Young guns (go for it) - Wham!

When Wham! released 'Young guns (go for it)' in October 1982, it broke new ground for the duo George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. The single became a number 1 hit in Sweden, and reached number 3 in the UK. It was only their second single, and they were already on the way to superstardom.

While the single was entertaining, the extended mixes were intriguing. There were actually two remixes of this song. A 5'10 minute remix has become by far the most widespread, having had a release even on CD ('Best remixes' in Japan and 'The 12" album' in Europe). The 7 minute remix featured on this 12" single is much harder to find: it was only ever released on a 12" single in the USA and this one, made in Holland. And yes, you can find it on CD, if you are able to find the 1996 compilation album 'Club Epic' or the 2013 'Dance Classics Pop Edition vol. 10', released in the Netherlands. Why Sony Music have never made a definitive Wham! box set, I'll never know.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Kringloop Rijswijk, January 31, 2016
Cost: 1 euro
Tracks: 'Young guns (Go for it!)' [club remix] / 'Going for it'

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Say say say - Paul McCartney & Michael Jackson

Why not start the new year with two music legends? I received this 12" single just before the turn of the year, after a month of waiting. Released for Black Friday (November 27), this disc was pressed on clear vinyl and originally only slated for release in the United States. Fortunately, Europe followed suit and eventually I was able to order this via Amazon.

I would actually have preferred a CD release, because 12" singles are rather big and take up a lot of space, but it has to be said that this is a beautiful record. The 2015 remix of 'Say Say Say' adds some nice touches, such as reversed vocals on the verses and some added instrumentation throughout - without destroying  the feel of the original track.

My collection: 12" single [unnumbered]
Found: Amazon France, received December 29, 2015
Cost: 8 euro
Tracks: 'Say say say (2015 remix)' / 'Say say say (Jellybean Instrumental remix)'

Listen to the 2015 remix & listen to the instrumental remix

Kaupungin lapset - Make Lentonen

There are many versions of Kim Wilde's 'Kids in America', but there are also a lot of versions of 'Kaupungin lapset', the Finnish translation of that very song. The earliest version was already recorded in the same year as the original song (1981) by Mona Carita - and many other Finnish artists have had a stab at this translated version since.

Make Lentonen recorded his version in 1993. This single is hard to find; for a long time a version without the picture sleeve has been available on Discogs.com, but finding the version with its original cover proved to be more difficult. It took me a long time, but I've finally found a copy - also on that website. Once it was offered, I snapped it up within a couple of hours.

My collection: 7" single no. 5817
Found: Discogs.com, received December 19, 2015
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Kaupungin lapset' / 'Puistokatu krs. 6'

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Think sometimes about me - Sandie Shaw

'Think sometimes about me' was released in November 1966, just months before the singer would become a Eurovision icon with 'Puppet on a string'. This single would end up on the album named after that Eurovision hit.

What's interesting (for me anyway) is not so much the A side of this single, but the B side: 'Hide all emotion' was written by Marty Wilde. Hence, I had to have this single.

My collection: 7" single no. 5816
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, December 19, 2015
Cost: 2 pounds
Tracks: 'Think sometimes about me' / 'Hide all emotion'

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Monsieur - Park Cafe

Park Cafe formed in 1986 with members Rom Heck, Maggie Park and Gast Waltzing in Luxembourg. They released their self-titled debut album a year later. In 1989, they represented Luxembourg during the Eurovision Song Contest with this song, 'Monsieur'. As you can hear, it was a bouncy pop song that would have done well in the charts with proper promotion. As it was, they only reached 20th place in a field of 22 competitors. That said, that year's winner was Riva's infamous 'Rock me', proof that the real winning songs sometimes end up down below.

The band released the album 'Monsieur' that same year, and eventually folded in 1993. This single is a real rarity and only appears online from time to time for rather excessive prices.

My collection: 7" single no. 5815
Found: Discogs.com, received November 26, 2015
Cost: 5 euro
Tracks: 'Monsieur' / 'Living in toonland'

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La la la - Heidi Brühl

Heidi Rosemarie Brühl was born on January 30, 1942. She was a German singer and actress who came to prominence as a young teenager and had a prolific career in film and television. She was also a successful recording artist, and is known for her participation in the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest for Germany with the song 'Marcel'.

In 1968, she recorded this cover version of Spain's winning song 'La la la' - in German. She died of breast cancer on June 8, 1991, aged just 49.

My collection: 7" single no. 5813
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2015
Cost: 0,8 euro
Tracks: 'La la la' / 'Und mein Zug fährt immer weiter...'

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Red rose - Alphaville

'Red rose' was the fifth and final single from Alphaville's 1986 album, 'Afternoons in Utopia'. It was released in April 1987.

Although the single didn't chart anywhere in Europe, it did reach number 24 on the US Hot Dance Chart.

My collection: 7" single no. 5813
Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 21, 2015
Cost: 0,8 euro
Tracks: 'Red rose' / 'Concrete Soundtracks For Imaginary Films 1: Big Yellow Sun'

Listen to the song