Rasputin - Boney M

A disco song about Russian history, now there's something that hadn't been tried before! Boney M recorded and released 'Rasputin' in 1978, a song about Grigori Rasputin who alledgedly healed Tsarevich Alexei of Russia from haemophilia in the first years of the twentieth century. While 'Rasputin' accurately indicates that unfavorable rumors damaged Grigori's reputation, there is no verifiable evidence to suggest that he had an affair with Alexandra.

'Rasputin' peaked at number 8 in the Netherlands and number 2 in the UK. In the Netherlands, the B-side was 'Painter man', which was released as an A-side in the UK, peaking at number 10. The B-side of 'Rasputin' in the UK was 'Never change lovers in the middle of the night'. I bought the UK single back in 1981 and got the European pressing recently. Both B-sides are here for your enjoyment.

My collection: 7" single no. 100 / 7" single no. 3642

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1981 / Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 1 guilder / 0,8 euro

Tracks (1): 'Rasputin' / 'Painter man'

Tracks (2): 'Rasputin' / 'Never change lovers in the middle of the night'