Rod Stewart - Maggie May

eriejwg,

be very very careful of the "single version", "LP version" distinction on Napster, iTunes, etc. To be blunt, those that do that labeling, really have no idea what they are doing. I've seen countless errors, and do not at all rely on it. THIS BOARD is what you CAN rely on, however!

David and Ed:

I suspected the versions I've mentioned thus far ( Rod Stewart and Murray Head) weren't correct edits. I have had the AM Gold version of Rod Stewart for a long time.

I am definitely going to enjoy myself subscribing and scouring the database. I have already told some friends about this site. We are all '40 somethings' who have been in search of true 45 versions for years.

Having spent 23 years in radio, I only knew the 45 versions because that's all I played. I may not be a true collector like many of you, but in the last year, I've purchased over 100 promo and stock 45's to get the versions I remember.

Tom Daly mentioned this site on his so I definitely had to check things out for myself.

Bumping this old thread up as there appear to be several compact discs that feature a short (3:38) or so version of this song so there must have been a dj edit. Can anyone report back if you have an edited dj copy of Maggie May? The commercial 45 runs (5:11) while the label states a run time of (5:15).

Pat Downey wrote: There appear to be several compact discs that feature a short (3:38) or so version of this song so there must have been a dj edit. Can anyone report back if you have an edited dj copy of Maggie May? The commercial 45 runs (5:11) while the label states a run time of (5:15).

Pat, with all due respect, I believe your stated premise
here to be faulty. As you well know, many CDs in your database include a
"neither the 45 nor the LP version" of a song on them. And there are
numerous other cases when "mystery edit versions" have seemingly come
out of nowhere, only to make their CD debut years later. As Bill Cahill
correctly stated earlier, "Maggie May" was originally the B-side of this
promo 45, which radio opted to flip over. (The way Mercury indicated their
A-side choice to radio at this time was to include two "black bullets", both
before and after the song title. These "bullets" appear on the "Reason To
Believe" side, but not on the "Maggie May" side.) I have also seen a good
number of promo 45 copies over the years, and all appear to be exactly
the same as my copy is. All with "Reason To Believe" on one side of it,
which obviously eliminates the possibility of a Maggie May "long/short
version" on the same promo 45. Could a 2nd, different promo 45 exist?
Yes, but in this case, I put the chances at just over absolute zero! Finally,
according to RR/Mr. Whitburn, this song was the second biggest hit song
of the entire year of 1971. I never heard any other version played on Top
40 radio as a current, other than the singular, L 5:15/A 5:11 promo &
stock 45 version. (Although I have occasionally heard the LP version, with
that brief, opening instrumental interlude, on AOR stations, though.) And
yeah, some oldies stations play it off his "Greatest Hits" CD, which fades it
about :15 seconds early, but that's just "don't know/don't care." And
with all the "70's wheelhouse" and "photographic memory types" we have
here on the Board, I'm totally confident we would've long ago remembered
hearing on-air/inquired/unearthed an "official edit" version for this
massive #1 hit, had there been one. Therefore, my confidence is very high
on this one, Pat - no "official" Maggie May 1971 short 45 edit ever
existed.

Edited by jimct