Bloodrock-"D.O.A."

My 45 has a listed time of (4:15), but an actual time of (4:36).

Yes, the edit is in a different spot. I bought a $1 used copy and used it as a reference. I did it several years ago and don't remember the details though.

Not a big fan of the song, but can the 4:02 edit be
recreated?

aaronk wrote: Not noted in the database, Jim has a promo 45 of "D.O.A." with a listed time and actual time of 4:02. Pat, you may want to add this promo information.

                                                            
Once in a while, I'll take a chance and buy online a not-before-known-
about promo 45v of a db song, even if I don't know as much as I'd like
about the item - some sellers opt to list a few scant details. Sometimes I'll
both open it, re-address it, and then ship it out to Aaron in the same trip
to my PO Box, if further analysis appears obvious. In this instance, it
resulted in a bit of a mixup between Aaron and I.

When I was re-filing the "D.O.A." promo 45 Aaron just kindly sent back to
me, I noticed another listed time (4:15), actual time (4:36) promo 45 copy
of the March 1971-peaking hit sitting there already. No biggie. But I
thought it best to finally inspect/compare/contrast the two "D.O.A."
promo 45s myself, for the first time, and I just made some unexpected
discoveries.

First off, the 1971 hit 45v was on the red & orange target label design, as
Capitol 3009. This info matches my listed (4:15), actual (4:36) promo 45.

The copy I just got back from Aaron was also on the red & orange target
Capitol label design. This label design was abandoned in late '72/early '73
(depending on existing pressing plant stock), in favor of the plain orange
label with "Capitol" in script at the bottom.) Because my two promo 45
copies both featured the same 1969-72 design, my hasty initial
assumption, before shipping it down to Aaron, was that it was a 2nd
promo 45 variation for the 1971 hit v. Well, it turns out that it wasn't.

Those of us who were listening to Top 40 and/or AOR radio in 1971
surely recall what "D.O.A." sounded like - unlike anything else, really (and
that is pretty much still the case, to this day), with its ambulance siren and
morbid theme (inspired, BTW, by a fatal airplane crash, occurring just
after songwriter Lee Pickens had been dropped off at a local airport.
Moments later, the very same small plane Pickens had just gotten out of
took off again, and crashed just a few hundred feet after takeoff, killing
all aboard. His personal close call "inspired", if you will, "D.O.A.".)

But my dear friend Aaron wasn't even born until Sept. of 1979, so he
obviously has no such 1971 radio memories to fall back on.

Turns out the listed (4:02) (actual 4:01) promo 45 for "D.O.A." was a 2nd
45 release of the song, issued just 18 months after its 3/1971 BB peak, in
9/1972, as Capitol 3399, b/w "Castle Of Thoughts". Both these tracks
were from the LP, "Bloodrock Live", whereas the hit v of "D.O.A." was an
edit from the version found on "Bloodrock 2". And although some crowd
noise can be heard during the song, it never dominates, and no crowd
noise at all is heard at the start, which would've made it even less obvious
to a guy like Aaron that Capitol 3399 might not actually be the original
1971 hit v.

And to add to the confusion even further, "D.O.A." is the starred, "plug
side" of the Capitol 3399 live version 45.

Bottom line: I'm very surprised to discover that Capitol did a 2nd 45 of
"D.O.A.", so soon after the first - live version or not. Almost always, labels
will release either a popular LP cut or a failed previous studio 45 by a
band as the single to a live album. But neither of those options were
chosen here. So please disregard any and all reported particulars for the
listed (4:02), actual (4:01) Capitol 3399 promo 45 of "D.O.A.", by either
Aaron or myself. They now fall into the "later-non-hit 45 release of the
song" category. To the best of my current knowledge, the Capitol 3009
promo 45 is the only one that features the 1971 hit 45v, with the same
stereo, listed (4:15), actual (4:36) version found on both sides of it.

"D.O.A." is not exactly 1971's most upbeat song.

LP version (8:27)

Thanks to John, I have the LP version on EMI-Capitol Music Special Markets' Lost Hits Of The '70s (1997). Sound quality is excellent, with excellent dynamic range, reasonable EQ, and no hint of noise reduction on the fade. This is part of a small EMI series called 20 Knockout Hits. These collections are stellar, rare, and really expensive if you can find them at all.

The times I quote below will be from this disc.

45 version (4:36)

The 45 is edited from the LP version. Unfortunately, all the 4:36-ish versions on CD feature an incorrect edit at 2:59, which cuts out about 3 seconds of material from what would otherwise be the true 45 version. Aaron suggested that because the other edits in the CD versions exactly match what's on the 45, it's possible that the CD mastering engineer intentionally made the edit, for example, to cover up tape damage that might have occurred on the 45 master tape. We may never know.

As best as I could tell, this almost-45 version appeared first on Rhino's Heavy Metal Memories (1990), where it runs 4:33. All the other discs that feature a short version of the song use this almost-45 version, which leads me to think that they all use the same analog transfer as Heavy Metal Memories. I don't have Heavy Metal Memories myself to confirm. I do have the following two discs, which both use the same analog transfer as each other, and are likely both based on the mastering for Heavy Metal Memories:

• Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 28 FM Rock III (1992)
• Time-Life's Guitar Rock Vol. 6 1970-1971 (1994)

If you must recreate the true 45 edit from the LP version, here are editing instructions, based on times from Lost Hits Of The '70s:

Segment 1
Begins on a downbeat at the beginning of a bass note.
Extends from 1:04.5 to (about) 1:55.7 of the LP version.
Extends from 0:00 to (about) 0:53.2 of the 45 edit.
Ends uncomfortably before a downbeat, so that the next segment can start with a lyric that falls before the downbeat.

Remove the 16 beats from (about) 1:55.7 to (about) 2:10.2 of the LP version.

Segment 2
Begins with lyrics "I try..."
Extends from 2:10.2 to 3:15.8 of the LP version.
Extends from 0:53.2 to 1:56.7 of the 45 edit.
Ends right before cymbal taps on LP version.

Remove the 16 beats from 3:15.8 to 3:30.6 of the LP version.

Segment 3
Begins with lyrics "Then..."
Extends from 3:30.6 to 4:35.8 of the LP version.
Extends from 1:56.7 to 3:01.9 of the 45 edit.
(Note that the last three seconds of this segment are what's missing from the Heavy Metal Memories version.)

Remove the 16 beats from 4:35.8 to 4:50.6 of the LP version.

Segment 4
Begins with lyrics "Life..."
Extends from 4:50.6 to 5:48.7 of the LP version.
Extends from 3:01.9 to 3:59.9 of the 45 edit.
Ends at the downbeat that starts the eighth-note repetitive pattern.

Delete a bunch of stuff from 5:48.7 to 7:50.8 of the LP version.

Segment 5
Begins on a downbeat.
Extends from 7:50.8 to 8:30.6 (end) of the LP version.
Extends from 3:59.9 to 4:39.9 (end) of the 45 version.

Your mixdown will run 4:37, discounting the silence at the end of the track.

Or... you could just add in the last three seconds or so of segment 3 into the Heavy Metal Memories version. Be sure to match the speeds if you do decide to add in the missing piece into the Heavy Metal Memories version; any speed difference should be minor, but we are sticklers for this stuff.

Why do I feel like I spent the last two hours untangling and documenting a 45 edit that no one will ever want to replicate? Except maybe on Halloween.