Mishandeld, vernederd, verkracht - Annie

I've always had a penchant for the inane and the ridiculous. And this is what drove me to buy this single: 'Mishandeld, vernederd, verkracht' ('Abused, humiliated, raped') by the Dutch singer Annie. Although the single never reached the Dutch Top 40, it has still become some sort of classic, as it reached number 22 in the Flop 100 of all times in 1994, 14 years after its release.

To foreign ears, this song may sound very innocent, but it is the story of a girl who goes out at night and is abused, humiliated and raped - and as a result, scarred for life. Not the most pleasant subject for a popular song. The B-side is downright bizarre: a boy asks his grandfather whether he can have his silver clock, and in the end he gets it. It used to belong to the boy's father, but he is dead now. In the last verse, the boy is buried and the grandfather takes the hourglass home. The lyric is rather mysterious, in that it doesn't explain what is the reason for this sudden death among the clock's owners.

My collection: 7" single no. 3214
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, October 2000
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Mishandeld, vernederd, verkracht' / 'Het zilveren uurwerk'