Empire State Human - Human League

Although the Human League is known as an "Eighties band" by most people, their career actually started in 1978 with Being boiled. Their next single was 'Empire state human', released in 1979. It was the first and only single from their debut album 'Reproduction'. The single did not chart, but fared slightly better when it was re-released in 1980, reaching number 62 in the UK singles chart.

Lyrically, "Empire State Human" is a song about becoming powerful using the analogy of size, with Oakey declaring that he wants to be "tall" a total of 60 times in 3 minutes. Uncut magazine drew a comparison with Oakey's own personal ambition: ""I wanna be tall, tall, tall, as big as a wall, wall, wall". Oakey's Nietzschian pop fantasy reflected his own burgeoning full-on pop ambitions..."

My collection: 7" single no. 6210
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Empire state human' / 'Introducing'

Tvoj dječak je tužan - Krunoslav Slabinac

Krunoslav "Kićo" Slabinac was born on March 28, 1944 in Osijek, Yugoslavia (now Croatia). During the 1960s Slabinac was a member of several rock 'n' roll bands. He then went solo and moved to Zagreb.

In 1971 he was selected to represent Yugoslavia at the Eurovision Song Contest with 'Tvoj dječak je tužan' ('Your boy is sad'). The song was not particularly successful, ending in 14th place in a field of 18 competitors. Slabinac's song "Zbog jedne divne žene" was a huge hit in his country, which solidified his status as a singer. However, later on in the decade, legal troubles and time spent abroad set back his career. After his return from the United States, Slabinac focused on folk music.

My collection: 7" single no. 6209
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Tvoj dječak je tužan' / 'I gori nego ja'

Di dai, di dai dai - MFO

Mazhar Alanson, Fuat Güner and Özkan Uğur represented Turkey at the Eurovision Song Contest back when Turkey was still participating in the annual event. Their first of two attempts at eternal fame on the Eurovision stage took place in 1985 with the song 'Di dai, di dai dai'. The song title is sometimes written with the phrase 'Aşık oldum', which means 'I fell in love'.

The single was released in the Netherlands by Dureco Benelux, although I don't recall this to ever appear in any record shop I visited back then. These days the single has become quite a collectors item, fetching around 40 euros for a decent copy online. Which explains that I was rather pleased to get this for less.

My collection: 7" single no. 6208
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 15 euro
Tracks: 'Di dai, di dai dai' / 'Di dai, di dai dai (Aşık oldum) (Turkish version)'

Eloise - Arvingarna

One of the best ever Swedish contributions to the Eurovision Song Contest in my opinion - and there have been many - is 1993's 'Eloise' by Arvingarna. This Swedish 'dansband' was formed in 1989 by Casper Janebrink, Lars Larsson, Kim Carlsson and Tommy Carlsson. Their name Arvingarna ('The heirs') refers to the fact that their parents were also active in 'dansbands'.Their song finished in seventh place in a field of 25 competitors.

This vinyl single is a bit of a rarity, as the 7" single format was rapidly disappearing all over Europe in 1993. I was rather glad to find this copy, as online it fetches a minimum of 20 euros.

My collection: 7" single no. 6207
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 10 euro
Tracks: 'Eloise' / 'De' e' bara jag'

Trans Europe Express - Kraftwerk

Kraftwerk singles are rather hard to find, so every time I manage to buy one for a reasonable price, I am quite pleased. 'Trans Europe Express' was the title track of the German band's sixth album, released in 1977. The album was recorded at Kling Klang Studio in Düsseldorf. Artistic control over the songs was strictly in the hands of members Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider, with Karl Bartos and Wolfgang Flür contributing sequenced electronic percussion. The four of them went to railway bridges to listen to the sounds the train would actually produce. The group found the sound the train made was not danceable and changed it slightly.

The single became their first hit in Sweden, peaking at number 15 in the singles chart over there. In Canada, it was actually the band's last charting single, peaking at number 96 only.

My collection: 7" single no.  6206
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 4 euro
Tracks: 'Trans Europe Express' / 'Franz Schubert'

A chacun sa chanson - Line et Willy

Line Van Menen and Claude Boillod called themselves Line et Willy and became famous after winning the Palmarès des Chansons with 'Le vent' and the Rose d'Or d'Antibes with 'Pourquoi pas nous?' in 1966. They had some success with several singles for the AZ label.

In 1968, they represented Monaco at the Eurovision Song Contest with 'A chacun sa chanson'. They finished in seventh place in a field of 17 competitors. This copy of the EP comes with the B-side label on both sides, which I guess makes it a rarity of sorts.

After the separation of the couple, Line began a solo career and performed in concerts until recently. Willy died on December 20, 2018 in the village of Peypin where he resided since the 90s.

My collection: 7" single no. 6205
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'A chacun sa chanson', 'De l'automne a l'automne' / 'Demain, il y aura demain', 'Tout l'or du monde'

Maya - Errol Brown

Having been a member of the legendary band Hot Chocolate, Errol Brown went solo in the mid-Eighties, and somehow I can't help but wish he'd been more successful as a solo singer. But to be honest, a single like this just wasn't handled all that well. The gatefold sleeve is quite nice, but the photograph of a caucasian girl seems a little odd when the lyric speaks about 'the reincarnation of an African queen'. The music on the A-side track is typical Eighties fare, but could have been produced with a little more care. And then there is the B-side... 'She's my lady' is the weakest song I ever heard from Errol. I bought this single hoping to hear something great, but to be honest it is a bit of a letdown. You can't win them all, I guess.

My collection: 7" single no. 6204
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 17, 2019
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Maya' / 'She's my lady'