Do You Remember The First 45 You Bought?

Beatles VJ EP, the one with "Ask Me Why" on it. My sister had mailed in some kind of wrapper plus 50 cents for one and ended up with two, so I think I got it for a quarter. 1965.

 

As well you should have.

 

My first 45 purchase as well. I think I paid 59 cents.

 

It was either:
Trini Lopez - If I Had A Hammer
or
Nancy Sinatra - These Boots Are Made For Walking

 

Don't remember, probably not. I was 11.

 

I was 10 years old at the time, which I think is 9th grade in the US. Was all over UK radio at the time as well.
Never listened to the album though, and dont even remember hearing their next single at the time.

 

Bay City Rollers - Saturday Night

 

The Beatles’ “Get Back” in April 1969.

 

I was 4, but my parents gave me money to buy 'Love To Love You Baby' by Donna Summer (a steamy song for a 4-year-old kid to hear!) and I was attracted to the record because I loved the golden yellow label on it Donna Summer - Love To Love You Baby - it was a couple of years after it was originally released so it was on special for 50 cents or something.

On reflection, when I heard the full album version many years later, it gave me a distinct preference for single edits, as the album version goes on far too long with her just moaning and groaning - just like Robert Plant on 'Whole Lotta Love' I prefer the single edit of that song too where it just cuts straight to the guitar solo.

 

I do, and it makes me cringe (I was only nine years old!) I'd heard the song "The Little Drummer Boy" on the radio, several times - Michael Flanders sang it, but I didn't know if he'd recorded it or not. I went to the record shop and asked for the song, and was given the Beverley Sisters' version (and I've still got it!) About 18 months later, on my 11th birthday, I bought my second - I'd see Bert Weedon regularly on a children's programme called (from memory) Five O'Clock Club, with Muriel Young and Redvers Kyle. One week he played the B-side of his latest release, "Lonely Guitar" - I loved it, and bought it with some birthday money. It was the flip of his original version of "Apache," and I got a lot of stick at school for buying that version instead of The Shadows'! Over the next few months I got more and more interested in what was in the charts - the local shop always displayed the week's Top 50 in the window, and a friend had an older brother with a tape recorder, who'd record "Pick of the Pops" off the radio (it went out at 11 o'clock at night - way past my bedtime!) With some Christmas money I bought two records I'd heard that way - The Shadows' "Man of Mystery" and Johnny and The Hurricanes' "Rocking Goose." I was on my way!

 

Why yes... yes I do!

"Alley Oop" - The Hollywood Argyles, 1960. I hung onto the "1050CHUM Chart" from one of the weeks when it was Number One.

By the way, Mitch Miller hated songs like this.

 

When I was very young I was given a bunch of mystery singles, including some real obscurities like "Rosie Can't Fly" by Sleepy and "Come With Me" by The Fourmyula.

I also had "Ernie (The Fastest Milkman In The West)" by Benny Hill and "My Ding-a-Ling" by Chuck Berry but I don't know whether I paid for them myself.

The first one I know that I bought with my own money was "Pool Hall Richard" by The Faces in 1973, which is pretty cool for a 7 year old! I still have all of the above records.

 

There's only one Pink Floyd as far as I know. Yes, it was the original single as released in the UK at the time. It's long gone as with all my vinyl, so can't recall what label it was on.

 

The Fraggles - Theme From Fraggle Rock , B side was 'Workin' which was a much better tune

 

I inherited my elder sister´s singles and albums, and I loved them all! A lot of them I wouldn´t even consider buying today, but when you play something enough times, you grow to love some aspects of them. And as a grown-up, I can understand why I liked them. Among those were three Cliff Richard singles and one album. Naturally.

But the first two singles I bought on my own were "S.O.S." by ABBA in 1876 - a beautiful Norwegian version, with picture sleeve and the old, elegant Polar label. (It was released in 1975, but I took a little while to become a fully fledged fan. But I stayed one...)





And the second I can remember buying was Cliff´s "We Don´t Talk Anymore".





I still have both singles, though they´re no longer the original copies. I had to rebuy them recently. I don´t regret buying them a second time - I love both singles, and I love to have them in my collection again.

And the B-side of "We Don´t Talk Anymore" is one of his best ever recordings, IMO. "Count Me Out", a quirky, moody ballad written by Bruce Welch and Terry Britten.

 

Green Tambourine by The Lemon Pipers in 1967 from Berwick Records Store in Rugby.
I think it cost me 7/6. I was 9 years old.

 

Severine - Un Banc Un Arbre Une Rue

 

Eh... Sorry. I did not mean to imply that I was prescient enough to discover ABBA in 1876... Sad old man, me.

 

Stop the Love You Save: Jackson Five, purchased at a Singer Sewing Machine store

 

I remember the first two 45's I bought:

Born Free - Roger Williams
Lying and Trying - The Shillings

 

I did buy some singles from the bargain department first, but the first single I bought and paid full price was Elected from Alice Cooper. Purple coloured picture sleeve. During the run of singles from Billion Dollar Babies, Halo of flies was released in the full version. What a time it was!!!

 

I don't think I even knew that you could buy the songs you heard on the radio; my parents had some LPs but no singles. My home town did not have a record shop. On a day train trip to a bigger town my sister and I each bought our first 45s. Mine was 10cc 'The Things We Do For Love / Hot To Trot", which I still have and still love. My sister got Leo Sayer's "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing".

 

The Monkee’s ‘Daydream Believer’ was my first singles purchase, probably late 1967. Still have it too.

 

It was this.



I must have been 6 or 7 years old, and it was the theme song to my then-favorite tv show "Greatest American Hero". I remember having my mom buy it for me when we were at an Albertsons supermarket (at the time, they had a small music rack.)