Graham Parker & The Rumour

a few goodies from my Graham Parker 45s:


The Pink Parker (EP) - Mercury, 1977
 
After two flawless albums, Graham Parker and company put out this nifty little 7-inch, which kicked off with a brilliant cover of The Trammps' "Hold Back the Night". The second half is killer, containing live versions of "Soul Shoes" and "White Honey". And... it's pink!

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The Bleep - Vertigo (UK), 1977
 
B-side of "The New York Shuffle". I have no idea if this was meant as a joke, or if the label was really concerned over this to start with. What we have here is a different take of "The Raid", with all the drug references bleeped out. Worth a listen, though I strongly recommend taking out Stick To Me after hearing this and put on the proper version.

Chuck Berry

Here's a couple of my favorite Chuck Berry sides



Around & Around - Chess, 1958



Back In the USA - Chess, 1959



These copies have had some plays on them, but it's still my favorite way of listening to Chuck Berry - scratches and all.
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Steppenwolf

Some late '60s hits from Steppenwolf.

Born To Be Wild / Everybody's Next One - Dunhill, 1968

Magic Carpet Ride / Sookie Sookie - Dunhill, 1968

Rock Me / Jupiter Child - Dunhill, 1969

The singles are all noticeably different from the album versions, some quite radically so. "Magic Carpet Ride" starts cold - instead of fading in - and contains numerous edits. "Jupiter Child" is actually longer that the stereo album version, by way of an alternate intro edit.

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Creedence Clearwater Revival / Lovin' Spoonful

A batch of 45s from a couple of '60s bands who knew a thing or two about how to make singles.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

I Put A Spell On You / Walk On The Water - Fantasy, 1968

Green River / Commotion - Fantasy, 1969

Lookin' Out My Back Door / Long As I Can See The Light - Fantasy, 1970

Sweet Hitch-Hiker - Fantasy, 1971

Interesting thing about CCR's catalog: their albums were released only in stereo, but all their singles were mixed as mono - a characteristic more of the times (top 40 was still AM radio-only) than for any artistic considerations.

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The Lovin' Spoonful

Rain On The Roof / Pow (Theme From "What's Up, Tiger Lily?") - Kama Sutra, 1966

Six O'Clock / You're A Big Boy Now - Kama Sutra, 1967

A band not particularly known for making consistent LPs, the Lovin' Spoonful cranked out a lot of strong 45 sides. Both of the singles linked here have great B-sides not found on their regular albums.