Is it love - Mr. Mister

'Is it love' was released as the third single from Mr Mister's 1985 album 'Welcome to the Real World'. The song hit number 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and number 32 in the Dutch Top 40, but only got to number 87 in the UK singles chart.

When you compare this single to its predecessors 'Broken wings' and 'Kyrie', you can hear it's a more pedestrian pop/rock effort. Nice song, nonetheless.

My collection: 7" single no. 5456
Found: unknown
Tracks: 'Is it love' / '32'

They all run after the carving knife (See how they run) - New Musik

Although They all run after the carving knife has already been featured on this blog once before, it returns here because of this rare alternative version. The tracks are identical, but this sleeve seems to be rather rare. It isn't even listed on Discogs.com! Both versions share the same catalogue number and disc, it is just the front sleeve that is totally different.

I wrote before that all I am looking for now is a copy of the band's final single 'Warp', but if more alternative sleeves come up, I may have to expand my New Musik collection even further.

My collection: 7" single no. 5457
Found: unknown
Tracks: 'They all run after the carving knife' / 'This world of Walter'

Je suis l'Enfant-soleil - Anne Marie David

I already wrote about Anne Marie David's 1973 winning Eurovision song Tu te reconnaitras (and the German version Du bist da and the English version Wonderful dream) on this blog, but there's more to this lady. She represented Luxembourg in 1973, but returned to Eurovision in 1979, representing her native France with the song 'Je suis l'Enfant-soleil'.

Anne Marie David did not win this time around, but finished in third place behind Hallelujah and Su canción. She recorded the song in German and Italian as well. Whether those versions will appear on this blog in future, time will tell...

My collection: 7" single no. 5600
Found: Discogs.com, received August 5, 2014
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Je suis l'Enfant-soleil' / 'Just like loving you'

God's great banana skin - Chris Rea

Chris Rea released a stream of singles during his career that weren't always successful in the charts. Many of his single releases did not chart at all or scraped into the lower reaches - under the top 40 that is.

'God's great banana skin' the title track of his 1993 album, was reasonably successful, as it reached number 31 in the UK singles chart. It repeats that old mantra: 'Don't you ever think no-one's better than you'. It's a thought many people I know should get into their heads.

My collection: 7" single no. 5462
Found: unknown
Tracks: 'God's great banana skin' / 'I saw you coming'

Breaking us in two - Joe Jackson

'Night and day' was Joe Jackson's fifth album and, in my humble opinion, his best. It contained the great hit singles Real Men and Steppin' out as well as the rather monumental A slow song, but also this 'should have been a bigger hit single' 'Breaking us in two'.

It reached number 59 in the UK singles chart and a rather good number 18 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, but did not chart in Europe, which was rather surprising as it was the kind of music that usually did rather well in European charts. A demo version of this track was released in 2003 on a 'Deluxe edition' of the album 'Night and day'.

My collection: 7" single no. 5423
Found: unknown
Tracks: 'Breaking us in two' / 'El Blanco'

The vermillion pencil - The Nits

The Nits have become very famous for their arty pop songs, especially in the Nineties after 'In the Dutch mountains' had become a hit in various countries. Since then, their songs became ever more peculiar.

Compared to their later output, 1983's 'The Vermillion pencil' is a relatively straightforward pop song. The single was taken from their fifth album 'Omsk', which had already given them a hit single in the shape of 'Nescio'. This single, however, did not chart.

My collection: 7" single no.5458
Found: unknown
Tracks: 'The Vermillion pencil' / 'Clean shirt in Paris'

Rock the Casbah - The Clash

'Rock the Casbah' was released by the Clash in 1982 as the third single from their fifth album, 'Combat Rock'. The song is a fictional story of a ban on rock music by the king being defied by the population, who proceed to "rock the casbah." The King orders jet fighters to bomb any people in violation of the ban. The pilots ignored the orders, and instead played rock music on their cockpit radios. It was inspired by ban on Western music in Iran after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

The song reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US. It is the band's highest charting single worldwide, and their biggest hit in the Netherlands until a re-release of 'Should I stay or should I go' in 1991 was propelled into the top 10 thanks to a successful ad campaign using that song.

My collection: 7" single no. 5378
Found: unknown
Tracks: 'Rock the casbah' / 'Long time jerk'