Loverboy - Billy Ocean

'Loverboy' was the second single taken from Billy Ocean's 1984 album 'Suddenly'. It was produced by Robert John 'Mutt' Lange. The single peaked at number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 15 on the UK singles chart.

This 12" single features an extended version of the track, adding a lot of instrumental passages and synth riffs that makes the song so delicious in the first place. After buying this 12" single I found out that a limited edition was pressed on coloured vinyl. Oh well, you can't win them all...

My collection: 12" single no. 335
Found: Plaatboef, Rotterdam, 1995
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Loverboy (extended)' / 'Loverboy (dub mix)'

No tengo dinero - Righeira

While Righeira became famous with two summer hits with Spanish titles, 'Vamos a la playa' and 'No tengo dinero', Stefano Rota and Stefano Righi were actually from Italy. Indeed, the sound of their singles is very 'Italo disco'.

'No tengo dinero' was released in 1984 and reached number 10 in the Dutch Top 40. It was also a hit in the rest of Europe, although it didn't chart in the UK (where 'Vamos a la playa' had reached number 53).

My collection: 7" single no. 2951
Found: Record fair, Leiden, February 7, 1998
Cost: 1 guilder
Track: 'No tengo dinero' / 'Dinero scratch'

It's a sin - Pet Shop Boys

In the summer of 1987, MTV Europe started broadcasting. I was there when it happened and I think I saw about 70% of everything they broadcasted during the first few weeks. I quickly concluded that MTV wasn't going to make me happy: they had a very limited stock of music videos and they kept playing the same titles over and over again. I think I saw the video for 'It's a sin' eight times every single day.

Which is why to this day I'm a bit bored by this song. It is a good track, I simply heard it too damn much. The single was a massive hit, topping the charts in Austria, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. In the UK, the single peaked at number 3.

My collection: 7" single no. 551
Found: Tower Records, London, 1987
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'It's a sin' / 'You know where you went wrong'

Shocked - Kylie Minogue

'Shocked' was written and produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman for Kylie Minogue’s third album 'Rhythm of love' (1990). The song was never intended for single release but when remixed by DNA and featured a rap penned and performed by Pauline Bennett a.k.a Jazzi P the commercial potential was big enough to warrant a release. (Obviously I prefer the B-side version which isn't tainted by the inane rantings of a madwoman.)

The single peaked at number 6 in the UK singles chart and at number 2 in Ireland.

My collection: 7" single no. 3323
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, March 24, 2001
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Shocked (DNA mix)' / 'Shocked (Harding/Curnow mix)'

In Liverpool - Suzanne Vega

Suzanne Vega had a few hits under her belt when she released '99.9F°' in 1992. Personally, I think it's her best work, because it mixes the sometimes rather dull folk influences she was working with up to that point with industrial music and dance beats.

'In Liverpool', the first single taken from the album, was a beautiful ballad with a strong melody. The single only charted in the UK, but stalled at number 52.

My collection: 7" single no. 2693
Found: Beanos, East Croydon, London, July 3, 1996
Cost: 1,5 pounds
Tracks: 'In Liverpool' / 'Some journey (live)'

Hold me now - Thompson Twins

'Hold me now' can be considered the Thompson Twins biggest hit. It reached number 4 in the UK singles chart and was a top 10 hit in Europe and America. Alannah Currie from the band later commented: 'The biggest trouble that we've had basically is that the song was a huge hit, it was really bigall over the world. Which is great, but it was just an accidental thing. It was just a song that we wrote. But after that then, we got everybody—managers, the record company—on our back to write 'Hold me now, part 2' and harrassing you to try and find a formula. But we can't really. We'll never find a formula for what we did. And that upsets some of them.'

I was quite shocked to find that I had to pay 5 guilders for this picture disc six years after its release, while the song was never a hit in the Netherlands. But oh well, it was still worth it.

My collection: 7" single no. 1105
Found: All that music, Leiden, November 11, 1989
Cost: 5 guilders
Tracks: 'Hold me now' / 'Let loving start'

Bulletproof - La Roux

La Roux is a synthpop duo consisting of Eleanor Jackson and Ben Langmaid. 'Bulletproof' is their third single, released in June 2009. Jackson commented about the lyric of the song: 'Bulletproof is just about looking at a situation that's usually a reoccurring one. It could be to do with anything in your life - whatever you want it to be about.'

The 7" single release is a square picture disc with two playable sides, although the B-side basically consists of an empty groove. The single topped the UK singles chart, but so far it hasn't charted in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 4009
Found: eBay.co.uk, received August 22, 2009
Cost: 2 pounds
Track: 'Bulletproof'