I owe you nothing - Bros

I wrote about 'I owe you nothing' once before, as I already owned the single for a long time. But this weekend, I managed to find three more copies of the single. Three more? Yes, because the single was actually released with four different sleeves. One was a compilation of the three others, featuring one member on the front sleeve each. Such was the popularity of Bros, that the single was not only released this way in the UK, but also in Europe.

When 'I owe you nothing' was released as Bros's debut single a year earlier, it failed to chart. The re-release was much more successful, as it managed to climb to the top of the UK singles chart this time around. In the Dutch Top 40, the single reached number 4.

Finding these singles - the German pressings of them, by the way - saw me confronted with an administrative question: would I catalogue them as three separate singles?
In the end, I decided to give them all the number 4162. After all, all three singles contain the same two tracks.

My collection: 7" single no. 4162
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 1 euro each
Tracks: 'I owe you nothing' / 'I owe you nothing (The voice)'

Robert de Niro's waiting - Bananarama

Bananarama write and recorded 'Robert de Niro's waiting' on their self-titled second album, which was released in 1984. The track was apparently originally called 'Al Pacino's waiting', but was changed to 'Robert de Niro's waiting' because it fitted the music better. According to Siobhan Fahey: 'At Jolley [and] Swain's insistence the line 'Talking Italian' was added to add a 'romantic' edge.;

The single reached number 3 in the UK singles chart and number 25 in the Dutch Top 40. When Robert de Niro heard of the 'tribute' song, he arranged to meet the girls from Bananarama for drinks and dinner.

My collection: 7" single no. 4160
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Robert de Niro's waiting' / 'Push!'

Love conquers all - ABC

After the release of the compilation album 'Absolutely' in 1990, ABC moved to a new record company and started recording their sixth studio album 'Abracadabra'. Just like with all previous albums, they radically changed their sound. This time, they opted for early Nineties techno sounds with a rather unemotional, distanced production.

The first single from the album was 'Love conquers all', which was received without much enthusiasm. It reached number 47 in the UK singles chart, but flopped everywhere else.

My collection: 7" single no. 4158
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Love conquers all' / 'What's good about goodbye?'

Where did tomorrow go - Ellis Beggs and Howard

The album 'Homelands' by Ellis, Beggs & Howard was not a successful one, despite the fact that their debut single 'Big bubbles, no troubles' was a hit in some European countries. The second single from the album, 'Bad times', was a flop.

Despite this, a third single was released, the uptempo 'Where did tomorrow go?'. Unfortunately, this single also failed to make the chart. The trio started to record a second album in 1989, but it was not released in the end. The tracks did surface several years later as 'The lost years volume 1', including contributions from Warren Cuccurullo and Robert Fripp.

My collection: 7" single no. 4157
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Where did tomorrow go?' / 'Nobody knows'

A brand new day - The Wiz Stars

In 1978, the soundtrack album for the movie 'The Wiz' was released. Chiefly produced by Quincy Jones, the soundtrack features cast performances by the stars of the movie, including Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell and Ted Ross, amongst others.

This quartet also starred on the first single taken from the soundtrack, 'A brand new day', which was released as a single in the summer of 1979. It reached number 1 in the Dutch Top 40. The soundtrack marks Jones' first collaboration with Michael Jackson; he would go on to produce Jackson's hit solo albums 'Off the wall', 'Thriller' and 'Bad'.

My collection: 7" single no. 4155
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'A brand new day' / 'Liberation ballet: a brand new day'

The planet doesn't mind - New Musik

You know a single is rare when it is offered on eBay for enormous amounts of money. It is even more rare when it isn't offered on eBay at all. Ever since I knew about the existance of New Musik's single 'The planet doesn't mind' (which really isn't that long ago) I have been searching for this single to no avail. A copy recently popped up on discogs.com, offered on sale for the amount of 20 euros.

How lucky I was to find this copy of the single for one tenth of that amount. It means that I am very close to completing my collection of New Musik singles. The only one I am looking for now is the title track of their third album, 'Warp'. For a reasonable price, of course. After all, all these singles flopped.

My collection: 7" single no. 4151
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'The planet doesn't mind' / '24 hours from culture (part 2)'

I wanna dance - Novi Fosili

Novi Fosili (English: The new fossils) was a Croatian pop band, one of the most popular music acts in former Yugoslavia. They formed in Zagreb in 1969. They found success when composer Rajko Dujmić joined the band in 1976. That same year the band played at the Split Festival, where their song 'Diridonda' became a hit throughout the country. Their next several albums sold millions of copies and delivered many hits that are still aired on radios in Croatia today. The first female singer was Đurđica Barlović, in 1984 replaced by Sanja Doležal. The group's male vocalists were Vladimir Kočiš Zec and Rajko Dujmić.

In 1987 the band represented Yugoslavia at the Eurovision Song Contest. With their song 'Ja sam za ples' they reached fourth place. The single was released all over Europe, but this didn't bring them international success. The band disbanded when the former Yugoslavia fell apart.

My collection: 7" single no. 4150
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, November 7, 2009
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'I wanna dance' / 'Ja sam za ples'