Best hidden tracks on albums

[turnstyle]

Used to love finding a secret track back in the day - slot a CD in and notice the running time on the last track is suspiciously long, and sure enough, there would be some fun nonsense tacked onto the end after a few minutes silence.

When I discovered the ones that you had to 'rewind' past the start of the CD I felt like I was living in the future.

Can't really do secret tracks on Spotify and the like can you?

It might not be the best, but definitely the most memorable one for me is from Ash's 1977, where they're all vomming up with gusto.

[dontpaintyourteeth]

I can't remember what it's called but the one on Guerilla by SFA

[Key]

Citizens Band. Quite a ballsy (or dumb) move putting one of the best songs on the album on track 0. I wonder what % of people discovered it at the time? I honestly cant remember how I found it, tho I had so few CDs at that time I suppose I probably checked all of them. Outspaced had one as well but it was a fairly non-descript instrumental.

[lankyguy95]

Damone by Deftones. Absolute rager of a song and they tack it on 32 and a half minutes into the last track of Around The Fur like it's nothing.

[Famous Mortimer]

"Physical" and "Suck" off of "Broken" by Nine Inch Nails. Two absolute bangers, hidden away.

(Unless you had one of the first 250,000 copies, when they were both packaged on a mini-CD included with the actual CD).

[dontpaintyourteeth]

"Physical" and "Suck" off of "Broken" by Nine Inch Nails. Two absolute bangers, hidden away.

(Unless you had one of the first 250,000 copies, when they were both packaged on a mini-CD included with the actual CD).

Oh shit that's right they are

I'm changing my answer to this

Broken is my favourite NIN thing I think

[Famous Mortimer]

I'm going to take a wild guess and say no-one's picking the "song" that's track 90 on "Second Coming":

[Egyptian Feast]

Probably not entirely relevant since it's part of the regular tracklisting on the version most people have heard of the first Dr. Octagon album, but 'Halfsharkalligatorhalfman' on the original Bulk/Mo'Wax edition is easily my favourite hidden track.

I was given the second Justice album at Christmas, which had the first hidden track I'd encountered in years. It sounds like the theme to a giallo retread from the 1980s, so I enjoyed it.

[DrGreggles]

I can't remember what it's called but the one on Guerilla by SFA

I think Gruff said that it didn't really fit in with the rest of the album, but my unofficial track-listing has it between Turning Tide and Northern Lites.

[lazyhour]

Morning Hollow, hidden at the end of Sparklehorse's 'It's A Wonderful Life', is the equal of anything on that beautiful album.

Edit: Linkous was so creatively empty (not a criticism,  just a sad observation) by the time of the follow-up LP that he reused this track on that album, as well as a b-side that he renamed and which became the title-track. He also reused Ghost In The Sky, a Japanese bonus track on IAWL, albeit a different version.  I never did click with that album.

[wrec]

When I discovered the ones that you had to 'rewind' past the start of the CD I felt like I was living in the future.

Autechre did this on EP7 and it's replicated on the EP box set I have, but my nice new CD player can't read it. Must have come across one before then because I got in the habit of trying to rewind new CDs in case there was one, like a dog obsessively returning to the bush where it once found a sausage.

[mechanical blood goat]

I'm sure me and my shithead pals weren't the only ones in the late 90s who got a kick out of putting Something In The Way on the pub jukebox knowing it would be followed by ten minutes of silence and then Endless Nameless, and anticipating the calls of "what the fucks this?" from the other people in the pub.

[LordMorgan]

The one off of ash 1977, when all the band are puking their guts up

[the ouch cube]

Therapy? 'While I Pursue My Way Unharmed'

Nearly 20 minutes of drums and an incredibly sad cello and sampled supermarket field recordings whilst a clearly hammered Andy improvises a raging monologue about God knows what, at some points seeming to predict Daniel Day-Lewis' 21st-century rebirth playing heavily accented villains.

Should be a mess, but somehow not only isn't, but is also quite scary and curiously emotional

[Key]

Edit: Linkous was so creatively empty (not a criticism,  just a sad observation) by the time of the follow-up LP that he reused this track on that album, as well as a b-side that he renamed and which became the title-track. He also reused Ghost In The Sky, a Japanese bonus track on IAWL, albeit a different version.  I never did click with that album.

I was disappointed by that album too, with the amount of rehashes that were on it. There are some good tunes on it and the production is nice but yeah he must've been really struggling. The posthumous album that came out last year was something of a better epitaph.

[Magnum Valentino]

"Physical" and "Suck" off of "Broken" by Nine Inch Nails. Two absolute bangers, hidden away.

(Unless you had one of the first 250,000 copies, when they were both packaged on a mini-CD included with the actual CD).

Bonus 7" for vinyl too.

The Music had one that was hidden BEFORE the first track, and not all CD players could access it

[dex]

Used to love finding a secret track back in the day - slot a CD in and notice the running time on the last track is suspiciously long, and sure enough, there would be some fun nonsense tacked onto the end after a few minutes silence.

When I discovered the ones that you had to 'rewind' past the start of the CD I felt like I was living in the future.

Can't really do secret tracks on Spotify and the like can you?

It might not be the best, but definitely the most memorable one for me is from Ash's 1977, where they're all vomming up with gusto.

On some CD presses of 1977 if you rewind as soon as the album begins there are two secret tracks in addition to Sick Party at the end.

[Brundle-Fly]

Me, White Noise from Think Tank by Blur.

[Magnum Valentino]

I Am The Warlock on Probot.

[Key]

Theres other examples of trying to be subversive with the CD format. Didn't Marilyn Manson have 99 tracks on one or something? I remember Silver Mt Zion doing an album that had 12 short tracks of noise just so they could start with track 13. Seems a little quaint now more than anything else.

I wonder what the last one of these was, I cant imagine anyone doing it in the streaming age. I suppose the modern equivalent would be putting it up as an unlisted youtube video, or uploading then quickly deleting. Nothings really hidden anymore.

[Kankurette]

Mansun - An Open Letter to the Lyrical Trainspotter

[lazyhour]

Here's a modern spin on the concept: a couple of years ago White Denim put out a 2-track digital single plus limited 12", but fans who bought the 12" had a fun surprise - it was a brand new full studio album! You can still find the 2-track single on digital platforms and you may never know that there's a whole album hiding on the vinyl edition. It's also a very, very good album.

Edit: I've just discovered that it's been updated on Spotify etc to be the full album. That's a good thing as it was the suprise that was fun, not the withholding of the album to streaming folks.

[daf]

Citizens Band. Quite a ballsy (or dumb) move putting one of the best songs on the album on track 0. I wonder what % of people discovered it at the time? I honestly cant remember how I found it, tho I had so few CDs at that time I suppose I probably checked all of them. Outspaced had one as well but it was a fairly non-descript instrumental.

Since changing CD players, I can't rewind back from the start anymore. This is OK with SFA, as they put 'Citizens Band' on the recent 20th Anniversary re-issue (still unlisted though, but it's at least on there), but there's two or three pre-track 1 songs on my XTC 'Coat of Many Cupboards' box set that are now inaccessible.

[daf]

Mansun - An Open Letter to the Lyrical Trainspotter

Hidden tracks on the EP's too!

[Famous Mortimer]

Hidden tracks on the EP's too!

[Beano]I think we'd prefer all Mansun's music to be hidden, eh, reader![/Beano]

[PaulTMA]

Was just about to say Lyrical Trainspotter from the first Mansun album but we've all got to say we totally BINNED their CDs now ey lads melt boredoms

Good choon though

Also I'm Still Here by Crowded House

[PaulTMA]

Hidden bonus tracks as an idea got really predictable and boring after a while didn't they.  You almost expected to scroll through 10 mins of silence at the end after a while.  iTunes came and broke our hearts 💕

[kalowski]

I can't remember what it's called but the one on Guerilla by SFA

Yes! Love how you play it on the vinyl by dropping the needle in the middle and it plays outwards!

[curiousoranges]

The one on 1977 by Ash and they're all just dicking about in the studio drunk.

[PaulTMA]

I think the guy who is hurling in the Ash  track is their guitar tech, sorry to report (if accurate)