In the mid-Eighties, synthesizers were getting increasingly popular as a means to make movie soundtracks. Jan Hammer made a living making soundtracks for 'Miami Vice', and Harold Faltermeyer scored the 'Beverley Hills Cop' movies. His biggest success was the track 'Axel F', which reached number 2 in the UK and number 1 in the Netherlands.
When you listen to it now, it sound a bit dated but it is still a catchy tune. It's hard to believe, though, that movie producers didn't prefer large orchestras instead. It always sounds more impressive, I think.
Susanna Hoffs followed up her debut solo single 'My side of the bed' with another track from her album 'When you're a boy': 'Unconditional love'. The song was written by Kelly, Steinberg and Cyndi Lauper. The single did not chart in America and the Netherlands, and in the UK it peaked at number 65. I guess that means it wasn't a hit anywhere then.
In the UK the single was also released as a picture disc, just like its predecessor. I found it in 1996 together with the other one, so buying the two of them was a logical decision. The B-side of the regular single and the picture disc single is the non-album track 'Circus girl'.
My collection: 7" single no. 1446 / 7" single no. 2669
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, June 15, 1991 / Record fair, Leeds, June 30, 1996
Disco queen Amii Stewart tried her hand at two cover versions in 1979 and it did her career some good. 'Knock on wood' was originally performed by Eddie Floyd in 1966. It was covered by many artists, but Amii's version reached number 1 in the American chart, making it the most well-known version of that song.
The same cannot be said for 'Light my fire', originally performed by the Doors. The original will always be the most fondly remembered, but Amii did a good danceable version of it in 1979. It reached number 5 in the UK singles chart and number 7 in the Dutch Top 40.
Attentive readers of this blog will have noticed that Sade's first 12" single 'Your love is king' already contained an extended version of 'Smooth operator'. Still, 'Smooth operator' was released as her third single in 1984, and it contained another version of the track. This time it was extended with another instrumental track, 'Red eye'. This 12" version was also the music for an extended music video, which was played on television every now and again.
The B-side of this 12" single is the song 'Spirit', which again was never released on cd. There is a rumour going round that Sade will release a new cd this year. Well, here's hoping...
After signing to Virgin records, 'Shattered dreams' was the first single from Johnny hates Jazz for their new record company. Released in April 1987 it was their first and biggest hit, reaching number 5 in the UK. In the Netherlands, it peaked at number 30 in the Dutch Top 40. The single preceded their debut album, which hit number 1 in the UK albums chart.
Things had taken off for Johnny hates Jazz in a big way, but there was more to come. I would buy all their singles - but only years afterwards. Just like this one.
I don't know for sure, but this might well be the longest single ever released. Chris Rea's 'Nothing to fear' clocks in at 9 minutes and 10 seconds: truly an epic song. It's this length that piqued my interest when I came across this single during a week in London in 1992. I listened to it on a listening post, and decided I liked it enough to buy it.
I'm glad I did: it's probably the best song of Chris Rea's career. Taken from his 1992 album 'God's great banana skin', it reached number 16 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 1737
Found: Virgin Megastore, October 17, 1992
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Nothing to fear' / 'Nothing to fear (edit)', 'Strange dance'
'The edge of heaven' was Wham's last single. It was released in the spring of 1986, after George Michael and Andrew Ridgely announced their breakup. The single preceded a historic farewell concert at Wembley Stadium in London on June 28, 1986.
The single reached number 1 in the UK and the Netherlands that summer. It was sold as a double single including four tracks. One of them was 'Where did your heart go', which was also released separately as a single in some territories. The song, originally recorded by art-rock ensemble Was (Not Was), was a downbeat and sombre affair that would fit seamlessly onto George Michael's later solo albums.
The band had been together five years, selling close to 20 million albums and 10 to 15 million singles.
My collection: 7" single no. 483
Found: Free Record Shop, Den Haag, 1986
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'The edge of heaven' / 'Battlestations' // 'Wham Rap '86' / 'Where did your heart go?'
In 1992, Prefab Sprout released their greatest hits album 'A life of surprises'. The album reached number 3 on the UK albums chart. It was a chance for me to get my favourite tracks 'When love breaks down', 'Appetite' and 'Johnny Johnny' on cd. And as has happened to me before: once I started playing the cd a lot, I started looking for more singles.
During a visit to London, I came across this single, 'If you don't love me', one of the nicest tracks from the compilatoin cd. I was very happy to see that a remixed version appeared on the B-side. It didn't take me long to make the decision to buy this single.
My collection: 7" single no. 1756
Found: Tower Records, London, October 19, 1992
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'If you don't love me' / 'If you don't love me (String driven thing)'
After the chart success of 'Something for the weekend', the Divine Comedy released the second single from their album 'Casanova', 'Becoming more like Alfie'. It peaked at number 27 in the UK singles chart, which meant that it did slightly worse than its predecessor.
The B-side, 'Your daddy's car' is another album track, but performed live on BBC Radio 1's Mark Radcliffe Show on April 29, 1996.
My collection: 7" single no. 3140 Found: Setanta mailorder, 1999 Cost: 4 pounds Tracks: 'Becoming more like Alfie' / 'Your daddy's car'
Joe Jackson was born as David Ian Jackson on August 11, 1954 in Burton upon Trent, England. He started off learning to play the violin but soon switched to piano. When he was sixteen he started playing in bars, and eventually won a scholarship to study musical composition at London's Royal Academy of Music. Jackson did not like the prospect of being a classical composer, and moved towards pop and rock instead.
Starting his career in the late Seventies, he had some early hits in the UK with 'It's different for girls' and 'Is she really going out with him?'. His first big hit in the Netherlands was 'Real men', taken from the 1982 album 'Night and day'. The album paid tribute to the wit and style of Cole Porter (and indirectly to New York City). 'Real men' pointed obliquely to the city's early Eighties gay culture.
Sheila was born as Annie Chancel on August 16, 1945 in Créteil, France. She started her musical career in 1962. She had numerous hits in France during the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties. One of her biggest hits was 'Spacer' (1979). The song was taken from her album 'King of the world', which was produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of Chic fame.
The song was sampled by the Swedish pop group Alcazar for their track 'Crying at the discotheque' in 2000. Of course I prefer the original.
Out of all the Talk Talk 7" singles I have, this is probably the rarest one. It showed up in my record shop and I bought without hesitation. 'I believe in you' was already out for a few weeks, and spotting this promotional single with twice the edit of the song on it, I had to have it. This edit wasn't released on cd at the time, so I even wrote down which side of the disc I played, so I could preserve the other side for later. Fortunately, the edit was released on cd in 1997.
Taken from the excellent album 'Spirit of Eden', 'I believe in you' is apparently an 'anti-heroin song'. When asked whether the lyrics are based on personal experience, Mark Hollis replied, 'No, not at all. But, you know, I met people who got totally fucked up on it. Within rock music there's so much fucking glorification of it, and it is a wicked, horrible thing.'
My collection: 7" single no. 659 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, October 1, 1988 Cost: 3,5 guilders Tracks: 'I believe in you (edit)' / 'I believe in you (edit)'
Dave Stewart (not to be confused with David A. Stewart of Eurythmics fame) was born as David Lloyd Stewart on December 30, 1950 in London. As a musician he has worked in various progressive rock bands like Uriel, Egg, Gong, National Health and others. In 1981 he recorded a solo single with vocals by Colin Blunstone. It peaked at number 13 in the UK singles chart and number 22 in the Dutch Top 40.
'What becomes of the broken hearted' was originally a hit for Jimmy Ruffin in 1966. I didn't know the original song when I first heard this in 1981. I thought it was a great electronic composition!
My collection: 7" single no. 360 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1985 Cost: 1 guilder Tracks: 'What becomes of the broken hearted' / 'There is no reward'
'Embarrassment' was Madness' sixth single and lyrically one of their darkest tracks up to that point. Primarily written by Lee Thompson, the song reflected the unfolding turmoil following the news that his teenage sister, Tracy Thompson, had become pregnant and was carrying a black man's child. The song describes the following rejection by her family, and the shame felt.
The song is a clear indication of changing times and attitudes as time goes on. The real life story had a happy ending, however; Thompson later stated that when the child, named Hayley, was born, the antipathy of Tracy's relatives dissolved.
My collection: 7" single no. 1796 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, December 4, 1992 Cost: 1 guilder Tracks: 'Embarrassment' / 'Crying shame'
Tommy Seebach had represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest on two previous occasions. In 1979, he did it for the first time with the song 'Disco tango', which ended up on 6th place. 1981, he took Denmark to 11th place with the song 'Krøller eller ej'. He participated in a number of national finals since then, without winning the competition. Finally, in 1993 he got another chance. 'Under stjernene på himlen' was the song that should bring him international acclaim. But unfortunately, it didn't. Instead, he brought back Denmark's worst result in years, finishing 22nd out of 25. The result was that Denmark wouldn't compete in the 1994 edition of the Contest.
In the Nineties, Seebach's career in Denmark took a nosedive. It was only in 1999 that he could find new audiences with a disco version of 'Krøller eller ej'. After that, he became the head of musical entertainment at amusement park Bakken in Klampenborg, Denmark. But Seebach's problems with alcoholism took their toll on him and he died at the age of 53 from a heart attack on March 31, 2003.
This single actually features another Danish song on the A-side, but since I bought this 'promotion only' single for the Eurovision song, it's only fitting that I should highlight that one. It's a wonderful upbeat song, and really should have done better in the Contest.
My collection: 7" single no. 1974
Found: Bea Records, October 17, 1993
Cost: 7,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Går det ikk', så går det nok' (Teddy Edelmann) / 'Under stjernene på himlen' (Tommy Seebach Band)
This single comes from the album 'Horoscope' (1980), subtitled 'Gary Fane's musical interpretation of the Zodiac'. The album apparently features 14 tracks, one track for every sign in the zodiac plus an 'Overture' and a 'Finale'. The album was produced by Jaap Eggermont (of 'Stars on 45' fame), who enlisted the help of famous Dutch musicians Jan Rietman, Hans Hollestelle and Dick Bakker.
Gary Fane's real name is Gerard Veen. He started his career with the Dutch group Johnny Kendall and the Heralds. This group has a couple of hits in the Sixties. 'Aquarius' peaked at number 10 in the Dutch Top 40. It was his only solo hit, although he did release another single, entitled 'Love' in 1981. Since then, he has kept on making music, although it didn't bring him any commercial success.
Sneaker was formed in 1973 by Mitch Crane, Michael Carey Schneider, Michael Cottage, Tim Torrance, Mike Hughes and Jim King. The band cited Steely Dan, the Eagles and the Doobie Brothers as their primary musical influences. Indeed, the band's name came from a Steely Dan track, 'Bad sneakers'.
'More than just the two of us' was the band's biggest hit, which became a top 40 hit in America. The single was taken from their self-titled debut album, released in 1981. After their second album, 'Loose in the world' (1982) the band broke up.
My collection: 7" single no. 1492
Found: Den Haag, July 18, 1991
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'More than just the two of us' / 'In time'
Secret Garden represented Norway during the 1995 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. They won the edition with 'Nocturne'. Featuring a lyric consisting of about eight lines, some were outraged that an instrumental track would win a 'song' contest. Personally I still think it's one of the best winners ever - especially when you consider all the boring predictable Irish songs that won the Contest in the Eighties.
Jan, who makes the excellent Eurocovers blog, informs me that there are at least 47 cover versions of this track. One of them is this dance version by Clerx & Van Dijk, released in 2002. Vocals in this version are performed by Margot Roeken. I ordered the 12" single recently and received it today. What a great way to start the weekend.
My collection: 12" single no. 487 Found: Y-Music, mailorder, received February 21, 2009 Cost: 10 euro Tracks: 'Nocturne (Fire & Ice mix)', 'Innocent' / 'Nocturne (Original mix)', 'Nocturne (Remix)'
As much as I remembered 'Don't give up on us', the only thing I knew about 'Going in with my eyes open' was that I didn't dislike the song when it was in the chart. Of course, I was only six years old at that time - so when I bought the single two decades later it was a bit of a gamble. What's more, the copy I bought originally didn't even have a picture sleeve. I replaced it two weeks after buying that one with a copy that did.
'Going in with my eyes open' peaked at number 17 in the Dutch Top 40, number 2 in the UK and number 54 in the US Billboard Hot 100. I think the British people were right: it's still a beautiful song now.
Michelle Charles played Marilyn 'Charley' Charlton in the British youth TV series Byker Grove between 1990 and 1992. She recorded 'The best thing', a song which apparently she also sung in the television series.
But this is not why I bought this 12" single. The real reason is the B-side track, 'You don't know me'. Written by Kim Wilde and Tony Swain, this track was never recorded by Kim herself as far as I know (although it might well have been), and ended up being performed by Charley. This 12" single is pretty rare these days, although the cd-single is even more rare. It does exist - so if anyone has a copy for me, don't hesitate to contact me...
My collection: 12" single no. 421
Found: Record Exchange, London, 2000
Cost: 50p
Tracks: 'The best thing (FM mix)', 'The best thing (Byker Grove mix)' / 'The best thing (12" original mix)', 'You don't know me'
I think I've mentioned a few times that I like cover versions. Especially Kim Wilde and Kate Bush cover versions are always interesting to me, just because I love the original songs so much I always like to hear what other artists do with them. (I also like cover versions of Eurovision songs, so Eurocovers is really an addictive blog for me.)
So every now and again I go hunting for cover versions I haven't heard yet. That is how I found this single by Inside moves, an anonymous dance outfit from 1992. Their version of 'The man with the child in his eyes' is typical nineties fare, nothing too high class unfortunately. It's hard to do justice to Kate Bush.
My collection: 7" single no. 3364
Found: Esprit mail order, 2002
Cost: 5 pounds
Tracks: 'The man with the child in his eyes' / 'I wish'
Space was founded in 1977 by Didier Marouani (also known as Ecama), Roland Romanelli, and Jannick Top in Marseille, France. Their debut single 'Magic fly' and the album of the same name, both released in 1977, gave them immediate success. Today, they are considered to be pioneers of the eurodance/electronica genre.
I first heard the track 'Magic fly' in 1996 when it was shown on a television show. I was very surprised when I found this old single within days in the record shop in my hometown which I regularly visited.
My collection: 7" single no. 2645 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, May 24, 1996 Cost: 1 guilder Tracks: 'Magic fly' / 'Ballad for space lovers'
Sniff 'n' the Tears will always be remembered for their biggest hit, 'Driver's seat', one of the best songs to play if you're driving around in a car. Or so I've heard - I don't have a car. Which may be why I prefer this single, released three months earlier in August 1980.
'One love' comes from Sniff 'n' the Tears' 1980 album 'The game's up'. It reached number 34 in the Dutch Top 40.
The Silencers were a Scottish rock band formed in London in 1986, consisting of Jimme O'Neill, Cha Burns, Joseph Donnelly and Martin Hanlin. Their debut single was 'Painted moon', written by O'Neill about his reaction to the Falklands war. Their first album 'A Letter from St. Paul' was released soon after. The Pretenders invited the band to support them on their European tour.
In 1988 The Silencers toured Europe with The Alarm and 'Painted Moon' became a radio hit in Britain. The band moved back to Scotland and recorded second album 'A Blues for Buddha', with Flood producing. The first single drawn from that album was 'Scottish rain', a song about love and fallout from Chernobyl. The band then toured Europe with Simple Minds for four months, culminating with a stadium show at Wembley in front of 80,000.
It was my sister who'd discovered the Silencers and bought this single. I bought it soon after and was pleasantly surprised that it came in a gatefold sleeve - always a nice item. My sister actually saw them play live in Rotterdam, supporting the Simple Minds - my interest waned after this one single.
My collection: 7" single no. 972 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, August 29, 1989 Cost: 3,5 guilders Tracks: 'Scottish rain' / 'A blues for buddha', 'Gimme shelter'
Readers of this blog know that I write entries about various 7" and 12" single with an image of the sleeve, some random facts and memories, plus the information about that single - and whenever possible a link to a soundfile. Blogger has been deleting random posts over the last few months, without stating what the hell the problem was with those particular posts. I've been writing messages to them but they are as responsive as my deaf and insane neighbour.
Their actions are based on the DMCA, they write. Has any reader got any understanding of this? Since when is it illegal to link to stuff that's already out there on the web? And what does Blogger want - that I stop blogging? Your responses are welcome here. God knows that big corporations don't listen to reason, but it would be nice to hear from some people out there who do give a f***.
What's more, this blog will feature divshare from now on - I've noticed that they host a lot of music as well and it allows me to stream music instead of letting people download the stuff. Perhaps this is more acceptable to the DMCA people? We'll find out.
In the 1989 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, Belgium was represented by Ingeborg Sergeant and the song 'Door de wind' ('Through the wind'). The song was written by Stef Bos, who also performed backing vocals on the track.
Unfortunately, it wasn't a big success for Belgium: the song ended up on 19th place in the Contest. The single features the normal and acoustic version of 'Door de wind'. It's a charming little song, but probably not Song Contest material.
My collection: 7" single no. 873
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, June 3, 1989
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Door de wind' / 'Door de wind (acoustische versie)'
The Dutch band aptly named The Dutch is formed in Amstelveen in 1979. Singer Hans Croon writes mostly politically inspired lyrics for their songs. In 1983 they have their first and only hit with 'This is welfare', a beautiful piano-based popsong. I remember recording the song from the radio and playing it over and over again.
In 1989 I finally buy my own copy of the single. The band has already disbanded by then: the have gone on to form Siobhan in 1987.
My collection: 7" single no. 1098 Found: All that music, Leiden, November 11, 1989 Cost: 2 guilders Tracks: 'This is welfare' / 'Heimat vorbei' Download:here
John William Baldry was born on January 12, 1941. He was commonly known as Long John Baldry, as he grew 2m (6ft 7 in) tall. His career started in the early sixties. He recorded mainly blues songs, but in 1967, he recorded a pop song 'Let the heartaches begin' that went to number one in Britain.
In the seventies Baldry had mental health problems and was institutionalised. The 1979 album 'Baldry's Out' was recorded after his release. From the follow-up, the 1980 album 'Long John Baldry' came this single, 'Morning dew'. It was another impressive pop song, which made number 18 in the Dutch Top 40. In the UK, it didn't chart.
Baldry died on July 21, 2005, in a Vancouver hospital of a chest infection.
'Just the two of us' was recorded by jazz musician Grover Washington Jr. (1943-1999) with vocals by Bill Withers. It was released as a single in June 1980, and rewarded with a Grammy Award on February 24, 1982.
My collection: 7" single no. 2255 Found: Plaatboef, Rotterdam, March 22, 1995 Cost: 1 guilder Tracks: 'Just the two of us' / 'Make me a memory (Sad Samba)' Download:Album 'Winelight', including both tracks
Not only do I have the 10" single of 'Typical!', I've got the 7" single too. It contains the title track plus the B-side 'String'.
I bought this single in Beanos, the big second hand record shop in East Croydon, London, along with three other singles by Frazier Chorus. I'd discovered the band a few years earlier, but it was only when I bought a cd ('Sue') that I realised I had to have all the singles, and not just 'Dream kitchen'.
My collection: 7" single no. 2523
Found: Beanos, East Croydon, London, November 1, 1995
The four singles that Trevor Horn produced for Dollar were among the most successful of the duo's career. Among those, 'Mirror mirror' was the most successful one, peaking at number 4 in the UK singles chart and staying in there for 17 weeks.
Personally, I think it's the least dodgy of all Dollar singles. There's always been something naff about the duo's output, but this single is actually quite decent.
Another impressive single by Prefab Sprout, released from the album 'Steve McQueen'. On that album it was entitled 'Goodbye Lucille #1'. This song is a tense affair, and only lets go in the last few seconds, when the track fades out.
I was fascinated by this song when it was released, and played it dozens of times after I found this single at a discount price. In my book, it's still one of Prefab Sprout's best songs ever.
'Children of paradise' was released as a single in autumn of 1980 to fill the gap between Boney M's 1979 album 'Oceans of fantasy' and the 1981 album 'Boonoonoonoos'. The single featured the religiously-inspired title track and a disco cover of the 1968 psychedelic track 'In a gadda-da-vida' by Iron Butterfly.
As usual, the single became a Europe-wide hit for Boney M. I bought the single as soon as it came out. Aged 10, I bought all of Boney M's singles at the time.
At the time I bought this single, the forthcoming demise of the 7" vinyl single format as a commercial item in Europe was getting more obvious by the week. Although 7" singles were still being made in the UK, European pressings became increasingly rare. At the time of buying this single, I was buying every track I liked on this format on principle.
'You won't see me cry' was actually the first Wilson Phillips track I liked - all their previous singles were dull and uninteresting to me. It wasn't a hit in the Netherlands, but it peaked at number 18 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 1684
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, July 11, 1992
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'You won't see me cry' / 'This doesn't have to be love'
After having been in the music business for seven years, and having released three albums, The Divine Comedy suddenly found chart success in the UK for the first time with this single, 'Something for the weekend'. Released in June 1996 in advance of the fourth album 'Casanova' it peaked at number 14 in the UK singles chart - and it would be the first of many chart hits that followed.
I found this single while on holiday in York. I knew about the Divine Comedy, but wasn't aware that this new single was released. I bought it despite not having heard it, and of course I bought every single and album since then.
My collection: 7" single no. 2647
Found: HMV, York, June 28, 1996
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Something for the weekend' / 'Songs of love (Theme from 'Father Ted')
The band Supermax was set up by the Austrian musician and producer Kurt Hauenstein. Other members of his band were Hans Ochs, Ken Taylor, Lothar Krell, Peter Koch and the singers Cee Cee Cobb and Jean Graham.
'Love machine' was their biggest hit, peaking at number 6 in Switzerland, number 9 in Austria and number 11 in the Netherlands. The single even reached the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 96. The track was taken from the album 'World of today', where it appears in its entirity. For the single, it was divided into two parts.
My collection: 7" single no. 2294
Found: May 13, 1995
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'Love machine part 1' / 'Love machine part 2'
Peter Gabriel's 'Sledgehammer' will always be remembered mostly because of this video. It was directed by Stephen R. Johnson. Aardman Animation and the Brothers Quay provided claymation, pixilation, and stop motion animation that gave life to images in the song. In 1987, it won nine MTV Video Music Awards, a record which still stands today. It ranked at number four on MTV's 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made (1999). MTV later announced that 'Sledgehammer' is the most played music video in the history of the station.
The lyric of the song contains thinly-veiled sexual innuendo, which was common in soul music from the 1960's, which the song was influenced by. The lyrics include phallic references such as a steam train, bumper cars, a Big Dipper (roller coaster) and a fruit cage. It also includes references to the sexual reproduction of plants, mentioning pollination, fruit and bees.
I bought this single a decade after it came out. At the time of its chart ascent, the song was played so often on radio and television that I thought I would never play this record anyway. And I was right. I still haven't played it much.
My collection: 7" single no. 2832
Found: Record Exchange, London, February 8, 1997
Cost: 1 pound
Tracks: 'Sledgehammer' / 'Don't break this rhythm'
Amy Grant was born on November 25, 1960 and made her debut already in 1977. She made a career out of recording Christian music, which got her a lot of critical and commercial acclaim in those circles. In 1988 her music took on a more contemporary pop form, when she released the album 'Lead me on'.
The title track deals lyrically with slavery and the Holocaust. The lyrics also talk about man's relation to these events and man's relation to man. The message of the song makes it very strong, unusual for Amy Grant, who was known for her meaningful but light lyrics.
In 1980, the movie 'The Jazz singer' was released. It was a remake of the 1927 movie of the same name. The soundtrack of the 1980 movie was performed by Neil Diamond. He had been singing and performing since 1966 and got praised and scorned for his role in the movie. Three hit songs came from the soundtrack album: 'America', 'Hello again' and 'Love on the rocks' - but only the last one was also a hit in the Netherlands. I thought it was a beautiful song, and now that I've heard it again, I stand by my judgement of almost 30 years ago.
The Dazz Band grew out of the Cleveland jazz fusion band Bell Telefunk. Originally consisting of Mike Calhoun, Kenny Pettus, Bobby Harris, Ike Wiley and Michael Wiley, they recruited extra members Kevin Kendrick, Steve Cox, Eric Fearman, Pierre DeMudd, Sennie "Skip" Martin, Jerry Bell and Terry Stanton. Their debut hit in America was 'Shake it up' in 1980.
'Let it all blow' was released in 1984, like their former albums and singles on the Motown label. It became their biggest hit in the UK, peaking at number 12, and their only hit in the Netherlands, peaking at number 10.
In December 1992, an acquaintance of my sister went to London and offered to buy us some singles while she was there. I wrote down a couple of titles and included this one. A week later, I suddenly had this posterbag edition of Betty Boo's second single off her album 'Grrr! It's Betty Boo'. I can't say I played this single a lot, but it's a nice throwaway pop song. It also includes a musical quote from the Beatles' 'Lady Madonna', by the way.
After 'Let me take you there', this was the second and last Betty Boo single I bought. Her career was almost over by that time: she released one more single and then disappeared from the scene - writing song for other acts instead.
The Bangles had a big hit with 'Walk like an Egyptian' in 1986. In the video, Susanna Hoffs was the one that caught the eye of the viewer the most, with an innocent look and big seductive eyes. It should be no wonder, then, that her first solo single in 1991 was titled 'My side of the bed'. It's just enough to make any man fantasize away.
Well anyway - with those smouldering looks and such a great voice, I bought the single when it came out and the cd soon after that. But I was surprised five years later when I found out that there was also a picture disc 7" of this single - with quite a different photograph of Susanna on it. At one pound, I couldn't resist buying that one too. So now I have two editions of this single. Well, not a problem. It's still very nice to look at those pictures.
My collection: 7" single no. 1394 / 7" single no. 2668
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, March 2, 1991 / Record fair, Leeds, June 30, 1996
The brothers Rob and Ferdi Bolland are famous in the Netherlands, mostly for their production work with Falco and others, but also for their successful singles in the seventies. Their biggest international hit, 'You're in the army now', ironically didn't chart in the Netherlands - and this single from 1979 befell a similar fate.
It's amazing when you read Dutch career overviews of Bolland & Bolland, because they simply ignore this single. Most articles state that 1979 was the year in which they started producing other artists (like for instance Sandra Reemer, who participated in that year's Eurovision Song Contest), but 'Melodrama' was released in 1979 as well. And I bought this single back then, because it was one of the few available for 3 guilders in the shop I went to almost weekly. And that was just about what I could afford...
This is the first Eurovision Song Contest-related single I ever bought. That's quite amazing, because I don't live in Norway and I had been following the Contest for three years already. But this single came cheap and the memory of the song had faded but was still clear enough for me to remember that I actually liked it better than that year's winning song, 'Ein Bisschen Frieden' by Nicole. The single contained the English and Norwegian version of the song 'Adieu'.
Jahn Teigen participated three times in the Contest, of which 1982's 'Adieu', together with his wife at the time, Anita Skorgan, was the second. They ended up at twelfth place, which seemed like a great injustice to me at the time. Even now I think it was a great song - but perhaps not as overwhelming as a Bambi-eyed German girl singing about peace.
25 years after the fact, I think that 'Can't shake loose' was the best single from Agnetha Fältskog's album 'Wrap your arms around me'. It's not the most logical choice, since only 'The heat is on' and the title track became hits for her in 1983. But it's a great rock track, and it utilises the desperation that sometimes flares up in Agnetha's voice to full effect.
The song was written by Russ Ballard, who also wrote the more successful 'I Know There's Something Going On' for Agnetha's former Abba colleague Frida.
In the mid-Eighties, synthesizers were getting increasingly popular as a means to make movie soundtracks. Jan Hammer made a living making soundtracks for 'Miami Vice', and Harold Faltermeyer scored the 'Beverley Hills Cop' movies. His biggest success was the track 'Axel F', which reached number 2 in the UK and number 1 in the Netherlands.
