Paul Hardcastle had a surprise hit with '19' in 1985, a song about America's involvement in the Vietnam war and the effect it had on the soldiers who served, using sampled dialogue from an American television documentary about the post-traumatic stress disorder suffered by veterans. He quickly recorded versions in French and German as well.
While I knew about these versions, I never realised a 12" version might also exist. But here it is: an extended remix of the German version of '19', featuring sampled dialogue entirely in German.
My collection: 12" single no. 607 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 19, 2011 Cost: 4 euro Tracks: '19 (German version) (12" mix)' / '19 (German version) (7" mix)', 'Eat your heart out'
On May 21, 2010 I bought a copy of this single in the shop Da Capo in Utrecht. The sleeve mentioned Yves Mourousi, causing me to think the French version of '19' was included on the disc. I tried to listen to the disc (which didn't have the same information) but someone in the shop was keeping the turntable to himself. And so I had to go home and find out that the 'normal' version of '19' was on the disc.
Almost exactly 18 months later, I finally found this single again, and this time with the correct disc inserted. Very nice to finally hear this French version of '19'.
My collection: 7" single no. 5225 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, November 19, 2011 Cost: 0,5 euro Tracks: '19 (Dix neuf)' / 'Fly by night'
'Top of the Pops' was the most popular television chart programme in the history of television. Broadcast by the BBC in the UK between 1964 and 2006, it had a weekly audience of millions, tuning in to see studio performances of the biggest chart hits by all the artists and bands that mattered.
This show also had a theme tune, which changed from time to time. Between April 1986 and October 1991, Paul Hardcastle's 'The wizard' was the tune that was used. It was released as a single in 1986, just after the success of Hardcastle's '19'. This single reached number 15 in the UK singles chart.
My collection: 7" single no. 4809 Found: Record fair, Utrecht, April 10, 2010 Cost: 0,5 euro Tracks: 'The wizard (part 1)' / 'The wizard (part 2)'
'19 (The Final Story)' was the second 12" single to be released by Paul Hardcastle as a result of the success of his single '19'. The new remix features new spoken material and samples, as well as a totally different sleeve.
It's uncanny how catchy this collection of soundfiles about the Vietnam war is still after two decades. It's also strange how such a serious subject becomes danceable.
My collection: 12" single no. 521 Found: Record fair, 2000 Cost: 5 guilders Tracks: '19 (The Final Story)' / 'King Tut (US remix)', 'Fly by night'
Paul Hardcastle's biggest hit '19' was released on two 12" singles, of which this was the first one. As far as extended remixes go, this one really isn't that shocking. It does contain some new material, but on the whole it's just a slightly longer version of the familiar track that appeared on the 7" single.
Although the remixer is not credited, it's safe to assume Paul Hardcastle created this extended version himself.
My collection: 12" single no. 520 Found: Record fair, 2000 Cost: 2 guilders Tracks: '19 (extended version)' / 'Fly by night', 'Dolores'
I bought the German version of '19' this year, but I've had the original since 1990. The story remains the same: '19' featured television narrator Peter Thomas talking about Vietnam war veterans.
The single reached number 1 in the UK and the Netherlands. Mike Oldfield later claimed that a melodic element of '19' was copied from a sequence in his album 'Tubular bells'. This was settled out of court.
My collection: 7" single no. 1365 Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, December 28, 1990 Cost: 1 guilders Tracks: '19' / 'Fly by night'
In 1985, the popularity of Paul Hardcastle in the UK was taking on serious shape. He had a big hit with the track '19' and was subsequently commissioned to make remixes. One of them was this single, 'Reasons to be cheerful' by Ian Dury and the Blockheads. Originally it was a hit for them 1979, reaching number 3 in the UK singles chart.
This single reached number 55 in the UK singles chart, but the A-side was the remix of 'Hit me with your rhythm stick', which appears as a B-side on this single. Why the sides were swapped in Europe, I do not know. It did not work anyway: the single flopped. But still, these remixes are interesting to hear, even if they sound a bit dated.
My collection: 7" single no. 4012 Found: Vinylfabriek, Haaksbergen, September 14, 2009 Cost: 2 euro Tracks: 'Reasons to be cheerful (remix)' / 'Hit me with your rhythm stick (remix)'
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'