https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/ Copyright (c) 2006-2013 Web Wiz Forums - All Rights Reserved. Wed, 22 Apr 2026 11:50:10 +0000 Tue, 09 Feb 2021 20:19:26 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Web Wiz Forums 12.07 360 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/RSS_post_feed.asp?TID=9545 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum//images/Top-40-Music-on-CD-Forum-Logo.png https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/ https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57417&title=zoom-meeting-2#57417 Author: AutumnAarilyn
Subject: 9545
Posted: 09 February 2021 at 8:19pm

By the 80's, albums had songs slated for different
formats. Black radio typically was a wake-up club in
the morning, hot urban AC in the day time, a R&B top
40 in evening, and free form Quiet Storm ballads at
night with all sorts of jazz mixed in. Any rap was
limited to the evening section and this held until
about the mid 90's.

Many ballads weren't released as singles as those
listeners had more money to buy albums and the
listener usually didn't want a truncated ballad.
Atlantic Starr was one of those groups. If you listen
to the Spinners first album on Atlantic, the shortest
songs were the hit singles and many ballads go on for
6 plus minutes and got heavy airplay especially at
night. ]]> Tue, 09 Feb 2021 20:19:26 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57417&title=zoom-meeting-2#57417 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57375&title=zoom-meeting-2#57375 Author: AndrewChouffi
Subject: 9545
Posted: 08 February 2021 at 6:33am

AutumnAarilyn wrote: Like all art, what the next single would be was never set in stone and alot depended on how the early singles did.

Extremely accurate statement there AutumnAarilyn.

However, sometimes with a hot act with a hot album,
labels would plan a release strategy with singles,
videos and other "emphasis cuts for select formats" in
advance of the second single or even the release of
the LP.

Labels didn't like deviation; however when the public
or radio demanded a change (e.g. an album track was
getting unusual attention) OR when the project
strategy was failing (i.e. a single was stiffing) the
labels were quick to abandon original plans (to either
make more money, or to cut losses).

Andy]]> Mon, 08 Feb 2021 06:33:18 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57375&title=zoom-meeting-2#57375 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57369&title=zoom-meeting-2#57369 Author: AutumnAarilyn
Subject: 9545
Posted: 07 February 2021 at 10:57pm

Like all art, what the next single would be was never
set in stone and alot depended on how the early
singles did. If they didn't do well, the label would
usually cut their losses with a hole punch and trip to
the cut-out bin if the cost of warehousing a title
exceeded any benefit of future expected sales.

Atlantic Starr had a number of album air cuts before
was monitored at Billboard and they did it to sell the
album. A&M didn't release those probably to sell the
album but if you listen to "Secret lovers", their
ballads weren't easy to edit with vocals having to be
cross-faded.

I remember reading that promoters wanted country to
drop a song after it peaked. In 1991, Billboard used
accurate monitoring of sales and airplay and the
logjam on the pop chart began. In the end, Billboard
slowly ushered in new expanded rules for their
recurrent chart to increase the desired upward
movement.]]> Sun, 07 Feb 2021 22:57:46 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57369&title=zoom-meeting-2#57369 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57365&title=zoom-meeting-2#57365 Author: EdisonLite
Subject: 9545
Posted: 07 February 2021 at 9:37pm

There were so many sealed LPs that had stickers on the outside saying "featuring the singles..." or "featuring the songs..." - I think in both cases anything on the sticker would have been considered a future single. But in many cases, those songs that the label highlighted for the outside sticker ... did not end up being singles at all.]]> Sun, 07 Feb 2021 21:37:55 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57365&title=zoom-meeting-2#57365 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57364&title=zoom-meeting-2#57364 Author: torcan
Subject: 9545
Posted: 07 February 2021 at 9:28pm

Interesting reading these comments. I would have
thought that when an album was released, it was fair
game for any track to be played on the radio. I guess
the labels didn't want top 40 stations to play songs
that weren't singles, because it could take time away
from playing the songs that they were promoting as
singles?

When an album was released, in most cases were all the
singles planned out in advance (for example, they knew
which would be the second single, which would be the
third, etc.) or was it decided on on the fly?
Sometimes its obvious which songs should be singles
but was the order of release always set in stone, or
did it vary based on whims of the label, or strong
responses on certain songs? In reading Billboard over
the years, it seems that some songs they said would be
later singles never did get released.

I know that when "Thriller" was in the midst of its
run, the plan was originally to make "Human Nature"
the last single, but because sales of the album were
still so strong, they kept releasing them.

Was there a scenario which occurred more frequently?]]> Sun, 07 Feb 2021 21:28:09 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57364&title=zoom-meeting-2#57364 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57347&title=zoom-meeting-2#57347 Author: AutumnAarilyn
Subject: 9545
Posted: 06 February 2021 at 11:03pm

AndrewChouffi wrote: I do recall, though, many instances of a label having a release strategy with singles and not wanting radio to jump on an album track that might already be slated as the third single when the second single hasn't been released yet - basically they wanted maximum impact with the forthcoming video they hadn't started on yet.. Andy

When Bobby Brown's Bobby dropped, the label had a huge
release party broadcast over several radio stations
where they played much of the album during that party.
Wrks followed suit by playing singles early and it
wasn't taken so well over at MCA.

I heard every track on NY radio from both Guy albums,
Babyface's "Tender lover", and Johnny Gills 1990
Motown album.]]> Sat, 06 Feb 2021 23:03:52 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57347&title=zoom-meeting-2#57347 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57346&title=zoom-meeting-2#57346 Author: AutumnAarilyn
Subject: 9545
Posted: 06 February 2021 at 10:55pm

"Three times a lady" has very soft vocals almost like
whispering Bill Anderson on the country side of things.
Motown probably wasn't really thinking A/C crossover at
this time from their leading funksters. "I like what you
do" and "Visions" were the most original cuts.

Gordy wasn't also thrilled with some of the themes in
Marvin's "What's going on" despite Edwin Starr has a
huge hit with with "War."

It always helps to make sure the PD gets a promo. They
even had issues in NYC getting promos.]]> Sat, 06 Feb 2021 22:55:59 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57346&title=zoom-meeting-2#57346 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57338&title=zoom-meeting-2#57338 Author: eriejwg
Subject: 9545
Posted: 06 February 2021 at 12:10pm

I was working at a small AM station in 1978 when Three
Times A Lady came out. The PD at the station had an odd way
of putting new music in. Basically, if it was on the Hot
100 and we had received the record from Record Source
International in Cincinnati, then we played it.

I seem to remember Three Times A Lady getting a lot of
requests and RSI didn't always service us with all the hits
so I may have had to go to the local Murphy's or Fisher's
Big Wheel in that town to buy the 45 for the station. I
know I had to do that for Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad from
Meat Loaf. Ahh, small town radio, lol.]]> Sat, 06 Feb 2021 12:10:18 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57338&title=zoom-meeting-2#57338 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57337&title=zoom-meeting-2#57337 Author: AndrewChouffi
Subject: 9545
Posted: 06 February 2021 at 7:32am

Although I'm not questioning the accuracy of the
story, I find it somewhat hard to believe that Berry
Gordy would have a problem with a station playing
"Three Times A Lady" a little early.

Why?

'Natural High' the album was released in May without
an advance (or contemporaneous) single. Generally
when a label does that to a hit act it means they want
the radio stations and public to find "the hit". Well,
the stations found it...

This wasn't too common of a practice, although hit
bands like Three Dog Night oftentimes did it that way.

I do recall, though, many instances of a label having
a release strategy with singles and not wanting radio
to jump on an album track that might already be slated
as the third single when the second single hasn't been
released yet - basically they wanted maximum impact
with the forthcoming video they hadn't started on
yet..

Does anyone else have anything to add to this or
similar stories to tell?

Andy

]]> Sat, 06 Feb 2021 07:32:35 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57337&title=zoom-meeting-2#57337 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57336&title=zoom-meeting-2#57336 Author: Paul Haney
Subject: 9545
Posted: 06 February 2021 at 5:48am

Adding records back then varied from market-to-market (and sometimes even station-to-station). In my
home market of Minneapolis/St. Paul (during the 1970s), the major Top 40 stations would only add
certain R&B crossovers if they were huge sellers. In 1981, WLOL went Top 40 and they started opening
up the market to more of those R&B hits. They were also more aggressive than KDWB on adding new
artists and as a result, their ratings were very solid for most of the decade. Ironically, by the late
1980s and early 1990s, KDWB suddenly got hot and ended up the big Top 40 winner, a position they still
hold today.

As for album cuts, KDWB played quite a few of them during the 1970s. Mostly the big rock artists,
catering to the upper mid-west listeners musical tastes at the time.]]> Sat, 06 Feb 2021 05:48:21 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9545&PID=57336&title=zoom-meeting-2#57336