"Opportunities..." - Pet Shop Boys
Printed From: Top 40 Music on CD
Category: Top 40 Music On Compact Disc
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Topic: "Opportunities..." - Pet Shop Boys
Posted By: Todd Ireland
Subject: "Opportunities..." - Pet Shop Boys
Date Posted: 05 September 2005 at 11:55pm
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Here's another heads-up... In the 10th edition of Top 40 Music on Compact Disc, the song "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)" by Pet Shop Boys is listed with a run time of 3:43 on the CD Please (EMI 46271), yet only clocks in at 3:35 on the Discography disc (EMI 97097). I inquired with Edtop40 about this and he informed me his commercial 45 is exactly the same as the 3:43 version on Please. Or put another way... the 45 version and LP version are identical. Upon further investigation, I've observed that the first :08 of the 45 and LP version is edited off the version appearing on Discography, thus explaining why the song only runs 3:35 on this CD.
Does anyone know if this edited 3:35 version of "Opportunities" is a DJ edit? It's conceivable the full intro on the 3:43 version might have been considered a wee bit too repetitive and drawn out for Top 40 airplay. |
Replies:
Posted By: Moderator
Date Posted: 18 January 2006 at 3:49pm
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I have obtained the 12" dj single of "Opportunities" and it is the full length version on both sides running 3:43. ------------- Top 40 Music On Compact Disc Moderator |
Posted By: Todd Ireland
Date Posted: 18 January 2006 at 7:01pm
| Thanks for the update, Pat. |
Posted By: edtop40
Date Posted: 18 January 2006 at 9:47pm
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who is the moderator..........it's not pat???...........if not, who is it?? ------------- edtop40 |
Posted By: Todd Ireland
Date Posted: 18 January 2006 at 10:18pm
| The Moderator is indeed our main man, Pat Downey. |
Posted By: Pat Downey
Date Posted: 29 December 2007 at 6:56am
| Just to complete this investigation, I have finally obtained a dj copy of the vinyl 45 of "Opportunities" and it runs (3:43) so there was no promo edit that I am aware of. |
Posted By: MCT1
Date Posted: 08 February 2008 at 9:01pm
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One discographical note on "Opportunities" which may or may not be relevant to this discussion: for some reason, this single was aparently released with two different catalog numbers, B-8321 and B-8330. The 8330 version seems to be by far the more common of the two.
I have an 8330 copy. My turntable is not currently set up, for FWIW my copy has a listed time of 3:44, and the master number X502390 is printed on the label. The matrix number is B-8330-S45-X-503290-P-7. The first part of the number actually has B-8321 crossed out, with B-8330 written next to it. I notice that the B-side matrix starts with B-8330 with no crossout, so maybe the new catalog number was prompted by something that was changed on the B-side, not with "Opportunities". The back of the picture sleeve has extensive production and mixing credits for both sides of the single. Does anyone have the B-8321 version of this 45? |
Posted By: jimct
Date Posted: 05 April 2008 at 3:02pm
| MCT1, all 3 of my stock copies are the EMI America 8330 45 issue. But, one of my "go-to" research books states that the b-side of the EMI America 8321 45 release was "In The Night", while the more common EMI America 8330's flip side is "Was That What It Was." Further, my latest "1955-2006 Billboard Top Pop Singles" book by Mr. Whitburn has a small notation under this title's listing, saying "first 5 chart weeks on EMI America 8321." But I am not so sure as to the accuracy of that statement, however. In 1986, as I've mentioned before here, I bought all of the "Hot 100" new entry stock copy 45s during the VERY first week that they entered the chart, and my 45 copies are EMI America 8330, not the 8321 number. I believe that MCT1's thoery is correct, and that this was simply a "b-side substitution" by the record label. I suspect that very few, if any, 8321 stock copies actually made it into stores, especially here on the East Coast, where I happen to reside. |
Posted By: Paul Haney
Date Posted: 06 April 2008 at 7:17am
Jim, I can assure you that statement IS accurate! We're just reporting what the actual Hot 100 charts showed for those first five chart weeks. Anyone with access to those charts can verify this fact. |
jimct wrote:Posted By: jimct
Date Posted: 06 April 2008 at 10:37am
| Paul, my apologies - I was very unclear, and all of the following "deep menusha" is specifically designed for you, Paul, in terms of an explanation. I have no doubt that Billboard LISTED the EMI America 9321 stock # for "Opportunities", in those "early chart run" issues of the magazine. What I was actually (and very poorly) trying to say was that I DID, on rare occasions in the 80's, notice "irregularies" while I "scoured the globe" for the EXACT stock 45 #/types of single release info that the magazine stated for Hot 100 entries. I had been "burned" a few times back in the 70's by retail, when I found out that I was sold stock copies with a different # than the one Billboard had listed. One such 80's instance, that I will never, EVER forget, was attempting to obtain the 1988 Billboard #64 hit, "You Have Placed A Chill In My Heart", by the Eurythmics, with its listed-in-the-mag stock #, RCA 8619, during its entire, 7 week chart run. Problem was, ALL stock 45s, that ALL of the retail outlets that I knew of had in stock, were ALL RCA 7615! This song was released twice, and never charted in its original 45 release/mix. It had a listed time of (3:50), on BOTH sides of the original promo 45 we got in. The label # was RCA 7615 (deadwax "7615-7-R-A"). (FYI, I have ALL my referenced 45s right in front of me, at this moment.) Then, a "Chill Mix" remix was subsequently released as a 45. We DID happen to play this remix at our station for a few weeks, and THIS is the version that "earned" the song's Hot 100 placing. Our re-released PROMO 45s have the listed (4:00) "Chill Mix", shown as "Side A", on one side (label # "8619-7-RA1", deadwax "8619-7-RA1-A"), with the original (3:50) mix, shown as "Side 1", on the other side (label # and deadwax are both "8619-7-RA1"). All of my stock 45s contain the EXACT same versions as the newer promo 45s, on both sides, EXCEPT that the "8619-7-RA1-A" deadwax info has a line through it, and has "7615-7RX-A" written to its right, for the "Chill Mix". Same for the other side, with "7615-7RX-B" added to the left of the crossed out 8619 deadwax info. Both sides of my stock 45's label state a stock # of "7615-7RX." For some reason, RCA went back and decided to re-cycle/re-utilize the original "RCA 7615" #, for only the STOCK copies of the "Chill Mix/Original Mix" 45 release, while leaving PROMO 45 copies, for the EXACT same version combo, as RCA 8619! I know all this is VERY confusing and difficult to follow, Paul, but ALL my info here is both complete, and 100% accurate. Please, check the original 1988 Billboard issues - they ALL state "RCA 8619" as the stock 45 #, don't they? And that info was always incorrect, IMHO. All the new promo 45's WERE RCA 8619. But the STOCK copy #'s had been changed back to the original "RCA 7615", for some unknown reason. Paul, even Mr. Whitburn's OWN books have "waffled" on this song's stock # over the years since. My 1955-1994 Billboard Pop Annual FINALLY, and CORRECTLY, state "RCA 7615" as the stock #. But my new BB Top Pop Singles 1955-2006 book has gone back and reproduced the original, 1988 Billboard Magazine error, once again stating that the actual RCA stock # for the song was "RCA 8619!". Paul, what is the stock # for the 45 that Mr. Whitburn has in storage for this song? I'll bet that it's RCA 7615! That is my ONLY point in all this, Mr. Haney, my friend, and I believe the exact same thing is true with "Opportunities", although that error was later "adjusted/corrected", in the magazine itself, by week 6 of its chart run. Hey, are there any openings at Record Research for an old, washed-up DJ? :) |
Posted By: Paul Haney
Date Posted: 07 April 2008 at 5:40am
| Hey Jim, no apologies necessary. I'll look into the Eurythmics record when I get a chance. I'll also double check the Pet Shop Boys entry, maybe someone here can verify that the earlier pressing does indeed exist. Interesting to note the different B-side. If it can be verified, I'll make sure the trivia note gives a better explanation. In the end we just want to get everything as accurate as possible. |
Posted By: torcan
Date Posted: 07 April 2008 at 9:27am
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Quote:
All the new promo 45's WERE RCA 8619. But the STOCK copy #'s had been changed back to the original "RCA 7615", ------------- I've got a US copy of the "chill mix" with the original picture sleeve. I'm just curious if the same sleeve was issued with the original single that didn't chart, or the sleeve was just issued with the new "chill mix"? Some sources I've seen list the sleeve's value much higher than other Eurythmics singles of the time. As is the case with any "rare" sleeve from the '80s, I'm just curious as to what the story is... |
Posted By: jimct
Date Posted: 07 April 2008 at 12:21pm
| Torcan And Paul, FYI, one of my trusted research books indicates that the flip side of the Eurythmics original RCA 7615 stiff release's stock 45 was "Wide Eyed Girl" (for which I only own a promo 45). Only one of my several "Chill Mix/Original (3;50) Mix" stock/promo 45s has a picture sleeve, Torcan. It states that Side A is the "Chill Mix", with Side B being the original (3:50) mix. So my sleeve MUST be for its 2nd 45 issue - if it was for the first 45 issue, it would've stated that "Wide Eyed Girl" was Side B. I don't know if your pic sleeve looks exactly like mine does or not, Torcan. My stock picture sleeve lists a stock # of RCA 8619-7-RA1 on it, even the the 45 inside it was RCA 7615. Hopefully, we both own a rare collector's item here, Torcan! |
Posted By: Robert
Date Posted: 17 February 2009 at 6:22pm
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To bring back an old thread...
I've just finished comparing the DISCOGRAPHY (3:35) and the ESSENTIAL (3:45) versions of this song and now I'm really confused. First, the ESSENTIAL version says it's the "original 7' version" and not only does it fade in, but the intro is very different from the DISCOGRAPHY version. I do not believe it's just a matter of the intro missing the first :08. The two are just too different for it to be that simple. The ending is also quite different, with a spoken prologue on the ESSENTIAL version, and a long sustained note-ending on the DISCOGRAPHY version. If Todd's observation that the 3:43 LP and 45 versions from PLEASE are the same, and Pat says there doesn't appear to be a DJ version, then what the heck is the ESSENTIAL version? |
Posted By: cmmmbase
Date Posted: 17 February 2009 at 6:45pm
| I believe the Essential Pet Shop Boys disc uses the original UK 7" mix of Opportunities |
Posted By: Robert
Date Posted: 17 February 2009 at 9:02pm
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A-HAAAAAA!
The ol' UK mix thing. Mystery solved - I think... Thanks! |
Posted By: Ron S
Date Posted: 03 October 2018 at 6:33pm
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I have the Discography CD and just realized that Opportunities isn't the 45
version on the album. Going to have to get the 45 version from their Pop Art CD which contains the 45 version. |
Posted By: David Pro
Date Posted: 13 August 2020 at 5:52pm
The version of "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)" included in Essential was produced by J.J. Jeczalik & Nicholas Froome and charted #116 in the UK Singles Chart in 1985. The version included in Please was produced by Stephen Hague. Both versions have their master releases in Discogs. http://www.discogs.com/en/Pet-Shop- Boys-Opportunities- Lets-Make-Lots-Of- Money/master/12956 (1985 recording) http://www.discogs.com/en/Pet-Shop- Boys-Opportunities- Lets-Make-Lots-Of- Money/master/120106 (1986 recording included in Please) Regarding the Please version of "Opportunities...", the US and Canada 7" releases contain the album version running 3:44 in side A, whereas the UK and European 7" releases have the printed time for "Opportunities..." as 3:36 in side A, which would match the edit included in Discography: The Singles Collection. |
Posted By: David Pro
Date Posted: 16 August 2021 at 5:37pm
The 2003 PSB compilation Pop Art has the 3:44 version of "Opportunities" which is the LP version appearing on Please and the US 45 version. That 3:36 version from the Discography compilation was the UK 45 version according to the 45s listed on Discogs. |
Posted By: NightAire
Date Posted: 23 July 2023 at 1:11am
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It appears at the original time of release, the Shep Pettibone Mastermix (the "hit" dance / club 12" version) was never released in digital form. I went through all of the releases I could find on Discogs, and of the official releases I only found the edit or the "original 12" which I assume refers to the 1985 version, not the 1986 "hit" mix.
I have one vinyl dub which is decent and I may end up using, but this is my last attempt to find a quality digital source. Unless someone has turned up a linear digital source from the original master tape, does anybody have a preferred CD disc dub of this mix? I know some companies actually do a decent job of transferring vinyl to compact disc; do you know of a good transfer of this version? Here are all the listings of the vinyl release of the mix I'm looking for: AUSTRALIA https://www.discogs.com/release/743840-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money CANADA https://www.discogs.com/release/677423-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money EUROPE https://www.discogs.com/release/252459-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money FRANCE https://www.discogs.com/release/1039236-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/1581710-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money ITALY https://www.discogs.com/release/2837651-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money JAPAN https://www.discogs.com/release/904816-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/1667558-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/13997564-Pet-Shop-Boys-Oppor tunities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money NETHERLANDS https://www.discogs.com/release/12560073-Pet-Shop-Boys-Oppor tunities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money NEW ZEALAND https://www.discogs.com/release/679985-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/743839-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money PHILIPPINES https://www.discogs.com/release/1941024-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money SPAIN https://www.discogs.com/release/2430632-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money UNITED KINGDOM https://www.discogs.com/release/110040-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportu nities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/2074520-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/3812235-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/5781890-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money UNITED STATES https://www.discogs.com/release/27684-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opportun ities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money https://www.discogs.com/release/1656324-Pet-Shop-Boys-Opport unities-Lets-Make-Lots-Of-Money ------------- Gene Savage http://www.BlackLightRadio.com - http://www.BlackLightRadio.com http://www.facebook.com/TulsaSavage - http://www.facebook.com/TulsaSavage Tulsa, Oklahoma USA |
Posted By: mjb50
Date Posted: 24 July 2023 at 8:15am
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Yeah, the 7:00 "Original 12-inch Mix" is a previously unreleased version. It's very similar to the 6:47 "Original Dance Mix" released on vinyl in 1985, but has a few very bad editing decisions, and the section at about 4:20 is completely different, missing quite a bit of percussion.
The Pettibone mix from '86 runs about 7:19 and has his sound all over it. It was never released on CD. DjPaulT's rip of the Canadian 12" from 2017 is as good as it gets. I have my own transfers of the UK & US 12"s but they're not as good and I'm not inclined to redo them anytime soon. |
Posted By: crapfromthepast
Date Posted: 24 July 2023 at 11:12am
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Just one more data point (I can't tell if this was covered above):
EMI America B-8321 is the first-released version of the single, with credit "Produced by J.J. Jeczalik & Nicholas Froome", printed 3:44. EMI America B-8330 is the second-released version of the single, with credit "Produced by Stephen Hague", printed 3:44. Both seem to have the same matrix number (X502390). The matrix number of the B-8330 single has a crossed-out 8321 in it, so I strongly suspect that the two versions both play the same version of the song. I suspect (but can't confirm) that the US single was rereleased because of the printing error of the producer. There was a single released outside the US in 1985, which really was produced by J.J. Jeczalik & Nicholas Froome, but it wasn't released in the US. The US 45s were all released in 1986, and all (likely) included the Stephen Hague version, which appears on the Please album. ------------- There's a lot of crap on the radio, but there's only one http://www.crapfromthepast.com" rel="nofollow - Crap From The Past . |
Posted By: mjb50
Date Posted: 24 July 2023 at 5:19pm
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The producer credits were in flux on those early US releases. Inconsistencies happened with the B-side of "West End Girls" as well.
In the liner notes of Please/Further Listening, Neil explains that the first version of "Opportunities" was a demo recorded with Bobby Orlando. This was never officially released. The second, non-hit version was recorded with J.J. Jeczalik. The 1985 12" version was punched up by Ron Dean Miller. The album version with re-recorded vocals was done with Stephen Hague but retains some of the Jeczalik & Miller-produced material. The 1986 hit single is, as already mentioned in this thread, the album version. The Shep Pettibone 12" remixes were part of the '86 releases. We always thought the song was sad, because it was about two losers. We re-recorded it first with J.J. Jeczalik from The Art Of Noise for our first EMI single. We chose him because he'd had a hit record with Tin Tin, 'Kiss Me', and we liked The Art Of Noise. He did it on the Fairlight, which we were very excited about. Before we even got to the studio he'd come up with this weird sound which sounds like scaffolding falling down, which became the basis of the rhythm track. We spent three weeks making a single with him, in at least three locations. It cost about £40,000, and no one was ever very happy. We found it an intensely frustrating experience. They brought in a real bass player and it all seemed to take a lot of time. ... We also did our own twelve-inch version [CD2, track 4]. Around that time, we'd heard this record called 'Loveride' by Nuance featuring Vikki Love so we had the idea of finding the producer of that, Ron Dean Miller, and going to New York and doing the twelve-inch with him. Money was still being spent. It was a major remix and he put the big chorus drums all the way through. Stephen Hague wanted to re-record 'Opportunities' completely but there wasn't time. The version on Please was based on the ['85] single version, but also used elements of Ron Dean Miller's mix and then Stephen Hague did some reprogramming and I re-sung the vocal as well. The vocal is much better on the album—on the first version the vocal is really weak. We also faded out the album version before the final section 'all the love that we had and all the love that we hide/who will bury us when we die?' We decided it was too pretentious. I remember hearing the original version on Radio One. We were all in Tom Watkins' office, listening, and the guy on the radio took the piss out of it at the end and I thought, 'right, I'm not doing that again'. The album version was subsequently a hit, though even then not as big a hit as we'd hoped. |
Posted By: NightAire
Date Posted: 03 April 2024 at 12:30am
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I've found a version from Now 7 UK that runs 4:37. It seems to match the original (non-hit) single in the opening; is this the original album version? ------------- Gene Savage http://www.BlackLightRadio.com - http://www.BlackLightRadio.com http://www.facebook.com/TulsaSavage - http://www.facebook.com/TulsaSavage Tulsa, Oklahoma USA |
Posted By: mjb50
Date Posted: 03 April 2024 at 2:37am
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Per a comment/review on Discogs, the version on the Now 7 2020 CD is the "Full Length Original Seven-Inch" which debuted on the Please/Further Listening CD in 2001.
The contemporary CD reissues of the Now That's What I Call Music series seem to always have changes from the original editions. |
Posted By: NightAire
Date Posted: 08 April 2024 at 8:33pm
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I found four labels on Cat45.com that list the song length as 3:36. A typo? Probably, although with it showing up in four different countries makes me wonder if there was another, international, remix / edit.
https://www.45cat.com/record/1a0062012607 - Netherlands https://www.45cat.com/record/nzp3607 - New Zealand https://www.45cat.com/record/2012607 - France https://www.45cat.com/record/pal61197 - Phillipines Any thoughts on whether these are a shorter version, or a misprint? Does anybody own one of these with the "3:36" label? ------------- Gene Savage http://www.BlackLightRadio.com - http://www.BlackLightRadio.com http://www.facebook.com/TulsaSavage - http://www.facebook.com/TulsaSavage Tulsa, Oklahoma USA |
Posted By: mjb50
Date Posted: 09 April 2024 at 1:35pm
| I found someone sharing their own rip of the NL 45 and it is the ~3:44 album version, no edits. |
Posted By: nlgbbbblth
Date Posted: 04 August 2024 at 2:30pm
The original Now 7 double LP and cassette included the Alternative 7" AKA Matrix mix of Opportunities that was unique to that release. I interviewed Now compiler Ashley Abram for Classic Pop in 2017 and he said: “In the 80s and 90s, the Now albums had long lead times but there was always pressure to get the mastering done very quickly. Component parts came into the studio in large numbers so it was always chaos in Abbey Road with packages of master tapes arriving the whole time so not everything always went exactly to plan. I think on Opportunities…, PSB didn’t mind which mix we used but when they found out we’d used the alternative version they asked EMI for a couple of boxes of samples of Now 7 as they thought it might become sought after at some point because of the alternative mix!” |
Posted By: nlgbbbblth
Date Posted: 04 August 2024 at 2:31pm
| sorry double post |