Mamma Mia - Abba

'Mamma Mia' was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson, with the lead vocals shared by Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. It is the opening track on the group's third album, the self-titled album ABBA (1975). The song was released in September 1975 as its sixth single. It tells the story of the narrator's on-again, off-again relationship with a lover who is repeatedly unfaithful to her. The song's name is derived from Italian and literally translates as "my mother", but is used as an interjection (Mamma mia!) in situations of surprise, anguish, or excitement. 

The distinctive sound at the start of the song is the marimba. According to biographer Carl Magnus Palm, the instrument was incorporated at the last minute, added after Benny Andersson found it in the studio and decided its "tick tock" rhythm was perfect for the track. 

The song was ABBA's first number one in the UK since 'Waterloo' in 1974. As of September 2021, it is ABBA's seventh-biggest song in the UK with 860,000 chart sales (pure sales and digital streams).

The Dutch pressing had a beautiful sleeve, but in Germany and France different designs were used. It was nice to find these recently.

My collection: 7" single no. 5891 / 6759
Found: Discogs.com, received 31 January 2018 / 9 August 2022
Tracks: 'Mamma Mia' / 'Intermezzo no. 1' 

Light my fire - Amii Stewart

Another picture disc I bought online is this one by Amii Stewart, featuring her version of 'Light my fire' coupled with '137 disco heaven'. I already owned this single as a regular 7", but like the other picture discs I bought from this online seller I thought it was too pretty to miss.

Amy Paulette "Amii" Stewart was born on 29 January 1956. She grew up as the fifth of six children in a strictly Catholic family. In 1975, before signing a contract at Ariola Records, Stewart worked at the touring company for the stage production of the musical revue Bubbling Brown Sugar, relocating to places of production, such as Miami, then New York city's Broadway and eventually London's West End, where she met Barry Leng, songwriter and record producer for Hansa Records. Her debut album in 1979 yielded this energetic take on the Doors classic. Since relocating to Rome in the mid-Eighties her career has mainly developed in Italy.

My collection: 7" single no. 7750
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2025
Tracks: 'Light my fire/137 Disco Heaven' / 'Bring it on back to me'

Through the barricades - Spandau Ballet

It's been five years since I last bought a Spandau Ballet single, and I thought I had them all. But then I saw this picture disc while I was browsing through an online seller's catalogue and I felt it was pretty enough to want to have it.

The album of the same name was re-released a few years ago as a deluxe edition, but unfortunately the extra tracks on that one were not interesting enough. Now that the band has released a sumptuous book/disc collection spanning their formative years, here's hoping they will do a similar thing for later years in their career too. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7749
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2025
Tracks: 'Through the barricades' / 'With the pride (live in '85)' 

Who will you run to - Heart

In the Eighties, Heart went through a kind of metamorphosis, after the record company took the band aside and said they needed to change their style in order to have some kind of success. According to Nancy Wilson in an interview: 'The image of it was so intensely unreal. It was the [hair] extensions, the corsets and all the stuff'.

'Who will you run to' was taken from the band's 1987 album Bad Animals, which was full of these high energy, loud songs. Personally I prefer the more intimate sound of the B-side, 'Nobody home', which ends up pretty loud anyway, but in a good way. I already owned the regular 7" single, but this picture disc is definitely an added bonus.

My collection: 7" single no. 7748
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2025
Tracks: 'Who will you run to' / 'Nobody home' 

Excerpts from Bye Bye Birdie, vol. 3 - Various artists

In 1961 the musical Bye Bye Birdie opened in London's West End, after its Broadway debut a year earlier. The role of the titular Conrad Birdie was played by Marty Wilde. Together with Chita Rivera, Peter Marshall and others the story revolved around a popular singer going off to the Army and its effect on a group of teenagers in a small town in Ohio. There were obvious parallels to Elvis Presley being drafted to go to Germany in 1957. The name of the rockstar, 'Conrad Birdie', was word play on the name of the then-popular Conway Twitty.

The EP presents five songs from the musical, two of which were performed by Marty Wilde: 'One last kiss' together with the ensemble, and 'A lot of livin' to do' with Sylvia Tysick and a group of teenagers. With its big band sound, the tracks border on jazz at times.

My collection: 7" single no. 7747
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2025
Tracks: 'Hymn for a Sunday evening', 'One last kiss' / 'What did I ever see in him?', 'A lot of livin' to do', 'Kids' 

We love you - Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

Back in 1986, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark released this double single of 'We love you'. The package contained the original single of 'We love you' plus the original single of 'If you leave'. Although I already own both singles, this double single package was just too good to pass on. 

The inside of the gatefold sleeve shows the group, which at the time counted no less than six members. These days OMD still exists, but only with core members Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey.

My collection: 7" single no. 7745
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2025
Tracks: 'We love you' / 'We love you (dub)' // 'If you leave' / '88 seconds in Greensboro' 

Does your mother know - Abba

'Does your mother know' is one of the rare occasions (at the time anyway) where the lead vocals were performed by Bjorn Ulvaeus. By today's standards the lyrics are a bit risqué, because the singer seems to lead on a very young girl. 

The sleeve of this single leapt out at me because the blue on this one is brighter than the blue on the one I already owned. On top of that, this was an Austrian pressing. I don't have many 7" singles pressed in Austria, and so this was a very pleasant surprise.

My collection: 7" single no. 5537
Found: Teuchtler, Vienna (Austria), 25 September 2017
Tracks: 'Does your mother know' / 'Kisses of fire' 

Kate Bush - Kate Bush

Kate Bush is a mini-LP released in the USA and Canada in 1983. With this release the record company EMI America hoped to raise the profile of the British singer/songwriter who had until then been largely ignored by the record buying public over there.

The record was a mix of two tracks from Kate's most recent album at that time ('Sat in your lap' and 'Suspended in gaffa'), one track from the preceding album ('Babooshka'), a live track from the On Stage EP ('James and the cold gun') and one new track: a French version of 'The infant kiss', called 'Un baiser d'enfant'. The Canadian release came with one extra track, 'Ne t'enfuis pas'. 

I bought this mini LP a few years after it came out, after a lengthy period of doubt. I had all of the tracka already on various single releases, and so it didn't really add anything. In the end, I still bought this record. Of course I should have gotten the Canadian one, but that one wasn't available at the time. Many variations on coloured vinyl existed, but these days they cost a bundle. So I'm glad I at least have this one.

My collection: LP [unnumbered]
Found: Free Record Shop, 1986
Tracks: 'Sat in your lap', 'James and the cold gun (live version)' / 'Babooshka', 'Suspended in gaffa', 'Un baiser d'enfant' 

Dancing in the dark - Kim WIlde

The second single taken from Kim Wilde's third album Catch as Catch Can was apparently the first and only single for her in Japan. 'Dancing in the dark' was the first single not to be written by her dad Marty and her brother Ricky, but by Nicky Chinn and Paul Gurvitz instead.

The single was unsuccessful in the UK and Europe, and one can only assume that it wasn't exactly a big hit in Japan either. Not that it's a bad song, it's just a bit unexciting compared to Kim's earlier singles. Fortunately this wasn't the end of her career; she would be back with a bang a year later.

My collection: 7" single no. 3029
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, 23 September 1998
Tracks: 'Dancing in the dark' / 'Back street driver' 

Katson sineen taivaan - Katri Helena

This is a single which has been on my wantlist for a few years. I bought the English version of this song, 'I will follow starlight', five years ago, and that was when I was already searching for this original Finnish version.

Katri Helena represented Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1979 with 'Katson sineen taivaan', and listening to this song will immediately put you in a good mood. It does me, anyway. There's something about this song. Katri Helena is saying her professional goodbyes this year in Finland, and so I find it rather appropriate that I finally managed to buy a copy of this great single.

My collection: 7" single no. 7744
Found: Discogs.com, received 26 August 2025
Tracks: 'Katson sineen taivaan' / 'Kevät' 

What kind of fool - All About Eve

Last year I caught up with my collection of All About Eve 12" singles on this blog, but it seems I forgot one of them. This limited edition box features a big poster based on the artwork of the 7" single, plus a three track disc featuring the 'Autumn Rhapsody' version of the title track. Together with the two B-side tracks, this was an attractive package for the fans.

Funnily enough I never bought the 'regular' 12" single, featuring the same three tracks. A 10" single is also in my possession, but more about that later. Watch this space!

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Record fair, 199X
Tracks: 'What kind of fool (Autumn Rhapsody)' / 'Gold and silver', 'The garden of Jane Delawney'

S.O.S. - Abba

Early on in their career, Abba realized one of the greatest songs of their impressive catalogue: it was S.O.S., a song that is still an emotional highlight of the current Voyage live experience in London. Although I already owned the French, Dutch and Japanese pressings from 1975 and the recent picture disc release, I also had to have the original German pressing. 

The good thing about all these releases is that they all came with different sleeves, and in the case of Abba it's really interesting to compare all those different variations. The photograph on this one features Agnetha and Frida's iconic 'cat' costumes. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7103
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, March 2024
Tracks: 'S.O.S.' / 'Man in the middle' 

View from a bridge - Kim Wilde

Although the Japanese record company decided to release 'Take me tonight', flipping the A-side 'View from a bridge' with the B-side, they also released 'View from a bridge' in Japan. The sequence has been lost in the haze of time, so I have no way of knowing which version came first. 

I do know that the sleeve of this release was outstanding. Using a photograph like that on the sleeve was brilliant, and certainly more colourful than the black and white sleeve that was used in Europe. The song remains a bona fide Eighties classic.

My collection: 7" single no. 1969
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, 25 September 1993
Tracks: 'View from a bridge' / 'Take me tonight' 

Underwater - Harry Thumann

Harry Thumann was a German electronic music composer and sound engineer. He was quick to adapt to new technologies and started working with synthesizers early on in the Seventies. His single 'Underwater', released originally in 1979, was embraced in several European countries. Released in the Netherlands in the summer of 1980, it shot to number 12 in the Dutch Top 40.

I bought the single without a picture sleeve back in 1993, but during my recent shopping spree in a record shop in Darmstadt (Germany) I found a very decent copy with a picture sleeve. Of course I needed to upgrade. 

Harry Thumann died in 2001.

My collection: 7" single no. 1946

Originally found: Leiden, 20 August 1993
Picture sleeve version found: Come Back, Darmstadt (Germany), 4 August 2025

Tracks: 'Underwater part I' / 'Underwater part II'

Pour qui, pourquoi - Maribelle

Although I would certainly understand it if people called 'Ik hou van jou' a bit of a twee song, the melody of it is undeniably beautiful - especially when it's played by a full orchestra. After I disliked the song for a few years, I ended up buying the single in 1993 and the English version ('In love with you') five years after that. 

Obviously I was aware of the French version of the song pretty soon after that, but finding the single was hard - especially in the days before lively trade on the internet. Just a few months ago I was offered this single for 100 euros on a record fair. I finally found a decent copy on Discogs from a Czech seller - and for a decent price too. This copy has one playable side only - which is enough in this case.

My collection: 7" single no. 7743
Found: Discogs.com, received 22 August 2025
Tracks: 'Pour qui, pourquoi' 

Everything I own - Boy George

In 2013 Virgin Records celebrated its 40th anniversary. On that occasion they released a series of picture disc 7" singles of some interesting titles, and this single by Boy George was one of them. I didn't actually know this when I found this single last week; this knowledge comes from the Discogs website. There are more picture discs, but they have become quite expensive!

By contrast, this picture disc was definitely on the cheap side, cheap enough for me to want to take it with me on a day of shopping. I already owned the regular single, of course, but who could resist a picture disc? I certainly can't. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7742
Found: Velvet, Leiden, 19 August 2025
Tracks: 'Everything I own' / 'Use me' 

Sweet sixteen - Billy Idol

This limited edition package comes all the way from Australia, where this one was released back in 1986. And an attractive package it is too: not only does it come with a poster sleeve, it also contains two 7" singles pressed on purple vinyl.

The second disc, which is a free extra, claims to contain extended versions of 'Mony Mony' and 'White Wedding'. Claims, because while 'White Wedding' is indeed the so-called 'Shotgun mix' of 8 minuted and 20 seconds, the version of 'Mony Mony' is just the regular short version, and not the five minute extended version. Funny enough, no-one on Discogs has found this out yet. Despite this flaw, I still love this little limited edition from Australia; it's a keeper.

My collection: 7" single no. 7740
Found: Discogs.com, 16 August 2025
Tracks: 'Sweet sixteen' / 'Beyond belief' // 'Mony Mony' / 'White Wedding (extended version)' 

Alla andra får varann - Inger Berggren

Although Siw Malmkvist performed 'Alla andra får varann' for Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960, she never recorded it in the studio. And so, no single of this song by her exists. Fortunately the song was recorded by two other artists. I bought the version by Östen Warnerbring last year, and this year it's Inger Berggren's version that ended up in my collection.

Inger is no stranger to the Eurovision Song Contest, of course: in 1962 she would go on the represent Sweden herself with 'Sol och vår', which I bought twice.

My collection: 7" single no. 7739
Found: Discogs.com, received 13 August 2025
Tracks: 'Alla andra får varann', 'Underbar så underbar' / 'Concert d'amour', 'Zigenare' 

When a heart beats - Nik Kershaw

The recent release of a box set of Nik Kershaw's MCA years includes, I think, all of the material he recorded and released during the Eighties, including this 12" single. 

'When a heart beats' was released in 1984 as the third single from his album The Riddle, and the 12" single presents extended versions of both the A-side and the B-side. The single was not a hit in the Netherlands, which doesn't really surprise me: it isn't as catchy as his earlier releases were. Thankfully, Nik is still making music and his recent albums have been really quite good!

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Music & Video Exchange, London (UK)
Tracks: 'When a heart beats (extended mix)' / 'Wild horses (extended mix)'

Alphabet St. - Prince

Although some of his releases were a bit weird, Prince was at the height of his success during the Eighties. The albums kept coming and they all ended up being awarded gold and platinum. 

'Alphabet St.' was the lead single from his 1988 album Lovesexy. The album came out just after Prince had withdrawn his 'diabolical' 'Black album'. Lovesexy was more upbeat, and 'Alphabet St.' was an example of that. This 12" single featured the album version of the track, as well as an extended version with the warning on the label: 'This is not music, this is a trip'. And indeed it is.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 9 November 2024
Tracks: 'Alphabet St. (album version)' / 'Alphabet St.'