I knew this would be fun.
The response to the story on “AM versions” of songs hit a chord, so to speak, with your memories matching mine … and more. But before we get into it, I had a chance to talk again with former KHJ (930 AM) production manager Douglas Brown, who added this interesting tidbit:
“Some of the edits had to do with the way the songs are structured. Top-40 radio, especially at the time, was a tight, driven format. Often songs with slow starts were edited to make things flow better, after a jingle or another fast-paced song.”
Think “I’m Just a Singer (in a Rock and Roll Band)” by the Moody Blues … it has a slow start ramping up and would have clashed with an up-tempo jingle. Interestingly, these edits would occasionally cause other problems such as when listeners would call “because they couldn’t find the version they heard on the radio,” said Brown.
Mike Palmer of Torrance has memories of the same song I referenced: “I distinctly remember Foreigner’s 1977 hit ‘Feels Like The First Time.’ When the 45 was first released, it was for the full LP version; later, the shortened version was released. I still recall seeing both ‘versions’ of the 45 at Wallach’s Music City store (remember that?). That is one of the worst examples of record editing; it sounds like they used a meat cleaver to do the edits.”
Palmer also told of early AM stations competing by playing longer versions occasionally, something I was told happened more at night. “Back in 1972, when I lived near Boston, the two competing AM hit radio stations were WMEX and WRKO. WRKO started distinguishing itself by regularly playing the album versions of hits, including Argent’s ‘Hold Your Head Up’ and the Moody Blues’ ‘Nights in White Satin’ with the spoken section at the end of the song.”
“OMG FINALLY someone else understands,” writes Paul Varnes. “I’ve been mentioning this for years to anyone who is around me when a song like “Feels” comes on the radio and skips one of the best parts of that song: that guitar riff! Whenever I hear it on the radio, I wonder which version I’m going to get … usually I’m disappointed as it ends up being the shorter version, which bothers me so much.
Varnes also brings an interesting take with a song from Whitesnake. They made two versions of ‘Here I Go Again,’ the original rockier version and then a softer, more of a ballad version. I grew up with the rockier version; when I hear the soft version on the radio (which seems to be the only one played), I have to turn the dial.”
I, too, like the rockier version. My memory of “Here I Go Again” was that my 45 RPM single was the harder version, and the album or CD was softer, and I assumed that was the difference. Turns out, there are actually three versions, once more blues-y from 1982, and the two we both remember from 1987. Go figure!
Joe Macleod notes that the short versions often “pop” more, matching the intent suggested by Brown above. “I listened to a lot of Top 40 music on AM radio, and the album version (4:44) of Edgar Winter Group’s ‘Frankenstein’ isn’t as tight!” he says. “The 45 version takes out a noodle-y keyboard/drum that kills the momentum. On the other hand, seeing Edgar Winter perform that song live beats both versions.
Similarly, the album track of Guess Who’s ‘American Woman’ has Burton Cummings singing over a bluesy guitar intro, and I guess it’s a classic, but it doesn’t POP right off the line like the 7″ version.”
Two of you mentioned “Hotel California.” Ellis Lai says, “I think the worst example of radio stations cutting songs short is KRTH (101.1 FM) and their mistreatment of ‘Hotel California.’ I always cringe when I hear them cut out a huge section of the instrumental at the end. It’s so bad I almost always change stations before the end of the song so I don’t have that jarring experience of listening to something different from what I know is the real ending.
“It can’t just be about the length of the song. They always play ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ from Queen all the way to the end. So I don’t know why they continue to butcher ‘Hotel California.’”
Maybe there is good news on that front.
“It was fortuitous that I happened to read your article on butchered (shortened) songs today,” writes Jonathan Borrego of Anaheim Hills. “I used to have a major pet peeve over the fact that KRTH used to play an edited version of ‘Hotel California’ for many years. The shortened version chopped up the guitar solo at the end of the song, which absolutely ruined the record, in my opinion.
“I could never understand why a station of that stature would ruin such a great song in the interest of saving something like 30 seconds,” he went on. “Lo and behold, the same day I read your article, I happened to hear the song on KRTH and noticed they played the full version! I was shocked as I was fully expecting to hear the butchered version of the song that pissed me off so many years. Someone finally fixed that travesty!”
Michele Cruz writes of one I forgot: “Your column today about the shortening of songs way-back-when brought to mind the most shortened song that always sticks with me, and that is the Doors’ ‘Light My Fire!’ I even hear that one sometimes shortened today, which seems crazy.” She concluded, “I learned something new about some songs shortened in your column today – fun to know!”
Larry Marotta brought up a different but perhaps equally important aspect of some AM stations during the 1970s – those that sped up the music. “I’m surprised that your recent column did not mention stations speeding up the playback of music. I grew up in New York, and it was well-known that WABC and WMCA sped up music by 6% to be able to fit in more commercials. That’s just enough to pick up a couple of minutes per hour.”
A few stations did that here, though some of the people involved won’t necessarily admit it. If memory serves right, KTNQ (1020 AM) did it, but KHJ and KFI (640 AM) at least claimed they did not. But the reason is not for extra commercials – it was to sound “brighter.” Didn’t work in my opinion. Just sounded silly and drove people to FM!
Here’s an interesting question: Is the first version of a song you heard the one you like best? Sometimes songs are regionally popular, such as “Gloria” by Them on the West Coast … or by “Shadows of the Night” on the East Coast. Sometimes, it’s a timing issue, such as when “Wild Thing” became a hit in 1974 by a band called Fancy. Terrible version, comparatively, and yet I still prefer it – which I heard first – to the one by the Troggs, even though the Troggs’ version from 1966 is absolutely superior. Let’s have some more fun …
Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance columnist covering radio in Southern California. Email rwagoner@socalradiowaves.com