The 1983 HIDEAWAY 200: The 12"s (Part Six)

Perhaps I saved the best for last as this is the sixth and final installment in the universally lauded 1983 Hideaway 200 - The 12"s series. (Now that it's over we can finally begin The 1983 Hideaway 200 proper.) Part Six is loaded from top to bottom with five twelve-inch singles and six remixes, long versions and otherwise unlabeled extended versions (or not?), including two from producer extraordinaire Trevor Horn. Push all the furniture to one side of whatever room you're in, even if you're at the office or out in public, crank up the volume and dance these messes around!

Trevor Horn's New Re-Mix of "Poison Arrow" came to be known as The US Jazz Mix or Jazz Remix or US Remix simply the Jazz Mix on the various editions and compilations that have come and gone over the past 35 years. The "Poison Arrow" twelve-inch single barely cracked the Top 40 of the Dance/Disco chart, peaking at number 39 in March 1983 although Billboard's chart info on the single is a little looser and freeform than usual, listing the catalog number for a promo version of "All Of My Heart" for at least part of the twelve weeks "Poison Arrow" was on that chart. This Trevor Horn US Jazz Remix version of "Poison Arrow" is on the legendary back-porch playlist here at The Hideaway and it is always welcomed when it comes on.

Though it is not labeled as such anywhere on the US twelve-inch single, the extended version of "Union Of The Snake" came to be known as The Monkey Mix. According to contributors over at discogs.com, this 6:22 mix is also known as Extended Mix and Super Mix. I was unimpressed with the initial single and later album versions (how could they top Rio?)but the completist in me picked up the twelve-inch single for a buck because someone had removed the shrink wrap - the record was pristine if not untouched. That mix (this mix) grew on me and was one of my early demos for testing car stereos. While "Union Of The Snake" will never rank among my favorite Duran Duran songs, it does have some sentimental value which is why it is here today. Was surprised to find out it was second-highest charting of the Fab Five's first five entries on Dance/Disco chart at number 33 although each of the next five singles placed even higher. Gonna go listen to this on The Blueberry's fine audio set-up; be back in about seven minutes.

Trevor Horn returns to us with the LONG VERSION of Frankie Goes To Hollywood's "Relax". Just as the two singles above were known by a variety of monikers, this 7:20 version of "Relax" came to be known as the US Mix and is generally recognized as the biggest selling of the myriad of "Relax" mixes. If I'm not mistaken, this particular remix is also known as the New York Mix but as always with ZTT releases, I cannot be 100% positive. I'm fairly certain that this particular twelve-inch is the one that topped out at number 20 on the Dance/Disco chart in early 1984. This particular mix was another car stereo demo track back in the day but my favorite remix of "Relax" these days is the 10:09 Chicane Full Mix from an eleven track promo disc of "Relax" remixes circa 2009. (Back out to The Blueberry.)

New Order's "Blue Monday" belongs in a class all by itself among twelve-inch singles. Reportedly, it is the largest selling twelve-inch single of all-time with more than three million copies sold worldwide. It's also proven to be highly influential among both the dance and alternative artists that followed. And anyone who has ever held the single can attest that the packaging is bonkers. Despite all this, "Blue Monday" is just a great song, and unlike the other singles featured here today, it is not a remix and extended version or even an album cut, at least not originally. It is the "Blue Monday" twelve-inch single, hitting number 5 on the Dance/Disco chart in May 1983. Then Quincy Jones signed the band to his Qwest label here in the States and Q felt the need to remix "Blue Monday" alongside John Potoker, with the resulting mix released as "Blue Monday-88" and topping the Dance Music chart in 1988. Another batch of remixes ("Blue Monday-95") by various mixers followed in 1995 and was included as a bonus disc in some copies of (the rest of) New Order. All of the remixes pale to the original although "Blue Monday-88" can be a fun surprise when it pops up on a playlist or streaming station occasionally.

This absolutely fabulous double-A sided twelve-inch single from the duo Yaz was their third consecutive Number One on the Disco/Dance chart, following "Situation" and "Don't Go" in 1982. The single's Side A is "Nobody's Diary", a beautiful song in the vein of their own "Only You" while Side AA features the elastic funk of "State Farm" (GO!) a song not unlike "Situation". After listening to these songs for thirty-five years now, I'm inclined to believe they are truly extended versions of the album versions found on You And Me Both rather than remixes of any sort. Who's with me? (GO!)

~893~