Longest songs played on air

Possibly a bit frivolous, but I thought it might be a bit of fun. We played "Telegraph Road" by Dire Straits at the end of David Whiteley's show on BBC Eastern Counties last night, which comes in at a cool 14 minutes - led me to wonder what the longest pop / rock songs you've ever heard played on the radio were?
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  • InkblotInkblot Posts: 26,889
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    I'm pretty sure that Xfm played Supper's Ready by Genesis a couple of years ago. It's 23 minutes long.

    Can't remember who played it - didn't they have a show on Friday evenings that always played a prog rock track?
  • GoodBuddyGoodBuddy Posts: 2,211
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    Justin Timberland songs seem to last about half an hour and send me to sleep, do they count?:sleep:
  • rhodrhod Posts: 3,995
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    Inkblot wrote: »
    Can't remember who played it - didn't they have a show on Friday evenings that always played a prog rock track?

    Heh - wouldn't it be a piece of piss being a prog rock DJ? About 2 links per hour, maybe....
  • MikeBrMikeBr Posts: 7,872
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    Paul, were you producing when Andy Archer sat in for Keith Skues on PRS last year, he decided to do a 70s Caroline themed show and opened, after very few words, with the live version of Southern Man from Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young which is 13 minutes 45. Several other long tracks played, as a listener to Caroline/Seagull in the 70's I thought it was a great show though didn't suit all PRS regulars as I recall.

    "Professor" Eric White wrote a piece to Keith the week after listing all the jobs he was able to do whilst Southern Man was on.

    The Freakzone on 6 Music did a long song special on Sunday, they've done one before which I listened to where they just played 6 tracks in the 3 hours:

    Sundays playlist, on Listen Again at the moment:
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/shows/freakzone/tracklisting_20070826.shtml
  • MeicYMeicY Posts: 2,585
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    I play the full versions of "Layla" (admittedly not that long), "Jessica" by the Allman Bros, "Domino" and "Firth of Fifth" by Genesis....as well as the 9-minute opus that is "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd.

    ....I will however one day pluck up the courage (when the MD isn't listening) to play the full 23 minutes or so of "Journey To The Centre of the Earth" by Rick Wakeman
  • SystemSystem Posts: 2,096,970
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    MikeBr wrote: »
    Paul, were you producing when Andy Archer sat in for Keith Skues on PRS last year, he decided to do a 70s Caroline themed show and opened, after very few words, with the live version of Southern Man from Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young which is 13 minutes 45. Several other long tracks played, as a listener to Caroline/Seagull in the 70's I thought it was a great show though didn't suit all PRS regulars as I recall.

    "Professor" Eric White wrote a piece to Keith the week after listing all the jobs he was able to do whilst Southern Man was on.

    Heh, no I wasn't doing that one, but it sounds like it was a good'un.

    On the "Freebird" front, David played that last night too, the full version, and promptly got a text message from a listener complaining "why don't you play the full version?"
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 110
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    Mother by Goldie played i think it was by Mary Anne Hobbs around 10 years ago - 1 hour 4 mins long :)
  • CharlieCharlie Posts: 1,777
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    rhod wrote: »
    Heh - wouldn't it be a piece of piss being a prog rock DJ? About 2 links per hour, maybe....

    Sssshhhh. One of the big groups might start a prog rock station and voice track 6 months worth in a morning. :D
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 838
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    I've played Marillion - Grendel on an RSL. That weighs in at a couple of seconds under 20 minutes.
  • InkblotInkblot Posts: 26,889
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    Charlie wrote: »
    Sssshhhh. One of the big groups might start a prog rock station and voice track 6 months worth in a morning. :D
    Have you heard Rick Wakeman's show on Planet Rock? He must get paid by the word.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,571
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    The General played an 11 minute song a couple of weeks before Capital Disney closed. Can't remember the name but it weren't very good lol
  • Tony RichardsTony Richards Posts: 5,742
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    One of the earliest long records in the 60s was Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone". Radio stations had a copy which faded down half way through and was continued on the other side. Don McLean's "American Pie" was rarely played all through.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 270
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    Meatloaf - I would do anything for love (but I won't do that)

    About 7 minutes. And thats the radio-edited version. The actual song is 12 minutes long!

    I know 7 minutes doesn'ty seem long but songs you hear day in day out are lucky to last 3 minutes on the radio.
  • starsailorstarsailor Posts: 11,347
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    Managed to find this.
    Long Songs - a not at all complete list of pop songs over 7 minutes

    48:53 - Mike Oldfield, Tubular Bells
    20:44 - Vangelis, Chariots of Fire
    17:10 - Iron Butterfly, In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida
    17:26 - Velvet Underground, Sister Ray
    13:54 - Peter Frampton, Do You Feel Like We Do
    11:48 - The Floaters, Float On
    11:35 - The Doors, The End
    11:22 - Bob Dylan, Desolation Row
    11:19 - Bob Dylan, Sad Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands
    11:06 - Chambers Brothers, Time Has Come Today
    10:40 - Black Sabbath, War Pigs
    10:38 - Television, Marquee Moon
    10:36 - Yes, Heart Of The Sunrise
    9:53 - Stone Roses, Fools Gold
    9:38 - The Temptations, Run Away Child Running Wild
    9:11 - The Who, A Quick One While He's Away
    9:07 - Lynyrd Skynyrd, Freebird
    8:58 - Guns N Roses, November Rain
    8:40 - Prince, Purple Rain
    8:34 - Don McLean, American Pie
    8:29 - Led Zeppelin, Kashmir
    8:28 - Meatloaf, Paradise By the Dashboard Light
    8:26 - Dire Straits, Money For Nothing
    8:02 - Led Zeppelin, Stairway to Heaven
    7:58 - Barry White, Never Never Gonna Give You Up
    7:49 - The Doors, L.A. Woman
    7:37 - Billy Joel, Scenes From An Italian Restaurant
    7:31 - Rolling Stones, You Can't Always Get What You Want
    7:25 - Nico, Chelsea Girls
    7:11 - The Doors, Riders on the Storm
    7:08 - The Beatles, Hey Jude
    7:01 - Bruce Springsteen, Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 528
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    I was amazed to hear Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pink Floyd) played in full on radio 2 a couple of years back, on a Friday or Saturday afternoon, fantastic, as I was driving along the Dorset coast with the sun going down it was absolutely awesome. It must be over 15 minutes?
  • SystemSystem Posts: 2,096,970
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    WatfordKev wrote: »
    I was amazed to hear Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pink Floyd) played in full on radio 2 a couple of years back, on a Friday or Saturday afternoon, fantastic, as I was driving along the Dorset coast with the sun going down it was absolutely awesome. It must be over 15 minutes?

    It was probably a Saturday afternoon, when Richard Allinson used to do his "Oh No, Not All Of It!" feature, wherein listeners could suggest such mammoth tracks to be played.
  • starsailorstarsailor Posts: 11,347
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    WatfordKev wrote: »
    I was amazed to hear Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pink Floyd) played in full on radio 2 a couple of years back, on a Friday or Saturday afternoon, fantastic, as I was driving along the Dorset coast with the sun going down it was absolutely awesome. It must be over 15 minutes?

    13:31 apparently....
  • philenglandphilengland Posts: 8,176
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    another long song is

    Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft by The Carpenters - at just over 7mins (originally done by Klaatu - whos version I still not heard!)

    also
    Its All Coming Back To Me Now by Celine Dion at about 7 and a half mins
  • adc82140adc82140 Posts: 3,617
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    Jazz FM used to play the full version of the Crusaders- Street Life which comes in at 11.18.

    Sadly the usual radio edit is nearer 3.30.


    ADC
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 52
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    Today out of the midday news I played Frankie goes to Hollywoods' Welcome to the Pleasuredome 12" mix which ran to 13.35mins.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,360
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    My "personal best" is the Patrick Cowley mix of Donna Summer's I Feel Love. A little over 15 minutes from memory?

    Didn't The Orb release a single something like 40 minutes long?
  • broonalebroonale Posts: 5,470
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    Hullboy wrote: »
    My "personal best" is the Patrick Cowley mix of Donna Summer's I Feel Love. A little over 15 minutes from memory?


    15:45 to be precise. The B side is the edited version at 8:50

    Brilliant tune... But there again I'm known to be a bit of a 'diva' when it comes to disco music..... lol.
  • James VertiganJames Vertigan Posts: 2,048
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    I've played the full version of the Star Wars theme by MECO and the Cantina Band on my hospital radio show a few times, that comes in at 15:45 ... and I think the longest song in my collection is the full version of Macarthur Park by Donna Summer at 17:44.

    Of course the good thing about these long songs is it gives you plenty of time to pop off to the loo while you play them... just pray that if you're on your own in the studio that nothing goes wrong with the song while you're on the loo, though!
  • TabbythecatTabbythecat Posts: 33,953
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    Of course the good thing about these long songs is it gives you plenty of time to pop off to the loo while you play them... just pray that if you're on your own in the studio that nothing goes wrong with the song while you're on the loo, though!

    for me the live version of "sultan of swing" by Dire Straits comes in at a nice 10:54 which is usefll for having lunch :D
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,360
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    And there's always good old Meatloaf. Remember playing I'd do anything for love(on vinyl) not realizing it wasn't the radio edit.

    8 minutes plus later it was still going.
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