Loving the alien - David Bowie

When you read articles in the 'serious' music press, there's always a kind of disdain for David Bowie's work in the Eighties. Commercially successful, yes, but artistically doubtful. I happen to disagree: during the Eighties he made some of his most beautiful work, especially the songs created for movie soundtracks such as 'Absolute beginners' and 'When the wind blows', but also this track, 'Loving the alien' from his 1985 album 'Tonight'.

The 12" single was released in a gatefold sleeve that covered in images from the video. A limited edition also included a fold-out poster. The extended dance mix on this disc is actually identical to the album version, but with an added drum break.

My collection: 12" single no. 371
Found: Plaatboef, Rotterdam, 2000
Cost: 3 guilders
Tracks: 'Loving the alien (extended dance mix)' / 'Don't look down (extended dance mix)', 'Loving the alien (extended dub mix)'

Bitter is better - Kim Wilde

I first heard of this single in the mid-Eighties, when a picture of it appeared in a magazine. The writer of the piece mentioned that this single could be found in the sale bins in Japan. That's nice, I thought, but how the hell do I get my hands on it? This proved to be a problem. I had to wait for almost five years until I saw a copy. When I did, I nearly froze. I considered whether I could shell out the amount the seller wanted for it, and in the end, I did. Caution to the wind, eyes closed, and just do it. Of course, in the 20 years since then I've seen this disc for fractions of the price. I can console myself with the thought that this is still a mint copy. But I'd never pay this much for a single ever again.

'Bitter is better' was released to coincide with an ad campaign for a Bitter Lemon softdrink in Japan. The track was written by Masami Tsuchiya (from the Japanese pop group Ippu Do) and Bill Crunchfield. The single was only released in Japan, in early 1982. I'm still curious whether it was a hit there - but there's no way to find out I'm afraid.

My collection: 7" single no. 1517
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, September 21, 1991
Cost: 100 guilders
Tracks: 'Bitter is better' / 'Boys'

Target practice - Belouis Some

Released in 1985, this remixed re-release of Belouis Some's debut single 'Target practice' came after the chart success of 'Imagination'. In an effort to try and sell more copies this time around, a live version of that hit was included on the B-side.

Unfortunately, the plan didn't work out: just like the first time around in 1984, this single did not chart in any territory.

My collection: 7" single no. 5216
Found: Kringloop, Den Haag, October 22, 2011
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Target practice' / 'Imagination (live)'

Ik ben verkouwe! - Snip

'Ik ben verkouwe' ('I have a cold') is a Dutch parody on the famous 1990 hit 'The power' by Snap, released in the same year. The track was created by the team behind Rubberen Robbie, seven years after they stopped releasing tracks under that name.

The B-side featured a story by a new character called 'Ome Henk' ('Uncle Henk'), who would become a regular visitor of the Dutch Top 40 between 1991 and 1999.

My collection: 7" single no. 5215
Found: Kringloop, Den Haag, October 22, 2011
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Ik ben verkouwe!' / 'De spannende verhalen van Ome Henk'

Young at heart - The Bluebells

The Bluebells was a Scotting band, performing jangly guitar based pop. Their single 'Young at heart', originally released in 1984, was written by guitarist and founder member Bobby Bluebell with Siobhan Fahey of Bananarama (and originally recorded on Bananarama's album 'Deep sea skiving') and made it to number 8 in the UK Singles Chart.

The band split up in the mid 1980s, but enjoyed an unexpected revival in 1993 when 'Young at heart" was used in a Volkswagen television advertisement. Re-issued as a single, it was number 1 in the UK for four weeks and led to the band reforming temporarily to perform the song on BBC Television's Top of the Pops. In the Netherlands, where the Bluebells never had a hit, the re-released single reached number 20.

My collection: 7" single no. 5214
Found: Kringloop, Den Haag, October 22, 2011
Cost: 0,5 euro
Tracks: 'Young at heart' / 'Tendy mercy'

Blame it on the boogie - Big Fun

I bought Big Fun's cover of the Jackson's 'Blame it on the boogie' last year, a single that was released in 1989.

This 12" single features three remixes of the track, as well as a free giant poster of the boys. The remixes were made by Phil Harding, who was one of the big names from the Stock Aitken & Waterman stable.

My collection: 12" single no. 596
Found: Record Exchange, London, October 14, 2011
Cost: 10p
Tracks: 'Blame it on the boogie (PWL mix)' / 'Blame it on the boogie (dub mix)', 'Blame it on the boogie (instrumental mix)'

King of the mountain - Kate Bush

'King of the mountain' was released on October 24, 2005, 12 years after Kate Bush's previous single, 'And so is love'. Written about ten years before most of the songs on the album 'Aerial', the lyrics enquire whether Elvis Presley might still be alive someplace, '...looking like a happy man...' and playing with 'Rosebud', Kane's childhood's sledge, and comment on the pressures of extreme fame and wealth. In a November 2005 interview with BBC4's 'Front Row' Bush said, "I don't think human beings are really built to withstand that kind of fame.'

The B-side of the UK single is a cover version of Marvin Gaye's 'Sexual healing', which features Irish musician Davy Spillane on uilleann pipes, originally recorded for his 1994 'A place among the stones' album. The track was left off the Spillane album as it didn't fit with the sound of the rest of the record. Before the 2005 release, Kate's version of 'Sexual Healing' had only been heard publicly once, at the 1994 Kate Bush fan club convention in the Hippodrome, London.

As for this 7" single, it was a picture disc release only, featuring a drawing by Kate's son Bertie on the A-side. The quality of the vinyl left much to be desire as you can clearly hear below. Despite all this, the single reached number 4 in the UK singles chart. It is the only single from the album 'Aerial'.

My collection: 7" single no. 3417
Found: HMV, London, received November 2005
Cost: 3 pounds
Tracks: 'King of the mountain' / 'Sexual healing'