Every breath you take - The Police

Record Store Day has been vilified on this blog a few times before, just like it should be. Singles one could buy for a few quid in the Eighties are sold for extortionate prices four decades later. Certainly the popularity of vinyl has grown since the turn of the century, but record companies are all too eager to earn money from vinyl discs, even going as far as declaring the CD dead, while that is still the format on which the most units are sold (but since CD's are much cheaper, record companies make more money from vinyl, get it?) 

Anyway, on last year's Record Store Day this double single of 'Every breath you take' was sold, featuring a second disc with the previously unreleased track 'Every bomb you make'. That track was recorded for Spitting Image in 1985 with new vocals by Sting. The instrumental version of 'Every breath you take' is an added bonus.

My collection: 7" single no. 7115
Found: Sounds, Delft, 27 January 2024
Tracks: 'Every breath you take' / 'Murder by numbers' // 'Every bomb you make' / 'Every breath you take (instrumental)'

Little lies / Songbird - The Corrs

I didn't have any 7" singles of the Corrs yet, although I do have all their CD's and a lot of their CD-singles. The Irish band of the four siblings named Corr was very successful just after the turn of the century, before going on hiatus in 2006. When they returned as a band in 2015 with the albums 'White light' (2015) and 'Jupiter calling' (2017), their success was not quite as big, and for some reason they recently only play live in Australia and surrounding countries. 

But there was one new release recently: this double A single of Fleetwood Mac covers, as a tribute to Christine McVie who passed away on 30 November 2022. The single did not chart, but it's a nice one nonetheless.

My collection: 7" single no. 7108
Found: Dig! webstore, received 3 January 2024
Tracks: 'Little lies' / 'Songbird'

Fairytale of New York - The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl

Shane MacGowan, the illustrious frontman of the Pogues, passed away last year after an eventful drug- and drink-filled life. Whatever you might think of him, he certainly wasn't a boring character. On 30 November 2023, after receiving last rites, MacGowan died from pneumonia at his home in Dublin with his wife by his side; he was 65.

Warner Records thought it was a fitting idea to rush-release this vinyl single with the man's most famous performance, on the Christmas song 'Fairytale of New York'. It would of course have been great if this song was the UK's Christmas number 1 of 2023, but that honour went to another dead man: George Michael of Wham! Still, this single is a great item because it features an instrumental version of that famous Christmas tune. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7109
Found: Dig website, received 3 January 2024
Tracks: 'Fairytale of New York' / 'Fairytale of New York (instrumental)'

 

Hold on to now - Kylie

Most people who have reviewed Kylie's latest album 'Tension' have singled out 'Hold on to now' as one of its strongest tracks. They're not wrong: it's a euphoric, positive pop song that presses all the right buttons. Minogue wrote the song together with producers Jon Green, Duck Blackwell, and longtime collaborator Richard "Biffco" Stannard. 

This single was pressed on white vinyl and, like the other two singles from the album, features an extended mix on the B-side. The extended mixes have been released on an LP called 'Extension' (clever!) but I hope that will get a CD release as well, because those LP's take up too much space in my room, to be honest...

My collection: 7" single no. 7097
Found: Kylie website, received 23 December 2023
Tracks: 'Hold on to now' / 'Hold on to now (extended mix)'

Tension - Kylie

Kylie Minogue co-wrote 'Tension' with Anya Jones, Camille Purcell, Jon Green, and producers Duck Blackwell and longtime collaborator Richard Stannard. The idea to collaborate with Jones and Purcell came after Minogue spent a week in Surrey working on new music with Blackwell, Green, Stannard, and Minogue's A&R Jamie Nelson. Nelson had proposed working with Jones and Purcell, the latter of whom had mentioned being a big fan of Minogue's work and career. According to Minogue, the collaboration with the two provided her with the "female energy" she needed for the record. 

Although 'Tension' was released digitally on 31 August 2023, the 7" vinyl only came to light in December. It's pressed on green vinyl, which nicely ties in to the the sleeve artwork. The single reached number 19 in the UK singles chart but, oddly, failed to chart in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 7096
Found: Kylie website, received 23 December 2023
Tracks: 'Tension' / 'Tension (extended mix)'

Padam padam - Kylie

One of the big surprises of 2023 was the success of Kylie's lead single from her new album 'Tension'. 'Padam padam' is not a very spectacular pop song, but it appealed to many. So much so, that it appears in many end-of-year lists despite the fact that it didn't reach number 1 in any chart, except in Israel, Serbia and in the UK Indie chart. 

I ordered the 7" single directly from Kylie's website along with two other singles, and they all landed on my doormat just before Christmas. This single was pressed on red vinyl, which is a very nice touch.

My collection: 7" single no. 7095
Found: Kylie website, received 23 December 2023
Tracks: 'Padam padam' / 'Padam padam (extended mix)'

Tattoo - Loreen

Winning the Eurovision Song Contest is always controversial. In 2022 the winner was chosen by the viewers - the overwhelming majority of votes for the Ukrainian band came from televoters - and some complained that the jury should have done more to have a winning song based on its quality, not pity for the country that sent it in. This year, the winning song was based on the jury's votes, and suddenly the critics went the other way: the televoters should have had a bigger say in the eventual outcome. My own position has always been the same: no matter who decides, it's never the best song that wins. If anything, much more attention should have been given to the Latvian band Sudden Lights. 

Anyway, Swedish singer Loreen went away with the prize, even though her singing was more like screaming and the act with the toaster became tiresome after a few views. Fortunately it doesn't sound as bad on record. This picture disc was released at the tail end of 2023, and the B-side features the new single 'Is it love', which is a bit more subtle.

My collection: 7" single no. 7094
Found: Platenzaak.nl, received 23 December 2023
Tracks: 'Tattoo' / 'Is it love'

Sunday girl - Blondie

I've complained about Record Store Day on this blog before: it's too expensive, too limited and too attractive for scalpers. That's not to say that the releases are always bad: there's been quite a few interesting items over the years - the trick is just to find them, years later, and hopefully for lower prices.

This double single of Blondie's 'Sunday girl' was released in April 2022, so not too long ago. One disc is pressed on yellow vinyl, the other on red vinyl. The second disc actually presents a previously unreleased live version, recorded at the Paramount Theatre in Portland in January 1979. Unfortunately that's a rather low-fi recording. But anyway, it's a nice release and it looks great.

My collection: 7" single no. 7090
Found: A&O, Düsseldorf, 16 December 2023
Tracks: 'Sunday girl' / 'Sunday girl (French version)' // 'Sunday girl (demo)' / 'Sunday girl (live)'

Atomic city - U2

It's been a while since I bought a U2 single, but it's also a while since I heard something interesting from the band. I sort of drifted off after 'All that you can't leave behind', and that's 2000. 

But the band has been making waves with their appearance in Las Vegas in a truly strange venue, and released a new song dedicated to the city to boot. It was released on a "photoluminescent transparent 7" vinyl with bespoke etching on side B', which is marketing speak for "we only have this one track and no B-side so we will try to make it appealing by throwing a lot of adjectives at you". Still, I like the track and so this single ended up in my collection.

My collection: 7" single no. 7089
Found: A&O, Düsseldorf, 16 December 2023
Tracks: 'Atomic city'

Tainted love (demo) - Soft Cell

While the Dutch magazine scene is still boring as hell, more exciting things happen in the UK and Germany, where music magazines regularly come with free 7" singles. 

In this case, it's the UK magazine Electronic Sounds that came up with the goods. This single features two tracks by Soft Cell (you wouldn't have guessed it, looking at the sleeve) from 1981. The A-side is a demo of the duo's biggest hit, 'Tainted love', while the B-side is a version of 'Bedsitter' that was previously released on a flexidisc with the magazine Flexipop - yes, even four decades ago UK magazines were more interesting than Dutch ones. It's high time this country catches up.

My collection: 7" single no. 7088
Found: Electronic Sounds website, received 15 December 2023
Tracks: 'Tainted love (demo)' / 'Bedsitter (Flexipop version)'

Now and then - The Beatles

It feels a bit odd to say that the Beatles released a new single in 2023, but here we are. 'Now and then' was originally recorded on a tape by John Lennon before his untimely death, and with the latest developments in sound restoration the remaining members Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr finally had the opportunity to make a decent song out of it. 

'Now and then' was released on three different 7" singles: in black, blue and clear vinyl. I opted for the clear vinyl version. I would have bought all three if those singles weren't as insanely expensive as they are right now. As for those "updated" red and blue compilations: what a waste. I think they were quite perfect the way they were. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7082
Found: Amazon, received 17 November 2023
Tracks: 'Now and then' / 'Love me do (2023 mix)'

The lamentations of Jeremiah - Vince Clarke

Since I live in the Netherlands I tend to get very jealous of Germans and British people, who can just go to the shop and buy those magazines with free singles on them. I did it myself in July, when I was in Germany, but throughout the year these magazines keep coming up with the goodies, and all I can do is order them and pay for postage. 

Anyway, the most recent one is this single by Vince Clarke, featuring a track from his forthcoming instrumental album. It comes in a clear vinyl disc and with an exclusive B-side that's not on the album. Of course I had to order it!

My collection: 7" single no. 7035
Found: Electronic Sounds magazine, received 3 October 2023
Tracks: 'The lamentations of Jeremiah' / 'The cave'

I want 2 B U - The The

Occasionally The The releases a new single, and then it takes a while for me to buy it due to the insane prices commanded by new singles these days. You could easily spend at least 20 euros if you consider postage and import charges from the UK. 

This time I lucked out because a Dutch seller had a copy, combined with another item I was interested in. And so I've finally got this single, which was released in 2020 - three years after 'We can't stop what's coming'. It's a great little song, borrowing some inspiration from The The's early single 'This is the day'. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7019
Found: Discogs.com, received 31 August 2023
Tracks: 'I want 2 B U' / 'Velvet muscle scream'

Tour de France - Kraftwerk

I went on a holiday in Germany and bought a single about France. That, in a few words, sums up my most recent acquisition. But obviously there's a little bit more to the story: this single came free with the magazine Musikexpress, which contains a cover story about Kraftwerk and their 2003 album 'Tour de France'. In it, there's an interview with Ralf Hütter and a description of every track on that album.

The single contains a new edit of 'Tour de France', which does not appear on the single 'Tour de France' which I bought 14 years ago and which was released 40 years ago. The B-side is, unfortunately, empty.

My collection: 7" single no. 7007
Found: Eckert, Hbf Landau (Germany)
Tracks: 'Tour de France'

Promise - Voyager

It's time to give Australia some love. While the Finnish entry was certainly the winner and I quite liked some of the other songs, the Australian performance yesterday was awesome. The band Voyager staged an Eighties-themed show and added in some metal ingredients as well, while still presenting a very melodic song.

And then there's this very limited edition 7" single! Only 300 copies exist of this magenta-coloured vinyl (there's a black vinyl version, also limited to 300 copies as well). I managed to obtain number 30. The B-side, 'Dreamer', is pretty good as well. This is a band that impressed. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6990
Found: Band website, received 12 May 2023
Tracks: 'Promise' / 'Dreamer'

Burning daylight - Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper

The Dutch duo Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper have had so much filth thrown towards them in the Dutch media that I was wondering at some point why they even bothered going to Liverpool. They probably should have said to all those who were so critical that they should take their place. A little bit of support from your own country wouldn't be too much to ask for, wouldn't it?

The song was written by former Eurovision winner Duncan Laurence and his boyfriend Jordan Garfield, with additions by Loek van der Grinten and Mia & Dion themselves. Back in March the song reached number 21 in the Dutch Top 40, and that was just before all the mayhem started. We know how it ended now: the duo performed in the first semifinal and got a lousy seven points, ending up in 13th place in their semifinal against 15 competitors, finishing in 32rd place (against 37 competitors) overall.  

My collection: 7" single no. 6989
Found: Platenzaak.nl, received 12 May 2023
Tracks: 'Burning daylight' / 'Burning daylight (instrumental)'

Hawaii - PiL

The annual disappointment of an undeserving winner - in my opinion and most of the televoters I could say this year - has happened last night and the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 is history. But the whole thing actually already started with a disappointment!

It was announced, some months ago, that Public Image Limited, the band of ex-Sex Pistol John Lydon, would participate in the Irish national final. 'Hawaii' was a song dedicated to Lydon's wife who was suffering from Alzheimer's. It would have been quite fabulous to see PiL representing Ireland this year, but somehow the Irish chose for a middle of the road, 'once heard quickly forgotten' song by a young band. Well, at least there's this 7" single which presents the song in two versions. I didn't know Lydon was also a visual artist, but it was he who created the artwork. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6988
Found: Amazon, received 11 May 2023
Tracks: 'Hawaii' / 'Hawaii (edit)'

Because of you - Gustaph

Somewhere in the next few days (well, Thursday actually), Gustaph will perform in the second semifinal of this year's Eurovision Song Contest with 'Because of you'. Overused James Brown-samples aside, this is a decent song that deserves a place in the final, if you ask me.

I'm also impressed that finally, after many years, a Belgian entry has been released on a vinyl single again. It's time that record companies realize that Eurovision fans will buy any Eurovision track on a physical medium, and although only a handful of singles are being released these days, it is a promising sign that the Netherlands (yes, the Dutch song will also be released on 7"!) and Belgium are doing what they should. Hopefully there's more to come.

My collection: 7" single no. 6986
Found: Official website, received 4 May 2023
Tracks: 'Because of you' / 'Because of you (DJ edit)'

Ghosts again - Depeche Mode

Just last month I posted the exclusive Musikexpress single of Depeche Mode's 'Ghosts again' on this blog. The single features one track and an etching of the DM logo on the other side. The (also German) magazine Rolling Stone decided to do a similar thing and include an exclusive Depeche Mode single with their current edition - but this time with a B-side. 'Never let me down again' became very popular recently when it was used in the HBO series The Last of Us - an irritating series for its repeated ads on TV for a channel I don't subscribe to.

And so I end up with two different singles of 'Ghosts again'. I like this song a lot, but the new album 'Memento mori' is a bit lacking in similarly appealing songs, in my humble opinion. But the band has delivered loads of great songs during their 40+ years, so I guess this album is a good enough epitaph - assuming that Dave and Martin won't continue after this one.

My collection: 7" single no. 6924
Found: Mein Presseshop (Germany), received 4 April 2023
Tracks: 'Ghosts again' / 'Never let me down'

Ghosts again - Depeche Mode

The new Depeche Mode album is called 'Memento mori' and it promises to be a dark affair. The lead single 'Ghosts again' certainly seems to point towards that, with a gloomy sound and serious lyrics. Undoubtedly the untimely death of Andy Fletcher has contributed to this. And so there's only two members now. I would think this album will also be Depeche Mode's last.

This single, featuring the new track and an etching of the DM logo on the other side, was offered free with the German magazine Musikexpress. I found out about this just recently, while the magazine was already sold out on the official website. I turned to other German sites to find a copy. I tried meine-Zeitschrift.de first, but they only offered postage within Germany. When I asked politely if they could send me a copy for increased postage costs, all I got was a reply that they didn't offer postage outside of Germany. Very well... so I found mein-Presseshop.de instead, and they sent me the magazine within a couple of days. You see, some German sites are useless, whereas other German sites are consumer-friendly. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6911
Found: mein-Presseshop.de, received 14 March 2023
Tracks: 'Ghosts again'