Lithium - Evanescence

'Lithium' was the second single taken from Evanescence's second album 'The open door'. Peaking at number 32 in the UK and number 55 in the Netherlands, the single was reasonably successful. This picture disc 7" vinyl was the last vinyl release of the band so far.

Frontwoman and writer of the song Amy Lee explained: 'It's not literal about the drug for me, I've never taken lithium before. It's [...] me looking at happiness in a negative way because I've always been, you know, kind of afraid to be happy. So it's this fight within the song of 'do I do this and get out of here and get happy or do I wallow in it like I always do?' and it's cool because at the end of the song I say 'I'm going to let it go', I am going to be happy.'

My collection: 7" single no. 3667

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 5 euro

Tracks: 'Lithium' / 'The last song I'm wasting on you'

Driving in my car - Madness

Not included on any of Madness's original studio albums, 'Driving in my car' was a single released in July 1982. From the video and most of the lyric, the track is about a Morris Minor that was used by the group in the early years before band became famous.

'Driving In My Car' was the thirteenth in a run of twenty consecutive UK top 20 hits for Madness, and is the only one of those twenty never to have been officially released in the USA in any form. The single I bought comes in a 21" x 7" foldout sleeve, featuring all members of the band inside the car (a photo montage) and on the other side, all members of the band pushing the car forward (another photo montage).

My collection: 7" single no. 3638

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 1 euro

Tracks: 'Driving in my car' / 'Animal farm (Tomorrow's dream warp mix)'

Alors je chante - Rika Zarai

Rika Zarai was born on February 19, 1938 in Jerusalem, Israel. She became famous in 1969 with this single, 'Alors je chante', a French cover version of the 1969 Eurovision Song Contest song 'Vivo cantando' by Salome, one of the four winners of that year's edition.

Interestingly, the original version did not chart in the Netherlands, but this version did. 'Alors je chante' peaked at number 10 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 3652

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 1 euro

Tracks: 'Alors je chante' / 'Un mur a Jerusalem'

A far l'amore comincia tu - Raffaella Carra

I wanted to buy this single back in 1978, but instead I bought Patsy Gallant's 'From New York to L.A.' So this weekend I did something rather historical: I finally bought it. More than 3600 singles and 30 years later!

Raffaella Carra was born in Bologna, Italy on June 18, 1943. 'A far l'amore comincia tu' ('To make love, your move first') was her biggest international success. Several versions of the song exist. This single contains the original Italian version plus the French version. The Spanish version is called 'En el amor todo es empezar', in Germany it was known as 'Liebelei' and in England it was 'Do It, Do It Again'. In the Netherlands, the original Italian version charted, and peaked at number 3.

My collection: 7" single no. 3621

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 0,5 euro

Tracks: 'A far l'amore comincia tu' / 'Puisque tu l'aimes dis-le lui'

Blind vision - Blancmange

Blancmange released 'Blind vision' in 1983, after their single 'Waves' hit number 19 in the UK and almost made it into the Dutch Top 40. This single did better in the UK, peaking at number 10, but worse in the Netherlands, not charting at all.

The song is similar to Blancmange's other singles: radiofriendly pop with a good rhythm and a strong melody.

My collection: 7" single no. 3654

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 0,5 euro

Tracks: 'Blind vision' / 'Heaven knows where heaven is'

Gett off - Prince and the New Power Generation

When someone sings '52 positions in a one night stand', you know you're dealing with a sexually-charged track. And so it is...

'Gett off' was the first single taken from Prince's 1991 album 'Diamonds and pearls'. The track was a last-minute addition to the album, replacing 'Horny pony', the song that appears on the B-side of this single. The single peaked at number 4 in the UK and number 21 in America.

My collection: 7" single no. 3628
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Gett off' / 'Horny pony'

Sing me a song - Bernadette

Bernadette Kraakman represented the Netherlands in the 1983 Eurovision Song Contest with 'Sing me a song'. Despite the English title, the rest of the song was sung in Dutch, as the rules prescribed. The song finished seventh in the Contest, in the year that Luxemburg won with Corinne Hermes' 'Si la vie est cadeau'.

Personally, I wasn't too impressed with this song when it was chosen during the Dutch national final. Vulcano, who also competed that year, had a bigger hit with 'Een beetje van dit', but they didn't get to the Eurovision Song Contest - thanks to the jury that year.

My collection: 7" single no. 3648
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Sing me a song (Dutch version)' / 'Sing me a song (English version)'