Ein Lied ist wie ein Vogel - Ilanit

It doesn't happen very often that two versions of a single appear with the same seller, especially when you're after both versions. But that's exactly what happened earlier this month when I finally found 'Ahava hi shir lishnayim' and its German counterpart, 'Ein Lied ist wie ein Vogel'. It was a bit of a relief to find both singles in quick succession.

Ilanit recorded her 1977 Eurovision entry in several languages, but the original version and this German version are possibly the hardest to get hold of.Of course, now there is still the English version to go.

My collection: 7" single no. 7153
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 13 April 2024
Tracks: 'Ein Lied ist wie ein Vogel' / 'Lass dich mal gehen'

Dance butterfly - Milestones

The Milestones represented Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1972 with 'Falter im Wind'. It remains one of the most underrated and undiscovered gems of Eurovision history, with its combination of dreamy lyrics and - a first on the Eurovision stage, I reckon - the use of a transverse flute. 

The band also recorded the song in English. That single is very rare, and I was lucky enough to pick up a copy that apparently used to be in the archives of Radio Miramar in Spain. It is, of course, a Spanish pressing of the single. 'Dance butterfly' sounds even better in English, I think.

My collection: 7" single no. 7156
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 13 April 2024
Tracks: 'Dance butterfly' / 'Oh fairy day'

Ahava hi shir lishnayim - Ilanit

Back in 1977 Ilanit represented Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest for the second time. She'd been the country's first representative in 1973 but she was invited back when the entries of the years after that didn't deliver the goods. While Ilanit had reached fourth place, Poogy only managed seventh place, Shlomo Artzi only got to place 11 and while Chocolate Menta Mastik reversed the county's fortunes by landing on sixth place, it wasn't enough for the ambitious Israeli broadcaster.

And so, Ilanit came back with the song 'Ahava hi shir lishnayim' ('Love is a song for two'), not exactly the most accessible title but a melodious song nonetheless. Ilanit also recorded the song in French as 'Ensemble' and in German as 'Ein Lied ist wie ein Vogel'. The song ended up in a slightly disappointed 11th place. In 1978 Israel would go for gold with Izhar Cohen.

My collection: 7" single no. 7161
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 13 April 2024
Tracks: 'Ahava hi shir lishnayim' / 'Hene halaila'

Pump pump - Fredi ja Ystävät

Having bought 'Pump pump' and 'Schon wieder macht mein Herz bump bump', obviously I was curious whether I could get hold of the original Finnish version of Fredi & Ystävät's legendary Eurovision entry from 1976. 

Lo and behold, I actually found the single - albeit without its picture sleeve - during last week's record fair. The funny and catchy song was released in three languages, which means that I now have all versions.

My collection: 7" single no. 7151
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 13 April 2024
Tracks: 'Pump pump' / 'Kun ita hämärtyy'

Angel - David Gates

Ex-Bread singer David Gates thought he would make it on his own and released a few albums on his own, before reuniting with his old band. His second solo album was 'Never let her go', from which this single, 'Angel' was taken. I was curious enough to want to take this single home.

I was quite surprised when I found that this single was listed for sale on Discogs by three people, with prices starting at €50. However, I also learned that the single has never sold on there, so I guess these people are just very optimistic. Anyway: it's a German promotional disc, which I guess does count for something. Maybe not €50 though.

My collection: 7" single no. 7143
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 13 April 2024
Tracks: 'Angel' / 'Never let her go'

It's great fun - Hearts of Soul

The Hearts of Soul represented the Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1970 with 'Waterman', and continued to release singles in the years after that. 'It's great fun' was actually their last single, before they moved to Antwerp and formed Dream Express after that. 

This promotional German single features a special promo sleeve (quite usual for German promotional singles around that time) with a short blurb about the trio. 'It's great fun' didn't chart, although it did make an appearance in the Dutch 'Tipparade', the top 30 of candidate Top 40 singles, where it peaked at number 5.

My collection: 7" single no. 7142
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 13 April 2024
Tracks: 'It's great fun' / 'Dream'

Love is life - Hot Chocolate

It's always great to find a Hot Chocolate single. They released a lot of them in the Seventies, driven by music mogul Mickie Most and his RAK Records label, which demanded hit records from all the artists they signed. 

'Love is life' was the band's first chart success back in 1970. It peaked at number 6 in the UK singles chart during a chart run of 12 weeks. After this, they had two hits every year on average, right until 1983! In the Netherlands their success was more limited; 'Love is life' didn't chart and they only had 13 hits in the same period.

My collection: 7" single no. 7125
Found: Discogs.com, received 20 March 2024
Tracks: 'Love is life' / 'Pretty girls'

Cuba - Gibson Brothers

A year before the Gibson Brothers had a hit with 'Que sera mi vida', they had a hit with a similarly Latin America-oriented single called 'Cuba' in 1979. The single peaked at number 32 in the Dutch Top 40, and reached number 41 in the UK singles chart. It fared better in the UK in 1980 when it was re-released: it reached number 12.

They actually had two more hits in the UK: 'Mariana' (1980) and 'My heart's beating wild' (1983). Neither of those charted in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, my musical interests had shifted to other bands as well.

My collection: 7" single no. 7145
Found: Record fair, Rijswijk, 3 March 2024
Tracks: 'Cuba' / 'Cuba (instrumental)'

Heroes (live) - David Bowie

'Heroes' is undoubtedly one of the highlights of David Bowie's genre, perhaps bridging the gap between lovers of 'Seventies Bowie' and 'Eighties Bowie'. This particular single seems to be an unofficial released by Reel to Reel Records, featuring two different live versions of the track.

The first recording was made live at Montreal Forum on 13 July 1983, the second was recorded live at the Tokyo Dome, 16 May 1990. The two don't sound very different really, but it's a nice item for fans nonetheless. The added attraction of it being a picture disc drew me in - after all, there have been quite a few picture disc releases of Bowie during the last decade.

My collection: 7" single no. 7116
Found: Sounds, Delft, 27 January 2024
Tracks: 'Heroes (live at Montreal Forum, Montreal, Canada, 13th July 1983)' / 'Heroes (live at Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan, 16 May 1990)'

Mile after mile - Jahn Teigen

Although Jahn Teigen wasn't exactly successful with his 'Mil etter mil' at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1978, he did record the song in English. It was surprisingly difficult to get this single for a reasonable price, even online. In the end, I wound up buying this copy together with three rarer Norwegian singles from a Norwegian seller late last year.

Jahn even recorded the B-side 'Claudius' in English. This copy was made in Norway; the single was also released in Germany with a different sleeve.

My collection: 7" single no. 7107
Found: Discogs.com, received 3 January 2024
Tracks: 'Mile after mile' / 'Claudius'

Småting - Grethe og Benny

'Småting' is a Norwegian pop song that won the Melodi Grand Prix 1972, and was Norway's entry to the Eurovision Song Contest the same year. The melody and lyrics were written by Kåre Grøttum and Ivar Børsum, and the song was performed by Grethe Kausland (3 July 1947 - 16 November 2007) and Benny Borg (born 13 November 1945 in Gothenburg). The song is a ballad, where the duo compares the great successes of human life ("inheriting a castle, landing on the moon") with small things, such as watching the sunset, which they sing are higher experiences.

In the international final, the song received 73 points, placing it 14th out of 18 contestants. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7106
Found: Discogs.com, received 3 January 2024
Tracks: 'Småting' / 'Har du noengang'

Magazine - Heart

After Heart's very successful debut album 'Dreamboat Annie', they had a falling out with their label Mushroom over an advert for that album that was too suggestive for their liking. Legal wrangles followed, during which Mushroom released the second album 'Magazine' prematurely. After the dispute was resolved, Heart still had to deliver a second album proper, and so they re-recorded 'Magazine'. 

The title track was released as the third single from the album in 1979. It failed to chart in all territories, after which Heart's ties with Mushroom Records were broken. In the early 1980s, Mushroom Records went out of business. Ownership rights to Heart's two albums for Mushroom were purchased by Capitol Records, which reissued the recordings. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7099
Found: Discogs.com, received 27 December 2023
Tracks: 'Magazine' / 'Devil delight'

Sunday girl - Blondie

I've complained about Record Store Day on this blog before: it's too expensive, too limited and too attractive for scalpers. That's not to say that the releases are always bad: there's been quite a few interesting items over the years - the trick is just to find them, years later, and hopefully for lower prices.

This double single of Blondie's 'Sunday girl' was released in April 2022, so not too long ago. One disc is pressed on yellow vinyl, the other on red vinyl. The second disc actually presents a previously unreleased live version, recorded at the Paramount Theatre in Portland in January 1979. Unfortunately that's a rather low-fi recording. But anyway, it's a nice release and it looks great.

My collection: 7" single no. 7090
Found: A&O, Düsseldorf, 16 December 2023
Tracks: 'Sunday girl' / 'Sunday girl (French version)' // 'Sunday girl (demo)' / 'Sunday girl (live)'

You're all I need to get by - Johnny Mathis & Deniece Williams

'You're all I need to get by' was written by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson. It was originally recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell and released on Motown Records' Tamla label in 1968.

Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams recorded the song for their 1978 duet album 'That's what friends are for'. It was the follow-up to their US number 1 hit 'Too much, too little, too late'. Their version of 'You're all I need to get by' reached number 47 in the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 45 in the UK singles chart. The copy I bought is a UK promotional single, which is a nice find!

My collection: 7" single no. 7091
Found: 33|45 Records, Den Haag, 22 December 2023
Tracks: 'You're all I need to get by' / 'You're a special part of my life'

Jeg er en astronaut - Anne Mette Torp

It's almost eight years ago that I found a copy of 'Jag är en astronaut' by Anne Mette Torp, the Swedish cover version of 'I am an astronaut', recorded by Ricky Wilde in 1972. Back then I already found out that Anne Mette originally recorded the song in Norwegian, but the single, officially with 'En sang jeg har laert av min bestemor' on the A-side, was very hard to get hold of.

But I was finally successful last month. A Norwegian seller had this single on offer and luckily I was the first one to find out about it. It's not that I am a particular fan of songs recorded by children, but one of my (many) subcollections is, of course, cover versions of songs by Marty Wilde. And so, here it is: the second and last Anne Mette Torp single in my collection.

My collection: 7" single no. 7083
Found: Discogs.com, received 6 December 2023
Tracks: 'En sang jeg har laert av min bestemor' / 'Jeg er en astronaut'

Let's get serious - Jermaine Jackson

It's an odd fact that Jermaine Jackson always remained somewhat in the shadows of his younger brother Michael, despite the fact that certainly in the late Seventies he released some very great material. This single is a good example: 'Let's get serious', produced by Stevie Wonder, is a song that is impossibly catchy. 

I actually only discovered this track recently, when I bought a CD of 12 inch singles from 1980. This is quite strange, since this single was released in 1978. But it's true: in the UK this single peaked at number 8 in the singles chart in 1980. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7077
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Let's get serious' / 'Je vous aime beaucoup (I love you)'

To the unknown man - Electric Playground Orchestra

It's hard to surpass the majestic beauty of Vangelis' 'To the unknown man', but still it has been tried. In 1978, the Electric Playground Orchestra released this single - a single I've never seen before. I bought it out of curiosity, because I wanted to know what this version would sound like. 

The identity of this 'orchestra' has not been revealed, but we do know that this single is produced by a certain Werner Schüler, which leads me to conclude that this is a German outfit. But if you know more, you are welcome to post in the comments!

My collection: 7" single no. 7069
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'To the unknown man' / 'Cascade'

Betcha by golly wow - The Stylistics

'Betcha by golly, wow' is a song written by Thom Bell and Linda Creed, originally titled 'Keep growing strong' and recorded by Connie Stevens under the Bell label in 1970. The composition later became a hit when it was released by the Philadelphia soul group the Stylistics in 1972 under its better known title. It was the third track from the Stylistics' 1971 debut self-titled album; released as a single in 1972, it reached number 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 13 on the UK Singles Chart.

In 1996, Prince recorded another version of the song, which leaned a lot on the Stylistics' version. 

My collection: 7" single no. 7065
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Betcha by golly wow' / 'Ebony eyes'

Freedom is today - Mia Martini

Mia Martini performed 'Libera' at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1977, representing Italy. As nice as the song was, Italian is not my strong point, and so I was happy to know that there was also an English version of this song. But how to find it?

This single is rather rare, which is why it was also under the table at the record fair last Saturday. Fortunately the price wasn't very steep, and so I was able to pick up this UK promo, which features both the English and the original version. Oddly, both labels feature the prominent 'A' on them.

My collection: 7" single no. 7063
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Freedom is today' / 'Libera'

Die heerlijke wereld - Micha Marah

Micha Marah made headlines earlier this year when she decided to finally record her Eurovision entry from 1979, 'Hey nana'. Until now, only the version by composer Charles Dumolin has been available on record, and unfortunately it seems like it will remain like this, since there is no physical release of Micha's version yet. 

We'll have to made do with Micha's cover version of 'En un mundo nuevo', Spain's Eurovision entry from 1971. She recorded it as 'Die heerlijke wereld' ('That delicious world') in 1971, and it sounds as joyful as the original - even if the lyrics sound rather naff if you can understand Flemish/Dutch.

My collection: 7" single no. 7060
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 11 November 2023
Tracks: 'Die heerlijke wereld' / 'Die ring'