Buckinghams-"Kind Of A Drag"

My commercial 45, which is mono and confirmed as U.S.A. 860, has a listed time of (2:05) and an actual time of (2:03). I only post this info because current database CDs for this song have run times ranging from (2:02) and (2:08).

Edited by jimct

Is the mono USA 45 mix of this Buckinghams hit available on CD? I presume all the DB notes that say original mix refers to the Columbia 45 or LP version/mix?

I'm 99.9% certain that the USA mono LP has the same mono mix as
the USA 45. Not sure about the stereo USA mix.

Edited by aaronk

My Columbia Hall of Fame reissue says 2:08.

Ah yes and good timing, I just came here to add some
info to this song and suggest some database updates.
First I'll list the 4 unique mixes of this song in
order:
1) The U.S.A. Mono Hit 45. (never been on CD)

2) The U.S.A. Stereo LP Mix (on 4 CDs that we know of,
Note: the hit 45 mix is a fold-down of this mix!).

3) The 1969 Columbia Greatest Hits Stereo Mix (this
would be the default mix issued on LP comps for the
next 20 years - and on several early CDs).

4) The 1991 Bob Irwin Remix for Sony/Legacy CDs (this
new mix was an attempt to match the 45 but wasn't
quite the same - this mix issued on many CDs since
1991. First issued on Legacy's "Rock Artifacts Vol 4"
and hits comp "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy")

So the big news is that with some help from a few
fellow board members we discovered the original U.S.A.
stereo mix has been on CD. It is on the CD Ron
mentions above; Columbia's "Pop Classics Of The 60s",
the other 2 Ron mentions below it plus a Sony special
products CD" The Rockin' 60s" ....

So that makes 4 CDs we know of for the original USA
stereo mix. And, FYI the hit 45 was a fold-down of
this mix. I sync'd them together, exact match. The
only thing is the CD releases need to be sped up to
match the 45 speed. Once you do that they run (2:03).
So for these CDs I suggest they keep the label:
(original mix)   .... or if we want even more
descriptive:
(original mix, 45 version but slower)


The CDs in the database labeled "remix" ...well that
is correct but it's the older of 2 different
remixes..so I suggest those should labeled:
(1969 Columbia Greatest Hits Mix).
This mix is easy to spot as it has very little reverb
on the vocals and in the break the horn riffs are
potted up at full volume.

The new mix by Bob Irwin created for Sony Legacy in
1991 was remixed from the 4-track in an attempt to
make a new stereo mix that just like the 45. He made a
loving attempt but still his new mix had a few
differences. Such as: the reverb was not quite the
same and it didn't get much louder toward the end like
the 45 does. And in the horn break, he made the horn
riffs lower, but you can still hear both riffs. On
the 45, the first horn riff is mixed out completely,
then the second riff pots up but still very low, you
can barely hear it.
But I wish Bob had known that all he needed was the
master tape for the USA stereo, which had already been
issued on CD 2 years prior - because we now know that
is indeed the hit 45 mix.

So, I would suggest all CDs with the Bob Irwin mix be
lableled:
(1991 Bob Irwin Remix, which is similar to the 45
version)

PS - the lone MONO CD appearance on the Time-Life CD
Ron mentions above is not not the hit 45 mix. It is a
very-low-fi mono fold-down of the 1969 Columbia
Greatest Hits Mix. It is so bad it almost sounds like
it was recorded from a worn 45 over a phone line.
Avoid.

   

Edited by MMathews