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Exclusive Singles/b-sides

OuttaTheRain45

Everybody Just Stop Trippin!
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I've created a list of songs that are exclusive to singles and b-sides. This means songs that are not on any standard release album put out. Please let me know if I'm missing any. This list doesn't include Streetwalker, the demo b-side to Cry, or DBMR, the IJCSLY BAD25 b-side.

Someone in the Dark- Exclusive to the E.T Storybook
Someone put your hand out- Single exclusive to Dangerous tour
On the Line- Exclusive single released during BOTDF for On the Bus
Can’t Get Outta the Rain- b-side to TGIM and BJ
Shout- b-side to Cry
Come together (original Moonwalker version)- b-side to RTT

Edit: I am choosing to include “Get It” even though it is on a standard released album. It can only be found on “Characters” by Stevie Wonder. I understand that including this opens up more to be added, so, as a result, if anyone wants to recommend additions to this list, that are on OTHERS albums, they should. However, Michael’s presence in the song should be bigger than chorus or background vocals. Just NO demos though, as demos, when officially released, are always included as bonus material or main material to some albums. The Cheater single doesn’t count since it is included in an officially released MJ album.
 
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OuttaTheRain45 said:
I've created a list of songs that are exclusive to singles and b-sides. This means songs that are not on any album put out by Michael. Please let me know if I'm missing any.

Someone in the Dark- Exclusive to the E.T Storybook
Someone put your hand out- Single exclusive to Dangerous tour
On the Line- Exclusive single released during BOTDF for On the Bus
Can’t Get Outta the Rain- b-side to TGIM and BJ
Shout- b-side to Cry
Come together (original Moonwalker version)- b-side to RTT
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The list is slim, I always felt cheated as a fan buying singles, they were always crammed with remixes or a single I'd bought from a previous album campaign, the above list were VERY welcome surprises
 
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Zeus 7 said:
The list is slim, I always felt cheated as a fan buying singles, they were always crammed with remixes or a single I'd bought from a previous album campaign, the above list were VERY welcome surprises
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Yea, started looking for a definitive list of non-album songs officially released that weren't demos or works in progress and found that there are a few lists that are kind of scattered including stuff like album songs.
 
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Hot Street; Nightline; Carousel & She's Trouble, should all have been B-sides on the Thriller singles.
 
Yeah, it's a huge shame this list is so short.

If you didn't like remixes or acapella versions, the singles were very poor value for money, and there was no reason for a fan to buy them.

This is ultimately the reason MJ only had 7 number ones in the UK. Everything else got to number 2 or 3. The industry was really competitive in the 90s, but if MJ had made an effort actually to put out decent singles (with original B-sides and videos) it would have given him an edge, and he could easily have had 17 number ones. No, I'm not joking.
 
R1chard said:
Yeah, it's a huge shame this list is so short.

If you didn't like remixes or acapella versions, the singles were very poor value for money, and there was no reason for a fan to buy them.

This is ultimately the reason MJ only had 7 number ones in the UK. Everything else got to number 2 or 3. The industry was really competitive in the 90s, but if MJ had made an effort actually to put out decent singles (with original B-sides and videos) it would have given him an edge, and he could easily have had 17 number ones. No, I'm not joking.
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After that terrible trial in 93 it seemed that America disliked Michael. I love him and stand by his innocence. I do know that after the first trial he was huge in European countries.
 
Well, there wasn't a trial in 93, but I mean over the whole length of his career. It's unbelievable that somebody who was as massively popular as MJ, and who had such a long career, would barely have any number ones.
 
I usually get confused with the first allegations due to the threat of a court case and it not actually happening. I tend to overlook the allegations due to them being mostly conceived for money.
 
R1chard said:
Well, there wasn't a trial in 93, but I mean over the whole length of his career. It's unbelievable that somebody who was as massively popular as MJ, and who had such a long career, would barely have any number ones.
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Album sales were so incredibly strong in most cases a lot of people didn't need to go and buy the single, so it always made sense to me
 
That's my point. And yet Spice Girls and Take That had 8 number ones each, within a decade, almost everything they ever released.

Look at Oasis, they gave you 3 brand new songs on every CD single. It's in stark contrast to MJ, who had about the same number of B-sides over nearly 40 years.
 
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I bought cry specifically so I could hear shout!

Remember thinking what the hell is this (in a good way) back in 2002 when I got it as a cd single obv months after it was released in 01
 
R1chard said:
That's my point. And yet Spice Girls and Take That had 8 number ones each, within a decade, almost everything they ever released.

Look at Oasis, they gave you 3 brand new songs on every CD single. It's in stark contrast to MJ, who had about the same number of B-sides over nearly 40 years.
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The majority of Prince's singles had a non-album B-side. Prince only had (in the US) 5 #1s on the Hot 100 and 8 on the R&B chart in Billboard. Prince released more singles (and albums) than Mike did, even if you count The Jackson 5/Jacksons records. If you count the J5 compilations on Motown, then they beat Prince's album output. Just the compilations alone without the original J5/Jacksons studio albums. 🤣 Sting only had 1 #1 single on the Hot 100 and he usually had exclusive B-sides. And that song was a collabo with Rod Stewart & Bryan Adams from a movie soundtrack. Sting has no #1s by himself, and just 1 with The Police, (2 if you count I'll Be Missing You by Puff Daddy & Faith Evans).
 
I noticed that if Michael was going to make a non album song it would be its own single. He didn’t seem to really be into b-sides as much as other artists like Hojo or Duran Duran.
 
OuttaTheRain45 said:
I've created a list of songs that are exclusive to singles and b-sides. This means songs that are not on any standard release album put out. Please let me know if I'm missing any. This list doesn't include Streetwalker, the demo b-side to Cry, or DBMR, the IJCSLY BAD25 b-side.

Someone in the Dark- Exclusive to the E.T Storybook
Someone put your hand out- Single exclusive to Dangerous tour
On the Line- Exclusive single released during BOTDF for On the Bus
Can’t Get Outta the Rain- b-side to TGIM and BJ
Shout- b-side to Cry
Come together (original Moonwalker version)- b-side to RTT
Click to expand...
I dont think of some of these as exclusive b-sides anymore as they were
released on the The Ultimate Collection CD box in 2004.
I have great memories from 1992 and the RTT single release as I for years had high hopes for
a cd release of Come Together.
The one on History in 1995 was much shorter.
 
RIP_2009 said:
I dont think of some of these as exclusive b-sides anymore as they were
released on the The Ultimate Collection CD box in 2004.
I have great memories from 1992 and the RTT single release as I for years had high hopes for
a cd release of Come Together.
The one on History in 1995 was much shorter.
Click to expand...
Some of the mentioned titles aren’t technically exclusive to b-sides anymore but they are songs exclusive to bonus cds or singles.
 
OuttaTheRain45 said:
I've created a list of songs that are exclusive to singles and b-sides. This means songs that are not on any standard release album put out. Please let me know if I'm missing any. This list doesn't include Streetwalker, the demo b-side to Cry, or DBMR, the IJCSLY BAD25 b-side.

Someone in the Dark- Exclusive to the E.T Storybook
Someone put your hand out- Single exclusive to Dangerous tour
On the Line- Exclusive single released during BOTDF for On the Bus
Can’t Get Outta the Rain- b-side to TGIM and BJ
Shout- b-side to Cry
Come together (original Moonwalker version)- b-side to RTT
Click to expand...
Now that I think about it, the only b-sides I know that were big come from Duran Duran and Hojo. To be honest, b-sides died after the mid 80s.
 
That always puzzled me about MJs approach... like wouldn't it make more sense to include a b-side fans don't already know, so they would be tempted to buy the single if they already bought the album
 
OuttaTheRain45 said:
Now that I think about it, the only b-sides I know that were big come from Duran Duran and Hojo. To be honest, b-sides died after the mid 80s.
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Prince was another artist who's released many exclusive b-side tracks. Some of them were on par or even better than what's made it on to the actual album.

Best example, "When Doves Cry" single w/ "17 Days" on its b-side.
 
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Fuzball said:
Prince was another artist who's released many exclusive b-side tracks. Some of them were on par or even better than what's made it on to the actual album.

Best example, "When Doves Cry" single w/ "17 Days" on its b-side.
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Sweet, didn't know that Prince had b-sides. I was only going off what I knew was big. For example, Union of the Snake's b-side is Secret Oktober which IMO is better than the a-side, but was still huge. Or Hojo's alternate single version of No one is to blame with Phil Collins on the drums, I've heard many horror stories of when fans found out that version wasn't on Dream Into Action even though that album came out before the alternate version did.
 
That kind of list(s) already exists... I don't know if they're in public space as I don't really need to check them often... And it depends what they include, what they exclude... There may be many flavours. Though if you don't include anything else than MJ strictly adult-solo, strictly released songs, you get a very short list indeed.
 
Also, does this count as a single? https://www.discogs.com/release/1273403-Michael-Jackson-Signature-Series

And should the 25 Miles single count because it was released in 1986 or 1987? (I can't find reference to it, I only find The Original Soul Of Michael Jackson but I quite remember owning it as a 7'', with b-side Up On The Housetop before discoving that one was from The Original Soul compilation and the other was from J5 Christmas Album.

List in original post may also be missing One More Chance and Cheater as they were single in not in "albums".
 
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Maxym said:
Also, does this count as a single? https://www.discogs.com/release/1273403-Michael-Jackson-Signature-Series

And should the 25 Miles single count because it was released in 1986 or 1987? (I can't find reference to it, I only find The Original Soul Of Michael Jackson but I quite remember owning it as a 7'', with b-side Up On The Housetop before discoving that one was from The Original Soul compilation and the other was from J5 Christmas Album.

List in original post may also be missing One More Chance and Cheater as they were single in not in "albums".
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One more chance was not included as bonus material so it doesn't count. I've never heard of Cheater being on anything else than TUC. I'm talking songs that have only been released on b-sides and as exclusive singles and the only other way you can find them is bonus material or on compilations.
 
OuttaTheRain45 said:
One more chance was not included as bonus material so it doesn't count. I've never heard of Cheater being on anything else than TUC. I'm talking songs that have only been released on b-sides and as exclusive singles and the only other way you can find them is bonus material or on compilations.
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Cheater was released released as a promotional single only
 
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