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edtop40
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| Posted: 21 April 2012 at 9:56pm | IP Logged
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my commercial 45 for the richard harris song mac arthur
park issued as dunhill 4134 states the run time as 7:20 but
actually runs 7:23 and matches all the db
entries......question is, was there ever a shorter dj edit
released?...it seems odd that a 7 plus minute song could
reach number 2 on the billboard charts in 1968....
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 21 April 2012 at 11:16pm | IP Logged
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As hard as it is to believe, Ed, I'm pretty sure a shorter DJ edit was never serviced to radio stations for Richard Harris' "MacArthur Park". I believe any shorter edits that were heard on Top 40 stations back then would've been constructed in-house.
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Hykker
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If there was an edit, I've never seen a copy. For a while we played a "house" edit at the station I did weekends at in the spring of '68...ISTR the intro was shortened and the bridge was mostly removed. It sounded awful and at some point the cart "mysteriously" got irreparably jammed, and we just started playing the 45.
I'm also surprised there never was an official edit (though it is a hard song to edit without losing a lot of the story, not that that's ever stopped them before). I do recall there being considerable label hype about it being a 7-minute song...ISTR the promo having a picture sleeve touting that fact in large type.
Edited by Hykker on 22 April 2012 at 6:25pm
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TomDiehl1
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Somewhere in my storage locker I've got the song on a special 7" 33 1/3 rpm promotional single with an odd promo number on it. I can't remember offhand but I seem to recall the flip side had 2 songs on it...MacArthur Park has the giant promo A on it, though, and was certainly the full version of the song, not an edit.
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Yah Shure
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| Posted: 23 April 2012 at 8:42pm | IP Logged
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TomDiehl1 wrote:
| I've got the song on a special 7" 33 1/3 rpm promotional single with an odd promo number on it. I can't remember offhand but I seem to recall the flip side had 2 songs on it...MacArthur Park has the giant promo A on it, though, and was certainly the full version of the song, not an edit. |
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Tom, aside from its giant "A" designation, the configuration of your promo single sounds identical to the 7-inch, 33 1/3 RPM A Tramp Shining jukebox LP. My local Musicland store had a couple copies in their oldies 45s section about a year after the 45 had been a hit.
I bought the jukebox LP because I'd never heard "Mac Arthur Park" in stereo, but after one spin, I stashed it away. Not only did the stereo mix sound lifeless compared to the punchier mono 45,the disc itself was badly pressed on cheap vinyl. "Mac Arthur Park" was so off-center, it made Richard Harris sound like he'd taken a few meandering pathways too many through the park, if you know what I mean. Not that that would have been at all out of character for him, but still...
On the other hand, hearing the triumphant "O-o-H-h No-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O!" ending sung in a three-sheets-to-the-wind fashion did have its charms. Might've even sounded normal on the corner bar's Wurlitzer. :)
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bwolfe
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| Posted: 24 April 2012 at 6:36am | IP Logged
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Tom is correct. I worked for a station in the 80s where we had that same 7 inch 33 1/3 speed version. I'm almost positive the flip side was blank. Its been almost 30 years since I saw that one!
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Yah Shure
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| Posted: 24 April 2012 at 7:13am | IP Logged
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Discogs has scans of the Dunhill D-32 33-1/3 promo label here and the standard 45 DJ 45 labels here. Both were pressed by Monarch. The former was probably on vinyl, but the latter was styrene, which would have been promptly cue-burned to a crisp under normal airplay conditions.
According to the promo 33-1/3's Discog listing, the two sides on its B-side are the same as on the 7-inch jukebox LP.
Edited by Yah Shure on 24 April 2012 at 7:19am
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KentT
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| Posted: 25 April 2012 at 7:41am | IP Logged
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No radio edit I know of ever serviced to radio. Only the 33 1/3 promo D 32, the promo 45, or the LP. All the full length. And the 45 was cut at low level and noisy as sin. The MCA Clouds label last pressing reissue single is the best pressed and quietest surfaces of the 45 singles domestically. And sounds a little bit better than the originals and early Goldies 45 singles I've owned.
Edited by KentT on 25 April 2012 at 7:44am
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 10 June 2013 at 9:57pm | IP Logged
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By the way, I have Richard Harris' "MacArthur Park" on the various artists CD compilation Top Hits of the Sixties Volume 1 on Collectables 9656. However, the database currently shows the CD title for Collectables 9656 as Top Hits Of The Sixties - Amazing Hits. Not sure if this is an error or if this CD release was issued under two different titles.
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aaronk
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I had no idea, until I just now looked him up on Wikipedia, that Richard Harris is the actor who played Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter films. Crazy!
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MMathews
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Oh, sure, Aaron, he was a very prolific actor. The
singing and poetry reading was just a side gig.
Sadly, my vinyl Dunhill 45 of this offered no "punch"
whatsoever - it was a typical noisy Dunhill pressing that
was over-tinny from the narrow groove.
As for the stereo, when i was 18 i was given a never-
played mint copy of his Dunhill Greatest Hits album. The
sound is simply stunning on that LP. The vinyl was so
quiet all you heard was the pleasant re-assuring hiss of
the master tapes. His almost-top 40 "My Boy" is also on
this album (in stunning sound).
When i figured that no re-issue of this Hits album was
going to be forthcoming from UMG, i preserved it for
myself on CD. Sooo glad i did.
I can't imagine why, but these master tapes are long
lost. All MCA ever re-issued was the "A Tramp Shining" LP
from a woefully high generation safety copy, and it
sounds dismal. For online digital release, made even
more dismal with lots of noise reduction.
Geez, can't they even find any decent tapes in the UK for
him?
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Brian W.
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Could have burned up in the Universal fire.
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jimct
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| Posted: 11 June 2013 at 8:48am | IP Logged
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It's amazing to me that only 5 db CDs feature a #2 hit song from 1968! For
years, I've had a 1995 import CD from his native Australia, on reissue label
Raven (RVCD-52), titled "The Webb Sessions 1968-69." It is both still in print
and available on Amazon. Aaron has confirmed to me that the sound quality
on it is fine. But this specifically Jimmy Webb-produced, earlier set, while
fairly complete, didn't have the 1972, #41 hit, "My Boy." So I just both found
and ordered another, more recent and complete Richard Harris Raven hits
comp, called "Man Of Words Man Of Music: The Anthology 1968-1974". I
expect that the sound quality on it will be just as solid as the one I already
have.
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MMathews
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Ah, so tapes are somewhere! Just certainly not in this
country, where there's been no interest in upgrading
whatever they are stuck with.
Thanks Jim and Aaron for the tip. I will seek out that
Raven CD.
MM
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aaronk
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| Posted: 13 June 2013 at 10:47pm | IP Logged
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Mark, before you spend money on the Raven CD, I should warn you that at least for "MacArthur Park" the quality is better on the Collectables CD that Todd has. The Raven CD likely has a small amount of noise reduction applied, and it has been slightly brickwalled. It's not bad-sounding, but judging by your above post, the Dunhill Greatest Hits LP you have probably sounds better.
Edited by aaronk on 13 June 2013 at 10:47pm
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Aaron Kannowski
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The Hits Man
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| Posted: 14 June 2013 at 4:16pm | IP Logged
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MMathews wrote:
Sadly, my vinyl Dunhill 45 of this offered no "punch"
whatsoever - it was a typical noisy Dunhill pressing that
was over-tinny from the narrow groove.
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I very recently found a 1968 VG+ commercial
45 of it and did a nice needle drop. It's on the
ABC/Dunhill label. There are no etchings in the runout
groove whatsoever, and it is a vinyl copy. 45-4134 AMP
4501196RE. The song title uses what looks like the
Constantia font.
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aaronk
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| Posted: 15 June 2013 at 1:11am | IP Logged
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edtop40 wrote:
my commercial 45 for the richard harris song mac
arthur park issued as dunhill 4134 states the run time as 7:20 but
actually runs 7:23 and matches all the db
entries.... |
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Time to get very picky. First off, the mono 45 is a unique mix and not a
fold-down. Compared to the stereo version on cd, Richard's vocals are
much lower (almost buried in some places) on the 45. This is not
enough to warrant an "LP version" designation for Pat; however, there
is one unique spot at the very end that may. On the stereo version, the
cymbals fade out as the background singers are holding the last note.
By contrast, on the 45, those cymbals come to a natural end just before
the singers stop. Also the trailing reverb is different between the two
mixes. These are subtle differences, but things like these are often
worthy of a "version" notation in the database.
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Aaron Kannowski
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Pat Downey
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| Posted: 16 June 2013 at 7:43pm | IP Logged
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Todd my cd on Collectables 9656 is definitely titled Top Hits Of The Sixties - Amazing Hits and it runs 57:37. My guess is that Collectables retitled the cd at some point.
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Todd Ireland
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| Posted: 17 June 2013 at 11:31pm | IP Logged
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Looks like this may indeed be the case, Pat. By the way, I just double-checked the CD title I have on Collectables 9656 and regret that I didn't report it exactly right in my prior post... The correct title is actually Extreme Hits of the Sixties Volume 1.
For what it's worth, I also have a various artists CD titled Extreme Hits of the Fifties Volume 1 on Collectables 6846. The database currently shows Collectables 6846 with the title Top Hits of 1956 (in my opinion, the latter title makes more sense to me given that the tracks all came from that particular year!). The track listing appears to be the same on both releases.
Oh, and by the way, nice catch on the "MacArthur Park" 45/LP version difference, Aaron!
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MMathews
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| Posted: 15 September 2016 at 3:02pm | IP Logged
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Ok - I have to revive this topic because of reported
times. Ed reported his copy states (7:20) but actually
runs (7:23).
However, a couple of years ago I was sent a really nice
cleaned dub of the 45 and it runs exactly (7:20).
Can anyone shed light by sharing their actual times for
this? There could certainly be multiple pressings.
Thanks
MM
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Topic: richard harris mac arthur park
