Can't stop these things - China Drum

It doesn't happen very often that I buy a single for the B-side, but in this instance, I did. China Drum recorded a cover of Kate Bush's 'Wuthering heights' and it was included on the B-side of the single 'Can't stop these things'. In 1996, which is when this single was released, 7" vinyl singles were becoming increasingly rare, but British indie bands still released singles on that format quite a lot.

The single had a one week run in the UK singles charts, at number 65.

My collection: 7" single no. 2655
Found: London, June 29, 1996
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Can't stop these things' / 'Wuthering heights'

Exile - Enya

'Exile' is a track on Enya's 1988 album 'Watermark'. Somehow the track managed to find its way onto the soundtrack of the movie 'L.A. Story' three years later. The record company didn't waste a minute in trying to cash in on this and released 'Exile' as a single.

It's a beautiful track, but anything but commercially viable. The single vanished without a trace.

My collection: 7" single no. 2222
Found: Record fair, Rotterdam, December 17, 1994
Cost: 5 guilders
Tracks: 'Exile' / 'On your shore'

Give give give - Dance Aid

Everyone remembers Live Aid, Band Aid and USA for Africa, but the stream of charity singles that followed was frankly quite embarrassing. Stock Aitken & Waterman were scraping the barrel in 1987 when they released 'Give give give' by Dance Aid. The proceeds of the single went to Disco Aid, but what that organisation was all about, I can't find out.

The interesting thing about this song is that you can't make out who's singing the lines. None of the voices are recognisable, they all blend together into one anonymous blob. Mel & Kim apparently contributed to this song as well - or so the sleeve claims - but I have yet to recognise them. Needless to say, the single flopped everywhere.

My collection: 7" single no. 587
Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, 1987
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Give give give' / 'Give give give (Senza voce)'

Hollywood - Freddie James

Freddie James was born in Chicago, Illinois (USA) in 1965. At a young age he started a music career. In fact, in 1979 his debut single 'Get up and boogie' became a worldwide hit. The follow-up single 'Hollywood' sounded a lot like that hit, and subsequently failed to make the same sort of impact.

I mainly remember that this song was played on the radio once, and just after Freddie sang 'I'm going to Hollywood to become a star' the presenter commented: 'He'll have to eat lots of porridge first'.

My collection: 7" single no. 40
Found: Wouters, Den Haag, 1980
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Hollywood' / 'Crazy disco music'

Joe le taxi - Vanessa Paradis

Vanessa Chantal Paradis was born on December 22, 1972 in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, a suburb of Paris, France. She appeared on television for the first time on the show 'L'école des fans' in 1980. Five years later, she recorded her debut single, 'La magie des surprises-parties'. Although this was not a hit, her next single, 'Joe le taxi', released in 1987, was.

At only 14 years, Vanessa Paradis topped the chart in France for a whopping 11 weeks with this single. It stormed the European charts as well, peaking at number 3 in the UK singles chart and number 23 in the Netherlands. A successful career would follow.

My collection: 7" single no. 1739
Found: Record Exchange, London, October 18, 1992
Cost: 1,5 pounds
Tracks: 'Joe le taxi' / 'Varvara Pavlovna'

You're my world - Nick Heyward

Nick Heyward was a member of Haircut One Hundred between 1980 and 1983, then he pursued a solo career. His third solo album 'I love you avenue' was released in 1988 and contained this single, 'You're my world'. It peaked at number 67 in the UK singles chart.

I saw the music video for this song on television and decided right away that I would buy the single.

My collection: 7" single no. 658
Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, September 29, 1988
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'You're my world' / 'Pizza tears'

The look of love - Madonna

People who like good singers can largely ignore Madonna's output during the Eighties. She couldn't sing until she got some vocal coaching for her appearance in the movie 'Evita'. Despite her lack of vocal skills, she did manage to release two interesting singles during the Eighties. 'The look of love' was one of them.

'The look of love' was the third and final single from the soundtrack of the movie 'Who's that girl' (a movie in which Madonna tried to show off her non-existant acting skills). The single reached number 8 in the Netherlands and number 9 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 2657
Found: House of Rhythm, London, June 29, 1996
Cost: 50p
Tracks: 'The look of love' / 'Express yourself (7" remix)'