Fake - Alexander O'Neal

Here's another single I already owned - and I bought it just last year. However, I decided to get this one not only for its poster sleeve (I love poster sleeves) but also for the B-side which contains an instrumental version of the track. As luck would have it, the instrumental version is also longer than the A-side.

'Fake' reached number 33 in the UK singles chart and number 25 in the US Billboard Hot 100. In the Netherlands, the single reached number 15 during a six week chart run.

My collection: 7" single no. 5977
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 11, 2017
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Fake' / 'Fake (instrumental)'

Fake - Alexander O'Neal

'Can I get some nasty bass?', asks Alexander O'Neal at the beginning of this track, an obvious reference to Janet Jackson's Nasty, a big hit for producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis a year earlier. Released in 1987, 'Fake' was Alexander O'Neal's first big hit worldwide, followed by Criticize. Both singles were taken from his album 'Hearsay', which was his most successful album, the only one to chart in many countries around the world.

His career continues to the present day. He is not only successful as a singer, but also appeared in various television programmes, most remarkably in The Weakest Link and Celebrity Big Brother in the UK.

My collection: 7" single no. 5834
Found: Velvet Vinyl Outlet, Leiden, May 16, 2017
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Fake' / 'A broken heart can mend'

Listen to the song

Criticize - Alexander O'Neal

Contrary to all the R&B and hiphop dross they make today, black artists used to actually come up with good songs every once in a while, back in the Eighties. Alexander O'Neal's 'Criticize' is a good example: a catchy tune with aggressively delivered vocals. The track was produced by Jellybean, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, which makes it sound almost like a Janet Jackson track.

'Criticize' peaked at number 4 in the UK singles chart and number 17 in the Dutch Top 40 in the autumn of 1987.

My collection: 7" single no. 4644
Found: All that music, Leiden, March 13, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Criticize' / 'A broken heart can mend'