Pieces of ice - Diana Ross

I saw Diana Ross on television recently and she still looked quite good. So it's a mystery to me why she didn't appear on the sleeve of this single. 'Pieces of ice' was the first single taken from her 1983 album 'Ross' - which, coincidentally, is not only her last name but also the name of her eldest son, who was born in 1987. And no, his name is not Ross Ross, but rather Ross Naess, after his father.

Despite the fact that the single reached number 31 in the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, it was never included on subsequent 'greatest hits' compilations. In the UK, the singles less successful, peaking at number 46.

My collection: 7" single no. 5116
Found: Backtrack, Antwerpen, June 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Pieces of ice' / 'Still in love'

Wintertime - Kayak

There is no denying that Kayak made some great rock music in the Seventies. And it was also hard to deny where they came from. On 'Mammoth' they had a street organ included in the music, on this single, 'Wintertime', an accordeon is part of the proceedings.

Released in September 1974, it became the band's third hit single, peaking at number 30 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 5115
Found: Backtrack, Antwerpen, June 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Wintertime' / 'Alibi'

Dynamite - Jermaine Jackson

Jermaine Jackson never achieved the same level of fame his brother and sister Michael and Janet did. But at least one of his albums was pretty successful in various territories: 'Dynamite'. The album reached number 19 in the US album chart and number 57 in the UK.

The title track was released as the second single from the album and managed to get to number 15 in the US Billboard Hot 100. It was successful in some European countries too. Further success would come to Jermaine with the next single, 'Do what you do' and the infamous duet with Pia Zadora, 'When the rain begins to fall'.

My collection: 7" single no. 5114
Found: Backtrack, Antwerpen, June 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Dynamite!' / 'Take good care of my heart' (duet with Whitney Houston)

In the heat of the night - Imagination

The title track from their second album 'In the heat of the night' was released as Imagination's third single from that album and their sixth single overall. It sounded a bit like a slowed down version of their biggest hit 'Just an illusion' or perhaps 'Body talk', but despite the familiarity of the sound - or perhaps because of it - it wasn't as big a hit.

In the UK singles chart, 'In the heat of the night' reached number 22, while peaking at number 48 and 14 in Germany and the Netherlands respectively.

My collection: 7" single no. 5113
Found: Backtrack, Antwerpen, June 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'In the heat of the night' / 'In the heat of the night (instrumental)'

Morning train (9 to 5) - Sheena Easton

Young Scottish singer Sheena Easton had some success with her debut single 'Modern girl', but her second, '9 to 5' went to number 3 in the UK singles chart.

'9 to 5' was Easton's first single release in the United States, although it was renamed 'Morning Train (Nine To Five)' to avoid confusion with Dolly Parton's hit movie title song '9 to 5'. 'Morning Train' became Easton's first and only #1 hit in the USA. It was the start of a very impressive and varied career on both sides of the Atlantic.

My collection: 7" single 5112
Found: Backtrack, Antwerpen, June 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Morning train (9 to 5)' / 'Calm before the storm'

Black Man Ray - China Crisis

China Crisis's third album was produced by Walter Becker, of Steely Dan fame. Named 'Flaunt the imperfection', the album was preceded by the single 'Black man Ray', which became an international hit.

I had the limited edition set which consisted of two picture discs for some time, but for some reason I never actually bought the 'normal' 7" single. Now, finally, I did.

My collection: 7" single no. 5111
Found: Backtrack, Antwerpen, June 9, 2011
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Black Man Ray' / 'Animalistic'

Gwendolyne - Julio Iglesias

I already own a copy of 'Gwendolyne' by Julio Iglesias, the Spanish entry for the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest - possibly one of the country's most beautiful entries ever. When I bought my copy 15 months ago, I didn't know this one existed...

...It's a promotional single which features four versions of the song: in Spanish, English, Italian and French. Of course it's all sung with a delicious Spanish accent, but it's a rarity that I suspect many Eurovision fans would kill for, 31 years after its release...

My collection: 7" single no. 5110
Found: Empire Records, Den Haag, June 4, 2011
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Gwendolyne (Espanol)', 'Gwendolyne (Ingles)' / 'Gwendolyne (Italiano)', 'Gwendolyne (Frances)'