Oh baby - Münchener Freiheit

According to Wikipedia, 'Oh baby' was the first single by Münchener Freiheit, released in 1984. In reality it was actually their fourth single, taken from their second album Licht, released in 1983. The single is notable for its slightly primitive pop sensibility; the track isn't as polished as their later work. 

'Oh baby' was, however, the first hit the band had. It reached number 23 in Germany in the year before 'Ohne dich (schlaf ich heut Nacht nicht ein', which became number 2 and a charttopper in Austria and Switzerland. Good things were ahead for the band, but how were they to know?

My collection: 7" single no. 7815
Found: Lenny's Music Store, Vienna, 17 October 2025
Tracks: 'Oh baby' / 'Melancholie' 

Boom boom - Mabel

While it is lovely to have a French copy of Mabel's 'Boom boom', after fifteen years I saw this German version and I was impressed by the design of this sleeve. Quite why the band wanted to be seen inside a heart was not immediately clear to me, but of course the lyrics speak of 'a feeling in my heart'.

The other side of this single contains 'I'm only here to rock 'n' roll', which was a hit for the band in 1977. 'Boom boom' was, of course, their Eurovision entry for Denmark in 1978, which made this release an attractive package for German record buyers.

My collection: 7" single no. 7812
Found: Lenny's Music Store, Vienna, 17 October 2025
Tracks: 'Boom boom' / 'I'm only here to rock 'n' roll' 

Dim all the lights - Donna Summer

'Dim all the lights' was written by Donna Summer herself, which means that this is the only hit single that she wrote on her own. The single reached number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 29 in the UK singles chart, whereas it didn't chart in the Netherlands. 

This version is a German pressing, with a different sleeve compared to other territories. During my week in Vienna I saw various copies, and I finally bought one, impressed as I was with the design of this sleeve. Of course, I already owned another copy of 'Dim all the lights', but that shouldn't bother us too much, should it? 

My collection: 7" single no. 7811
Found: Lenny's Music Store, Vienna, 17 October 2025
Tracks: 'Dim all the lights' / 'There will always be a you' 

Rise - PIL

'Rise' was written by John Lydon (a.k.a. Johnny Rotten) and Bill Laswell about apartheid in South Africa, specifically about Nelson Mandela as Lydon stated in a 2013 Glastonbury interview. Lydon also referred to alleged Royal Ulster Constabulary interrogation techniques, such as electric torture, in an MTV interview in 1987. The song contains the phrase 'may the road rise with you', which is a direct translation of the old Irish blessing "go n-éirí an bóthar leat" (usually translated as "may the road rise up to meet you"). The phrase "anger is an energy" became the title of Lydon's 2014 autobiography. 

It was one of the group's biggest commercial hits, peaking at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. I remember being impressed with the song when it came out, but somehow I never bought the single. So finally, here it is, almost four decades later.

My collection: 7" single no. 7810
Found: Lenny's Music Store, Vienna, 17 October 2025
Tracks: 'Rise' / 'Rise (instrumental)' 

Jones the rhythm - Grace Jones

Perhaps it's no wonder that I bought this single because the sleeve is much more interesting than the 'Jones the rhythm' single I bought in 2009. The picture is a crop from the album which this track is traken from: Slave to the rhythm, the experimental remix album released in 1985, circling around 'Slave to the rhythm', Grace Jones's hit single from that year.

'Jones the rhythm' was not a charting success, having been somewhat overshadowed by the huge success of the lead single, and partially due to lack of promotion.  

My collection: 7" single no. 7809
Found: Lenny's Music Store, Vienna, 17 October 2025
Tracks: 'Jones the rhythm' / 'Junkyard' 

Master and servant - Depeche Mode

During the first few years of their career, Depeche Mode released many singles and the German record company released them on red vinyl for the first edition. I started buying them recently - 'Blasphemous rumours / Somebody' being the first one - and I was lucky enough to find another one in Vienna.

'Master and servant' is a rather blunt song that Depeche Mode would never play live again these days. In fact, a live album is released soon, and this track is missing once again. It's not a bad song, but I think Martin and Dave are a bit embarrassed by it now. Pretty red disc though.

My collection: 7" single no. 7808
Found: Lenny's Music Store, Vienna, 17 October 2025
Tracks: 'Master and servant' / '(Set me free) Remotivate me' 

Musik klingt in die Welt hinaus - Egon Egemann

Two singles by Egon Egemann made it into my collection until now: 'A song goes out around the world', featuring the English and German version and 'A song goes out around the world' with an instrumental version on the B-side. But the original version is of course this Swiss pressing, featuring 'Musik klingt in die Welt hinaus' on the A-side and the English version on the B-side.

The song was of course the Swiss entry of the Eurovision Song Contest in 1990. Egon Egemann made 11th place with it.

My collection: 7" single no. 7803
Found: Seven Star Records, Vienna, 14 October 2025
Tracks: 'Musik klingt in die Welt hinaus' / 'A song goes out around the world' 

Ant rap - Adam and the Ants

'Ant rap' was written by Adam Ant and Marco Pirroni, the song was remixed from the version on the group's 1981 album Prince Charming. It entered the UK Singles Chart in December 1981 at number 9 before rising to a peak position of number three. While widely panned by critics, it was one of the earliest rap singles to chart in the UK.

Ant boasts of his success and his ability to dance, and calls out the anarchists of the music scene, affirming he was never concerned with receiving their "credibility". The song ended up being the band's penultimate single; in 1982 they only released 'Deutscher Girls' from the Jubilee soundtrack.

My collection: 7" single no. 7801
Found: Seven Star Records, Vienna, 14 October 2025
Tracks: 'Ant rap' / 'Friends' 

Love is in the air (Ballroom mix) - John Paul Young

John Paul Young released 'Love is in the air' in 1978, and it became such a big hit that people still remembered it throughout the Eighties. Then in 1992, when the movie Strictly Ballroom was made, a new mix of the song was created just for the soundtrack. And thus the 'Ballroom mix' of this song came to be. This new version reached number 3 in the Australian singles chart. 

Apparently there was also a 12" single featuring an eight minute 'Strictly Dance Mix'. Maybe that's just a little bit too much. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7800
Found: Seven Star Records, Vienna, 14 October 2025
Tracks: 'Love is in the air (Ballroom mix)' (John Paul Young) / 'Scott & Fran's Paso Doble' (David Hirschfelder & The Bogo Pogo Orchestra) 

Liebe auf den ersten Blick - Münchener Freiheit

As shown on this sleeve, 'Liebe auf den ersten Blick' was the title song of the TV show of the same name. The song was the last big hit for the German band Münchener Freiheit in 1992, after they had international success during most of the Eighties. It reached number 16 in the German singles chart and number 31 in Switzerland.

The band still exists, in a different lineup, and is currently touring Germany. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7799
Found: Seven Star Records, Vienna, 14 October 2025
Tracks: 'Liebe auf den ersten Blick' / 'Lass mir den Traum' 

The winner takes it all - Abba

The story of 'The winner takes it all' was told on this blog in 2008. I wanted to buy the single during a holiday in Vienna when I was just nine years old, but I was talked out of it. I bought the Dutch pressing of the single a few months later for half price. 

But the story continues! I bought the Austrian pressing last week, during my stay in Vienna. And so it all comes full circle, after 45 years. That's pretty impressive. Even more impressive: this is by far the most colourful version of the sleeve. The blue is deeper than on any other sleeve pressed in Europe.

A good example of this is the French edition, which I bought last year. Instead of the Polydor logo the Vogue logo appears in the bottom left corner, but the photographs look dull and greyish.

My collection: 7" single no. 7797 / no. 7377
Found: Seven Star Records, Vienna, 14 October 2025 / Record fair, Rotterdam, 5 October 2024
Tracks: 'The winner takes it all' / 'Elaine' 

Band on the run - Paul McCartney & Wings

When I was in Vienna I was really there for a conference. But after hours I managed to visit a few record shops - mainly thanks to the generous opening hours. The first was Seven Star Records, situated near the shopping heart of the city, Mariahilferstrasse. It was a small, chaotic shop where singles, LP's and CD's were scattered around and where I spent a little time looking for goodies.

The first find was also the best: 'Band on the run', the title track of the Wings album from 1973. Originally, Paul McCartney planned not to release any singles from Band on the run, a strategy he compared to that used by the Beatles. However, he was convinced by Capitol Records vice president Al Coury to release singles from the album. The single ended up topping the US Billboard Hot 100, Canada and New Zealand. In the UK singles chart it reached number 3; in the Dutch Top 40 it reached number 7. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7796
Found: Seven Star Records, Vienna, 14 October 2025
Tracks: 'Band on the run' / 'Nineteen hundred and eighty five' 

A million in 1, 2, 3 - Dream Express

Dream Express was pretty successful when they participated in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1977. They ended up being 7th in a field of 18 participants and the single reached number 2 in the Belgian singles chart. This German edition of the single has a rather efficient sleeve.

Patricia Maessen left the group in 1979, and Luc Smets, Bianca Maessen and Stella Maessen continued as LBS until 1980. Stella represented Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest again as a solo artist with 'Si tu aimes ma musique'.

My collection: 7" single no. 7795
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'A million in 1, 2, 3' / 'Spinning top' 

Fantastic day - Haircut One Hundred

Although I bought 'Fantastic day' back in 2009, I didn't know that there was also a picture disc edition. So I stand corrected! Of course, this picture disc contains a live version instead of the studio version, so it is a worthwhile addition to my collection in more ways.

'Fantastic day' peaked at number 9 in the UK singles chart and a more modest number 85 in Australia.

My collection: 7" single no. 7794
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'Fantastic day (live)' / 'Ski club' 

The fool on the hill - Alice

Italian singer Alice has an impressive career in Italy, but because she records almost exclusively in Italian she never managed to build a career in the rest of Europe. Almost, because occasionally she includes an English language song in her albums. 

'The fool on the hill' is of course a cover version of the Beatles song, and it is reasonably well done. Of course there is always the Italian accent, and the music was a bit synthetic, but the melody stands strong. It's a lovely little single.

My collection: 7" single no. 7793
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'The fool on the hill' / 'Il vento caldo dell'estate' 

Raggio di luna - Matia Bazar

Although 'Raggio di luna' already ended up in my collection back in 2017, I was quite surprised to find a German pressing of that same single with a slightly different sleeve. The funny thing is that on both sleeves the same photograph was used, but on this one it is shown entirely, whereas on the French edition it is cropped.

All this aside, 'Raggio di luna' was a daring Eurovision entry from Italy back in 1979, as the decision was made not to use the orchestra. As a result, the song ended up sounding a bit 'empty' and became 15th in a field of 19 competitors.

My collection: 7" single no. 7792
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'Raggio di luna' / 'Pero che bello' 

Could it be magic - Donna Summer

The German sleeve of 'Could it be magic' is very different from the Dutch one, so I could be forgiven for thinking that I didn't already have this single. Fortunately this single comes with a different B-side as well. 'Come with me' is a track from the album A Love Trilogy, which was released in 1976, just like this single.

On the album 'Come with me' has a duration of 4 minutes and 20 seconds, and that is also the time listed on the label of this single. A full minute is left off this single version, as it fades out at 3 minutes and 20 seconds. The same happens on the A-side: 'Could it be magic' should be 5'20, but actually is two minutes shorter! German record buyers have been duped.

My collection: 7" single no. 7791
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'Could it be magic' / 'Come with me' 

Mathema solfege - Pascalis, Marianna, Robert and Bessy

For a long time, 'Mathema solfege' was Greece's most successful Eurovision entry. Its chorus of 'do fa fa fa, sol fa sol fa mi do ti mi mi mi, do ti do ti sol ti do' was recognizable for people all over Europe, even if they didn't understand Greek. These tricks were often employed back when countries had to enter songs in their own national languages. A trick like that wouldn't work anymore these days, but it certainly did in 1977: the song ended up in fifth place in a field of 18 competitors.

The quartet performing the song consisted of Paschalis Arvanitidis (born on 24 August 1946), Marianna Tolli (3 October 1952), Robert Williams (4 December 1949) and Bessy Argyrake (4 April 1957). They recorded one album together and then followed their own solo careers, with Bessy being the most successful one of the four.

My collection: 7" single no. 7790
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'Mathema solfege' / 'I love, I love, I love you' 

Se piangi, se ridi - Bobby Solo

I already have an EP and a single featuring 'Se piangi, se ridi', so why buy this one? Well, the answer is simple: because I really prefer this sleeve. It's in colour, for one thing, and Bobby Solo looks a lot like the rock 'n' roll stars of his days on this one. Adding to that, this is the original Italian single, where we find out that the song is recorded with 'orchestra diretta da Gianni Marchetti, con il Coro di Nora Orlandi'. 

'Se piangi, se ridi' was a number 1 hit in Italy and Brazil, and also reached number 2 in Belgium, number 3 in Uruguay (of all places!) and number 4 in Argentina. Why this didn't chart in the Netherlands and the UK I don't know. It's a classic song.

My collection: 7" single no. 7789
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025
Tracks: 'Se piangi, se ridi' / 'Saro' un illuso'

Dancing in the sheets - Shalamar

In 1983, Jody Watley and Jeffrey Daniel left Shalamar due to conflicts within the group as well as issues with their record company. They were replaced by Micki Free and Delisa Davis and continued by recording 'Dancing in the sheets' for the soundtrack of the movie Footloose. The single was released in 1984 and reached number 41 in the UK singles chart and number 17 in the US Billboard Hot 100. 

'Dancing in the sheets' was included on Shalamar's eighth album, Heartbreak, released before the end of 1984. Hewett departed the group in 1985 to begin a solo career. Sydney Justin took over as lead vocalist for Circumstantial Evidence (1987) and Wake Up (1990), Shalamar's final pair of albums before they disbanded. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7788
Found: Moses Records, Vienna, 13 October 2025 
Tracks: 'Dancing in the sheets' / 'Dancing in the sheets (instrumental)'