Go-Go's - We Got The Beat (Stiff Single Version)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Veech, Mar 24, 2020.

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  1. Uncle Meat

    Uncle Meat Forum Resident

    Location:
    Houston, Tx, US
    Are all these different versions available on CD ?
    I have a copy of Beauty and the Beat....
    How many different versions are there ? Where can they be found ?
     
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  2. The Cat 3

    The Cat 3 Forum Resident

    Love this version, thank you.
     
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  3. Sebastian saglimbenI

    Sebastian saglimbenI Forum Resident

    Location:
    New york
    Yes the "STATE-LESS" I have a C.B.S./STIFF release... no bar-code but I am not sure of its scarcity... I am in suburban new york/long island so it's not uncommon to see a lot OF 1980's NEW WAVE here in what few used c.d. shops that are left.i grew up on 92.7 W.L.I.R. F.M. Radio and they played great music!
     
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  4. may1620

    may1620 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New England, USA
    There are three primary studio versions.
    The one referred to in this thread, the Stiff 45 version, is found on the Whole World Lost It's Head CD EP. I believe you can also find in on one of the Stiff Records 4 CD box sets.
    Then there is the original LP version on vinyl Beauty and the Beat. You can also find it on the 12" promo single. I don't think this one has been released on CD.
    Later LPs and all CDs have a modestly different version.
     
  5. dave9199

    dave9199 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Durham, NC
    From the movie Urgh! A Music War. Filmed 1980 I believe.

     
  6. Marshall

    Marshall Forum Resident

    Pam Springsteen, sister of Bruce, sighting at 0:35 of the video (in the red and blue cheerleader outfit) in the classic Fast Times film.

    As for the Go-Go's We Got the Beat, thanks Veech for posting the Stiff Records single. I'm like Man at C&A, in that I enjoyed this early version, and
    yes the IRS release is timeless. I also have the Fun Boy Three single of Our Lips Are Sealed on the UK Now That's What I Call Music 1983 double CD compilation
    released as part of their Millennium Series in 1999.

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  7. Veech

    Veech Space In Sounds Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    A prog rock group named Xairia. We played the Troubadour, Madame Wongs East and West, Gazzarris, Starwood and a few of the other local hot spots. Opened for Berlin among others.

    Those were crazy days in LA as punk was evolving into new wave and glam rock. Local boys named Van Halen had just released their first LP.
     
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  8. Davido

    Davido ...assign someone to butter your muffin?

    Location:
    Austin
    This raw version is a welcome sound, makes the song sound fresh again to me. Why would this not be included on their 94 compilation album? That compilation had a "single mix" of the song instead.
     
  9. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    Maybe the band didn't have the rights to it?

    "Valley" is a weird mix of greatest hits collection and rarities. Seems to me it should've been all rarities since they already had a more than competent GH release!
     
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  10. C6H12O6

    C6H12O6 Senior Member

    Location:
    My lab
    Looking at the track list, I'm guessing they wanted the single mix but no repeats of any songs too, and across both CD's of Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's, there is indeed only one version of each song.

    The Stiff single version was actually recorded with three other songs and supposedly all four were put on an EP that was sold at their shows. Way before my time, but this was when they were taking off as an underground band, and without a label deal yet, they wanted something to sell at their shows, so they decided to cut an EP. (Stiff licensed the recording later on, they didn't finance the session.) I don't see it listed on Discogs though, so maybe they ended up pressing a two-song single instead. Regardless, the other three recordings do appear on Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's.

    As mentioned upthread, the recording of "We Got the Beat" did make the CD single release of a "The Whole World Lost Its Head" (a new song cut for Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's and easily the best of the newly recorded songs IMHO). If you look at that CD single, the B-sides are all bonus material that did not make the compilation. So ownership was not an issue, the Go-Go's always had the rights to the recording, but they chose to put it on the CD single promoting Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's rather than the compilation itself.

    I actually burned a single disc compilation including all four of the "EP" tracks. Assuming it exists somewhere, the EP would be my favorite Go-Go's record. All three LP's were good, but the rawness of that EP brings out why the Go-Go's can sound like a pre-cursor to Sleater-Kinney.
     
    Last edited: Mar 25, 2020
  11. Davido

    Davido ...assign someone to butter your muffin?

    Location:
    Austin
    Appreciate the info, since it made me realize that I have a copy of the rawer "Beat" - on that CD single of "The Whole World Lost Its Head". I don't think I ever bothered to listen to that version of the song from the single, since it's not one of my favorite Go.Go's tracks... but this "new" version helps redeem the song for me and gives me a fresh perspective of the band. So I suppose "Beat" and "How Much More" were released as the 1980 single (and "Lust to Love" and "Cool Jerk" were the other earlier versions of songs later recut).
     
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  12. Davido

    Davido ...assign someone to butter your muffin?

    Location:
    Austin
    It's hard to quibble with "Valley" since it's mostly hard to find or unreleased tracks, virtually all of the first disc is unreleased material. I think it's very well put together.
     
  13. rpd

    rpd Senior Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    Are you talking about We Got The Beat? It’s not on the “whole world” CD...
     
  14. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    Oh, I'm quibbling! I'm a quibbling fool! :D
     
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  15. troggy

    troggy Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow

    Location:
    Benton, Illinois
    "How Much More" is my favorite thing from the debut album. That's such a great tune.
     
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  16. Man at C&A

    Man at C&A Senior Member

    Location:
    England
    It's one of mine too. Hearing that on the Stiff single was what made me go ahead and buy the Go-Go's albums. That along with them being reissued a few years ago. Before hearing How Much More I thought they could have been one of those groups that have only 3 or 4 decent songs and a load of unmemorable ones. I bought the Stiff single because We Got The Beat is such a great song and I collect 45s from that era. Here's the Stiff version of How Much More:
     
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  17. Marshall

    Marshall Forum Resident

    Thanks Man at C&A for this, too. This version of How Much More has a much rawer sound, too, in comparison to the one on the Beauty and the Beat album. Similar to We Got The Beat, I enjoy both the Stiff and IRS/A&M versions of the song. So, the Stiff single must have Margot Olavarria on bass, since it was recorded before she was replaced by Kathy Valentine.

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  18. may1620

    may1620 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New England, USA
    It is, though not in every country/release. I believe the US version (5 songs) has it while the UK/EU versions (4 songs) do not.

    Go-Go's - The Whole World Lost Its Head
     
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  19. melstapler

    melstapler Reissue Activist

    Go-Go's would often play a more energetic version of this song live in concert and for that reason, I prefer this Stiff single version. I miss getting to see them perform, but apparently Kathy will be joining them for a tour with the original lineup in Summer 2020. Cross your fingers and hopefully we'll return to some level of normalcy by Summer.
     
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  20. GLUDFSSR

    GLUDFSSR Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    It was issued on the Whole World cd single in the US. The the 2 other Stiff recordings were issued on the Valley comp.
     
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  21. rpd

    rpd Senior Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    Got it. Thanks!
     
  22. nosticker

    nosticker Forum Guy

    Location:
    Ringwood, NJ
    I used to DJ at a roller rink in the early 80s and this Stiff 45 version found its way into some fellow DJs' collections just as the first LP came out. We used to play it as a curiosity. I think the IRS version has 10x the power of this one, with just Gina's monstrous drums on the intro--no contest.

    I found it odd that the backup mimic vocals didn't make it to the hit version "They're walking in time....". However, I've seen live videos where they add them back in and it really fills up that space. It also might have been nice to keep at least some of the "beeeeeat"s drawn out like that. I don't prefer the old version, but it's an interesting look into the genesis of a huge 80s hit.


    Dan
     
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