The sun ain't gonna shine anymore - The Walker Brothers

'The sun ain't gonna shine anymore' was written by Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio. It was originally released as a single by Frankie Valli in 1965. Although it was recorded with his group the Four Seasons, it was released as his first solo single in over a decade.

In 1966, the Walker Brothers released their cover version of the song. This version had a lot more success than Valli's original, reaching the singles charts all over the world. The single peaked at number 13 in the US Billboard Hot 100, number 9 in the Dutch Top 40 and number 1 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 1071
Found: London, October 19, 1989
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'The sun ain't gonna shine anymore' / 'My ship is coming in'

Love scenes - Beverley Craven

Beverley Craven released her second album 'Love scenes' in 1993, after giving birth to her first daugher, Mollie. This experience ended up being part of the subject matter on that album, unfortunately, with the track 'Mollie's song' as the most unfortunate result.

The title track was released as the album's first single, and it was also the last single to be released on the 7" vinyl format. Subsequent singles 'Mollie's song' (yes, I couldn't believe it either) and 'The winner takes it all' (a cover of the Abba track) were only released on cd-single. 'Love scenes' reached number 34 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 1996
Found: London, October 18, 1993
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Love scenes' / 'Blind faith'

This feeling - Sam Brown

'This feeling' was the third single taken from Sam Brown's debut album 'Stop!'. The track features a beautiful guitar solo by Pink Floyd's David Gilmour. 'This feeling' was remixed for the single, which in fact didn't really make it much better, but it was shorter and that was probably the most important thing for the record company.

It didn't help matters much: the single stalled at number 91 in the UK singles chart, although it did manage to reach number 28 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 691
Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, October 1, 1988
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'This feeling' / 'Soldiers'

I should be so lucky - Kylie Minogue

I never shy away from a good debate, especially when it takes place on this blog. So when Jos asked me why in God's name I bought singles by Risqué, I can't help but reply (while of course respecting the fact that there is no accounting for tastes, indeed). Within my collection there are certainly some artistic highs and lows. I love the good, the bad and the ugly. But most of all, I like pop. And it's true, a lot of pop music is not sung by the ones on the sleeve (and when it is, it is usually 'polished' in the studio), the music comes from session musicians - but it is always produced well. Does it matter that the guys from Milli Vanilli or Boney M didn't sing their stuff themselves? I think not; 'Daddy cool' and 'Ma Baker' are still pop classics.

All this to conceal that I bought a lot of Kylie Minogue singles - after she became 'cool' when she started working with Manic Street Preachers in 1995. So did she sing this debut single herself? I think so - it sounds irritating enough. But look here: two decades on, she's a star. And she's already performed this very song in about ten different arrangements - including a ballad and a variety showband version. Creativity knows no boundaries.

My collection: 7" single no. 3316
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, March 24, 2001
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'I should be so lucky' / 'I should be so lucky (instrumental)'

Motorcycle emptiness - Manic Street Preachers

The Manic Street Preachers formed in 1986. Members were James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire, Sean Moore and Richey Edwards. Edwards mysteriously vanished on February 1, 1995. Nothing was ever heard from him again. To this day, it is still one of the big mysteries of rock.

Before all that, the band released their debut album 'Generation terrorists' in 1992. 'Motorcycle emptiness' was the fifth single taken from that album and it became the biggest hit, reaching number 17 in the UK singles chart and number 24 in the Dutch Top 40 - their first and only hit in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 1696
Found: Melody Maker, August 15, 1992
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Motorcycle emptiness' / 'Bored out of my mind'

Is there something I should know - Duran Duran

'Is there something I should know?' was recorded in December 1982 in London. It was released as a non-album single, although in the USA the track was added to the 1983 reissue of the band's debut album 'Duran Duran'.

In the UK, the single became the band's first number one hit. It reached number 4 in the US Billboard Hot 100 in August 1983. In the Dutch Top 40, the single reached number 14, their first hit in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 1806
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, January 9, 1993
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Is there something I should know?' / 'Faith in this colour'

Sylvia's mother - Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show

The lyric of the song 'Sylvia's mother' tells the story of a man trying to say one last goodbye to his ex-girlfriend but unable to get past her mother, who tries to interfere. It was released in 1972 by Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show, a band that would become one of the coolest bands of the Seventies - although in later decades they would come to represent everything that was reprehensable about that era.

'Sylvia's mother' was their first hit, reaching number 5 in the US Billboard Hot 100, number 2 in the UK singles chart and number 3 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 304
Found: Parkpop, Den Haag, June 30, 1985
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Sylvia's mother' / 'Makin' it natural'

Monkey - George Michael

Released in the summer of 1988, 'Monkey' was the fifth single taken from George Michael's debut solo album 'Faith'. The single version was remixed by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who at the time were very successful with Janet Jackson's 'Control' album and its singles. Compared to the album version, the track sounded a lot livelier and 'fuller'.

In the US, this single was George Michael's fourth consecutive number 1 hit, joining the likes of Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston as three artists that all had four or more number one hits from one album. In the UK, the single was less successful, peaking at number 13, whereas in the Netherlands it reached number 6. At the time of release, I only bought the cd-single, but in 1995 I corrected this painful mistake and still got the 7" single.

My collection: 7" single no. 2488
Found: House of Rhythm, London, October 30, 1995
Cost: 60p
Tracks: 'Monkey' / 'Monkey (Acapella)'

Golden brown - The Stranglers

According to Hugh Cornwell from the Stranglers, ''Golden Brown' works on two levels. It's about heroin and also about a girl'. Essentially the lyrics describe how 'both provided me with pleasurable times'. In an other interview drummer Jet Black quipped it was a song about Marmite. Even if harddrugs aren't your thing, this song is still worth listening to.

Released in December 1981, the single reached number 2 in the UK singles chart and number 8 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 2586
Found: Record fair, Rotterdam, December 23, 1995
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Golden brown' / 'Love 30'

Be my baby - Vanessa Paradis

In 1992 Vanessa Paradis moved to the United States, aged just 20. For some time, she was romantically linked with Lenny Kravitz, who also produced her first English language album, also released in 1992.

The album topped the French album chart and even reached number 45 in the UK albums chart. The first single taken from the album was the retro-sounding 'Be my baby', which made number 5 in France, number 6 in the UK singles chart and number 7 in the Dutch Top 40 - her only top 10 hit in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 1746
Found: HMV, London, October 19, 1992
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Be my baby' / 'The future song'

Wild horses - Gino Vannelli

Gino Vannelli sounds a lot like a crooner on this song, although 'Wild horses' is very much an eighties production. The single was taken from his 1987 album 'Big dreamers never sleep'. It was his last hit in the Netherlands, peaking at number 7 in May 1987.

I'd all but forgotten this single when I suddenly heard it again sometime in 1991. I thought it was really very good and started hunting. Within a couple of weeks, I'd found my copy.

My collection: 7" single no. 1409
Found: Grammofoonwinkel, Utrecht, April 3, 1991
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Wild horses' / 'Shape me like a man'

Is dit nou later - Stef Bos

Stef Bos was born in Veenendaal, the Netherlands on July 12, 1961. He moved to Antwerp, Belgium in 1984 and has been living there ever since. After working with Ingeborg on her 1989 Eurovision Song Contest entry 'Door de wind', he released his debut solo album 'Is dit nu later' ('So is this later') in 1990. The title track was his debut single.

The lyric of the song is based on the idea that children are promised that the world is at their feet later, when they're all grown up. The singer states that his diploma is full of lies, stating that he's an adult who knows the truth, when in reality he doesn't understand life at all. There's an anger in this song that I've always been able to relate to very well.

My collection: 7" single no. 1908
Found: Groningen, May 15, 1993
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Is dit nou later' / 'M'n hart gevolgd'

While you see a chance - Steve Winwood

If Steve Winwood has a signature song, this is probably it. One of the song's most iconic features, its keyboard introduction, was not originally intended to be part of the song. The track was thrown together fairly quickly after Winwood discovered that he had accidentally deleted his intended drum track introduction while preparing for vocals. He wrote a new introduction on the spot as a replacement.

The single was taken from Winwood's album 'Arc of a diver' (1980) and peaked at number 7 in the US Billboard Hot 100, number 45 in the UK singles chart and number 10 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 2728
Found: September 7, 1996
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'While you see a chance' / 'Vacant chair'

The boy in the bubble - Paul Simon

In 1985, Paul Simon heard a recording of the Boyoyo Boys, which inspired him to make the album 'Graceland', an unusual sounding record incorporating pop, acapella, rock and African music. In fact it might be the first so-called 'World music' mainstream album. In 1986, the album was released to critical and commercial acclaim.

The most successful single from the album was 'You can call me Al', a top 10 hit in several countries. This single, 'The boy in the bubble' was lesser known. Personally I like the odd sound of this track, and the video for it was also interesting eye candy.

My collection: 7" single no. 2798
Found: December 14, 1996
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'The boy in the bubble' / 'Hearts and bones'

Soul passing through soul - Toyah

Released in June 1985, 'Soul passing through soul' was the second solo single by Toyah Willcox. Although Toyah was originally the name of her band (1979-1983), she continued with that name even when she went solo. Well, it was her own first name after all.

While 'Don't fall in love', her first solo single, had been a success, peaking at number 27 in the UK singles chart, this one only reached number 57. Personally I think this is the stronger of the two - even the B-side is very good.

My collection: 7" single no. 3108
Found: Big Company Records, London, May 13, 1999
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Soul passing through soul' / 'All in a rage'

Waterfalls - Paul McCartney

I don't know why, but I've always thought that this sleeve is a very beautiful one. It's one of those illustrations that keep impressing me, even after all these years. The song itself is equally beautiful. It was taken from McCartney's first solo album after Wings disbanded, 'McCartney II'.

The single reached number 9 in the UK singles chart in 1980. But when he was asked which of his single he wished were more successful, McCartney answered, 'There's quite a few, actually... 'Waterfalls', I think is nice.'

My collection: 7" single no. 624
Found: Parkpop, Den Haag, June 26, 1988
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Waterfalls' / 'Check my machine'

Young heroes - Kim Wilde

I don't buy many Kim Wilde singles anymore, since my collection is fairly complete. But sometimes a rare item pops up, and I have to have it. I was lucky to find this one for a fairly reasonable price - and that's including the price I had to pay for flying it over from the country where it was made!

'Young heroes' is a track from Kim Wilde's 1981 debut album. That album was released in America in 1982, so I guess it's logical that this single, made in Peru, came out in 1983. 'Young heroes' was not a single in any other country, although a flexi disc from Russia also exists. But that one is without a B-side, and this one is.

My collection: 7" single no. 4010
Found: eBay.com, received August 25, 2009
Cost: 13 euro
Tracks: 'Young heroes' / 'Our town'

Always something there to remind me - Naked Eyes

I had the 12" single of 'Always something there to remind me' by Naked Eyes years before I found the 7" single. The track was produced by Tony Mansfield, of New Musik fame.

Released in July 1983, this single became the only (minor) hit for Naked Eyes in the UK. It peaked at number 59 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 3075
Found: Beanos, East Croydon, London, May 10, 1999
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Always something there to remind me' / 'Pit stop'

I will follow (live) - U2

In 1982, a relatively new band called U2 performed live in the Netherlands. The performance was recorded by Veronica, a Dutch broadcaster. When their recording of 'I will follow' was played a few times on the radio, the demand was so big that it was released as a single.

This live recording became U2's first hit in the Netherlands, peaking at number 12 in the Dutch Top 40 in September 1982. And all the rest is history...

My collection: 7" single no. 2973
Found: March 1, 1998
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'I will follow (live)' / 'Gloria (live)'

Knolraap en lof, schorseneren en prei - Drs. P

Today is the 90th birthday of Heinz Polzer, better known as drs. P. in the Netherlands. (Foreign readers are probably looking away now.) He became best known for his songs 'Veerpont' and 'Dodenrit'. Released more recently, in 1987, 'Knolraap en lof, schorseneren en prei' ('Turnips and chicory, salsify and leeks') narrowly missed the Dutch Top 40, but it also rather wellknown these days.

Drs. P. has always sought his challenge in writing poetic lyrics about unpoetic subjects. The 'Tuindersliedboek' ('Songbook for gardeners') contains loads more poems about fruit and vegetables. See the dossier about drs. P. from the National library of the Netherlands for more information about drs. P.

My collection: 7" single no. 1153
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, January 19, 1990
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Knolraap en lof, schorseneren en prei' / 'Olijf', 'Het land is moe'