Freedom is today - Mia Martini

Mia Martini performed 'Libera' at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1977, representing Italy. As nice as the song was, Italian is not my strong point, and so I was happy to know that there was also an English version of this song. But how to find it?

This single is rather rare, which is why it was also under the table at the record fair last Saturday. Fortunately the price wasn't very steep, and so I was able to pick up this UK promo, which features both the English and the original version. Oddly, both labels feature the prominent 'A' on them.

My collection: 7" single no. 7063
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Freedom is today' / 'Libera'

Ma petite chatte - Fud Leclerc

Having bought the previous 11 singles from one dealer, I asked whether he had some rare gems hidden under the table. He did, and some of them were already in my collection and featured on this blog. But one item was especially rare and I was rather stunned when I grabbed it: a real copy of 'Ma petite chatte' by Fud Leclerc.

You should know that Fud Leclerc represented Belgium four times at the Eurovision Song Contest, but only two of those songs were ever released on a 7" single: 'Mon amour pour toi' from 1960 and this song, 'Ma petite chatte' from 1958. The other two, 'Messieurs les noyés de la Seine' (1956) and 'Ton nom' (1962) remained unreleased.

This particular single seems to come from the archive of the INR - NIR, Belgium's national broadcasting institute, which existed until 1960. I just hope it wasn't stolen from their archives.

My collection: 7" single no. 7062
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Ma petite chatte' / 'Volare (Dans le bleu du ciel bleu)'

Romantica - Gunnar Wiklund

Renato Rascel represented Italy with 'Romantica' at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960. The song was covered by many artists across Europe; attentive readers will have seen my entries on versions by Willy Alberti, Achille Togliani and Robertino. 

Up north, you had Gunnar Wiklund, who would record more Eurovision covers during the 1960's. This EP featured his first flirt with Eurovision repertoire, after having released more than a dozen singles with original material in Swedish. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7061
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Romantica', 'Partners' / 'Han måste gå', 'Midnatt'

Die heerlijke wereld - Micha Marah

Micha Marah made headlines earlier this year when she decided to finally record her Eurovision entry from 1979, 'Hey nana'. Until now, only the version by composer Charles Dumolin has been available on record, and unfortunately it seems like it will remain like this, since there is no physical release of Micha's version yet. 

We'll have to made do with Micha's cover version of 'En un mundo nuevo', Spain's Eurovision entry from 1971. She recorded it as 'Die heerlijke wereld' ('That delicious world') in 1971, and it sounds as joyful as the original - even if the lyrics sound rather naff if you can understand Flemish/Dutch.

My collection: 7" single no. 7060
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Die heerlijke wereld' / 'Die ring'

La source - Guy Bonnet

Guy Bonnet wrote 'La source', the song that represented France at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1968. It was performed by Isabelle Aubret, who did this for her country for the second time. It was a successful attempt, since she landed in third place.

However, Guy decided to also record the song himself. This single contains his version along with a tribute to that famous film character, Scarlett O'Hara. Whether this version is better than Isabelle's... well, I think it isn't really. But it's a nice item to have nonetheless.

My collection: 7" single no. 7059
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'La source' / 'Scarlett O'Hara'

Die Worte dieser Nacht - Nana Mouskouri

Nana Mouskouri represented Luxembourg at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1963 with 'A force de prier'. I managed to buy the English version 'The one that got away' two years before the original French version, and now, two years after I found the original French version I found the German version, 'Die Worte dieser Nacht'. It would be quite something if I found the Italian version in 2025. 

There's a rumour that a Japanese version of the song also exists, somewhere on a 'various artists' compilation, but who knows? I certainly don't. Suggestions welcome in the comments, of course.

My collection: 7" single no. 7057
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Die Worte dieser Nacht' / 'Wir geh'n im Regen'

Primaballerina - Siw Malmkvist

Germany was represented by Siw Malmkvist at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1969. She sang 'Primaballerina', a title that accurately descibes the subject of the song. Besides the original German version she also recorded the song in Swedish and Spanish. 

This single contains the Spanish version, and fortunately the sleeve states 'en español', because there is also a version from the Spanish record company Belter that contains the original German version. Make no mistake: despite the title 'Me falta el botón', the B-side is in German.

My collection: 7" single no. 7056
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Primaballerina (en español)' / 'Mir fehlt der Knopf'