Pride (In the name of love) - U2

Contrary to what you might think, when I bought this single two decades after its release, I didn't have to pay a fortune for it. I was as surprised as anyone when I spotted this limited edition double single during a record fair for a rather low price. Considering the ever growing fanbase of this Irish band, I would have expected the dealer to make a nice profit. Fortunately he didn't, otherwise I would never have bought this of course.

I consider 'Pride' to be U2's breakthrough single. It was the first one to reach the top 3 of the UK singles chart, peaking at number 3, and it was the first top 10 hit in the Netherlands, reaching number 8. The accompanying album 'The unforgettable fire' is an unmistakable classic which demands a luxury extended collectable ultimate edition of some sort. Now that's something I would buy...

My collection: 7" single no. 3365
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 2002
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'Pride (In the name of love)' / '4th of July' // 'Boomerang I (Instrumental)' / 'Boomerang II (Vocal)'

Scarlet - All about Eve

The third single from All about Eve's 1989 album 'Scarlet and other stories' was 'Scarlet'. It was released in early 1990 and backed with a live track recorded at Hammersmith Odeon, where the band celebrated the biggest commercial success of their career.

'Scarlet' equalled the chart placing of the previous single 'December' in the UK, reaching number 34 in the singles chart. As always, the single was released in several collectable formats: the 7" single, a 12" single with a gatefold sleeve and a live poster, a cd-single and a picture disc cd-single.

My collection: 7" single no. 1205
Found: Wreckastow, Rotterdam, April 13, 1990
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'Scarlet' / 'Our summer (live)'

Love's great adventure - Ultravox

'Love's great adventure' was recorded as a new track for Ultravox's 1984 compilation album 'The Collection' and released as a single to promote the album. Released in October 1984 it peaked at number 12 in the UK singles chart and number 30 in the Dutch Top 40.

The style of this single is different from any of their preceding singles from the album 'Lament', aiming for a more lightweight, pop-oriented approach. The music video features the band members in a humorous parody of Indiana Jones, with Midge Ure being chased across deserts and forests by a ruthless treasure hunter. Midge Ure stated in his autobiography 'If I was' that the aim of the single and its video was to promote Ultravox as having a sense of humour, away from the seriousness of their previous releases.

Once again, I bought this single in a clear vinyl edition. The gatefold sleeve also contained a booklet with a beautifully illustrated song lyric in the style of the front sleeve. Unfortunately, I found this edition some years after buying the original single and the booklet sleeved one with the disc pressed on black vinyl. So now I've got three copies of this single...

My collection: 7" single no. 247-1, 247-2, 3068
Found: LP Top 100, Den Haag, 1984 / Disco Market, Den Haag, 1984 / House of Rhythm, London, 1999
Cost: 6 guilders / 3,5 guilders / 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Dancing with tears in my eyes' / 'White China (live)'

Original sin - Taylor Dayne

'Original sin' was recorded as a theme song for the 1994 movie 'The shadow', based on the character of the same name created by Walter B. Gibson in 1931. At a budget of 40 million dollars, the movie barely made a profit with worldwide sales of 48 million.

Taylor Dayne performed 'Original sin', which was produced, written and arranged by Jim Steinman, the man responsible for many bombastic hits such as 'Total eclipse of the heart' by Bonnie Tyler and 'Paradise by the dashboard light' by Meatloaf. The single only made the UK singles chart, peaking at number 63.

My collection: 7" single no. 2359
Found: June 29, 1995
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Original sin (radio edit)' / 'Original sin (radio mix)'

Open your eyes - Snow Patrol

'Open your eyes' was released as the fifth single from Snow Patrol's 2006 album 'Eyes open'. Released in February 2007, the single peaked at number 26 in the UK singles chart. It went number 1 in Slovakia and number 21 in Ireland.

The song has proved to be an effective track for campaigns. It was used in Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, the BBC HD service campaign, a promo for the second season of the TV series 'Gossip girl' and the season 12 finale and season 13 premiere of 'ER'. The B-side is a cover of Ricky Wilde's 'I am an astronaut', which was previously featured on the Save the Children charity compilation album 'Colours are brighter'.

My collection: 7" single no. 3499
Found: eBay.co.uk, received December 23, 2008
Cost: 3 pounds
Tracks: 'Open your eyes' / 'I am an astronaut'

Trick of the night - Bananarama

Before I bought the 12" single of 'Trick of the night', I found this ep featuring four tracks. Just like on the 12" single, 'Trick of the night' was featured in two different versions: one produced by Tony Swain and Steve Jolley, and one by Stock, Aitken & Waterman.

The single peaked at number 32 in the UK singles chart, whereas it peaked at number 76 in the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. This ep was released in a beautiful gatefold sleeve, the inner side featuring an illustration of the trio plus the lyric of the song.

My collection: 7" single no. 2765
Found: House of Rhythm, October 29, 1996
Cost: 40p
Tracks: 'Trick of the night #1', 'Cut above the rest' / 'Trick of the night #2', 'Set on you'

Amiga Quartett - Mel and Kim

The 'Amiga Quartett' was a series of four track ep's released in the German Democratic Republic, the Eastern part of Germany that existed until the end of the Eighties, featuring tracks from a certain artist or band. In this installment, the ep is filled with four tracks by Mel & Kim. They were enjoying a lot of success in Europe with 'Showing out' and 'Respectable' at the time. The state-controlled record company picked four tracks from their debut album to release them on this ep.

What's remarkable about this ep is the rather butchered version of 'Showing out'. It is edited in a different way than usual, taking rather random passages from the album version of the track and glueing them together, sometimes audibly wrong.

My collection: 7" single no. 2926
Found: Record fair, Rotterdam, December 13, 1997
Cost: 5 guilders
Tracks: 'Respectable', 'From a whisper to a scream' / 'Showing out', 'Who's gonna catch you'