"Year of the Cat" - Al Stewart

Hi folks.

Was a mono version of the 45 ever serviced to radio or released commercially? The piano in the right channel only to start the song just doesn't sound right.

Thx!

On my stock Janus 266 45 the piano in the intro is in the left channel only.

I'm surprised that there wasn't already a thread for this song. I did comparisons for this song about a year ago, and will try to reconstruct my thought process based on my sketchy notes.

I have the LP version on:

• Arista's Perfect 10 Rides Again (1985; has the left and right channels swapped)
• Priority's Seventies Greatest Rock Hits Vol. 5 Kickin' Back (1991; too loud and clips a lot)
• EMI UK's Time To Remember 1977 (1996)
• Disky UK's 8-CD Wow That Was The 70's (1999; heavily compressed)
• Time-Life's 2-CD Singers And Songwriters Vol. 4 1976-1977 (2000)

For a number of reasons, including a fade that extends out farther than the discs I listed above, my preferred source for the LP version is Songs From The Radio The Best Of (1992).

The oldest CD I have with the 45 edit is Warner Special Products' Highs Of The Seventies (1987), which sounds like it uses a very high-generation source tape. The same analog transfer (and an additional wonky EQ) is used on Razor & Tie's 2-CD Those Rocking '70s (1991).

A MUCH better source for the 45 edit is Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 5 1977 (1990), which sounds quite nice. There are digital clones of this version on:

• Madacy's Rock On 1977 (1996; digitally exactly 1.3 dB louder)
• Time-Life's AM Gold Vol. 24 1977 (digitally exactly 1.269 dB louder)
• Time-Life's 2-CD Body Talk Vol. 17 Heart To Heart (1997; digitally identical)

All of the above sound quite nice. There's a different analog transfer on Varese's Dick Bartley On The Radio Vol. 2 (1997), which clips a tiny bit.

One more different analog transfer on Time-Life's 2-CD Classic Soft Rock Vol. 4 More Than A Feeling (2006).

Finally, one CD that's edited like the 45, but uses the LP version's fade, running about 5:12 - Silver Eagle/Capitol's 3-CD Formula 45 (1988). Avoid, because this version wasn't released in 1977.

For the 45 edit, go with Time-Life's Sounds Of The Seventies Vol. 5 1977 (1990) or one of its digital clones.

Edited by crapfromthepast

Doug, I have just sent you out a very clean dub from the mono side of my
1977 Janus promo 45.

And on top of this, I just found that you can't extract the 45 from the LP. You can made the edits with a little difficulty, but there's a guitar part on the 45
version at about (1:20) that isn't in the LP version at the corresponding part (which would be at about (1:56)), or if it's there it's mixed very low and under the
piano (which itself is mixed a little lower on the 45 with the guitar more prominent).

If that makes any sense.

Edited by sriv94