BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1988
“Hole in My Heart (All the Way to China)” is a song recorded by pop singer Cyndi Lauper for her 1988 film Vibes. It was written by Richard Orange, formerly of the band Zider Zee.
Characterised by a frenetic, fast pace and soaring delivery of the title lyric, the song is considered by some fans a little-known underrated gem. The single was released in 1988 as a track from her first starring-role film, Vibes, co-starring Jeff Goldblum. The song failed to find an audience in all but Australia and New Zealand, where it reached the Top 10. The song is considered, among Lauper fans, a rarity.
Lauper was also getting ready to release an album later that year called “Kindred Spirit” but the release was canceled, most likely due to the backlash of this release. Later on when Lauper released the album, now titled A Night to Remember, the track was not included on most formats of the album. It was only included on the Japanese edition as a bonus track and on the Japanese edition of Twelve Deadly Cyns…and Then Some.
SIDE A:
Hole In My Heart (All The Way To China) 4:00
SIDE B:
Boy Blue (Live)** 5:37
Maybe He’ll Know (Special Version)** 3:42
Remix – Phil Thornally
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Hole In My Heart (All The Way To China) | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #54 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Epic – 652813 6
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: Netherlands
Released: 1988
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop
Credits: Design – Stacy Drummond
Engineer, Mixed By – Gary Lyons
Executive Producer – Dave Wolff
Photography – Annie Leibovitz
Producer – Cyndi Lauper, Lennie Petze
Written-By – C. Lauper* (tracks: B), R. Orange* (tracks: A), S.B. Lunt* (tracks: B)
NOTES:
From the Columbia Motion Picture “VIBES”
** Special versions taken from the LP “TRUE COLORS”
Find The 12″ On DISCOGS
EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut III
Cartridge: Ortofon Super
Stylus: Ortofon OM Stylus 30
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Speed Control: Pro-Ject Speed Box S
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner
SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removeal: ClickRepair (DeClick Level 3)
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
I never heard these before. Excellent share
This was an amazing post, btw! Three of her best songs, and a couple hard to come by. Thanks a million 🙂
They never released the full length version for reasons I will never know..it’s the best one http://tmblr.co/Zy3Z5yg8j9KK
Utterly fantastic aural treat Paul! Everyday is a new surprise, gem and/or a rarity!!! Thanks for this stellar service!!!
Jeff
Thank you Paul as always for another rarity. I always loved Cyndi Lauper since hearing Fade (with Blue Angel) back in the Philippines as a kid. They play it all the time there.
HIMH is another one of my fave by her. I still have the US Cassingle (remember those?)I guess I like those crazy/frenzy songs she made.
I hate to say this, AGAIN! Leave it to the Japanese to include rarities, obscure, unwanted tracks for the their market! Love Japanese import!
Stay well Paul!
You’re welcome Gilbert yeah the Japanese are good at what they do, but I also love a clean piece of vinyl instead of a cd 🙂 Oh yeah I do remember cassingles I used to have a bunch of them until the tape deck started eating them lol.
Of course Paul, i totally agree with ya 100%. Should have mentioned i was comparing the Japanese CD release with other version from the USA, UK or Europe.
Can’t wait to listen to this masterpiece.
Speaking of cassingles, I have a few hundred them that I bought back from the late 80’s to mid-90’s. I think I remember seeing a cassingle of this song in a Sam Goody store back then, but I never bought it because I hadn’t heard the song yet and I was more focused on getting a cassingle for every song that made the Top 10 back then. I had completely forgotten about this song until I saw it on a CD compilation called “Hits Of 1988”. Wish I had known about the 3″CD single format back then, I would have… Read more »
Lots of interesting comments. Great!
Thanks Paul for this rare 12 inch. Wished that CBS would have swapped the 2 songs on the B-side, so that the rare remix of Maybe He’ll Know would have got a better vinyl quality. Guess you can’t have it all…
Stefano I thought the whole record sounded pretty good and it’s even a Netherlands pressing.
Thank you for uploading this track. I have the Japanese CD with ‘Hole In My Heart’ on it. As it was a Hit here in Australia, I couldn’t understand why it wasn’t on her greatest Hits Compilation. I think I assumed that it was also a hit everywhere else. I didn’t mind the movie ‘Vibes’. In Australia ‘Hole In My Heart’ turned up on 3 CD Cyndi Lauper compilation called ‘The Great Cyndi Lauper’.
You’re welcome Brett. Those “Great” compilations were interesting the only one I have is the one released for Olivia 🙂
Woohoo!! A classic and rare gem. Thank you for this post Dj PaulT!
You are very welcome my friend. Be well 🙂
Cyndi Lauper’s career was not helped by the Cyndi vs Madonna comparisons that were frequently in the media in the 80’s. They encouraged people to pick one or the other artist, and since Madonna was so hugely popular it made Cyndi look like an also ran. Granted, I don’t think Cyndi did herself any favors with some of the sillier aspects of her early image (the wrestling connection, the exaggerated accent, etc) so those who didn’t look a bit deeper might have missed what a fantastic singer and serious artist she was. Anyway, I’ve always loved this track, and the… Read more »
Or Shanghai Surprise oops see i did it too 🙂
all time fave CL track, hands down.
Enjoy! Tmthydunne 🙂
Thanks for the post – Hole In My Heart has always been one of my favorite Cyn songs. And, I actually thought Vibes was a good movie!
Also, I always thought it was interesting that Epic didn’t issue an extended 12″ version for Hole In My Heart or any of the singles from A Night To Remember.
You’re welcome MusicMan3. I always wished for an extended mix it would have been great. I have never seen “Vibes” and the DVD is pretty hard to get now days.
Thanks sooooo much, major Cyndi fan here, have only had this song on a cassette single! it is one of my favorites by her, i as very grateful for such a great post!
Thank you Feanor. Enjoy my friend 🙂
Love this song! So true, a sadly overlooked jewel in Cyndi’s stunning crown. After “Maybe He’ll Know” appeared on b-sides of True Colors singles I got the impression that at one point it was considered as a single itself, especially since its appearance was in a jaunty single remix form. Too bad it was decided against, if it was indeed to be a single, because it may have turned things around for her. “What’s Going On?” is superb in Cyndi’s hands, but it’s also when radio & record sales started to falter for her. Just like it was a fumble… Read more »
I agree with you Danadotcom Epic really fumbled on the single releases. Would loved to see “Boy Blue” and “Maybe He’ll Know” as singles. Enjoy!
Hey DJPaul…”Boy Blue” was issued as a single and went to 71 in June ’87. Following a less interesting single, it received no interest from Epic. The 7″ is a remixed version, so I wouldn’t doubt there’s an extended sitting in a Sony vault somewhere.
Interesting guess I am not as up on my Cyndi as I thought I was. Thanks for letting me know about “Boy Blue” has that remix appeared on cd?
Never on CD, unfortunately. “A Night To Remember” has a good single mix, also. I believe it was completely rerecorded for single release. It just sounds like a bigger production, but effective enough for radio. This hasn’t been on CD, either. The reissue of She’s So Unusual a ways back was so-so because it left so much off. I think her first 4 CBS/Sony albums are ripe for reissue, each complete with its associated tracks. Each album tells a different story of where she was in her career, with varying degrees of quality. After SSU each album is a lesson… Read more »
I don’t think “What’s Going On” was that much of a fumble. It peaked in the Top 15, whereas “Money Changes Everything” peaked in the Top 30 after a string of four Top 5 hits. She was still able to gain one more Top 10 hit 2 years later with “I Drove All Night”. The write-up is definitely true, though – this song is a rarity for sure. I didn’t know it was on any of her import hits CD’s. I’ll have to check both of them out. Until about 10 years ago, “The Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough” was itself… Read more »
For me, I do agree that When You Were Mine should’ve been the final single instead of Money Changes Everything. It would surely continue the Prince-remake fever sparked by Chaka. I have no problem with What’s Goin’ On being the third single (the Pettibone Mixes are sublime!), but am appalled by its Top-10 miss. Radio seemed to have gone off Cyndi at that point for whatever reason! Perhaps they thought it sacrilege to cover that Marvin Gaye classic…a usual suspect in Rolling Stones Magazine’s Top 5 Greatest Songs Of All Time? Boy Blue is another classic Cyndi single. For this… Read more »
Dan, it’s not really strange that Good Enough was a rarity until The Essential. Cyndi really hated that song and made it a point to leave it off of 12 Deadly Cyns and refused to play it live until ’04.
Yes, I heard that Cyndi was not particularly fond of the song and that’s the reason why it was left off her Greatest Hits album. Even so, you would think she might reconsider since it was a Top 10 hit and I’m sure a favorite of many of her fans.
hey dj!!!!!
you are our ‘precious gem’
love u always!!!!!!!
never heard of this before!!!!!!!
thanx a lot for your love and kindness!!!!
greetings from Greece!!!!
Greetings Giorgios-Greece I hope that you will really enjoy this one 🙂
Brings back memories. I’ve got the US 3″ CD that has Hole In My Heart and Boy Blue (Live), but not the 3rd track. I’ve also got “The Great Cyndi Lauper” 3 CD compilation that has HIMH as well. LOVE the song!!!