Maxi Priest - "Close To You"

Does anyone have a promo CD single for "Close To You"? I don't have the 45, which leads me to think that there's wasn't a US 45 issued when this was a hit in 1990.

The reason I ask is that I found variations of two different intros, plus I want to figure out where the edit points are for the (4:00) "45 version" listed in the book.

The longest intro I found is on Cosmopolitan Vol. 1 (Sandstone, 1992, runs 5:27; mastered by Steve Hoffman and sounds great!). It actually begins with a single note hit, then a synth sustain for about 3 seconds, then the synth fades at the beginning of the familiar drum pattern. If you pause it at the start of the pattern, you can hear the fadeout of the synth.

The next shortest into fades in gradually during the single synth note. That's on Living In The 90s (Razor & Tie, 1995, runs 5:28).

Even shorter than that is a super-short fade-in during the synth note, on Big Hits '90 (PolyTel Canada, 1990, runs 5:26).

There's a cold cut at the end of the opening synth note, right at the beginning of the opening drum pattern on the in-store promo In Play Disc 4 (runs 5:21; fades slightly more quickly than others).

There's a quick fade-in on the synth note that actually eats up the opening of the drum pattern on Monster Trax (Quality Canada, 1990, runs about 4:26; fades way earlier than others).

Finally, there's one version that DOESN'T have any trace of the opening synth note. The drum pattern starts completely cold, which means it can't be created from the others. That's on Body Talk: Hearts On Fire (Time-Life R834-21, 2000; runs 5:28; mastered by Dennis Drake and sounds great!). I know how uncommon this disc is, so I'll be happy to provide dubs for those who want it.

So if there's a promo CD single, is there an LP version with the opening synth note, a "fixed" LP version that opens with just the drum pattern, and/or an edit that runs around 4:00?

Thanks to John G's speedy delivery, I can give you edit points in the "Edit" version from the promo single.

My times are from the Body Talk CD listed above, which begins with only the drums, but you can edit any of the others down with exactly the same edit points if you don't mind a tiny wisp of a synth note on your opening downbeat. (Much the same as for the Thompson Twins' "Lay Your Hands On Me", but that's for another thread.)

Keep the first 12 beats of the song 0:00.0-0:08.1.
Edit on downbeat.
Remove the 16 beats from 0:08.1-0:18.1.
Keep the 153 beats from 0:18.1-1:53.7.
Edit on snare, right in the middle of "heh heh"s.
Remove the 64 beats from 1:53.7-2:33.7.
Keep the 87 beats from 2:33.7-3:28.1.
Edit on downbeat.
Remove the 16 beats from 3:28.1-3:38.1.
Keep the 47 beats from 3:38.1-4:07.5.
Edit on snare, on the word "just".
Remove the 16 beats from 4:07.5-4:17.5.
Keep the 89 beats from 4:17.5-5:13.1, with a 32-beat fade from 4:53.1-5:13.1.

Your mixdown will run 4:03, and will have edits at 0:08.1, 1:43.8, 2:38.1 and 3:07.5, with a fade from 3:43.1-4:03.2 (end). Length of the fade can be varied to taste, if you insist on the 4:01 running time.

We had an AC version of that one sent to us on reel to reel tape (!) that simply had a 10 second intro that deleted the opening lines.
Maybe some thought those opening lines sounded like a rap.

Tim, a sincere welcome to the Board. I have LONG been an admirer of all your diligent work with your many Goldmine publications. My thick copy of your "Standard Catalog Of American Records 1950-1975" is completely dog-eared, and I still refer to it 3-4 times a week, to this day - best money I EVER spent!

Edited by jimct

bwolfe wrote: We had an AC version of that one sent to us on reel to reel tape (!) that simply had a 10 second intro that deleted the opening lines. Maybe some thought those opening lines sounded like a rap.

bwolfe:

It's interesting you mention an AC version of "Close to You" because I've always thought the song would probably sound quite nice on a soft AC format if the percussion track were to be removed. I've also thought the very same thing about Mario's "Let Me Love You".