American songwriter who has been active as writer, artist and producer since 1963. In 1988, he was the founder member of the group Gentlemen without weapons. They released one album, 'Transmissions', from which this single was taken.
The album was unique because it used no instruments, only samples of animal noises. The point being that Young wanted to draw attention towards environmental awareness. The unique album was accompanied by a video produced by Pink Floyd's art director Storm Thorgeson, who also designed the album and single covers.
My collection: 7" single no. 766
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, March 16, 1989
Cost: 3,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Unconditional love (Planet earth)' / 'The way of the dodo'
The European release of 'Hey little girl' was different from the UK one. At least, that's what I concluded after I found this copy. And it wasn't just the sleeve, either: the single was pressed on clear vinyl, the title track was shorter than the one on the single I already had and the B-side was a different track as well.
'Hey little girl' peaked at number 17 in the UK, whereas in the Netherlands it got to number 13. Perhaps the European release was slightly better than the UK one? Well, I don't know, I always think that quality has nothing to do with popularity in the charts...
Candy Flip were a British electronic dance band associated with the Madchester music scene in the early Nineties. They were named after the slang term for the practice of taking ecstasy and LSD at the same time. The band consisted of Danny Spencer, Kelvin Andrews and Ric Peet.
The band reached number 3 in the UK singles chart with their electronic cover version of the Beatles' 'Strawberry fields forever' in 1990. The track sampled the drum beat from the track 'Funky Drummer' by James Brown. Candy Flip split up in 1992.
My collection: 7" single no. 2216
Found: Concerto, Amsterdam, November 14, 1994
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Strawberry fields forever' / 'Can you feel the love'
Henk Hofstede and Alex Roelofs formed the Nits in 1974 together with Michiel Peters and Rob Kloet. They participated in a contest a year later and won a recording contract with Dureco Records as a result. Their debut single 'Yes or no' was featured in the popular TV programme Toppop, but the limited availability of the single caused it to flop.
The band performed live a lot, and contributed 'Tutti Ragazzi' to a compilation album made by the Dutch magazine Oor. Manager Aad Link was very interested in the band and arranged a new contract with record company CBS. The album 'Tent' was released in 1979, and the single 'Tutti Ragazzi' was taken from it. It entered the Dutch Top 40 in February 1980, and peaked at number 31. It was the Nits' first hit.
Cathy Dennis was born as Catherine Roseanne Dennis on March 25, 1969 in Norwich, England. As a teenager she was spotted recording demos at The Kitchen in Norwich. Simon Fuller signed her to his 19 Management company and to label Polydor at age 17. A successful career in music followed.
'Falling' was the third single from Cathy's second album 'Into the skyline'. The track was remixed for the single release by the then-popular band PM Dawn. It peaked at number 32 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 2667
Found: Record fair, Leeds, June 30, 1996
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Falling (PM Dawn version)' / 'Nothing moves me'
Club House was an Italian disco and house music studio group from Italy. They had a big hit in 1983 with their medley of two hits: the then-current 'Billie Jean' by Michael Jackson and the oldie 'Do it again' by Steely Dan. These days, a track like this would be called a mashup. The single got to number 9 in the Dutch Top 40 in the summer of 1983. They also made the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 75.
I recorded the track from the radio back in 1983 - and now, a quarter of a century later, I decided to do the honorable thing and get the single as well. On discount, of course. It's not that good.
My collection: 7" single no. 3611
Found: Kringloop Holland, Den Haag, March 21, 2009
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Do it again with Billie Jean' / 'Infusion'
'Don't let it get you down' was the third single by Echo & the Bunnymen after three band members Ian McCulloch, Will Sergeant and Les Pattinson reformed the band in 1997. The single was released in three different formats and peaked at number 50 in the UK singles chart. The 7" single was the only format to contain the demo version of 'Don't let it get you down'.
I didn't buy any Echo & the Bunnyman singles previously, and only got this one because it was playing in the shop. I thought it was a nice song, so I snapped up the 7" single.
My collection: 7" single no. 2904
Found: HMV, London, October 30, 1997
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Don't let it get you down' / 'Don't let it get you down (demo)'
The story of this single is similar to the one about 'Nasty girl': both Vanity 6 singles I owned were deleted from my collection in an act of revisionism. I always regret getting rid of singles - although I do confess I've shed no tears about the Dutch-language singles I've gotten rid of in the Eighties.
'He's so dull' is significantly less exciting that 'Nasty girl', but I still couldn't resist buying it again - especially since it was so cheap. I've got a feeling I won't be playing this one much, but at least I won't be missing this one from my collection anymore. Sometimes having a single is just about enough.
While Europe got an English-language version of 'Hallelujah' in 1979, after Milk & Honey won the 1979 Eurovision Song Contest, France got their own release of this song. The single featured a French and Hebrew version of the song. Especially the French version is a rarity, since it was released in France only.
I ordered this single from France, since I never saw it here. I'm currently in the process of compiling alternate language versions of Eurovision winners on cd, and most of them appear on websites for download - but this one is extremely hard to find.
My collection: 7" single no. 3610 Found: eBay, France, received March 20, 2009 Cost: 3 euro Tracks: 'Alléluia (Version française)' / 'Alléluia (Version hebraique)'
Harvey Glenn Milstead was born on October 19, 1945. He started out as an actor, playing in various theatre pieces in New York in the Seventies. He also played in several movies in the Seventies and Eighties. Meanwhile, he had a successful music career, singing hi-energy disco music as a drag queen named Divine. His initial singles were produced by Bobby Orlando. The synth-heavy music was also composed, created and performed by Bobby 'O'.
'Shoot your shot' was his biggest hit in the Netherlands, peaking at number 3 in 1983. Divine died on March 7, 1988 as a result of heart failure.
My collection: 7" single no. 3612
Found: Kringloop Holland, Den Haag, March 21, 2009
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Shoot your shot' / 'Shoot your shot (instrumental)'
This orchestral rock song was released by the Babys in early 1978. It didn't chart in the UK, where only the earlier single 'Isn't it time' made it into the chart, but in the Netherlands they peaked at number 17 in the Dutch Top 40. It's not their best chart performance: two other singles made it into the top 10.
Subtitled 'Jeanny part 2, one year later', this single was released as a sequel to Falco's big hit 'Jeanny'. The single was later said to be part of a trilogy. A third song, however, was never officially released. After Falco's death, a half finished version of a potential third song was made available for download, but it seemed to be a reworked version of the original with an alternative newsflash, designed to change the entire context of the song.
'Coming home' is a more straightforward song than 'Jeanny' was, with a more upbeat stance to it. It may be the explanation why it wasn't a big hit: the song was probably not intriguing enough like 'Jeanny' was.
My collection: 7" single no. 1819
Found: Record Palace, Amsterdam, January 13, 1993
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Coming home (Jeanny part 2, One year later)' / 'Crime time'
The thing I like most about my record collection is that I've got some singles from strange countries. And this one is from a country that doesn't even exist anymore: the German Democratic Republic, otherwise known as East Germany. There have been some fascinating documentaries about life in that country recently, but there's not so much information about the state record company Amiga.
Which is why this EP is pretty hard to find background information on. It contains cover versions of four hits from the year 1981. 'Bette Davis Eyes', originally by Kim Carnes, Kim Wilde's 'Chequered love', 'Hands up' , originally by Ottawan and Abba's well-known song 'Lay all your love on me'. I bought this EP when I saw it because of the cover of 'Chequered love'. Interestingly, Petra Zieger is still in the music business these days as a singer of German Schlagers. That's a long way from this 'painting by numbers' cover of 'Chequered love'.
The quality of the vinyl leaves a bit to be desired, but the tracks are incredibly rare.
My collection: 7" single no. 2925
Found: Record fair, Rotterdam, December 13, 1997
Cost: 5 guilders
Tracks: 'Bette Davis Eyes' (Familie Silly), 'Chequered love' (Petra Zieger) / 'Hands up' (Cantus Chor), 'Lay all your love on me' (Cantus Chor)
White Lion is an American/Danish glam metal band that formed in New York City in 1983 by Danish vocalist Mike Tramp and American guitarist Vito Bratta. They recruited Nicki Capozzi and Felix Robinson to complete the line-up. However, both of them left the band soon. Capozzi was then replaced by Greg d'Angelo and Robinson by James LoMenzo.
Their first and only hit in the Netherlands was the lengthy rock song 'Cry for freedom', taken from the 1989 album 'Big game'. I remember hearing it in the school canteen one afternoon and thinking it was a nice song. Soon after, I bought the single. I can't say I've played it much, though...
The second single from the Fine Young Cannibals' debut album was 'Blue', released in the autumn of 1985. It fared significally less well than the debut single, 'Johnny come home'. It was only a hit in the UK and Australia, peaking at number 41 and 13 respectively. It would take a cover of the song 'Suspicious minds' to get the band back in the international consciousness a few months later.
This double single features a second disc with an alternative version of 'Blue' and a cover version of the track 'Love for sale'. The band would re-record this track for the 'Red Hot & Blue' compilation album a few years later.
My collection: 7" single no. 3464
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 22, 2008
Cost: 1,25 euro
Tracks: 'Blue' / 'Wade in the water' // 'Blue (version)' / 'Love for sale'
Nicole recorded various versions of the song that gave her victory in the 1982 Eurovision Song Contest, 'Ein Bisschen Frieden'. On this blog, you've already seen 'En smule fred' and 'Een beetje vrede', and now here's the French version, 'La paix sur terre'. The B-side is also performed in French.
I spent some time trying to find this single, and of course I found it after some time on eBay. It's just about the only place to find rare singles these days. There are a few more versions, but they are even harder to find. I'm still looking for the Spanish and Italian singles...
My collection: 7" single no. 3608
Found: eBay, France, received March 20, 2009
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'La paix sur terre' / 'Thank you, merci, danke'
The sleeve of this single proclaims that the songs are being performed by 'The Mo'. They were a new band at that time, but later they would be known as 'Mo'. As you can see, this is a rather simplistic sleeve. The 'Back Door' image comes from the record label, and on the back there's only an advert for starting bands to send their demos to Back Door.
For a debut single, 'Nancy' is a pretty impressive effort. The single stalled just outside the Dutch Top 40. But Mo would have some chart success later in their career.
Albano Carrisi was born on May 20, 1943. Romina Power was born October 2, 1951 in Los Angeles. They met during the filming of the movie 'Nel Sole', named after one of his songs, in 1967. The two married on July 26, 1970 in Cellino San Marco. Together, the couple shot seven films, based on their songs, between 1967 and 1983.
The duo broke a record in Italy in 1982 with four songs being the Italian hit parade at the same time. In the same year they participated in the San Remo Music Festival with the song 'Felicità' and came in second place. They sold 6 million copies of the song in Germany and also reached number 10 in the Netherlands with the single.
My collection: 7" single no. 2966 Found: Record fair, February 9, 1998
Nothing beats a good instrumental track from time to time. This 'golden oldie' appeared as background music in a commercial on a local radio station I listened to a lot during the Eighties. In time, I found out the name and artist behind the music, and then I found out that it was actually released when I was just born.
