Det var en yndig tid - Grete Klitgaard

Denmark participated in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960 with the song 'Det var en yndig tid', performed by Katy Bødtger. The song was also recorded, and in the same year, by Grete Klitgaard.

Grete Klitgaard (real name: Grete Vita Johansen, born on 5 December 1934) won a singing competition in 1953 at the National Scala, Copenhagen and got a record contract with the Danish record company Tono. Over a period of just over 10 years, she managed to record a very large number of tunes, many of which are considered evergreens. Among other things, she will be remembered for her clear voice and her always smiling mood. She passed away on 26 January 1964. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6686
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 9 April 2022
Cost: €2
Tracks: 'Det var en yndig tid' / 'Gør Hvad Du Vil'

Sig dejlige ting til mig - Poul Bundgaard

In 1963, Ronnie Carroll participated in the Eurovision Song Contest, representing the UK, with 'Say wonderful things'. The Danish singer Poul Bundgaard was quick to try and profit from the prominence of this song (it finished in fourth place) and recorded a Danish cover of the song the same year. Entitled 'Sig dejlige ting til mig', the Danish lyrics were provided by Peter Mynte. I bought my copy from a friendly Danish dealer I hadn't seen for three years. It's good to have international record fairs again after all this Covid shenanigans.

Poul Arne Bundgaard was a Danish actor and singer. In addition to having appeared in a large number of Danish films, Bundgaard starred in a number of operettas in the late 1940s until the 1950s, and worked at the Royal Danish Theatre as a singer between 1958 and 1973; however, he focused mostly on acting later on in his career, partly due to stage fright. He died during the filming of 'Olsen-bandens sidste stik' on 3 June 1998, aged 75.

My collection: 7" single no. 6685
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 9 April 2022
Cost: €2
Tracks: 'Sig dejlige ting til mig' / 'Jeg sa kun et glimt af dig'

Haleluyah - Offen

Filadelfiakyrkan is a Pentecostal church building at Rörstrandsgatan 7 in Stockholm, Sweden; it was dedicated on 2 November 1930. The building is owned by the Filadelfia Stockholm congregation, the largest congregation in the Swedish Pentecostal movement with about 5,400 members as of 2015. 

Why am I telling you this? Because in 1979 the choir from this church recorded a cover version of Milk and Honey's 'Hallelujah', the song that gave them victory at the Eurovision Song Contest that year. There are, of course, many cover versions of that song but this single is a bit of a rarity it seems, as it was the only single this choir released and since it's actually performed in Swedish. As far as I know, the song has not been performed in Swedish by other artists - but correct me if I'm wrong.

My collection: 7" single no. 6684
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 9 April 2022
Cost: €1
Tracks: 'Haleluyah' / 'Vi Är En Familj'

Ciao ciao bambina (Piove) - Dalida

Domenico Modugno's song Piove (Ciao ciao bambina) was extremely successful, despite not winning the Eurovision Song Contest with the song in 1959. It was covered by many artists, some virtually unknown, some world famous. 

Dalida would fall in the latter category. The Italian-French singer was born in Egypt and interpreted her songs in eleven languages. She recorded 'Piove' in French on this EP. Since her death, Dalida has become a cult figure to a new generation of fans. In 1988, the Encyclopædia Universalis commissioned a poll, published in the French newspaper Le Monde, that aimed to reveal the personalities who had the greatest impact on French society. Dalida polled second, behind Général de Gaulle.

My collection: 7" single no. 6683
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 April 2022
Cost: €3
Tracks: 'Ciao ciao bambina (Piove)', 'Ce serait dommage' / 'Tout l'amour', 'La fille aux pieds nus'

Va dire à l'amour - Marjorie Noël

Marjorie Noël was born as Françoise Nivot on 25 December 1945 in Paris (France). She made her first recordings in 1964, and in 1965 she was invited to represent Monaco at the Eurovision Song Contest. 'Va dire à l'amour' was written by Raymond Bernard and Jacques Mareuil. The song ended in ninth place in a field of 18 competitors. 

Marjorie would later take part in the 1965 La Rose d'Or festival in Antibes, and released in total seven EP's. She retired from showbusiness in 1967 and spent the rest of her life in anonymity. She died of a cerebral hemorrhage, aged 54, in Cavaillon, Vaucluse, on 30 April 2000.

My collection: 7" single no. 6682
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 April 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Va dire à l'amour', 'De trop mentir' / 'Non docteur', 'Bonjour mon amour'

Μόνο Εσύ (Apres Toi) - Βίκυ (Vicky Leandros)

'Après toi' was the song that gave Vicky Leandros victory at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1972. She represented Luxembourg, but she was actually from Greece. No wonder, then, that she also recorded her song in Greek. A copy of that single, made in Greece, finally arrived on my doorstep. Μόνο Εσύ actually means 'Only you', which is an indication that the Greek lyrics differ from the original French version.

Other versions of the song are 'Come what may', 'Dann kamst du', 'Dopo te', as well as Spanish and Japanese versions, which may one day be mine as well. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6681
Found: Discogs.com, received 8 April 2022
Cost: €8
Tracks: 'Μόνο Εσύ (Apres Toi)' / 'Αναμνήσεις (Wenn Die Sehnsucht Nicht War)'

The pros and cons of hitch-hiking - Roger Waters

Roger Waters is of course best known for his work, and subsequent legal issues, with Pink Floyd. After working on 'The Wall' and 'The final cut', the band fell apart and Waters recorded a solo album, entitled 'The pros and cons of hitch-hiking'. One of the tracks, with the same title, was released as a single. 

Remarkably, the single was not a big hit: it only reached number 76 in the UK singles chart and number 30 in Australia. However, in the Dutch Top 40 the single reached number 16, and this is why I still remember the song - back in 1984 I followed that chart every week. Waters is still making music, and still "having issues" with his old Pink Floyd band mates. Sometimes you wish that adults would grow up.

My collection: 7" single no. 6680
Found: Velvet, Leiden, 2 April 2022
Cost: €3
Tracks: 'The pros and cons of hitch-hiking' / 'Apparently they were travelling abroad'

La! La! La! / Congratulations - Caravelli

Caravelli appeared on this blog before, with his instrumental versions of 'Chez nous' and 'Dio come ti amo', two songs from the 1966 Eurovision Song Contest. In 1968 he was at it again, this time to record his versions of the two songs that landed at first and second place: 'La La La' by Massiel and 'Congratulations' by Cliff Richard. 

It didn't end there either: besides recording instrumental versions of big hits of the Sixties and Seventies, he would also record a handful of covers of Eurovision songs in subsequent years. Some of them ended up on singles - so he might appear on this blog a few times more.

My collection: 7" single no. 6679
Found: Velvet, Leiden, 2 April 2022
Cost: €2
Tracks: 'La! La! La!' / 'Congratulations'

Hi, Hi, Hi / C Moon - Wings

It's been a while since I had the opportunity to go to a real record shop and browse through racks of singles. It's always more interesting than buying singles online, because you tend to come across discs that you would never order from an online dealer. This is such a single: Wings' double A side of 'Hi, Hi, Hi' and 'C Moon'. 

In the UK, 'Hi, Hi, Hi' was banned by the BBC for its sexually suggestive lyrical content. The BBC also assumed that the title phrase, "We're gonna get hi, hi, hi" was a drug reference.The specific lyrics objected to is the apparent phrase "get you ready for my body gun"; McCartney has said that the correct lyrics are "get you ready for my polygon", an abstract image, and later said, "The BBC got some of the words wrong. But I suppose it is a bit of a dirty song if sex is dirty and naughty. I was in a sensuous mood in Spain when I wrote it."

As for 'C Moon', that title was inspired by lyrics in the song 'Wooly Bully' by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. McCartney said, "There's a line in [Wooly Bully] that says, 'Let's not be L7.' Well, L7, it was explained at the time, means a square—put L and 7 together and you get a square... So I thought of the idea of putting a C and a moon together (a half-moon) to get the opposite of a square. So 'C Moon' means cool, in other words."

My collection: 7" single no. 6678
Found: Plato, Leiden, 2 April 2022
Cost: €2
Tracks: 'Hi, Hi, Hi' / 'C Moon'

I'm not in love - 10CC

Although I own an 'Old Gold' version of 10CC's 'I'm not in love', I came across this single and just couldn't resist buying it. Part of the appeal was the fact that it was a UK pressing, another part of the appeal was that it was a beautiful, untouched copy. It's hard to believe that this single survived since its release at the end of the Seventies. 

This single was released in order to promote the band's compilation album 'Greatest hits 1972-1978', which featured all their hits until then. 'I'm not in love' was one of their biggest hits, reaching number 1 in Canada, Ireland and the UK, and reaching the top 10 almost everywhere else.

My collection: 7" single no. 6677
Found: Plato, Leiden, 2 April 2022
Cost: €2
Tracks: 'I'm not in love' / 'For you and I'

Muistathan - Päivi Paunu & Kim Floor

Finnish entries to the Eurovision Song Contest are always worth listening to. The language is intriguing and the Finnish have a habit of coming up with great melodies. At the same time, getting a hold of Finnish singles is incredibly difficult, so they usually have to be ordered from that country which is a rather expensive hobby. 

'Muistathan' ('I hope you remember') was Finland's 1972 entry to the Eurovision Song Contest and was performed by Päivi Paunu and Kim Floor. You would be forgiven for thinking that Kim was a woman, but in fact, it's Päivi who is female and Kim is male. Their song finished in 12th place in a field of 18 competitors. Päivi passed away on 14 December 2016, aged 70, of cancer. Kim is still alive and hosted the Finnish version of 'Wheel of fortune' during the Nineties.

My collection: 7" single no. 6675
Found: Discogs.com, received 2 April 2022
Cost: €9
Tracks: 'Muistathan' / 'Yhteinen tie'

Wenn du da bist - Marty Brem

Austria's pop culture has never really taken off. They are mostly remembered for Udo Jürgens and Opus; the latter produced the awful 'Life is life', the song that sounds every bit as naff as its title. 

In 1981, they tried their luck at the Eurovision Song Contest with Marty Brem, a singer who had been part of the band Blue Danube, who competed the year before with 'Du bist Musik'. His song was a ballad, a schmaltzy little thing that didn't make much of an impression. He finished in 17th place in a field of 20 competitors. 

I have been searching for this single for some time, but it was always a bit too expensive. In the end, I ordered it from Spain and got a mint copy for all my troubles!

My collection: 7" single no. 6673
Found: Discogs.com, received 2 April 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Wenn du da bist' / 'Wozu noch ein Stern'

The Big Four, no. 11 - Frankie Vaughan, Kaye Sisters, Shirley Bassey, Marty Wilde

This EP was released in May 1959, and featured four hits from 1958 and 1959. My reason for buying this EP is obviously the appearance of Marty Wilde with his hit 'Donna', but there are a few more gems on this: a young Shirley Bassey who sings 'Kiss me, honey honey, kiss me' and Frankie Vaughan with 'Venus' (not the Shocking Blue song). The Kaye Sisters deliver a dreamy version of 'Goodbye, Jimmy, goodbye'.

There have been 20 of these 'big four' EP's between 1956 and 1960, and Marty appears on number 9, 11, 14, 17 and 20. That should make an interesting subcollection, don't you think? Watch this space...

My collection: 7" single no. 6671
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 March 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Venus' (Frankie Vaughan), 'Goodbye, Jimmy, goodbye' (The Kaye Sisters) / 'Kiss me, honey honey, kiss me' (Shirley Bassey), 'Donna' (Marty Wilde)

Uno per tutte - Willy en Willeke Alberti

Recent entries in this blog have shown that Dutch singer Willy Alberti recorded quite a few Eurovision songs during the first years of the event. In 1963, he was at it again, and this time he took along his daughter Willeke Alberti as well. 

Willeke was born on 3 February 1945 and was eighteen when she recorded this duet with her father. 'Uno per tutte' and 'Non costa niente' were both performed at the Italian San Remo festival in 1963, with the former going on to the Eurovision stage in a version by Emilio Pericoli. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6672
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 March 2022
Cost: €2
Tracks: 'Uno per tutte' / 'Non costa niente'

Weit, so weit der Regenbogen reicht - Ilanit

Ilanit was Israel's first representative at the Eurovision Song Contest ever. This happened in 1973, with the song 'Ey Sham'. Although I didn't yet get a copy of the original version of the song, I bought the English version, 'All make believe', back in 2014, and recently I acquired this German version. Somehow I think 'Ey Sham' will one day be in my collection as well.

Ilanit said in interviews that she had rather mixed feelings about singing in German, because of Germany's troubled history in World War II, but she came to know Germans who were friendly people and this changed her point of view towards them.

My collection: 7" single no. 6670
Found: Discogs.com, received 30 March 2022
Cost: €3
Tracks: 'Weit, so weit der Regenbogen reicht' / 'Noch sind Wiesen grün'

Danser contre toi - Sergio Dalma

Sergio Dalma represented Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1991 with the song 'Bailar pegados'. It was a decent effort, and expectations were high. In the end, the song finished in fourth place, which was still quite respectable.

The singer didn't waste any time to try and conquer the whole of Europe. He recorded an Italian version entitled 'Bailare stretti', which I managed to buy last year, and this new addition to my collection, the French version 'Danser contre toi'. A promotional 12" single, released in Spain, brought all three versions together, but it's nicer to have the three singles individually, of course. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6669
Found: Ebay, received 29 March 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Danser contre toi (version eurovision)' / 'Danser contre toi'

Blau wie das Meer (L'amour est bleu) - Vicky

Vicky Leandros represented Luxembourg in 1967 with 'L'amour est bleu'. The song became a worldwide hit, also thanks to the version by Paul Mauriat, 'Love is blue'. However, Vicky herself also recorded an English version of her song, which was entitled 'Colours of love'. 

This single presents yet another version of the same song: 'Blau wie das Meer' is a German translation of 'L'amour est bleu', released to cater to the Central European market. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6668
Found: Discogs.com, received 26 March 2022
Cost: €3
Tracks: 'Blau wie das Meer (L'amour est bleu)' / 'Nie mehr scheint mir die Sonne so hell (Le soleil a quitté ma maison)'

Retour - Henri Dès

Henri Dès was born on 14 December 1940 in Renens, Vaud (Switzerland) as Henri Destraz. In 1969, he won the Sopot International Song Festival. He represented Switzerland in the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest with the song 'Retour'. The song finished in fourth place. Later that same year, he released his first album, also titled 'Retour'. Dès also founded his own record label, Disques Mary-Josée, which he named after his wife.

During his career, Henri became known for songs aimed at children. On 15 March 2019 he joined striking school children in Lausanne protesting against climate change. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6667
Found: Discogs.com, received 26 March 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Retour' / 'Sylvie'

Du Hör En Sång - Inger Öst & Torsten Wallin

Although some parties in Sweden were very critical of the Eurovision Song Contest, it was still a very popular event in Scandinavia, and many of the Eurovision songs were covered by local artists. This single features a Swedish version of the Dutch entry of the 1974 edition, 'I see a star' ('Ik zie een ster'). 

The song was translated by Bosse Carlgren and performed by Inger Öst and Torsten Wallin. Lilian Inger Elisabeth Öst Hellström was originally part of the singing group Family Four, before she went solo in the late 1960's and had several hits in Sweden, including 'Touch me'. Torsten Wallin, who appears on the A-side of this single only, is a Swedish singer, musician and comedian. 

My collection: 7" single no. 6666
Found: Discogs.com, received 24 March 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Du Hör En Sång' / 'En grön dröm om mej'

Sjunger Eurovisionsschlager - Gunnar Wiklund

In 1966, Gunnar Wiklund took part in the Swedish national final for the Eurovision Song Contest with two songs: 'Vinterrosor' and 'Vad har jag kvar?'. The songs ended up in fifth and tenth place respectively. 

Undeterred, he released this EP, featuring the two songs plus two cover versions of songs that did end up in the international competition: 'Nygammal vals', the Swedish entry originally performed by Lill Lindfors and Svante Thuresson, and 'Merci Cherie', the winning song by Udo Jürgens from Austria. Gunnar recorded 'Nygammal vals' together with Marianne Kock.

My collection: 7" single no. 6665
Found: Discogs.com, received 24 March 2022
Cost: €4
Tracks: 'Vinterrosor', 'Vad har jag kvar?' / 'Merci Chérie', 'Nygammal vals'