Woman to woman - Beverley Craven

'Woman to woman' was released as the third single from Beverley Craven's self-titled debut album. Just like 'Promise me' and 'Joey' before it, this single did not chart in the UK. But the single also didn't chart in the Netherlands.

All this despite a rather attractive B-side, a new track that didn't appear on the album. It seemed Craven's career was off to a rough start.

My collection: 7" single no. 1438
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, May 11, 1991
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Woman to woman' / 'Everything but the blues'

Take me (Heart and soul) - Sad Café

The English soft rock band Sad Cafe was very successful in the late Seventies, but during the Eighties they faded more and more into obscurity. What made matters worse was that band member Paul Young joined the side project of Genesis member Mike Rutherford, Mike & the Mechanics.

Paul Young re-joined Sad Cafe in the late Eighties, splitting his time between the two bands. Sad Cafe released the album 'Whatever it takes' in 1989, from which this unsuccessful single was taken.

My collection: 7" single no. 971
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, August 29, 1989
Cost: 3,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Take me (Heart and soul)' / 'Universe'

Don't cry for me Argentina - Julie Covington

The musical 'Evita', written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, began life as an album before ever taking form on the British stage. Julie Covington first sang 'Don’t cry for me Argentina' for the original 1976 studio release. The single with the Julie Covington recording reached number 1 in the UK singles chart and the Dutch Top 40.

Initially there had been concerns that the song sounded a little too boring for commercial chart success - despite being considered to be the best song to promote the album. There was so much concern that Julie Covington even recorded a version with alternative lines, however in the end the original version was released for the single.

My collection: 7" single no. 661
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, October 1, 1988
Cost: 1 guilders
Tracks: 'Don't cry for me Argentina' / 'Rainbow high'

Love comes quickly - Pet Shop Boys

'Love comes quickly' was released as the third single from the Pet Shop Boys' debut album 'Please'. Although it was a top 20 hit in the UK, its chart performance was disappointing, given that it followed the worldwide number one, 'West end girls'. The song is about the inevitability of falling in love, even for those who deliberately shun the idea.

The B-side, 'That's my impression' was written in a basement in Camden Town (London) where the duo wrote all their early songs. Neil Tennant commented: 'When we'd written the music, I took the words of a song I'd written in the Seventies and just changed them to fit the tune. Rather enigmatic words.'

My collection: 7" single no. 420
Found: V&D, Den Haag, June 28, 1986
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Love comes quickly' / 'That's my impression'

Rockin' back inside my heart - Julee Cruise

'Rockin' back inside my heart' was released as the second single from Julee Cruise's 1989 debut album 'Floating into the night'. David Lynch wrote the lyrics for the song and Angelo Badalamenti composed the music.

The song was featured prominently in the long-anticipated Twin Peaks episode in which the killer of Laura Palmer was finally revealed after a year of anxious, media-driven anticipation. The single, meanwhile, was a modest hit in the UK singles chart, stalling at number 66.

My collection: 7" single no. 1935
Found: Concerto, Amsterdam, July 9, 1993
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Rockin' back inside my heart (edit)' / 'Falling'

Tell me tomorrow - Princess

Released in May 1986, 'Tell me tomorrow' was the last UK top 40 hit for Princess, peaking at number 34. The track was again produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman, the hottest pop producers at the time. Princess would have two more chart hits, but in the lower regions of the UK singles chart.

The B-side single contains the original demo version of her biggest hit, the debut single 'Say I'm your number one'.

My collection: 7" single no. 461
Found: V&D, Den Haag, 1986
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Tell me tomorrow' / 'Say I'm your number one (original demo)'

Under the gun - Sisters of Mercy

Lord of darkness Andrew Eldritch invited Terri Nunn for vocals on this single, the ominous 'Under the gun'. Nunn is best known for her work in the band Berlin.

'Under the gun' was a new track on the compilation album 'A slight case of overbombing: greatest hits vol. 1' (1993). The single reached number 19 in the UK singles chart, and was the last hit single for the band.

My collection: 7" single no. 2007
Found: HMV, London, October 18, 1993
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Under the gun' / 'Alice (1993)'

Ann-Maria - Luv'

Luv' released their seventh consecutive hit single in February 1980. The girl trio were doing great business, performing live wherever they could and appearing in almost every TV programme in the Netherlands.

This single was a Mexican-flavoured popsong, using all the cliches of mariachi bands and the like. The single peaked at number 11 in the Dutch Top 40 and also appeared in several European charts. On the sleeve, the girls looked rather posh.

My collection: 7" single no. 33
Found: Wouters, Den Haag, 1980
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Ann-Maria' / 'Flash'

Maxou - Vanessa Paradis

I saw the music video for Vanessa Paradis' single 'Maxou' a couple of times in 1988 or 1989, and the song always stuck in my mind. The video was very cute (although it is a bit risqué with all those sensual images of a very young girl) and the music was very beautiful.

After I'd found the cd of the album 'M&J' I started searching for the 7" singles as well. In the Netherlands they were very difficult to get a hold of, because Paradis was a star in France only after her international hit 'Joe le taxi'. But I succeeded. The single also contains the best album track on the B-side.

My collection: 7" single no. 2262
Found: Record fair, April 8, 1995
Cost: 7 guilders
Tracks: 'Maxou (remix)' / 'Le bon dieu est un marin'

I wanna get back with you - Tom Jones featuring Tori Amos

Tom Jones had just had a reasonable hit with the atrocious 'If I only knew' when he released this duet with Tori Amos as the second single from his 1994 album 'The lead and how to swing it'. It was a smart move: Tori Amos had just become the hottest thing since sliced bread and the appeal to a younger audience would be massive... or so the record company must have thought.

The single did not chart, which is quite logical when you hear the stuff that Diane Warren has composed and written. Warren has a monopoly on cliched pop ballads. Sometimes they are effective, in that audiences fall for it, but this time around, they didn't.

My collection: 7" single no. 2260
Found: Record fair, April 8, 1995
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'I wanna get back with you' / 'If I only knew'

Snobbery and decay - Act

Not only do I have the 7" single of 'Snobbery and decay', I've got the 12" single too! Quite a feat, because these things became increasinly expensive during the Nineties, when record buyers were finally catching on to the phenomenon Act. According to Claudia Brücken: 'The whole idea was based on a programme called 'Lifestyles of the rich and famous'. That was when we discovered how much we wanted to write about that idea and what a great introduction it would be for Thomas and me to have a duet as a first single. Two characters talking about that whole thing.'

This 12" single also features a cover of 'I'd be surprisingly good for you' from the musical 'Evita', chosen according to Thomas Leer, because 'we both dislike Andrew Lloyd Webber intensely. We wanted to do something from a musical, something that was crap and that we could make great. It also fitted the idea of the package.'

My collection: 12" single no. 510
Found: ?
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'Snobbery and decay (That's entertainment)' / 'Poison', 'I'd be surprisingly good for you'

Dance away - Roxy Music

'Dance away' was released as the second single from Roxy Music's 1979 album 'Manifesto'. The single reached number 2 on the UK singles chart and number 6 in the Dutch Top 40. In the US Billboard Hot 100 the single reached number 44.

The record shop where I bought this single is one of my most vivid memories of a shop ever. The place stank of urine (probably from the dog who was walking around there), there were boxes with singles everywhere and the state of most of them was deplorable. I rescued a few titles I really wanted to have and got out of there. Pity I don't remember the name of the place...

My collection: 7" single no. 856
Found: Den Haag, May 27, 1989
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Dance away' / 'Cry cry cry'

Woman in chains - Tears for Fears

'Woman in chains' was the second single from Tears for Fears' 1989 album 'The seeds of love'. Band members Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith discovered Oleta Adams while she was singing in a seedy bar somewhere in America. They decided that she had to work with them on the album, and 'Woman in chains' was one of two tracks on which she appeared. The track features Phil Collins on drums.

Roland Orzabal explained about the lyric: 'The song is also about how men traditionally play down the feminine side of their characters and how both men and women suffer for it.... I think men in a patriarchal society are sold down the river a bit - okay, maybe we're told that we're in control but there are also a hell of a lot of things that we miss out on, which women are allowed to be.' The single peaked at number 26 in the UK singles chart and number 12 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 1115
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, November 17, 1989
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Woman in chains' / 'Always in the past'

In 't leven - Het Goede Doel

'In 't leven' ('In life') was the debut single of Het Goede Doel, a Dutch band formed by Henk Temming and Henk Westbroek. The lyric of the song described a one night stand, initiated by a woman who was interested in love nor money. The singer finds himself smelling the sweat of her body when he's eating a sandwich a few days later.

The single did not chart in the Dutch Top 40, despite repeated airplay in 1982, when it was released. Things turned out alright for the band: they would have a dozen hit singles during the Eighties.

My collection: 7" single no. 3761
Found: Marktplaats.nl, received June 3, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'In 't leven' / 'Alleen'

Same old story - Ultravox

Released in September 1986, 'Same old story' was the first single from Ultravox's final album in the classic line-up with Midge Ure, 'U-vox'. The band moved away from their previous synth-based pop songs and showcased a more rock-oriented sound on this single.

The single wasn't a big hit for the band, peaking at number 31 in the UK singles chart. This limited edition version of the single is a nice item: the outer pvc sleeve has stripes on it, with which you can make the inner sleeve 'invisible', i.e. just a green square and no letters.

My collection: 7" single no. 2457
Found: Record fair, September 9, 1995
Cost: 5 guilders
Tracks: 'Same old story' / '3'

The downtown lights - The Blue Nile

In 1989, the Scottish band The Blue Nile released their second album after five years of absence from the music scene. It was accepted by music critics with rave reviews, including a rare five-star rating from the UK's Q magazine.

The lead single from the album was 'The downtown lights', one of the few up-tempo tracks from the album. For the first time, the band reached the UK singles chart at number 67 during a one week chart run. The track was later covered by Annie Lennox on her second album 'Medusa'.

My collection: 7" single no. 990
Found: Tower Records, London, October 16, 1989
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'The downtown lights' / 'The wires are down'

Together forever - Rick Astley

'Together forever' was the fourth single from Rick Astley's debut album 'Whenever you need somebody'. The track was remixed for the single by Pete Hammond.

The single reached number 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and number 2 in the UK singles chart. In the Netherlands, the single reached number 12.

My collection: 7" single no. 2445
Found: September 2, 1995
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Together forever (Lover's leap remix)' / 'I'll never set you free'

I've got you under my skin - Neneh Cherry

In 1990, the album 'Red Hot and Blue' was released in order to raise funds for AIDS research. Twenty artists contributed cover versions of Cole Porter songs to the album. Neneh Cherry's version of 'I've got you under my skin' was released as the lead single from the album.

She did a rather creative cover version of the track, with some added raps and lyrics, a strong bassline and a little less melody. Still, the track stands up well. The single reached number 25 in the UK singles chart and number 14 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 2136
Found: Grammofoonwinkel, Utrecht, August 2, 1994
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'I've got you under my skin' / 'I've got you under my skin (instrumental)'

Get on your feet - Gloria Estefan

Such is the nature of my record collection, that I sometimes buy a single I moderately like when the limited edition version is attractive enough. This single came in a foldout box set with four postcards. The price was right, so I bought it.

'Get on your feet' is taken from Gloria Estefan's album 'Cuts both ways'. The single peaked at number 23 in the UK singles chart and number 12 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 2909
Found: Record Exchange, London, October 31, 1997
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Get on your feet' / '1, 2, 3 (live)'

Nothin' at all - Heart

'Nothin' at all' was the fourth single taken from Heart's self-titled 1985 album. It is a love song which describes a new relationship which falls into place without effort or conflict. The track was remixed for this single. In the remix, a vibrant alternate lead vocal take from Ann Wilson is featured with striking embellishments; Howard Leese's guitar solo is vastly different.

The single hit number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. It only managed to reach number 76 on the UK singles chart, but a reissue in 1988 managed to reach number 38. The B-side of this single is a rather curious choice: the track was taken from Heart's 1978 album 'Magazine'.

My collection: 7" single no. 2473
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, September 16, 1995
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Nothin' at all (remix)' / 'I've got the music in me'