Being boring - Pet Shop Boys

'Being boring' was the second single taken from the Pet Shop Boys' 1990 album 'Behaviour'. The song is concerned with the idea of growing up and how people's perceptions and values change as they grow older. The title apparently materialised after someone in Japan accused the duo of being boring. The title is also derived from a Zelda Fitzgerald quotation, 'she refused to be bored chiefly because she wasn't boring'.

The track was originally pieced together in a studio in West Glasgow, where the music for 'My October symphony', 'The end of the world' and the unreleased track 'Love and war' were also done. 'Being boring' was not the duo's biggest chart success: it didn't chart in the Netherlands and only reached number 20 in the UK singles chart (whereas previous singles made the top 10 with ease).

My collection: 7" single no. 1503
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, August 6, 1991
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Being boring' / 'We all feel better in the dark'

All I wanna do is make love to you - Heart

Taken from their Heart's tenth album 'Brigade' (1990), 'All I wanna do is make love to you' was the first single from the album, composed by producer Robert John 'Mutt' Lange. In the track, the protagonist speaks of a one-night stand with a man, only to reveal later in the song that her intent all along was to use the encounter as a way to become pregnant, because the man she really loves is not able to give her children. It was not the best lyric Heart ever performed.

In the liner notes of Heart's album 'The road home', Ann Wilson commented on the band's dislike for the song, stating, 'Actually we had sworn off it because it kind of stood for everything we wanted to get away from. It was a song by 'Mutt' Lange, whom we liked, and it was originally written for Don Henley, but there was a lot of pressure on us to do the song at the time.' The single was a hit for the band, peaking at number 5 in the Dutch Top 40, number 8 in the UK singles chart and number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100.

My collection: 7" single no. 1206
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, April 13, 1990
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'All I wanna do is make love to you' / 'Call of the wild'

Suspended in gaffa - Kate Bush

'Suspended in gaffa' was the third single release from Kate Bush's fourth studio album 'The dreaming', at least in Europe. In the UK, 'There was a tenner' was released instead. The song lyrics are about seeing something one really wants (God in this case), then not being able to see or experience it ever again. The 'gaffa' of the title and chorus refers to gaffer tape, the tough black tape used by technicians in the film and concert industries.

The B-side is the original mix of 'Ne t'enfuis pas'. 'Ne t'enfuis pas', which is misspelled on the original sleeve as 'Ne t'en fui pas', means 'don't go' in French.

My collection: 7" single no. 4116
Found: Empire Records, Den Haag, October 17, 2009
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Suspended in gaffa' / 'Ne t'en fui pas'

Somewhere in Europe - Liam Reilly

Liam Reilly represented Ireland during the 1990 Eurovision Song Contest with 'Somewhere in Europe', a slightly contrived song in which the singer describes his desire to meet a former lover once again. As he is 'back in Ireland', he wants to meet his lover somewhere in Europe. All the cliches about European capitals are subsequently described.

Still, this array of cliches pleased the European juries, as the song finished second behind that year's winner, the appalling 'Insieme 1992' by Toto Cotugno.

My collection: 7" single no. 4115
Found: Empire Records, Den Haag, October 17, 2009
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Somewhere in Europe' / 'Walking on the brighter side'

Down under - Men at work

'Down under' was the song that launched the international career of the Australian band Men at work. The lyrics are about an Australian traveler circling the globe, proud of his nationality and about his interactions with people he meets on his travels who are interested in his home country, Australia.

Originally, 'Down under' was released as the B-side to the single 'Keypunch operator', a rare custom-pressed single by Men at Work. When the track was released as an A-side, it reached number 1 in the UK singles chart and number 2 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4114
Found: Empire Records, Den Haag, October 17, 2009
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Down under' / 'Helpless automaton'

Talking loud and clear - Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

'Talking loud and clear' was released as the second single from Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark's 1984 album 'Junk culture'. The single reached number 11 in the UK singles chart and number 5 in the Dutch Top 40.

I remember not being very impressed with OMD's 1984 singles. They sounded too lush compared to the stark synth sound of their earlier singles. Fortunately time has been friendly to their music and it's a very pleasant listen now.

My collection: 7" single no. 4113
Found: Empire Records, Den Haag, October 17, 2009
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Talking loud and clear' / 'Julia's song'

Overkill - Men at work

'Overkill' was released as a single from the 1983 Men at work album 'Cargo'. It was written by lead singer Colin Hay, reaching number 3 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 21 in the UK singles chart and number 16 in the Dutch Top 40.

The song found a second life nineteen years later when it was used in the US sitcom 'Scrubs' in the episode 'My overkill'. Colin Hay performed a cameo in which he performed the song acoustically.

My collection: 7" single no. 4112
Found: Empire Records, Den Haag, October 17, 2009
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Overkill' / 'Till the money runs out'