I feel for you - Prince

Utter the words 'I feel for you', and most people who are into Eighties music will immediately respond with the name Chaka Khan. For it was her who made the song immortal, with the stuttering 'Ch-ch-chaka khan' intro provided by rapper Melle Mel, and its funky sound effects. But the song was written by Prince - and not only that, he recorded the song on his eponymous second album, released in October 1979.

Prince passed away in 2016, and since then, his famous 'vault' has been used to release several albums and singles. This single is the most recent release, pressed on purple vinyl (how appropriate) and presenting for the first time a demo he recorded for the song. It is an interesting release, because you can clearly hear that it was recorded on cassette and it runs for over four minutes, longer than the eventual album version. The fact that the sleeve is pretty beautiful too makes this an interesting package for Prince fans and music lovers everywhere.

My collection: 7" single no. 6257
Found: Prince website, received February 5, 2020
Cost: 10 euro
Tracks: 'I feel for you (acoustic demo)' / 'I feel for you'

Chenko (tenka-io) - Red Box

I don't really buy a lot of 12" singles anymore: most of the extended remixes of my favourite artists have been released on cd - and that has become the preferred format in my household. That, and 7" singles, of course. 12" singles simply take up too much space. But then every once in a while I find a 12" that actually contains a rare remix.

Take for instance this 12" of 'Chenko (Tenka-io)'. Released in 1987, it was a re-release of an early single with a new remix on the 12". Amazingly, none of the 12" mixes of Red Box have ever been released on cd, and as you can hear on this one, there have been some great ones. This disc presents both a new remix of 'Chenko' and the extended version of the previous single 'Heart of the sun'. Both are pretty wonderful and would certainly warrant a cd release. Until then, I'll have to keep this in my collection.

Red Box actually released a new cd last year, which is certainly worth checking out. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, January 24, 2020
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'Chenko (tenka-io) (No Reservations mix)' / 'Speeches', 'Heart of the sun (Slash and burn)'

Nothing compares 2 u - Prince

Since Prince's death in April 2016, his estate has been rather generous in releasing music from his personal vault. Several compilations of his unreleased work were released during the past three years, and this single, released in 2018, also contains a previously unreleased track.

'Nothing compares 2 u' was made famous by Sinéad O'Connor in 1990. This version, recorded by Prince and featuring saxophone by Eric Leeds and backing vocals by Susannah Melvoin and St. Paul Peterson, is actually the weaker of the two. You can't help wondering if this is why Prince never released this recording - and why it was released now. Still, it is a nice peek into the man's work.

My collection: 7" single no. 6256
Found: Amazon.co.uk, received January 31, 2020
Cost: 4 euro
Tracks: 'Nothing compares 2 u (edit)' / 'Nothing compares 2 u (full length version)'

Muzika i ti - Tereza Kesovija

Several years after releasing Doći Ćeš Sam - the EP that included a Eurovision cover - Tereza Kesovija made it to the Eurovision stage herself. She represented Yugoslavia during the 1972 edition with 'Muzika i ti' ('Music and you'), a pleasant little song in which Kesovija sings that music and her lover are the two things in which she has found happiness.

At the close of voting, the song had received 87 points, placing 9th in a field of 18 competitors.

My collection: 7" single no. 6255
Found: Discogs.com, received January 24, 2020
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Muzika i ti' / 'Prvi cvijet'

Addio, addio - Claudio Villa

'Addio, addio' ('Goodbye, goodbye') was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1962, performed Claudio Villa (born January 1, 1926). With music by Domenico Modugno and lyrics by Franco Migliacci (the same duo had collaborated on Modugno's previous entry 'Nel blu dipinto di blu (Volare)'), the song is a ballad, in which Villa attempts to deal with the end of a relationship.

At the close of voting, it had received 3 points, placing 9th in a field of 16 competitors. The comparatively high place for a low-scoring song is partly explained by the fact that four entries at this Contest failed to record a point.

In 1967, Villa would return to the Eurovision stage with 'Non andare più lontano'. He died on February 7, 1987.

My collection: 7" single no. 6254
Found: Discogs.com, received January 24, 2020
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Addio, addio' / 'Quando il vento d'aprile..'

Dan ljubezni - Pepel in kri

'Dan ljubezni' ('A day of love') was the song entered into the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest by Yugoslavia. It was performend by the band Pepel in kri (credited on TV as 'Ashes and blood'). At the close of voting, it had received 22 points, placing 13th in a field of 19 competitors.

The song calls for a day of love in the whole world that never ends. Little did they know that Yugoslavia would be embroiled in a war that would cost many lives just two decades later.

My collection: 7" single no. 6253
Found: Discogs.com, received January 24, 2020
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Dan ljubezni' / 'Tvoj prvi rock 'n roll'

Doći Ćeš Sam - Tereza Kesovija

I haven't suddenly developed an interest in folk music from Yugoslavia, although this single certainly serves up some of the Balkan nation's loudest and most unnerving tracks. The title track, 'Doći Ćeš Sam' isn't very friendly to these Western European ears, but that isn't why I bought this EP anyway.

Track one on side B is called 'Još Mnogo Jače' and is a cover version of 'Bien plus fort', the Monegasque entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1966. I was interested to get this one as part of a bigger online order from Serbia. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6252
Found: Discogs.com, received January 24, 2020
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'Doći Ćeš Sam', 'Tad Podimo' / 'Još Mnogo Jače', 'Madre mia'