Living in Tooneland - Park Cafe

I bought the single 'Monsieur' four years ago, a rare Eurovision single from the act hailing from Luxembourg. I was quite surprised when I saw this single, featuring the English version of that song on the A-side. That version also appears on the B-side of 'Monsieur', but still... I was buying some Eurovision cd-singles from the same online seller so I didn't feel bad about adding this one to the stack.

The B-side 'Passion' comes from the band's 1989 album 'Goodtime boy'. That album also features 'Living in Tooneland', but not the Eurovision entry 'Monsieur'. That single remains the rarest of the two, then.

My collection: 7" single no. 6142
Found: Discogs.com, received July 19, 2019
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Living in Tooneland' / 'Passion'

Des larmes - Mylene Farmer

'Des larmes' ('Tears') is the latest single from French superstar Mylene Farmer. She's just finished a run of concerts in Paris last month. They have been filmed, and a movie of those concerts will appear in French cinemas this November. There are some rumours that these have been her last live concerts ever - but we'll have to wait and see if those rumours are true.

The record company has employed some weird tactics surrounding Mylene's last album 'Désobéissance': four singles were released, but only two of them ('N'oublie pas' and this one) were released on 7" vinyl. The three previous singles came with a flurry of remixes, but this single only comes with an instrumental version of the track. It does not seem to matter to her fans: they will buy whatever is released - just like I do.

My collection: 7" single no. 6141
Found: Amazon France, received July 12, 2019
Cost: 7 euro
Tracks: 'Des larmes (edit radio)' / 'Des larmes (version instrumentale)'

Heute in Jerusalem - Christina Simon

Fans of Mezzoforte, Shakatak and elevator music in general, pay attention: Christina Simon created this single especially for you! 'Heute in Jerusalem' was Austria's attempt to make it big at the Eurovision Song Contest 1979, held in - you guessed it - Jerusalem. The song was about the hope of "peace in Jerusalem", bringing "sense against the nonsense". The song scored just five points, ending up in an equal last place in a field of 19 competitors.

But Christina Simon took it a step further on the B-side of this single: the track 'Babaya' is the kind of freestyle jazz that you could easily find on the aforementioned bands' albums. This single was, by the way, the last release by her. The Eurovision attempt proved to be the deadstop for her career.

My collection: 7" single no. 6138
Found: Discogs.com, received July 12, 2019
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Heute in Jerusalem' / 'Babaya'

Tom Pillibi - Jacqueline Boyer

Jacqueline Boyer represented France at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960 with 'Tom Pillibi', and I was glad to buy the single of that song ten years ago. Just as happy as I am now, because I have actually found a copy of the German version of that song! This single was actually made in Germany - and presumably released in that country as well.

The B-side is the German version of the song 'Si tu rencontres l'amour', but I have found no information whether Boyer recorded that song in French at all...

My collection: 7" single no. 6139
Found: Discogs.com, received July 12, 2019
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Tom Pillibi' / 'Grüss mir die Liebe'

Venedig im Regen - Thomas Forstner

Thomas Forstner represented Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest on two occasions: in 1989 with the song 'Nur ein Lied', and in 1991 with this song, 'Venedig im Regen'. Forstner was probably chosen again because of his impressive fifth place in 1989, but things didn't go so well two years later. The saccharine 'Venedig im Regen' came in last.

In the hilarious book 'Nul points' by Tim Moore, dedicated to those Eurovision artists who scored the titular zero points, there is an attempt to contact Thomas, to no avail. His career was already in decline in 1991, and after one final album ('Hautnah', released in 1994) he disappeared from the Austropop music scene.

My collection: 7" single no. 6137
Found: Discogs.com, received July 12, 2019
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Venedig im Regen' / 'Venedig im Regen (instrumental)'

Mrs. Caroline Robinson - Springtime

Springtime was formed by Norbert Niedermayer, Walter Markel, Gerhard Markel and Erwin Broswimmer. They released two albums, 'Springtime' (1977) and 'Lonely road' (1978). But their biggest claim to fame was their Eurovision Song Contest appearance in 1978.

Representing Austria, they sang 'Mrs. Caroline Robinson'. The song did not make a big impact, as they finished in 15th place in a field of 20 competitors. No wonder, then, that the band broke up soon afterwards.

My collection: 7" single no. 6136
Found: Discogs.com, received July 12, 2019
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Mrs. Caroline Robinson' / 'Honey, bye, bye'

Gute Nacht Freunde - Inga & Wolf

Many people in the Netherlands are familiar with the song 'Gute Nacht Freunde', because it has been the closing song of a popular radio programme for decades, in the version by Reinhard Mey, who wrote the song. It was a hit for him in 1974, and reached number 14 in the Dutch Top 40.

However, it was originally written by him for the German national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1972. Inga & Wolf performed the song, but finished in fourth place, so they didn't go on to represent their country. That honour went to Mary Roos with 'Nur die Liebe lässt uns leben'. Still, this is a charming song and belongs in my collection, despite only being 'von der Vorentscheidung'.

My collection: 7" single no. 6140
Found: Discogs.com, received July 12, 2019
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Gute Nacht Freunde' / 'Das Stundenglas'