The Majority of B-sides are better than the LP Songs!

Betterman108

There is something about B-side songs that have their own style separating them from the rest of the catalog. For instance "State Of Love and Trust", "Hard To Imagine", "Sad, "Alone", "Wash", and the many others are all timeless classics, that will forever have staying power. When you hear them live you feel that little extra boast of adrenaline not just because they get played on rare occasions, but because there the best of the bunch.

She'sCominDownFast!!

Betterman108 wrote:

There is something about B-side songs that have their own style separating them from the rest of the catalog. For instance "State Of Love and Trust", "Hard To Imagine", "Sad, "Alone", "Wash", and the many others are all timeless classics, that will forever have staying power. When you hear them live you feel that little extra boast of adrenaline not just because they get played on rare occasions, but because there the best of the bunch.

Majority of the b-sides are better than the LP tracks? I totally disagree. While the songs you mentioned are better than a dozen or two LP tracks, it's definitely not a majority.

But I see what you're saying. A song like State of Love and Trust can be another band's best song and biggest hit.

NewDamage

I won't say a majority are better, but you list some good tunes. I'd also add "Breath" to that list

Songs like "Other Side" and "Down" came out of the Riot Act sessions I think, and they are better than most of the songs on that album.

youngster

Down is my fave B-side. Followed by Hard to imagine. You gotta remember that on the other side, Sweet Lew and Bee girl were B sides. not too fond of those songs.

Evacuation Rules

cropduster82 wrote:

Sweet Lew and Bee girl were B sides.

No they weren't.

over bends

JWBusher wrote:

No they weren't.

These days B-side == any song that was not on an album.

youngster

JWBusher wrote:

No they weren't.

They were on lost dogs and that was a b-side album.

NewDamage

Traditionally b-sides are flip sides of singles. Songs that do not fall into this category are considered outtakes I believe.

She'sCominDownFast!!

cropduster82 wrote:

They were on lost dogs and that was a b-side album.

yeah but it it's truest sense, a b-side is a song whose first release was on a single.

The only Lost Dogs songs that are truly b-sides are Down, Alone, Black Red Yellow, U, Otherside, Footsteps, Wash, and Dirty Frank. The rest are soundtrack songs, Christmas singles, or never heard before outtakes

NewDamage

She'sCominDownFast!! wrote:

yeah but it it's truest sense, a b-side is a song whose first release was on a single.

That argument would make songs like "Habit" a b-side, since it was on the "Who You Are" single, which was released before No Code. Yet Habit is found on the studio album...

SoonForgotten2

Bee Girl was quickly written for a radio session and played/recorded live. It was never a b-side, but a rarity. Now "Out Of My Mind" was a b-side, despite it having only ever been performed live(2x).

SoonForgotten2

NewDamage wrote:

That argument would make songs like "Habit" a b-side, since it was on the "Who You Are" single, which was released before No Code. Yet Habit is found on the studio album...

That's more of a double A side, like Tremor Christ was for STBC.

She'sCominDownFast!!

NewDamage wrote:

That argument would make songs like "Habit" a b-side, since it was on the "Who You Are" single, which was released before No Code. Yet Habit is found on the studio album...

Ah very good point. But you know what I meant: a non-album song that is first released on a single

NewDamage

SoonForgotten2 wrote:

That's more of a double A side, like Tremor Christ was for STBC.

Yet A-Sides are considered songs released as singles, of which Tremor Christ, Habit, Insignificance, etc...were not

barnaclelapse

Yeah, I don't really agree with that either, though I will say I've heard some pretty extraordinary b-sides/rarities that could have easily stood on their own had they been included on an actual full-length album.

mickeyrat

Ok in the liner notes on Lost Dogs they say that most of this stuff didn't "fit" the flow/feel of a given record.Hearing them live we find it's pure Pearl Jam, fits in the overall package of their music.


Or it was just a ploy to suck some money out of us! LOL

Chuy

All This arguing over best B sides or Better a sides and nobody has mentioned Yellow Ledbetter. That is the Ultimate B side and it is truly a B side since it was on the flip side of the Jeremy single.

CitizenRick

CHuy wrote:

All This arguing over best B sides or Better a sides and nobody has mentioned Yellow Ledbetter. That is the Ultimate B side and it is truly a B side since it was on the flip side of the Jeremy single.

Exactly! The song had pretty good success for an A-side let alone a B-side.

I think the story is that some random dj had the Jeremy single and stumbled upon YLB and played it on the air...the rest is history.

shes a peach

She'sCominDownFast!! wrote:

yeah but it it's truest sense, a b-side is a song whose first release was on a single.

The only Lost Dogs songs that are truly b-sides are Down, Alone, Black Red Yellow, U, Otherside, Footsteps, Wash, and Dirty Frank. The rest are soundtrack songs, Christmas singles, or never heard before outtakes

However, since the Christmas singles are "released" on 45s, technically they also have A-sides and B-sides. For example, I feel like Driftin' is a very legitimate b-side (and awesome song!)

And doesn't Soldier of Love count too? It was on Last Kiss (which was released as a single) and is track #2. For that matter, Last Kiss was its own b-side first on a X-Mas single. And Leatherman? And U?

Music For Rhinos

I'm really fucking confused.

mickeyrat

christmas singles are gifts NOT releases.Going back to yesteryear most music came out on 45's first SOLD to the general public.10c singles are not sold to the general public.