Rent - Pet Shop Boys

From the already impressive back catalogue of the Pet Shop Boys, I bought this CD single a year after its release for a discounted price - and so this became the first Pet Shop Boys CD single I ever bought. 'Rent' was released as the third single off the boys' album 'Actually', featuring the brilliant B-side 'I want a dog' that would reappear in different versions later on in their career, plus two versions of the title track.

It's one of those rare CD singles with a cloth inner sleeve, a gimmick that was only used during the first year the CD single existed - and even then only in the ones that were housed in a cardboard sleeve, like this one.

1. Rent (Extended mix)
2. Rent (Dub)
3. I want a dog

Parlophone CDR 6168
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Mandinka - Sinéad O'Connor

'Still listening' was the non-album track included as the B-side of the 7" single of Sinéad O'Connor's phenomenal debut single 'Troy'. Since that single was never released on CD, I immediately went for this one when I found out 'Still listening' was included as one of the extra tracks. Even if I didn't like the title track of this CD single all that much. The album track 'Drink before the war', also included here, was a great track too, so this is one of those strange instances where the title track and its remix don't really stand up to the bonus tracks.

1. Mandinka
2. Drink before the war
3. Mandinka (Instrumental dub)
4. Still listening

Chrysalis 659712-211
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Dear God - XTC

One of the angriest songs in pop is this atheist song called 'Dear God'. It was released in 1987 and immediately got a release on CD as well.

The CD single comes with a six part musical piece called the 'Homo Safari Series', varying in length between two and five minutes. The gatefold sleeve also contained a booklet called the 'CD Circular', a folder that promotes other CD releases on the Virgin label.

1. Dear God
2. Homo Safari
3. Bushman President
4. Egyptian solution
5. Mantis on parole
6. Frost circus
7. Procession toward learning land

Virgin CDEP 3
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New sensation - INXS

Another single from their album 'Kick', 'New sensation' was released after the phenomenal success of 'Need you tonight'. The CD single was a compilation of old INXS tracks, taken from 1984, 1985, 1986 and (the title track) from 1987.

1. New sensation
2. Do wot you do
3. Love is (what I say)
4. Same direction

Mercury 870092-2
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Need you tonight - INXS

The biggest hit by the Australian band INXS was 'Need you tonight'. They had lots more hits, of course, but this one overshadowed them all. Taken from the album 'Kick' (which was given a deluxe treatment last year), the single was also released on CD.

This three track EP features the title track plus two extra tracks. A few months later, this CD would also be released as a CD Video - the short-lived format that also included a video track, to be played on special CD Video players.

1. Need you tonight
2. Mediate
3. I'm coming (home)

Mercury Records 888813-2
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Learning to fly - Pink Floyd

Although Pink Floyd are universally considered to be legendary, their CD single of 'Learning to fly' didn't sell well apparently. For some reason, I picked up this CD single for just 8 guilders, 2 guilders cheaper than the previous "cheapest" CD single I bought. And it's mostly because of the price and the title track that I bought this CD single.

That's not to say I didn't like the rest: 'Terminal frost' is a beautiful instrumental and 'One slip' was even released as a single in its own right quickly after 'Learning to fly'.

1. Learning to fly (edited version)
2. One slip (edited version)
3. Terminal frost (Album version)
4. Terminal frost (DYOL version)

EMI CDEM 26
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J.O.S. Days - The Nits

The CD single was not very old when the 3 inch CD disc was invented. Someone had thought that while only part of the playable surface was used, the rest could be cut off and provide the people with a smaller disc that would be quite handy if they were packaged in sleeves of the same width. Of course, they weren't at first because some cd players needed an adapter because they wouldn't play the small discs otherwise.

My first 3 inch CD single was this one by the Dutch band the Nits. It was a toss-up between this one and another disc which I bought a few weeks later.

1. J.O.S. Days
2. Yksi kaksi kolme
3. Magic of Lassie II
4. Mountain Jan

CBS 651308 2
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Meet el presidente - Duran Duran

The third and last single from their 1986 album 'Notorious' was Duran Duran's 'Meet el Presidente'. Released in 1987, it was their first single to be released on CD as well, and it featured - like the Julian Cope one - a gatefold sleeve.

Copies of this CD single are still selling quite cheaply, which is an indication of the lack of success this title had in the charts. Personally I preferred the two previous singles, 'Notorious' and 'Skin trade', but since they were not released on CD single, I bought this one. It was also the first time I bought a CD single at a reduced price, by the way: this one was selling for just 10 guilders.

1. Meet el Presidente [extended]
2. Meet el Presidente (Meet el Beat)
3. Meet el Presidente
4. Vertigo (Do the Demolition)

EMI CDTOUR 1
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Children say - Level 42

Level 42 were very hot in 1987: their album 'Running in the family' was selling like crazy and no less than five singles were taken from the eight track album. The last one of these was 'Children say', and it was released as a CD single too.

Besides an extended version of the title track and a remix of earlier single Starchild, this CD single featured a 10 minute megamix of Level 42 hits, a good enough reason for me to buy this thing.

1. Children say (extended remix)
2. Starchild (remix)
3. The Platinum Edition Megamix

Polydor 887242-2
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King without a crown - ABC

Although released as the third single from their album 'Alphabet city', 'King without a crown' was my favourite of the three, and I was pretty excited about the fact that it would also be the British group's first CD single release.

Unfortunately, the offerings on this CD single were less good: the two live tracks can't stand up to the original album versions of 'The look of love' and 'Poison arrow' and although the remix of 'King without a crown' is quite good, I still can't figure out why the record company decided to include an abridged version of it instead of the full remix that was released on the 12" single. But anyway: this was my first ABC CD single, and more would follow through the years.

1. King without a crown
2. The look of love (Live in Boston)
3. Poison arrow (Live in Boston)
4. King without a crown (Monarchy mix - Abridged version)

Phonogram 888948-2
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Just like heaven - The Cure

An old wisdom in pop music is that everyone has their "Cure period", and mine took place near the end of the Eighties. The music of Robert Smith and his pals is sometimes melancholic, sometimes upbeat but always slightly quirky. 'Just like heaven' was one of their less moody efforts and could actually be described as a love song!

The best thing about this CD single is that all three tracks are equally good and it is one of those rare instances where a CD single is damn near perfect. No wonder, then, that I have played this disc more times than I can remember.

1. Just like heaven
2. Snow in summer
3. Sugar girl

Fiction Records FIXCD 27
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My baby just cares for me - Nina Simone

When you start a collection there are bound to be some items you regret buying. As far as my CD singles are concerned, this was the first CD single I regretted. Nina Simone's 'My baby just cares for me' was a hit in 1987 thanks to one of those videos created with claymation by Aardman Animations.

The CD single, however, didn't contain the original track but a "special extended smoochtime version". I'll admit it, I became curious. But unfortunately, this extended version was created by someone who thought it would be amusing to glue parts of the songs together repeatedly, which only makes it sound annoying. I only ever played this disc two or three times, I'm afraid.

1. My baby just cares for me (special extended smoochtime version)
2. Love me or leave me
3. Little girl blue

Charly Records CDS1
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Never can say goodbye - Communards

The Communards were most successful when they covered old disco hits. Who can forget their version of 'Don't leave me this way'? 'Never can say goodbye' was released a little while after that and it was another fabulous version of a glittering disco track.

This CD single was one of the first to be sold at 15 guilders, the price that would become the standard for the next 15 years until the euro stepped in and made everything more expensive for all of us. I snapped it up because I was still hunting for "cheap" CD singles at the time. And because it is, of course, quite a great track.

1. Never can say goodbye
2. '77 the great escape
3. Never can say goodbye (Classical mix)

London Records LONCD 158
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The rhythm divine - Yello & Shirley Bassey

A birthday present from 1987, this CD single featuring Yello and Shirley Bassey. The unlikely pairing released 'The rhythm divine' in 1987, and the CD single featured a slightly longer version of the track than the 7" single (which I'd bought a few weeks earlier).

What's more, two instrumental tracks were included on this disc, both of which were intriguing in their own way.

1. The rhythm divine
2. Dr. Van Steiner
3. Tool in rose

Phonogram 888746-2
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F.L.M. - Mel & Kim

In August 1987 I went to Scheveningen to one of precious few shops that were selling big amounts of CD singles at the time. There were some interesting titles among the discs sold, but I knew right away that my budget wouldn't stretch far enough to buy everything I wanted to have. With a weekly allowance just enough to cover 2/3 of the costs of a CD single, I probably would never be able to get these discs quickly.

I settled for the title I wanted the most: Mel & Kim were pretty hot at the time and the 'Auto mix' included on this disc was completely unknown to me. New music on a cd single... It was the first time that happened to me. I'm glad I bought this one because nowadays this one is near impossible to find. Unless you're willing to part with 49 euros or more on Ebay, that is...

1. F.L.M. (Auto mix)
2. Showing out / Respectable (Megamix)
3. F.L.M. (7" version)

Blow Up INT 825593
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Eve's volcano - Julian Cope

My first CD single, bought in July 1987 in HMV in London. My mum had just bought a CD player and all the members of the household had started buying CD's. They were pretty expensive and I was still buying vinyl, so a CD single seemed to be a good option.

It's quite remarkable that my first CD single is by an artist from whom I never bought anything else. I do have the same 7" single - there are lots of CD singles I have on vinyl too - but that's it. But 'Eve's volcano' is a pretty amazing song, one that was on heavy rotation on Dutch radio at the time.

1. Eve's volcano (Covered in sin)
2. Almost beautiful child (I & II)
3. Pulsar NX (live)
4. Shot down (live)
5. Spacehopper - annexe

Island records CID 318
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