Tag: Steve Levine

Culture Club – It’s A Miracle/Miss Me Blind (Japan 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1984

“Miss Me Blind” is a song by English new wave band Culture Club. In the U.S. it was the third single released from Colour by Numbers, peaking at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the spring of 1984. This gave the band its sixth consecutive Top 10 hit.

The single was also released in Canada (where it also reached number 5), Brazil, Australia and Japan. It was also the band’s biggest R&B hit, reaching #5 on Billboard’s ‘Soul’ chart.

The song includes a reference to the title of Culture Club’s previous album. Lead singer Boy George states in the song “But you know, I’m never really sure, If you’re just kissing to be clever”, the name of Culture Club’s debut album.

“It’s a Miracle”, was released on it’s own as the fifth and final single from Colour by Numbers. The song became the group’s sixth top-five hit on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number four. It reached number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and hit the top five in Canada. It was the band’s first US release to miss the Top 10; however, the song still received considerable airplay there during the summer of 1984.

A very popular 12″ was issued, gaining big success in American clubs and elsewhere. The popular extended 12″ version contained extracts of the other Culture Club hit of the spring, “It’s a Miracle”. In the US, the “Miss Me Blind” / “It’s a Miracle” 12″ single reached #10 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart in May 1984.

Backing vocals on “Miss Me Blind” were performed by R&B singer Jermaine Stewart.

The B-side is a live rendition of “Love Twist”, a track from their first album. It was recorded in December 1983. An additional live track, “Melting Pot” (a cover of the song by the group Blue Mink), from the same show was available only on the 12-inch single.

SIDE A:
It’s A Miracle / Miss Me Blind (US Remix) 9:09
Composed By – Culture Club, O’Dowd*, Moss*, Craig*, Pickett*, Hay*
Producer, Remix – Steve Levine

SIDE B:
Love Twist (Live) 4:24
Composed By – Culture Club
Engineer – Paul Hulme, Peter Wandless*
Mixed By – Steve Levine
Producer, Mixed By – Jon Moss

Melting Pot (Live) 4:30
Composed By – Culture Club
Engineer – Paul Hulme, Peter Wandless*
Mixed By – Steve Levine
Producer, Mixed By – Jon Moss

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
OBI: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year Single Chart Position
1984 It’s A Miracle/Miss Me Blind U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play #10

 

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Virgin ‎– VIP-5916, Virgin ‎– VIRG-5196
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Limited Edition
Country: Japan
Released: 1984
Genre: Electronic, Pop
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Engineer – Gordon Milne
Mastered By – Tim Young (tracks: TY & timtom)
Photography By – David Levine (11)
Sleeve – Assorted Images
Vocals [Female] – Helen Terry

NOTES:
Multimix
Made In Japan
Also available the LP “COLOUR BY NUMBERS”

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck 
Phono Pre-amp:
Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube:
Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard:
ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning:
VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans:
Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: 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)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

Endgames – First-Last-For Everything (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1982

“First-Last-For Everything” is the second single released by Scottish pop band Endgames. Produced by Steve Levine (soon famed for the production work with Culture Club). It found success in clubs in Europe and North America, receiving significant airplay in Canada, especially on the “alternative” radio station CFNY-FM (Toronto), while in the US it was a club success. Eventually it charted in the Billboard magazine Hot Dance Music/Clup Play Chart, peaking at No. 31.

SIDE A:
First-Last-For Everything (Club Version) 4:38

SIDE B:
First-Last-For Everything (Dub Version) 5:00

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

U.S. CHART HISTORY:

Year Single Chart Position
1982 First-Last-For Everything U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play #31

 

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Virgin ‎– GAME 212
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1982
Genre: Electronic
Style: Electro, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Mastered By – Timtom*
Producer – Steve Levine
Written-By – Endgames

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck 
Phono Pre-amp:
Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube:
Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard:
ESI Juli@
Record Cleaning:
VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans:
Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: 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)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi