Take me don't break me - Arabesque

Arabesque was a German disco music group, founded in 1977. The trio consisted of Sandra Cretu, Jasmin Vetter and Michaela Rose. In 1984, Cretu would leave the group to pursue a solo career as Sandra, produced by Michael Cretu. This single is their fifth release, 'Take me don't break me' (1980). It barely made the German top 40 at the time.

I bought this single because I became interested in Sandra's pre-solo activities. I supposed she always made lightweight pop. This single delivers as promised.

My collection: 7" single no. 3664

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 0,5 euro

Tracks: 'Take me don't break me' / 'Parties in a penthouse'

19 (German version) - Paul Hardcastle

In 1985, synth wizard Paul Hardcastle had a big hit with the sample-heavy '19'. The track contains stuttering samples of television narrator Peter Thomas speaking about Vietnam war veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

It is a little-known fact that Hardcastle also made French and German versions of the track. This is the German version of '19', narrated by Werner Veigel. Just like in many other countries, '19' topped the chart in Germany, partly thanks to this version.

My collection: 7" single no. 3657

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 0,5 euro

Tracks: '19 (German version)' / 'Eat your heart out'

Beat the clock - Sparks

'This town ain't big enough for the both of us' was my favourite childhood song, but it was also the last hit by the Sparks as far as I knew. The chart book tells me they had another hit in 1974 with 'Amateur hour' and one in 1975 with 'Something for the girl with everything', but in 1979 the Sparks returned with 'Beat the clock'. It peaked at number 15. In the UK, it was the Sparks' first top 10 hit since 'Amateur hour'.

Listening to 'Beat the clock' you can tell that the band took on a very different sound at the end of the Seventies. The disco-influenced track with operatic vocals is, like much of the band's work, a one-off.

My collection: 7" single no. 3666

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 18, 2009

Cost: 0,5 euro

Tracks: 'Beat the clock' / 'Beat the clock (Alternative mix)'

Eres tu - Mocedades

In 1973, the Spanish group Mocedades ('Youth') represented Spain during the Eurovision Song Contest with this song, 'Eres tu'. They ended up in second place behind winning country Luxemburg, represented by Anne-Marie David with 'Tu te reconnaitras'. The difference between the two was only four points.

'Eres Tú' became a huge international hit. It also remains one of the only Spanish language songs to reach the top 10 in the United States, peaking at number 9 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 2005, Eres Tú was nominated for the 50th anniversary Eurovision concert 'Congratulations' after being selected as one of the 14 most popular songs in Eurovision history, and finished eleventh. In the Netherlands, it was voted the most popular Eurovision song of all times that year. (That should have been 'Rapsodia' by Mia Martini, of course.)

I bought my copy of the single in a custom Polydor sleeve. Since the single was released on the Omega International label, that sleeve certainly was wrong. And so, no picture of the sleeve with this entry...

My collection: 7" single no. 3293

Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, February 24, 2001

Cost: 1 guilder

Tracks: 'Eres tu' / 'Dime senor'

Songbird - Kenny G

This is the kind of music you hear in elevators, supermarkets and bad restaurants. Kenny G is probably one of the most uncool artists on the planet. Yet his 'Songbird' is one of the most recognizable instrumentals around. It wasn't a very big hit in Europe, peaking at number 22 in the UK and number 25 in the Netherlands, but in America the single got to number 4 in the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

'Songbird' comes from Kenny G's multi-platinum album 'Duotones' (1986) and was featured prominently in the 1990 movie 'Pretty woman' and in the 2005 animation movie 'Robots'.

My collection: 7" single no. 1631

Found: Record fair, April 18, 1992

Cost: 2 guilders

Tracks: 'Songbird' / 'Midnight motion'

One better day - Madness

'One better day' was not a hit in the Netherlands, but the video was shown regularly on music channels broadcasting from the UK, where the single peaked at number 17 in the summer of 1984. I thought the video was incredibly funny for reasons I could not exactly explain.

I searched for the single for many years, and I don't know exactly why it was so hard to find it. When I finally did find it, the single was made in Holland. I wonder why it wasn't available anywhere, then...

My collection: 7" single no. 2272

Found: Record fair, April 23, 1995

Cost: 5 guilders

Tracks: 'One better day' / 'Guns'

What comes naturally - Sheena Easton

After the album 'The lover in me', Sheena Easton seemed to want to pursue her career as a sex symbol in America even further. Her clothing became even flimsier and her music became less attractive as well. 'What comes naturally', the first single from the album of the same name, hovers dangerously towards the hiphop genre, but stays decent - but only just.

The UK audience had lost their interest in Easton, but the single did chart in the Netherlands, and even peaked at number 12 in the Dutch Top 40. In America it was her last hit single, peaking at number 19.

My collection: 7" single no. 1445
Found: Melody Maker, Den Haag, 1991
Cost: 6,5 guilders
Tracks: 'What comes naturally (7" single edit with rap)' / 'What comes naturally (7" single edit without rap)'