Label Scan
Number - Release Date - Artist - Songs
A&M's first venture into stereo singles was actually in response to the stereo FM's request for stereo
promos, rather than the later push to release stereo singles commercially. In the March 4, 1967, issue of
Billboard [Page 3], A&M announced that they were pressing up 600 stereo promo copies of several
singles that were charting at the moment to distribute to FM stations upon request (see right). These were
pressed on white promo labels, using the same numbers as the commercial (mono) singles, except with
an "-S" suffix (or in one case, prefix). With such a scant production run, these singles are quite rare today.
For years, this was the only source available for Parade's "Sunshine Girl" in stereo, for example. It seems
to have been a short-lived experiment; after five months and less than a dozen singles, it was over. A&M
picked up issuing stereo promos again in May, 1968.
The first commercial stereo single appears to be George Benson's "My Woman's Good To Me"/"Jackie, All" [A&M 1076-S], issued in July, 1969, without the CSG notation. The commercial copy as well as the promo featured "STEREO" in red, as did 1139-S (see top left). Starting with 1163-S, the Stereo notation was in black print rather than red (see middle left).
Promo copies were white with black print, with the A&M logo in red (see lower left). The regular stereo promos starting in August, 1968, often carried a note that HAECO CSG system was being used. The commercial 45s of stereo promo singles were still mono before 1969. After mid-1969, these notes became infrequent on both promo and commercial copies.
Herb Alpert's "You Are My Life" [A&M 1143] was a mono single that was CSG processed.
832-S - 3/67 - Claudine Longet - Here, There And Everywhere/A Man And A Woman (Un Homme Et Une Femme)
S-834 - 3/67 - Merry-Go-Round - Live/Time Will Show The Wiser
836-S - 3/67 - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - For Me/Gente (99 Lollipops)
838-S - 3/67 - Nick De Caro & Orchestra - Amy's Theme/Spanish Flea
839-S - 3/67 - Chris Montez - Because Of You/Elena
840-S - 3/67 - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Wade In The Water/Mexican Road Race
841-S - 4/67 - Parade - Sunshine Girl/This Old Melody
846-S - 4/67 - Claudine Longet - Hello, Hello/Wanderlove
858-S - 6/67 - Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart - Out & About (M/S)
863-S - 7/67 - Merry-Go-Round - You're A Very Lovely Woman/Where Have You Been All My Life
871-S - 8/67 - Jimmie Rodgers - Child Of Clay/Turnaround
Stereo promo singles with mono/unknown commercial counterparts (may also have mono promos):
941-S - 5/68 - Artie Butler - Max's Brazilian What (M/S)
957-S - 7/68 - Merry-Go-Round - 'Til The Day After/Highway
969-S - 8/68 - Larry Marks - L.A. Break Down (And Take Me In) (M/S)
984-S - 10/68 - The South - Got Me In The Middle/Daybreaks
994-S - 11/68 - Sea Train - Let The Duchess No (M)/As I Lay Losing (S)
1000-S - 11/68 - Nick DeCaro - If I Only had Time (Je N'Aurai Pas Le Temps) (M/S)
1001-S - 11/69 - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - My Favorite Things/The Christmas Song
1025-S - 2/69 - Don Preston & The South - City Lights (M/S)
1047-S - 4/69 - Julius Wechter & Baja Marimba Band - Big Red/Peru '68
1057-S - 5/69 - George Benson - Don't Let Me Lose This Dream (Part 1)/(Part 2)
1076-S - 7/69 - George Benson - My Woman's Good To Me (S/S)
1083-S - 7/69 - Steve Young - I'm A One Woman Man (M/S)
1084-S - 7/69 - Tony Middleton - Angela/Keep On Dancing
1088-S - 7/69 - National Bank with Chuck Trios - Dear Mr. Fantasy/What Might Have Been
1095-S - 7/69 - Lee Michaels - Heighty Hi (M/S)
1097-S - 8/69 - Cosmic Brotherhood - Sunshine World (M/S)
1099-S - 7/69 - Free - I'm A Mover/Worry
1111-S - 9/69 - Procol Harum - The Devil Came From Kansas/Boredom
1115-S - 9/69 - Quincy Jones - Love And Peace (S/S)
1121-S - 9/69 - Churls - I Can See Your Picture (M/S)
1132-S - 11/69 - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - Wichita Lineman/Ye-Me-Le
1139-S - 11/69 - Quincy Jones - Oh Happy Day (S/S)
1166-S - 2/70 - Flying Burrito Brothers - If You Gotta Go/Cody, Cody
1180-S - 5/70 - Phil Ochs - One Way Ticket Home/My Kingdom For A Car
1184-S - 5/70 - Quincy Jones - Bridge Over Troubled Water (Part I)/Bridge Over Troubles Water (Part II)
1187 - 6/70 - Wes Montgomery - The Joker/Trust In Me [see note 3]
1197-S - 6/70 - Move - Brontosaurus (3:10) (M/S)
1220-S - 9/70 - Punch - Open Highway (M/S)
1233-S - 11/70 - Punch - While My Guitar Gently Weeps (M/S)
Commercial stereo singles, 1968-70 (promos same):
1076-S - 7/69 - George Benson - My Woman's Good To Me/Jackie, All
1139-S - 11/69 - Quincy Jones - Love And Peace/Oh Happy Day
1163-S - 2/70 - Quincy Jones - Killer Joe/Maybe Tomorrow
1183-S - 5/70 - Carpenters - (They Long To Be) Close To You/I Kept On Loving You [see note 2]
1184 - 5/70 - Quincy Jones - Bridge Over Troubled Water (Part I)/Bridge Over Troubles Water (Part II)
1187 - 6/70 - Wes Montgomery - The Joker/Trust In Me [see note 3]
1193 - 6/70 - Miguel Rios - A Song Of Joy (Himno A La Alegria)/El Rio [see note 3]
1200 - 9/70 - Joe Cocker - Cry Me A River/Give Peace A Chance [see note 4]
1206 - 7/70 - Free - All Right Now/Mouthful Of Grass [see note 6]
1216 - 8/70 - Quincy Jones - Gula Matari/Dead End
1217 - 8/70 - Carpenters - We've Only Just Begun/All Of My Life [see note 4]
1222 - 9/70 - Burt Bacharach - A House Is Not A Home/Any Day Now
1225 - 9/70 - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Jerusalem/Strike Up The Band [see note 4]
1226 - 11/70 - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - Chelsea Morning/Where Are You Coming From? [see note 4]
1227-S - 11/70 - Sandpipers - Free To Carry On/(He's Got The) Whole World In His Hands
1230-S - 11/70 - Free - Stealer/Broad Daylight [see note 6]
1236-S - 11/70 - Carpenters - Merry Christmas, Darling/Mr. Guder
1237-S - 12/70 - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - The Bell That Couldn't Jingle/Las Mananitas
1238-S - 12/70 - Shawn Phillips - A Christmas Song/Lovely Lady
A&M Notes:
1. Promos after the first commercial stereo single release in July, 1969, also omitted any mention of the CSG process.
2. Some copies of 1183-S are numbered just 1183, but they are still stereo.
3. Copies of this single are not marked "STEREO," but say "This recording employs the HAECO CSG System and can be played either stereo or monaurally."
4. Some copies of "Cry Me A River" are numbered 1200-S. This is due to different pressing plants, and also affects 1217, 1225, and 1226. None of the copies have the CSG note.
5. Labels for 1206, Free's "All Right Now," have the CSG blurb and all are stereo, although only some copies say "STEREO." This is the last release with the CSG notice until 1237. There are also some copies mistakenly labeled "MONO" on both sides, without the CSG notation. The promotional copies and the commercial copies have a different mix, both of which are different from the mix on the LP.
6. Some copies of "Stealer" have the flip listed as "Lying In The Sunshine" on the label, although "Broad Daylight" is actually what plays for those records.
CTI was short for Creed Taylor Industries. Creed Taylor had worked for a number of labels before he started CTI, including ABC/Impulse and Verve, where he was responsible for introducing the bossa nova and Brazilian music to the general American audience. Two of his major production hits were "The Girl From Ipanema" (Stan Getz and Antonio Carlos Jobim with vocal by Astrud Gilberto) and "Desifinado" by Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd.
Taylor started his jazz-oriented CTI label while he was with A&M in 1967, issuing the first CTI records under the A&M/CTI logo (see top left). In early 1970, he left A&M to establish his label as an independent imprint (see bottom left). After he left, the remaining Creed Taylor productions on A&M just noted "Produced by Creed Taylor" without the CTI logo.
The first three A&M commercial stereo singles were all Creed Taylor productions. And right from the start, CTI singles were in "Universal Stereo," which was the CTI name for compatible stereo. It is unclear whether Taylor used the CSG system while he was with A&M, as none of the A&M/CTI singles mention it, but after he left, the Creed Taylor productions sometimes mentioned that they were processed using CSG. Like all jazz labels, CTI was an album-focused label that issued singles sparingly.
Promotional stereo singles:
941-S - 5/68 - Artie Butler - Max's Brazilian What (M/S)
1057-S - 5/69 - George Benson - Don't Let Me Lose This Dream (Part 1)/(Part2)
1076-S - 7/69 - George Benson - My Woman's Good To Me (S/S)
1115-S - 9/69 - Quincy Jones - Love And Peace (S/S)
1139-S - 11/69 - Quincy Jones - Oh Happy Day (S/S)
Commercial stereo singles:
1076-S - 7/69 - George Benson - My Woman's Good To Me/Jackie, All
1139-S - 11/69 - Quincy Jones - Oh Happy Day/Love And Peace
CTI Label (all promo & stock labels say "universal stereo"):
CT 501 - 2/70 - Hubert Laws - La Jean/Let It Be
CT 502 - 3/70? - Kathy McCord - Take Away This Pain (Part 1)/(Part 2) [see note 1]
CT 503 - 4/70? - Flow - Mr. Invisible/Daddy
CT 504 - 5/70? - Hack Bartholomew - La La You/Let Me Tell You What I Found Out [see note 2]
CT 505 - 5/70? - Hubert Laws - Feelin' Alright/Let It Be
CT 506 - 7/70? - John Martine - Train Station/What I Chose To Say
CT 507 - 9/70? - Antonio Carlos Jobim - Brazil/God And The Devil (In The Land Of The Sun) [see note 3]
CT 508 - 9/70? - Fats Theus - Black Out (Part 1)/(Part 2)
CT 509 - 10/70? - Dave Frishberg - Van Lingle Mungo/Nasty Nasty Habit
CT 510 - 12/70 - Sampson & Delilah - Move Over/Right Where You Needed It
CTI Notes:
1. Promo only.
2. Single may be mono, since it does not have the large "STEREO" found on other singles, although it does say "universal stereo" in the small print at the bottom of the label.
3. Promo has Brazil (Part 1)/Brazil (Part 2)
Ode was Lou Adler's label after he sold Dunhill. From 1967 to 1969, Ode was distributed by Columbia and had a yellow label (see top left) with white label promos. We found no stereo singles, either commercial or promotional, during this period.
Starting in 1970, Ode was distributed by A&M. The label changed to a white label with black "grooves" at the top left (see lower left). The logo changed to "Ode70" with the changeover to A&M distribution, and remained so until October, 1971, when it reverted to just "Ode."
Although Ode did not issue any commercial stereo singles that we found during 1970, they did issue two mono/stereo promos (see below). Ode began infrequently issuing stereo singles in April, 1971, with ODE-60016-S, but it wasn't until 1974 that commercial stereo singles became routine.
ODE-66008-S - 10/70 - Ole Blue - People Come, People Go (M/S)
ODE-66011-S - 12/70 - Merry Clayton - Lift Ev'ry Voice And Sing (Black National Hymn) (M/S)
