#652: Great Backsides!

No, we R not gonna talk about Kim Kardashian here. Or J-Lo. Or Beyonce. Those R all worthwhile subjects 4 a whole 'nother blog.
1nce upon a time, record companies used 2 release little 7-inch vinyl musical donuts that played at 45 rpm's -- they were called "45's" or "singles," & sometimes recording artists issued some great overlooked stuff on the non-hit-side of the single, the "B-side."
Can't believe I haven't written about this stuff B4, this list came 2 me so easily -- maybe I've mentioned them all previously as part of my series on Great Lost Singles. Anyway, here's a dozen or so worth checking out ... again....
* Fleetwood Mac: "Silver Springs" -- The B-side 2 "Go Your Own Way," this is the track that got squoze-off RUMOURS, & they shoulda found some way 2 squeeze it right back on there, there's sevral songs it's EASILY better than. This is 4 minutes of haunting, heartbroken melancholy, probly the best thing Stevie Nicks has ever done. Great mournful guitar from Lindsey Buckingham, too, & a great dramatic choral-vocal finish. Finally appeared on-album on THE CHAIN box set about 10 years later....
* Moody Blues: "Simple Game" -- In Europe, this was the B-side 2 "Ride My See-Saw," finally appeared on-album on the Moodies' THIS IS best-of in '74. Sorta a nod back 2 their beat-band roots, or a cross between their simpler beginnings & their late-'60s cosmic stuff, the "doo-doo-doo" chorus'll get you every time. 4 me, it's the best thing keyboardist Mike Pinder ever wrote. If Decca Records had been smart, this coulda been a hit in '74. & the Four Tops did a cover version....
* Dion: "Daddy Rollin' (In Your Arms)" -- The B-side 2 his big late-'60s peace-love&understanding hit "Abraham, Martin and John," "Daddy Rollin'" is a stripped-down country-blues number that seems to make vague references 2 Dion's well-known heroin habit. Not only does it rock more convincingly than anything else he's ever done, check out summa the vocals later in the song -- his cold, distant whining is really chilling. 1 of a kind.
* Kate Bush: "Empty Bullring" -- This stark, brief, stripped-down piano&vocal portrait of a disintegrating marriage was the B-side of Kate's Top 10 British single "Breathing," & it's among the 1/2dozen most haunting things she's ever done. Finally appeared on-album on her THIS WOMAN'S WORK best-of, where there's LOTS of other Good Stuff, like "Cloudbusting," "December Will be Magic Again," "Running Up That Hill," the heartbreaking "This Woman's Work," etc....
* Billy Joel: "All for Leyna" -- 4 me by far the best song offa GLASS HOUSES was the B-side 2 the hit "Sometimes a Fantasy" (I think....), so there was no chance of it ever getting any airplay. 4 me, this is among Billy's Top 5 best ever, sums up everything he tried 2 do on THE STRANGER, & adds summa that NYC Attitude, & it still rocks. Nice piano, too.
* Nino Tempo & April Stevens: "I've Been Carrying a Torch for You So Long That I've Burned a Great Big Hole in My Heart" -- I'm not making this up. The B-side 2 the 1961 #1 Grammy-winning "Deep Purple." Talk about stripped-down: loony vocals, strummin' guitar, & lyrics that R out of this world, like a deep whoop of lovestruck lunacy, somewhere between a yodel & a field holler. The folks at Atco Records were on some heavy drugz I guess, "Deep Purple" always sounded strange enuf 2 me....
* Electric Light Orchestra: "10538 Overture (live)" -- This live version of a track offa their very 1st album was the B-side 2 "Evil Woman" (I think....), & has the same majesty & catchiness & haunting melody that made "Can't Get it Out of My Head" a big hit. & even with the string section, it still rocks....
* Dave Edmunds: "Creature from the Black Lagoon" -- The B-side 2 the shoulda-been-hit "Girls Talk," this is a 3-minute horror-comedy-lovestory with lots of great driving guitar. Dave shoulda had 1/2adozen more hits....
* Genesis: "Vancouver," "Inside and Out" -- Do EP's count? The 3-minute runaway story "Vancouver" was part of the B-side 2 the British "Many Too Many" single. It doesn't overstay its welcome, the lyrics R great, Phil Collins's singing is sweet, it's perfect in its way. "Inside and Out" was guitarist Steve Hackett's last work with the band, & the 7-minute track features about 4 mins of great instrumental interplay at the end. It was the B-side of the British "Match of the Day" EP.
* Fleetwood Mac: "Monday Morning (live)" -- The live version of this song (from FLEETWOOD MAC LIVE) beats the studio original 2 DEATH. A rousing, rocking crowd-pleaser. The A-side is the gorgeous Beach Boys cover "The Farmer's Daughter," which shoulda been a huge hit....
* The Beach Boys -- They always had LOTS of great B-sides, like "Kiss Me Baby," "Let Him Run Wild," "There's No Other (Like My Baby)," "Here Today," "This Whole World," "She Knows Me Too Well," even silly stuff like the dinner-table chant "You're Welcome," or the hilarious "TM Song." Or how bout "Susie Cincinnati," which was a B-side at least 2wice B4 it ever got on an album?
* The Beatles -- Speaking of great B-sides, how 'bout "I Am the Walrus," "Old Brown Shoe," "You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)," "I'm Down," "Thank You Girl," "I Saw Her Standing There," "I Should Have Known Better," "Strawberry Fields Forever," "Do You Want to Know a Secret," "I Don't Want to Spoil the Party," "Day Tripper," "Baby You're a Rich Man"....
...& your favorite backsides of all time are...?