"Rag Doll" - Aerosmith

According to the database, DJ 45 copies of "Rag Doll" run 2:50 and 3:05. I have the song on an Aerosmith/Guns n' Roses 5-track promo CD single on Geffen PROCD 3132 (I believe this is the only DJ CD single I've ever seen featuring tracks from two different artists.) On it, "Rag Doll" clocks in at 3:06, yet it is clearly a different mix and plays at a significantly slower pitch than the 45/LP version.

Can anyone confirm if the track on my promo CD single is identical to the 3:05 version appearing on the vinyl promo 45?

Todd, regarding your earlier comment about multiple artists appearing on the same promo CD single, simply FYI, during the "infancy" of this format, around 1987/1988, I must've remembered seeing at least a dozen instances where different artists/songs appeared on the same promo CD single. I recall that Atlantic & Arista were the two labels that did this the most commonly at the time, although it was never a widespread practice. For some, the initial instinct may have been that to put 3-4 minutes of music on a medium that could hold over a hour was wasteful, but it quickly became evident to all that, on a practical level for radio, that it was simply not a good idea. Probably the most noteworthy example of this was the promo CD single for Phil Collins 1988 #1 hit, "Groovy Kind Of Love" (PR 2452-2). It also included a track on it called "Cool On Your Island", by a pre-solo years Tori Amos group called "Y Can't Tori Read".

Edited by jimct

Todd Ireland wrote: According to the database, DJ 45 copies of "Rag Doll" run 2:50 and 3:05...Can anyone confirm if the track on my promo CD single is identical to the 3:05 version appearing on the vinyl promo 45?

Todd, the database is correct that DJ 45 copies run 2:50 ("Edit/Remix") and 3:05 ("Edit" of the LP version); however, the folks at Geffen goofed when they produced that Aerosmith/GNR promo CD.

Now, the 2:50 "Edit/Remix" on the promo 45 runs significantly faster than the LP version's pitch. Your promo CD contains the "Edit/Remix" with the pitch slowed down to match the run time of the "Edit." To get the promo CD back to the correct pitch using Cool Edit Pro, I set a ratio of 91.844 under the Stretch window (using "Resample"). Essentially, this would be like increasing the pitch by +8.156%. In other words, it was running really slow!

There was an additional promo CD single issued for "Rag Doll," which I have in front of me:

PRO-CD-3039
1. The All Dayparts Edit (listed 3:05; actual 3:07)
2. Rock Mix (listed 4:21; actual 4:22)
3. Extended Vacation Mix (listed 6:59; actual 7:14)

I didn't A/B the "Rock Mix" for any mix differences, but giving it a cursory listen, it just sounds like the LP version. "The All Dayparts Edit" appears to be the same one that is on the promo 45, but again, I did not A/B them yet.