Non ho l'eta per amarti - Gigliola Cinquetti

Gigliola Cinquetti was born on December 20, 1947 in Verona, Italy. She won the 1964 San Remo festival singing 'Non ho l'eta per amarti' ('I'm not old enough to love you'). As was usual for Italy, the winner of the San Remo festival also represented the country in the Eurovision Song Contest. She won this contest as well, making it the first ever victory for Italy in Eurovision. What's more, the single made no. 17 in the UK singles chart, usually a no-go area for Italian music. In the Netherlands, it reached number three.

The single which I bought recently was made in Belgium, but only states that Cinquetti was '1st price Festival SAN REMO'. Presumably the sleeve was created after an Italian original.

My collection: 7" single no. 3503

Found: Record Mania, Amsterdam, December 27, 2008

Cost: 1 euro

Tracks: 'Non ho l'eta per amarti' / 'Sei un bravo ragazzo'

Download: here

Eenvoud - Goede Doel (het)

Sometimes within a blog one has to push its boundaries. One of the boundaries I had set in the beginning was that I wasn't going to discuss music in Dutch. After all, no-one understands this language, and more often than not the quality of Dutch-language music leaves a lot to be desired. But then I thought: I only buy the good stuff, and there are more strange languages on this blog (like for instance Turkish, Italian and Spanish). So here goes...

The group Het Goede Doel ('The good cause') hails from Utrecht, one of the four biggest cities of the Netherlands. Their seventh single was 'Eenvoud' ('Simplicity'), containing the recurring like 'Alles draait om de eenvoud' ('Everything revolves around simplicity'). With its powerful music it is one of the more energetic songs of 1983. It reached number 11 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 3514

Found: Concerto, Amsterdam, December 27, 2008

Cost: 0,75 euro

Tracks: 'Eenvoud' / 'Simpel'

Download: here

Shy boy - Bananarama

Bananarama's first single without the Fun Boy Three (with whom they recorded 'It ain't what you do, it's the way that you do it' and 'Really saying something') was this single: 'Shy boy'. It was another top 5 hit for them in the UK, and it reached number 12 in the Netherlands. It was taken from their debut album 'Deap sea skiving', which was full of cheerful pop tunes. The B-side was called 'Don't call us', but appeared on the album as 'Boy trouble'.

I bought this single recently, realising what fun the music of these three girls was in the first half of the eighties. When they hooked up with Stock, Aitken and Waterman, it all became more serious and less bubbly.

My collection: 7" single no. 3510

Found: Concerto, Amsterdam, December 27, 2008

Cost: 0,75 euro

Tracks: 'Shy boy' / 'Don't call us'

Download: Album 'Deep sea skiving', including both tracks (part 1 / part 2)

Moonlight and muzak - M

Although 'Popmuzik' was his biggest hit, 'Moonlight and muzak' was the song that always intrigued me more. The mysterious sound, the understated vocals and the angelic background vocal were very appealing to me. A lot of people didn't agree: whereas the former made number 2 in the UK, the latter only reached number 33. In the Netherlands, it didn't go any better: a number 3 for 'Popmuzik' and number 12 for 'Moonlight and muzak'.

My collection: 7" single no. 558

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1987

Cost: 1 guilder

Tracks: 'Moonlight and muzak' / 'Woman make man'

Download: here

All fall down - Five Star

'All fall down' was Five Star's first hit in the Netherlands in the summer of 1985. They were described as the UK's new supergroup. I don't know, to me the five youngsters didn't seem that remarkable. The song was not so good either. It was only later, when I started liking their singles, that I thought I might as well buy their earlier pop songs. Most Five Star tracks follow a formula: it's a catchy rhythm, a nice melody and unremarkable lyrics. But that's pleasant every once in a while.

My collection: 12" single no. 461

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, 2004

Cost: 2 euro

Tracks: 'All fall down [extended]' / 'All fall down (instrumental)', 'First Avenue'

Download: here

Your love is king - Sade

Sade's debut single 'Your love is king' made me shout out 'boring!' every time I saw it on TV. This was during the time when I was watching Music Box and Sky Channel on a daily basis. Her second single, 'When am I going to make a living' interested me more, and gradually I got into Sade. At some point I decided I wanted to have the first single as well, and it sounded a lot less boring by that time. So eventually I even got the 12" single.

Some will be surprised to find 'Smooth operator' on the B-side of this. It is actually a version that is very alike the album version on Sade's debut album 'Diamond life', but the instrumental track that follows immediately after that, 'Snake bite', is a one time thing. It was never released anywhere else, except on this disc.

My collection: 12" single no. 483

Found: 2001

Cost: 5 guilders

Tracks: 'Your love is king' / 'Smooth operator', 'Snake bite', 'Love affair with life (recorded live)'

Download: here

'cause cheap is how I feel - Cowboy Junkies

The Canadian band Cowboy Junkies were formed in 1985 by Michael, Margo and Peter Timmins with Alan Anton. They have always been popular in Canada, but were unable to gain popularity in other territories.

I heard about the band when I hung out with some friends in the early nineties who were very into alternative music. Artists like Tori Amos, Happy Rhodes, Sarah McLachlan, Cocteau Twins and the like filled the room when we were together. I picked up this single because I liked the song a lot, but I never pursued the band any further.

My collection: 7" single no. 1612

Found: March 28, 1992

Cost: 5 guilders

Tracks: ''cause cheap is how I feel' / 'Thirty summers'

Download: Album 'Caution horses', including both tracks