DJ 45s with edited A *and* B-sides

Hykker wrote: I think the thread was more about both sides of the dj single being edited compared to the commercial single. Songs where either or both sides of the 45 being edits of the album version would be a very long list (especially in the 70s).

Yes, that was the thread's intent. We've only unearthed a couple of those cases so far. In the case of the Brave Belt DJ 45, I've never found any evidence that a U.S. commercial 45 was issued.

Hykker wrote: Speaking of DARKWTII, there were 2 promo issues of this...one basically a white-label version of the stock single, the other a 2:53 that had the intro shortened. The 2:53 was also a different mix than the commercial single.

I don't have the first promo you cited, but do have the white-label, mono/mono 3:17/2:53 promo, with both sides marked with the blue "A"-side designation.

I also have a "special rush reservice" copy that arrived a week after my white label copy. This one was a mono/stereo 2:53/2:53 white label/blue label copy. Columbia wasn't taking any chances, were they?

On another note, there have been some DJ 45s that don't qualify for this thread, but have nonetheless left me scratching my head. Case in point: Gordon Lightfoot's "Carefree Highway." The commercial 45 ran about 3:40, which was only about eight seconds longer than "Sundown," which had preceded it to the top without radio resistance. The B-side was "Seven Island Suite," an excellent, but lengthy track from the Sundown LP. It appeared in its full 6:00 length on the commercial 45.

Evidently, exceeding the the 3:30 mark must have concerned the folks at Reprise, so the promo copies of the 45 contained a somewhat clunky edit of "Carefree Highway," whittled down to a more radio-friendly 3:00.

Why the promo 45 even contained the B-side is a bit of a mystery, but it did. Odder still, the promo B-side version of "Seven Island Suite" was the full 6:00 version.

Fair enough, but there's more to it. Both sides of the DJ 45 were in mono, whereas the commercial 45 was stereo on both sides. Why would Reprise have gone to the trouble and extra expense of cutting "Seven Island Suite" a second time, just for the promo 45? I honestly don't think they were testing the waters for radio acceptance of the 5:57 (and later 5:23) promo 45s of "Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald" two years down the road. Were they actually expecting any "Seven Island Suite" airplay from mainstream top-40 or MOR/AC radio? If an extra forty-some seconds of "Carefree Highway" caused concerns with radio, how would they be able to slip a 6-minute track under the door? It isn't that "Seven Island Suite" doesn't easily lend itself to being edited, as there are a number of possible places for nips and tucks. So why was there an unedited, mono promo B-side?

The answer probably comes from what is etched in the vinyl, but is not noted on the DJ 45 labels. Both sides are CSG-processed mono masters, the value of which completely escapes me. It wouldn't have surprised me if this had been done for contractual reasons with Haeco-CSG. WEA was probably signed on board to do a specific number of CSG releases, be they mono or stereo. And that may explain why a mono 6:00 B-side made it to this DJ 45. I'm actually glad that it did; "Seven Island Suite" is a favorite of mine, and the vinyl promo 45 has held up far better on the ol' jukebox than the styrene stock 45 ever would have.