Although they were not credited, 'Unconditional love' by Donna Summer also features vocals by the British reggae act Musical Youth, who had a hit a few months before the release of this single with 'Pass the Dutchie'.
'Unconditional love' was released as the second single from the Donna Summer album 'She works hard for the money'. It reached number 43 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 14 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 4571 Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, February 26, 2010 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Unconditional love' / 'Woman'
I wonder how many viewers of the American series 'Dallas' knew that Larry Hagman, who played J.R. in it, actually recorded a single. 'My favourite sins' stays true to the evil character he plays, while not taking it all too seriously. The result is a rather strange recording that is still a footnote in Hagman's career.
Released in 1980, at the height of the 'Dallas' hype, I don't know whether Hagman had serious singing aspirations or if he was pushed by the merciless need for merchandise. I'm hoping it was the latter...
My collection: 7" single no. 4595 Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, February 26, 2010 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'My favourite sins' / 'Ballad of the good luck charm'
Released as the follow-up to their debut single 'Break it up', 'One night stand' was Lois Lane's second single, and the second and last one of their five singles released by WEA records to not reach the Dutch Top 40.
This particular copy appears to be a mispressing: although the B-side is announced as 'Goodbye girl' on the label, it simply plays 'One night stand' once again.
My collection: 7" single no. 4576 Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, February 26, 2010 Cost: 1 euro Tracks (label): 'One night stand' / 'Goodbye girl' Tracks (disc): 'One night stand' / 'One night stand'
Chris Rea's 'The road to hell' was written about the frustrations of driving on the M25 during rush hour. It's strange how such a boring subject can lead to such a great song. It was the title track of his 1989 album, which featured two parts of the track.
Part 2 was released as a single. The single reached number 10 in the UK singles chart. In 2009, the song inspired the title of a crime novel by northeast author Sheila Quigley, 'The road to hell', the fifth book in the Seahills series of novels.
My collection: 7" single no. 4580 Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, February 26, 2010 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'The road to hell (part 2)' / 'He should know better'
At his best, Dingetje can be called the Weird Al Yankovic of the Netherlands. And this single represents one of his best parodies, which I have to admit didn't know existed. 'Een nacht in Mokum' translates as 'One night in Amsterdam', and is a parody of the Murray Head single 'One night in Bangkok', written by Tim Rice with Benny and Bjorn of Abba.
Dingetje describes a night out in the capital of the Netherlands in his version, using some elements from the original lyric, such as 'the massage parlours'. The single did not chart - and I have to say I've never seen it before.
My collection: 7" single no. 4585 Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, February 26, 2010 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Een nacht in Mokum' / 'Sukke heb ze'
Fra Lippo Lippi released three singles from their 1985 album 'Songs', of which 'Every time I see you' was the last. The track was remixed before it was released as a single, but the single version and the version on this 12" single are the same.
The bonus is included on the B-side. Besides the single B-side 'The heather on the hills', it adds another beautiful instrumental track, 'The true story'. This track was definitely worth the money for buying this disc.
My collection: 12" single no. 142 Found: Record Exchange, London, 1992 Cost: 1 pound Tracks: 'Every time I see you' / 'The true story', 'The heather on the hills'
'Looking for the summer' was a track on Chris Rea's 1990 album 'Auberge'. The album reached number 1 in the UK albums chart, however the three singles taken from the album wouldn't meet a similar fate in the singles chart.
The single version of 'Looking for the summer' was a remix, shorter and faster than the album version. It reached number 49 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 1511 Found: August 17, 1991 Cost: 2 guilders Tracks: 'Looking for the summer' / 'Six up'
'Sex & drugs & rock & roll' was written by Ian Dury and Chas Jankel in Dury's flat in Oval Mansions, London. According to Chas, he would be repeatedly given the lyric for the song by Dury but Jankel kept rejecting the song only for it to be at the top of the pile again the next time - only to be rejected again. This went on until Dury sung the song's guitar riff to Chas and sang the song's title in time with it.
Released as it was at the height of the popularity of punk rock, the song was misinterpreted as a song about excess as its title would suggest. Dury himself maintained that the song was not a punk anthem and said he was trying to suggest that there was more to life than a 9-to-5 existence.
My collection: 7" single no. 1738 Found: Out on the floor, London, October 18, 1992 Cost: 2 pounds Tracks: 'Sex & drugs & rock & roll' / 'Razzle in my pocket'
The nicest feature of this single is the sleeve: the label which carries a photograph of flowers is visible through a larger hole at the front, whereas the back cover is entirely brown and doesn't have a hole in it.
'That's all' is a group composition by Genesis with lyrics written by Phil Collins. Released as the second single from their self-titled 1983 album, it reached number 16 in the UK singles chart and number 6 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 1101 Found: All that music, Leiden, November 11, 1989 Cost: 4 guilders Tracks: 'That's all' / 'Taking it all too hard'
Released as the first single from the Jacksons' album 'Triumph', 'Lovely one' was the followup to their 1979 hit, 'Shak your body (down to the ground)'. Lead vocals in this song were performed by Michael Jackson, while his brothers Jackie, Tito, Randy and Marlon performed backing vocals.
The single reached number 12 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 29 in the UK singles chart and number 13 in the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 102 Found: Wouters, Den Haag, 1980 Cost: 3 guilders Tracks: 'Lovely one' / 'Bless his soul'
'Say it isn't so' was released as one of two new tracks on their greatest hits album 'Rock 'n' Soul part 1'. The song is about a love gone wrong and a fellow who asks his girl to "Say it isn't so".
When it was released as a single, it reached number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart at the turn of the year 1983/1984. In the UK, it did considerably less well, peaking at number 69. In the Netherlands, where the single was played on the radio regularly, it didn't chart at all.
My collection: 7" single no. 2498 Found: London, October 30, 1995 Cost: 1 pound Tracks: 'Say it isn't so' / 'Did it in a minute'
'What's going on' was written by Renaldo 'Obie' Benson, Al Cleveland, and Marvin Gaye. It was the title track of Gaye's groundbreaking 1971 album. A meditation on the troubles and problems of the world, the song was released as a single to worldwide success.
The song has been covered by multiple artists, notably Cyndi Lauper, whose version was released as the third single from her 1986 album 'True colours'. On the album version, the song starts off with a series of gunshots in reference to the Vietnam war, while the single release is a remix with an alternate vocal used in the intro. The single reached number 12 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 30 in the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 531 Found: Free Record Shop, 1987 Cost: 3 guilders Tracks: 'What's going on' / 'One track mind'
Roger Troutman was well known for his use of the talkbox, a device that is connected to an instrument (frequently a keyboard) to create different vocal effects.After scoring a hit with 'I want to be your man' in 1987, he collaborated with Green Gartside from Scritti Politti on the single 'Boom! There she was'.
Released in November 1988, 'Boom! There she was' reached number 55 in the UK singles chart. Scritti Politti then disappeared from the scene for three years.
My collection: 7" single no. 809 Found: May 6, 1989 Cost: 3 guilders Tracks: 'Boom! There she was' / 'World come back to life'
Taken from the soundtrack for the movie 'The falcon and the snowman', 'This is not America' was a collaboration between David Bowie and the jazz fusion band the Pat Metheny Group.
The single reached number 14 in the UK singles chart, number 32 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 1 in the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 366 Found: Bruxelles, January 11, 1986 Cost: 105 Belgian Francs Track: 'This is not America' / 'This is not America (instrumental)'
Although the label on this single claims that 'Paradise by the dashboard light' has a running time of 7 minutes and 55 seconds, it is actually only 5 minutes and 25 seconds - which means it is a single edit of the epic album version, excluding the lengthy baseball commentary and some minor musical bits. I would regret this if I was actually planning on listening to this song ever again - which I won't for another decade or two.
Still, I have to concede that 'Paradise by the dashboard light' is a classic track, one that is forever synonymous to Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman's brilliant collaboration. I wish it wasn't played so damn often though.
My collection: 7" single no. 378 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1985 Cost: 1 guilder Tracks: 'Paradise by the dashboard light' / ''Bat' Overture'
The Dutch band De Dijk ('The Dike') released the single 'Bloedend hart' ('Bleeding heart') in the summer of 1982. The amusing tale of the Christian broadcaster NCRV always stuck with me: they took offence to the line 'Ik kijk wat door de ramen / en ik krab wat aan mijn kont' ('I'm looking through the windows / and I'm scratching my ass') and through some clever manipulation they managed to change the line to '...en ik krab wat aan mijn hond' ('...and I'm scratching my dog'). Personally, I think scratching your dog is a lot nastier than scratching your own ass.
This minor controversy didn't help the single: it failed to reach the Dutch Top 40 when it was released.
My collection: 7" single no. 158 Found: Den Haag, 1982 Cost: 6 guilders Tracks: 'Bloedend hart' / 'Geldgebrek en rock & roll'
The production process of making 7" vinyl singles has been successful for millions of copies: you take a piece of vinyl, press the grooves on it, cut off the edges to make a round piece of vinyl and punch a hole in the middle. But sometimes, things go wrong. My copy of 'As long as you follow' by Fleetwood Mac had a hole in the middle, but it was not exactly in the middle. As a result, the sides were unlistenable.
I never went back to the shop with the single, but I did buy a promotional copy of it, made in Spain, seven years later. This copy featured 'As long as you follow' on both sides. For this blog, I used my original copy to record the B-side. It's a matter of putting the record on the right spot on the record player. I think the recording still turned out alright!
'As long as you follow' was a new track on the compilation album 'Greatest hits', released in 1988 after Fleetwood Mac's previous album 'Tango in the night' was very successful. Lindsey Buckingham had left the band and he was replaced by Billy Burnette (mainly for lead vocals) and Rick Vito. The single reached number 13 in the Dutch Top 40 and number 66 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 756 / no. 2612 Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, February 23, 1989 / Record fair, Den Haag, February 10, 1996 Cost: 6 guilders / 3 guilders Tracks (no. 756): 'As long as you follow' / 'Oh well (live)' Tracks (no. 2612): 'As long as you follow' / 'As long as you follow'
The album 'Running in the family' by Level 42 was a big success, and part of the success was the singles that kept entering the charts. 'To be with you again' was the third single from the album and it was just as successful as the previous two.
'To be with you again' reached number 6 in the Dutch Top 40 and number 10 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 2752 Found: House of Rhythm, London, October 29, 1996 Cost: 1 pound Tracks: 'To be with you again' / 'Microkid (live)'
'Last days of summer' was released in the summer of 1985 as a single by Imagination. Their last hit was 1984's 'Thank you my love', and this new single would be the second in a long line of singles that would be unsuccessful in all territories.
The B-side featured a live recording of the earlier hit 'Shoobedoo da dabba doobee', recorded at Hammersmith Odeon in London.
My collection: 7" single no. 3107 Found: Big Company Records, London, May 13, 1999 Cost: 1 pound Tracks: 'Last days of summer' / 'Shoobedoo da dabba doobee (live)'
'Oye mi canto' showed off some of Gloria Estefan's musical roots, much like in the style of her earlier music with Miami Sound Machine, and is in the style of the earlier hit 'Conga', which is included on this single as the B-side track.
Released as the fourth single from her album 'Cuts both ways', it reached number 48 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 16 in the UK singles chart and number 8 in the Dutch Top 40.
My collection: 7" single no. 1058 Found: London, October 17, 1989 Cost: 2 pounds Tracks: 'Oye mi canto' / 'Conga'
Although they were not credited, 'Unconditional love' by Donna Summer also features vocals by the British reggae act Musical Youth, who had a hit a few months before the release of this single with 'Pass the Dutchie'.
