Djingis Khan - Vikingarna

The song 'Dschinghis Khan' by the band of the same name was a big success in 1979. So much so, that several acts recorded cover versions of the song. This blog already featured versions by 5 Carat and Marco Polo, and here's another one: by the Swedish act Vikingarna.

Vikingarna were formed in 1958 in Arvika as Ji-Coo and the Vikings, a rock-and-roll and skiffle group. By the 1973, the band had changed both line-up and style several times, and settled on the new Swedish sound: dansband. The band released their first album that same year and their second the year after, before securing a record deal with Mariann Records in 1975. In 1975 they released "Kramgoa Låtar 1", the first album in a series of more than twenty records. After that, the band released a new album on a yearly basis, whilst touring between recording sessions. In 1992, after the release of "Kramgoa Låtar 20", the band went on hiatus, but returned in 1995 for new albums. In December 2003, they announced their retirement, and played their final concert on July 7, 2004 in Arvika to a record audience. By then, the band had sold more than 11 million records. 

Their version of 'Dschinghis Khan' is very much comparable to the original version even if it is sung in a lower key, but the real surprise is the B-side: a beautiful orchestral version of John Denver's classic 'Annie's song'.

My collection: 7" single no. 6913
Found: Discogs.com, received 15 March 2023
Tracks: 'Djingis Khan' / 'Annie's song (instrumental)'

Hullu yö - Kaija Kärkinen

Although Finland only ever won the Eurovision Song Contest once with Lordi's 'Hard Rock Hallelujah', there's another hard-edged song that I find a lot more interesting. Kaija Kärkinen represented Finland in 1991 with 'Hullu yö' ('Crazy night'), a title that had presenter Toto Cotugno stuttering his way through (like he did throughout the broadcast). 

Finding a copy of this single wasn't easy for sure, and impossible in those internetless days. Even with internet the single commanded such high prices that I had to wait until recently to get a good copy for a decent price. 'Hullu yö' is finally mine.

My collection: 7" single no. 6912
Found: Discogs.com, received 15 March 2023
Tracks: 'Hullu yö' / 'Ammu selkään'

Ghosts again - Depeche Mode

The new Depeche Mode album is called 'Memento mori' and it promises to be a dark affair. The lead single 'Ghosts again' certainly seems to point towards that, with a gloomy sound and serious lyrics. Undoubtedly the untimely death of Andy Fletcher has contributed to this. And so there's only two members now. I would think this album will also be Depeche Mode's last.

This single, featuring the new track and an etching of the DM logo on the other side, was offered free with the German magazine Musikexpress. I found out about this just recently, while the magazine was already sold out on the official website. I turned to other German sites to find a copy. I tried meine-Zeitschrift.de first, but they only offered postage within Germany. When I asked politely if they could send me a copy for increased postage costs, all I got was a reply that they didn't offer postage outside of Germany. Very well... so I found mein-Presseshop.de instead, and they sent me the magazine within a couple of days. You see, some German sites are useless, whereas other German sites are consumer-friendly. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6911
Found: mein-Presseshop.de, received 14 March 2023
Tracks: 'Ghosts again'

Près de ma rivière - Robert Cogoi

The Dutch 'favorieten expres' version of 'Près de ma rivière' appeared on this blog almost a decade ago, but recently I acquired the French 4 track EP, which is worth featuring here because it contains four tracks instead of just two, and it comes in a beautiful cover. Also, three of the four tracks don't appear on that other single. 

Robert appeared on the Eurovision stage in 1964. As a result, his performance has been lost in time, because along with the very first edition in 1956 the Eurovision Song Contest of 1964 was not properly stored in a video archive. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6910
Found: 33|45 Records, Den Haag, 10 March 2023
Tracks: 'Près de ma rivière', 'Present'moi' / 'Fille du soleil', 'Toute une vie'

Wir glauben an Morgen - Karina

I bought the 7" single 'En un mundo nuevo' 13 years ago, the Spanish entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 1971. The song was quite successful, ending up in second place.

I didn't know back then that Karina also recorded her song in English, French, German and Italian. It's not easy to find all these versions, but the German version is now mine. I didn't notice this before, but the song seems oddly inspired by Marty Wilde's 'Abergavenny' - just listen to the last part of this song. And that doesn't seem far-fetched; Karina actually recorded a version of that song as 'La fiesta' in 1968.

My collection: 7" single no. 6907
Found: Discogs.com, received 9 March 2023
Tracks: 'Wir glauben an Morgen' / 'En un mundo nuevo'

Vielleicht geschieht ein Wunder - Carmela Corren

Carmela Corren (née Bizman, 13 February 1938 – 15 January 2022) was an Israeli singer and actress. She dreamed of being a dancer, but switched to singing in the wake of an injury. American television producer Ed Sullivan discovered her in 1956 during a work venture in Jerusalem. Corren, just out of military service, was persuaded to come to New York to appear on his show. She later toured South Africa with Cliff Richard and sang in English clubs. Later, she starred in several films and television productions. 

With the beginning of the 1960s, Corren became well-known in Germany, as well as in Switzerland and Austria. In 1963, she represented Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest with her song 'Vielleicht geschieht ein Wunder', finishing in seventh place.

My collection: 7" single no. 6905
Found: Discogs.com, received 9 March 2023
Tracks: 'Vielleicht geschieht ein Wunder' / 'Always you'

Fantasy dream - Ami Aspelund

Ami Aspelund represented Finland in 1983 with the song 'Fantasiaa'. It was written Kaisu Liuhala and composed by Kari Kuusamo. According to some, Kuusamo had listened well to Kim Wilde's hit 'Cambodia' and based the melody of the chorus on the verses of Kim's song. If you listen to 'Fantasiaa' (or the English version, 'Fantasy dream', which is on the A-side of this single) you can certainly hear a certain reminiscence, but no claim has ever been made and the song went on to become reasonably successful. 

'Fantasiaa' ended up on 11th place in the Eurovision Song Contest, in a field of 20 competitors.

My collection: 7" single no. 6904
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 March 2023
Tracks: 'Fantasy dream' / 'Fantasiaa'