Attentive readers of this blog will have seen many entries about Depeche Mode, but one thing was still missing: the band's debut single. I never got round to buying a copy, didn't even know it was missing from my collection in fact. However, I have finally rectified this shortcoming.
Released on February 20, 1981, 'Dreaming of me' only reached number 57 in the UK singles chart and was subsequently not included on the band's debut album 'Speak and spell'. Exactly 30 years after 'Dreaming of me' was first released in the UK, a fan action tried to push the track back into the charts by
way of (legal) online downloads. The action failed except in Germany, where the
track entered the singles charts for the very first time at number 45
giving the band its 47th chart entry.
My collection: 7" single no. 5667
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 23, 2014
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Dreaming of me' / 'Ice machine'
Kraftwerk are pioneers of techno pop, and have been responsible for some of the most astonishing records of the Seventies. It's remarkable that they were able to produce music that sounds timeless even now, mostly thanks to the technology that has become mainstream now, but was quite difficult and expensive back then.
The hyphenated title of the album 'Radio-activity' (1976) displays Kraftwerk's typical deadpan humour, being a pun on the twin themes of the songs, half being about radioactivity and the other half about activity on the radio.
More word plays are evident in the track listing: "Radio Stars", which
as a title could refer to pop stars, but upon listening is revealed to
be about quasars and pulsars. The title track was issued as a single and reached number 7 in France and number 31 in Italy - but failed to chart everywhere else.
My collection: 7" single no. 5433 Found: unknown Tracks: 'Radio-activity' / 'Antenna'
Robert Cogoi was born as Mirko Kogoj on October 25, 1939 in Châtelet to Yugoslav parents. In 1961 he picked up a contract with Philips Records, and the following year, won first prize at the Grand Prix International des Variétés at the Casino in Ostend with the song 'Si un jour', which went on to sell 100,000 copies in France, earning Cogoi a gold disc.
In 1964, he represented belgium with 'Près de ma rivière' ('Near my river'). At the close of voting, it had received 2 points, placing 10th in a field of 16 competitors. Cogoi also recorded the song in English, German and Italian language versions, entitled, respectively, 'My River of Memories', 'Weit, da wo der Strom beginnt' and 'Sulla mia riviera'. The English version, however, was not released until nearly 30 years after the Contest.
Cogoi continued releasing albums and singles, with modest success, until the late 1960s. In 1976 he appeared in the Belgian movie 'Les arpents dorés'. After many years out of the public eye, Cogoi made a guest appearance, along with several other former Eurovision participants, at the Belgian Eurovision national final in 2005.
My collection: 7" single no. 5652 Found: Marktplaats.nl, November 5, 2014 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Pres de ma riviere' / 'Quand le jour se leve'
'Only the light', written and composed by Richard Peebles, was the United Kingdom's entry at the 1987 Eurovision Song Contest, performed by Peebles himself, who was credited as Rikki.
Rikki won the right to perform at Brussels by winning the UK national final, A Song for Europe, where he was the first singer to perform.
At the end of judging that evening, 'Only the light' finished on 13th place. It was a huge disappointment to the United Kingdom as it was the lowest placement any of the country's entries had received up to that time.
Like the previous year, a rock song was in the offering, with an unclear theme (it is never explained what "the light" is, what kind of metaphor it is, why "the light" is after him or why he is avoiding it). In the UK singles chart, the single rose no further than to number 96.
My collection: 7" single no. 5632 Found: Fun Records, Berlin, received August 29, 2014 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Only the light' / 'You came into my life'
Luca Barbarossa is an Italian singer/songwriter who was born on April 15, 1961. He has released 12 albums since 1981, appearing at the prestigious San Remo festival numerous times. In 1988, he was chosen by Italian broadcaster RAI as the representative for Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest, performing the song 'Ti Scrivo'.
The song is a ballad, in which Barbarossa apologises to the recipient of a letter he is writing for using this method of communication. This recipient appears to be a former lover, as he sings that 'Without a good reason / I just scream out your name / It makes me feel alive' and makes mention of deep feelings which needed to be communicated.
At the close of voting, the song had received 52 points, placing 12th in a field of 21 competitors.
My collection: 7" single no. 5631 Found: Fun Records, Berlin, received August 29, 2014 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Ti scrivo' / 'Da grande'
The band Profil was put together especially for the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest to represent France with the song 'Hé Hé M'sieurs dames' ('Hey hey, Ladies and Gentlemen'). The band members were: Martine Havet, Martine Bauer, Francis Rignault, Jean-Claude Corbel and Jean-Pierre Izbinski. Their song was performed sixteenth on the night. At the close of voting, it had received 45 points, placing 11th in a field of 19 competitors.
This single is one of only three I still needed to complete my collection of singles from the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest. It will be a real feast when I find the last one, 'Huilumies', the song that represented Finland.
My collection: 7" single no. 5647 Found: Discogs.com, received September 11, 2014 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Hé hé m'sieurs dames' / 'Jour de chance'
In 1968, the Netherlands were represented in the Eurovision Song Contest by Ronnie Tober. He sang the song 'Morgen', a ballad in which the singer expresses his desire for "tomorrow" to arrive as soon as possible, enabling him and his wife, who is far away, to be reunited. This is slightly ironic, since Ronnie Tober later turned out to be gayer than Christmas.
The song was performed second on the night. At the close of voting, it had received 1 point, placing 16th (equal last) in a field of 17 competitors. Of course, the next year, the Netherlands would be one of four winners of the Contest, when it was organised in Spain.
My collection: 7" single no. 5594 Found: Marktplaats.nl, August 1, 2014 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Morgen' / 'Die ouwe pianola'
