Gold Record [Level 7]
As you may know by now, between 1976-1983 in Argentina we had a military dictatorship (don't fret Bernie! :D ). You know on those circumstances the censorship over the arts is very common, and this was no exception. This period coincided with the peak of the disco craze, and surely there were some cases of (auto?) censorship on local editions of disco records as well. Most of them had to do with sex. Here's the ones I remember:
-DONNA SUMMER - Bad girls: as recounted somewhere else, all trace of the girls in the cover that could tell they were dressed as prostitutes was deleted. The images of the foldout cover were replaced with 3 publicity shots of the diva with the legend "Donna Summer" (since it was a double LP, they must have thought the cover had to have a foldout). In the back cover, all the car's elements (including the dolar bill in the driver's hand) were erased, with poor Donna floating in some dark dust. You know, it were YEARS until I found what was that cover about! :)
-LOVE AND KISSES: remember the album with the gir's T-shirt being ripped? Well, here all the arms featured in the pic were covered with thick black arrows pointing to the girl's figure with the legend "love and kisses". You know, sex is evil! :P
-BONEY M. - Take the heat off me: this title was translated as "Take away your tenderness" (?) and the cover was changed. Now the band appears lurking behind a door with some glass panels. I'm not sure, but it seems to me it's the same photo retouched!
-GIBSON BROTHERS - Cuba: this LP was renamed "Kuba" for what for the guy in the label must have been "obvious" reasons (there was the cold war then). At the time all local editions had the song names translated with the original title between these ( ). But the song "Kuba" hadn't the original transcribed, of course! :D
Of course rock records also suffered this. The Eric Clapton LP "Slowhand" almost hit the stores when some guy realized it had a song named "Cocaine". The album was cancelled, and most import stores didn't dare to import it! The song was a great hit but only on discotheques, because it couldn't be played on the radio. Same thing with "Sex, drugs and rock & roll" by Ian Dury.
By 1980, Clapton released a double live LP, "Just one night" that ended with a now famous live version of "Cocaine" that went on for like 8 minutes. This time the album was released, but "Cocaine" was not there: side four only had 2 tracks and then a loooong silence.
Another case of a track being deleted from an album happened when "News of the world" by Queen hit the stores; it didn't contain the song "Get down, make love".
Maybe some other disco lovers remember stories like this on their own countries...
It don't mean a thing (if ain't got that swing)
Platinum Record [Level 8]
In Brazil, the culture disco didn't have any problem with the millitary censorship. We had a president called General Ernesto Geisel, he was President of Brazil from 1974 to 1979 ,he did a nuclear accord with German, I give to him the song
Atomic by Blondie :D
I think the most non-censured disco places in the world were this New York City's disco clubs:
1)Xenon
2)Infinity
3)Studio 54
.
Gold Record [Level 7]
WOW,
Thats some **** aint it??? Damn, I saw about the Costandinos cover (Love And Kisses) and about the Queen album too?? They could have at least replaced "Get Down Make Love" with a rare b side or something?? (beings im like the biggest Queen fan on Earth I think lol). That is very intresting.
My new releases available now: More Things Change
http://www.amazon.com/More-Things-Change/dp/B007425OA8
Production Line (Features Instrumentals)
http://www.amazon.com/Production-Line/dp/B007U1GPD8
Gold Record [Level 7]
Thanks Jimmy for your interest. You know, probably the Queen guys never knew about this... they came to Argentina in 1981 (still dictatorship times) touring "The game" and didn't say a word about it. If so, it would've been published, because the papers -which didn't dare to make political complaints- gave space to complaints about censorship if it was about sex.
This raises an interesting question: did the no-no come from some censorhip office, or was it self-censorship from the very labels to evade trouble? With movies, for example, there was a Government office who would say privately "we can't release this", but they never suggested cuts, so the distributor had to figure out which was the "dirty" scene, cut it out and take the film again for aprobation. (From what I read -a nice book called "The cutting room floor"- the MPAA work with a very similar procedure.)
Mmmm... maybe one day I will do an article on this.
It don't mean a thing (if ain't got that swing)
Gold Record [Level 7]
Thats veru intresting stuff there. You should do an artical, that would be cool to read.
Jimmy
My new releases available now: More Things Change
http://www.amazon.com/More-Things-Change/dp/B007425OA8
Production Line (Features Instrumentals)
http://www.amazon.com/Production-Line/dp/B007U1GPD8
Gold Record [Level 7]
They also censured Cerrone's "Love in C minor" French cover, they painted the girl in Green :icon_biggrin:
Take a look at this image from an Argentine pressing I found on Ebay. I wonder how they explained the second set of clothing found on the floor :icon_razz:
Love in C minor UK cover
Indie Release [Level 4]
Sounds like the Argentine labels themselves were doing the censoring and album cover alterations knowing what the government would tolerate.Originally Written by Nano
Indie Release [Level 4]
My roomates girlfriend is from Argentina. I know what I'm talking to her about next time I see her.
Nano, got any pics of these records? I, and I'm sure others, would love to see them.:icon_razz:
Underground Hit [Level 5]
Here is my feed on a censorship that I have discovered a few years ago.
On Boys Town Gang's Cruisin' The Street, the CD single re-published by UNIDISC was truncated by 1.5 second.
For those who are familiar with the hit containing some crude and explicit language, the 1.5 second that was removed concerns the moment where the police officers proceed with the arrest of the delinquents :icon_eek:.
Somewhere in the discussion, one of the officer says:
- "Up against the wall you a*s h*le. You too c*nt"!
Unidisc have decided that political correctness required to remove the sentence: "You too c*nt".
Right there, it makes the street price of the uncensored vinyl to jump sky high :icon_mrgreen: .
Hang on to your copy, you may become a millionaire
- Marcus
Chart Hit [Level 6]
Phuck political correctness. I have the entire version of "Cruisin' The Streets" on CD....may the a-hole and kunt prevail!
"Everyone knows the real reason why you got that part it was the time you spent on that casting couch"--Antoine Merriwether
"Excuse me, Miss Thing, but both of us spent time on that couch"--Blaine Edwards
Gold Record [Level 7]
Here is another Cerrone censored LP cover from Argentina, this time Cerrone's paradise .
Worth mentioning that in the US The original French cover was replaced with this one
Underground Hit [Level 5]
Salsoul1975,
Don't try to burst my bubble!
Your finding only means that it is now my single version on CD which becomes priceless
Underground Hit [Level 5]
I love it. This was way before Photoshop was invented.
I'd be curious to have a closer look at the paint job for the bikini...
It's gotta be rough.
BTW, this looks a lot like the type censorship that Wal-Mart imposes to whoever want to sell CD in their store, BUT CDs containing explicit lyrics pass through their filter like a charm.
What a paradox...
Indie Release [Level 4]
Doesn't Blockbuster Video censor thier videos? They are a SUPER christian company. Still, the one by my old house in Chicago had a huge "Local Intrest" section. Oh yeah, I lived in the gayborhood. Censorship is weird what passes and what dosen't.
Gold Record [Level 7]
Mix, thanks for reviving this post. Yes, I have those two Cerrones... and funny thing I hadn't realize this! :icon_redface: The green "maillot" on the first one is really poorly painted :icon_smile: I bought these two recently. I guess I'll stick to these censored editions, they may cost something on eBayHere, you can find them for 1-2 dollars each.
I don't have pix but I'll try to take them to a friend who has a digital camera. The Donna Summer especially is an incredible job.
It don't mean a thing (if ain't got that swing)
Gold Record [Level 7]
Well, I must confess I found it by chance, I was looking for another thread about covers, but this one was better (and I never read it before) since it deal with Argentina's covers, by the way, this seller has lots of Argentine records, but they are based in Armenia!!! :icon_eek: How this records got there??
:icon_smile::icon_smile::icon_lol: that's funny , man, you never noticed something fishy??? :icon_lol:Yes, I have those two Cerrones... and funny thing I hadn't realize this! :icon_redface:
I actually glad you confirmed the official existence of this covers, after I posted here I was worry that maybe the 'seller' used a magic marker long ago to conceal the images from some one and didn't mention the mutilation on the auction description.
after re-reading your initial post here, I swear I saw yesterday an auction (or somewhere else )with the mutilated "Love and kisses" cover you described, but I went back and retraced my steps to download the image, and was never able to find it again :icon_cry: (but found the second Cerrone image)I don't have pix but I'll try to take them to a friend who has a digital camera. The Donna Summer especially is an incredible job.
I also checked for the Bad girls LP but this seller only had the Argentine 7" of that one.
Gold Record [Level 7]
By the way, not censured but I found this 7" cover picture with a different angle of the same picture found on the Love and Kissed Lp. probably taken during the same photo session
I know is old news, but I'd never seen this before..
Chart Hit [Level 6]
That's strange, my french copy shows the girl naked. Were there 2 versions? I doubt it, because the French were no longer prudes in the '70s....
...Boogie Boogie Boogie Boogaaaaaay.....
*** Forum Leader / Moderator ***
Chris, Mix said that the French cover (with the nude girl) is censored. I think you misread his post
In Belgium the original was in the shops with no censoring at all (and yes, we were still prudes in the 70's :icon_biggrin: )
*** Forum Leader / Moderator ***
Mix, LOL, I never noticed that difference. I have that 7" and yes, it's nipple-free! The album cover however is....naughty :icon_eek:
Chart Hit [Level 6]
AAAh! Right! I just read the post again, and realized I had misunderstood Mix's post...Chris, Mix said that the French cover (with the nude girl) is censored. I think you misread his post
In Belgium the original was in the shops with no censoring at all (and yes, we were still prudes in the 70's :icon_biggrin: )
So..
Euro covers: uncensored
Argentine cover: censored
U.S. cover: censored by use of different cover.
...Boogie Boogie Boogie Boogaaaaaay.....
Gold Record [Level 7]
I hope people remember this post :icon_smile: Finally I have my own PC at home and bought a webcam with it. I found that you can take photos with it so I remembered those censored covers. These are my first "webcam pix", sorry if they are sub-par, I'm still learning :icon_redface:
Take a look at this Love & Kisses edition. The "arrows" are not printed on the cover but sticked into each one of the copies.
It don't mean a thing (if ain't got that swing)
Gold Record [Level 7]
Now with Donna. In this case the pics on the cover and the back were retouched to erase the "controversial" items. With the foldout, they took the direct route and replaced the pics.
Note that in the back cover, that cloud around Donna is not my camera, it actually looks like this. :icon_eek:
It don't mean a thing (if ain't got that swing)
Acetate [Level 1]
Maybe someone can confirm this but the cover of the first QUARTZ album on Vogue records has been change for the US release on TK records.
On the europe version it shows some quartz rocks and a naked boy ... it looks a little bit...kiddie lover!
its one of my worst/beautiful record cover ever!
Chart Hit [Level 6]
In 1972 a band named Mom's Apple Pie (sort of Blood Sweet & Tears ish)released their debut album in the US and Canada. The original front cover has a drawing of a mom in an apron hold an apple pie with a slice taken out and the inside of the space is a depiction of a vigina. The cover stirred a huge uproar in the States and the record company ask the artist to redraw the cover. He changed the vigina to a tiered brick wall with a flag pole in the center waving the American flag. Nick Caruso is the cover artist. All the original covers were yanked from the shelves and replaced with the second drawing. I unfortunately have the censored version. Attached are the two covers.
You got to bone it like you own it
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