'What kinda boy you're lookin' for (girl)' was the twelfth top 10 hit for Hot Chocolate in the UK singles chart, peaking at number 10 in the spring of 1983. In the Dutch Top 40, it was the group's penultimate hit single, peaking at number 21.
Written by lead singer Errol Brown and produced by Mickie Most, the track used a formula that had become familiar by 1983: a catchy refrain and soulful vocals.
My collection: 7" single no. 4432 Found: Kringloop, Sassenheim, January 23, 2010 Cost: 0,12 euro Tracks: 'What kinda boy you're lookin' for (girl)' / 'Got to get back to work'
I've always ignored Lenny Kravitz singles in the Nineties, mainly because I felt they were quite repetitive: they seemed to be remakes of his debut hit 'Let love rule'. In later years, I discovered a few songs that I still find worthwhile to own. 'It ain't over 'til it's over' is one of them.
The song was released as the second single from Kravitz's second album 'Mama said' (1991). The horn line at the end of the song is performed by the Phenix Horns from Earth, Wind & Fire. 'That song just came out one day, and I knew it had a classic vibe. And I still love that song very much today', Lenny Kravitz commented in 2000. The title of the song is based on a quote from the Baseball player and manager Yogi Berra.
My collection: 7" single no. 4431 Found: Kringloop, Sassenheim, January 23, 2010 Cost: 0,12 euro Tracks: 'It ain't over 'til it's over' / 'The difference is why'
'Arabian affair' sounds a bit Middle Eastern, but in fact it was made by a Dutch group. Behind the scenes, Dutch musician and producer Hans van Eijck was experimenting with Eastern melodies, combined with disco beats for the fun of it. He enlisted some session musicians to create the single 'Arabian affair', which became a big hit in the Netherlands: the single reached number 4 in the Dutch Top 40.
When the success crossed over to Germany, the project turned out to be lucrative enough to warrant a complete album, which you can find here.
My collection: 7" single no. 4430 Found: Kringloop, Sassenheim, January 23, 2010 Cost: 0,12 euro Tracks: 'Arabian affair' / 'Desert dance'
Andrea True was born on July 26, 1943 in Nashville, Tennessee. After graduation, she sought fame and fortune in the showbusiness, but wasn't very successful. She moved into the hardcore porn industry instead. During this time, she was hired by a real estate business in Jamaica to appear in their commercial ads. While there, a political crisis gripped Jamaica, and no one was allowed to leave with any money. True asked her friend, record producer Gregg Diamond, to travel to the island and produce a track for her, which she would finance locally. Diamond arrived with a composition in hand, to which True added lyrics. The result of their collaboration was 'More more more'.
The track became a favourite in discotheques and nightclubs. It reached number 4 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 5 in the UK singles chart and number 9 in Germany. An album, also titled 'More more more' soon followed. After three albums, True briefly returned to porn, but soon realized that there were significantly fewer opportunities in the porn industry for a woman in her late Thirties. She was also unable to return to music, because of a goiter that developed on her vocal cords requiring surgery, which in turn ended her singing ability. And so she went on to live a more private life.
My collection: 7" single no. 4429 Found: Kringloop, Sassenheim, January 23, 2010 Cost: 0,12 euro Tracks: 'More more more (part 2)' / 'More more more (part 2)'
Although this 7" single is in no way different from the 12" single except for the size of the disc and sleeve, I still had to have it. I'm primarily a singles collector, of course!
The track, which is an alternative version of Tears for Fears's 1989 hit single 'Sowing the seeds of love', originally appeared as the B-side to their 1990 single 'Advice for the young at heart'. The song was later remixed by producer/DJ Fluke and released as a single in 1991. The single did not chart in the UK and has since become quite a collectors item among Tears for Fears fans.
My collection: 7" single no. 3072 Found: Record Exchange, London, May 10, 1999 Cost: 1 pound Tracks: 'Johnny Panic and the bible of dreams (mix 1)' / 'Johnny Panic and the bible of dreams (mix 2)'
Eurovision entries by Scandinavian countries have regularly had a certain Abba-esque quality to them. The duo Dollie de Luxe represented Norway in the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest with 'Lenge leve livet', a great example of this fact.
The song is a modern ballad, with the duo singing the praises of life. They explain that it makes sense to live to the full, because nobody knows for sure what the future may bring. The song finished 17th in a field of 19 competitors. For the single, the English version was promoted to the A-side, which is probably a wise choice. The limited vocal qualities of the duo meant that the single didn't chart outside of Scandinavia.
My collection: 7" single no. 4388 Found: Second Life Music, Amsterdam, December 30, 2009 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Life was made for living' / 'Lenge leve livet'
There's a certain bombastic quality to 'Can't let go', the 1992 single by Mariah Carey. As much as I hate the woman's voice, which seems to be inspired mainly by constipation, I couldn't pass up on this single when I saw it for half the price around the time it was released.
The single was a big success in the USA and Canada, peaking at number 2 and 7 respectively, and also reached number 20 in the UK singles chart. In mainland Europe, the single was largely ignored.
My collection: 7" single no. 1571 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, January 12, 1992 Cost: 3,5 guilders Tracks: 'Can't let go' / 'To be around you'
'What kinda boy you're lookin' for (girl)' was the twelfth top 10 hit for Hot Chocolate in the UK singles chart, peaking at number 10 in the spring of 1983. In the Dutch Top 40, it was the group's penultimate hit single, peaking at number 21.
