The 1975 Belgian entry of the Eurovision Song Contest by Ann Christy appeared on this blog four years ago, in two versions: the original version 'Gelukkig zijn' and the English version 'Could it be happiness'. At the time, I thought these versions were the only two that existed, but thanks to a lucky acquisition, I know better now.
This single features the French version, 'L'histoire du bonheur'. As you can see, this single is also housed in a sleeve similar to the other two. It turns out there's a fourth version as well: the German 'Wenn keiner mehr zu dir steht'. Let's hope that one pops up somewhere for me too.
My collection: 7" single no. 5759 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'L'histoire du bonheur' / 'On ne peut se passer l'un de l'autre'
Cyprus is hardly a superpower in music: there are no real big stars from the island and in Eurovision it has never managed to win, despite receiving those 'douze points' from Greece almost every time. In 1987, Alexia Vassiliou represented the country with this very decent pop song, 'Aspro-mavro'. The title means 'black and white'. The lyric describes how a girl remembers a man she saw on a train - but she can only bring the memory back by playing the piano.
At the close of voting, the song had received 80 points, placing 7th in a field of 22 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5758 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Aspro-mavro' / 'Please me lover'
I haven't had any comments about the many Eurovision Song Contest singles on this blog recently (Come to think of it, I haven't had any comments at all over the last few months!) but truth is, I have been buying almost nothing else recently. But there is always the odd exception, and here is one of them: a 1993 single by Dannii Minogue. Kylie's little sister, indeed.
While Kylie has had a career with some downs but mostly ups, Dannii's career is almost the other way around. 'This is the way' is a good example of her usual chart performance: it reached number 27 in the UK charts and number 45 in Australia. The main selling point of this single is not the tune - which, frankly, is quite mediocre - but the limited edition poster bag.
My collection: 7" single no. 5757 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'This is the way' / 'This is the way (The cool 7")
Flip Henderson plays the trumpet in this instrumental cover of the 1967 Eurovision Song Contest winner, 'Puppet on a string'. The song was originally performed by Sandie Shaw, representing the United Kingdom. Many covers of the song exist, including one by a barrel organ which was featured on this very blog some time ago.
This cover version isn't exactly anything special, but whenever I see any covers of Eurovision songs I am always interested. Hence the inclusion of this in my collection.
My collection: 7" single no. 5756 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Puppet on a string' / 'Penny of happiness'
Six years ago (wow, how time flies) I wrote about 'Hora' by Avi Toledano, a single I'd bought in 1982, just months after he'd participated in the Eurovision Song Contest. WIth my modest budget it was a feast to get any Eurovision song that wasn't a winner. Little did I know that three decades later I would be buying Eurovision singles in spades.
I came across this version of the single recently. I'd seen it before, but this version is usually rather expensive because of its inclusion of a French version. This time, however, the disc was a steal at just one euro. And so, it finally arrived into my collection.
My collection: 7" single no. 5755 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Hora (Version Française)' / 'Hora (Version Hébraïque)'
'Chi Sara' ('Who Will Be With You') was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973, performed in Italian by Massimo Ranieri. The song was performed tenth on the night. At the close of voting, it had received 74 points, placing 13th in a field of 17 competitors.
Massimo Ranieri was no stranger to Eurovision: he participated in the 1971 edition as well, with 'L'amore E' Un Attimo'. Although I haven't featured that single on this blog yet, the French version can be found here.
My collection: 7" single no. 5754 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Chi sara' / 'Domenica Domenica'
The duo Eyjólfur Kristjánsson and Stefán Hilmarsson participated in the 1991 Eurovision Song Contest with the song 'Draumur um Nínu', representing Iceland. They appeared on stage as the second act of 22. At the close of voting, they ended up in 15th place.
Although the song did not fare too well in the contest it has remained
one of Iceland's most popular songs of all time, still receiving regular
airplay.
My collection: 7" single no. 5753 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 11, 2015 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Nina (English version)' / 'Nina (Icelandic version)'
