Whenever I bought a single by one of the bands that I loved, it was rarely for the A-side; after all, this was a song that I would most likely have on their latest album or one that I could hear on the radio until it dropped off the chart. I was interested in the B-side(s)… a glimpse into the other world my favourite bands inhabited, where they could surprise and experiment without worrying about the results having to be accepted by the masses.
Looking back, for far too many years B-sides were simply an opportunity for a record company to put a less popular song from an album on the flip side of a potential hit. Joe Public was being stripped of his hard-earned for two songs that he would probably end up buying all over again when they came out on the artist’s forthcoming album, and more likely than not this subsequent release would feature exactly the same versions of exactly the same previously purchased songs.
Thankfully, somewhere between the emergence of the 12” single and the shiny compact disc, bands had an opportunity to put out not one, but maybe two B-sides. In fact, until recently bands could put out THREE B-sides on a single (but sadly the record industry thinks you’re getting too much product for your money, so they’ve limited chart-inclusive singles to only two B-sides again. Bastards). This increase in disc space posed a problem for the record companies. You couldn’t simply chuck out another album track, as this would equate to a quarter of a band’s album on one (cheaper) single release. The only thing for it was to urge bands to record additional music that didn’t detract from the content on their latest album.
The Oasis classic ‘Acquiesce’ was a B-side to the band’s first #1 single ‘Some Might Say’.
This was great news for the record buying public. Now you could get even more of your favourite band’s songs than ever before, and probably encouraged many of us to go out and buy more singles knowing that that these songs were only available for a limited time on these very specific releases. But bands and labels have had differing approaches when it has come to supplying B-sides; for many, there is simply a desire to chuck out ‘songs that weren’t good enough for the album’. Of course, artists need to have a fairly strict selection process when limiting their demos for album inclusion, but that shouldn’t mean that songs that end up as B-sides should suffer neglect in the recording studio. In recent times, with the regular appearance of ‘B-sides and Rarities’ collections, artists realise the importance of ALL their recorded output and the potential audience it might reach. And there are many who use this as an opportunity to do something a little different…
The B-side is ‘out of context’. It doesn’t sit on an album. It doesn’t need to follow a particular theme. It doesn’t need to feature a particular sound. It is a standalone piece that can exist on its own merit without the support of its neighbouring songs. Many of my favourite artists have used the B-side as an opportunity to experiment, to try out different ideas, and to use it as a release from the workload of an album. Some have used the B-side as a vehicle to deliver their own unique take on other artist’s tunes, while others have used it as an opportunity to have fun with their own ‘otherwise unheard’ songs (without the weight of an album being brought into the equation). The results can often be staggering, showing a different side to a band that you thought you were familiar with, and even yielding tunes that are stronger than many others in the artist’s repertoire.
Surprisingly, Madonna’s ‘Into The Groove’ was a B-side to ‘Angel’, one of her first singles. Here Madge performs the song on her recent tour with… umm… bagpipes…
I’ve been working on the forthcoming Audio Justice album ‘House of Cards’ over these past weeks and months (click here to read the latest progress report), and along with the songs that are (more or less) destined for inclusion on the album I have also had an acute awareness that I’m going to need some B-sides for the single releases. This task is made a little easier for me than most; ‘House of Cards’ is an album that features a particular concept/theme that runs throughout. Therefore, anything that I write that doesn’t really sit within the boundaries of that theme probably won’t be included on the final release. Nevertheless, I still intend for these B-sides to be every bit as captivating and enjoyable as their better known siblings, following the tradition laid down by my musical heroes. In other words, these B-sides are definitely NOT ‘songs that weren’t good enough for the album’. In fact, I felt so strongly about one of them that I sacrificed an album song so that we could record it…
We were recording drum tracks for the album at Koolworld studios last week with drummer Carlos Hercules behind the kit, and engineer Dave Wooster behind the mixing desk. Things were coming together brilliantly, but as Carlos was on a tight schedule (leaving the current Leona Lewis tour to record my songs before jetting off for the North American leg of the latest Christina Aguilera tour) we were conscious of the time we had available to record all of the songs that I’d brought with me. As the clock was ticking away it became apparent that something was going to have to give and so I was left with a dilemma; we had two songs left to record but time only for one! Which remaining song was going to make it?! Which was going to kick the bucket?! Of the two songs that were left, one was untitled but earmarked for the album, while the other was a recent tune I’d written called ‘Climbing Rose’. In my mind, this song wouldn’t sit well on the album at all (the demo sounds like Roxy Music covering Bowie covering the Only Fools and Horses theme tune!), but I was/am sure it has a lot of potential, even as a B-side, so the album track got shelved and ‘Climbing Rose’ has been recorded in its place! Let’s hope I made the right decision, hehe! You’ll have to judge for yourselves in due course!
One of my favourite songs of all time, ‘Groove Is In The Heart’ was originally a B-side for Deee-Lite’s early single ‘What Is Love?’. Incredible. They must have REALLY liked ‘What Is Love?’. Idiots.
For the completists, the internet has afforded us the opportunity to track down old singles and their B-sides in every corner of the globe. Gone are the days when we would have gone into the record store and paid silly amounts of money for imported records just to hear an obscure track or two. Some bands have made it even easier by compiling a career’s worth of B-sides into box sets long after the original releases, encouraging us to listen to a different side of a band we might already know and love. It is to these bands that we should be thankful; that they take care and put effort into their B-sides, that they are less than happy to fob us off with shoddy live recordings or numerous remixes of the A-side. It is these bands that encourage us to expect great B-sides from the artists we love…
…and if one of them turns out to be a howler, then you’ll know they made the wrong decision when shelving an album track in its favour! 
Dan
X
Know of any great B-sides that made it big? Know of any great B-sides that didn’t make it big but that you think the world should be listening to regardless?! Comment below with your song thoughts and suggestions, I’d love to have a listen to some of them 
It is truly a joyous thing to be reminded of the wonders of the b-side.
The die-hard fans (of which I was certainly a self-confessed b-side hunter) loved that moment of finding "something" that only a select few would really appreciate.
That opportunity to "surprise and experiment" would often be something that only the very "discerning" would ever appreciate.
I recall the b-side to Alive by Pearl Jam. In fact, there were two, but the one I remember was the every-forgettable "Dirty Frank" (written as an after-thought for a roady on the "Ten" tour). It was truly an awful track, but the fact that the real "fan" would find it, made it priceless.
I soon discovered "bootleg" fairs, which would ultimately be replaced by fansites and online downloads.
Surely that moment for the "hardcore" would be lost forever?
What are your thoughts? Incidentally, great article there Mr Dan!
Grief Hammer by The Darkness. That's all I need to say on the subject right now
I'll have to check 'Grief Hammer' out, I don't think I've heard that one. Wasn't 'Love On The Rocks With No Ice' originally a B-side too? Now that's a great tune.
I hear you Jamie; trawling record fairs far and wide was a guilty pleasure for many of us, particularly if you were looking for a B-side or two that had been deleted/removed from circulation by the time you'd decided you wanted to get hold of it. Looking back, while it is easy to remember the real sense of achievement from having located and purchased these rare tracks, I can't help but feel ever-so-slightly deflated knowing that if I'd have held on for a few years they'd all be available to me in a remastered-box-set format at a fraction of the cost. Pah!
I totally agree. I used to love 'B-Sides' even as far back as when I bought singles when they were called 45s. It certainly gave a different view of what the artist could do musically beyond the commerical produced for radio song on the 'A-Side'.
Watching that Oasis video (further up the blog) it is incredible to think that an entire stadium full of people finds itself on its feet, jumping around and screaming out every word of a B-side. Proof, if proof were needed, that the B-side can be just as relevant as anything else a band produces.
Harking back to an earlier blog entry I posted, however, I think we're back to the 'iTunes' model of music consumption again, where the only songs downloaded are the 'hits'. How many people that you know have downloaded a B-side recently?!
When I grew up in New Zealand in the 80s and 90s singles werent a very big thing. It was always about buying albums rather than singles. When I came to England I was shocked that albums were put to the back of shops and singles to the front. But when I bought a few and found out about B-sides I was very happy indeed. Quite often I would buy a single of a song I already had on album just so I could hear the B-sides. I always loved it when bands put live stuff on a B-side so you could hear the single or another song played as it was meant to sound.
The mid to late 90s was a terrible time for B-sides though. That was the time of the "remix" by some crappy dance DJ who usually plonked a crappy drum beat in the background along with a bass line that didnt match the song or vocal line.
Love the article Dan,
Soooo many hours I used to spend sifting through dusty boxes in charity shops and record fairs to hear Pumpkins, Nirvana and Placebo B-sides.
I still maintain that Placebo had some great experimental b-sides which were often far more interesting than their more formulaic guitar driven album tracks.
If I had to pick a B-side that rocked my world I'd have to go with the Nirvana tune Sappy.
It was rejected from 'In Utero' and ended up being the secret track on an aids awareness compilation. I've still never got my head fully round that. A secret track on a charity compilation CD. Stuff of legend
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BE1KRj5iiM
Thanks for the feedback guys.
Stuart, is the compilation you refer to 'No Alternative'? I think there was a hidden NIrvana track on that… I remember picking that up at Hitchin Market many years ago, it was as though someone had knocked on every door in Seattle until they'd amassed all the popular American bands of the time. I think Soundgarden and Sonic Youth were on that album too.
Mark, I hear what you're saying regarding the quality of B-sides towards the end of the 90s, however, rather than tar every artist with the same brush I think it's fair to say that a few labels reluctant or unable to spend cash came up with the idea of chucking a few remixes of the same song on. This practice still continues today and I think it really undermines the value of the single. Don't get me wrong, I love hearing alternate mixes of a tune, however, one remix is enough, not three of the same song. At the risk of upsetting you further, I'm not convinced the addition of live tracks was ever to project the song 'as it was meant to be heard'. In fact, the recording of live performances is a relatively low cost affair and another way of chucking a B-side on without care (I am yet to hear a truly astounding live performance as B-side. Usually it's simply a badly mixed feed from a mixing console).
Another trick of record labels is to take a band's previous hit single and chuck that on the next release as a B-side, albeit as a variation on the original (live or remix), in order to try and shift more copies of the new song, which on its own might not perform as well.
One of my favourite B-sides is a song by The Cure named 'The Big Hand' (1992). It really is a fantastic tune produced by a band enjoying the greatest of success, and the production on the final recorded version is great. It appeared as the first of three B-sides to the single 'A Letter To Elise' taken from the 'Wish' album. The link below shows the song in it's very early stages being test-driven during some intimate live shows in 1991. The song developed a great deal in the following year and was a staple of The Cure's recent run of live shows. Track it down if you can, the final version is a brilliant tune.
http://www.youtube.com/user/audiojustice#p/c/F971A48C2C4B48D7/5/1NRi9BL2ORQ
A very interesting article. I'm very pleased to hear I'm not the only one who finds 'Groove is in the heart' such a good track.
I'm trying my hardest to remember any classic B sides that spring to mind other than Nirvana's cover of 'D7'. I do remember however 'www.sad' by 3 Colours Red which was a breath of fresh air to hear something new from them after listening to 3 Colours Red's 'Revolt' album no stop for weeks on end.
I have to disagree to some extent on the mention of the live tracks. I looked forward to hearing them myself, it gave me an insight as to how the band might reflect live i guess (despite its heavy editing on the studio prior to release).
I do remember when Muse were first discovered and thier first singles and eventual first album 'Showbiz' was released, each single came out as a 2 x CD set plus a vinyl release, each containing track a: the single, Track B: the B side and track C: a live song. Tracks B & C differing on each CD and vinyl.
That was a great way to hear more of a band who just couldn't get enough airplay back in the day, I've still got the first four CD singles (both discs of each and the vinyls) in my loft and to this day hearing 'Sunburn' being played on the guitar instead of the piano as it does on the album is incredible to hear.
Stuart, you mention 'Sappy' no that was a tune that just simply shouldn't have been axed, not that i could imagine it on 'In Utero' but nonetheless a brilliant tune, as is 'Aneurysm' another tune that failed the major album releases but managed to appear on the 'stop gap' release of 'Incestcide'.
Slightly off subject but i also feel tracks for motion pictures need a mention here. 'Kick me when I'm high' by Sum 41 never appears on an album, jeeeez what a tune! It ended up on the final, final credits of 'Dude where is my car' which warranted it's appearnce on the soundtrack. Paramore's 'Decode' is another great tune that never appeared on any of thier albums.
Long live the B side!