One more song - Halla Margret

Buying singles online can be a good way out for rare items, but one has to be careful not to be cheated out of huge amounts of money. This particular single, for instance, is currently for sale on Discogs for anything upwards of €15. However, during my visit to Chelsea Records I found a copy for one fifth of that amount. It is a matter of luck, of course, because this single is quite rare.

Halla Margrét Árnadóttir was born on 23 April 1964 in Reykjavík. She represented Iceland during the Eurovision Song Contest 1987, in Brussels. The song ended in 16th place in a field of 22 competitors.

My collection: 7" single no. 6514
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, 25 November 2021
Cost: €3
Tracks: 'One more song' / 'Haegt og hljótt'

Diamonds are forever - Shirley Bassey

The James Bond movies used to be accompanied by classic tunes, songs that would stand the test of time. Before the producers fell for the limited talents of Sam Smith and, god help us, Jack White and Alicia Keys, they employed real singers. Like for instance, Shirley Bassey.

'Diamonds are forever' was the theme tune for the movie of the same name in 1971. It was not Shirley's first James Bond song: in 1964 she recorded 'Goldfinger' and she would also record the song for 'Moonraker' in 1979. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6513
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, 25 November 2021
Cost: €1
Tracks: 'Diamonds are forever' / 'Pieces of dreams'

Viens l'oublier - Jean Vallée

In 1978, Jean Vallee represented Belgium with 'L'amour ça fait chanter la vie'. I found that single 12 years ago in Chelsea Records. But it wasn't Jean's first attempt: in 1970 he had his first Eurovision experience with 'Viens l'oublier'. And lo and behold: it was again Chelsea Records where I found this particular single.

Jean Vallée was born as Paul Goeders in Verviers on 2 October 1941. He passed away on 12 March 2014 in Clermont-sur-Berwinne. He was appointed Knight of the Order of the Crown by HM Albert II in 1999. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6512
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, 25 November 2021
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Viens l'oublier' / 'Il y ferait bon dedans'

Le soleil donne - Laurent Voulzy

The majority of my Laurent Voulzy discs come from Antwerp, and this one is no exception. I bought the 7" single of 'Le soleil donne' at Chelsea Records 12 years ago, and now I found the 12" single in that same shop. 

I have a soft spot for Voulzy, not only because of his song 'Les nuits sans Kim Wilde', but also because of the brilliant songs I discovered on the compilation album 'Carib Islander'. Every single track on that one is great - and so obviously I was curious to hear the extended version of 'Le soleil donne' which features on this 12" single. In fact the extended version also appears on the compilation album (I didn't realise that) but the dub version is very interesting too.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, 25 November 2021
Cost: €1
Tracks: 'Le soleil donne' / 'Le soleil donne (dub)', 'Le soleil donne [edit]'

Era troppo carina - Alain Barriere

It's always nice to find a Eurovision song in a different language than the original version, but performed by the original singer. And so, here is 'Era troppo carina', the Italian version of 'Elle était si jolie', by Alain Barriere. The single was released commercially with a picture sleeve, featuring a goodlooking woman walking over the Champs Elysées in Paris, but this here is a promotional jukebox version of that same single.

The tracks remain the same. The B-side is the Italian version of 'Plus je t'entends', which appears on the French EP of the song. The original RCA Italiana company sleeve is a nice surprise. You never know what you get when you order online...

My collection: 7" single no. 6509
Found: Discogs, received 17 November 2021
Cost: $4
Tracks: 'Era troppo carina' / 'E piu' ti amo'

Julie - Daniel

21 years after buying 'Julie' by Daniel, I bought it again... but this time it's the original Yugoslavian single, which features the original version 'Džuli' that went missing on the international release for some reason. This single came to me directly from Croatia, since I bought a couple of singles from a Croatian dealer on Discogs.

Even after almost three decades, this song is still as infectious as ever, although it may sound dated to some.

My collection: 7" single no. 6510
Found: Discogs.com, received 17 November 2021
Cost: $3
Tracks: 'Julie' / 'Džuli'

Der alte Musikant - Ben Cramer

Ben Cramer's Eurovision song 'De oude muzikant' featured on this blog before, not only in the original version but also in the English version. And it gives me great pleasure to present, not a month later, the German version of that song. 

Just like the English version, this single presents the A- and B-side in translated form. 'Der alte Musikant' is of course, 'De oude muzikant', and 'Komm Sylvia tanz mit mir' is a literal translation of the song 'Kom Sylvia dans met mij'. The pressing, of course, comes from Germany.

My collection: 7" single no. 6511
Found: Discogs.com, received 18 November 2021
Cost: €5
Tracks: 'Der alte Musikant' / 'Komm Sylvia tanz mit mir'