Don't stand so close to me - The Police

Sting, lead singer of the Police, was an English teacher before he found fame with his band. 'Don't stand so close to me', with its lyric dealing with the mixed feelings of a teacher (lust/guilt/fear), and inappropriateness leading to confrontation, caused some speculation on whether the song was actually autobiographical. Sting denied this in 2001 when he promoted the concert dvd 'All this time'.

The single was released in 1980. It gave the band their first hit in the USA, as it reached number 11 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In the UK, it was a number 1 hit, while in the Dutch Top 40 it reached number 3. The single I have is part of a limited edition with a poster sleeve.

My collection: 7" single no. 1219
Found: Record fair, Den Haag, April 22, 1990
Cost: 5 guilders
Tracks: 'Don't stand so close to me' / 'Friends'

War party - Eddy Grant

'War party' was originally a track on Eddy Grant's 1981 album 'Killer on the rampage'. The track was remixed and released as a single in 1982. The single reached number 42 in the UK singles chart during a four week chart run.

This single was released as a limited edition pressed on red vinyl in Germany. This copy is one of that limited edition.

My collection: 7" single no. 3206
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, September 30, 2000
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'War party (Bajan remix)' / 'Say I love you'

A quoi je sers... - Mylene Farmer

Mylene Farmer released 'A quoi je sers...' ('To whom I serve...') in the summer of 1989, coinciding with her first live tour in France. It was a new song, not available on her debut album which the tour promoted. Both this song and its B-side, 'La veuve noire' were recorded fairly quickly.

As often with Mylene, the lyric of the song is very pessimistic. It's about madness, the desire of suicide and the impression of the futility of the life. According to some observers, the song sums up most of Mylene's work, as it displays the singer's doubts about her usefulness on Earth. The single reached number 16 in the French singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 1971
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, September 25, 1993
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'A quoi je sers...' / 'La veuve noire'

Something to believe in - Clannad

Clannad collaborated with American singer/songwriter Bruce Hornsby to record 'Something to believe in'. He played piano and accordion on the track and also sang along on the track (his voice is clearly audible in the chorus).

The track was released as the first single from Clannad's 1987 album 'Sirius' but failed to chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 1471
Found: June 30, 1991
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Something to believe in' / 'Second nature'

Venus - Bananarama

'Venus' was written by Dutch musician Robbie van Leeuwen for his band Shocking Blue, released as a single in late 1969. Bananarama had the song in their live repertoire for a couple of years before they decided to record it. They wanted to turn it into a dance track and brought the idea to producers Stock Aitken Waterman. It became Bananarama's first collaboration with them.

Initially, Stock, Aitken and Waterman also resisted the idea because they believed that 'Venus' would not make a good dance record. The three members of Bananarama persisted, and so they recorded the song. When it was released as a single in the summer of 1986, it went to number 1 in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Mexico and South Africa. In the UK, the single reached number 8 and in the Dutch Top 40 it reached number 4. The collaboration on 'Venus' led Bananarama and SAW to work together on the group's follow-up album 'Wow!' in 1987.

My collection: 7" single no. 4324
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, December 1, 2009
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Venus' / 'White train'

Young offender / Liberation - Pet Shop Boys

Throughout their career, the Pet Shop Boys have always been keen on remixing their songs. In the beginning, they made most of their extended remixes themselves, but when the Nineties started, they utilised more and more 'outsiders' for their remixes. This double 12" single set displays both the merits and the disadvantages of that approach.

The two Jam & Spoon remixes of 'Young offender' are great trance experiences, using most of the original song but in a very different musical setting. 'Liberation' was remixed by Murk, Oscar G and E Smoove, but none of them have been able to come up with something even remotely sounding like the original track. Some of them use one word from the track, namely its title, but the whole experience of disc 2 has become unlistenable dross. Remixing? Not everyone is good at it, you know.

My collection: 12" single no. 228
Found: Record fair, 1993
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: 'Young offender (Jam & Spoon's Trip-o-matic fairy tale mix)' / 'Young offender (Remix no. 2)' // 'Liberation (E Smoove 7" mix)' / 'Liberation (Murk Deepstrumental mix)', 'Liberation (Oscar G's dopeassdub mix)', 'Liberation (Murk Dirty Club mix)'

Who's gonna ride your wild horses - U2

U2 recorded 'Who's gonna ride your wild horses' many times during the sessions for their 1991 album 'Achtung baby', but they eventually ended up with a version that was very similar to the original demo. Bono wrote the song's lyrics for The Edge, who was going through a rough divorce from his wife during the recording sessions.

Bono has commented that the band were still dissatisfied with the track: 'It's a song I feel we didn't quite nail on the record because there was another whole set of lyrics that were dumped and I wrote those quickly and off we went.' The track was remixed for the single release. It reached number 14 in the UK singles chart and number 13 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 1795
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, November 28, 1992
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Who's gonna ride your wild horses' / 'Paint it black'