Definition
A B-side is the secondary track on a vinyl single, positioned opposite the A-side that contains the artist’s intended hit or lead single. The term originated in the 1950s when 7-inch 45 RPM singles became the dominant format for popular music distribution. The A-side received promotional resources, radio play, and artistic priority; the B-side was often a throwaway track, a live recording, an instrumental version, or a song deemed commercially insufficient for single status. Yet the B-side developed a cult reputation precisely because of this secondary status: it became a space for experimentation, fan-service, and hidden gems that rewarded dedicated listeners. The physical act of flipping a record to hear the B-side created a ritual of discovery that digital streaming has largely eliminated — though the term persists as a conceptual category for bonus tracks, non-album cuts, and deep-catalog favorites.
Why It Matters
The B-side matters because it represents the tension between commerce and artistry that defines popular music. The A-side is the compromise — the song the label thinks will sell, the hook that fits radio format, the sound that matches current trends. The B-side is where artists hide their real selves: the ballad too slow for Top 40, the experiment too weird for the album, the cover that reveals an unexpected influence. Some of the most celebrated songs in rock history were originally B-sides: The Beatles’ “Revolution” (B-side to “Hey Jude”), The Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” (B-side to “Honky Tonk Women”), David Bowie’s “Suffragette City” (B-side to “Starman”), and Nirvana’s “Been a Son” (B-side to “Sliver”). The B-side also matters as a cultural marker of fandom depth: to know an artist’s B-sides is to claim membership in a community more committed than casual listeners. In an era of algorithmic playlists, the B-side represents a lost mode of discovery — the serendipity of finding something unexpected.
Example
The canonical B-side story: The Beatles’ “Revolution,” released in August 1968 as the B-side to “Hey Jude.” The A-side was a McCartney ballad of consolation that became the band’s longest-running #1 hit; the B-side was Lennon’s distorted, politically charged rocker that opened with the sound of a guitar being plugged directly into a mixing desk. The contrast was deliberate: commercial safety on one side, artistic risk on the other. Fans who bought the single for “Hey Jude” discovered “Revolution” as a bonus — a song that would become central to the Beatles’ legacy. Another example: Prince’s B-sides, collected on The Hits/The B-Sides (1993), are considered by many fans superior to his A-sides: “Erotic City,” “17 Days,” “How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore?” — songs that were too explicit, too long, or too genre-defying for radio but became staples of his live shows. The B-side compilation became its own format: R.E.M.’s Dead Letter Office, The Smiths’ Louder Than Bombs, and Oasis’s The Masterplan are essentially B-side albums that critics sometimes rank above the band’s proper studio releases.
Internet Angle
On the internet, the B-side survives as a metaphor and a market. Spotify and Apple Music have no physical sides, but users create playlists called “B-Sides” that collect non-singles, deep cuts, and album tracks that never received radio play. YouTube channels like “B-Sides & Rarities” upload obscure tracks that vinyl collectors have digitized, often with comments sections that function as fan reunions. Reddit’s r/letstalkmusic and r/indieheads host threads about “B-sides better than the A-side,” with users sharing discoveries and debating the canon. The term has also migrated beyond music: film studios release “B-side” content (deleted scenes, making-of documentaries); fashion brands produce “B-side” collections of experimental pieces; tech companies label secondary features as “B-side” functionality. The internet has preserved the B-side as a concept even as it has eliminated the physical format that created it — proof that some cultural categories outlast their material conditions.
Related Terms
- A-side — The primary track on a single, opposite the B-side
- Deep cut — A non-single album track, the digital-era equivalent of a B-side
- Single — The format that created the A-side/B-side distinction
- Vinyl — The physical medium on which B-sides originally existed
- Rarity — The status B-sides acquire among collectors and dedicated fans