1.
Single (music)
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In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record, an album or an EP record. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats, in most cases, a single is a song that is released separately from an album, although it usually also appears on an album. Typically, these are the songs from albums that are released separately for promotional uses such as digital download or commercial radio airplay and are expected to be the most popular, in other cases a recording released as a single may not appear on an album. As digital downloading and audio streaming have become prevalent, it is often possible for every track on an album to also be available separately. Nevertheless, the concept of a single for an album has been retained as an identification of a heavily promoted or more popular song within an album collection. Despite being referred to as a single, singles can include up to as many as three tracks on them. The biggest digital music distributor, iTunes, accepts as many as three tracks less than ten minutes each as a single, as well as popular music player Spotify also following in this trend. Any more than three tracks on a release or longer than thirty minutes in total running time is either an Extended Play or if over six tracks long. The basic specifications of the single were made in the late 19th century. Gramophone discs were manufactured with a range of speeds and in several sizes. By about 1910, however, the 10-inch,78 rpm shellac disc had become the most commonly used format, the inherent technical limitations of the gramophone disc defined the standard format for commercial recordings in the early 20th century.26 rpm. With these factors applied to the 10-inch format, songwriters and performers increasingly tailored their output to fit the new medium, the breakthrough came with Bob Dylans Like a Rolling Stone. Singles have been issued in various formats, including 7-inch, 10-inch, other, less common, formats include singles on digital compact cassette, DVD, and LD, as well as many non-standard sizes of vinyl disc. Some artist release singles on records, a more common in musical subcultures. The most common form of the single is the 45 or 7-inch. The names are derived from its speed,45 rpm. The 7-inch 45 rpm record was released 31 March 1949 by RCA Victor as a smaller, more durable, the first 45 rpm records were monaural, with recordings on both sides of the disc. As stereo recordings became popular in the 1960s, almost all 45 rpm records were produced in stereo by the early 1970s
2.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
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Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark are an English electronic music band formed in Wirral, Merseyside in 1978. Spawned by earlier group The Id, the outfit was founded by Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys, amid rotating line-ups, Martin Cooper, OMD released their influential debut single, Electricity, in 1979, and gained popularity throughout Europe with the 1980 anti-war song Enola Gay. The band achieved broader recognition via their seminal album Architecture & Morality, steadily resistant to celebrity status, the group earned acclaim for their adventurous recordings, which combined sonic experimentation and atypical subject matter with musical hooks. Although retrospectively described as a masterpiece, the avant-garde Dazzle Ships eroded European support. A year after the release of The Best of OMD, creative differences rendered McCluskey the only remaining member of the group as Humphreys formed spin-off band The Listening Pool. OMD would return with a new line-up and explore the genre, Sugar Tax. By the mid 1990s, however, electronic music had been supplanted by alternative rock, McCluskey went on to found, and write multiple hits for girl group Atomic Kitten, while Humphreys performed as half of the duo Onetwo. In 2006, the outfit reformed with Humphreys back in the fold, the band re-established themselves as a chart act in Europe, while enjoying a growing international fanbase and a legacy as innovators within popular music. An influence on artists in diverse genres, their songs have been covered, remixed and sampled by numerous chart musicians. The Oxford Times described OMD as being among the most important bands Britain has ever produced, by 1975 McCluskey had formed Equinox, as bassist and vocalist, alongside schoolmate Malcolm Holmes on drums, while Humphreys was their roadie. During that time McCluskey and Humphreys discovered their electronic style influenced by Kraftwerk, after Equinox, McCluskey joined Pegasus, and, later, the short-lived Hitlerz Underpantz, alongside Humphreys. McCluskey would usually sing and play guitar, roadie and electronics enthusiast Humphreys graduated to keyboards. The pair shared a love of music, particularly Brian Eno. In September 1977, McCluskey and Humphreys put together the seven-piece Wirral group The Id, whose line-up included drummer Malcolm Holmes, the group began to gig regularly in the Merseyside area, performing original material. They had quite a following on the scene, and one of their tracks was included on a record of local bands called Street to Street. Meanwhile, Humphreys and McCluskey collaborated on a side-project called VCL XI and this side-project allowed them to pursue their more bizarre electronic experiments, often working with tape collages, home-made kit-built synthesisers, and circuit-bent radios. In August 1978, The Id split due to musical differences, the same month, McCluskey joined Wirral electronic outfit Dalek I Love You as their lead singer, but quit in September. In September 1978, the month he left Dalek I Love You, McCluskey rejoined Humphreys
3.
Junk Culture
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Junk Culture is the fifth album by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, released in 1984. After the commercial disappointment of the groups experimental 1983 album Dazzle Ships, OMD, the record spawned four singles, including the chart hits Locomotion and Talking Loud and Clear. Core members Humphreys and McCluskey decided to move away from their own Gramophone Suite studios in Liverpool, starting on new tracks instead in Highland Studios in Inverness and in Lincolnshire. The group then performed a series of live shows in September 1983 partly in order to reassure their public. These included early versions of All Wrapped Up, Tesla Girls, Junk Culture, Never Turn Away, The Avenue, the group then returned to the studio with producer Brian Tench. A single release was considered for the end of 1983. Fundamental to the sound was also the Fairlight CMI sampler keyboard which the group started using in Montserrat. The group then returned to Europe to finish off the album at Wisseloord Studios in The Netherlands. Junk Culture was released on 30 April 1984 and entered the UK Albums Chart a week later, limited pressings of the vinyl LP came with a free one-sided 7 single featuring the track The Wheels of the Universe, thus boosting initial sales. The album entered the UK chart at no,9, outselling the new album by contemporaries The Cure, although beaten by fellow Liverpudlians Echo & the Bunnymen whose Ocean Rain entered at no.4. All three albums gradually dropped down the charts in successive weeks, sales of Junk Culture were boosted once more during the release of the second single Talking Loud and Clear, although it dropped out of the Top 40 all together in August. As with previous albums, the artwork was designed by Peter Saville Associates. Junk Culture was the first OMD album to be released contemporaneously on all three formats of vinyl, cassette and compact disc, Junk Culture met with a mostly unfavourable reaction from the English music press. NME wrote that the album is never fresh or dynamic – all too predictable, while What Hi-Fi, felt it seems to lack some of the substance of previous albums. Melody Maker asked, Is there anyone who will care about OMD now having been let down again and that publications Lynden Barber disapproved of the lyrically aggressive White Trash, calling it offensive, irresponsible garbage. Johnny Black in Smash Hits portrayed the record as more accessible than the last album. But still reveals some brave moves and he added however that moments that turn excellence into magic are fewer and further between. Reviews among Englands mainstream press were more positive, the mood is enhanced by the bands deft use of experimental techniques
4.
A-side and B-side
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The terms A-side and B-side refer to the two sides of 78,45, and 33 1/3 rpm phonograph records, whether singles, extended plays, or long-playing records. Creedence Clearwater Revival had hits with both A-side and B-side releases, others took the opposite approach, producer Phil Spector was in the habit of filling B-sides with on-the-spot instrumentals that no one would confuse with the A-side. With this practice, Spector was assured that airplay was focused on the side he wanted to be the hit side, the earliest 10-inch,78 rpm, shellac records were single sided. Double-sided recordings, with one song on side, were introduced in Europe by Columbia Records. There were no record charts until the 1930s, and radio stations did not play recorded music until the 1950s, in this time, A-sides and B-sides existed, but neither side was considered more important, the side did not convey anything about the content of the record. The term single came into use with the advent of vinyl records in the early 1950s. At first, most record labels would randomly assign which song would be an A-side, under this random system, many artists had so-called double-sided hits, where both songs on a record made one of the national sales charts, or would be featured on jukeboxes in public places. As time wore on, however, the convention for assigning songs to sides of the record changed. By the early sixties, the song on the A-side was the song that the company wanted radio stations to play. It was not until 1968, for instance, that the production of albums on a unit basis finally surpassed that of singles in the United Kingdom. In the late 1960s stereo versions of pop and rock songs began to appear on 45s. The majority of the 45s were played on AM radio stations, by the early 1970s, double-sided hits had become rare. Album sales had increased, and B-sides had become the side of the record where non-album, non-radio-friendly, with the advent of cassette and compact disc singles in the late 1980s, the A-side/B-side differentiation became much less meaningful. With the decline of cassette singles in the 1990s, the A-side/B-side dichotomy became virtually extinct, as the dominant medium. However, the term B-side is still used to refer to the tracks or coupling tracks on a CD single. With the advent of downloading music via the Internet, sales of CD singles and other media have declined. B-side songs may be released on the record as a single to provide extra value for money. There are several types of material released in this way, including a different version, or, in a concept record
5.
Telegraph (song)
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Telegraph is a song by the British band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and is the second single from their studio album Dazzle Ships. Telegraph was originally slated to be the first single release, but being unhappy with the mix and with pressure from Virgin, the song was first recorded in 1981 at The Manor studios and had been under consideration for the Architecture & Morality album. The lyrics on the original 1981 version and the 1983 version are different in places, the 1981 version was released on the 2008 re-released Dazzle Ships album as an extra track. The original inspiration for Telegraph came from Andy McCluskeys strong feelings against politics and these motifs were weakened for the version on Dazzle Ships. Telegraph was OMDs first single not to enter the top 40 in the UK since achieving success with the single Messages in May 1980. It was included in the groups first singles compilation album The Best of OMD in 1988, a new track entitled 66 and Fading features as the B side to both the 7 and 12 releases of Telegraph. The long instrumental track continues the tradition of including more experimental songs as B sides. 66 And Fading is composed of the chords as the track Silent Running
6.
Phonograph record
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The groove usually starts near the periphery and ends near the center of the disc. The phonograph disc record was the medium used for music reproduction until late in the 20th century. It had co-existed with the cylinder from the late 1880s. Records retained the largest market share even when new formats such as compact cassette were mass-marketed, by the late 1980s, digital media, in the form of the compact disc, had gained a larger market share, and the vinyl record left the mainstream in 1991. The phonograph record has made a resurgence in the early 21st century –9.2 million records were sold in the U. S. in 2014. Likewise, in the UK sales have increased five-fold from 2009 to 2014, as of 2017,48 record pressing facilities remain worldwide,18 in the United States and 30 in other countries. The increased popularity of vinyl has led to the investment in new, only two producers of lacquers remains, Apollo Masters in California, USA, and MDC in Japan. Vinyl records may be scratched or warped if stored incorrectly but if they are not exposed to heat or broken. The large cover are valued by collectors and artists for the space given for visual expression, in the 2000s, these tracings were first scanned by audio engineers and digitally converted into audible sound. Phonautograms of singing and speech made by Scott in 1860 were played back as sound for the first time in 2008, along with a tuning fork tone and unintelligible snippets recorded as early as 1857, these are the earliest known recordings of sound. In 1877, Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, unlike the phonautograph, it was capable of both recording and reproducing sound. Despite the similarity of name, there is no evidence that Edisons phonograph was based on Scotts phonautograph. Edison first tried recording sound on a paper tape, with the idea of creating a telephone repeater analogous to the telegraph repeater he had been working on. The tinfoil was wrapped around a metal cylinder and a sound-vibrated stylus indented the tinfoil while the cylinder was rotated. The recording could be played back immediately, Edison also invented variations of the phonograph that used tape and disc formats. A decade later, Edison developed a greatly improved phonograph that used a wax cylinder instead of a foil sheet. This proved to be both a better-sounding and far more useful and durable device, the wax phonograph cylinder created the recorded sound market at the end of the 1880s and dominated it through the early years of the 20th century. Berliners earliest discs, first marketed in 1889, but only in Europe, were 12.5 cm in diameter, both the records and the machine were adequate only for use as a toy or curiosity, due to the limited sound quality
7.
12-inch single
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The 12-inch single is a type of gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time compared to typical LPs. This allows for levels to be cut on the disc by the cutting engineer, which in turn gives a wider dynamic range. This record type is used in disco and dance music genres. They are played at either 33 1⁄3 or 45 rpm, 12-inch singles typically have much shorter playing time than full-length LPs, thus require fewer grooves per inch. This extra space permits a broader dynamic range or louder recording level as the grooves excursions can be greater in amplitude. Many record companies began producing 12-inch singles at 33 1⁄3 rpm, although 45 rpm gives better treble response and was used on many 12-inch singles, the gramophone records cut especially for dance-floor DJs came into existence with the advent of recorded Jamaican mento music in the 1950s. With the 1967 Jamaican invention of remix, called dub on the island, those specials became valuable items sold to allied sound system DJs, who could draw crowds with their exclusive hits. The popularity of sound engineer King Tubby, who singlehandedly invented and perfected dub remixes from as early as 1967. By then 10-inch records were used to cut those dubs, by 1971, most reggae singles issued in Jamaica included on their B-side a dub remix of the A-side, many of them first tested as exclusive dub plates on dances. Those dubs basically included drum and bass-oriented remixes used by sound system selecters, the 10-inch acetate specials would remain popular until at least the 2000s in Jamaica. Most likely, the use of exclusive dub acetates in Jamaica also led American DJs to do the same. In the United States, the 12-inch single gramophone record came into popularity with the advent of music in the 1970s after earlier market experiments. In early 1970, Cycle/Ampex Records test-marketed a 12-inch single by Buddy Fite, the experiment aimed to energize the struggling singles market, offering a new option for consumers who had stopped buying traditional singles. The record was pressed at 33 rpm, with run times to the 7-inch 45-rpm pressing of the single. Several hundred copies were available for sale for 98 cents each at two Tower Records stores. Another early 12-inch single was released in 1973 by soul/R&B musician/songwriter/producer Jerry Williams, 12-inch promotional copies of Straight From My Heart were released on his own Swamp Dogg Presents label, with distribution by Jamie/Guyden Distribution Corporation. It was manufactured by Jamie Record Co. of Philadelphia, PA, the B-side of the record is blank. The first 12-inch single made specifically for DJs was actually a 10-inch acetate used by a mix engineer in need of a Friday-night test copy for famed disco mixer Tom Moulton, the song was Ill be holding on by Al Downing
8.
Associated Independent Recording
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Associated Independent Recording is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by Beatles producer Sir George Martin and his partner John Burgess after their departure from EMI. The leading independent recording studio complex was founded in 1969, since then, AIR has operated its own professional audio recording facilities, Air Studios. AIRs first facility opened on 6 October 1970 and it was located on the fourth floor of 214 Oxford Street, containing four studios, and later a MIDI programming room. The facility included two large studios and two small ones, the studios contained two Bösendorfer pianos, many soundproof booths, and a 56-channel mixing console, custom-designed by Neve to AIRs specification. The company built another recording studio on the Caribbean island of Montserrat in the mid 1970s, digital mixing on two Mitsubishi X86. Jimmy Buffett recorded Volcano at the Montserrat studio in May 1979, naming the album, elton John recorded three albums at the Montserrat studio in the 1980s. Dire Straits recorded their successful Brothers in Arms album between 1984 and 1985, the first album cut in the newly opened studios was Real to Reel by the Climax Blues Band in 1979. In 1989, Hurricane Hugo devastated the island and the Montserrat facility was severely damaged, the facility is now a modern ruin, and is closed to the public. In September 2016 John Otway recorded his album Montserrat in the basement of Olveston House, part of AIR Montserrat, the space was revamped as a recording facility and opened for business in December 1992. AIR Lyndhurst is now a key London facility for classical and popular recordings, as well as scores, television post-production. AIR Studios website philsbook. com / AIR Studios Video tour and producer interviews shot at Air Studios
9.
Montserrat
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Montserrat is a Caribbean island—specifically in the Leeward Islands, which is part of the chain known as the Lesser Antilles, in the British West Indies. It is a British Overseas Territory, Montserrat measures approximately 16 km long and 11 km wide, with approximately 40 km of coastline. Montserrat is nicknamed The Emerald Isle of the Caribbean both for its resemblance to coastal Ireland and for the Irish ancestry of many of its inhabitants, on 18 July 1995, the previously dormant Soufrière Hills volcano, in the southern part of the island, became active. Eruptions destroyed Montserrats Georgian era capital city of Plymouth, between 1995 and 2000, two-thirds of the islands population was forced to flee, primarily to the United Kingdom, leaving fewer than 1,200 people on the island as of 1997. Visitors are generally not permitted entry into the zone. Relatively quiet since early 2010, the continues to be closely monitored by the Montserrat Volcano Observatory. It is the most studied volcano in the world and Montserrat has been regarded as a Modern Day Pompeii in the Caribbean, a new town and port is being developed at Little Bay, which is on the northwest coast of the island. While this construction proceeds, the centre of government and businesses is at Brades, in 1493, Christopher Columbus named the island Santa María de Montserrate, after the Virgin of Montserrat in the Monastery of Montserrat, on Montserrat mountain, near Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. Montserrat means serrated mountain in Catalan, archaeological field work in 2012, in Montserrats Centre Hills indicated there was an Archaic occupation between 4000 and 2500 BP. Later coastal sites show the presence of the Saladoid culture, in November 1493, Christopher Columbus passed Montserrat in his second voyage, after being told that the island was unoccupied due to raids by the Caribs. A number of Irishmen settled in Montserrat in 1642, the island was captured by the French in 1666. It was captured shortly afterwards by the English and English control of the island was confirmed under the Treaty of Breda the following year, despite the interruption to English rule, the islands legal status is that of a colony acquired by settlement. A neo-feudal colony developed amongst the redlegs, the colonists began to transport Sub-Saharan African slaves for labour, as was common to most Caribbean islands. The colonists built an economy based on the production of sugar, rum, arrowroot and sea island cotton, by the late 18th century, numerous plantations had been developed on the island. Many Irish continued to be transported to the island, to work as indentured servants, on 17 March 1768, slaves rebelled but failed to achieve freedom. The people of Montserrat celebrate St Patricks Day as a public holiday due to the slave revolt, festivities held that week commemorate the culture of Montserrat in song, dance, food and traditional costumes. In 1782, during the American Revolutionary War, France briefly captured Montserrat after supporting the American rebels, the French returned the island to Great Britain under the 1783 Treaty of Paris, which ended that conflict. The Irish constituted the largest proportion of the population from the founding of the colony in 1628
