Who will you run to - Heart

'Who will you run to' was the second single from Heart's 1987 album 'Bad animals'. The song was written by Diane Warren. The lyric contains a clear warning to a departing lover that there will be no one else who could care for and support him in the way that the singer of the song has.

The single reached number 7 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 30 in the UK singles chart. The B-side is the most beautiful track from Heart's 1985 self-titled album.

My collection: 7" single no. 1751
Found: London, October 19, 1992
Cost: 60p
Tracks: 'Who will you run to' / 'Nobody home'

Follow me - Demis Roussos

I don't think many chart singles are based on classical music these days. But in the Seventies and early Eighties, it happened every once in a while. This track by Demis Roussos is a good example: 'Follow me' was based on Rodrigo's Concerto d'Aranjuez, and was an impressive piece clocking in at six minutes.

Demis reached number 25 in the Dutch Top 40 with this single, and had a Europe-wide hit with it as well.

My collection: 7" single no. 169
Found: Wouters, Den Haag, 1982
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Follow me' / 'Song without end'

April love - Ricky Wilde

After Ricky Wilde debuted in 1972 with 'I am an astronaut', his second single 'April love' was released in early 1973. The song was originally written by Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster and recorded in 1957 by Pat Boone. Young Ricky didn't reach the UK singles chart with this effort, and I have no further chart statistics for this single. (He reportedly did well in Scandinavia with some singles, but it's never been described which singles exactly).

I found this copy of the single, with a picture sleeve and made in the UK, on eBay, sold by a Danish person. The disc is in pretty fine condition, considering its age of 36 years. And yes, all of Ricky's singles have become a bit of a collector's item: they are rarely offered for sale and especially copies with a picture sleeve are very hard to find.

My collection: 7" single no. 4098
Found: eBay.com, received September 29, 2009
Cost: 9 euro
Tracks: 'April love' / 'Round and round'

Left to my own devices - Pet Shop Boys

Produced by Trevor Horn, it's no surprise that 'Left to my devices', taken from the Pet Shop Boys' 1987 album 'Introspective', is quite a bombastic tune. As for the lyrics, Neil Tennant explains: 'I liked the idea of writing a really up pop song about being left alone. This song is a day in the life of someone, so it starts off with getting out of bed and being on the phone and drinking tea and all the rest of it, and it ends up with coming home. By this time I was making the words very exaggerated and camp, though writing a book and going on stage were both things I had wanted to do when I was young.'

The single peaked at number 4 in the UK singles chart and number 19 in the Dutch Top 40. It did much worse in America, where it stalled at number 84. The Pet Shop Boys failed to regain their popularity there ever since.

My collection: 7" single no. 707
Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, December 17, 1988
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Left to my own devices' / 'The sound of the atom splitting'

In my arms - Erasure

While in the UK their record company had stopped releasing 7" singles by Erasure after 'Run to the sun', their American record company apparently continued for some time, judging from this copy of 'In my arms', released in 1997.

'In my arms', released as the first single from Erasure's 1997 album 'Cowboy', became their first Billboard Hot 100 entry since 1994's 'Always', peaking at number 55. In the UK, the single reached number 13. The B-side features a cover of Blondie's 'Heart of glass'.

My collection: 7" single no. 4059
Found: eBay.com, received September 23, 2009
Cost: $4
Tracks: 'In my arms' / 'Heart of glass'

My first night without you - Cyndi Lauper

Cyndi Lauper, Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg wrote 'My first night without you', a song about coming home for the first time without a partner being there after a break up. The single was considered a failure in most of the world because it failed to make a big impact on most charts. However, in South America it was a big success, reaching number 1 in Brazil and Colombia.

The track is also a personal favourite of mine. I remember playing it lots of times after I bought it out of curiosity.

My collection: 7" single no. 1269
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, July 14, 1990
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'My first night without you' / 'Unabbreviated love'

Bet that's what you say - Mai Tai

Released in April 1987, 'Bet that's what you say' was Mai Tai's penultimate hit single in the Netherlands. The song was produced by Eric van Tijn and Jochem Fluitsma, who also wrote the it. The single reached number 36 in the Dutch Top 40 during a three week chart run.

The sleeve photograph was taken by one of the Netherlands' most wellknown photographers, Govert de Roos.

My collection: 7" single no. 4090
Found: Marktplaats.nl, received September 25, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Bet that's what you say' / 'Bet that's what you say (dub mix)'