10/27/14

Blue Oyster Cult "Godzilla Live" 12-inch single (CBS, 1978)

You couldn't buy this item in stores, but instead this record was sent to radio stations and DJs--later we would refer to these releases as "12-inch singles," because they were basically 45's in the standard large cardboard sleeves.  By the time the disco era had arrived, the extra space was being used for longer versions or alternate mixes, but that's not the case here.  Both sides of this record are less than 4 minutes, and would easily fit on a 45.  In fact, this was also available in that size!
Another interesting this is the title on the spine actually says "Blue Oyster Cult Sampler," instead of "Godzilla Live," which is on the cover, and is presumably the A-side--although, as you will see below, the labels do not specify an A and B-side...
...at least not clearly.  There is a backslash under the large word "STEREO" on the "Godzilla" side, which probably denotes that it is the B-side track, and, after all, the Live version is the newer track at this point.  But who really knows.  We could call it a "double-A-side" single if need be.
You've seen this stamp on albums, no doubt, but usually on crap nobody's ever heard of, because that is how it ends up in thrift stores and places like that.
 Other than this fine print, there is precious little information on the cover, and certainly no mention of the word "Toho" or any rights issues!

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