Commercial music, commercial songs

[Magpel]

I hear a lot of music on TV commercials that I think is pretty darn good. Every now and then, I hear something great--a few years ago, for example, Amercian Express had a campaign that--for some reason unclear to me--used imagery of surreal circus geeks and freakshow families, and the music was an exquisite, accordion-driven but modernized evocation of Astor Piazzolla and Kurt Weil.

 

But it is my opinion that songs written expressly for commercials almost invariably suck ass. I am not sure why this should be, but the proof is in the pudding--advertisers go and buy existing songs--not always well known ones--rather than hire some hot commercial gun to tailor one.

 

Same in movies. When a film involves a band that plays original tunes--and it is not meant to parody--I'll be damned is those tunes almost always suck ass and sound as contrived and "unreal" as can be (Exception granted to Adam Schelsinger's "That Thing You Do" nd to some other musicals and the like.)

 

So, first the opinion, and if you agree, why? Why might songwriting for a "purpose" be different than composing for a "purpose"?

[MarkZ]

the music was an exquisite, accordion-driven but modernized evocation of Astor Piazzolla and Kurt Weil.

 

And if Tom Waits was singing on it, you would have completely wet your pants.

[spokenward]

And if Tom Waits was singing on it, you would have completely wet your pants.

 

But everybody knows that Tom Waits doesn't do commercials...

[Jeff da Weasel]

The answer is pretty obvious, if you think about it. Music as product, that's purpose based and created under time constraints in a factory setting, is extremely less likely to be as good as music for art's sake.

 

How often is the cinematography of an ad as good as that of a well-made movie? How often are the graphic arts in a magazine ad as good as the artwork in a gallery? It can happen, but it's the tiny exception to the rule.

 

Awhile back, Volkswagon used the long-gone Nick Drake's tune Pink Moon in an ad... it was outstanding. There's a tune that the artist probably would never have imagined would be used to sell cars. That's why it's a good song.

[blue2blue]

 

But everybody knows that Tom Waits doesn't do commercials...

I didn't listen to the NPR piece (might have heard it back then). I love NPR but I often hate taking the time required to sit through audio and video clips when I could quickly read an article in far less time (and I'm a slow reader).

 

In fact, that's one of the things that drove me away from discussing politics on MySpaces political forum -- the post-literati there seem to think that posting a video is akin to staking out a rational argument and presenting supporting facts. It really was dragging my already low opinion of people into the intellectual gutter.

 

Er... back on commercials... I dunno... as much as I'm glad people got turned on to the at one point all but forgotten Nick Drake, it turns my gut to hear his music -- or Billie Holiday's or Louis Armstrongs or even John Denver's [and I'm not even a fan of the late Denver] -- on a commercial.

 

Of course, it's a complex of reasons -- but the least of them is that I hate excerpts of anything. Whether it's a pop tune or a sprawling work like Carmina Burana. (Which I just saw two weeks ago and which is so MUCH better than the vulgarizations of it that have appeared in numerous movies. But is still a bit over the top and comic-booky for my tastes.)

 

I was momentarily delighted, for instance, to find that there was a "symphonic" channel on my cable TV's music-only channels. Turning it on a few times I saw respectable compositions by respectable composers. But when I finally put it on one day while I was working, I was horrified to realize that they're all excerpts and single movements, shuffled. Utterly moronic. Infuriating. Insipid. Might as well listen to the friggin' new age channel. (No! Not really. The new age channel must have not had a human input since 1996... it's the same bozos in peasant shirts posed with lutes and harps they have no idea how to play, all using the same stock sample sounds and nature ambients and... argh. Ah well, I only have cable so I can get Turner Classic Movies.)

[Magpel]

The answer is pretty obvious, if you think about it. Music as product, that's purpose based and created under time constraints in a factory setting, is extremely less likely to be as good as music for art's sake. How often is the cinematography of an ad as good as that of a well-made movie? How often are the graphic arts in a magazine ad as good as the artwork in a gallery? It can happen, but it's the tiny exception to the rule. Awhile back, Volkswagon used the long-gone Nick Drake's tune Pink Moon in an ad... it was outstanding. There's a tune that the artist probably would never have imagined would be used to sell cars. That's why it's a good song.

 

I think there is a lot of good content in commercials--well written, clever, well designed, effective music. Sure it is "micro-content," and no one's gonna confuse it with Proust or Melville but in an age when novels and poetry don't sell beans and serious art is pretty much a downtown thing, a lot of society's talent resources have gone for the money--advertising.

 

As I said, I think a lot of commercial music is beyond competent: it is imaginative and sometimes inspired! But original commercial songs bite, almost uniformly, and I am not talking about regional heavy rock (but MIDI drum) jingles for autobody shops or leather stores, or at least not exclusively.

 

Well, I am not getting a lot of seconds on the opinion, which is fine, but I think it has something to do with the plasticity of instrumental music. Instrumental music is conceived as a complement to the other media involved in the ad but not "about" the other media involved in the ad. When people try to make songs for ads, they try to encapsulate the message, support the point, and, egad, sell the product. And that's when the trouble enters. The narrow persuasive aim of advertising is inherently at odds with the slippery and oblqiue expressive aim of good songwriting.

 

It was probably Saul Lidle's "Do you write for yourself or others thread?" that got me thinking about this. It is my belief that most artists come to realize that intention is a very small and paltry part of the artistic process and the real action is in surprise--i.e., the process leading places that were not forseen at the outset that are often contrary to the original intention. Therefore, songs over-burdened with intention seldom achieve surprise--'cause they begin with their conclusions, as it were...

 

Say, in a contrived movie situation, a song written expressly for the film can rarely achieve the grandeur that the cinematic moment requires, because the grandeur is too expected and assumed.

[Magpel]

And if Tom Waits was singing on it, you would have completely wet your pants.

 

Well, now that everyone and his cousin is trying to do Tom's dark circus surreality, the contrarian in me wants out, but I can never disavow or deny the devastating influence that Rain Dogs and Bone Machine had on me, in their time.

[spokenward]

I only thought of Waits because he had sued those who crafted a soundalike Doritos commercial spot. But he does present a study in what advertisers think they are buying with music. A large part of the magic is audience identification.

 

Taking Magpel's example of the Amex spot. Many Amex spots are little films.

 

They have used not just A-list cinematographers - but the top of the A list. But those credits are pretty much anonymous. You look at the spot and you say "Lovely". But you have no idea who was behind the camera or what else they might have been working on that month. They were a time hire. Music is more of a perpetual exchange. Something is taken when sync is locked.

[nerol1st]

 

But it is my opinion that songs written expressly for commercials almost invariably suck ass.

 

 

You sire are correct:

 

 

 

 

[blstbeatdrumr19]

I believe that radio friendly pop music is generally well composed, but overall the music is sterile, and has absolutely no shelf life. Unfortunately, catchy verse/chorus/verse/chorus/bridge/chorus type songwriting (essentially everything on modern pop/top of chart/hit radio stations) is what sells, regardless of it's actual merit, which I believe most of it has very little.

[Lee Knight]

 

You sire are correct: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnvYBtZNowU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IitjbUD_VUc

 

 

Who is that singing in the 2nd YouTube clip? The "I guess I'm gonna give up" tune...

[spokenward]

Who is that singing in the 2nd YouTube clip? The "I guess I'm gonna give up" tune...

 

Let's ask adtunes!

 

http://adtunes.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=41453

 

Adtunes says "Can't Get It Right Today" by Joe Purdy

 

Adtunes is

[yump]

 

this was from a car commercial i saw years ago and someone told me it was the band "elastica" lol, just found out now, it's not. elastica sounds pretty good too tho.

 

cool tune

[Will Chen]

I think it's the reason is two fold. First, if commisioned to write a song for a commercial it's challenging to express any solid musical idea in less than 30 seconds to a minute. You basically have to slap them in the face from beat one. Even if you actually write something cool, it could get choped up and rearranged in editing. On the other hand, it may have to do with the musical directors of the ad firms. They have to have broad based niche appeal. Kind of an oxymoron, but makes sense if you think about it.

[Raymar]

Is this recent? I haven't watched the tube in a few months and I wasn't impressed at all with any tv music back then, commercial or otherwise, well PBS had a few things. Not sure if it was the constant Lindsey/Britney/Paris updates on the news along with the lastest senseless violence update, or the SUV commercials that flipped the 'this thing-is-rotting-my-brain-and-wasting-my-life' switch. Plus it felt like a huge weight attached to my brain weighing it down keeping me from getting to better things.