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OT: Thomas Dolby - Hyperactive |
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NightAire 
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 Topic: OT: Thomas Dolby - HyperactivePosted: 12 September 2012 at 2:22am |
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Thomas Dolby's "Hyperactive!" only made it to #62 in March of 1984, but I'd like to see if anybody know what the shortest version released to radio was.
I've found 3 lengths: 3:40 - 3:43, which I suspect is the "short promo" for radio, & is simply an early fade of the 4:12 mix. 4:12 - 4:13, which I believe is both the album version & the commercial single version. 4:55 - 5:07, the 12" version, also labeled as the "Heavy Breather Subversion mix." Can anyone confirm or deny any of this? |
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crapfromthepast
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Posted: 28 September 2012 at 6:42pm |
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Gene - Wish I had a little more info about the vinyl for you, but based on my memory and my past history as a Thomas Dolby fanatic, I think that all sounds right. (My vinyl is buried in the basement, still, many months after my move into the new house, so I can't verify firsthand.)
The good news is that I didn't run into any CDs where the song didn't sound very good. The US '80s-era CD for The Flat Earth sounds pretty tremendous - highly recommended. It runs about 4:12. I've heard that the recent UK remaster sounds even better, which would be quite an accomplishment. There are several others that use the same analog transfer as Flat Earth:
There's a differently EQ'd digital clone of Oblivion on Time-Life's 2-CD Modern Rock Vol. 12 1980-1984 (2000). There's a differently EQ'd digital clone of Flat Earth on EMI UK's Time To Remember 1984 (1997), with added compression and an added fade from 3:31 to 3:40. The 12" version is great, and I think it's on a CD called 12 X 12, or something to that effect. All the Thomas Dolby 12" singles are pretty worthwhile listens, if you like Thomas Dolby. Somewhere in the basement, I have both US and Canadian pressings of The Flat Earth. I think the Canadian pressing has a printed time of around 5:00, but actually has the same 4:12-or-so version as the US LP. Edited by crapfromthepast |
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There's a lot of crap on the radio, but there's only one Crap From The Past.
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NightAire
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Posted: 29 September 2012 at 12:57am |
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Great, great info, CFTP... thank you so much!
I'm in total agreement about the original pressing of The Flat Earth (which I own). It's hard to imagine how it could be improved. OTOH, I did purchase the remastered version of The Golden Age of Wireless, and it's extraordinary. For some reason I had thought Retrospectacle was more compressed, but I guess I never compared just that track. 12x12 is one I've wanted to get but haven't yet. I'm glad to know I'm not the only Thomas Dolby fanatic around; he continues to be put out fantastic music, far from the Billboard charts. |
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mjb50
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Posted: 16 March 2026 at 4:32am |
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Just to clarify, per Discogs and 45cat, the only promo 45 says 4:12 on it, so I think Gene's guess was wrong—the 3:40 version was never on a promo 45.
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NightAire
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Posted: 4 hours 29 minutes ago at 9:40pm |
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I agree that I can't find a promo on Discogs running that length. The only two labels I can find mentioning a 3:45 length are:
12" Maxi-single from Spain: https://www.discogs.com/release/2596747-Thomas-Dolby-Hyper-active and Perhaps the same 12" from South Africa: https://www.discogs.com/release/4809772-Thomas-Dolby-Hyper-active-Heavy-Breather-Subversion The Spain disc says "made in Spain." I can't see the label on the South African release, and don't have either vinyl to confirm they're actually that length... although if it is, I have to wonder if it was so they could fit two tracks on one side of a 45 RPM 12". ChatGPT disagrees with me on this theory, though:
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Just on physics, there wasn’t much need to hack the track shorter for groove safety. Using those printed times, the crowded side would only be 9:04 total; even if you’re thinking of the two Hyperactive cuts together at 8:45, that is still comfortably within normal 12-inch/45 territory. Mastering guides still describe 12-inch club/dance 45s as happiest around 9–12 minutes per side, with 9:15 still possible for a very hot cut. So the lathe was not exactly being asked to juggle chainsaws here.