Weit, da wo der Strom beginnt - Robert Cogoi

I already have two singles of Robert Cogoi's 'Près de ma rivière': a regular 7" single and an EP. Both come with a picture sleeve featuring the same photograph of the singer. But he also recorded his song in German, and of course: that single also shows the singer in the same pose.

'Weit, da wo der Strom beginnt' is curiously hidden away on the B-side of this single; the A-side is actually 'Nur noch einmal nach Haus'. Sometimes record companies want to profit from a moment of fame (hence the red lettering on the sleeve) but they put unknown songs on the A-side.

My collection: 7" single no. 7405
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 9 November 2024
Tracks: 'Nur noch einmal nach Haus' / 'Weit, da wo der Strom beginnt'

Près de ma rivière - Robert Cogoi

The Dutch 'favorieten expres' version of 'Près de ma rivière' appeared on this blog almost a decade ago, but recently I acquired the French 4 track EP, which is worth featuring here because it contains four tracks instead of just two, and it comes in a beautiful cover. Also, three of the four tracks don't appear on that other single. 

Robert appeared on the Eurovision stage in 1964. As a result, his performance has been lost in time, because along with the very first edition in 1956 the Eurovision Song Contest of 1964 was not properly stored in a video archive. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6910
Found: 33|45 Records, Den Haag, 10 March 2023
Tracks: 'Près de ma rivière', 'Present'moi' / 'Fille du soleil', 'Toute une vie'

Près de ma rivière - Robert Cogoi

Robert Cogoi was born as Mirko Kogoj on October 25, 1939 in Châtelet to Yugoslav parents. In 1961 he picked up a contract with Philips Records, and the following year, won first prize at the Grand Prix International des Variétés at the Casino in Ostend with the song 'Si un jour', which went on to sell 100,000 copies in France, earning Cogoi a gold disc.

In 1964, he represented belgium with 'Près de ma rivière' ('Near my river'). At the close of voting, it had received 2 points, placing 10th in a field of 16 competitors. Cogoi also recorded the song in English, German and Italian language versions, entitled, respectively, 'My River of Memories', 'Weit, da wo der Strom beginnt' and 'Sulla mia riviera'. The English version, however, was not released until nearly 30 years after the Contest.

Cogoi continued releasing albums and singles, with modest success, until the late 1960s. In 1976 he appeared in the Belgian movie 'Les arpents dorés'. After many years out of the public eye, Cogoi made a guest appearance, along with several other former Eurovision participants, at the Belgian Eurovision national final in 2005.

My collection: 7" single no. 5652
Found: Marktplaats.nl, November 5, 2014
Cost: 2 euro
Tracks: 'Pres de ma riviere' / 'Quand le jour se leve'