A heart cry from the wrong side of the vinyl 45.
folk
bside
adrianjpratt
Story behind the song
A heart cry from the wrong side of the vinyl 45.
Back in the days when the joy of ones life was purchasing the latest '45' vinyl single that was climbing up the pop charts, a great unknown was what would be on the reverse side of the record... the B-Side.
The first single I ever purchased was Manfred Mann's "The Mighty Quinn. The B-Side was a ridiculious music hall parody "By Request Edwin Garvey", that was more reminiscent of Dame Hilda Brackett than any thing else Manfredd Mann ever produced. If you have never heard it... it was not the greatest of B-Sides.
https://youtu.be/-KBlmoxF8OI
Then there was "They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!" a 1966 novelty record written and performed by Jerry Samuels (performing as Napoleon XIV). The B-side of the single was simply the A-side played in reverse, and given the title "!aaaH-aH ,yawA eM ekaT oT gnimoC er'yehT"
https://youtu.be/bRAs5rs54z4
But I think I was unlucky. Some pretty famous hits started life as B-Sides. Queen - We will Rock You. The Rolling Stones - You Can't Always Get What You Want. Kraftwerk, The Model. And there are many more. Generally speaking though, the B-side received less attention than the side with the hit on it.
Reflecting on that situation led to this little ditty being penned. We all have those days when we feel like "B-Sides" rather than the the main event.
The recording is deliberatly lo-fi.. Just a scratchy vinyl sound, an acoustic guitar and a single vocal.
I recall singing the song to myself while walking the dog. This happened a number of times so eventually I jotted the words down and eventually gave it some guitar chords. This happened over quite a period of years. No idea where it origunally came from! I've found the only to get rid of such tunes is to write them down, and record a version to get it out your system. lol.
I have performed it 'live' a few times and it usually gets a positive response. One of those quirky, cutesy songs, that you are not really sure why you wrote. But sometimes that works!
Lyrics
I am the B side
Adrian J Pratt 1994
I am the B side, I lie beside the A side
And I never get played on the radio oh no.
I am the B side, I lie beside the A side
And the DJ won’t play me on his radio show
Is it because I’m lacking in melody, melody, melody, melody,
Or am I lacking in harmony, harmony, harmony, harmony,
I just don’t know’
I’ve got rhythm I’ve got soul
Surely there’s room for me on the radio? Oh!
Is it because I’m lacking in.
Or am I lacking in.
I just don’t know’
I’ve got rhythm I’ve got soul
Surely there’s room for me on the radio?
I am the B side, I lie beside the A side
A lonely piece of black vinyl with a hole in his soul,
I am the B side, I lie beside the A side
And the DJ won’t play me on his radio show
And the DJ won’t play me on his radio show
And the DJ won’t play me on his radio show.