Where the wild roses grow - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Kylie Minogue

'Where the wild roses grow' was written by Australian singer-songwriter Nick Cave. He was inspired to write it after listening to the traditional song 'Down in the willow garden', a tale of a man courting a woman and killing her while they are out together. The song featured guest vocals by Australian pop-singer Kylie Minogue and was released as the first single from the ninth album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, 'Murder ballads' (1996).

It became the band's most successful single worldwide, reaching number 1 in Israel and Croatia, number 11 in the UK singles chart and number 9 in the Dutch Top 40. 'Where the wild roses grow' was also certified Gold in Australia where it sold 50,000 copies.

My collection: 7" single no. 2516
Found: Virgin Megastore, London, October 31, 1995
Cost: 2,3 pounds
Tracks: 'Where the wild roses grow' / 'The ballad of Robert Moore and Betty Coltrane'

Better the devil you know - Kylie Minogue

The release of 'Better The Devil You Know' marked a milestone in Kylie Minogue's career. While still being produced by Stock Aitken and Waterman like she had been throughout her musical career up to that point, she took creative control over her image. She recorded a video for the single which broke with the 'girl-next-door' image she'd had for several years.

The single became Kylie's fifth number 2 single in the UK, having also had four number 1 hitsingles. The Dutch audience was less impressed: the single peaked at number 22 only. I only discovered the song years later, after Kylie had made some more serious music. I had to admit some of her previous work was pretty nice too.

My collection: 7" single no. 3332

Found: Record fair, Utrecht, March 24, 2001

Cost: 1 guilder

Tracks: 'better the devil you know' / 'I'm over dreaming (over you)'