Go - Scott Fitzgerald

Here's a single that I find a bit confusing. This is the UK pressing of Scott Fitzgerald's 'Go', the song with which he represented the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1988. The A-side should feature the studio version and the B-side a live version.

What I am hearing: the A-side presents a sort of demo version of the song, whereas the B-side is the same as the A-side of the European version of the single. There is no answer to the question if the record company messed up somehow.

My collection: 7" single no. 6773
Found: Discogs.com, received 10 September 2022
Tracks: 'Go' / 'Go (live version)' [sic]

Just an illusion (the 1989 remix) - Imagination

In the second half of the Eighties, it became a bit of a habit to remix everything that moved, basically. Old hits by Jackie Wilson or Marilyn Monrie, for instance, but also more recent songs fell victim to this. Even songs that were pretty perfect to begin with. 

Imagination's 'Just an illusion' is a good example. There was nothing wrong with this Jolley and Swain production, but still Mike Pickering and Graeme Park thought they could improve on the track. The 1989 remix was released in, er, 1989, and failed to trouble the charts, predictably. The single was taken from a remix album called 'Like it is: hot sensational re-mixes', but this album also failed to chart. Sometimes people prefer to hear songs like they are.

My collection: 7" single no. 6774
Found: Discogs.com, received 10 September 2022
Tracks: 'Just an illusion (the 1989 remix)' / 'LTO (Love's taking over) (L.J.´s Blues Mix)'

Gwendolyne - Salomé

In 1970, Julio Iglesias represented Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest with the song 'Gwendolyne'. Salomé, who was one of the four winners in 1969 when she performed 'Vivo cantando', thought it was a good idea to record her own version of this song, and perhaps profit a little from the success that Iglesias might have with this song in Spain.

Unfortunately, Salomé's version doesn't come close to the subtle beauty of Iglesias' version; it is a bit bland to be honest. Still, with singles like this it is always interesting to add a bit of history to your collection.

My collection: 7" single no. 6768
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 August 2022
Tracks: 'Gwendolyne' / 'Llévatelo'

Parlez-vous Français - Baccara

I've only got two singles by Baccara in my collection, and they are both called 'Parlez-vous Français?'. One features the French version, the other presents the English version. I recently found out that there was also an extended version of the song, but bizarrely it was only ever released in Mexico. And, get this: it was pressed on various colours of vinyl. 

I ordered one copy of this 12" single, pressed on red vinyl, and not only does it feature an extended version of the song (incorporating both the French and English versions), the B-side features a version of that ole Doors classic 'Light my fire'. What's not to like? It is a very interesting addition to my collection. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 14 September 2022
Tracks: 'Parlez-vous Français? [extended]' / 'Baby, why don't you reach out? Light my fire'

Verona - Koit Toome & Laura

It's always nice when Eurovision songs are released on 7" or CD-single. Somehow, a 12" release is always a bit of a pain - especially when a song is released on 12" only. This was the case with one of the best entries in the Eurovision Song Contest of 2017 - 'Verona' by Koit Toome and Laura from Estonia. For a long time, this 12" single was only available for premium prices, and sad to say, the price hasn't really dropped in the years that followed.

Still, this particular 12" single was worth obtaining, because it offers six different versions of the song. I can't help but wonder why this was not released on a CD-single as well, but we know by now that record companies are not interested in consumer preferences. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 21 September 2022
Tracks: 'Verona (radio version), 'Verona (Italian version)', 'Verona (Moon Taxi remix)' / 'Verona (Eurovision 2017 version)', 'Verona (club remix)', 'Verona (1985 version)'