Question about promo only 45's

[13th Floor Garage]

I couldn't find this question anywhere, but feel free to post a link - if already discussed.

I was wondering what reason (or various reasons) there would be for a band to sign with a commercial label company and their single to never go beyond a promotional copy distribution?

This particular example really caught my attention. " You know you really hurt me girl" and "I don't know" are probably in my top 25 of favorites. From what I can tell, It appears that the Cult put out two singles. One of them was actually released as a "promotional copy" on three separate occasions? Three different times? This seems like a lot of investment time for a band that did not appear to have an actual commercial release.

For you all reading this, I'm sure that there's other bands that come to mind as well.

I'm sure that there are exceptions to the rule, but in general, is there a logical explanation for this?

 

[Dave Baldwin]

As far as most of the 1960s goes: many major and medium-sized record labels chased the fast-changing trends in pop music that were monetized by airplay on AM music radio stations (and any success on the Top-40 charts). When the Beach Boys broke out nationally as a hit act in 1962-63, record companies (briefly) signed any "surf" act that they could find. When The Beatles hit here in 1964, the gloves really came off and labels large and small signed any British/English-speaking beat group they could corral...and even tried leasing U.K. hit records for airplay and (hopefully sales) in the U.S.A. The money guys at the labels didn't understand the changing marketplace made up of Boomer generation teens & tweens who were bored with the incrementally more stupid dance records they they were churning out. Thankfully (for us here) they also signed just about any indigenous American or Canadian group with a British beat/R&B sound and name (even if they hailed from Michigan, Alabama, New Jersey, Florida etc. etc. If d.j. payola or word-of-mouth got a record airplay and it 'broke out' on regional AM charts, stock copies were commonly pressed to cover these regional markets. If the record went Top-40 nationally, album releases were not uncommon. Sir Douglas Quintet, anyone? Si senor! One example that comes to mind is the 1966 International Submarine Band 45 "Sum Up Broke" (Columbia) , which is commonly found as a white label promo. The band had some small local success in Boston, MA (and a little buzz in N.Y.C. as well) and a very small number of red label stock copies were distributed only in those markets. There are a thousand more variations on this story nationwide. Basically, the record companies were pretty much squares and bean-counters, up to and continuing into the late 60s psych era. Most of the A&R and promo guys weren't much better. I remember having a conversation with an older guy who was a national promo man for Epic Records back in the mid-60s. He told me that the label could never figure out why they couldn't sell many Yardbirds records on the East Coast or Dave Clark Five records on the West Coast during 1965-66. I told him that marijuana had made it into the middle and high schools earlier in California than it did in, say, North Carolina and he looked at me like I had three heads...lol

 

[MopTopMike]

I will use Roulette records as an example...when Morris Levy strong armed other labels to sign "Hanky Panky" and Tommy James to an exclusive contract, Levy knew he had his first big hit since 1963. Once the song hit #1 he expanded his A&R to sign other acts. Was he gonna promte them? Only if the song started to get airplay on the stations that were regional breakout stations...WLOF, WKNR, KLIF, WSGN...were a few stations whsre, if a song was getting popular, other stations would follow suit. Counting indie and vanity labels at least 2,000 records (45s) were released weekly. Levy knew groups like Third Bardo were never gonna be anything more than tax write-offs which is why he was willing to release anything that he felt had a modicum of potential. He would press (often charging the group's account) a few stock copies of non hit 45s for local consumption in some cases. East Coast Journeymen had to pay to get a few boxes of stock copies for the local shops. There was no need or intent to press stock copies at all for records that were not going to chart in the three trade mags.

 

[Dave Baldwin]

I will use Roulette records as an example...when Morris Levy strong armed other labels to sign "Hanky Panky" and Tommy James to an exclusive contract, Levy knew he had his first big hit since 1963. Once the song hit #1 he expanded his A&R to sign other acts. Was he gonna promte them? Only if the song started to get airplay on the stations that were regional breakout stations...WLOF, WKNR, KLIF, WSGN...were a few stations whsre, if a song was getting popular, other stations would follow suit. Counting indie and vanity labels at least 2,000 records were released weekly. Levy knew groups like Third Bardo were never gonna be anything more than tax write-offs which is why he was willing to release anything that he felt had a modicum of potential. He would press (often charging the group's account) a few stock copies of non hit 45s for local consumption in some cases. East Coast Journeymen had to pay to get a few boxes of stock copies for the local shops. There was no need or intent to press stock copies if at all for records that were not going to chart in the three trade mags.

Jack Bryant of The Fallen Angels told me that Roulette Records never sent ANY copies of the "It's A Long Way Down" LP to the band members (not even promos...even though Jack was the principal songwriter). I don't think he ever even ran across a copy until the 1990s when a fan sent him a reissue.

 

[buckeyebeat]

Odd major label releases, one of my favorite subjects.

Re: the Cult records, there was also a flexidisk made for one of the records.
Multiple versions often exist because records were pressed at two (or more) different plants to cover different territories. Sometimes if a record got a good writeup in a trade publication as a promo, the company would order more even though the record had not really been a hit.

Folks in places were orderliness and process are more appreciated (than they are in the US) are puzzled at the often random way that US records were released and catalogued. Often times the artists would be represented by one group or branch office, and they would proceed with the record production process, only to have some other office shut them down. Or a last minute problem with copyright or publishing clearance could halt production. Or...maybe the boss had a tantrum one day and decided to cancel a bunch of records so he could have a five martini all afternoon lunch.
There are some really odd examples of records that were pressed as stock but not promos. Zombies 45 on Columbia, Others on Mercury, Underprivileged on Smash. All labels routinely made promo copies of all their releases.
One famous example of a major release getting cancelled was the second Junior McCants record on King. Some of you know the story but he was diagnosed with a serious brain tumor as the record was going into the promo press and then passed away. King records had already started a small run of promo copies and then shut it down. How many produced, maybe 100? Five known (one cracked and repaired to playable) to survive today (I have one).

The rarest US major label album has to be the Groop LP on Bell. Seems like only one small count box survived and found it's way to the market about 30 years after it was pressed.

I got a previously undocumented 45 on Chess this year that is 60s and is connected to a known band and a rock legend, I'll post it later.

 

[MopTopMike]

Jack Bryant of The Fallen Angels told me that Roulette Records never sent ANY copies of the "It's A Long Way Down" LP to the band members (not even promos...even though Jack was the principal songwriter). I don't think he ever even ran across a copy until the 1990s when a fan sent him a reissue.

You think Morris was gonna send free LPs to the group? Way too expensive! Most folks already know about his tax scam era...maybe this was part of his pre-planning stage.

 

[Heitkotter77]

You think Morris was gonna send free LPs to the group? Way too expensive! Most folks already know about his tax scam era...maybe this was part of his pre-planning stage.

It was like trying to get royalties from him.
“You want to see royalties? Go to London!”

 

[greenfuzz]

I got a previously undocumented 45 on Chess this year that is 60s and is connected to a known band and a rock legend, I'll post it later.

Curious to know the details here…