Three sided albums?

I was in a used vinyl store and picked up Johnny Winter’s Second Winter in the bargain bin. As I was examining the album’s condition I saw an entirely blank side four. Thinking I may have discovered a rare misprint pressing I did a quick research and found that the three sided album was intentional. Apparently Johnny and the producers thought what they recorded was worthy of a three sided album instead of two single albums...which I don’t understand why or make sense to me..but ok.

Got me to thinking...are there any other three sided albums out there?

 

The Beach Boys' SMiLE, when pressed as an LP in 2011, was split across 3 sides. However, they decided to put "bonus tracks" on Side 4 to fill things out.

 

NY Rock and Soul Revue, Donald Fagen and others.

 

X Japan's 1989 "Blue Blood"



Only first press of this LP - their 90s albums never had LP issues or reissues

 

Technically, the free record given away with The Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief is.

 

And here I was thinking this:

 

Big World ~ Joe Jackson.

 

Rahsaan Roland Kirk - The Case of the Three-Sided Dream In Audio Color
Keith Jarrett - Eyes of the Heart

 

Low- Things We Lost in the Fire. Lyrics are etched on side 4.

 

More current, the new Springsteen album is three sided, with an etching on side four.

 

Donald Fagen's Sunken Condos (and quite a bit better sounding than the CD).

KD Lang's recent reissue of Drag.

The Concord reissue of Emmylou Harris's Wrecking Ball got put out on three sides, with three more sides of wonderful alternate takes as well as songs that didn't make it to the album from the sessions.

 

I know that Bowie's estate released an odd-number-sided live album a little while ago. They put an etching of his head on the last empty side I believe

 

Genesis - Calling All Stations

 

Springsteen- Leter to You

 

Pavement's Wowee Zowee and Thurston Moore's Psychic Hearts are 3-sided albums. (Both sound fantastic incidentally.)

 

Rufus Wainwright's latest album 'Unfollow the Rules' has three sides, too. Sort of makes sense, as the record is divided into three acts, but still a waste of precious vinyl space.

Rufus Wainwright - Unfollow The Rules

 

Good point about deluxe reissues. Wilco’s debut AM was re-released as a double with the original single album spread across three sides and a forth side of bonus tracks.

 

Neil Young with Crazy Horse - Americana
Neil Young + Promise of the Real - The Visitor
Both 3 sided LPs

 

Robert Wyatt - Comicopera

 

Not just technically. The LP platter has 3 sides to it.

Multisided record - Wikipedia

 

Now that they are frequently spreading out albums over multiple records -- to reduce inner groove distortion and improve SQ, justify higher prices or some combination of all of the above -- this is no longer that uncommon. Though it isn't necessarily a case of deciding to release a "1.5 album" rather than a full double album or two separate LPs. Many of these could be crammed on to a single record, though possibly at lower SQ.

 

A few Robert Plant albums...

 

Utopia's s/t LP on Network

 

Niko Case, The Worse Things Get...

Man, there a a ton of these records.

 

I totally forgot about this one - they pressed the same 5 songs on both sides and labeled both sides Side Three!