# Minus-One recordings

In the Philippines, the Minus-One (commonly, albeit improperly, spelled "minus one" without the hyphen) is a variant mix of a multi-track recording, wherein the lead vocal track of a song is muted for further use. In the Philippine recording industry of the 1980s, during the heyday of vinyl records, this variant was released as the "flip side" of a commercial song's 7-inch single, but generally never a part of the Long Playing album containing the full-featured song. Succinctly, a B-side selection became referred to as "minus-one" because the lead vocal track is subtracted from the A-Side song's original mix.
The Minus-One is the patented name of the karaoke machine invented by Filipino business executive Roberto del Rosario in 1975. The term "karaoke" is a combined Japanese word from karappo (空っぽ, empty) and okestura (オーケストラ, orchestra), meaning "empty orchestra" or an "orchestra void of vocals," which the Minus-One machine is. Although, the term and the idea of records without vocals can be traced back to the Music Minus One company in the 1950s.

## Record production genre

As a genre of record production in the Philippines, the inclusion of a 'minus-one' Side-B reduced the production cost of a 45 RPM 7-inch "single" by foregoing the need for yet another song to occupy the 7-inch record's flip side. It also encouraged buyers to "sing along" with the bonus accompaniment of the "hit single".
A "minus-one mix" would not necessarily be wholly instrumental, as backing vocals of the song's original mix may be retained. The concept of instrumental B-sides to complement their full versions became a production trend of the Philippine record industry of the 1980s, which was replicated overseas. In the ensuing years, tracks from minus-one flip sides were assembled by production houses for their inclusion in compilations.

## Examples of minus-one sides

The following table illustrates early B-sides of Zsa Zsa Padilla's 45-RPM 7" Vinyl singles released by Blackgold Records. Many such vinyl sides have since been ported to other platforms, including VCD, videoke and free video sharing websites.
| Side A song | Side B minus-one | Catalog | Year |
| When I'm With You (Rene Novelles) | When I'm With You (minus-one) (Arranged by Dante Trinidad) | BSP-392 | 1985 |
| Eversince (Alvina Eileen Sy) | Eversince (minus-one) (Arranged by Dante Trinidad) | BSP-397 | 1985 |
| To Love You (Danny Javier) | To Love You (minus-one) (Arranged by Menchu Apostol) | BSP-401 | 1985 |
| Hiram (George Canseco) | Hiram (minus-one) (Arranged by Danny Tan) | BSP-404 | 1986 |
| Mambobola (Rey-An Fuentes) | Mambobola (minus-one) (Arranged by Homer Flores) | BSP-410 | 1986 |
| Ikaw Lamang (Dodjie Simon) | Ikaw Lamang (minus-one) (Arranged by Menchu Apostol) | BSP-413 | 1986 |
| Minsan Pa (Jun Sta. Maria & Peewee Apostol) | Minsan Pa (minus-one) (Arranged by Menchu Apostol) | BSP-417 | 1986 |
| Maybe This Time (Marlene del Rosario) | Maybe This Time (minus-one) (Arranged by Menchu Apostol) | BSP-432 | 1988 |
| Pangako (Dodjie Simon) | Pangako (minus-one) (Arranged by Egay Gonzales) | BSP-447 | 1990 |
| Ang Aking Pamasko (Tony Velarde) | Ang Aking Pamasko (minus-one) (Arranged by Egay Gonzales) | BSP-459 | 1990 |

### Other examples

* In 1987, a song by the Filipino band, The Dawn was released as a 7-inch 45 RPM single (with minus-one) by their record label, OctoArts.
* In the 2000s, Narda, a band from the Philippines, featured an album page in AllMusic with dedicated minus-one content.

## Minus-one is content, not equipment

The wave of "Minus-One" vinyl B-sides brought about a genre in the Philippine record industry, harvested by the cousins Vic del Rosario and Orly Ilacad, co-owners and executive producers of Vicor Music Corporation and its offshoot record labels. They released the seminal 7-inch B-sides of minus-one recordings, later grouped together as minus-one compilations on cassette tape format, Compact Disks and later as online material.
As sheer musical content, the instrumentals were a precursor to widespread recreational crooning at home and outside, its provenance effectively traced to the Music Minus One products of the mid-1950s. In 1975, Filipino executive Roberto del Rosario patented his sing-along invention as Minus-One, popularly known as the karaoke machine, an interactive entertainment system without vocals. As a Filipino trait for festivity, the allure for minus-one recordings crossed cultural barriers in the Philippines.