Tag: Promo

July 10, 2026

Barbra Streisand – Promises (US 12″ Promo) (1980)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

NEW 2026 Transfer
NEW Meticulous Audio Restoration

Original post date: June 26, 2015

Released in May 1981, “Promises” was the fourth and final single taken from Barbra Streisand’s hugely successful album Guilty.

Written by Barry Gibb and Robin Gibb, the song carries the polished pop sound that defined much of the album. Barry and Robin also appear on backing vocals, adding those unmistakable Gibb harmonies behind Streisand’s commanding lead.

While “Promises” narrowly missed the Top 40 on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 48, it found greater success with adult contemporary listeners. The single reached number 8 on the US Adult Contemporary chart and climbed to number 5 in Canada.

A commercial 12″ single was released in both the United States and Europe, featuring a 5:55 “Special Version.” To my knowledge, this extended version has never appeared on CD or through digital services and remains exclusive to vinyl.

“Promises” also marked an interesting point in Streisand’s singles history. It was her first commercially released 12″ single as a solo artist. It followed her 1979 duet with Donna Summer, “No More Tears (Enough Is Enough),” along with promotional 12″ releases for “Shake Me, Wake Me (When It’s Over)” in 1975 and “The Main Event/Fight” in 1979.

The “Special Version” does not radically remake the song. Instead, it gives the arrangement more room to breathe, extending the smooth production and allowing the backing vocals, rhythm section, and instrumental details to stand out. It is a subtle extension, but one that works beautifully with the sleek sound of the Guilty era.

This post features a brand-new 2026 meticulous audio transfer and restoration taken from the US 12″ promotional pressing. The record contains the same 5:55 version on both sides.

For Streisand collectors, Gibb fans, and anyone who appreciates the refined sound of early 1980s pop, this vinyl-only version of “Promises” is a lovely addition to the collection.

SIDE A:
Promises (Special Version) 5:55

SIDE B:
Promises (Special Version) 5:55

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart Performance – Barbra Streisand: Promises (1981)	Peak Position
Canada RPM Adult Contemporary	#5
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	#48
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary	#8
U.S. Cash Box Top 100	#48

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Columbia – 43 02089
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1980
Genre: Pop
Style: Vocal, Disco

CREDITS:

Executive-Producer – Charles Koppelman
Producer – Albhy Galuten, Barry Gibb, Karl Richardson
Written-By – B. Gibb*, R. Gibb*

NOTES:
DEMONSTRATION
NOT FOR SALE
Special Version Of The Columbia Lp: “GUILTY” FC 36750
Taken from The Columbia Lp: “GUILTY” FC 36750
Same track both sides.

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

July 2, 2026

Frank Tovey – Luxury (US 12″ Promo) (1986)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

“Luxury” is a 1985 single by Frank Tovey, the man many of us first came to know as Fad Gadget.

Frank Tovey was one of those artists who never really fit into a neat little box. As Fad Gadget, he helped shape the darker, stranger side of early electronic music. He could be funny, disturbing, sharp, theatrical, and oddly catchy, sometimes all in the same song. By the mid-1980s, Tovey had put the Fad Gadget name aside and began releasing music under his own name.

“Luxury” was one of those moments where he stepped a little closer to pop without losing that bite.

Produced by Frank Tovey and Daniel Miller, with Flood engineering, “Luxury” has a bright, almost polished surface. But don’t let that fool you. Under the sheen, Tovey is still poking at greed, image, class, and all the shiny things people chase to feel important. The song moves with a sharp electronic snap, but there is a sly grin behind it. It is catchy, but it is not empty.

Chart-wise, “Luxury” did not break into the official UK Top 100, but it did make a respectable showing on the UK Independent Singles Chart, reaching No. 20 in 1985. That feels about right for Frank Tovey. Too strange for the mainstream, but right at home with the listeners and DJs who were paying attention.

My copy is the U.S. 12″ promotional pressing released by Sire Records in 1986. The A-side features both “Luxury (12″ Mix)” and the LP version of “Luxury,” giving DJs the choice between the extended mix and the album cut. The B-side pairs “Collapsing New People (London Mix),” recorded as Fad Gadget, with the LP version of “Concrete,” another Frank Tovey track from Snakes and Ladders.

That track listing is what makes this promo especially interesting. It does not just promote one single. It gives us Frank Tovey in transition, with his solo work sitting right next to one of the best-known Fad Gadget tracks.

“Collapsing New People” is tense, metallic, and very much tied to the early 1980s underground electronic scene. The “London Mix” gives the track a harder club push while keeping all of its strange, nervous energy intact. Placed next to “Luxury,” it also shows how much range Tovey had. He could move from abrasive electronic art-pop into something more streamlined and still sound completely like himself.

For me, that is what makes this 12″ such a cool piece. “Luxury” may be one of Tovey’s more accessible moments, but it still carries that restless spirit that made his work stand apart. Whether recording as Fad Gadget or under his own name, Frank Tovey always sounded like he was pushing against the walls.

This U.S. promo is a great little snapshot of that story.

SIDE A:
Frank Tovey – Luxury (12″ Mix) 7:00
Engineer – Flood
Producer – Daniel Miller, Frank Tovey
Recorded By [Additional] – Tony Harris
Remix – Alistair Clay, Flood, Frank Tovey

Frank Tovey – Luxury (LP Version) 4:02
Producer – Daniel Miller, Frank Tovey

SIDE B:
Fad Gadget – Collapsing New People (London Mix) 9:21
Featuring – Einstürzende Neubauten
Producer – Daniel Miller, Flood, Frank Tovey, Gareth Jones

Frank Tovey – Concrete (LP Version) 4:36
Engineer – E.C. Radcliffe
Producer – E.C. Radcliffe, Frank Tovey

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label:Sire – PRO-A-2573
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Industrial, Synth-pop

NOTES:
Housed in a custom one-sided Sire Records picture sleeve

Original versions of “Luxury”, “Collapsing New People”, and “Concrete” are available on the Frank Tovey album “Snakes & Ladders” on Sire Records.

Promotional Copy Not For Sale

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

PLEASE READ

There are two 24-Bit links; if one does not work, try the other

**24-bit FLAC Only Available For SIX Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal.

I appreciate your help.

May 12, 2026

Sparks – I Predict (US 12″ Promo) (1982)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

Released in February 1982, “I Predict” was the first single taken from Sparks’ eleventh studio album Angst In My Pants. By this point, brothers Ron and Russell Mael had fully embraced a slick synth-pop and new wave sound while continuing to deliver the eccentric humor and sharp satire that made them one of the most unique acts in popular music.

“I Predict” became Sparks’ first entry on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 60 in May 1982. The achievement marked the duo’s first success on the U.S. singles chart since “Wonder Girl” in 1971, ending an eleven-year absence from the American Hot 100.

Produced by Mack, known for his work with Queen and Electric Light Orchestra, the track perfectly balanced quirky art-pop with polished early 80s production. Driven by sharp synthesizers, pulsing rhythms, and Russell Mael’s unmistakable falsetto, “I Predict” delivered one of Sparks’ most accessible singles while still maintaining their wonderfully bizarre sense of humor.

Lyrically, the song is classic Sparks, absurd, witty, and satirical. The narrator confidently predicts fame, scandal, and strange future events with complete sincerity, creating a surreal commentary on celebrity culture and media obsession years before reality television and viral fame became commonplace.

In the United States, a promotional 12-inch single was issued featuring an exclusive “Club Mix” of “I Predict,” available only on the promo release. The extended mix gave DJs a longer and more dancefloor-friendly version of the track, highlighting the layered synthesizer arrangements and quirky vocal passages that made Sparks stand apart from their contemporaries.

The music video made to accompany the single quickly became infamous during the early MTV era. The clip featured Ron Mael in drag performing a striptease dance routine in a Los Angeles nightclub while Russell lip-syncs the song’s lyrics. Because of the video’s more mature sexual themes and adult content, MTV generally limited airings to late-night hours or around midnight.

Over the years, the video has often been mistakenly credited to filmmaker David Lynch because of its surreal visual style. However, the book Talent Is An Asset: The Story Of Sparks credits the video to Steve and Doug Martin, who intentionally created the clip in a style inspired by Lynch’s work.

While “I Predict” was only a modest chart hit at the time, the single has grown into one of Sparks’ defining tracks from their early 80s period. The song perfectly captures the duo’s ability to combine sophisticated pop songwriting, experimental humor, and fearless visual presentation into something completely original. More than forty years later, “I Predict” still sounds daring, strange, and unmistakably Sparks.

SIDE A:
I Predict 2:52

SIDE B:
I Predict (Club Mix) 6;20

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart Performance — Sparks: *I Predict* (1982)
Chart	Peak Position	Date
US Billboard Hot 100	#60	1982

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Atlantic – PR 429
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1982
Genre: Electronic, Rock
Style: New Wave

CREDITS:

Lacquer Cut By – GP*
Producer, Arranged By – Mack (2)
Written-By – Ron Mael, Russell Mael
Produced For – Giorgio Moroder Enterprises Ltd

NOTES:
PROMOTIONAL COPY
NOT FOR SALE
From Atlantic LP 19347 “ANGST IN MY PANTS”

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

**24bit FLAC Only Available For Six Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal. I appreciate your help.

March 18, 2026

U2 – Discothèque (US 12″ Promo) (1997)

Burning The Ground Exclusive

When U2 returned in 1997 with “Discothèque,” it felt like a shock to the system—in the best possible way.

Released as the lead single from their ambitious album Pop, “Discothèque” saw the band diving headfirst into electronic dance music, club culture, and the glossy excess of the late ‘90s. Produced by Flood, Howie B, and Steve Osborne, the track fused U2’s signature anthemic sound with pulsing beats, distorted grooves, and a heavy dose of irony.

From the opening filtered guitar riff by The Edge, it’s clear this isn’t the same band that gave us The Joshua Tree. Instead, “Discothèque” leans into a sleazy, neon-lit atmosphere—more underground club than stadium rock. Bono delivers lyrics that flirt with decadence and spiritual longing, blurring the line between indulgence and introspection: “You can reach, but you can’t grab it…”

The single was a commercial success, hitting #1 in the UK and topping charts across Europe, while also making a strong showing on the Billboard Hot 100. In the U.S., it also became a major club hit, proving that U2 could successfully reinvent themselves yet again—this time for the dancefloor.

Of course, no discussion of “Discothèque” would be complete without its unforgettable video. Directed by Stéphane Sednaoui, the clip features the band dressed in outrageous costumes—most notably their appearance inside a giant mirrorball—poking fun at both themselves and club culture excess. It perfectly captured the era’s playful, anything-goes aesthetic while reinforcing the band’s willingness to take risks.

For longtime fans, “Discothèque” was initially divisive. Those expecting another With or Without You or One were instead met with a bold stylistic pivot. But in hindsight, that’s exactly what makes it so compelling. Much like their earlier reinvention during the Achtung Baby era, this track showed that U2 refused to stand still.

On the 12-inch and CD single formats, “Discothèque” truly came alive. Various remixes expanded the track’s club appeal, stretching its hypnotic groove into extended dancefloor workouts that fit perfectly alongside the late ‘90s electronic scene. The US 12″ promo that I am featuring today is especially noteworthy, as it includes the “Discothèque (DM Tec Club Mix),” which, as far as I know, remains exclusive to this particular release—making it a must-have for collectors and completists.

Nearly three decades later, “Discothèque” stands as one of the most daring singles in U2’s catalog. It’s a time capsule of late ‘90s experimentation, excess, and transformation—and a reminder that even the biggest bands can still surprise you when they’re willing to take risks.

SIDE A:
Discothèque (DM Deep Club Mix) 6:59

SIDE B:
Discothèque (DM Tec Club Mix) 7:20

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

Chart Performance – U2: *Discothèque* (1997)
Chart	Peak Position	Date
US Billboard Dance Club Songs	#1	1997
US Billboard Hot 100	#10	1997
US Billboard Mainstream Rock	#6	1997
UK Singles	#1	1997
Scottland Singles	#1	1997
Norway	#1	1997
New Zealand	#1	1997
Ireland	#1	1997
Italy	#1	1997
Finland	#1	1997
Canada Top Singles (RPM)	#2	1997
Canada Dance/Urban	#1	1997
Canada Rock/Alternative	#1	1997
Australia	#3	1997

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Island Records – PR12 7398-1
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1997
Genres: Electronic, Pop
Styles: House

CREDITS:

Decks [Original], Loops [Original], Recorded By [Original] – Howie B.
Mastered By [Original] – Howie Weinberg
Mixed By [Original] – Conal Markey
Mixed By [Original], Recorded By [Original] – Mark “Spike” Stent*
Producer [Original] – Flood
Recorded By [Original] – Femio Hernandez, Rob Kirwan
Remix – David Morales, Satoshi Tomiie

NOTES:
For Promotional Use Only – Not For Sale

“Discothèque” contains samples from “Fane” by Freeform. Courtesy of Skam Records.

Mastered at Masterdisk – New York

Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!

Password: burningtheground

You can help show your support for this blog by donating using PayPal. I appreciate your help.