Kids in America - Radio Wendy

I don't buy a lot of 7" singles these days, but every now and again I find something online that I've been looking for. This single first came to my attention last year. It was another cover version of Kim Wilde's 'Kids in America' - and there are loads of cover versions of that song! - but this particular one has never surfaced online as an mp3 or anything. The single was for sale but upon ordering the seller found out he couldn't find the single he was offering. At the time, he was the only one.

Earlier this month, I looked again and there were actually three sellers for this single! I picked one, ordered it, and two weeks later it was in my mailbox. It turns out Radio Wendy was signed to an independent record company in San Diego, California. Not much more information than that, even the year of release can't be traced. It is a nice cover version, but nothing too spectacular I'm afraid. It's been done before.

My collection: 7" single no. 5346
Found: Discogs.com, received August 27, 2013
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Kids in America' / 'Growing old'

Moments of pleasure - Kate Bush

I would describe my latest vinyl acquisition as a shocker. I never knew that 'Moments of pleasure' by Kate Bush, released in 1993 as the second single off her album 'The red shoes' was released on a 7" single. But it was, albeit only on this jukebox version and never commercially.

Having always thought that only 'Rubberband girl' got a 7" version (and there's a jukebox version of that one too) this is quite a revelation for me. I'm lucky to have found a copy on eBay and win the auction too at such a low price. You'd think that hordes of Kate Bush fans are after this great single, but apparently not...

My collection: 7" single no. 5345
Found: eBay.co.uk, received July 9, 2013
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Moments of pleasure' / 'Moments of pleasure (instrumental)'

Running up that hill - Sweep featuring Linda Carriere

Not content with just one disc, Sweep and Linda Carriere released several 12" singles of their cover of 'Running up that hill'. This second 12" features just two remixes of the track, featuring a sort of budget Shaggy clone (as if Shaggy himself isn't cheap enough already).

Repetitive and a bit of an insult to the original track, it's no wonder Sweep disappeared from the music scene directly after this one release.

My collection: 12" single no. 645
Found: unknown, 199X
Cost: unknown
Tracks: "Running up that hill (Running status mix)' / 'Running up that hill (Killer Bee mix)'

Running up that hill - Sweep featuring Linda Carriere

Most people who are fan of a certain artist don't have much interest for cover versions of their favourite artist. I tend to act differently: for most of the acts that I have more than a passing interest in, I like to collect as much cover versions as I can. It does mean that you need a lot of perseverance and in some cases lots of endurance too. Some cover versions are dreadful, others can turn out to be quite nice.

Unfortunately, Sweep's 1993 version of Kate Bush's 'Running up that hill' does not fall into the latter category. It's a rather unimaginative take on what was a very innovative pop song back in 1985. The vocals by Linda Carriere are sometimes ridiculous, but she does manage to hold a few notes. Which I guess is a positive point.

My collection: 12" single no. 644
Found: unknown, 199X
Cost: unknown
Tracks: 'Running up that hill (Jam's Labyrinth mix)', 'Running up that hill (1993 mix)' / 'Running up that hill (laser mix)', 'Running up that hill (radio edit)'

When you really loved someone - Agnetha Fältskog

The biggest disappointment of this year's Eurovision Song Contest was that Abba didn't appear on stage when the song 'The winner takes it all' was performed live on stage by someone else. But that disappointment was balanced somewhat by the surprise announcement earlier this year that Agnetha was to release a new album. This single, 'When you really loved someone' was meant to be a teaser.

Now in the old days, a 7" single would consist of an A-side and a B-side. But in this case, the artist nor the record company could be bothered to supply the latter, so when you play the B-side of this disc, all you hear is silence. But that's the only gripe: the song itself is nice, and the picture disc looks very beautiful.

My collection: 7" single no. 5342
Found: CDON.com, received May 22, 2013
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'When you really loved someone'

Running up that hill (2012 remix) - Kate Bush

I guess it's reassuring that after a surge of productivity in 2011, Kate Bush has returned to her old non-prolific self. However, she did manage to produce the biggest, and only, highlight of last year's Olympic Games in London by making a 2012 version of her 1985 hit, 'Running up that hill'. (Billed as a remix here, it actually features new vocals by Kate herself.) However disappointing it was that she didn't appear in person, I guess it was a wise decision because so many B- and C-list celebrities did turn up.

Another disappointment was the lack of physical releases of this new track. Sure, there are promotional CD-singles about but they are insanely expensive. I was glad that this 10" vinyl was released for Record Store Day last month, even if it meant having to wait for an online retailer to sell them because there are no record stores anymore in my hometown. Fortunately, 7inchsingles.nl came to the rescue. Hurray!

My collection: 10" single [unnumbered]
Found: 7inchsingles.nl, received May 1, 2013
Cost: enough
Tracks: 'Running up that hill (2012 remix)' / 'Walk straight down the middle'

Hip hurra - det' min fødselsdag - Tommy Seebach Band

Tommy Seebach made another appearance at Eurovision in 1982. After trying it with 'Disco tango' and 'Krøller eller ej', this third effort was a piece of synthpop done in Eurovision style: hyperactive and with Danish lyrics. The title means something like 'Hip hooray it's my birthday' and it is a typically happy song.

Despite all this fun, Tommy Seebach was a kind of tragic figure in Eurovision: despite participating four times, he never really had a big success and apparently he had to deal with alcoholism and other private problems. Even the Danish didn't always treat him like the hero I always thought he was. His musical legacy still sounds like a lot of fun and games. And of course it's better that way.

My collection: 7" single no. 5340
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 13, 2013
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Hip hurra - det' min fødselsdag' / 'Ta' med mig'