Come summer - Fra Lippo Lippi

The sleeve of Fra Lippo Lippi's 'Come summer' is one of the most beautiful sleeve designs ever. Made by StyleForEveryMood in Stockholm, it looks deceptively simple: just a beautiful image with the lyric of the song printed over it. Sometimes you wonder how people come up with something like this.

The song, of course, is no less beautiful. Taken from the band's album 'Songs', it followed 'Shouldn't have to be like that' but didn't achieve the same amount of international success. It's strange, because it is the better of the two songs. Even three decades ago, people didn't recognise a hit when it was slammed in their face.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Den Haag, 1993
Cost: unknown
Tracks: 'Come summer (extended, remixed)' / 'Come summer', 'Even tall trees bend (original version)'

Live it up - Time Bandits

This copy of the 12" single of Time Bandits' debut single 'Live it up' was not in a very good shape when I bought it. My needle kept sliding off the record after playing a few seconds, barricades by clouds of dust. Fortunately, it was nothing that a good cleaning session couldn't fix.

There were actually two 12" singles of 'Live it up' back in 1981: a version with a remix of over 7 minutes, and this one, which just contains the album version of the track. The single version was shorter by a minute or so, so this could still be considered an 'extended' version, but I guess some fans felt disappointed back then after hearing this one...

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, July 14, 2017
Cost: 2,5 euro
Tracks: 'Live it up' / 'Juvenile acquaintance'

I'm lovin' it - Justin Timberlake

This is a mysterious 12" single. Released unofficially, it is supposed to contain two remixes by the Trouser Enthusiasts, but it sounds rather different than their other work. There are no credits on the label, so it is hard to find out.

Justin Timberlake released 'I'm lovin' it' in 2003, after he was paid $6 million to sing a jingle for McDonald's. The Neptunes produced a song based on this jingle, and this was released in November 2003. The single became a number 1 hit in the Wallonian part of Belgium and reached number 13 in the Netherlands. It did not chart in the UK or USA.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, January 2016
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'I'm lovin' it' / 'I'm dubin' it'

Hey, hey - Gershon Kingsley and the Moog

Gershon Kingsley of course gave the world Popcorn, he did release some more music. This single is an example. Also made on the famous Moog synthesizer, 'Hey, hey' is a nice but forgettable piece of instrumental music.

The B-side is a poppy Moog version of Beethoven's 'Fur Elise', although for some reason Beethoven does not get composer credits (Kingsley does) and the track is called 'For Alisse Beethoven'. Interestingly, a different single with a different sleeve also exists: with the A-side on the B-side and vice versa. It wasn't always easy to decide which track would do best. (In this case, neither did chart.)

My collection: 7" single no. 5849
Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, July 14, 2017
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Hey, hey' / 'For Alisse Beethoven'

Ragtime piano Joe - Peter Straker

One of the many tracks on the The best of the Top 40 of the year double album, which basically started my obsession with collecting music, was Peter Straker's 'Ragtime piano Joe'. Through the years I have bought almost all the tracks on single, but for some reason I never did buy this one. Even now I thought I already had it, strangely enough.

Peter Straker was born on November 7, 1943. The Jamaican singer and actor became best known for his appearances in the London production of the musical 'Hair', and in the 1979 series of Doctor Who. 'Ragtime piano Joe' was produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Peter's close friend Freddie Mercury. The single reached number 11 in the Dutch Top 40 but, weirdly enough, did not chart in the UK. The B-side of this single is also worth listening to, for its moving sentimentality.

My collection: 7" single no. 5951
Found: Velvet Vinyl outlet, Leiden, July 14, 2017
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Ragtime piano Joe' / 'The saddest clown'

The sun always shines on TV - Diva

In 1994, the Norwegian duo Diva released a cover version of A-ha's 'The sun always shines on TV'. Helene Sommer and Elene Nyborg did manage to attract some attention with their version of the song, although it didn't become a hit - except in Norway where it reached number 2 and in the UK where it got to number 53.

This double 12" single - housed in a rather anonymous black sleeve - was given to me by regular blog reader Puck some time ago, but I never got around to recording all the versions included in this package. I'm sure you'll agree that none of them can't hold a candle to A-ha's original version of the song.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Cost: free
Tracks: 'The sun always shines on TV (Crucial club mix)', 'The sun always shines on TV (original version)' / 'The sun always shines on TV (Crucial hard dub mix)', 'The sun always shines on TV (Crucial club edit)' // 'The sun always shines on TV (Perfecto mix)', 'The sun always shines on TV (Sunshine mix)' / 'The sun always shines on TV (Sexy disco dub)', 'The sun always shines on TV (Volcano club edit)'

Liverpool hello - Capricorn

The band Capricorn consisted of Sue Avory (lead vocals), Unwin Brown (drums), Colin Travers (guitar) and Steve Pryor (bass). They were much more popular in Japan than they were in the UK. Their first single was 'Hello Liverpool', a song written by Marty Wilde and Ronnie Scott. It features the song 'How did you find me', written by the same duo, on the B-side. In the UK, the single appeared in a record company sleeve, but the Japanese version was much prettier, featuring a picture sleeve. I was lucky enough to find a copy for a reasonable price some time ago.

The single was released in 1970 and reached number 1 in the Japanese singles chart. Two years later the band won the World Popular Song Festival in Japan, representing the UK with the song 'Feeling'. A couple of years later the band split up.

My collection: 7" single no. 5688
Found: Discogs.com, received August 2015
Cost: $4
Tracks: 'Liverpool hello' / 'How did you find me'