Due to the fact that the cover and the label of this single contain no information about this track, it's impossible to determine whether this is the original release of Black Box's 'Ride on time' or a re-release. My guess is that it's the original, since even the track 'Love sensation', on which 'Ride on time' is based is included on the B-side.Sunday, 14 June 2009
Ride on time - Black box
Due to the fact that the cover and the label of this single contain no information about this track, it's impossible to determine whether this is the original release of Black Box's 'Ride on time' or a re-release. My guess is that it's the original, since even the track 'Love sensation', on which 'Ride on time' is based is included on the B-side.Easier said than done - Shakatak
Bill Sharpe, Jackie Rawe, Roger Odell, George Anderson and Keith Winter formed the British jazz-funk band Shakatak in 1980. In 1981, they released their debut album 'Drivin' hard', from which the single 'Easier said than done' was taken. It gave the band their first top 20 hit in the UK, peaking at number 12. The single did almost equally well in the Netherlands, peaking at number 17.Le dernier qui a parlé... - Amina
Amina Annabi was born on March 5, 1962 in Carthage, Tunisia. She started to forge a career in music in 1978, when she formed a group. After five years of playing in schools all over France, she started to go solo. By that time she got involved with Radio Nova, the leading radio station in Paris for world music. One of the producers of the station was Martin Messonier. He started to work with Amina - a relationship that eventually became romantic as well. Their daughter was born in 1986.Her debut solo album 'Yalil (Night)' was released in 1990. A year later, she was awarded 'Le prix Piaf' as Best Female Singer of the Year. Also in 1991, Amina represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest with a song of her own, entitled 'Le dernier qui a parlé...'. She tied with the swedish participant Carola for the first place but due to insane EBU rules, the French entry ranked second and the award was given to Sweden. However, this single was the artistic triumph of the two. In the Netherlands, it was also a bigger hit: the single peaked at number 35 in the Dutch Top 40, whereas Carola's single flopped.
My collection: 7" single no. 1442
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, May 24, 1991
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'Le dernier qui a parlé...' / 'Neila'
Building a bridge to your heart - Wax
Starting off with the most confusing countdown in pop history, Wax (a duo consisting of Andrew Gold and Graham Gouldman) released 'Building a bridge to your heart' as the first single of their second album 'American English'.Dirty mind - Shakespear's sister
When a band decides to make a remix for a single, they have to think long and hard whether the new version is actually better than the original one. In the case of Shakespear's sister's 'Dirty mind', they didn't think long and hard enough. The 1990 version of 'Dirty mind' takes all the life and soul out of the song and makes it into a lump of sounds that crashes under its own weight.The record-buying audience duly rewarded this effort: the single only spent one week in the UK singles chart, at number 71. And that was probably because the original version was on the B-side, which is why I bought it.
My collection: 7" single no. 1198
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, March 30, 1990
Cost: 6 guilders
Tracks: 'Dirty mind (1990 version)' / 'Dirty mind'
Love is just the great pretender - Animal Nightlife
Animal Nightlife originally released 'Love is just the great pretender' in 1984. When this single did not chart and the follow-up 'Mr. Solitaire' did, the band decided to have the track remixed and released it as 'Love is just the great pretender '85'. This did the trick: the single climbed up the chart and peaked at number 28.You don't need someone new - The Lotus eaters
Peter Coyle, Jeremy Kelly and Stephen Creese formed the Lotus eaters in 1982 in Liverpool. Although the band is considered to be part of the 'New Romantics' movement from around that time, their music was more folk-oriented than the synthpop of bands like Japan and Spandau Ballet.Friday, 12 June 2009
Super freak - Rick James
When I was 11, 'Super freak' by Rick James was my air guitar favourite. The 1981 hit single was produced and performed by Rick James and features background vocals from Motown labelmates The Temptations, featuring James' uncle Melvin Franklin.The single reached number 2 in the Dutch Top 40. The song is also well known because it was sampled by MC Hammer in his 1990 hit 'U can't touch this'. That being a hip hop track, it was of course unlistenable.
My collection: 7" single no. 1782
Found: November 7, 1992
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Super freak' / 'Super freak (instrumental)'
1979 - The Smashing Pumpkins
Band leader Billy Corgan reportedly worked nonstop after his band's Siamese Dream tour and wrote about 56 songs for the Smashing Pumpkins' 'Mellon Collie and the infinite sadness' album. As the Mellon Collie sessions came to a conclusion, '1979' was just a couple of chord changes and a snippet of a melody without words. When the time came to choose the songs that were to appear on the album, producer Flood said that '1979' was not good enough and wanted to drop it from the record.This inspired Corgan to finish it in four hours. The next day, Flood heard '1979' once and decided immediately to put it on the album. The song features a sample of Corgan's voice repeated throughout. During recording, Corgan was singing "ooh" as the melody line, so he and Flood decided to record him singing to a tape. The pair electronically manipulated several samples and looped them against a drumbeat. The single was the band's first international big hit, peaking at number 16 in Australia and the UK and number 12 in the US Billboard Hot 100.
My collection: 7" single no. 2834
Found: Record fair, February 8, 1997
Cost: 10 guilders
Tracks: '1979' / 'Bullet with butterfly wings'
Good thing going - Sugar Minott
Sugar Minott was born as Lincoln Barrington Minott on May 25, 1956 in Kingston, Jamaica. He began his singing career in 1969 when he joined the African Brothers, along with Tony Tuff and Derrick Howard. After five years, the group broke up and Sugar Minott started a solo career.Elettrochoc - Matia Bazar
Taken from their 1983 album 'Tango', 'Elettrochoc' is probably the most frantic track of Matia Bazar's lengthy career. The operatic vocals of singer Antonella Ruggiero are supported by a high energy synth backing. I was very impressed when I heard this single for the first time, and even to this day it never fails to excite me.Summer night city - Abba
The recording sessions for 'Summer night city' began in early 1978. Abba's new Polar Music recording studio had opened in May, but had not been ready to use initially, so the primary backing track had been recorded at Metronome Studio. A 43-second ballad-style introduction to the song had been edited out to improve the overall quality, but nothing seemed to work. Allegedly, mixing the single took at least a week, far more than it took to mix any other track in ABBA's recording history. A reluctant Abba decided to release the song as a single in September despite their disappointment with the track as it was.Although the band was critical of their own song, the record-buying audiences were impressed. The single topped the charts in Finland, Ireland and Sweden and peaked at number 5 in the UK and the Netherlands.
The B-side medley was actually a remix of the original 1975 version that had been issued on the German charity album 'Stars im zeichen eines guten sterns'. It was a medley of the traditional songs 'Pick a bale of cotton', 'On top of old smokey' and 'Midnight special'. The recording is unique because it's the only cover version(s) that Abba have ever recorded in the studio.
My collection: 7" single no. 2299
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, May 27, 1995
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Summer night city' / 'Medley: Pick a bale of cotton/On top of old Smokey/Midnight special'
Forget about you - The Motors
The Motors had their debut live performance at the Marquee Club in March 1977. That same month, they recorded three songs for John Peel's weekly BBC Radio 1 show. By May they had been signed to Virgin Records, appearing in another John Peel session in September of the same year.Thursday, 11 June 2009
Diva lady - The Divine Comedy
Released as the first single from the Divine Comedy's 2006 album 'Victory for the comic muse', 'Diva lady' peaked at number 52 in the UK singles chart. It was released on two different cd-singles as well as this 7" vinyl single, which included a small poster and an exclusive track on the B-side.Smokers outside the hospital doors - Editors
'Smokers outside the hospital doors' was released on two different 7" vinyl singles, of which this second one was a limited edition. The cover was shiny metallic and the record was pressed on clear vinyl. The edition was limited to 10,000 numbered copies - this is number 3663. The B-side was different to the other single as well.I bought this single after I had become hooked to the Editors album 'An end has a start', which I'd bought in the summer of 2008. I still rate it as one of the best albums of the year.
Smokers outside the hospital doors - Editors
Editors recorded their second album 'An end has a start' in Grouse Lodge, Ireland over a two month period beginning in late November 2006. It was released in June 2007 and went straight to number 1 in the UK album charts. The album was preceded by the single 'Smokers outside the hospital doors'. The song was Editors' highest-charting single at number 7.God - Tori Amos
While in the US 'God' was released as the first single from Tori Amos' second album 'Under the pink', in the UK it was the fourth and last single. The single was released as a picture disc 7", plus there was also a 12" single and a cd-single available. All formats came with exclusive remixes, which on the 7" format was the 'acapella vocal & rain mix'.Human - Human League
In 1985 the recording sessions for the Human League's fifth album were not going well. The band did not like the results, which was causing internal conflict. Virgin Records executives, who worried about the lack of progress from their most-profitable signing, suggested the band to work with producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. They had recently emerged as in-demand talent due to their success with Janet Jackson and her album 'Control'.Jam and Lewis wrote three of the ten tracks on the album 'Crash', the lead single 'Human' was one of them. 'Human' became the second number one single for The Human League on the US Billboard Hot 100 after 'Don't you want me'. In the UK, 'Human' peaked at number eight in the UK singles chart and in the Netherlands the single reached number 13.
Bicycle race - Queen
Okay, I'll admit it: I only started collecting Queen singles after Freddie Mercury's death. I saw a lot of documentaries about Queen when he died, and thought that those songs were really quite good.Against the wind - Máire Brennan
Máire Brennan was born as Máire Philomena Ní Bhraonáin on August 4, 1952 in Gweedore, Ireland. In 1970 joined her two brothers Pól and Ciarán and their mother's two twin brothers Noel and Pádraig Ó Dúgáin to form Clannad. With this Irish band they enjoyed a lot of success - and, in the Eighties, even international success - and recorded 17 albums.I need you - Paul Carrack
'I need you like a shot needs to shoot' is probably one of the least romantic lines in pop. It comes from this single by Paul Carrack, 'I need you'. The single peaked at number 37 in the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 15 in the Netherlands. In the UK, where Carrack was born, the single did not chart.Without you - Nilsson
Anyone who has heard Mariah Carey's dreadful cover version of 'Without you' in 1994 may have a hard time to ever listen to this song again without that traumatic experience on their minds. She released her version just a week after Harry Nilsson, who had a hit with it back in 1972, had died. I just pray that the poor man has never had to hear her version.American generation - The Ritchie Family
The four original members of the Ritchie Family were not related; the group was created by Jacques Morali who also created Village People soon after. The group took its name from record producer Ritchie Rome, and originally consisted of four Jean Davis, Cassandra Wooten,Gwen Oliver, and Nadine Felder. Later they were reformed as a trio with Cheryl Jacks, Cassandra Wooten, and Gwen Oliver as the new line-up.It was this line-up that released the 1979 album 'American generation' and the single of the title track. An infectious disco track, it reached the charts all over the world. In the Netherlands the single peaked at number 13.
My collection: 7" single no. 2795
Found: Record fair, Roterdam, December 14, 1996
Cost: 1 guilder
Tracks: 'American generation' / 'Music man'
Merci, Chérie - Udo Jürgens
Udo Jürgens and Thomas Hörbiger composed the song 'Merci, Chérie', with which Jürgens represented Austria in the 1966 Eurovision Song Contest. Despite the French title, the song is performed in German. It is an earnest ballad, in which the singer thanks his lover (hence the title, 'Thank you darling') for good times and positive memories.
Soul destruction - T'pau
The third and last single drawn from T'pau's third album 'The promise' was a remixed version of 'Soul destruction'. The remix was made by Phil Harding and Ian Curnow, who were famous for their work with producers Stock, Aitken & Waterman.Something's gotten hold of my heart - Marc Almond and Gene Pitney
'Something's gotten hold of my heart' was written by Roger Greenaway and Roger Cook. It was originally recorded by David and Jonathan. Gene Pitney recorded a more successful version in 1967, peaking at number 5 in the UK singles chart.My girl (Gone, gone, gone) - Chilliwack
My sister bought this single back in 1981. I have no idea where she picked this song up, it was probably played on the radio a few times. The single did not chart in Europe. At the time of its release, the Canadian band consisted of Bill Henderson, Brian MacLeod and Ab Bryant.Wednesday, 10 June 2009
Arms of a dream - Laurie Freelove
Freelove was a founding member of the critically acclaimed band Two Nice Girls, formed by Gretchen Phillips, Kathy Korniloff and Laurie Freelove. After releasing their debut on Rough Trade Records, Laurie decided to leave the band and set out to forge a solo career.She was 'discovered' by Nigel Grainge of Chrysalis/Ensign Records at a music conference in Austin, Texas. Recognizing her potential as a break-through artist, she was signed to the English label within the week, and that year recorded her first solo CD 'Smells like truth'. 'Arms of a dream' was the first single taken from the album, but the single did not chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 2327
Found: June 3, 1995
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'Arms of a dream' / 'O my heart'
King without a crown - ABC
'King without a crown' was released as the third single from ABC's 1987 album 'Alphabet city'. It was, in my opinion, also the best of the three single releases from the album. The whole atmosphere of the song, the arrangement and the pure, straightforward pop was a relief compared to the cluttered sound of the previous two singles.Unfortunately my opinion differered once again from that of the general public. In the UK the single peaked at number 44, in the Netherlands at number 31, making it the worst selling single of the three. After this single, ABC's career once again took a nosedive with ABC's next disastrous album, which ironically was titled 'Up'.
My collection: 7" single no. 752
Found: V&D, Den Haag, February 17, 1989
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'King without a crown' / 'The look of love (live in Boston)'
Hi! Hi! Hi! - Sandra
Released as the second single from Sandra's second album 'Mirrors', 'Hi! Hi! Hi!' was an upbeat track written by Michael Cretu and Hubert Kemmler. The latter was making a name for himself in Germany as Hubert Kah.Alles geprobeerd - Het Goede Doel
'Alles geprobeerd' ('Tried everything') was one of my favourite tracks of 1986. Even if you don't understand Dutch, you should be able to appreciate the lengthy musical piece at the second half of this track. At 6 minutes and 22 seconds, this was another long single by het Goede Doel, taken from their album 'Mooi en onverslijtbaar'.Viva sport - Dafna
The song that represented Israel during the 1992 Eurovision Song Contest was about that most useless of all pastimes, 'Viva sport', or 'Ze rak sport' in Hebrew. And because there are a lot of people in Europe who think that this pastime is not useless, the song was rewarded with a sixth place in the ranking. Of course, they are wrong.Manhattan skyline - A-ha
A day at the record company's officeDreamboat Annie - Heart
'Dreamboat Annie' was the title track and a recurring theme on Heart's debut album. Originally divided in three parts scattered on the album, the single version was a mixture of all three and did not appear on the album in this form.