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)' 

Dreamin' - Cliff Richard

Cliff Richard has released more than 100 singles during his career, so it's only logical that one wouldn't remember each and every one of them. I had totally forgotten about 'Dreamin'' until I heard it on the radio recently. 

The single was released in 1980. It was composed by Alan Tarney with lyrics by Leo Sayer. When recording the song, Richard was concerned that it was pitched too high for his range. However, Tarney told him "it was fantastic and asked [him] to try to sing it in this key". The single reached number 8 in the UK singles chart and number 12 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 8360
Found: Discogs.com, received 21 July 2026
Tracks: 'Dreamin'' / 'Dynamite' 

Respectable / Showing out (Get fresh at the weekend) - Mel & Kim

Mel & Kim Appleby didn't release a lot of singles, but I managed to buy quite a few copies through the years with different sleeves and configurations. The latest addition is this single in the Atlantic Oldies Series, presumably released some time after their success in 1986 and 1987. 

The single brings together 'Respectable' and 'Showing out', their first two singles under the professional guidance of Stock, Aitken & Waterman. There's an interesting exhibition of Mel & Kim memorabilia at the V&A museum in London right now, check it out if you can.

My collection: 7" single no. 8353
Found: Discogs.com, received 21 July 2026
Tracks: 'Respectable' / 'Showing out (Get fresh at the weekend)'

Someone's in love - Five Star

'Someone's in love' was a track from Five Star's 1988 album Rock The World, and it was released as a single in the US only. The 12" single had an interesting picture sleeve, but the 7" single was more modest and came in an RCA record company sleeve.

The single presented a '7" radio mix' which was also on the US pressing of the album. Doris sang the lead vocals on this track rather than sister Denise, who was lead singer on all of Five Star's singles up to this point. The single only charted in the specialized R&B chart in the USA.

My collection: 7" single no. 8352
Found: Discogs.com, received 21 July 2026
Tracks: 'Someone's in love (7" radio mix)' / 'Rare groove'

Live in Japan '86 - Heart

This single was exclusively released in Japan. It features two live tracks, recorded at the NHK Hall in Tokyo in June 1986. It was released as a companion to the album Bad Animals in Japan, but fortunately I was able to buy the single on its own. (I don't collect LP's anymore, since they take up so much space.)

In recent interviews Nancy Wilson described how the band were pushed towards a certain style by the record company during the Eighties. 'I think we felt like we have to wear these clothes, and we need to make these videos, and we have to take the suggestion of the record company and try out these songs. We listened to stacks of demo songs by all these hit songwriters. Some obviously were a great fit, but when we went into rehearsals and tried to learn all these songs, it felt like we were giving up our territory as artists, because it was someone else's style.'

My collection: 7" single no. 8349
Found: Discogs.com, received 16 July 2026 
Tracks: 'Magic man (live)' / 'Barracuda (live)'

 

 

Head over heels - Abba

It's been a while since I last bought an Abba single, but here we are again. This is the Japanese single for 'Head over heels', which amusingly has a different B-side: 'Lay all your love on me' from the band's preceding album Voulez-vous. Perhaps the original B-side, 'The visitors', was too dark for the Japanese record company. 

There aren't many variants of the 'Head over heels' single. It wasn't a big hit for the Swedish quartet, and it signalled the end for them. Fortunately they recorded two more singles after this, before they disappeared from the scene for many decades in 1982.

My collection: 7" single no. 8345
Found: Discogs.com, received 16 July 2026
Tracks: 'Head over heels' / 'Lay all your love on me' 

Rock me - Riva

'Rock Me’ was composed by Rajko Dujmić, with lyrics by Stevo Cvikić. Dujmić performed with his own band Novi Fosili in 1987 and composed both the Yugoslav entries ‘Ja zam sa ples’ in 1987 and ‘Mangup’ in 1988. His entry from 1989 would turn out to be a winner. Dujmić recalled: ‘Back then, the songs were sung in the language of the country you represented. There was no option to choose the English language, so I suggested to Cvikić to put two or three words in the lyrics in English.’ 

Emilija Kokić was only 21 years old. With Dalibor Musap (keyboards and vocals), Nenad Nakic (bass and vocals), Zvonimir Zrilic (guitar and vocals), and Boško Colic (drums), she formed Riva, the act that would win the Eurovision Song Contest this year. They were young and inexperienced, and certainly nervous during rehearsals. But after the rehearsals in the days leading up to the broadcast, those nerves slowly disappeared. Just like ‘La det swinge’ four years earlier, the juries were likely captivated by the song's retro feel. Riva was, despite being the winners of the competition, quite unpopular in Europe. ‘Rock Me’ did not sell in many countries and was not even released in some. Terry Wogan, the commentator for the United Kingdom, called it ‘the death knell’ for the competition.

My collection: 7" single no. 8340
Found: Gaga Music, Goch (Germany), 15 July 2026
Tracks: 'Rock me (English version)' / 'Rock me (Original version)' 

Head up to the sky - Spargo

'Head up to the sky' was Spargo's second hit in the Netherlands after 'You and me'. That first single was a good start for the band, because it topped the Dutch Top 40. Compared to that, this single was slightly disappointing, as it only made it to number 5. And while 'You and me' was a hit all over Europe, 'Head up to the sky' only made the charts in Belgium and Germany. 

I bought the single a long time ago, but I also culled it from my collection when I grew up, because I felt the song was not good enough. In fact, I threw away a lot of Dutch productions during the mid- to late-Eighties. It's good to have this single back again.

My collection: 7" single no. 8339
Found: Gaga Music, Goch (Germany), 15 July 2026
Tracks: 'Head up to the sky' / 'Inside your heart'

Girls just want to have fun - Cyndi Lauper

In 1983, 1984 and beyond, Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls just want to have fun' was unavoidable. It was on the radio, on Music Box and Sky Channel, and everywhere else, so it seemed. I became sick of the song.

It's taken four decades, but I can finally listen to the song again. It's odd that I have quite a bit of Cyndi Lauper singles, but not her biggest hit. I finally got the chance to rectify that, because this copy popped up and I didn't even have to pay much for it. 

My collection: 7" single no. 8337
Found: Gaga Music, Goch (Germany), 15 July 2026
Tracks: 'Girls just want to have fun' / 'Right track, wrong train'