This hot topic continues here in the new year ...
with some more of your most recent Favorite Commercial Comments!
Regarding popular commercials, don't forget to note the great success Gary Loizo of the American Breed had with jingles for Coke.
Rick Barr, New Colony Six
I just happen to have TWO of The American Breed's "Coca-Cola" Commercials in my collection ... here you go!
>>>We did a commercial for Mr. Norm's Dodge to get a free van and that's on the end of some album as it runs off towards the label, but I don't know which one. (Dennis Tufano)
Kent,
Here's the jingle Dennis speaks of. The LP pictured is full of drag strip stuff at Ubly Dragway. The Buckinghams jingle is 20 seconds that show up on the end and beginning of the LP side which runs a full 13 minutes of drag stuff similar to the Capitol Records series of Lps. Note it sold for $1 then. Now, it would bring $100 probably.
WLSClark
That's assuming you could ever even FIND a copy!!! (lol) This has to be a pretty rare collectible indeed! (I sent a copy of the jingle to Dennis Tufano to jog his memory a little!) kk
Thanks, Kent! Haven't heard that in, well, a long time! Ahhh the energy!!!
Have a great New Year! See you in January.
Dennis
Dennis Tufano will be appearing along with The Cryan' Shames and Ronnie Rice on January 29th at The Wentz Concert Hall at North Central College in Naperville, IL. The concert is a benefit / fund-raiser for The Naperville Education Foundation. For more information, click on the link below:
http://www.naperville203.org/community/YuksforYouth.asp
And check out THIS vintage clip of The Buckinghams, circa 1965 ... it dates back to before their OWN hits starting racing up the charts!
Click here: http://dennistufano.blogspot.com/
>>>Was there a jingle or commercial used for the song 'Happiness Is" by The Association??? (Jerry)
>>>Hmm. Happiness is the taste of Kent, and I do mean the cigarette so don't think I'm losing it here. I don't know who sang the commercial. I remember a Ray Conniff singers version of the song. Wikipedia notes: A special version of the song "Happiness Is" was recorded for use in a TV commercial for Kent cigarettes, prior to the ban on TV advertising of tobacco products. (Mister Hil)
>>>I suppose for some of us non-smokers out there "Happiness" COULD be Kent ... and his Forgotten Hits Newsletter!!! (lol) kk
Hey Kent,
Okay – here’s the scoop on the “Happiness Is” commercial for Kent Cigarettes – from the writer.
I wrote “Happiness Is” with Paul Parnes (Elvis – “The Next Step Is Love”, Me -“Santa’s Stuck Up In The Chimney”).
It was originally recorded by Ray Conniff and charted on Billboard. The singers on the Kent commercial were studio singers with an arrangement à la the Conniff recording.
At the time, cigarette commercials were allowed on radio and TV, but they couldn’t equate cigarette smoking with good feelings. The advertising agency figured that the song was popular enough so listeners would just hear the melody where the words “Happiness Is” belonged, hear the commercial’s lyric, “the taste of Kent”, and put them together subliminally - Voilà, “Happiness Is the taste of Kent”.
The commercial ran for three years plus.
Want to see one of the commercials? I’ve got it as a favorite on my You Tube site. Here’s the link to the commercial:
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=cd1mp3#p/f/6/33fSU2Q_ZUY
Enjoy it and have a great new year,
Paul Evans
One version of the "Happiness Is" song was by Bobby Sherman. It was a pick hit on the WKYC survey of March 11, 1966, but it only made it to their top 44 for one week, at # 43 on March 18.
Doug
NOT the same song as recorded by The Association then ... theirs was written by the Addrisi Brothers (who had also given them their #1 smash "Never My Love".) Neither the Ray Conniff version OR the Bobby Sherman version ever made the national charts ... so this is one of those songs that may be BEST remembered as a television commercial! (Of course this particular release was also about three years before Sherman exploded on the pop charts ... I think he may have even still been doing "Shindig" at the time!) However, now that I've heard it a few times again, I seem to remember this one as kind of a television variety show staple ... seems to me whoever was performing it adapted the lyrics to fit their own particular agenda (or the theme of that particular program.) Give it a listen and see if this one doesn't sound just a little bit familiar to you, too! (kk)
Wow ... check out the regional hits on THIS chart!!! Always cool to see what was being played in other parts of the country circa 1966! (kk)
Hey Kent,
There were quite a few artists who covered “Happiness Is” and come to mind. (The Mariachi Brass.) And yes, Paul Parnes and I wrote many, many versions. I remember that we wrote one for Arthur Godfrey and another for jazz artists like Clark Terry and Chico O’Farrill (“Happiness Is Different Things for Different Jazzmen”), a Christmas version, a Country version, and who knows what else. But the best (for my co-writer and me) was Count Basie with the Alan Copeland singers. Joe Williams was there – as was I. Every time that Mr. Basie made a clinker – the studio audience (and it was packed) oohed and aahed. Pretty funny.
Unfortunately, I don’t have any of the tracks digitalized. However, my original demo was cleaned up and released in a Sanctuary compilation, “The Paul Evans Songbook”. My music equipment is down right now, Kent, but if you think your audience would be interested in the original demo, just let me know and I’ll shoot it to you as soon as my music toys have been put back together. If you don’t think so, that’s not a problem for me at all.
Paul
PS “Santa’s Stuck Up In The Chimney” has now climbed to 133,000 views – with the holiday season behind us. A good, new holiday novelty song? We’ll see where the You Tube views can take it. I’m hoping that the song will come to the attention of a CHristmas compilation producer. That would be a terrific boost for the song.
I think our readers would LOVE to hear the original demo version, Paul ... we've been VERY fortunate in being able to air several of these rarities over the years ... ALWAYS interesting to see where these recordings first came from!!! So please, by ALL means, forward us a copy once you're up and running again and we'll be happy to share it with the list! (kk)
Watch for MORE of your Commercial Favorites coming tomorrow in Forgotten Hits!
