F.L.M. - Mel & Kim

Although I have a few editions of Mel & Kim's third single 'F.L.M.', somehow this 12" single eluded me until now. It's the 'Two Grooves Under One Nation' remix of the track, which features elements of 'Le freak' by Chic.

It's an interesting remix, but the disc itself is perhaps even better, pressed on splattered brown/grey vinyl.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Vinylparadijs, Geesteren, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'F.L.M. (Two grooves under one nation remix)' / 'F.L.M. (Two grooves under one nation dub mix)'

Louise (We get it right) - Jona Lewie

There's a certain amount of repetition in this blog when I buy singles in different formats. I bought the 7" single of Jona Lewie's 'Louise (We get it right)' in 2009, but I was lucky enough last week to find the 10" version. On this disc an extended version of the song appears.

On the runout groove the name 'J. Lewie' appears in die-cut. I wonder if this happened with all the 10" singles, or if someone has just had a creative moment with this disc. Who knows...

My collection: 10" single [unnumbered] 
Found: Vinylparadijs, Geesteren, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Louise (We get it right) (extended version)' / 'It never will go wrong' 

Dreiklangs dimensionen - Rheingold

Second hand shops hold their own mysteries, and this item presents one of them. Just how did a Spanish 12" single of Rheingold's 'Dreiklangs dimensionen' end up in a rural area of the Netherlands? It's fascinating.

This 12" single presents an extended version of this techno pop classic, and I was lucky to find this copy, even if the sleeve was falling apart. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Vinylparadijs, Geesteren, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Dreiklangs dimensionen [extended]' / 'Fluss' 

Obscene phone caller - Rockwell

Three decades ago I bought the single 'Obscene phone caller' by Rockwell. It is one of those songs that you would enjoy if you heard it but forget about almost as quickly. Still, when I saw this 12" single it made me buy it instantly.  

The extended version of the song is just a minute longer, and doesn't really add much. But the instrumental version on the B-side of this 12" single is even longer than the extended version, curiously enough. I bet someone could make a really good extended version with just a few smart edits.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Vinylparadijs, Geesteren, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Obscene phone caller (extended club version)' / 'Obscene phone caller (instrumental)'

Papa Pingouin - Sophie & Magaly

The Eurovision Song Contest certainly divides opinions. Some feel it's the best event of the year, whereas others criticize it for its naffness and the opinion that music comes second to shows and effects.

One song that was always an example for the latter category was Sophie & Magaly's 'Papa Pingouin'. During their performance a man in a penguin suit danced across the stage. It looked quite ridiculous, but to be fair, the song was catchy and stayed in your head once you heard it. It's a televised event, after all, so I would say it's just these kind of gimmicks that entertain.  

My collection: 7" single no. 8395
Found: Variaworld, Utrecht, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Papa Pingouin' / 'Tous les enfants du monde' 

Mega hit mix - Fun Fun

After they had a couple of hits in the first half of the Eighties, Fun Fun seemed to have disappeared altogether. And yet, in 1987 they returned with this 'Mega Hit Mix' - a medley of exactly those hits. 

It brings together 'Happy Station', 'Colour my love', 'Baila bolero' and 'Give me your love' in a snazzy megamix fashion that lasts for almost six minutes. It brought them back into the Dutch Top 40 in the first weeks of 1988, peaking at number 5. Of course, this was also their last hit.

My collection: 7" single no. 8390
Found: Variaworld, Utrecht, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Mega hit mix' / 'Gimme some lovin''

Goin' home - Tower

I wrote about Tower a long time ago, during the first few months of this blog, when I wrote about their biggest hit, 'See you tonight'. All these years later I've bought their second biggest hit, the single 'Goin' home'. 

When you compare the two songs you notice that 'Goin' home' is almost a carbon copy of 'See you tonight': the same sounds, the same simple chorus and even a few lines of 'ooooh'. It's not a bad song, it's just not too original.

My collection: 7" single no. 8389
Found: Variaworld, Utrecht, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Goin' home' / 'Spaceman' 

Flirting and showing - Fox the fox

Until now, I've only bought various versions of Fox the fox's only hit single, 'Precious little diamond' (7", 12" and remix version). But they did release a few more singles, and one of them was 'Flirting and showing', a single that ended up just outside of the Dutch Top 40, at number 2 of the Tipparade.

I wasn't that familiar with the song but I took a chance on this single and I'm glad I did. It's a great track with an infectious chorus.

My collection: 7" single no. 8387
Found: Variaworld, Utrecht, 12 August 2026
Tracks: 'Flirting and showing' / 'Stretching out'

Heart and soul - Exile

A very early favourite song of mine is Exile's 'Heart and soul'. The group scored a huge hit with 'Kiss you all over' before it, but the power pop approach of this song appealed to me more.

It was therefore exhilirating that I discovered there was a 12" single of this song. Quite why I never investigated this before will always remain a mystery, but once I found out I ordered a copy right away. This extended version is excellent and does a lot to make the song even more of an anthem.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Discogs.com, received 7 August 2026
Tracks: 'Heart and soul [extended]' / 'Your love is everything' 

Say I'm your no. 1 - Princess

I was lucky enough to buy some 12" singles by Princess recently, but her debut single 'Say I'm your no. 1' was still missing. It was only a matter of time before I would find a copy - and a cheap copy at that. 

This 12" single features three versions of the song, including a 'short version' which isn't really that short at all. Whoever created these versions remains unknown, as only the producers - Stock, Aitken & Waterman - are credited on the sleeve. 

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered] 
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'Say I'm your no. 1 [extended]' / 'Say I'm your no. 1 (short version)', 'Say I'm your no. 1 (senza voce)'

Tomorrow - The Communards

The Communards released several very good 12" singles and when I found this copy of 'Tomorrow' I thought it would be another great extended version of this great song. I wasn't disappointed. The 12" stretches the single version to almost twice its original length. There are also three tracks on the B-side: 'I just want to let you know' (which is also the B-side of the 7" single) plus a solo track by Richard Coles (an instrumental piece) and a solo track by Jimmy Somerville (a vocal track). It's a good package which should have helped the single to a top position.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'Tomorrow [extended version]' / 'I just want to let you know', 'Romanze for violin, piano and hedgehog', 'Scat' 

I just can't wait - Mandy Smith

After going through hundreds of 7" singles at Parkstad Record Shop in two hours, I only had ten minutes or so left until closing time to go through the 12" singles. Fortunately there wasn't much there - I managed to get three titles that were mildly interesting. The first one was this one by Mandy Smith.

Mandy Smith's debut single 'I just can't wait' was produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman, so it was only logical that 12" singles would appear, as the trio was quite prolific at the time. The 'cool and breezy jazz version' was mixed by 'The Extra Beat Boys With The Funky Sisters'. One can only guess who they were. It's not so much jazz as it is a relaxed piece of pop.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'I just can't wait (The cool and breezy jazz version)' / 'I just can't wait (instrumental)', 'You're never alone' 

I get weak - Belinda Carlisle

'I get weak' was released as the second single from Belinda Carlisle's second album Heaven on Earth in 1987, after the million-selling 'Heaven is a place on earth'. The song was written by Diane Warren and produced by Rick Nowels. After completing the song, songwriter Diane Warren initially had Stevie Nicks in mind – a suggestion she made to producer Rick Nowels, who felt it would be a better fit for Carlisle.

The single reached number 2 in the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 10 in the UK singles chart. In the Netherlands, however, the single didn't chart. Somehow this US pressing of the single ended up in a Dutch record shop.

My collection: 7" single no. 8384
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks:  'I get weak' / 'Should I let you in?'

We've got tonight - Kenny Rogers & Sheena Easton

I've always felt that 'We've got tonight' was a bit of a creepy duet between Kenny Rogers (born in 1938) and Sheena Easton (born in 1959). They recorded the song in 1983, when Sheena was 24 years old and Kenny 45. But apparently she was positive about the idea when Kenny called her and pitched the idea near the end of 1982. 

The song was originally written and performed by Bob Seger, who recorded it for his album Stranger in Town (1978). Easton would assert that it was the song choice which appealed to her, while allowing Rogers to be "a good singer with a distinctive voice" who she found "always helpful and co-operative" in the studio, debunking insider reports that the ten-day recording session for the track was a stormy one with Rogers overtly disliking Easton's high-pitched vocals.

My collection: 7" single no. 8383
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'We've got tonight' / 'You are so beautiful' 

In the night - Barbara Dickson

Not two, but three singles were taken from Barbara Dickson's 1980 album The Barbara Dickson Album. 'It's really you' and 'January February' were rather wellknown in the Netherlands, but 'In the night' escaped our attention completely. 

It was different in the UK: 'It's really you' wasn't released there, but 'In the night' was and it reached number 48 in the singles chart. Not a big hit, but it was noticed nonetheless. Barbara would only have one big hit after this: the duet 'I know him so well' together with Elaine Page, which became a number 1 hit in the UK in 1984. 

My collection: 7" single no. 8381 
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'In the night' / 'Now I don't know'

That's the way (I like it) - Dead or Alive

KC and the Sunshine Band had a huge hit with 'That's the way (I like it)' in 1975. Pete Burns and his band Dead or Alive realized that they could probably have similar success with the song a decade later. I remember the music video well: it was recorded in a shower room filled with muscular women. (Somehow I imagine that Pete Burns would have preferred men in there, but okay...)

It was Dead or Alive's first hit single, peaking at number 22 in the UK singles chart and number 23 in Ireland. Europe would only come to know Dead or Alive a year later, when they released 'You spin me 'round (like a record)'. 

My collection: 7" single no. 8379
Found: Parkstad Record Shop, Kerkrade, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'That's the way (I like it)' / 'Do it' 

To be reborn - Boy George

After Culture Club fell apart, Boy George, having recovered from a drug addiction, released his first solo album Sold in June 1987. The first single, 'Everything I own' became a big hit (a number one hit in the UK), three more singles were released off the album. 'To be reborn' was the last. 

A limited edition of the single was released in a gatefold sleeve with a booklet, featuring several photographs of the singer.

My collection: 7" single no. 8369
Found: Didi's Record Shop, Heerlen, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'To be reborn' / 'Where are you now?' 

Amiga Quartett - Culture Club

My collection of Amiga Quartett EP's continues with this one, featuring four hit singles by Culture Club. The photograph on the cover belies the fact that it was released in 1985, after they released 'The War Song', which is the last track on this EP. By that time, Boy George's image had totally changed. 

The EP was exclusive to the GDR, the Eastern part of Germany which was still behind the Iron Curtain in those days. The state-owned record company Amiga released many of these EP's which were totally unavailable in Western Europe back then. These day they are popping up almost everywhere! 

My collection: 7" single no. 8368
Found: Didi's Record Shop, Heerlen, 29 July 2026
Tracks: 'Do you really want to hurt me', 'It's a miracle' / 'Karma Chameleon', 'The War Song' 

Les chants magnétiques (part 4) - Jean Michel Jarre

I am familiar with 'Magnetic fields part 2', which was a hit in the Netherlands, but I didn't know that part 4 was also released as a single. I found this out last week, while I was ordering singles from a French seller. The track may not be as instantly catchy, but it is still a beautiful melody. I did think it was confusing that the title was 'Les chants magnétiques', because I always thought the title was 'Les champs magnétiques' in French.  

Turns out that it is a play on words. The literal English translation of the French title 'Les chants magnétiques' is 'Magnetic songs'. However, the French word for 'fields' (champs) is a homophone of the French word for 'songs' (chants), so in French, if the title is spoken out loud, it can be interpreted as either magnetic fields or as magnetic songs. Les Champs magnétiques was a surrealist book published in 1920.  

My collection: 7" single no. 8366
Found: Discogs.com, received 25 July 2026
Tracks: 'Les chants magnétiques (part 4)' / 'Les chants magnétiques (part 1, extrait)' 

Close (to the edit) - Art of Noise

The song takes its title from the fifth studio album Close to the edge (1972) by the band Yes. Its working title was 'Close to the edge". Paul Morley said: 'We created the music through editing, and so changed the title. Being perverse and provocative I put the brackets in.' The song also samples the 1983 songs 'Leave it' and 'Owner of a lonely heart' by the same band, both of which were produced by Trevor Horn. The single heavily features the recorded sample of a car, a Volkswagen Golf owned by a neighbour of band member J. J. Jeczalik, stalling and restarting. The short spoken-word vocal and the "Hey!" sample was the voice of Camilla Pilkington-Smyth. Jeczalik's girlfriend at the time taught at a girls' school in Ascot and brought Pilkington-Smyth, one of her pupils, to his attention. The sample of her voice was recorded by Jeczalik in a chapel using a Revox A77 tape recorder. 

This single is a US promotional pressing with a sleeve which is very different from the UK version. The track appears on both sides, as per usual on many promotional 7" singles.

My collection: 7" single no. 8362
Found: Discogs.com, received 21 July 2026
Tracks: 'Close (to the edit)' / 'Close (to the edit)'