Editing – the long guide

  • Artist Page

    • Suggest that this entry be deleted

      This edit will permanently delete the artist's page from SoundUnwound.

      It may be necessary to delete an artist's page if s/he has no link to the music industry. However, even obscure connections (through being sampled on a track, for example) may be considered sufficient to justify a continuing presence on SoundUnwound.

      It should not be necessary to delete an artist except in very rare circumstances.

      If the artist name is wrong, simply edit the name.

      If the artist has a duplicate elsewhere on SoundUnwound -- providing you are sure they're the same person even though the name may be spelled differently -- merge the two pages instead of deleting. Where the information was exactly the same it will merge seamlessly. However, some fields may contain two sets of information (e.g. different spellings of the name.) If you can see this will happen, please indicate in your comments which spelling is correct.

      If an individual is showing as a member in a group but has never been in that group - remove him from the member section of the group page OR remove the group from the group section of the individual's page.

    • Suggest that this entry be merged with another

      This edit will combine the data from two artist pages onto one page.

      For example, there may be duplicate Mozarts - one called "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart" and one called "WA Mozart." Merging will combine both Mozarts onto one page. Where the information was exactly the same it will merge seamlessly. However, some fields may contain two sets of information (e.g. different spellings of the name). If you can foresee that this will happen, please indicate in your comments which spelling is correct.

      Be careful not to merge different artists who share the same name.

    • Name

      This field allows you to set the artist's most commonly used name.

      If the artist name contains accented characters, it is preferable to preserve them e.g. use Björk for Bjork. If, however, the artist's name is written in non-Latin script e.g. עפרה חזה = Ofra Haza, use the Latin version of the name. The non-Latin name can be preserved in the birthname field.

    • Birthname

      This field allows you to set the artist's birthname, or real name, if different from their main artist name.

      Please do not fill in this field if the birthname and artist name are the same.

    • Alternative Names

      This field allows you to record more names for the artist, which may be nicknames, aliases, pseudonyms, acronyms, or alternative spellings.

      Examples: SOAD for System Of A Down, Weezy for Lil Wayne, Jay Z for Jay-Z.

    • Also Releases As (ARA)

      Also Releases As is intended to link artists who use distinct musical personas. Examples for individual artists:

      • Snoop Dogg and Snoop Doggy Dogg are minor variations of the name of one person. Fans would want to see all of this artist's credits, discography and images on one page, not split onto two. Here, one of these names should be entered as a nickname.
      • Bono is the common stagename for Paul Hewson. There is no need to have a separate page for Paul Hewson because Paul Hewson is not a distinct musical persona. Here, we should have one page titled Bono, with Paul David Hewson entered as the birthname.
      • David Bowie had well-known alter egos like Ziggy Stardust, Alladin Sane, and The Thin White Duke. However, any Bowie fan would like to see his Ziggy Stardust album included within Bowie's discography, not on a separate page. These can be entered as nicknames instead.
      • Bradford Cox is a member of the band Deerhunter, but he also makes music as a solo artist under the name Atlas Sound. It would not make sense to have 'Atlas Sound' as a member of 'Deerhunter', so the best way to represent this is as Deerhunter having the member Cox, who 'also releases as' Atlas Sound.

      For groups, Also Releases As has two main functions: To connect groups with significantly different names but who are nevertheless the same entity.

      • Diana Ross & The Supremes are not qualitatively different from The Supremes, the renaming was just a management tactic to give more exposure to The Supremes' glamorous lead singer. Both groups should be connected through ARA. Another good example of that is Iggy & The Stooges and The Stooges.
      • Parliament and Funkadelic essentially comprised the same band members (under the directorship of one central creative force (George Clinton)), but had different identities and aims. They should be connected through ARA.

      Secondly, to connect groups who change their name:

      • Kara's Flowers became Maroon 5
      • Warsaw became Joy Division who became New Order
      • Jefferson Airplane became Jefferson Starship who became Starship

      But this isn't an exact science (some members of Jefferson Airplane became Hot Tuna, so are they an ARA too?). Make a judgement based on the identity of the band - how strong is the correlation?

      ARA may also be used in rare instances to connect individuals with groups where they are often conflated:

      • Jimi Hendrix was a member of The Jimi Hendrix Experience, but much Jimi Hendrix Experience music is released under just the name 'Jimi Hendrix'. So they can be connected through ARA.

    • Profile

      • Purpose of profile

        The profile is intended to tell the story of the artist. The intention is to give a feel for who they are, and how they came to be notable or famous. It is not intended to be encyclopedic in scope. The tone should be balanced and fair. Ideally we would like a profile written as a collaborative effort by fans, which doesn't exaggerate or make outlandish claims, but is more interesting to read than an encyclopedic entry.

      • Discussion of releases

        Whilst the profile can, and possibly should, mention releases, the profile is not the best place to go into detail. If you have specific information about a release, please add it to the release page.

      • Dealing with controversy

        If aspects of the artist's life or career are contentious, refer to it in a way that acknowledges the contention and offers all points of view. SoundUnwound cannot allow litigious comments and these will be removed.

      • Exaggeration

        Hyperbole is discouraged. Please avoid phrases like "Mariah Carey is the best singer in the whole world ever", or "Aerosmith blow away all other rock bands with their amazingly unique style," to use two hypothetical examples. Unverifiable or contended claims are also discouraged, unless you refer to the contention.

      • Press Releases

        If you have the authority to add a press release, please say so in the comments field when you upload it. However, we generally prefer community-written profiles to press releases because they tend to be more balanced.

      • Originality

        Profiles should be originally written by you or other SoundUnwound users. Much of the information on the internet is protected by copyright laws, so please do not upload pre-written texts to SoundUnwound unless you have permission to do so.

      • Authorship

        Please do not add signatures to profiles, or upload text which you wish to remain untouched. SoundUnwound is intended to work on a collaborative basis meaning any change you make may be further altered without your permission being sought.

      • Profile length and the effect of trivia

        The profile should not be so long that it discourages the casual reader from reading it. Any profile longer than approximately 1000 words should have an introductory paragraph of 200 words or less which summarizes the important points.

        Amending an existing profile with small details can result in a profile which no longer reads well and becomes overlong; please try to incorporate your amendment in a way which maintains the overall legibility of the profile.

        Some interesting information may not be easily assimilated into the main profile without disrupting the flow of the story - this information may be suitable for the Trivia section.

      • Style

        Either American English or British English is acceptable, but please try to be consistent within the page. We hope to provide a more comprehensive style guide soon.

      • Foreign language profiles

        SoundUnwound is an English language site. We may not accept non-English profiles if we cannot verify the content.

      • Links

        You can link to other SoundUnwound pages and other Amazon websites from within a profile by using the following markups:

        • [[artist:artistname]] to link to another artist or band page where there is only one artist/band of that name
        • [[artist#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific artist or band page, where xxxx is the contributorID of the artist/band. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[release:releasename]] to link to a release where there is only one release of that name
        • [[release#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific release where xxxx is the releaseID of the release. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[label:labelname]] to link to a specific label where there is only one label of that name
        • [[label#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific label where xxxx is the labelID of the label. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[imdb#ttxxxx:text]] to link to a specific film/television show in IMDB, where xxxx is the identifier for the show
        • [[amazon#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific book in Amazon, where xxxx is the ISBN for the book.

        You may also italicize text [[i:like this]]

    • Trivia

      This field is for information which is interesting but not suitable for the profile for any reason.

      For example, it may deal with an ongoing tour or news story, it may be unimportant in the context of the artist's whole career, or it may be difficult to assimilate into the profile without disrupting the flow. Please note that this text can be linked or italicized in the same way as the profile.

    • Releases

      The releases (the artist's discography) is intended to represent all of the releases for which an artist is credited as a headlining artist. There are no strict rules for this but generally it means - if an artist's name or image appears prominently on the cover, they are a 'headlining artist' and so the release can be part of their discography. Use common sense. If a group is listed, and all members of the group are listed too (or pictured,) it's probably better to credit the release to the group only.

      This means that releases by groups should not be added to the discographies of the group members. For an individual, only add releases to the discography which are solo releases of that individual (or, releases where that individual was a headlining artist, not group releases.)

      Removing a release from an artist's discography does not remove it from SoundUnwound altogether. If you believe a release shouldn't be on SoundUnwound at all, please go into the release page and select 'Suggest that: this release be deleted'.

    • Credits

      This field is for specifying what an artist has done on his own releases and on other artists' releases.

      For example, here you can link from Kanye West's page to all the releases he has produced, or you can link to all the releases Johnny Marr has played guitar on, and so on. These credits are kept separate from the artist's main projects, such as Kanye West's four solo albums or Johnny Marr's group memberships.

      You can add to this section from the artist page or from a release page. In some cases, people who are on SoundUnwound will not be musicians in their own right but will be included as a result of their ancillary involvement in the music industry — such as photographers and designers.

    • Groups / Members

      This field is for displaying who comprises a group, or which groups an individual is or has ever been in.

      The duration of a person's group membership can be set with the date boxes.

      The nature of a person's group membership can be set with the role field - type in a letter or two and drop-down menu will offer you options. You can separate several roles with a comma.

      Whether an individual who works with a group is officially a 'member' may be a contentious issue - a musician may be a group member, a special guest, a session player, or a member for live performances only. There is no overarching rule here to follow: just follow your own perception of the situation.

    • Family

      This field allows you to link to other artists in SoundUnwound who are related to this artist.

      The family link is intended to show links between artists who are connected to the music industry in their own right. Please don't add pages for family members who are not linked to the music industry, even if they are famous for some other reason.

      The 'involved with' option is intended to be used for documented romantic relationships between individuals. It is not intended to show transient affiliations or unconfirmed gossip.

      It is not necessary to complete the date fields (from — to) if you don't know them, but input as much as you can. Failing to put an end date will suggest that the relationship is current.

    • Born & Died / Formed & Split

      These fields allow you to enter when an individual was born and, if applicable, when they died; or when a group was formed and, if applicable, when they split up.

      If there is dispute about a birth or death date, consider referring to the dispute in the trivia section, listing alternative dates.

      Completion of this information will create entries on the timeline and will enable the artist to appear on the front page of SoundUnwound on their birthday.

    • Nationality

      Nationality is a legal status relating to the passport which a person may be eligible to hold. However, there are some caveats to this rule:

      A person may be eligible for more than one passport.

      A person may originate from and identify with a smaller, semi-autonomous state, which does not have passports. In these cases, we would rather be more precise than less. For example, it is correct to say that Tom Jones is British, but it is more precise to say he is Welsh, so that is his preferred nationality. A second difficult example is Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, also known as Iz. This artist from Hawaii is identified heavily with Hawaiian music and culture, and became known for promoting Hawaiian national independence. In this case, it is more precise to refer to him as Hawaiian, though he may hold an American passport.

      However, this is a free-text field, meaning you can refer to awkward cases such as dual nationality or where an individual was born in one country but naturalized in another.

      Nationality does not refer to birthplace, heritage, religion or race, so please don't enter values such as 'New York,' 'Chinese descent,' 'Jewish' or 'African-American.'

      Nationalities are capitalized - German, not german, for example.

    • Websites

      This field is an opportunity to link to other useful sites about the artist. Links should be directed towards websites which contain musical information.

      We will not accept links which only appear to offer SoundUnwound users the chance to purchase commercial items, nor will we accept links to illegal download sites.

  • Record Label Page

    • Suggest that this entry be deleted

      This edit will permanently delete the label's page from SoundUnwound.

      It should not be necessary to delete a label except in rare circumstances.

      If the label name is wrong, simply edit the name.

      If the label has a duplicate elsewhere on SoundUnwound -- providing you are sure they're the same label even though the name may be spelled differently -- merge the two pages instead of deleting. Where the information was exactly the same it will merge seamlessly. However, some fields may contain two sets of information (e.g. different spellings of the name.) If you can see this will happen, please indicate in your comments which spelling is correct.

    • Suggest that this entry be merged with another

      This edit will combine the data from two label pages onto one page.

      A record label may be merged with another if it is a duplicate of another page. For example, 'EMI' and 'EMI Records' would be duplicates of each other, and eligible for merging, because one is just a shortened name for the other. However, 'EMI' and 'EMI Gospel' are not duplicates - one is a sub-label of the other.

    • Name

      Enter the label's name as it is most commonly stated. .

    • Profile

      • Purpose of profile

        The profile is intended to tell the story of the record label. It is not intended to be encyclopedic in scope. The tone should be balanced and fair. Ideally we would like a profile written as a collaborative effort by fans, which doesn't exaggerate or make outlandish claims, but is more interesting to read than an encyclopedic entry.

      • Discussion of releases

        Whilst the profile can, and possibly should, mention releases, this profile is not the best place to go into detail. If you have specific information about a release, please add it to the release page.

      • Dealing with controversy

        If aspects of the label's history are contentious, refer to it in a way that acknowledges the contention and offers all points of view. SoundUnwound cannot allow litigious comments and these will be removed.

      • Exaggeration

        Hyperbole is discouraged. Unverifiable or contended claims are also discouraged, unless you refer to the contention.

      • Press Releases

        If you have the authority to add a press release, please say so in the comments field when you upload it. However, we generally prefer community-written profiles to press releases because they tend to be more balanced.

      • Originality

        Profiles should be originally written by you or other SoundUnwound users. Much of the information on the internet is protected by copyright laws, so please do not upload pre-written texts to SoundUnwound unless you have permission to do so.

      • Authorship

        Please do not add signatures to profiles, or upload text which you wish to remain untouched. SoundUnwound is intended to work on a collaborative basis meaning any change you make may be further altered without your permission.

      • Profile length and the effect of trivia

        The profile should not be so long that it discourages the casual reader from reading it. Any profile longer than approximately 1000 words should have an introductory paragraph of 200 words or less which summarizes the important points.

        Amending an existing profile with small details can result in a profile which no longer reads well and becomes overlong; please try to incorporate your amendment in a way which maintains the overall legibility of the profile.

        Some interesting information may not be easily assimilated into the main profile without disrupting the flow of the story - this information may be suitable for the Trivia section.

      • Style

        Either American English or British English is acceptable, but please try to be consistent within the page. We hope to provide a more comprehensive style guide soon.

      • Foreign language profiles

        SoundUnwound is an English language site. We may reject non-English profiles if we cannot verify the contents.

      • Links

        You can link to other SoundUnwound pages and other Amazon websites from within a profile by using the following markups:

        • [[artist:artistname]] to link to another artist or band page where there is only one artist/band of that name.
        • [[artist#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific artist or band page, where xxxx is the contributorID of the artist/band. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[release:releasename]] to link to a release where there is only one release of that name.
        • [[release#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific release where xxxx is the releaseID of the release. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[label:labelname]] to link to a specific label where there is only one label of that name.
        • [[label#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific label where xxxx is the labelID of the label. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[imdb#ttxxxx:text]] to link to a specific film/television show in IMDB, where xxxx is the identifier for the show.
        • [[amazon#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific book in Amazon, where xxxx is the ISBN for the book.

        You may also italicize text [[i:like this]]

    • Catalog

      A record label's discography may appear to contain many duplicate entries, but these may in fact be different VERSIONS of the same RELEASE.

    • Founded, and Ceased Trading

      Please be aware of the dates of release in the label's discography before editing this - do the releases fit within this active time-frame? If not, something's wrong somewhere!

    • Parent and Sub-Labels

      Although there are only four 'Major' labels, each one has many sub-labels (also known as 'divisions' or 'imprints'). For example, EMI is a Major label, and it controls divisions such as EMI Latin and EMI Gospel, as well as imprints such as Heavenly, Parlophone and Positiva.

    • Trivia

      This field is for information which is interesting but not suitable for the profile for any reason.

      For example, it may deal with an ongoing tour or news story, it may be unimportant in the context of the label's whole lifespan, or it may be difficult to assimilate into the profile without disrupting the flow. Please note that this text can be linked or italicized in the same way as the profile.

    • Websites

      This field is an opportunity to link to other useful sites about the label. Links should be directed towards websites which contain musical information.

      We will not accept links which only appear to offer SoundUnwound users the chance to purchase commercial items, nor will we accept links to illegal download sites.

  • Music Release Page

    Please note the fundamental difference between a RELEASE and a VERSION (or EDITION).

    When we talk of a RELEASE, we mean the song or collection of songs that is presented to the public by the artist, usually on a CD, record, or as a download. For example, an album like Nevermind, or a single like "Smells Like Teen Spirit".

    When we talk of a VERSION, we refer to the specific way in which the song(s) are presented. So, the RELEASE Nevermind might have several different versions: the original CD, Cassette and vinyl versions, there might be a Japanese version with a different cover, there might be a European version with a bonus track; then there might be a later reissue, or a later remaster; then there might be a special Deluxe Edition which is 2xCD, or a Extra Deluxe Edition which is 2xCD and 1xDVD, and so on. All these are different VERSIONS of the same RELEASE - Nevermind.

    • Suggest that this release be deleted

      This edit will permanently delete the release from SoundUnwound.

      It should not be necessary to delete a release except in very rare circumstances.

      If the release name is wrong, simply edit the name.

      If the release has a duplicate elsewhere on the artist's discography -- providing you are sure it's the same release even though some details may be different (track-list, release date/location, coverart etc) -- merge the two pages. This action will create a new version of the main release. Now, all versions will appear on the same page as the main release and it will be easier to identify re-issues, deluxe editions etc.

      If the release is credited to the wrong artist/band, remove the artist name from the release, and add the correct name.

      Releases which contain no music, such as audio books, may be eligible for deletion.

    • Suggest that this version be deleted

      This edit will permanently delete a version of a release from SoundUnwound, leaving the release otherwise intact.

      This is suitable if a version exists in SoundUnwound but doesn't exist in real life, or if it exists twice in SoundUnwound.

    • Suggest that this release be merged with another

      This edit will combine the data from two releases onto one page.

      This is the preferred action to take when there is one release existing twice in SoundUnwound - for example, under slightly different names. Instead of showing twice in the artist discography, these are usually two versions of the same release, and so should be merged.

    • Name

      This field allows you to edit the name by which the release most commonly goes.

      In nearly all cases, this is the name exactly as it says on the cover.

    • by (artist)

      • Various Artists

        Tick the 'Various Artists' box if the release features different main performers on different tracks - for example, a compilation where every track is by a different artist or group. If there is one main artist and lots of guests, it may be better to credit each guest as a performer in the Credits section but to attribute the release to the main artist.

      • Single artist credit

        Most commonly, the artist which should be credited with the release is the name which appears on the album cover.

      • Collaborations

        Collaborations are when two or more artists or groups, with a recording history in their own right, come together for a limited number of releases under the name '[Artist A's full name] and [Artist B's full name]'. In these cases, both artists should appear in the name field. However, sometimes a collaboration is so extensive that it deserves to be called a 'group' and given an artist page in its own right - this might especially be true if they use a name OTHER than of the kind '[Artist A's full name] and [Artist B's full name]'.

        Examples:

        Collaborations - Beth Gibbons & Rustin Man, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell. You wouldn't say that Beth Gibbons was in a group called Portishead and a group called Beth Gibbons & Rustin Man - you'd say the latter was a collaboration.

        Two-person groups - Eric B & Rakim, Hall & Oates, Simon & Garfunkel, Eno & Fripp, Ashford & Simpson, Jon & Vangelis. You wouldn't say that Eric B collaborated with Rakim - you'd say they formed a group together.

        If in doubt, ask yourself whether the collaborative releases should be shown together with each artist's solo releases, or whether they should be separated onto a dedicated discography (in which case, you may have to create a new artist to represent a new 'group').

      • More than one artist/various artists

        It may be necessary to mark a release as 'by [Artist A] and Various Artists'.

    • Amazon ASINs

      The ASIN is a code that Amazon gives to each product it sells which acts as a unique identifier for that item. Adding a musical item's ASIN to the correct field in SoundUnwound populates several other fields -- cover art, track-listing, first released date, version release date, and record label -- providing that information is available. Completion of this field is a quick and easy way to complete a release page, particularly for multi-disc releases such as box-sets. The ASIN is also necessary to enable MP3 streaming and purchasing options. The ASIN can be found in the 'Product Details' segment of any release page on Amazon.

      Please be careful to attach the ASIN to the version on SoundUnwound that it represents on Amazon - check the track-listing, cover, and any extra information (for example, 'Explicit Lyrics' or 'Deluxe Edition'). Sometimes Amazon will have two ASINs for the same version of a release: if this is the case, you can add both ASINs to the same page, but make sure they relate to exactly the same version - check the cover, tracklisting, release date and label.

    • Overview

      • Purpose of Overview

        The overview is intended to give contextual information about the release. It is not intended to be a review section i.e. this is not the place to record subjective opinions about the merits of the release. It is not intended to be encyclopedic in scope. The tone should be balanced and fair. Ideally we would like a profile written as a collaborative effort by fans, which doesn't exaggerate or make outlandish claims, but is more interesting to read than an encyclopedic entry.

      • Dealing with controversy

        If aspects of the release's background are contentious, refer to it in a way that acknowledges the contention and offers all points of view. SoundUnwound cannot allow litigious comments and these will be removed.

      • Exaggeration

        Hyperbole is discouraged. Please refrain from making statements like "This is the greatest album ever made and it changes the life of everyone who hears it!". Unverifiable or contended claims are also discouraged, unless you refer to the contention.

      • Press Releases

        If you have the authority to add a press release, please say so in the comments field when you upload it. However, we generally prefer community-written profiles to press releases because they tend to be more balanced.

      • Originality

        Profiles should be originally written by you or other SoundUnwound users. Much of the information on the internet is protected by copyright laws, so please do not upload pre-written texts to SoundUnwound unless you have permission to do so.

      • Authorship

        Please do not add signatures to overviews, or upload text which you wish to remain untouched. SoundUnwound is intended to work on a collaborative basis meaning any change you make may be further altered without your permission being sought.

      • Length and the effect of trivia

        The overview should not be so long that it discourages the casual reader from reading it. Any overview longer than approximately 1000 words should have an introductory paragraph of 200 words or less which summarizes the important points.

        Amending an existing overview with small details can result in an overview which no longer reads well and becomes overlong; please try to incorporate your amendment in a way which maintains the overall legibility of the overview.

        Some interesting information may not be easily assimilated into the main overview without disrupting the flow of the story - this information may be suitable for the Trivia section.

      • Style

        Either American English or British English is acceptable, but please try to be consistent within the page. We hope to provide a more comprehensive style guide soon.

        Foreign language overviews

        SoundUnwound is an English language site. We may not accept non-English overviews if we cannot verify the content.

      • Links

        You can link to other SoundUnwound pages and other Amazon websites from within a profile by using the following markups:

        • [[artist:artistname]] to link to another artist or band page where there is only one artist/band of that name.
        • [[artist#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific artist or band page, where xxxx is the contributorID of the artist/band. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[release:releasename]] to link to a release where there is only one release of that name.
        • [[release#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific release where xxxx is the releaseID of the release. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[label:labelname]] to link to a specific label where there is only one label of that name/
        • [[label#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific label where xxxx is the labelID of the label. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[imdb#ttxxxx:text]] to link to a specific film/television show in IMDB, where xxxx is the identifier for the show/
        • [[amazon#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific book in Amazon, where xxxx is the ISBN for the book.

        You may also italicize text [[i:like this]]

    • Media

      • Format

        Is this version of this release a CD, or vinyl, or cassette, etc?

      • Number

        For multi-disc releases, this is to enter which disc is represented. For example, for a double album on two CDs, or a CD which comes with a bonus DVD, or a 4xLP box-set. The number you enter here will determine the order in which these discs are shown on this page.

      • Title

        Some multi-disc releases also attribute names to each disc. For example, the Kate Bush album Aerial has a CD1 called 'A Sea of Honey' and a CD2 called 'A Sky of Honey'. Some compilations will cover different time-periods on different discs, so CD1 may be titled '1960-1966' and CD2 may be '1967-1976'. Often, older albums are released in double-disc packages: for example, Johnny Cash's two famous prison albums are available separately, but also as a two-disc set, where the CD1 is 'Live At Folsom Prison' and CD2 is 'Live At San Quentin.'

    • Credits

      This field is for acknowledging specific roles played in the preparation, recording or production of a release.

      The best source for this information is the liner notes of the release CD or record.

    • Other Versions

      This field allows you to describe other versions of the release.

      As explained above, each release may have several different versions available - limited editions, deluxe packaging, different cover art, versions with bonus tracks or DVD features, versions in different formats, and so on.

    • Also Known As

      This field allows you to assign an alternative name to a release.

      Occasionally an album will be known by names other than that which is on the cover. For example, Led Zeppelin's 4th album has no name on the cover and is known variously as 'IV', 'The Fourth Album', 'Zoso', 'The Runes', '4 Sticks' and 'untitled'. Placing these names in the AKA field will mean that visitors will be able to find the album by whichever name they enter in the search box.

      Other examples included The Beatles' self-titled 1968 album which is also known as 'The White Album'; several albums by Weezer which are self-titled but known by their cover coloring (such as 'The Blue Album' or 'The Green Album'); and Sufjan Stevens' Illinoise, which has a longer title 'Come On Feel The Illinoise'.

    • Release Type

      This field allows you to define the type of release, for the purpose of organizing the artist's discography. For example, if the release is a single, it should be set as single so that the artist's discography shows all the singles together.

    • Version Description

      This field allows you to distinguish between different versions of the release.

      For example, you may enter here '20th Anniversary Edition' or 'Deluxe Remastered Edition' or 'Limited Edition' or 'Japanese Release.' Often this field should be left empty, particularly where there is only one version of a release.

    • Record Label

      This field allows you to specify the label responsible for this version of the release.

    • Catalog Number

      This field allows you to enter the specific number attributed to a release by its record label, traditionally done to help the label keep track of its catalog.

      The catalog number usually begins with a shortened version of the record label's name, and so contains both letters and numbers. However, the format is highly variable between different labels.

      The catalog number is not the same as the UPC number or barcode.

    • Release Dates

      Please note the difference between 'first released' (which refers to the RELEASE) and 'release dates' (under Version Information) which refers only to the release date for this VERSION of the release.

    • Trivia

      This field is for information which is interesting but not suitable for the overview for any reason.

      For example, it may deal with an ongoing tour or news story, it may be unimportant in the release's wider context, or it may be difficult to assimilate into the overview without disrupting the flow. Please note that this text can be linked or italicized in the same way as the in the overview.

    • Websites

      This field allows you to enter links which refer specifically to the release, such as reviews, and more general information about its background.

      For links which relate to the artist generally, and not the release, please add these to the artist page instead of the release page.

  • Genre Page

    • Suggest that this entry be deleted

      This edit will permanently delete the genre from SoundUnwound. This also means it will delete all votes cast on artist and release pages for this genre.

      It should not be necessary to delete a genre except in very rare circumstances.

      Defining a musical genre is very complex and difficult. Use this function if you believe the genre is not a real or valid genre, but please provide us with evidence, such as a link to a reputable source, to support your claims. More often, it will be preferable to merge the genre into another genre, so that the voting data is retained.

    • Suggest that this entry be merged with another

      This edit will combine the data of two genres onto one page.

      Use this function if you believe the genre to be exactly the same as another genre we have in SoundUnwound. The merge option will combine all the data from both pages onto one page. If the names on either page were different, please indicate in the comments field which name is preferable.

    • Overview

      The overview is intended to tell the story of the genre. The intention is to give a feel for what it is, how it developed, and what its standing or health is currently. It is not intended to be encyclopedic in scope. The tone should be balanced and fair. Ideally we would like an overview written as a collaborative effort by fans, which doesn't exaggerate or make outlandish claims, but is more interesting to read than an encyclopedic entry.

      • Discussion of releases

        Whilst the genre overview can, and possibly should, mention important releases, the genre profile may not the best place to go into great detail about them. Use the overview section of the release in question for extra detail.

      • Dealing with controversy

        If aspects of the genre's history are contentious, refer to it in a way that acknowledges the contention and offers all points of view. SoundUnwound cannot allow litigious comments and these will be removed at point of moderation.

      • Exaggeration

        Hyperbole is discouraged. Please avoid phrases like "Crunk is the most vital genre in the world today," for a hypothetical example. Unverifiable or contended claims are also discouraged, unless you refer to the contention.

      • Originality

        Overviews should be originally written by you or other SoundUnwound users. Much of the information on the internet is protected by copyright laws, so please do not upload pre-written texts to SoundUnwound unless you have permission to do so.

      • Authorship

        Please do not add signatures to overviews, or upload text which you wish to remain untouched. SoundUnwound is intended to work on a collaborative basis meaning any change you make may be further altered without your permission being sought.

      • Profile length and the effect of trivia

        The overview should not be so long that it discourages the casual reader from reading it. Any overview longer than approximately 1000 words should have an introductory paragraph of 200 words or less which summarizes the important points.

        Amending an existing overview with small details can result in an overview which no longer reads well and becomes overlong; please try to incorporate your amendment in a way which maintains the overall legibility of the overview.

        Some interesting information may not be easily assimilated into the main overview without disrupting the flow of the story - this information may be suitable for the Trivia section.

      • Style

        Either American English or British English is acceptable, but please try to be consistent within the page. We hope to provide a more comprehensive style guide soon.

      • Foreign language overviews

        SoundUnwound is an English language site. We may not accept non-English overviews if we cannot verify the content.

      • Links

        You can link to other SoundUnwound pages and other Amazon websites from within an overview by using the following markups:

        • [[artist:artistname]] to link to another artist or band page where there is only one artist/band of that name.
        • [[artist#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific artist or band page, where xxxx is the contributorID of the artist/band. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[release:releasename]] to link to a release where there is only one release of that name.
        • [[release#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific release where xxxx is the releaseID of the release. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[label:labelname]] to link to a specific label where there is only one label of that name.
        • [[label#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific label where xxxx is the labelID of the label. The text can be anything you like.
        • [[imdb#ttxxxx:text]] to link to a specific film/television show in IMDB, where xxxx is the identifier for the show.
        • [[amazon#xxxx:text]] to link to a specific book in Amazon, where xxxx is the ISBN for the book.

        You may also italicize text [[i:like this]].

      • Websites

        This field is an opportunity to link to other useful sites about the genre. Links should be directed towards websites which contain musical information.

        We will not accept links which only appear to offer SoundUnwound users the chance to purchase commercial items, nor will we accept links to illegal download sites.