Nina, pretty ballerina - Pretty Maid Company

There is no information on this single about the year of release, but several internet sources put this single in the year 1977. It makes sense: at the height of the disco era, pretty young girls were coupled to cheesy disco anthems or disco covers of wellknown songs. In this case, it's the latter: a version of a song originally recorded by Abba.

'Nina pretty ballerina' was written by Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus and recorded by the Swedish pop group in 1973. Released as a single in France and Austria only, it reached number 8 in Austria. This cover version was less successful: as far as I could find out, it didn't chart. However, the girls did make an appearance in the German music show Musikladen...



My collection: 7" single no. 5064
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Nina, pretty ballerina' / 'Sweet night of love'

Love to hate you - Erasure

'Love to hate you' was released as the second single from Erasure's 1991 album 'Chorus'. It is one of Erasure's most successful singles on the UK singles chart, peaking at number 4. It also reached number 19 in the German singles cra tand number 4 in Sweden.

It is one of those singles that has been missing from my collection for inexplicable reasons. At the time, I bought the cd-single, and in subsequent years I never realised I never bought the 7" vinyl version. It's always nice to make good on such an omission.

My collection: 7" single no. 5063
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Love to hate you' / 'Vitamin C'

Only you - Flying Pickets

The Flying Pickets came up with the then novel concept of transferring the art of a cappella to the pop music scene. The members of the group were internationally renowned for their flamboyant appearance: Hibbard's huge sideburns, Stripe's thick eye-liner, and four others showing off gaudy suits and large hats.

'Only you', their debut single, was a cover of the track by Yazoo and became the UK Christmas number one in 1983, spending a total of five weeks at the top, and also doing well around Europe and in Canada.

My collection: 7" single no. 5062
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Only you' / 'Disco down'

Malaika (Lambada remix) - Boney M

Collecting Boney M singles has become a very amusing pastime for me. The original singles from the Seventies are all in my collection, but in the second half of the Eighties an endless stream of remixes was apparently released on single. I have already found a couple of these (and you can see them on this blog here), but yet another one turned up.

This one is the 'Lambada remix' of 'Malaika'. It was not a very commercial song to begin with, and this remix doesn't help matters much. There isn't a lot of Lambada in this remix and the added beats don't get one on their dancing feet. Well, at least the B-side is more interesting: a Nineties remix of that song that started it all, 'Baby do you wanna bump'.

My collection: 7" single no. 5061
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Malaika (Lambada remix)' / 'Baby do you wanna bump (Remix for the 90's)'

It's nature's way (No problem) - Dollar

The duo David van Day and Thereza Bazar had a rather stormy career in the first half of the Eighties, then broke up after relations between the two became increasingly strained. In 1986 they reformed and had a big hit with a cover of the Erasure track 'Oh l'amour'.

The group then hit a stumbling block in deciding on a follow-up and past ill-feeling between the pair was rising again. Six months later they finally released another single, 'It's nature's way', but it was to be their last release as the single flopped and work on a possible album had been long delayed. In late 1988, Dollar disbanded again.

My collection: 7" single no. 5060
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'It's nature's way (No problem)' / 'Dia y noche'

World without you - Belinda Carlisle

I'm not ashamed to admit that photography is one of the reasons I like Belinda Carlisle's singles so much. She's always managed to find the right photographer to put her on the cover of her singles - and this one is a good example of that.

That's not to say that 'World without you' is a bad song: it's very pleasant pop, written by one of America's most famous writers, Diane Warren. Okay, it's a bit formulaic, but most of Carlisle's songs have that quality to them: formulaic pop, delivered with that strange voice that is a mix between a sheep and a nasal whistle-tone. The single reached number 34 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 5059
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'World without you' / 'Nobody owns me'

Inside to outside - Limahl

Limahl is forever associated to his band Kajagoogoo and his dodgy haircut. But people tend to forget that he's also had a solo career with considerable success, mostly in central Europe. And he's made some very nice pop tunes too.

'Inside to outside' was released in 1986 as the follow-up to 'Love in your eyes', a track from his second solo album 'Colour all my days'. The single reached number 57 in the German singles chart - and actually his last chart hit in that country until now.

My collection: 7" single no. 5058
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Inside to outside' / 'Shock'