Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Tie a Yellow Ribbon around a Dodge Vehicle?
Sometimes material of the past really stands the test of time and sounds as fresh as it did when it was created new, years even decades previous.
And then again, there's stuff that sounds as dated as a 70s wah wah pedal or 80s synthesized drums. You dig it out now and then maybe chuckle a little bit, then put it on the shelf again for when you feel nostalgic and maybe time for another chuckle and a WTF I can't believe someone produced this s*** moment.
Wanna guess which catagory this month's exhibit belongs?
Tie a Yellow Ribbon by Tony Orlando and Dawn was a Monster # 1 hit from 1974. According to Wikipedia "sold 3 million records in three weeks" and was "the sign a released convict requested from his wife or lover to indicate that she would welcome him home. He would be able to see it from the bus driving by their house, and would stay on the bus in the absence of the ribbon."
You can see where the song ends can't ya? Even if you never heard it before...yes, 100 yellow ribbons are on the tree and so the song ends on a happy note.
How this emotion translates to selling Dodge Trucks and Cars is something I could ponder for eternity. The only answer I can come up with is someone thought it would be cute to redo a popular song as a jingle for Dodge. Geesh, couldn't pick something more upbeat and happy? If anyone is familiar with the song and it's meaning, it just...well, sounds bad, back then, and 37 years later this month.
Still, it's these little "gems of corporate embarrasement" we like to pride ourselves in digging out now and then here at the jetsam. This is for everyone who wants a bit of a chuckle in your otherwise cloudy day. Pop these mp3's into the ipod and grin from ear to ear thinking that modern day advertising isn't as bad as this.
Enjoy!
NOTE: The quality on these jingles is below what we usually post here, the source material is to blame, a dub of a dub and possibly more generations down. As displayed on the pic of the tape box, it isn't a dub right from the agency. It looks like one station typed the label for a dub for another station, which is often standard practice until tape usage stopped some 10 years ago.
I've broken the reel into 2 files of 6-:60 sec spots each for easier downloading. please see the tape box pic above for detailed cut listing.
Cuts 1-6
DOWNLOAD
Cuts 7-12
DOWNLOAD
Labels:
1970s,
advertising,
audio,
automobile,
dodge dart,
GM cars,
nostalgia,
pop culture,
trucks
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This makes me think of "Tony Orlando" and "Lee Iacocca" singing "Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'round a Dodge Omni", at the end of the SCTV skit "Lee Iacocca's Rock Concert".
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