'Wild and Lonely' was the last album released by the Associates in 1990. It may have been an accurate description of the state of affairs at the time, since Billy MacKenzie, the sole member of the band by then, had seen band mate Alan Rankine leave, and his previous album, 'The Glamour Chase', unreleased as the record company deemed it not commercially viable.
The first single from this album, 'Fever', had flopped, and 'Fire and Ice' had to face the same fate. After the release of a third single, 'Just can't say goodbye', which also didn't chart, the Associates name was finally put to rest. That's not to say that the material from the 1990 album was necessarily bad: this single is a good example of nice, melodic pop.
My collection: 7" single no. 5449 Found: unknown Tracks: 'Fire to ice' / 'Green tambourine'
In 1983, Thompson Twins released their third album 'Quick Step and Side Kick', featuring the singles 'We are detective' and 'Watching'. The album reached number 2 in the UK albums chart and number 34 in the USA.
The latter of the two singles is featured here. It peaked at number 33 in the UK singles chart. Even in 1984, this was still a regularly rotated video on satellite TV channels like Music Box.
My collection: 7" single no. 5468 Found: unknown Tracks: 'Watching (you watching me)' / 'Dancersaurus (Even Large Reptiles Have Emotional Problems)'
'Busy doing nothing' was released in 1983 as the fourth single by Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin. It was quite a whimsical song, originally written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke, and recorded by Bing Crosby in 1949.
Throughout his forty year career, Van Heusen received 10 Oscar Nominations for Best Song in a Motion Picture, 4 Academy Awards for Best Song in a Motion Picture, 1 Emmy Award for Best Musical Contribution and 6 Golden Laurel Nominations for Best Music in a Motion Picture. He died on February 7, 1990, just under two weeks after his 77th birthday.
My collection: 7" single no. 5467 Found: unknown Tracks: 'Busy doing nothing' / 'The world spins so slow'
Orange Juice formed in the Glasgow suburb of Bearsden as the Nu-Sonics in 1976. Edwyn Collins formed the Nu-Sonics (named after a cheap brand of guitar) with his school-mate Alan Duncan and was subsequently joined by James Kirk and Steven Daly, who left a band called The Machetes. The band became Orange Juice in 1979. They are best known for the hit 'Rip It Up'.
This limited edition features a colour poster and a free second single. The single was taken from the band's second album, also entitled 'Rip it up', and peaked at number 8 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1983, the band's only UK Top 40 hit.
My collection: 7" single no. 5460 Found: Marktplaats.nl, received July 23, 2014. Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Rip it up' / 'Snake charmer' // 'Lovesick (live)' / 'A sad lament'
'Sneaking out the back door' was the second single by Matt Bianco, taken from the band's debut album 'Whose side are you on'. Released in April 1984, this single reached number 44 in the UK singles chart and number 22 in Ireland.
The single is considered a double A-side, since the instrumental 'Matt's Mood' was used a lot on the radio in the Eighties. When you play the track (below), you will almost certainly recognise it.
My collection: 7" single no. 5622
Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, August 10, 2014
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Sneaking out the back door' / 'Matt's Mood'
'Love fire' is a single taken from Simply Red's second album 'Men & women'. The single was only made in Germany and Spain, although this probably implies a Europe-wide release. However, this did not earn them any chart success.
Only three of the six singles released from 'Men & women' had some substantial (international) chart success, which was surprising in light of the sales of the album. The band's third album 'A new flame' would yield four hit singles and remains their biggest success.
My collection: 7" single no. 5445 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'Love fire' / 'Love fire (dub mix)'
Most people would consider Mory Kante a one hit wonder, as his only hit was 'Yé ké yé ké', released in 1987. Fair enough, I suppose. However, this single is evidence that the man produced some more music. 'Tama' was taken from the same album, and even managed to reach number 44 in the German singles chart.
It is even more stunning to realise that Mory Kante has released more than ten albums during a career that began in 1981. So is this single worth a spin? It is, even if the B-side is a bit wordy.
My collection: 7" single no. 5427 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'Tama' / 'Inch'Allah'
David Soul was best known for his acting, starring as Ken Hutchinson on the American TV series Starsky & Hutch, when he embarked on a singing career. His debut single, 'Don't give up on us' was a smash hit, as was the follow-up, 'Going in with my eyes open', but subsequent releases weren't as successful.
'It sure brings out the love in your eyes' was his last hit in the UK, peaking at number 12. For some reason, the B-side of this single appears in Mono sound only.
My collection: 7" single no. 5466 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'It sure brings out the love in your eyes' / 'A friend of mine'
'Love will tear us apart' was written in August 1979, and debuted when the band supported Buzzcocks on their UK tour in September and October 1979. It is one of the few songs in which singer Ian Curtis played guitar (albeit somewhat minimally). The lyrics reflect the problems in Ian Curtis's marriage to Deborah Curtis, as well as his general frame of mind in the time leading up to his suicide in May 1980.
The song was first released in June 1980 and became the band's first chart hit, reaching number 13 in the UK Singles Chart. The band postponed their US tour after Ian Curtis's death, performed a few short sets as The No-Names, then finally renamed the group as New Order. 'Love Will Tear Us Apart" was re-released in 1983 and reached number 19 on the UK charts.
My collection: 7" single no. 5425 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'Love will tear us apart' / 'These days', 'Love will tear us apart'
'Quédate esta noche' ('Stay this night') was the Spanish entry in the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest, performed in Spanish by Trigo Limpio, a popular trio in Spain during the Seventies and Eighties, consisting of Amaya Saizar, Iñaki de Pablo and Luis Carlos Gil. During their performance in Eurovision, however, Amaya Saizar was replaced by Patricia Fernández.
The song is a romantic up-tempo number with influences from disco, in which the trio sings 'If perhaps I made a mistake / I want to say I'm sorry'. They go on to sing 'Put away the keys / and put the suitcase back in its place again' and the chorus is a direct invitation to the other part; 'Sleep beside me tonight / Stay beside me tonight / Love me a lot tonight / I'll be yours tonight...' The B-side is a French translation of the song.
My collection: 7" single no. 5606 Found: Chelsea Records, Antwerpen, August 10, 2014 Cost: 1 euro Tracks: 'Quedate esta noche' / 'Viens rever'
Some would argue that this music blog could never be a music blog when there isn't a single mention of "The King", Elvis Presley. I would reply in turn that rock & roll isn't the focus of my collection - aside from the occasional Marty Wilde gems, of course - but now that I finally have an Elvis single in my possession, there is no need for controversy.
'Wooden heart' was re-released just after Elvis died. Perhaps that's why this song is such a powerful childhood memory, as I vividly recall seeing a video of this song on television around that time. The song was originally a hit in 1961, when it was number 1 for six weeks in the UK singles chart. Upon its re-release in the Netherlands in August 1977, it reached number 2.
My collection: 7" single no. 5439 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'Wooden heart' / 'Tonight is so right for love'
Some time ago, I bought a compilation cd of Earth & Fire's greatest hits, and it came with a remix of their biggest hit 'Weekend'. I didn't realise - although I probably should have - that this remix version was released as a single at the time of that album release.
The remix sounds decent enough, it certainly updates the sound to the year 1988, but it wasn't a chart success for the band. Not that they were still together: Earth & Fire disbanded in 1983. After this single release the band regrouped a year later, releasing just one more album: 'Phoenix'.
My collection: 7" single no. 5393 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag Cost: 3,5 guilders Tracks: 'Weekend (Remix '88)' / 'Weekend'
The single 'Another kind of loving', which I described four years ago, is an English version of 'E' de' det här du kallar kärlek', the Swedish entry of the 1986 Eurovision Song Contest. That song appears on this single as the A-side, coupled with another Swedish track. The title actually means 'Is this what you call love?'.
During the 2010 Swedish national final of the Eurovision Song Contest, this song was performed by Timo Räisanen and Hanna Eklöf.
My collection: 7" single no. 5642 Found: eBay, received September 2, 2014 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'E' de' det här du kallar kärlek' / 'En kärleksmagi'
The second single from Blondie's self-titled debut album, 'In the flesh' was written by Deborah Harry and Chris Stein. It was released in 1976 in the USA by Private Stock records, the last single for Blondie on that label. It appeared in Australia on Chrysalis a year later.
This single is a different kettle of fish: it was released by Chrysalis in the Netherlands in 1981, to fill up the silence caused by the lack of new material between the release of 'AutoAmerican' (1980) and 'The Hunter' (1982).
My collection: 7" single no. 5373 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'In the flesh' / 'One way or another'
Music doesn't always have to be serious. The psychobilly rock band King Kurt specialised in wild and funny singles, such as the hilarious cover version of Mack the knife which I described previously.
In August 1984, they followed up that single with 'Banana banana', a 2'38 minute piece of fun that reached number 54 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 5430 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag
Only in the UK you would have double single packages, sometimes at the price of a single 7", featuring extra tracks that made the purchase of a certain future hit that much more attractive. This 'two record set' of INXS's 'This time' is a great attractive, as it features two extended versions of previous singles plus a glossy gatefold sleeve. What's not to like?
'This time' was taken from INXS's fifth studio album 'Listen like thieves' (1985). The album was a charttopper in Australia and did fairly well in Canada and the USA, as well as peaking at number 46 in the UK albums chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 5452 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'This time' / 'Original sin (extended version)' // 'Burn for you (extended remix)' / 'Dancing on the jetty'
'The Honorary Consul' was originally a book written by Graham Greene, published in 1973. The book was subsequently made into a film, directed by John Mackenzie in 1983, featuring Richard Gere and Michael Caine.
The soundtrack of the movie featured a theme which was composed by Paul McCartney and performed by John Williams. It's true, when you listen to the recording of this single you'll notice that it's had better days, but this single is pretty hard to find these days. So I guess I'm lucky to have found it at all.
My collection: 7" single no. 5408 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'Paul McCartney's theme from The Honorary Consul' / 'Clara's theme' (Quimantu)
Bobby Goldsboro was born in Marianna, Florida. In 1941, Goldsboro's family moved 35 miles north from Marianna to Dothan, Alabama. He graduated from Dothan High School in 1959 and later enrolled at Auburn University. Goldsboro left college after his second year to pursue a musical career. He played guitar for Roy Orbison from 1962 to 1964, then started a solo career.
'Summer (The first time)', a reminiscence about a 17-year-old boy's first sexual experience with a 31-year-old woman, was a Top 20 hit in the U.S. and reached number 9 in the UK singles chart. Using a repeating piano riff, 12-string guitar, and an orchestral string arrangement, the song was suggestive enough to spark some controversy at the time.
My collection: 7" single no. 5397 Found: Beanos, London Cost: 1,5 pounds Tracks: 'Summer (The first time)' / 'Childhood - 1949'
The Colourfield were a British band formed in 1984 in Manchester when former Specials and Fun Boy Three frontman Terry Hall joined up with ex-Swinging Cats members Toby Lyons and Karl Shale. Despite the fact that all three of them hailed from Coventry, they made their homebase in Manchester.
In January 1984 The Colourfield released their debut single, 'The colour field', which just missed making the Top 40 in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 43.
My collection: 7" single no. 5379 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'The colour field' / 'Sorry'
'I'm your money' was released in 1981 as the second single by Heaven 17, the synthpop trio formed by Martyn Ware, Ian Craig Marsh and Glenn Gregory. After the success of their debut single '(We don't need this) Fascist Groove Thang', the chart result of this single came as a disappointment, as it didn't chart at all.
In recent years, Heaven 17 have started performing live, something they never did during the Eighties. In an interview in 2010 for the website Electricity Club, Martyn Ware said: "We weren't writing songs with the anticipation of playing them live so I'm Your Money is very... say for instance we waved a magic wand and it was exactly the backing track that we did... we can't do because we don't have the original tapes. But if it was exactly the same backing track as we did in the 1981, I think it would really jar on the ear! It's incredibly repetitive and monotonous but on record, it sounds great. "
My collection: 7" single no. 5401 Found: unknown Cost: unknown Tracks: 'I'm your money' / 'Are everything'
