When was the last time 45's were readily available?

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

I remember when Roxette's "Listen To Your Heart" was released, Shadoe Stevens made a big deal out of the fact that it was the first single to hti number one unavailable on 45 rpm. I bought my first cassette single in 1988 (Robert Palmer's "Simply Irresistable"); I bought my last new 45 around Xmas of that year (Bangles' "In Your Room"). By next year they were gone, altlhough regular vinyl was still sold until at least 1990.

Does this sound right?

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:01 (twenty years ago)

7"s were a big deal in indy music through at least 1994.

― The Sensational Sulk (sexyDancer), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:06 (twenty years ago)

HMV (Reading) still has a fairly good selection of new 7" singles, the ones that get made anyway.

DFA 1979's new one is in "limited edition: black" !

― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:06 (twenty years ago)

check the racks today and they are full of these bloody "limited edition" 7" singles.

seriosuly .. not in specialist shops either - virgin is chocka with them ..

small bands and big bands are doing it .. and picture discs !

never thought i'd see their return (gorillaz/motle crue etc)

― mark e (mark e), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:07 (twenty years ago)

Alfred, that's exactly how I remember it in North American terms.

I think it's quite different in the U.K. and Europe.

― Brooker Buckingham (Brooker B), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:08 (twenty years ago)

I should have specified: Top 40 acts, not indie (I own several Pavement 45's).

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:08 (twenty years ago)

WEA (at the time the largest company in the industry) discontinued 7" singles in 1990 and the dominos fell shortly thereafter.

― strng hlkngtn, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:09 (twenty years ago)

needless to say, 12"s are still printed for all major (dance) singles

― The Sensational Sulk (sexyDancer), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:18 (twenty years ago)

I wish you could still buy the current top 40 singles on CD. I don't download stuff, and i would buy a ton of cd singles if they still made them or were easy to find. i think the record companies could make a lot of money that way. especially if they were cheap. someone should tell them. (i live in the u.s. it is hard to find a good selection of new singles here at record stores.)

― scott seward (scott seward), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:27 (twenty years ago)

There have been more 7" singles in our local Virgin megastore in the last couple of months than there have been in years and years and years. I find this very strange.

― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:31 (twenty years ago)

I note Shakin' Steven's chart career ended with the stopping of 7" singles...

― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:33 (twenty years ago)

-- scott seward

I don't know, Top 40 singles are so easy to find through file sharing it's hard to believe anyone would buy CD singles now, even at $3 or $4 a pop.

― Mark (MarkR), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:36 (twenty years ago)

I remember when Roxette's "Listen To Your Heart" was released, Shadoe Stevens made a big deal out of the fact that it was the first single to hti number one unavailable on 45 rpm....

Whoa, I haven't heard Shadoe Stevens' name since 45's became unavailable.

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:36 (twenty years ago)

dude is "american top 40" even around anymore? something tells me it is.

― strng hlkngtn, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:38 (twenty years ago)

i think the record companies could make a lot of money that way

If you only buy the $2.00 single then you won't buy the $17.00 album because - generally - the singles are the only good songs on the album.

― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:39 (twenty years ago)

I thought Ryan Seacrest handles whatever passes for "America's Top 40" these days?

xpost

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:42 (twenty years ago)

Plus once you're talking about shelves full of $2 singles it doesn't make a lot of logistical sense. They've still got to be shipped to the stores and stocked on the shelves & they take up the same amount of space as the $17 product.

― Mark (MarkR), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:43 (twenty years ago)

SHADOE STEVENS AMERICAN TOP 40 – 2/24/90

40: LOVE SONG - TESLA
39: WHOLE WIDE WORLD - A'ME LORRAIN
38: I'LL BE YOUR EVERYTHING - TOMMY PAGE
37: ANYTHING I WANT - KEVIN PAIGE
36: FOREVER - KISS
35: PUMP UP THE JAM - TECHNOTRONIC FEATURING FELLY
34: ALL MY LIFE - LINDA RONSTADT & AARON NEVILLE
33: THE DEEPER IN LOVE - WHITESNAKE
32: SUMMER RAIN - BELINDA CARLISLE
31: ALL AROUND THE WORLD - LISA STANSFIELD
30: I REMEMBER YOU - SKID ROW
29: PERSONAL JESUS - DEPECHE MODE
28: KEEP IT TOGETHE R- MADONNA
27: HERE AND NOW - LUTHER VANDROSS
26: GET UP! (BEFORE THE NIGHT IS OVER) - TECHNOTRONIC
25: SACRIFICE - ELTON JOHN
24: HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO LIVE WITHOUT YOU - MICHAEL BOLTON
23: I WISH IT WOULD RAIN DOWN - PHIL COLLINS
22: SOMETIMES SHE CRIES - WARRANT
LDD: ONE MOMENT IN TIME - WHITNEY HOUSTON
21: NO MYTH - MICHAEL PENN
20: TELL ME WHY - EXPOSE
19: DOWNTOWN TRAIN - ROD STEWART
18: LOVE WILL LEAD YOU BACK - TAYLOR DAYNE
AT40 TRIBUTE TO DEL SHANNON
17: JUST A FRIEND - BIZ MARKIE
16: C'MON AND GET MY LOVE - D-MOB INTRODUCING CATHY DENNIS
15: TOO LATE TO SAY GOODBYE - RICHARD MARX
AT40 GUN HIT MEDLEY
14: JANIE'S GOT A GUN - AEROSMITH
13: I GO TO EXTREMES - BILLY JOEL
12: BLACK VELVET - ALANNAH MILES
11: NO MORE LIES - MICHEL'LE
10: PRICE OF LOVE - BAD ENGLISH
9: WE CAN'T GO WRONG - THE COVER GIRLS
8: HERE WE ARE - GLORIA ESTEFAN
FLASHBACK TO 1984: TOP FIVE SONGS SIX YEARS AGO THIS WEEK
7: TWO TO MAKE IT RIGHT - SEDUCTION
6: ROAM - THE B-52'S
5: WHAT KIND OF MAN WOULD I BE - CHICAGO
4: ALL OR NOTHING - MILLI VANILLI
3: DANGEROUS - ROXETTE
2: ESCAPADE - JANET JACKSON
1: OPPOSITES ATTRACT - PAULA ADBUL DUET WITH THE WILD PAIR

(holy crap.)

― strng hlkngtn, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:44 (twenty years ago)

There's some good tunes on that list: MIchael Penn, Roxette, Seduction, Cover Girls, B-52's.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:47 (twenty years ago)

The 90s were just AWFUL.

― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:48 (twenty years ago)

God bless the Majority.

― jack cole (jackcole), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:56 (twenty years ago)

> dude is "american top 40" even around anymore? something tells me it is.

Ryan Seacrest replaced Casey Kasem a year ago in an attempt to revitalize it -- but it didn't work. Here in NYC they keep moving the show to earlier and earlier slots -- this past Sunday the show started at 6:45, ended by 10:45 -- Seacrest increasingly phoning it in. Won't be long til they discontinue the franchise altogether, which is a pity for a chart geek like me.

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:20 (twenty years ago)

I was chatting with a big Indie distributor the other day. Over 70% of their single sales are on 7" vinyl. CD singles have almost vanished from the US shelves now and the same will probably happen here. There is no money in them; they were traditionally seen as a loss leader to the album. The push on vinyl is due to the realisation that music obsessives like me love the feel of vinyl and will pay top dollar for a collectable.

― Chris Trew, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:32 (twenty years ago)

Searching for random songs from the current Billboard top 10 on ebay turned up almost no domestic (American) CD singles. What showed up were European and Australian CD singles, 12" singles, and 99 cent downloads.

The closest thing to American CD singles were some were one-track radio promo things.

― harry krishna, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:01 (twenty years ago)

eBay sells downloads?

― Mark (MarkR), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:02 (twenty years ago)

This seller does:

http://stores.ebay.com/PassAlong-Digital-Music-Downloads_W0QQsspagenameZL2QQtZkm

― the mills brothers' golden favorites, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:25 (twenty years ago)

AT40 GUN HIT MEDLEY

― Andy K. (ADK), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:29 (twenty years ago)

hardcore kids love 7"s

― Ian John50n (orion), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:35 (twenty years ago)

When I'm elected I'll make sure all pop singles are produced on 3" CDs (two tracks): $1.99 retail ($1.25 cost).

― Andy K. (ADK), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:36 (twenty years ago)

Thanx, Andy!!!

― scott seward (scott seward), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:46 (twenty years ago)

yeah, record companies must have realized that people were getting suspicious about why they were buying CD singles with 6 or 7 tracks on them(bonus/b-sides/remixes/etc for 3 or 4 bucks, but they had to pay 16 to 18 dollars for a ten or twelve track album. thus, they had to get rid of the evidence. so, people started downloading singles cuz they couldn't buy them and the record companies started suing them!

― scott seward (scott seward), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:50 (twenty years ago)

Jay Hinman reviews new 7"s all the time.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:06 (twenty years ago)

Dancehall 7"s are still going super strong.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:16 (twenty years ago)

lamenting the loss of being able to buy singles on CD is probably a pretty sure sign your generation is on the way out, however.

― strng hlkngtn, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:17 (twenty years ago)

Oh yeah the signposts for that have been up for the last half-decade at least.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:20 (twenty years ago)

I'm talking about mass-produced two-track 3" singles (annoying when Coke had those giveaways yes but please bear with me), strng. We have to give pre-pubescents something manageable to steal from FYE.

― Andy K. (ADK), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:22 (twenty years ago)

OK, fine, but when was the last time anyone bought a 45 of a Top 40 single – as I referred to in the original question.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:30 (twenty years ago)

Everyone who bought the original 7" of "No Letting Go" or "Get Busy", I'm guessing.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:31 (twenty years ago)

But if you mean actually manufactured and/or distributed by a major label, I don't imagine it's happened for quite some time.

― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:34 (twenty years ago)

OK, fine, but when was the last time anyone bought a 45 of a Top 40 single – as I referred to in the original question.
[skip]

But if you mean actually manufactured and/or distributed by a major label, I don't imagine it's happened for quite some time.

Up until earlier this century (and possibly continuing today; I haven't seen any lately), EMI America still made "Jukebox Only!" 45s. I bought Colplay's "Yellow" b/w "Trouble" (although I don't know if "Yellow" was a Top 40 hit when I bought it) in 2000 or maybe 2001. I also have one of these for "One Armed Scissor" by At the Drive In from 2001 (which was nowhere near the Top 40, but it was a minor "hit"). They didn't seem to be limited to new releases though, as EMI did them for albums they reissued, cuz I also bought Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" b/w "Have a Cigar" and Shuggie Otis' "Out of My Head" b/w "Strawberry Letter 23"; I also remember seeing a Beastie Boys one for "Alive".

― Vic Funk, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 18:03 (twenty years ago)

That "American top 40" list is great.

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 18:23 (twenty years ago)

ahem :

gorillaz - feel good inc - 7"

genuine top 40 record that one on a major label.

― mark e (mark e), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 06:40 (twenty years ago)

Also, recently released White Stripes 7"...

― John Justen (johnjusten), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 06:45 (twenty years ago)

Even after regular vinyl 7"'s were phased out, most chain stores still had an "oldies 45" section, up until 1995 at least.

― Rev. Hoodoo (Rev. Hoodoo), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 07:36 (twenty years ago)

This seems to suggest there's a massive separation between US and UK markets.

I did buy a 45 when I was in New York, the beatles' "Real Love" as it was on that nice paper Apple label.

― mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 08:02 (twenty years ago)

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
1: OPPOSITES ATTRACT - PAULA ADBUL DUET WITH THE WILD PAIR
this is off topic but is that will smith on the rap?
is kevin paige anything i wnat very close to "don't shut me out" an the guy did a great version of john farnham's/mondo rock's "touch of paradise".

― rachel tweedy, Wednesday, 15 June 2005 08:44 (twenty years ago)

The two Kevin Paige singles are almost identical.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 15:12 (twenty years ago)

Even Girls Aloud still release (picture disc) seven inched in the UK.

― Raw Patrick (Raw Patrick), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 16:21 (twenty years ago)

I think the question is asking for the date when 7 inches stopped being sold at places like Sam Goody or Tower Records. The first time I walked into an FYE was in 1994, and I never remember them selling vinyl at any point.

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 16:45 (twenty years ago)

1990 jibes with my memory. And yeah, Jamaica still loves the 45.

― Pete Scholtes, Thursday, 16 June 2005 05:59 (twenty years ago)

in 1989 i bought erasure "drama",erasure"wild" was one of my last tapes before buying cds.

― andy bell, Thursday, 16 June 2005 12:37 (twenty years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.