Hot Chocolate frontman Errol Brown wrote 'Every 1's a winner', recorded and released as a single in 1978. It gave the band a number 6 hit in the USA and the Netherlands, while it peaked at number 12 in the UK singles chart.
I've known this song ever since it came out and I've owned it on a compilation double LP since 1979. It's taken me 30 years to find the 7" single.
My collection: 7" single no. 4295 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Every 1's a winner' / 'Power of love'
I've often said that one of the most appropriate songs for my funeral would be 'Down down' by Status Quo. And then I discovered I didn't actually have the song. Now that I've heard it, I still think it would be a great soundtrack to those final moments.
'Down down' was first released in November 1974. The track was taken from the album 'On the level'. The album version is more than 5 minutes long whereas the single version was edited to almost 4 minutes. The single was a number 1 hit in the UK, while peaking at number 2 in the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 4294 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Down down' / 'Night ride'
'Love's unkind' was produced by Giorgio Moroder, just like the album whence it came from, 'I remember yesterday'. The lyric of the song is a tribute to high school crushes and love triangles. It was a big hit in the UK singles chart, peaking at number 3, whereas it only reached number 32 in the Dutch Top 40.
Donna Summer looks decidedly pregnant on the sleeve of this single, but I think she's just wearing a very strange dress.
My collection: 7" single no. 4293 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Love's unkind' / 'Black lady'
'We are glass' was released in 1980 as the first single from his 1980 album 'Telekon'. While his previous album 'The pleasure principle' (1979) was recorded entirely without guitars, this new album did contain the instrument again. As Numan commented, 'getting rid of guitars had been a mistake'.
Numan has said that 'We are glass' was inspired by a comment from a magazine staffer: 'Somebody once told me, a man from Omni, said that he thought I'd been put here by... something... aliens or something, to carry out a cause... which I thought was very flattering but a little silly... 'We are glass' I wrote because of that, y'know, like all pop stars are put here for reasons'. The B-side was a version of the first movement of Erik Satie's 'Trois Gymnopedies', in an arrangement that added guitar, bass and synthesizer to the original's solo piano part. The single reached number 5 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 4292 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'We are glass' / 'Trois Gymnopedies (First movement)'
It doesn't happen often that I find an unknown single from a famous band, but here it is. 'Cross the line' was apparently released by Spandau Ballet as a single from their 1986 album 'Through the barricades'.
The B-side was a live track taken from the video 'Through the barricades... across the border'. The single did not chart in any territory and I didn't know about this release until I found this single last week. I think Spandau Ballet fans will not be surprised at this single, but I was.
My collection: 7" single no. 4291 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Cross the line' / 'Virgin (live)'
'After the love has gone' is another single by Princess produced and written by Stock, Aitken & Waterman.
Released in 1985 as the follow-up to her most successful single 'Say I'm your number one', it reached number 28 in the UK singles chart and number 24 in the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 4290 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'After the love has gone' / 'After the love has gone (Senza voce)'
At some point in the Eighties, the actors of the legendary TV series 'Dallas' decided they could sing as well as act. Patrick Duffy recorded a rather dodgy duet with Mireille Mathieu, whereas Audrey Landers launched a singing career, working with German producers.
And then there's Charlene Tilton (who played Lucy in the series), who also worked with a German producer, Heidi Brühl, to release 'C'est la vie' in 1984. The single reportedly reached number 1 in Germany. Unpretentious pop. No more, no less.
My collection: 7" single no. 4288 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'C'est la vie' / 'C'est la vie (instrumental)'
I wonder if there will ever be a deluxe re-release of Grace Jones' classic album 'Slave to the rhythm'. There's a plethora of remixes of the title track, but there aren't that many other bonus tracks.
It was quite interesting to find this single, the second one taken from the album. 'Jones the rhythm' is a less familiar single from 'Slave to the rhythm', primarily because it didn't chart. It features an edit of the album version, as well as a very interesting instrumental B-side track. 'Junkyard' is constructed in the same style as the album, and as such could easily be tacked on to the track listing. I do hope it happens someday.
My collection: 7" single no. 4287 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Jones the rhythm' / 'Junkyard'
'Nathan Jones' was originally released in 1971. The song was written by Leonard Caston and Kathy Wakefield and recorded by the Supremes, post-Diana Ross. The single reached number 5 in the UK singles chart and number 16 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
In 1988, Bananarama released their cover version of the song as a single. It was originally included on their 1987 album 'Wow!'. After Siobhan Fahey left the group and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan, they re-recorded the song for the single. This version reached number 15 in the UK singles chart, but did not chart in the USA.
My collection: 7" single no. 4286 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Nathan Jones' / 'Once in a lifetime'
When I bought this single, I suddenly realised that I didn't have any UK pressed 7" singles by Rupert Hine until now. 'Surface tension' was released in 1981 as a single from his third album 'Immunity'. The B-side, 'House arrest', would reappear as a track on his 1982 album 'Waving not drowning'.
Of course, this was another non-charting single for Rupert Hine. As successful as he is as a producer, as a performing artist he never got the recognition he deserves.
My collection: 7" single no. 4284 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Surface tension' / 'House arrest'
Mouth & MacNeal represented the Netherlands during the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with 'I see a star'. Composed by Hans van Hemert and Gerrit den Braber, the duo recorded the song in three languages: Dutch, English and German. This single contains the German version, and was released in German speaking countries.
The German translation was provided by Günther Behrle, whereas the B-side, the German versoin of 'Liefste' ('My Friend'), was translated by W. Mürmann. I don't know whether this version was a hit in any country.
My collection: 7" single no. 4273 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 3 euro Tracks: 'Ein gold'ner Stern' / 'Liebling'
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark formed in 1978, when childhood friends Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey, who had been in a few bands before, decided to play as a duo, using a Teac 4 track tape-recorder as backing.
They managed to released their debut single on the independent label Factory Records in 1979. 'Electricity' was supposed to be produced by Martin Hannett, but the A-side was the band's original demo, produced by their friend Paul Collister, owner of their Teac tape-recorder. The single's sleeve was designed by Peter Saville, who would continue to do the band's artwork throughout most of the Eighties. The unusual graphics that feature on the sleeve were partially inspired by Andy and Paul's original musical notation style. Unable to read or write music, they adapted a series of symbols, each one representing different instruments. The single did not chart, but the band subsequently went on tour supporting Gary Numan, which gave them enough exposure to warrant a debut album, released in 1980.
My collection: 7" single no. 4269 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Electricity' / 'Almost'
'Tricks of the light' was the second single taken from Mike Oldfield's 1984 album 'Discovery'. Vocals were performed by Barry Palmer and Maggie Reilly, who also appeared on the two previous singles: 'Crime of passion' and 'To France' respectively.
The single did not perform well in the charts: it only reached number 91 in the UK singles chart and number 46 in the German singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 4250 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 0,5 euro Tracks: 'Tricks of the light' / 'Afghan'
Just two years after the release of 'The day before you came' by Abba, the British duo Blancmange recorded and released a cover version of the song. While the original only reached number 32 in the UK singles chart, the Blancmange version managed to reach number 22. However, where the Abba version managed to chart all over Europe, the Blancmange single only charted in the UK.
It was their last significant hit, as subsequent Blancmange singles peaked at number 40 or lower in the UK singles chart. I didn't like this cover version in 1984, when it came out, but now I think it's a pretty decent version.
My collection: 7" single no. 4285 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'The day before you came' / 'All things are nice (version)'
China Crisis signed to Virgin records in 1982, releasing their debut album 'Difficult shapes & passive rhythms, some people think it's fun to entertain' in December of that year.
Their first hit in the UK was a re-release of 'African & White'. This song was originally released in 1981 on an independent label, but this Virgin release was a remix of the track. The single reached number 45 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 4283 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'African and white (remixed version)' / 'Red sails'
'Walkabout' was the fourth album by the Fixx, released in 1986. From this album, the single 'Secret separation' was taken. Like most singles by the band, it did not chart, although it was played often on the radio.
Personally I didn't know this single existed until I saw it and bought it recently. I did know the album very well, as my sister bought it in the late Eighties, and I recorded it and played it rather often at the time. So this was a really nice find.
My collection: 7" single no. 4282 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Secret separation' / 'Sense the adventure'
Vanessa Paradis debuted in 1987 with 'Joe le taxi', and then followed it up with 'Manolo Manolete', a song about a Spanish bullfighter. The single only managed to reach number 10 in the French singles chart, but flopped everywhere else.
As a result, the track did not appear on her debut album 'M&J', released in 1988.
My collection: 7" single no. 4281 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Manolo Manolete' / 'You you'
The height of Boney M's success was gone, vanished by the end of the Eighties. Still, someone thought it would be a good idea to release a 'Summer Megamix', consisting of their biggest summer hits: 'Sunny', 'Ma baker', 'Hooray! Hooray! It's a holi-holiday', 'Gotta go home' and 'Kalimba de luna'. The megamix was made by Michael Newman and Charles Key B, together with Pete Hammond from Pete Waterman Limited.
The single was, as far as I know, only released in France, peaking at number 11 in the French singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 4280 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'The summer megamix' / 'The calendar song'
Written by Michel Berger, 'Ella elle l'a' is a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald. France Gall, who was married to Berger, recorded the song for her 1987 album 'Babacar'.
The single reached number 2 in France. In Germany, it became a number 1 hit (which is rather rare for a French song), while in the Dutch Top 40, the single reached number 30.
My collection: 7" single no. 4279 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Ella elle l'a' / 'Dancing brave'
It's not always a bad life, being a pop star. Colin Blunstone not only has one of the best male voices in the industry, but for the sleeve of his single 'Touch' he also had to pose with a nude woman in his arms. That's not so bad, is it?
Released in February 1983, 'Touch' sounds a lot like an Imagination single. You would expect that this track was produced by Tony Swain and Steve Jolley as well, but it isn't - it was produced by one Peter Bardens, who also wrote the song. The single did not chart in any territory, which really is a shame.
My collection: 7" single no. 4278 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Touch' / 'Touch (instrumental)'
Hot Chocolate frontman Errol Brown wrote 'Every 1's a winner', recorded and released as a single in 1978. It gave the band a number 6 hit in the USA and the Netherlands, while it peaked at number 12 in the UK singles chart.
