# 45 RPM Singles. Did you play the B-side? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 8, 2005, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503 "2005-06-08T20:26:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/21 "2005-06-09T01:17:14Z")
I vaguely remember a Three Dog Night platter from the early '70s called _Our B Side._ I forget what the A side was. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/22 "2005-06-09T01:33:11Z")
If we hadn’t listened to Side B, we would have missed out on **Hound Dog**. It was the flip side of **Don’t Be Cruel** (1956). Life as we know it would have been drastically different. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/23 "2005-06-09T01:44:19Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > I vaguely remember a Three Dog Night platter from the early '70s called _Our B Side._ > > I forget what the A side was. “Shambala” on ABC/Dunhill 4352 (1973) ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/24 "2005-06-09T01:46:59Z")
> [@Green Bean](#): > > IIRC, Led Zep’s _Hey Hey What Can I Do?_ was a b-side, and not available on CD for quite a while because of that. > > Can anyone confirm or deny? It finally appeared on CD on their first box set. It must have been an extra song recorded in the studio for _Led Zeppelin III_ (?). ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/25 "2005-06-09T01:51:11Z")
Ozzy Osbourne had a B side called “One Up the B Side”. It’s actually a pretty cool song, and unavailable on CD. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/26 "2005-06-09T01:59:24Z")
> [@Mr. Blue Sky](#): > > It finally appeared on CD on their first box set. It must have been an extra song recorded in the studio for _Led Zeppelin III_ (?). Yep. And for that reason it was one of the most sought after 45s of all time. I also remember it being a staple on various Get The Led Out shows. There was also a re-release of this 45 on cassingle (remember cassingles?) before the CD re-release. The one B-Side I remember playing the most was American Pie – since the song covered both sides. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/27 "2005-06-09T02:10:17Z")
I liked Boz Scagg’s version of “We’re All Alone” (flipside of “Lido Shuffle” and, oddly enough, “What Can I Say”) better than the Rita Coolidge version (a top ten hit). ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/28 "2005-06-09T02:58:02Z")
> [@wolf\_meister](#): > > **Crandolph** Paul Revere and the Raiders almost always had a wacky ‘B’ side on their 45’s and these would never make it to the albums. The songs were probably written in about 2 minutes yet they were played very well. That’s because Paul Revere was a freakin’s genius when it came to the business of music. Most of the group’s early hits (“Louie, Louie,” “Kicks,” “Hungry”) were written by someone else. Revere (and Mark Lindsay) figured out early on that their performances were putting money into someone else’s pocket, so they put their own music on the B side, to ensure they’d get writer’s royalties for at least one side of the record. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/29 "2005-06-09T03:13:33Z")
> [@Zoe](#): > > If we hadn’t listened to Side B, we would have missed out on **Hound Dog**. It was the flip side of **Don’t Be Cruel** (1956). Life as we know it would have been drastically different. “Don’t Be Cruel”/“Hound Dog” was a double a-side and was listed as such in the charts. Both sides together comprise the #1 single. (Source: _Billboard Book of Number One Songs_.) Besides, I specified making an exception for legends, didn’t I? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/30 "2005-06-09T03:17:05Z")
> [@Exapno Mapcase](#): > > Besides, I specified making an exception for legends, didn’t I? 😉 hijack: Exapno, take a quick look here: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=6244135&postcount=82](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=6244135&postcount=82) It seems the Teeming Millions are a bit slow tonight. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/31 "2005-06-09T03:19:59Z")
**kunilou** Interesting story about Paul Revere and the Raiders. As I said, the songs were probably hastily written but the musicianship was always good. Another fact about the group is that until 3 of them quit the group (1967 ??), they always did their own playing and singing, unlike a lot of groups of the day (Beach Boys, Monkees and lots of others) that would use studio musicians. ---
**Author:** ![mambocrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc348/32.png) [@mambocrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mambocrow)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/32 "2005-06-09T03:20:16Z")
The Beatles caused some problems for Capitol Records back in the day when occasionally the B side of a Beatle’s single would ascend into the top 10 along with the A side. An example of this that I remember was a single released in 1965 “I Feel Fine” (A side) and “She’s A Woman” (B side), I think both those songs made it to #1. It happened again with “Penny Lane” and “Strawberry Fields Forever” (I forget which was the A and which was the B, but I think I remember one of them hit #1 and the other #3). Capitol would lose money when this happened, since they would have preferred that these songs were released on separate singles, so they could sell more records. I always listened to every cut on every phonograph record I bought, at least once. I listen to every selection on any music CD I buy now. (If I paid for it, I’m going to listen) ---
**Author:** ![psycat90](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@psycat90](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psycat90)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/33 "2005-06-09T03:26:38Z")
One of my favorite Bruce Springsteen songs (actually a cover of a Tom Waits song) was the B side of Cover Me - Jersey Girl. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/34 "2005-06-09T03:57:24Z")
There have been some very interesting choices here! I remembered about Mungo Jerry that “In The Summertime” was reissued in the US in 1975, and again the single had a really good, non-LP track on the flip called “She Rowed.” Re: the above Led Zeppelin “Hey Hey What Can I Do”, it was the B-side to “The Immigrant Song”. This was the only place you could find it until the box set came out. The B-side of Santana’s “Black Magic Woman” was an infinitely better song called “Hope You’re Feeling Better.” Probably my favorite Doors song is “You Need Meat (Don’t Go No Further)” that was on the B-side of “Love Her Madly.” It was included on “Weird Scenes Inside The Goldmine” but that album has never been issued on CD. If you bought the single of The Temptations’ “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone,” there is an instrumental version on the B-side that isn’t available anywhere else. I agree with the thought that most B-sides were abysmal, but once in awhile, they’d stick something really great on there. All you had to do was discover it. Hey, **Thudlow** , I’ve got a 12" single by Blotto, with “Metal Head” on one side and “The Blotto Story” on the other. And somewhere on videotape, I have the video for “Metal Head” too! ---
**Author:** ![John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Carter_of_Mars)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/35 "2005-06-09T05:07:36Z")
I remember the Elvis record as **Zoe** does. The DJ’s were playing “Don’t be Cruel”, and it wasn’t until after people started buying the record and flipping it over that they started requesting “Hound Dog” on the radio shows. But then, the only cite I have is my own memory, which must surely be fading. The Coasters came out with a song, “Young Blood” that was getting some air time. After record sales got rolling, the flip-side turned out to be more popular and “Searchin’” reached number one on the charts. There were a lot of good B sides on '50’s R & R. If my boxes of '45’s weren’t out in a dark shed, I’d go pull ‘em out and start lookin’, but it’s almost bedtime. ---
**Author:** ![Seven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Seven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seven)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/36 "2005-06-09T06:52:29Z")
Dave Sevilles B-Side of **The Chipmunk Song** is called **Almost Good** - a cool jazzy piano number with not a chipmunk in sight. It’s worth tracking down the 45. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/37 "2005-06-09T12:21:45Z")
National Lampoon, on their LP _Goodbye Pop_ had a song called _The B Side of Love_. ---
**Author:** ![GLWasteful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f05b48/32.png) [@GLWasteful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GLWasteful)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/38 "2005-06-09T13:56:27Z")
Had I not flipped it over, I never would have heard _Queen of the Silver Dollar_ by Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show. Wasn’t as famous as _Cover of the Rolling Stone_, but I always kinda liked it. ---
**Author:** ![Made\_in\_Macau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@Made\_in\_Macau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Made_in_Macau)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/39 "2005-06-09T14:14:32Z")
> [@buns3000](#): > > **Made in Macau** , is there anywhere else you know of where I can get hold of the Yes song “Abeline”? I’d never heard of it until I read your post. It’s on the reissue of Tormato - and you can here a clip of it here; > **[Tormato - Yes](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tormato-Yes/dp/B00009Z574)** > > Time has proven Yes to be the most successful progressive rock band ever. TORMATO now expanded with 9 bonus cuts weighing in at almost 35 minutes including 7 previously unissued tracks: "Picasso," "Some Are Born," "You Can... but dont click on ‘Abeline’ - click on ‘The Silent Wings of Freedom’ :rolleyes: I love that song. MiM ---
**Author:** ![TwoTrouts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@TwoTrouts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwoTrouts)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2005, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503/40 "2005-06-09T14:36:18Z")
> [@Green Bean](#): > > IIRC, Led Zep’s _Hey Hey What Can I Do?_ was a b-side, and not available on CD for quite a while because of that. > > Can anyone confirm or deny? It was the B side of the “Whole Lotta Love” single. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/45-rpm-singles-did-you-play-the-b-side/307503.md?page=3)