[PLEASE read this too] B-side vs. 2nd A-side vs. c/w

[Delirium-Zer0]

So, what's the difference between a b-side, a second a-side, and a C/W song on a single?

There isn't one.

Seriously. The "other" song or songs on a single are whatever the record label decides to call them. There is no rule about what applies. Sometimes this "other" song is promoted, and sometimes it's not. Sometimes it makes the album, sometimes it doesn't.

Before the single format became a 10cm CD, the "other" song was always called a c/w song. 'B-side' was really only ever used in western music. Now singles might be called double or triple a-side singles, and sometimes a single with 2 promoted songs is a single with a b-side. It doesn't really make any difference. "B-side" means, at its root, the song on the other side of a 7" single record. Ayu doesn't HAVE any of those, so in all honesty, she has no b-sides. No a-sides either though! Just a single with another song or more songs on it.

So let's see. What makes "HANABI" a third A-side, but "Will" a b-side? Neither has a PV. Both were used to promote something (Tu-Ka and Panasonic, respectively). Both wound up on their respective albums. But what about "Two of us" and "LOVE ~since 1999~". Neither ended up on an album, and neither has a PV, but one's from a single where there are TWO songs not found on an album. So is LOVE ~Destiny~ a double A-side, or is "~since 1999~" a b-side since it wasn't promoted the way "~Destiny~" was?

As you can see, it doesn't matter. It's a promotional marketing term, it doesn't matter what you call it at all! Arguing over whether "Will" is a b-side or a 2nd a-side is like arguing over whether a piece of food is "zesty" or "tangy". Those aren't words anyone actually uses to describe something. They're commercial words, and they mean nothing. (Heck, B'z call their "other" songs on a single "second beat". See? Means nothing.)

Just for reference... single "a-sides" and their "other" song/songs:
NOTHING FROM NOTHING - PAPER DOLL
poker face - FRIEND
Depend on you - Two of us
LOVE~Destiny~ - LOVE~since1999~
monochrome, Trauma, too late, End roll*
appears "'99 Greeting Mix" - immature "JT Original CM Version"
vogue - ever free
independent - July 1st, HANABI
ourselves - Greatful days, HANABI ~episode II~, theme of a-nation '03
INSPIRE - GAME
STEP you - is this LOVE?
fairyland - alterna
HEAVEN - Will
Bold & Delicious - Pride
Startin' - Born to be...

*Regarding A: It's hard to tell what the A-side of this was and what the "other" songs are, since different colors have different tracklists, and Trauma & End roll got more promotion than the other two.

[chibi_sunny]

thank you for the explanation. I've always wondered about this.

Originally Posted by Delirium-Zer0

so in all honesty, she has no b-sides.

I consider "ever free" as a b-side. It never made an album, or a best.

OT - What was ever free even for? Just a useless song or what? I know it was used for a concert, but that was another mix...

[Delirium-Zer0]

ever free was there to exist, that's all. I don't know why it didn't end up on Duty... perhaps ayu felt it would have interfered with the flow of the album.

[Indie]

Originally Posted by Ayumi no Yume

I consider "ever free" as a b-side. It never made an album, or a best.

OT - What was ever free even for? Just a useless song or what? I know it was used for a concert, but that was another mix...

any song is made just to exist, to be enjoyed, and I'd say ever free was made to be a fan-favorite, it seems to me that a lot of people love that song

[*Petit*]

Originally Posted by Delirium-Zer0

ever free was there to exist, that's all. I don't know why it didn't end up on Duty... perhaps ayu felt it would have interfered with the flow of the album.

Sometimes they remove songs because of the flow like Delirium-Zer0 wrote. But like in the case of Endless sorrow, which was a major hit, they'll rather make a new version, because fans will be disappointed if it's not on the album. So if a song isen't being promoted, and the artist has more material that they like better and think suits the album better, he won't include a semi-known song fewer fans cared for.

As for the term B-side, I don't think it's all inapropriate. It's true that it's taken from the "vinyl times", and that it described the song on the other side of the single, which usually did not get much promotion, and usually was considered a more or less bad track (or experimental track) "tossed" in to add value and/or content to the record. Many of the "second songs" fits one or more of these descriptions, the only difference is that that it's not one the other side of the CD. Very few artists other than ayu manages to make their second songs known and even small hits (like HANABI and July 1st).
As an example of artists that still releases songs that have virtually all of the B-side "qualities" I could mention Shimatani Hitomi.

I do think the term "second song" is better today, because, and no just in ayu's case, it's often very hard to determine which is what. Many second songs have both A- anb B-side distintions. I think we should all stick to the "second song" term.

[firefox]

why not just call it a song.... labelling it as an A side or B side wont change anything now will it? it is still a song. :p

[Delirium-Zer0]

My point exactly. People keep arguing over whether singles are a double a-side or an a-side and a b-side, but it really doesn't matter at all o_O

[sxesven]

Originally Posted by *Petit*

As for the term B-side, I don't think it's all inapropriate.

Definitely. B-side is the correct term - and it also accounts for so-called double A-sides and c/w type things (Delirium is completely right about that fact - I'd just like to add that 'B-side' is commonly recognized as the most suitable and most accepted term). In this sense, Delirium's list is indeed very much correct - although there are a few singles in Ayu's discography that are constructed so strangely that it's hard to figure out how they are to be considered (which is quite important for a music geek, haha). A, }{, and & are, in their construction, closer to EPs than to actual singles - multiple different songs, a non-descriptive title and, in the case of both & and }{, released well before the album and thus containing, at the time of release, only new material.

An important sidenote, however: in the discussion of B-sides on this board (mainly the polls), it should be obvious that it only refers to B-sides in the most traditional sense - those songs that did not make it to an album (albums do not include compilations and the like).

[elepop]

I always thought a b-side was a song that was released in a single but not in an album...

[freedreamer]

I always thought that songs which have no PV will be considered a-side...But Will was an exception

[ImpactBreaker]

Well whether it matters or not the japanese music companies, such as avex, constantly use the term "a-side" to refer to certain singles they release such as hitomi's kimi no tonari which was considered her first TRIPLE A-SIDE single.
The term b-side came from old vynils which had the main songs of the album on the a-side, and miscelaneous stuff such as bonus tracks and interviews on the b-side. While i agree arguing around whether something is an "a" or "b" is purely relative and clearly never gets to a point, certain songs are clearly a b-side and it's pretty much hard to prove otherwise: Shiina's ringo Jitsuroku -Shinjuku ni te- Marunouchi SADISUTIKU~ Kabukicho no Jyoou [Documentary -In Shinjuku- Marunouchi Sadistic~ Queen of Kabukicho] is clearly a b-side.

[Delirium-Zer0]

I'd say the only ayu songs that are "clearly" b-sides are ever free and theme of a-nation '03. With the recent 2-song singles, though, the line gets SO blurry. When it comes to them, it really is just a PR term and makes no difference what you call the second song.

[darkswordz]

thanks for the explanation

[elepop]

For me, the 2nd a-side and the c/w song is the same.

But not a b-side. I consider a b-side a song that didn't make it in an album.

[Echoed_Memories]

Thank you for the explanation. I think I understand the whole 'b-side, c/w' thing better

[Mirai Noah]

I agree with asongforxx.

[alternarist]

i am still confused! oh well. why must we differentiate it so clearly. they are ALL ayu songs!

[HanabiChick]

Thanks for the info, it makes a bit more sense now. I was always confused when people talked about b-sides on CD singles, because when I was younger b-sides were usually the other side of the record single, and I couldn't work out what that meant with a CD, where everything is together. Over here the term is not used with CDs anymore, so I wasn't sure what it meant.

[immel]

Thanks, lots of info worth thinking about.

By the way, I've always wondered what "c/w" stands for?