If you need me now - Alan Sorrenti

I bought the single 'Non so che darei' back in 2010, as part of my subcollection of Eurovision singles. Little did I know that the song was actually released on a 12" single as well. 

This 12" single was released in France only, and featured extended versions of both the English and Italian versions of the song. 'If you need me now' is the English version of 'Non so che darei' and appears on the A-side of this 12" single.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 18 August 2022
Tracks: 'If you need me now [extended version]' / 'Non so che darei [extended version]'

Where are you - Imaani

Truth be told, I don't really like the 12" single format. I have sold a lot of them through the years just to make space for other things and generally I think it's much more efficient to have the same tracks on a CD-single, which takes up a lot less space. 

But sometimes tracks don't appear on that format, and I have to buy the 12" single anyway. These two remixes of Imaani's 'Where are you' never appeared on CD and so this 12" single is the only way to acquire them. They are relevant, of course, because 'Where are you' was the Eurovision song for the UK in 1998 and I just happen to love remixes of Eurovision tracks. When they are done right - and these are done just about right.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, 3 August 2022
Tracks: 'Where are you (Blue Icon's vocal club mix)' / 'Where are you (Blue Icon's lost piano mix)'

Destination - DT8 feat. Roxanne Wilde

It's not the first time that 'Destination' features on this blog - I bought a 12" single of this track many years ago and it was posted here twelve years ago. However, several different 12" singles of 'Destination' exist, each with their own remixes of the track. 

This particular one is a white label 12", featuring the original version of the track as well as remixes by Woody van Eyden and Trinity X. Even if dance music isn't your thing, the vocals of Roxanne Wilde - sister of Kim - truly lift this track up. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 3 August 2022
Tracks: 'Destination (Original)' / 'Destination (Woody van Eyden remix)', 'Destination (Trinity X remix)'

The man with the child in his eyes - Kate Bush

If the sleeve of this single looks unfamiliar to you, you might not be familiar with the phenomenon of 'different sleeves for different countries'. This copy of Kate Bush's 'The man with the child in his eyes' comes from Poland, and the record company Tonpress decided on a completely different sleeve design in comparison to its Western European colleagues.

I ordered this single especially because of this different sleeve. I've been aware of it for years, but singles like this command unusually high prices. Fortunately, this particular copy was not as ridiculously priced.

Interestingly, the same photograph was used on the sleeve of the Yugoslavian pressing of the accompanying album, 'The Kick Inside'. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6819
Found: Discogs.com, received 24 December 2022
Tracks: 'The man with the child in his eyes' / 'Moving'

Genghis Khan - Genghis Khan

The German group Dschinghis Khan was very successful with their song of the same name. So much so that they created an English version called 'Genghis Khan'. 

What I didn't know was that they also released an extended version of this English version. What's more, this extended version was only released in Australia. It took me a while to find a copy at a half-decent price, but I finally managed to find one - but it still had to be flown in from Australia. The 12" version adds a couple of choruses and comes in a standard record company sleeve. It should have been an Astor record company sleeve, but I'll take the CBS one as a beautiful substitute.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 10 December 2022
Tracks: 'Genghis Khan' / 'Desert land'

Przyda Się Do Kartoteki - Izabela Trojanowska & Stalowy Bagaż

The Polish rock band Stalowy Bagaż was founded at the beginning of 1981 in Wrocław. They disbanded in 1983. In 1981 they recorded this EP together with Polish singer Izabela Trojanowska. She would go on to record the single 'Brylanty' the next year, which I thought was a bit more sophisticated than this collection of straight rock songs. But then, I've always had a thing for keyboards.

This EP completes the set of Polish singles I received from my friend in Poland. It was an interesting ride and I've discovered quite a few things about Polish music that I didn't know. My favourite of the eleven discs has to be the one by Kombi. Which is hardly a surprise, as this one is the most futuristic sounding. For the early Eighties, that is.

My collection: 7" single no. 6818
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Przyda się do kartoteki', 'Na bohaterów popyt minął' / 'Pieśń o cegle', 'Czysty zysk'

Adriatyk, ocean gorący - Lombard

The Polish band Lombard formed in 1981. Bandleader Grzegorz Stróżniak is composer, arranger, and vocalist who also plays the keyboards. For over 35 years, he has given the band its original pop-rock character, combining expressive guitar sound with a full range of keyboards and electronics. In the first decade of its activity, Lombard cooperated with many instrumentalists and two vocalists: Wanda Kwietniewska and Małgorzata Ostrowska, who then decided to pursue their solo career. In 1999, Marta Cugier became the band’s lead singer. 

The band boasts a number of well-known and well-liked hits. This single, 'Adriatyk, ocean gorący' ('Adriatic, hot ocean') was released in 1983 and also included on their second studio album 'Wolne Od Cła'.

My collection: 7" single no. 6817
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Adriatyk, ocean gorący' / 'Dwa Słowa, dwa Światy'

Wciąż bardziej obcy - Lady Pank

Lady Pank is a popular Polish rock band, started in 1981 in Wrocław by Jan Borysewicz and Andrzej Mogielnicki. Their first hit was Mała Lady Punk ('Little Lady Punk'). The band's most popular songs are: 'Tańcz głupia, tańcz' ('Dance, stupid, dance'), 'Mniej niż zero' ('Less than zero'), 'Wciąż bardziej obcy' ('More and more of a stranger'), 'Kryzysowa narzeczona' ('Crisis fiancée'), 'Zamki na piasku' ('Castles on the sand'), 'Tacy sami' ('Just the same'), 'Zostawcie Titanica' ('Leave the Titanic alone') and many more. 

In 1983 alone, the group performed live 369 times. The same year they released this single, 'Wciąż bardziej obcy' ('Still more alien'). After another three years the total number of live shows grew to over 800, a record at the time in Poland. On November 30, 2000 Lady Pank played a jubilee concert in Wrocław, celebrating the group's 18th birthday. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6816
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Wciąż bardziej obcy' / 'Zamki na piasku'

Zamieniam Się W Psa - Perfect

Two years after they released the EP 'Chcemy Być Sobą', Perfect came up with the single 'Zamieniam Się W Psa' ('I'm turning into a dog'), taken from their 1982 album 'Unu'.

That album was released in late 1982, in a period when martial law was introduced in Poland. A year later, Perfect released their first live album. Subsequently, they disbanded, only occasionally appearing on stage – in 1987, 1989 and in the early 1990s, when they toured in the United States twice. Before 2021, the band wanted to do a farewell tour, they released their last single 'Głos' in 2020 and started touring all across Poland. On the 27 April 2021, Grzegorz Markowski announced via the Facebook page of his daughter that his health was going down. The rest of the band said they would play on "for Grzegorz". That never happened. Instead, a few weeks later the band disbanded.

My collection: 7" single no. 6815
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Zamieniam się w psa' / 'Dla zasady nie ma sprawy'

Bruce Lee karate mistrz - Franek Kimono

With this single we move firmly towards novelty repertoire. Franek Kimono is a musical character created by actor Piotr Fronczewski. His character was a parody of the disco style. The originator of the character was Andrzej Korzyński (under the pseudonym Andrzej Spol), and the co-authors were Mariusz Zabrodzki and Sławomir Wesołowski. Apart from Andrzej Korzyński, lyrics for the album were also written by Krzysztof Gradowski. 

Piotr Fronczewski was chosen as the vocalist during the recording of the soundtrack to the film Akademia Pana Kleks (1983). In 1983, a single with the songs "King Bruce Lee karate master" and "Dysk Jockey" was released, and the next year a full-length vinyl record. Over time, CD reissues of the album appeared - in 1991, in 1999 and in 2008.

My collection: 7" single no. 6814
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'King Bruce Lee karate mistrz' / 'Dysk Dżokej'

Zimne kino - Kapitan Nemo

Kapitan Nemo is the stage name of the Polish singer Bogdan Tadeusz Gajkowski. Having released his first singles in 1983, the year 1984 brought the greatest success in his career, when the compositions 'Zimne kino' and 'Twoja Lorelei' were released on a single. The latter was actually the B-side of the single but became his best known song.

The single actually features two very accessible synthpop songs that were probably unknown to most people on the western side of the iron curtain. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6813
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Zimne kino' / 'Tvoja Lorelei'

Jezu Jak Się Cieszę - Klaus Mitffoch

Contrary to what you might think, Klaus Mitffoch is not the name of a male singer. It is the name of a Polish rock band. It was founded in 1979 by Lech Janerka and split in 1984. In those five years they only released one album and three singles. The second one was this one: 'Jezu Jak Się Cieszę' ('Jesus I'm So Happy'). 

The band consisted of Lech Janerka (bass guitar/vocals), Krzysztof Pociecha (guitar/backing vocals), Wiesław Mrozik (guitar/backing vocals) and Marek Puchała (drums/backing vocals). Janerka went on to a long-term solo career; Pociecha collaborated with Janerka on two more albums. From 1986 to 1989 Mrozik and Puchała, joined by Paweł Chyliński (guitar/vocals), Jacek Fedorowicz (bass guitar) and Zbigniew Kapturski (guitar/vocals), continued to perform under the name 'Klaus Mit Foch'; this latter line-up released the album 'Mordoplan' in 1988.

My collection: 7" single no. 6812
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Jezu Jak Się Cieszę' / 'O glowie'

Brylanty - Izabela Trojanowska

Izabela Trojanowska was born on 22 April 1955 in Olsztyn (Poland). She managed to create two successful careers almost synchronously: as an actress and as a singer. Her debut album 'Iza' was released in 1981, followed by 'Układy' the next year. This single, 'Brylanty', is taken from that second album, which is described as synthpop and new wave - an accurate description as far as I can tell.

What's amazing, is that this lady is still going strong. She still plays live, performs in movies and TV series and acts as a coach in the Polish version of The Voice Senior. From what I can gather online, she still has the looks too. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6811
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Brylanty' / 'Nic naprawdę'

Chcemy Być Sobą - Perfect

Although the official founding date of Perfect is considered to be 1980, its beginnings date back to the turn of 1977-1978. The group was founded in Warsaw on the initiative of drummer Wojciech Morawski and bass guitarist Zdzisław Zawadzki. The group's original name, suggested by Tabaka, was Perfect Super Show and Disco Band. It came from the name of Christine Perfect-McVie, who sang and played keyboards in the band Fleetwood Mac. 

This EP is their first release, featuring four tracks. Of the four tracks included her, I mostly prefer 'Bla Bla Bla', an aggressive piece of rock with impressive vocals. It is pretty standard rock fare that wasn't unusual before 1981, the year of this EP's release.

My collection: 7" single no. 6810
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Chcemy Być Sobą', 'Coś Dzieje Się W Mej Biednej Głowie' / 'Bla, Bla, Bla', 'Nie Płacz Ewka'

Hi-fi - Wanda i Banda

Wanda i Banda (also known as Banda i Wanda) is a Polish rock band, founded in 1982. They debuted at the turn of 1982 and 1983 in the New Year's Eve broadcast on Polish Radio. Their debut album, released in 1984, turned out to be a success. It included hits such as 'Nie będę Julią' ('I will not be Julia'), 'Hi-Fi' and 'Chcę zapomnieć' ('I want to forget') and it was certified gold. 

This single, 'Hi-Fi', was actually their debut single. Interestingly they pronounce the title as 'High-fee', but the lyrics are obviously about the wellknown sounds system.  The chorus goes: "Hi-Fi super star super hit / Discjockey szczerzy kły znad konsolety / Hi-Fi super star super hit / Na zwariowane sny świat ma apetyt" ("Hi-Fi super star super hit / The discjockey bares its fangs from above the console / Hi-Fi super star super hit / The world has an appetite for crazy dreams"). 

My collection: 7" single no. 6809
Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Hi-fi' / 'Nie będę Julią'

Linia zycia - Kombi

I recently got a present from Poland: a stack of singles by various Polish artists from the Eighties. Any perceptions I might have had of the lands behind the iron curtain were immediately shattered. This first single is a good example. 

Kombi was a successful pop rock music band from Poland, founded in 1976 in Gdańsk by Sławomir Łosowski. In the beginning group played mostly rock music, later their style turned towards synth pop. Kombi was the first Polish band to use the Commodore 64 as a MIDI sequencer, a Yamaha DX-7 synthesizer, Simmons SDS-V electronic drum kit and Yamaha RX-11 drum machine. This single, 'Linia zycia' stands the tests of time very well and could easily be compared to superior bands like Ultravox who were active in the West at the time.

 My collection: 7" single no. 6808R

Found: Received 21 November 2022
Tracks: 'Lynia zycia' / 'Komputerowe serce'

Come along - Duo Datz

A long time ago, I bought the single 'Come along' by the Israeli Duo Datz, just two months after they represented their country at the Eurovision Song Contest with the Hebrew version of that song, 'Kan'. I didn't know then that there was also a 12" single of the song. How could I know? The world was very different in 1991, there was no internet to find out about Israeli releases.

All that has changed. I found out about this 12" single earlier this year - now it was just a question of getting a copy. And a copy at a reasonable price, of course. All the 12" singles are available from Israeli sellers only, it seems no copies made it to other countries since 1991. (Well, they must have, but people are obviously not selling them here.) I was lucky enough to find a copy recently, and now I am the proud owner of five remixes of the track; three in Hebrew and two in English. It's just a shame that same old James Brown sample is overused. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 18 November 2022
Tracks: 'כאן (12" dance mix)', 'כאן (12" instrumental mix)', 'כאן (a capella)' / 'Come along (The Two Inch Remix)', 'Come along (The Two Inch Edit)'

Tubular bells - Keyboards affair

When you look at this sleeve you probably notice the amusing spelling mistake in the title. Fortunately the label of this 12" single shows the correct title, i.e. 'Tubular bells'. 

I found this record in a collection of a German seller, and he had two different versions of this 12" - the other sleeve doesn't feature the picture that is nicked from Mike's original album. Of course I found this one more attractive.

The version created by Keyboards Affair offers all the things you would expect from a production in the early 1980's: big drums, electronic music and a straightforward copy of the melody. It is kitsch, but still very nice.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 12 November 2022
Tracks: 'Tubular bells' / 'Commando'

You win again - Bee Gees

In another installment of 'unexpected surprises', there's this 12" single of the Bee Gees' 'You win again'. For me this was a strong comeback of the Gibb brothers, back in 1987, and a very different sound compared to what they produced in the late Seventies.

The thought occured that there was never a Bee Gees 12" singles compilation on CD - this could be a great idea. But as we know, record companies are not big on great ideas lately.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 12 November 2022
Tracks: 'You win again (extended version)' / 'You win again', 'Backtafunk'

Three times a lady / Brick house - Commodores

It's fair to say that the Commodores had one of the coolest logos of any band ever, and with 'Three times a lady' they had one of the best ballads of the late Seventies in their repertoire. This 12" single features extended versions of that song and the previous hit 'Brick house', a beautiful soul/disco stomper that made the band a household name. 

I found this 12" single during a record fair - one of those unexpected purchases that you wouldn't find online, simply because I never even knew there were extended versions of these tracks. It's what I always say: with the disappearance of record shops and the occurance of record fairs also getting ever more rare, these chance encounters will become more difficult as time goes by.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 12 November 2022
Tracks: 'Three times a lady' / 'Brick house'