"layla" - derek and the dominoes

just had a chance to check out the original 45 edit of "layla", clocking in at whopping 2:43... aside from the early fade and lack of piano coda, is there anything that distinguishes this from the 7:10 version??? thought i detected an edit in the intro, but besides that??? no chirping birds, for sure...

thanks for the info, jim... the promo 45 of "Layla" that i have has the short version on one side and the long version on the other, both mono, and both sides say "plug side"...
i wonder how many AM stations played the long version originally, because i imagine the FM stations were playing the song off the stereo LP anyway...

Just for my own clarification, the (2:43) version features an edit somewhere in the opening (that trims about 13 seconds off the intro), and it also fades well before the piano exit. Correct?

jimct wrote: I am curious to know if anyone knows if a (7:10) "Layla" promo 45 exists?

Jim, the answer is yes. While the 1971 stereo/mono promos ran 2:43, the '72 promos were 7:10/2:43. My college station received redundant Atlantic singles service from both the Plastic Products and Specialty pressing plants. Pictured below are the 1972 mono/mono 7:10/2:43 DJ pressings from each plant. A second variation arrived from Specialty: a 7:10/2:43 blue-label stereo/stereo DJ 45 that became the control room copy. Both the '71 and '72 promos from Plastic Products have "PLUG SIDE" printed on both sides. Short version matrix numbers for both '71 and '72 promos are "71-C;" the '72 long versions are "72-C." The 1972 promos have either "short"/"long" or "short version"/"long version" notations.



Bill, your second copy is most definitely a boot. I spotted it in the oldies 45s at the distributor I was working for in 1976. One of those boots is pictured on the left below; on the right is my college station's original 1971 on-air promo from Specialty.



In addition to the red flag raised by the white label (legit ATCO promos carried no promo markings, either) the mastering is not typical of Atlantic releases. The font used on the "Layla" side of the boot was not in use by Specialty until later in 1971, whereas the font on the "I Am Yours" side of the boot matches that of the March, 1971 release. The pressing is not from Specialty: the vinyl quality is sub-par, matrix numbers are etched in an unfamiliar handwriting and the Specialty logo is not pressed into the wax. A true Specialty stereo DJ pressing of "Layla" bearing the 1972 font would appear on a baby blue label, not white; this boot appears to have been photocopied in b&w from the short side label. The booted 45's label has a matte finish; Specialty labels were always glossy.

So why the boot? Atlantic's US license expired, and the Derek & The Dominos catalog reverted to Polydor, which reissued the Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs LP in the US, but not a "Layla" 45. The demand was there, but legitimate product was not. Polydor didn't issue a "Layla" 45 until the late '80s. By then, the master tapes had been found, and Polydor's full-length stereo reissue 45 sounded great.



Edited by Yah Shure

Hi,

After the Atco version was deleted, the label switched to RSO Records (Distributed by Atlantic Recording Corp.). The 45 RPM was likely available a short while on RSO. I remember owning a RSO US copy of "Layla" on 45. It was the short version in Mono. It's long gone. Just researched this, found a listing for RSO 861.

Edited by KentT