Cassandra - Bonnie en Jose

Dutch singers José Hoebee and Bonnie St. Claire got together in 1984 to record a Dutch language cover of the Abba track 'Cassandra'. The two were friends and apparently thought it would be a good idea to do this. The lyric was translated by Benny Neyman, another Dutch singer. The single reached number 24 in the Dutch Top 40.

The single got a couple of sequels: the duo were involved in the project 'Abbacadabra', a TV musical for children based on songs of Abba, featuring more Dutch celebrities. In 1985 the duo recorded 'Herinnering' ('Memory'), a whole album of Abba covers.

My collection: 7" single no. 4518
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Cassandra' / 'Ik blijf wachten'

Living doll - Cliff Richard

Cliff Richard and the Drifters recorded 'Living doll' in 1959, with Norrie Paramore producing. The single reached number 1 in the UK singles chart in July 1959, selling over a million copies. It America, the song reached number 30 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was Richard's first hit in the Netherlands, reaching number 2 in the charts.

Richard re-recorded the song in 1986 with the alternative comedy group The Young Ones for the Comic Relief charity.

My collection: 7" single no. 4517
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Living doll' / 'Apron strings'

Garden party - Mezzoforte

Mezzoforte is a traditional musical term, an instruction to play literally 'moderately loud'. It is also the name of an instrumental funk fusion-band from Iceland. The line-up consists of Eyþór Gunnarsson, Jóhann Ásmundsson, Gunnlaugur Briem, Friðrik Karlsson and Staffan William-Olsson.

Their biggest hit was the track 'Garden party', released in early 1983. It reached numbe 10 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4516
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Garden party' / 'Early autumn'

Those were the days - Mary Hopkin

Although I already have a 7" single with 'Those were the days' on it, I couldn't pass up on the opportunity to buy this original edition from 1968, made in the UK and released as the second single on the Apple label.

The B-side of this single is a folky version of the song 'Turn, turn turn', a hit for the Byrds in 1965.

My collection: 7" single no. 4515
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Those were the days' / 'Turn, turn, turn'

Pretend - Alvin Stardust

Alvin Stardust was born as Bernard William Jewry on September 27, 1942 in North London. After some success as a member of the band Shane Fenton and The Fentones in the Sixties, he took on the name Alvin Stardust in the early Seventies and had some hits, such as 'My coo-ca-choo' (1973) and 'Jealous mind' (1974).

From 1976 to 1980, Alvin Stardust didn't have any chart hits at all, which made his return in 1981 all the more impressive. The catchy 'Pretend' - a cover of a 1952 song made famous by Nat King Cole and many others - was not only a hit in the UK, where it reached number 4, but it also became a number 1 hit in the Netherlands.

My collection: 7" single no. 4514
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Pretend' / 'Goose bumps'

The things we do for love - 10CC

After the departure of Godley and Creme, Stewart and Gouldman opted to continue as 10CC, bringing in to the studio drummer Paul Burgess, who had up to that point been their tour backup drummer. Their first album as a three piece band was 'Deceptive bends' in 1977.

The album yielded three hit singles, of which 'The things we do for love' was the first. It reached number 6 in the UK singles chart, number 5 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 13 in the Dutch Top 40. Stewart later said he and Gouldman felt vindicated by the success: 'I was out to prove also that we could write a hit album without Kevin and Lol ... we did!'

My collection: 7" single no. 4513
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'The things we do for love' / 'Hot to trot'

It's a long way there - Little River Band

Fueled by a very successful Australian hit single 'Curiosity killed the cat', the band began making promotional visits to the USA in 1976. This resulted in a hit single Stateside, 'It's a long way there', edited down from an album track over 8 minutes long.

The single reached number 28 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 13 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4512
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'It's a long way there' / 'Meanwhile'

Tiger feet - Mud

'Tiger feet' was written and produced by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman and recorded by Mud. It was the first of Mud's three number 1 hit singles in the UK, reaching the top of the UK charts in January 1974. Two months later, the single also reached number 1 in the Dutch Top 40.

Co-writer Mike Chapman credited bassist Ray Stiles with a particularly memorable bass lick which helped fuel the success of the record.

My collection: 7" single no. 4511
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Tiger feet' / 'Mr. Bagatelle'

I want you to want me - Cheap Trick

'I want you to want me' was originally recorded by Cheap Trick on their second album 'In color' (1977). It was the first single released from that album, but it didn't chart. However, it was a number 1 hit in Japan.

This success, as well as the success of other singles, prompted Cheap Trick to play a few concerts at the Tokyo Budokan in April 1978. These concerts were recorded and a selection of track ended up on the album 'Cheap Trick at Budokan'. When the live version of 'I want you to want me' was released as a single in early 1979, it reached number 7 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 29 in the UK singles chart and a surprising number 1 in the Dutch Top 40: the band had never charted in the Netherlands before.

My collection: 7" single no. 4510
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'I want you to want me' / 'Look out'

Room with a view - Deco

Noël Coward wrote 'Room with a view' for the 1928 revue 'This year of grace'. The Noël Coward Society, drawing on performing statistics from the publishers and the Performing Rights Society, ranks 'Room with a view' among Coward's ten most popular songs.

One of the many cover versions recorded throughout the last century was released by Deco, a trio consisting of Charles Grant, Tim Donaldson and John Melvin. The single did not chart in the UK, but reached number 30 in the Dutch Top 40 in April 1979.

My collection: 7" single no. 4509
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Room with a view' / 'She's a great great girl'

Fool (if you think it's over) - Chris Rea

Although I have a lot of singles by Chris Rea, I had a hard time locating a copy of his debut hit, 'Fool (if you think it's over)'. You can imagine my surprise when I found a UK copy of this single in this shop where I got all these singles for 10 cents each.

The single originally failed to chart in Rea's native UK. In the USA, the single peaked at number 12 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart in September 1978, while in the Dutch Top 40 it reached number 25. When re-released in the UK in October 1978, the single made it to number 30 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 4508
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Fool (if you think it's over)' / 'Midnight love'

Beautiful noise - Neil Diamond

The album 'Beautiful noise' marked a radical departure in production, style, arrangements and compositional diversity for Neil Diamond and is considered by many to be his finest album. It was billed at the time of its release as something of a 'comeback' album, and did mark a new and highly productive phase of Diamond's recording and touring career.

The title track was released as a single in the autumn of 1976 and reached number 13 in the UK singles chart and number 4 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4507
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Beautiful noise' / 'Home is a wounded heart'

She's in love with you - Suzi Quatro

Suzi Quatro initially had a lot of success with her brand of glam-rock in the first half of the Seventies. Between 1975 and 1978, however, she had a hard time maintaining that success: only the 1977 single 'Tear me apart' had some moderate success in the UK and Australia.

In 1978, 'If you can't give me love' became a sudden success in those countries. The duet 'Stumblin' in', which she recorded with Chris Norman from the band Smokie, was even a success Stateside. Both tracks featured on the album 'If you knew Suzi'. A year later, she released 'Suzi... and other four letter words', which featured singles such as 'She's in love with you', which made number 11 in the UK and number 6 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4506
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'She's in love with you' / 'Space cadets'

We gotta get out of this place - Gilla

'We gotta get out of this place' was written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and recorded in 1965 by the Animals. It became an iconic song in its time and was a favourite among the American soldiers during the Vietnam War.

Gilla recorded a cover version in 1979 with Frank Farian producing. Her version reached number 26 in the Dutch Top 40.

My collection: 7" single no. 4505
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'We gotta get out of this place' / 'Take the best of me'

You're the one that I want - John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John

I was never a fan of 'Grease' in 1978, when everyone in my class was. The girls were in love with John Travolta and the boys were in awe of him. Meanwhile, I preferred the singing qualities of Olivia Newton-John but thought the whole madness about one movie was a bit silly. I was always a bit sceptical of manias anyway.

'You're the one that I want' did stand the test of time, however. The single was a number 1 hit in most countries and it is still the sixth best-selling single ever in the UK, where it has sold over 1,975,000 copies.

My collection: 7" single no. 4504
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'You're the one that I want' / 'Alone at a drive-in movie (instrumental)'

Summer nights - John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John and cast

So I go to this second hand shop I've seen on a website. The website says that there are bargain singles for 1 euro each. That's a reasonable price - if the singles are good. When I get there, the man says 'I am just getting rid of some stuff, so shall we say 10 cents each?'. It's like I'm suddenly a kids in a candy store with loads of cash to spend. So I buy literally everything that is vaguely interesting.

This was my first find: the 'Grease' single 'Summer nights' as performed by John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John and the cast of this 1978 movie that took the world by storm. The single reached number 5 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 2 in the Dutch Top 40 and number 1 in the UK singles chart, where it stayed for seven weeks.

My collection: 7" single no. 4503
Found: Any old time, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 0,1 euro
Tracks: 'Summer nights' / 'Rock 'n' Roll party queen' (Louis St. Louis)

Hopelessly - Rick Astley

Rick Astley's fourth album 'Body & soul' is considered a flop, as both singles from the album stranded in the lower regions of the UK singles chart and the album itself never made it into the albums chart. Released in November 1993, 'Hopelessly' was the last of the two, scoring a little higher than the first one, peaking at number 33.

The B-side of this single features a live version of 'Hopelessly', recorded in Milan, Italy for the programme Night Express.

My collection: 7" single no. 4502
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Hopelessly' / 'Hopelessly (live)'

Instinction - Spandau Ballet

'Instinction' was taken from Spandau Ballet's 1982 album 'Diamond'. It was released as the fourth and last single from the album and it reached number 10 in the UK singles chart. In Australia, the single peaked at number 30. In other territories, the single did not chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 4501
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Instinction' / 'Gently'

Shannon - Henry Gross

Henry Gross was born on April 1, 1951 in Brooklyn, New York. Encouraged by his mother, he moved into music at a young age, starting to perform in local clubs when he was only 14 years old. While at college, he was a founder member of the band Sha Na Na, which he left in 1970 to pursue a solo career.

In 1976, he recorded what was to become his signature song, 'Shannon'. The lyric was about the death of Beach Boy Carl Wilson's Irish Setter of the same name. The single reached number 6 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 25 in the Dutch Top 40 and number 32 in the UK singles chart. The song was picked as a favourite by Kim Wilde during her radio show 'Secret Songs' on Magic FM last year, which is how I first heard it. I'm glad to have located a copy, as the song grabbed me right away.

My collection: 7" single no. 4500
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Shannon' / 'Pokey'

Some people - Belouis Some

'Some people' is the title of Belouis Some's debut album, and also the title of the third single release from that album. This limited edition double single set features two bonus live tracks, recorded for Capital Radio in the UK.

The single reached number 33 in the UK singles chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 4499
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, January 30, 2010
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Some people' / 'Walk away' // 'Have you ever been in love (live)' / 'Jerusalem (live)'