The Nightmare (Single Remix) - Can Anyone Shed Any Light On This?
 

Years and years ago I did a fan trade with someone...I sent him a couple of Stevie shows and he sent me a CD with two tracks on it labeled "The Nightmare (Single Mix)" and "The Nightmare (12" Dance Remix)". He told me Stevie wanted this as a third single but Modern changed her mind and "Has Anyone..." was released instead and these mixes went unreleased. The 12" Dance Remix is just a longer version (6:13) of the single mix but I lost the track ages ago when I lost an external drive due to dropping it (I lost the CD ages ago). I, luckily, kept a copy of the "Single Remix" (4:24) on a CDR and still have it. Does anyone know if this was an actual single remix or where does it come from?
https://soundcloud.com/jon-hank/the-nightmare-7-remix

66 views and no one knows?

Nightmare remix (6:38) is on the "I Can't Wait" 12" maxi-single...Maxi single contains 4 "I can't wait" remixes & 1 Nightmare remix...

I have heard Stevie and other artists say they don't really have a say which songs are released as singles. I think Paul Fishkin said that If Anyone Falls was prepped to be the first single off the Wild Heart but changed to Stand Back at the last minute. I think he also stated his regret for Nightbird as the third single. Enchanted, Nothing Ever Changes, or I Will Run To you would have extended the album for awhile. While some may think Nightbird is a beautiful song, its definitely not a radio friendly hit song.
During her early interview in 1985 Stevie said they were not sure what was going to be the single off RAL since so many songs could be the lead single. I have never heard The Nightmare being prepped as a single but its quite possible. Remixes in 1986 were at their peak. Its a possible explanation for the single remix of The Nightmare. However what a horrible remix. I don't think it would have charted. I think If I Were You could have been a hit if a video was made. However I hate that song with the passion.
HAWAFY is a beautiful song but not a radio single. The same with Nightbird. I used to think these were purposely released to kill the album since the tours were over especially since no video was made. You needed a video in the 1980s to play on MTV. I don't recall any hit songs from the mid 80s that had no video (as crazy as that sounds).

Nope not the same version. The remix I had was vastly different then the one on I Can't Waite and it's running time was around 6:13. When I got that CD with two mixes of Nightmare I quickly bought the 12" single of I Can't Waite to see if I had been duped but they are vastly different and personally I don't care at all for the I Can't Waite 12" version.

I really like the single remix you posted on SoundCloud! Thanks!

Can't shed any light on the song's history as a potential single, unfortunately.

I honestly just alwasys assumed that the "7inch" version you have on Soundcloud was just an outtake. There were SOOO many different versions of songs from the RAL sessions. i think ive heard at least 4 or 5 of the nightmare.

The Ivory Keys blog had written this about the remix of The Nightmare:

Most Stevie Fans assumed that the Vocal Special Remix of “The Nightmare” that appeared on the “I Can’t Wait” 12-Inch Single in February 1986 was a newly-recorded version of the song since it was so different from the album version. There was also a notation of added guitar on the track by Waddy Wachtel.
However, once various Rock A Little work tapes were discovered in 2011, it became clear that the “Vocal Special Remix” versions of “The Nightmare” were actually from 1984 and were recorded before the album version. So, while it was assumed for over 20 years that the “Vocal Special Remix” was a newly reworked version of the song in 1986, it actually was a precursor to the album version.

http://www.ledge.fleetwoodmac.net/sh...3&postcount=12

Thanks! I love this version too...it's a shame I lost the 12" version of this mix.

This single mix and it's extended mix ARE NOT the same as the version on I Can't Waite, not even close. Someone out there has to have the extended remix of this single remix.

Maybe I should have made myself clearer in the original post. Back in 1994 (maybe 1995) I got in touch with another Stevie fan from Portland, OR (I'm in Illinois). He said he had unreleased single/extended remix of The Nightmare which, oddly enough, has always been a favorite song of mine. In exchange I sent him two Stevie bootlegs on vinyl I had gotten from a store called Vintage Vinyl. I thought I was being ripped off but this store had other copies I could just buy to replace them. Anyway about 2-3 weeks later I got a CD in the mail (It was an actual CD as I don't believe CDR's had been invented yet). The CD was in a case with no inserts. The CD itself looked very similar to the US Promo CD of "Whole Lotta Trouble". The only difference was it was black lettering on the lower part of the CD and not white. It said "The Nightmare" and then 1. Single 2. Remix. It had a PR number but since I lost the CD in a move back in 2003 I can't remember what it was. Whether this was a rare in house promo or a bootleg is beyond me. Most record companies weren't releasing promo CD single in 1986. The "Remix" is a longer version of the Single Version running 6:13, it is NOT the same version used on the I Can't Wait single nor is it close to any of the demo/early mixes we all have. It's clearly been slightly remixed, Stevie's vocals sound a little different in places and the end is instrumental instead of Stevie's ad libs. The extended mix has an instrumental breakdown in the middle and all the verses are intact but like the single version, the ending is instrumental without the ad libs. I just always wondered if it is indeed an official single remix. There is now way this is a fan mix.

Is this the Remix you mean? This is from master reel 134) Rock A Little 9/17/85 Alternate Takes ¼ Inch Reel. It has a running time of 6:14 and sounds like the Single Remix.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ys9guqkqiw...rsion.mp3?dl=0

Yeah that's the extended mix that was on this "promo" CD...I wonder if this was edited for an actual potential single release or it's just someone's handy work. Ugghh I wish I still had the CD...either way this "Alternate Version" (6:13) is better then the LP version IMO. This promo CD single I had is clearly a fake (bootleg) as Atlantic/Modern released ZERO promo CD's in 1986 so I find it hard to believe one would exist.

I've always had a soft spot for the The Nightmare. It's rambling and barely coherant and (like a lot of Rock a Little) the music is slightly 80's-vomit. At the same time the energy from Stevie is great. That being said, I do like this version better than the album. I like the slightly-stripped down vocals, I like the new ending, the guitar overdubs, and especially the fact that it now has a chorus! The album version just moves from verse to verse making the song feel endless. Rearranging the "THE NIGHTMAAAARE.... This is not the world" part after each verse gives the song a better structure imo.

I found this statement hilarious. I didn't pay much attention to If I Were You for a long time but after revisiting Rock a Little I've grown an appreciation for it, even if it's mostly at the songs expense. It's a little underdeveloped and hysterically not Stevie. Whenever I hear that song I chuckle at the thought of her dancing to those cheesy (if catchy) lyrics. The doorbell intro is also very funny. The only thing I genuinely like about it would be the vocals. Can't say she didn't try!

Definetly would have been my pick for the third RAL single, maybe with a remix and some added lyrics. If the album garnered a fourth I'd be in a predicament.

Well I am glad you found it funny ;)
I never bought the funky Stevie especially when she is singing words she would never say or write like helping a boy become a man :eek:

My guess it was a fan made cd from mixed stollen, floating around at the time.
They didn't do cd singles at that time and the sound is too crisp compared to the cd at the time.

Can we download this///If so how? Thanks, LOL:shrug:

I actually enhanced the sound with an audio program...the version on the CD I had sounded typical of the 80's CD's...although clearly this bootleg was made after at least Whole Lotta Trouble single was released.

I bought the 12 inch record when it was brand new in the stores. The Nightmare was always my favorite song on RAL and so I was especially thrilled with this new version. I must have played it a billion times for myself and all of my friend's. Did u guys know that Chris Nicks is listed as one of the writers?

I always found it odd when other fans say they lost this or any other record over the years. I carried my collection across the USA twice and never lost a thing from my music collection. But that is because I never loaned things out without getting them back and always took real good care of the storage of everything.

There were tons of mixes done for RAL. These all came from the master reels. Modern certainly had The Nightmare in mind to be a single, but I think it worked out better that HAEWAFY was chosen instead.

I don't know if it technically worked out better. HAEWAFY, which is a beautiful song, was a commercial failure especially with no video. I don't know if Nightmare would have made a better choice but it's all dust in the wind anyway. Nightmare is one of the songs that fans either love or hate it. I personally love it although I prefer the remix (a/k/a Alternate Version 1) over the LP version.

Worked out better for Stevie in the sense that it's a single she's still willing to perform today in concert.

Well, I wouldn't say it was a "commercial failure." The context is important here. Being the third single, it just wasn't being promoted as heavily as the first two songs. No. 60 isn't bad for a song without a video during the MTV age.

I thought HAEWAFY cracked the top 40 (barely)? I just checked and Wikipedia says no. 60 too. Hmmm....I wonder if it would have charted higher with a video?
*Ricoh*

Who knows, but it couldn't have hurt. Stevie's never been about the single, so I think she would have gone along with whatever was suggested.

I LOVE this song, especially the extended 12" version. I wish that version would appear officially on cd someday.

Thank you for sharing this "single remix"! I'm not sure it's officially but it's great!

Wasn't she on tour when the single HAEWAFY came out? Maybe there wasn't time to make a video.

Wasn't The Nightmare a B-side? If so, then the remix could have been done for the single version that was to be released as the B-side much like All The Beautiful Worlds was intended to be. I agree however that HAEWAFY would have fared better with a video. Actually, I think it should have been the second single - people seemed to like momentum changes and differences sonically to the ears not to mention patterns that were already successful for Stevie at the time. Stop Draggin' - mid tempo. Leather and Lace - Ballad. Edge of 17 - rocker. Talk To Me - mid tempo. Has Anyone - Ballad. I Can't Wait - rocker. However, I would have led with Sister Honey as the rock/with a pop bent as lead and made Talk To Me the fourth single. And with that momentum, followed up with If I Were You, No Spoken Word, Some Become Strangers, and Imperial Hotel (which was a single in Australia). If all went well, I'd add The Nightmare too. Bottom line, if promoted correctly and all with killer videos, That album with all it's 80's synth could have been the mega hit for her during that time. The only truly non-radio songs I hear are I Sing For The Things and the title track even though I personally love the songs.

thanks for sharing dude! Cool version.
I wonder how many more CD promos are out there to discover? I found one that no-one knew about for a track on TISL about 2 years ago. They are out there!

I don't know where to upload it at.

Sorry, I don't know anything about why this mix was made, BUT I do know that several years ago on here, someone posted the original tracklist for what became Crystal Visions. It was more of a "deep cuts" album initially than a greatest hits package but Stevie pulled it and changed her mind. It had "The Nightmare" (single edit) included.