THE TRUTH ABOUT RADIO EDITS

When I'm not listening to an IPod or Internet Radio, I listen to New York City's classic rock station Q104.3(WAXQ).

I stopped listening to top 40 stations the minute after I heard The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again," perhaps one of the greatest rock songs ever made, on a local top 40 station. Why? You ask?

Because they play the edited version from The Who's Greatest Hits which cuts out the most amazing 1 minute of music ever recorded. I'm talking about the keyboard solo, which as far as I'm concerned, can be the whole song and they can cut out the other 7 minutes.

How can you make that song a radio edit? The Who is one of the greatest international rock bands ever (as I wrote that, Who Are You came on Q104), and editing any of there music is like allowing the Vatican to put advertising billboards on St. Peter's square. Sac-relig to the fullest extent. Radio edits are reserved for the one hit wonders, or the ones who don't write their own material and get contracts courtesy of American Idol, or by marrying record execs. What stinks is that radio stations have no idea how to edit songs.

Billy Joel's "Pressure," a prime example of a song that gets the greatest hits treatment on top 40 stations, never includes the "Two Men Out and Three Men On" verse. Classic rock stations like Q104 play The Nylon Curtain version as it was meant to be played. Even Joan Osbourne's "One of Us" is edited badly - The album verion starts with a sweet old lady singing a gospel tune followed by an instrumental lead in - I heard the radio edit first and when I heard the album version, it completely changed the face of the song.

Bottom line is, the truth about radio edits is that they are unnecessary, and folks who want to hear good music will never know that other versions of songs exist if all they listen to is top 40. If you happen to be reading this and your name is Casey Casem, no disrespect.