A Pirate Looks At Forty - 45 mix

[ChrisP]

The LP version clocks in at 3:51 and the label on the 45 mix shows 3:27. Anyone know what was edited out?

[Bfan53again]

I'd be curious, too......

[Summerlover]

According to Wikipedia:

"For radio play, the song was shortened by deleting the fourth verse for the single release."

Could this be it? Would they spin out a 45 with the shortened version? It was the 70's so who knows

[urlcenter]

According to Wikipedia:

"For radio play, the song was shortened by deleting the fourth verse for the single release."

Could this be it? Would they spin out a 45 with the shortened version? It was the 70's so who knows

Yes they would spin out a shortened version, this is what is called editing for radio airplay

Does anyone have a copy of the short version in mp3 format??

[ChrisP]

According to Wikipedia:

"For radio play, the song was shortened by deleting the fourth verse for the single release."

Could this be it? Would they spin out a 45 with the shortened version? It was the 70's so who knows

Thanks - much appreciated!

[Tiki Torches]

Always baffled me that certain songs were censored for radio such as "Jet Airliner" by the Steve Miller Band and "Money" by Pink Floyd but I've never heard a censored version of "Who Are You" by the Who where Roger Daltrey's use of the f-word couldn't be any more prominent.

[tigzoe]

And you usually here "We Will Rock You" and "We are the Champions" back to back but they are too separate songs.

[Tiki Torches]

And you usually here "We Will Rock You" and "We are the Champions" back to back but they are too separate songs.

Yes, they are but they are sequenced together on the News of the World with no space between the songs. This is also true of Zeppelin's "Heartbreaker" and "Livin' Lovin' Maid (She's Just A Woman)" from Led Zeppelin II and "Driven to Tears" and "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around" from the Police album Zenyattà Mondatta. Obviously these could have all been released as separate singles but the origins of these songs being played together probably has to do with AOR (Album Oriented Radio) playing them directly from the album rather than a 45. Of course, none of which has anything to do with the radio edit of "A Pirate Looks At 40". I would imagine it was edited to remove the "p*** it away so fast" line (which was mentioned earlier in the thread). I haven't heard "A Pirate Looks at 40" all that often on the radio but when I did, I don't recall that particular line being edited out. Then again, it's been many moons since I last listened to a commercial radio station (such as WRDU in Raleigh) that would even play it.

[ChrisP]

It would be interesting to know if they edited out "p***" somehow. It's before the edited out verse. Anyone have a copy to confirm?

[Bicycle Bill]

At least they got the whole song on one side of the record.  Anybody remember the 45 version of Don MacLean's "American Pie"?

It was split in the middle so if you wanted to hear it all (and hadn't purchased the album) you had to play one side, turn it over, then play the rest.... and that really sucked if you played it on a jukebox, since back in those days there was no guarantee that the records would play in the chosen order and the second side would always follow the first.

Not only that, you had to use TWO selections, which meant you were paying twice as much as any other song to listen to the whole thing!

-"BB"-