I first saw part of this song in a documentary about the Eurovision Song Contest some 20 years ago: a large, slightly sweaty man turning purple as he was belting out the last few seconds of this song. It makes the high notes of Johnny Logan look like kids stuff: here was the equivalent of Joe Cocker being strangled while having surgery at his prostrate while singing 'With a little help from my friends'.
The single was pretty hard to get, though. I wasn't prepared to pay too much for it so the few copies I ever saw I always passed on. Until this weekend! And indeed, on record these last few seconds still sound very impressive.
My collection: 7" single no. 5339 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 13, 2013 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Born to sing' / 'Simple things in life'
For about ten years, I've seen a record dealer from Denmark in Utrecht every six months, with a decent Eurovision collection. The only reason that I never bought anything from the man - although I was tempted from time to time - was the fact that his prices were too high. Starting at 4 euros, an interesting title would easily cost you 10 euros or more.
Much to my surprise, this weekend he was selling off all of his singles for just 2 euros. I guess he is stopping his business. Good news for me though; I got my hands on four singles that were missing from my collection, and this one is perhaps the most interesting of the four. Tommy Seebach is a Eurovision icon and 'Krøller eller ej' was one of his Eurovision successes. An overly hysterical Eighties production, but very amusing nonetheless.
My collection: 7" single no. 5338 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 13, 2013 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Krøller eller ej' / 'Jeg en gard mig bygge vil'
'Bra vibrationer' was Sweden's entry for the 1985 Eurovision Song Contest. Even without this information, you would recognise this song as a Swedish Eurovision track, because it sounds suspiciously like a Seventies Abba track. Like many Swedish entries for Eurovision after 1974, I would say.
I already owned the English version, but it's great to have the original version on single now as well.
My collection: 7" single no. 5337 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 13, 2013 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Bra vibrationer' / 'Plingeling'
Marty Wilde's 'Abergavenny' is a well-known hit from 1968 in most European countries. It comes from the album 'Diversions', also released in 1968 and very much in need of a CD release. But little did I know that another single was taken from that album.
I was at a record fair this Saturday and while walking past some dealers I suddenly spotted a stack of singles at the side of one stall. On top was this one: 'The world stood up' by Marty Wilde. Well, obviously I had to have this one and I was pleased that it didn't cost a fortune. Backing vocals on this track were performed by Marty's wife Joyce.
My collection: 7" single no. 5336 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 13, 2013 Cost: 3 euro Tracks: 'The world stood up' / 'In the night'
This is probably the oldest song I've ever written about on this blog, although obviously some songs were written earlier but recorded after the 1940's. This recording stems from the Fourties and was written by the singer while travelling in a train along the French Mediterranean coast. He supposedly wrote the song in ten minutes on toilet paper supplied by the SNCF. He recorded the song in 1946, and it subsequently became a chanson classic.
I never actually thought I would buy this particular single but when I found it for almost nothing I couldn't resist. It does not say when this EP was released, but I suppose it is actually a release from the 1950's or 1960's. We played 'La mer' two years ago on the occasion of my father's cremation and so it has some resonance. It's good to own this now.
My collection: 7" single no. 5335 Found: Kringloop Den Haag, March 2013 Cost: 0,25 euro Tracks: 'La mer', 'La romance de Paris' / 'L'ame des poetes', 'La jolie Sardane'.
Now that everybody's in awe of the new album by David Bowie, I thought it would be fun to showcase on of his less critically acclaimed moments. So I dug out this 12" single of 'Magic dance', released in the USA in 1986. Bowie recorded this song, as well as a handful of others, for the soundtrack of the Jim Henson movie 'Labyrinth', in which he also played the role of the Goblin king, wearing a strange wig and performing magic tricks. Even on the sleeve of this record he appears to be doing a silly walk.
The remixes of the track are typical mid-Eighties fare: lots of drums and sampled sounds. Some people would argue that Bowie wasn't at his creative peak in the Eighties, personally I do prefer his work during this decade over his acclaimed early Sixties rock. But each to their own...
'Les lacs du Connemara' was released by Michel Sardou in 1982. It became a hit single in several European countries, and also in the Netherlands, where the single peaked at number 9. It was his first and only success in this country.
The song is about the Irish region Connemara. The lyric mentions Oliver Cromwell, Tipperary, Galway and Irish family names like Sean, Maureen, O´Connell and Flaherty. The music is performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.
My collection: 7" single 5334 Cost: nothing Tracks: 'Les lacs du Connemara' / 'Je viens du Sud'
