Tom Pillibi - Terry van Ginderen

Esther Van Ginderen-Verbeeck (8 September 1931 – 30 January 2018), also known as Tante Terry (Aunt Terry), was a Belgian Flemish-speaking television presenter and businesswoman. She was best known as a host of children's TV shows, often alongside Bob Davidse, better known as Nonkel Bob (Uncle Bob).  Their best known show was 'Kom toch eens kijken'. 

Besides television Terry van Ginderen also recorded a handful of singles. In 1960 she recorded a Flemish version of 'Tom Pillibi', the song that had won that year's Eurovision Song Contest. The lyrics weren't translated literally but the content of the song stays virtually the same.

My collection: 7" single no. 7126
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 February 2024
Tracks: 'Tom Pillibi' / ''t Staat in the sterren'

On and on and on - Cashmere

Sometimes I buy singles out of curiosity. That can be a good thing at times, but sometimes it's not such a good thing. 

I guess it takes guts to cover an Abba song, even back in 1980, when the Swedish band wasn't as revered as it is now. Abba released 'On and on and on' on 12" single only, and so the Dutch duo Cashmere thought it was a clever idea to release that same song on a 7" single. It could have worked, but unfortunately the vocals are a bit rough and this version ends up being... not very good. And so the single failed to reach the charts.

My collection: 7" single no. 7124
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 February 2024
Tracks: 'On and on and on' / 'Hey you'

This is my night - Chaka Khan

After the phenomenal success of 'I feel for you', which topped the UK singles chart in late 1984, Chaka Khan followed that single up with 'This is my night', a comparatively weaker track. It's still got a funky hook, but other than that nothing spectacular happens. Hence, the single only reached number 14 in the UK singles chart. 

Still, it was the last time Chaka reached the UK top 20 for many years. Only remixes of her old hits, 'I'm every woman' and 'Ain't nobody', would help her back in the UK top 10 in 1989, but after that, she only managed to scrape the lower reaches of the chart. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7121
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 February 2024
Tracks: 'This is my night' / 'Caught in the act'

20/20 - George Benson

'20/20' was the title track of George Benson's 1985 album. The song was released as a single. In the UK, the single reached number 29 in the singles chart, but in the Netherlands the single did not chart at all.

I still remember the song from the many times that I watched Sky Channel and Music Box, the two premier satellite channels that used to play music videos for most of the day. Somehow the song crept back into my mind recently, and so I thought it would be nice to own the single after all these years. The B-side is a jazzy instrumental.

My collection: 7" single no. 7120
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 February 2024
Tracks: '20/20' / 'Shark bite'

Refrains - Cora Vaucaire

Cora Vaucaire was a French chanson singer, born 22 July 1918 in Marseille (France) and died 17 September 2011 in Paris (France). She recorded over a dozen singles and a handful of studio albums. She was known for singing songs from the middle ages, but this single is a bit different.

It features a cover version of the very first winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest, 'Refrain' by Lys Assia. I was particularly impressed, upon receiving this single, that it is absolutely flawless: the sleeve is in mint condition, the disc is flawless as well. That's pretty astonishing for a single from 1957. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7119
Found: Discogs.com, received 2 February 2024
Tracks: 'Refrains' / 'Gregory'

Piano piano - Mariella Farré & Pino Gasparini

Switzerland won the very first Eurovision Song Contest, but after that... nothing. For decades they tried and tried, but nothing ever became as successful. When you listen to some of those entries, you understand why: it regularly borders on the inane.

This entry from 1985 is a good example. 'Piano piano' is a good show tune, but couldn't compete with some of the other songs in that year's edition (although it still amazes me that the boring 'La det swinge' won that year). The song was performed by Mariella Farré and Pino Gasparini. Gasparini was previously on the Eurovision stage with the Pepe Lienhard Band in 1977, and Farré in 1983 with 'Io così non-ci sto'. This new attempt was rewarded with a mediocre 12th place. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7118
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 January 2024
Tracks: 'Piano piano' / 'Donna'

Macedomienne - Philippe Lafontaine

Philippe Lafontaine (born 24 May 1955) spent a short time in a Jesuit college that he left at 17 to pursue a career in music.His first successes came from the writing and recording of jingles for television commercials, including Stella Artois and Coca-Cola. The song 'Cœur de loup' was his first big hit and launched his career. 

In 1990 he represented Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest in Zagreb with his own composition 'Macédomienne', dedicated to his Macedonian wife, ending in 12th place. Although a limited edition of singles was pressed - featuring only one track; the B-side remained empty - Lafontaine famously smashed the matrix of the disc, proclaiming that he didn't want the song to be commercialized. And so, this 7" single of 'Macedomienne' became a true collectors item, since only these promotional singles were ever made. Obviously these singles now command extremely high prices, but I still managed to buy a copy. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7117
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 January 2024
Tracks: 'Macedomienne'