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crapfromthepast
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| Posted: 25 May 2012 at 5:31pm | IP Logged
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I thought this song would have been simple; turns out, not so much.
First, my 45. I got the commercial 45 with a picture sleeve back when it was riding high on the charts in 1985. Capitol B-5444, custom label that has the same greenish/black coloration as the sleeve, no time listed, matrix number S-45-B-5444 99723 (crossed out) A-Z-3 600 95-OA (beginning with "6", very light lettering).
Interestingly, the 45 label gives the title as "Some Like It Hot (Extended Version)". It's not extended. It runs 3:44, and runs at 125.8 BPM throughout (I can't really tell if Tony Thompson is playing with a click track, or if he's really just that good. I'm leaning toward click track for this song, because I can detect a little human drift on "Get It On" that I don't see here.)
I thought finding the 45 version on CD would be a piece of cake. Not so much indeed.
The first appearance on CD is Silver Eagle/Warner Special Products' 3-CD After Hours (1990). It runs about 0.6% too fast, which really shouldn't be a dealbreaker. Most importantly, it has the little "Some like it hot" vocal line that ends the song.
It then appeared on Cema's 2-CD Entertainment Weekly Presents Rock Archives (1990). It's got the ending intact, but it suffers from tape drag, slowing from 125.3 BPM at the beginning to 124.6 BPM at the end. Avoid.
Next, it appeared on Time-Life's 2-CD Rock Dreams (1993), where it runs at the right speed with no drift (125.3 BPM throughout), but cuts off the last line ofthe song. Avoid!
Two more Time-Life CDs use the same analog transfer as Rock Dreams and are also missing the last line: Sounds Of The Eighties Vol. 2 1985 (1994) and Guitar Rock Vol. 20 The '80s (1995; differently EQ'd digital clone). Also avoid!
That doesn't leave many options for you to find the 45 version, since After Hours (1990) is really uncommon.
Fortunately, there are many good-sounding CDs that have the full album version, so I'll give you editing instructions below. Capitol's original The Power Station CD (1985) sounds very good. It runs 5:04, and 125.4 BPM throughout.
There are a few others that use the same analog transfer as The Power Station CD:- a European 8-CD from Disky called Greatest Hits Of The '80s (2002; a digitally identical clone) - this one has white cover art, and the song appears on disc 1
- another European 8-CD from Disky called Greatest Hits Of The '80s, which came out in 1998 and features the song on Disc 8. Like there were no other names to choose from?
- Swaitek's promo 50-CD The A List Disc 29 (1994, no noise reduction on this or on any of the discs in this post)
- a cheapie European 2-CD set called Best Of 1984-1985 (has a little added compression)
There's a seemingly different analog transfer for Time-Life's 2-CD Modern Rock Vol. 3 1984-1985 (1999; clips a lot; avoid).
And, finally, a different analog transfer used for the much-maligned Robert Palmer CD Addictions Vol. 1 (1989). It's the original mix here, running at 125.1 BPM throughout, and it sounds really nice here. You can find this disc very easily for a penny plus postage.
So now editing instructions, using The Power Station CD as the source. I need to word these a little differently than I usually do.
There are five edits in the song, which break the 45 version up into six segments. I'd advise creating these six segments separately, then stringing them together afterwards. For each segment, just grab the timings from the LP version. The six segments are:- 0:13.176-0:23.754
- 0:29.489-2:41.975
- 4:44.443-4:50.215
- 3:18.340-3:20.217
- 3:35.544-4:38.728
- 4:54.054-5:05.560 (end)
Note the out-of-sequence edit.
When you're done, your mixdown will run 3:45.402 (including the silence at the end of the track), and you'll have edits at 0:10.577, 2:23.063, 2:28.836, 2:30.713 and 3:33.897.
Edited by crapfromthepast on 25 May 2012 at 5:41pm
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musicmanatl
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| Posted: 25 May 2012 at 9:00pm | IP Logged
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Hey there - the database indicates that the 2005 20th anniversary re-issue of the Power Station CD has the single versions of all three singles on it as bonus cuts. Is that information inaccurate, in your opinion?
I agree - especially with Tony Thompson's drumming, they had a great sound.
Frank
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crapfromthepast
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| Posted: 25 May 2012 at 9:23pm | IP Logged
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I'm sure that's accurate, but I don't have the 2005 disc
myself.
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musicmanatl
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| Posted: 26 May 2012 at 5:52am | IP Logged
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I was excited to see the single version of "Communication" on there. That was my favorite of the three singles, for some reason.
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 28 May 2012 at 3:13pm | IP Logged
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musicmanatl:
Yes, the 2005 20th anniversary edition of the Power Station deluxe CD release indeed contains the correct 45 versions of all three of the band's Top 40 singles, including that of "Communication" which in my opinion has a far superior intro on the single than on its LP version counterpart.
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Topic: Power Station - Some Like It Hot
