Ka' du se hvad jeg sa'? - Kirsten & Søren

After Det' lige det in 1984 and Sku' du' spørg fra no'en? in 1985, Kirsten & Søren returned to the Eurovision stage in 1988 with 'Ka' du se hvad jeg sa'?', another breezy Danish pop tune in their all too familiar style. It was their most successful attempt, finishing in third place.

I was quite surprised to find that I did have the single Who is wrong and who's right, featuring both the English and French versions, but the original Danish version was still lacking. I was lucky to find this single with the same dealer who was selling Brandenburger Tor, which eased the pain of having to shell out postage from Finland a little.

My collection: 7" single no. 6279
Found: Discogs.com, received April 23, 2020
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'Ka' du se hvad jeg sa'?' / 'Lullaby (Sang til Kaj)'

Brandenburger Tor - Ketil Stokkans Pop Band

The Eurovision Song Contest suffered a bit after the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. Suddenly songs about freedom and happiness ran rampant, and every country wanted to profit from the glee that suddenly engulfed Europe. This is how we got 'Keine Mauern mehr', 'Frei zu leben' and the terrible winner of 1990, 'Insieme'.

Even Norway went along: they sent in Ketil Stokkan with the shameless song, dedicated to that famous Norwegian landmark 'Brandenburger Tor'. But at least, this was a rather funny song. At least, it sounded funny because Norwegian is hard to understand, so the only surviving lyric for foreign ears was that very title. It didn't help matters much: at the close of voting, Ketil ended up in a shared last place in a field of 22 competitors. The single, meanwhile, is incredibly rare, so I was glad to get my hands on a copy.

My collection: 7" single no. 6278
Found: Discogs.com, received April 23, 2020
Tracks: 'Brandenburger Tor (Norsk version)' / 'Brandenburger Tor (English version)'

Kids in America - Lawnmower Deth

I was familiar, of course, with the cover version of 'Kids in America' by Lawnmower Deth, released in 1991. I bought the cd single somewhere in the 1990's and even bought the album 'Billy' with the same track on it. This 7" single, however, is a recent discovery. For all this time I believed the track was never released on this format. So when I spotted it online recently, I got hold of it rather quickly, thanks to a Belgian seller.

It is amusing to note that this version is Kim Wilde's own favourite, and she went on to record 'F U Kristmas' with the band a few years ago, as well as performing live with them. Their loud music is offset by the fact that they don't really take themselves very seriously.

My collection: 7" single no. 6277
Found: Discogs.com, received April 18, 2020
Cost: 8 euro
Tracks: 'Kids in America' / 'Bone yank blisters'

Frank Boeijen - Twee gezichten

The last few vinyl singles by Frank Boeijen have become rare oddities. Released in 1992, this is one of them. 'Twee gezichten' ('Two faces') was released in Belgium in an edition of a few thousand copies, and they're almost impossible to get hold of nowadays.

I actually own the Dutch pressing of this single, but this one is special for the fact that it has a different sleeve and a live cover of Leonard Cohen's 'Suzanne' in Dutch. Frank's version was recorded for the Dutch TV programme Rotland, broadcast a few months before the release of this single. Confusingly, that track also appears on the B-side of the Dutch single 'Ze geeft om mij'.

My collection: 7" single no. 6276
Found: Discogs.com, received April 8, 2020
Cost: 10 euro
Tracks: 'Twee gezichten' / 'Suzanne (live)'

Eurovision medley - Esperanto

With an ever growing Eurovision collection, it is inevitable to stumble upon some strange and rare oddities. This single represents a Nineties take on various Eurovision classics, with all the hallmarks of a cheap Nineties production. The Belgian ensemble seems to consist of M. Lossso, D. Huppermans and R. Marino, who remain rather anonymous.

The songs included in this medley are 'Insieme (1992)', 'Waterloo', 'Puppet on a string', 'Non ho l'eta', 'Hold me now', 'Poupée de cire, poupée de son', Hallelujah', 'Merci chérie', 'Ein Bisschen Frieden', 'Apres toi', 'Save all your kisses for me' and 'J'aime la vie'.

My collection: 7" single no. 6275
Found: Discogs.com, received April 8, 2020
Cost: 3 euro
Tracks: 'Eurovision medley' / 'Get up and dance'

No estas solo - Patricia Kraus

Patricia Kraus was born on January 4, 1964 in Milan, Italy as the daughter of Alfredo Kraus, a Spanish tenor. She was selected to represent Spain during the Eurovision Song Contest in 1987 with 'No estas solo'. As you can hear, the song is a bit messy and really doesn't go anywhere. No wonder, then, that it finished in 19th place in a field of 22 competitors.

Kraus released her first self-titled album shortly after her Eurovision appearance. Further albums followed, including two of experimental electronica in collaboration with Daniel Assante, which were critically well-received although modest sellers. In 1999 she formed the group Waxbeat with Juan Belda and Juan Gómez Acebo, and two albums were released. Kraus, along with Assante and Italian musicians Enrico Barbaro and Gherardo Catanzaro, is currently working under the name of Vintage Club Band.

My collection: 7" single no. 6274
Found: Discogs.com, received April 8, 2020
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'No estas solo' / 'With love'