Radio Edits

I have the 1955-2016 pop annual and the Top Pop Hits 1955-2015 and was just curious why radio edits of songs are not given credence over the 45 or the long play version?

Let's face it, few radio stations if ever played Sledgehammer by Peter Gabriel's 6 minute 45 version, exactly because of the long length. The radio edit was clearly played and it is the only version that most everyone I know has heard. Yet other than on an A List disc or radio only disc it does not exist on a regular CD release.

Yet a good percentage of the 90's radio edit versions are clearly on CD and were released, but again not on comps of that era. Usually the LP version was the one that always got on the various artists discs.

I just get curious why Whitburn and even Downey gloss over the CD single market when some of these radio edits only exist on promo or cd singles of the period? Even the database won't list CD singles, and Whitburn acts as if they don't exist where these valuable and often well known radio edits were the only versions played.

The NOW series here and in the UK offer these rare radio edits for the last few decades, and these edits are often thankfully the same ones played on radio. Shouldn't the radio edits have just as much mention as the 45 version or LP versions they were edited from? They are just as much valid releases here in the US, charted on billboard and were mostly available to the public in the last few decades....




Edited by PopArchivist

Sorry Paul you are right, it is 5 minutes not 6. Still the 4:02 radio edit to this day is the only one played by radio due to its extensive popularity (and unavailability on a CD release).

I disagree. Who plays the 4:02 edit these days? For one, it cannot be replicated by using the LP version. Two, it's never been on CD, ever. My local Jack FM station plays a lousy attempt at creating the 4:02 version, which is taken from a TM Century GoldDisc.

Edited by aaronk

Paul Haney wrote: It doesn't jump out at me like that awful version of "Let's Go Crazy" by Prince that edits out the guitar solo at the end and changes the intro too (which is the only version that particular station plays anymore).

That one puzzled me even back in 1984. I get that they may
have wanted to shorten it for the single (I don't think
that was a radio-only edit) but the double-tracking where
Prince is talking over himself just sounds weird.

Paul Haney wrote: The only version that the oldies station here in Milwaukee plays is a shorter version. Not sure if it's the "true" shorter version or the version from the TM Century library. It sounds okay to my ears, but I'm not sure what differences I should be listening for???

TM Century crossfaded the intro into the first verse, and it's very obvious sounding. You can hear the intro fade out while the music before the "steam train" line fades in. The promo single remixed this part from the multi-tracks, so it's not possible to create using the LP version.