One step further - Bardo

Bardo represented the United Kingdom during the 1982 Eurovision Song Contest. The duo consisted of Children's TV presenter Sally Ann Triplett and singer/actor Stephen Fischer. Their song 'One step further' finished seventh in the Contest, which was below the expectations. Two subsequent singles, 'Talking out of line' and 'Hang on to your heart' failed to chart, which led to album plans being shelved and Bardo finally dissolving in 1983.

Triplett and Fischer had by this time become romantically linked and continued to stay together. In 1990, Triplett gave birth to their son. Some years after this, the two split.

My collection: 7" single no. 3157

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 27, 1999

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'One step further' / 'Lady of the night'

Don't stand so close to me '86 - The Police

When the Police released the compilation 'Every breath you take' in 1986, I got the cassette and played it a lot. I liked the '86 version of 'Don't stand so close to me' and even preferred it to the less polished original, but didn't buy the single until I found it as a bargain in 1990. In the mean time, the cassette was enough for me.

The Police recorded 'Don't stand so close to me '86' during a rather tense session in the studio. Because drummer Stewart Copeland broke his collarbone, he was unable to play the drums. He used his Fairlight CMI to program the drum track for this track, while lead singer Sting pushed to utilize the drums on his Synclavier instead. Copeland was later quoted as saying that the argument over Synclavier versus Fairlight drums was 'the straw that broke the camel's back', and led to the group's unraveling.

My collection: 7" single no. 1245
Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, June 14, 1990
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Don't stand so close to me '86' / 'Don't stand so close to me (live)'

Seven wonders - Fleetwood Mac

I know that Fleetwood Mac is famous especially for their albums 'Rumours' and 'Tusk', but my personal favourite remains the 'comeback album' 'Tango in the night', released in 1987. It has been slammed for being 'too commercial sounding', but I wonder what could be wrong with that. The compositions have stood the test of time, and best of all: most of the singles have been released on 12" single with an extended remix. Now this is a part of my collection that I'm still working on...

I recently found the 12" single of 'Seven wonders', and quite cheaply too. Released as the second single from the million-selling album, it couldn't match the success of previous single 'Big love'. It was a top 20 hit in America and South-Africa only.

My collection: 12" single no. 495

Found: Record fair, Rijswijk, March 14, 2009

Cost: 2 euro

Tracks: 'Seven wonders (extended remix)' / 'Book of miracles (instrumental)', 'Seven wonders (dub)'

Sweetest child - Maria McKee

The sleeve of 'Sweetest child' states 'featuring Maria McKee', but since no other artist is mentioned, I always take this simply as a song by her. And indeed, it was written by McKee with Brody and Glover, so my assumption should be correct.

The other assumption I made when this single came out, was that it would be a hit. I wasn't right in that respect: the single flopped in the territories I know about. Still, it is a nice song and there is no real explanation for its lack of success.

My collection: 7" single no. 1690
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, August 1, 1992
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Sweetest child (7" version)' / 'Acapella sweetest child'

Red tape - The Nits

The Nits released their fourth album 'Work' in 1981. It didn't reach the album chart in the Netherlands, but the album did spawn one hit: the single 'Red tape', released in January 1982, got to number 24 in the Dutch Top 40.

The song is a beautiful slice of synthpop with a slightly mysterious lyric. I always liked this track, and was really glad when I found the single seven years later.

My collection: 7" single no. 737

Found: All that music, Leiden, February 9, 1989

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'Red tape' / 'Goodbye, mr. Chips!'

Walking on air - Frazier Chorus

To strengthen their image as a dance-oriented band, Frazier Chorus released two different 12" singles of the track, of which this was the second. It contains three remixes of the track: a 12" version, the 'Maharishi Yogi mix' and an instrumental remix called '18 hole doc marten mix'.

This second 12" single contains a calendar poster for the year 1991. Judging from the state of the poster, the one I bought as a second hand copy was actually used by someone.

My collection: 12" single no. 179
Found: Record Exchange, London, October 1993
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Walking on air', 'Walking on air (Marahishi Yogi mix)' / 'Walking on air (18 hole doc marten mix)'

Walking on air - Frazier Chorus

To strengthen their image as a dance-oriented band, Frazier Chorus released two different 12" singles of the track, of which this was the first. It contained the extended mix of 'Walking on air' (which also appeared on the cd-single format), plus an exclusive dub instrumental. Both tracks were remixed by Youth.

My collection: 12" single no. 178

Found: Record exchange, London, October 1993

Cost: 1 pound

Tracks: 'Walking on air (extended mix)' / 'Walking on air (dub instrumental)'