Excerpt from 'A Teenage Opera' - Keith West

Mark Wirtz had been working on the idea for a rock opera since early 1967. The basic concept of 'A Teenage Opera' was of sketches of different characters who lived in a fantasy village. These stories were to be told by a young man to a young girl. Wirtz intended for the final project to be animated, and later compared it to the 'Yellow Submarine' by the Beatles.

The first song created was the story of Grocer Jack, the local grocer who was taken for granted until he died. Wirtz had the character of Jack in his imagination, but asked Keith West to write the lyrics for it. After West heard the music, he wrote the lyrics straightaway. Soon after, the single was recorded at Abbey Road Studios. The engineer, Geoff Emerick, was working with the Beatles, who were recording 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' at the time. The song was recorded in 'true stereo', a rarity at the time, with the latest technology available. The song itself featured a children's chorus, with singers from Corona Stage School.

The single was released on July 28, 1967, and it was one of the biggest hits of that summer. Rumours began circulating about the rest of the project. A further single, 'Sam', was released in October, but performed significantly worse in the charts. Wirtz meanwhile completed '(He's Our Dear Old) Weatherman', which had started out as 'The Paranoiac Woodcutter'. It was the most complex recording so far, containing more than 100 different sounds. However, like 'Sam', it received very little airplay. The project 'A Teenage Opera' was then shelved. However, in 1996 a cd was released by Wirtz with every track recorded over the years, intended for use in 'A Teenage Opera'.

My copy of the single 'Excerpt from A Teenage Opera' is housed in a Phonogram sleeve, whereas the single was released on the EMI label. Presumably the seller didn't have the original sleeve anymore. It didn't matter to me: I wanted to have this historic piece of music.

My collection: 7" single no. 3310
Found: Record fair, February 24, 2001
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Excerpt from 'A Teenage Opera'' (Keith West) / 'Theme from 'A Teenage Opera'' (Mark Wirtz Orchestra)
Download: here

Hey Manhattan! - Prefab Sprout

After 'When love breaks down' I thought I would follow every move of Prefab Sprout, but that didn't last for very long. They released 'Hey Manhattan!' in 1988, but I didn't find out about this song and many others until they released 'A life of surprises', a compilation album featuring all their greatest hits - and then some - in 1992.

So I bought quite a lot of their singles after this compilation album, and 'Hey Manhattan!' was one of them. I actually bought this limited edition with a full colour poster in England. I am always a sucker for special editions. And then there are few songs as beautifully produced as this one.

My collection: 7" single no. 2680

Found: Record Exchange, London, July 2, 1996

Cost: 1 pound

Tracks: 'Hey Manhattan!' / 'Tornado'

Download: here

Analogue (All I want) - A-ha

'Analogue (All I want)' was the second single taken from A-ha's most recent album 'Analogue' (2005). It was A-ha's first top 10 hit in the UK since 1988. The track was re-recorded and rewritten after an earlier version, 'Minor key sonata' had already been made for the album. Like the rest of the album, this early version was produced by Martin Terefe and mixed by Flood. Max Martin was brought in to turn 'Minor Key Sonata' into a more commercially viable track, with a catchier chorus and a less surreal lyric.

The picture disc 7" was produced as a very limited edition.

My collection: 7" single no. 3419

Found: HMV, London, 2005

Cost: 2 pounds

Tracks: 'Analogue (All I want)' / 'Case closed on silver shore'

Download: here

Let her down easy - Terence Trent d'Arby

Like many artists before him, Terence Trent d'Arby started making beautiful music when commercial success eluded him. Or is that the other way around? Whatever... 'Let her down easy' is a beautiful introspective ballad that should have been the biggest hit of his career. It still became a respectable top 20 hit in the UK, but in other countries, it failed to reach the charts.

My copy of the 7" single was pressed as a limited edition on white vinyl. I was happy to find a vinyl single at all, because in 1993 they became increasingly rare, with only the UK still producing them.

My collection: 7" single no. 2066

Found: January 29, 1994

Cost: 6 guilders

Tracks: 'Let her down easy' / 'Turn the page'

Download: here

Don't you love me anymore - Joe Cocker

Highly acclaimed by audiences and critics alike, Joe Cocker has used his ruined voice to build quite a career for himself. Starting out in 1968, he's had numerous worldwide hits including the Beatles cover 'With a little help from my friends', 'Up where we belong' (with Jennifer Warnes) and 'Unchain my heart'.

I've never been much of a Joe Cocker fan, for his voice is mostly irritating. On the melodramatic 'Don't you love me anymore', however, it is used quite effectively. Written by Diane Warren and Albert Hammond, you can't help but wonder why this poor man with almost no voice left was left out in the rain by a woman who, according to the lyric, 'used to hold [him] so close'. The extended version further drags out the misery, with the most terrible screams you will ever have heard. It's quite humorous, actually.

My collection: 12" single

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag

Cost: 2,5 guilders

Tracks: 'Don't you love me anymore (extended version)' / 'Tell me there's a way', 'Don't you love me anymore (single version)'

Download: here

Oxygene - Jean Michel Jarre

French composer Jean Michel Jarre composed, produced and performed 'Oxygene' in 1976 after he got inspired by a painting given to him by his future wife Charlotte Rampling. The painting was made by Michel Granger and showed the earth peeling to reveal a skull (This image also appears on the cover of the album).

'Oxygene' consists of six tracks, simply numbered I to VI. Part IV was released in edited form as a single. As is evident from the sleeve of the (French) single which I bought, the music was also used as a theme song for broadcasts of basketball games on the French channel Europe 1.


My collection: 7" single no. 1893
Found: May 2, 1993
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Oxygene IV' / 'Oxygene VI'
Download: here

Move away - Culture club

'Move away' was the first single drawn from Culture Club's 1986 album 'From luxury to heartache'. The recording sessions for this album dragged on for a long time because of singer Boy George's addiction to cocaine. Nevertheless, this single became a hit for the band, because it reached number 7 in the UK and number 12 in the USA.

Besides the regular 7" single, the record company released a collectable cd-sized picture disc in a cardboard cd-single-esque sleeve. The picture disc featured a photograph of band member Jon Moss. Both singles are pictured here: you will notice that the regular sleeve has purple blocks, where the cd-sized sleeve has green blocks.

My collection: 7" single no. 2248 / 5" single no. 2504

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, March 4, 1995 / House of Rhythm, London, October 30, 1995

Cost: 1 guilder / 1 pound

Tracks: 'Move away' / 'Sexuality'

Download: Album 'From luxury to heartache', including both tracks

The coldest days of my life - The Chi-lites

The intro of this song was used in the sappy Dutch radio programme 'Candlelight', in which a presenter with a deep, dark voice read out corny poems from listeners. The atmospheric, soft-focus track was recorded in 1972 by the Chi-lites, a group consisting of Eugene Record, Robert Lester, Creadel Jones and Marshall Thompson. Their most famous song is probably 'Have you seen her', a number three hit in the UK.

This single flopped in most territories, but reached number 47 in the US Billboard Hot 100. The single split the eight minute track in two parts.

My collection: 7" single no. 1847

Found: January 28, 1993

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'The coldest days of my life (part 1)' / 'The coldest days of my life (part 2)'

Download: here

Fred Astaire - Mo

'Fred Astaire' was the Mo's biggest hit in the Netherlands. It was released in January 1981 and reached number 18 in the Dutch Top 40. It was taken from the self-titled album 'Mo', which reached number 10 in the albums chart.

Ironically, out of all the Mo singles I have, it took me the longest time to buy this single. I couldn't remember how this song went, and when I finally did, the single didn't pop up in record stores and record fairs anymore. But in 2000 I succeeded in adding this one to my collection. It's a good thing, too: the B-side 'Band with bassoon' is just as good as the A-side.

My collection: 7" single no. 3220

Found: October 12, 2000

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'Fred Astaire' / 'Band with bassoon'

Download: here

The foolish thing to do - Heaven 17 featuring Jimmy Ruffin

Heaven 17 teamed up with Jimmy Ruffin to record this single, 'The foolish thing to do', in 1986. Ruffin was famous for the hit single 'What becomes of the broken hearted' and further hit singles recorded on the Motown label in the late Sixties and early Seventies, whereas Heaven 17 had had several hit singles in the first half of the eighties. Working together, they made a modern sounding soul song. Unfortunately, their effort wasn't rewarded by the audience: the single didn't chart anywhere.

For me, it was the first Heaven 17 single I ever bought. I quite resisted buying Heaven 17 singles because my sister was so into them. She was putting down my favourites, so it was only fair that I did the same with hers. But in the end, I couldn't resist this song.

My collection: 7" single no. 1408
Found: Concerto, Amsterdam, April 3, 1991
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'The foolish thing to do (version 1)' / 'My sensitivity (gets in the way)'
Download: here

Haunt me - Sade

In 1988, Sade released her third album, 'Stronger than pride'. As far as I knew, three singles were drawn from it: 'Love is stronger than pride', 'Paradise', 'Nothing can come between us' and 'Turn my back on you'. I was greatly surprised when I found this single, 'Haunt me', in 1996. It was the first and only time I saw it.

According to the information I got when I bought this single, it was released in Spain. However, the single was made in Holland, as the label says. A 12" single also exists, with the extended version of 'Make some room' on the B-side.

My collection: 7" single no. 2628

Found: Record fair, March 16, 1996

Cost: 10 guilders

Tracks: 'Haunt me' / 'Make some room'

Download: here

Luxemburg - The Good Cause

The Dutch group Het Goede Doel decided to try and forge an international career with this single, 'Luxemburg'. It was an English translation of 'België' ('Belgium'), their biggest hit in the Netherlands. Unfortunately, in the translation a lot of the humour of the original version had been lost. If only for the cultural fact that the Dutch tend to look down on their southerly neighbours, whereas no-one really has an opinion about Luxemburg.

After an appearance in a European broadcast (with this video), the single sunk without a trace. Still, it is kindof a collectors item in the Netherlands, because it wasn't released there.

My collection: 7" single no. 3018

Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, September 5, 1998

Cost: 5 guilders

Tracks: 'Luxemburg' / 'Bread and circuses (instrumental)'

Download: here

Dynamite - Mud

Mud was founded in 1968 by Rob Davis, Les Gray, Dave Mount and Ray Stiles. They were one of Britain's most successful glam rock bands, with three number one singles and eight further top 10 hits.

Even though 'Dynamite' only reached number 4 in the UK, it was a number 1 hit in the Netherlands in 1974. This is also how I found out about the band. Even though I was only four years old, I was watching the Dutch chart show Toppop every week, and my family still remembers how I kept requesting whether bands like the Sparks or Mud would return in that week's edition. I bought this single mostly for sentimental reasons. I didn't play it very often. I'd grown up, after all.

My collection: 7" single no. 1902

Found: Record fair, Den Haag, May 2, 1993

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'Dynamite' / 'Do it all over again'

Download: here

Alane - Wes

One of the most irritating songs of 1998 was 'Alane' by Wes - at least, that's my opinion. Not that a lot of people agreed: it was a top 10 hit in the Netherlands and reached number 11 in the UK singles chart.

Still, when I found out that there was a remix of this track by the Trouser Enthusiasts, it piqued my interest. I went hunting for this remix - but for some time I wasn't successful. Until I finally found a 12" single with the remix and a dub version. It makes a great dance track out of a stupid, boring song. Well, that's quite an achievement!

My collection: 12" single no. 415

Found: London, 2000

Cost: 5 pounds

Tracks: 'Alane (Trouser Enthusiasts Orgasmic Apparition Mix)' / 'Alane (Trouser Enthusiasts Spectrophiliac Dub)'

Download: here

Bandido - Azucar Moreno

The sisters Antonia and Encarnación Salazar formed Azucar Moreno (meaning 'brown sugar') in 1982. They signed with EMI Spain and recorded two albums, to moderate success in their home country. In 1988 they signed with CBS-Epic and relaunched their music with a bolder production style and matching sexier image.

In 1990 they represented Spain in that year's Eurovision Song Contest, taking place in Zagreb with this song, 'Bandido'. The start of their performance was marred by sound problems. Due to a tape technician not starting the pre-recorded backing track in time both the singers, their band and the live orchestra missed their cues. The song then started all over. Despite all this, 'Bandido' finished fifth. I bought the single as soon as I could. In those days, Eurovision songs - even the non-winning ones - still appeared in record shops around the corner...

My collection: 7" single no. 1234

Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, May 19, 1990

Cost: 6,5 guilders

Tracks: 'Bandido' / 'Bandido (Instrumental)'
Download: here

Waterfall - Triumvirat

Triumvirat formed in 1969 in Cologne (Germany). The founding members were Hans-Jürgen Fritz, Hans Bathelt and Werner Frangenberg. They started out by performing covers of chart hits, but then got influenced by progressive rock bands like the Nice and Emerson Lake and Palmer. So much so, that they were eventually called 'The German Emerson Lake and Palmer' in their home country.

Their 1979 album 'A la carte' signalled a change in direction, containing more pop-oriented songs. This single, 'Waterfall', was their first and only hit in the Netherlands, reaching number 37 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 372

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1985

Cost: 1 guilder

Tracks: 'Waterfall' / 'Jo Ann Walker'

Download: Album 'A la carte', including both tracks

Incredibly red - Esther Tuely

Esther Teule was born on October 30, 1963 in Vancouver, Canada. In the eighties she became a singer in the Dutch disco band the Novo Band. In 1991 she recorded her first (and only) solo album, the self-titled 'Esther Tuely'. 'Incredibly red' was the first single drawn from this album. It became a modest hit in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 1558

Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, 1991

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'Incredibly red' / 'Walk on'

Download: here

This man is mine - Heart

'This man is mine' was the first single to be released from Heart's sixth studio album, 'Private audition' (1982). The song is an ode to The Supremes. The single peaked at number 33 in the US Billboard Hot 100, but didn't chart in the UK and the Netherlands.

I knew Heart mostly for their earlier singles 'Magic man' and 'Crazy on you', so this song was very different from that material. I liked it instantly, though, and when I got a little older I was very happy to be able to buy this single.

My collection: 7" single no. 1100

Found: All that music, Leiden, November 11, 1989

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'This man is mine' / 'America'

Download: Album 'Private audition', including both tracks

Silly games - Lindy Layton

Lindy Layton was born on December 7, 1970. She was a founding member of the band Beats International, who scored a major hit with 'Dub be good to me' in 1990. While in Beats International, Lindy also launched a solo career. Her debut single was 'Silly games', a cover of a song originally recorded by Janet Kay in 1979. While Kay reached number 2 in the UK singles chart in 1979, Layton only managed number 22 in 1990.

My collection: 7" single no. 1721

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, October 3, 1992

Cost: 1 guilder

Tracks: 'Silly games' / 'Silly games (Classical groove)'

Download: here

Each and every one - Everything but the girl

Everything but the girl are a two person band, formed in Hull in 1982 by Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt. They released their debut album 'Eden' in 1984. It featured their first hit single, 'Each and every one', which reached number 28 in the UK and number 9 in the Netherlands.

I thought the song was intensely dull when it came out. Of course, there were a lot more interesting pop acts around at that time to grab my interest. So I only grew to like this song later, and it was at the end of the eighties that I finally bought this single.

My collection: 7" single no. 847

Found: Den Haag, May 27, 1989

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'Each and every one' / 'Laugh you out the house'

Download: here