Music Tracks Less Than 10 Seconds Not Updating Play Count

I've found that in iTunes 11 any track less than 10 seconds long does not have it's play count or last played data updated after it is played. I use a number of different smart playlist that rely on play count and I've found that I end up having those short "into/interlude/skit/outro" tracks piling up in my playlists.

Playcounts and Last Played info seems to update properly if the track is played on my iPod or iPhone then synced to iTunes, but not when played directly in iTunes.

I've noticed quite a few reports of playcount not updating when crossfade is turned on, but I don't use crossfade and never have. So that's not the issue.

Is there any fix to allow these shorter tracks to be marked as played in iTunes 11?