gridlore: Doug looking off camera with a grin (Bosch)
Douglas Berry ([personal profile] gridlore) wrote2004-12-17 02:16 pm

Shoot me now.

I just saw a commercial for E-trade. What made me suicidal was the music used:

Jefferson AĆ­rplane - Volunteers

So not clear on the concept here. . .

[identity profile] biomekanic.livejournal.com 2004-12-17 02:43 pm (UTC)(link)
How about the Wrangler ads using CCR's Fortunate Son? There's someone who obviously never listened to the lyrics.

[identity profile] cmdr-zoom.livejournal.com 2004-12-17 03:17 pm (UTC)(link)
"You keep quiet, he doesn't have to shoot you now."

[identity profile] grimmwire.livejournal.com 2004-12-17 06:03 pm (UTC)(link)
I saw a GM sale campaign that used "Big Time" by Peter Gabriel.

[identity profile] yukihime.livejournal.com 2004-12-18 09:24 am (UTC)(link)
How about "Dream On" in car ads? I always thought that song was about aging, depression and death. Aerosmith must be laughing all the way to the bank.

And DO NOT get me started on "Across The Universe" in Kodak commercials. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!! My heart aches for the pillaging of John Lennon's music.

[identity profile] gridlore.livejournal.com 2004-12-18 09:28 am (UTC)(link)
The only classic rock song that's been used correctly in a commercial recently (IMNSHO) is The Kinks' Picturebook for HP digital photography. The entire song is about photos, and is combined with a very clever visual tag.

[identity profile] melyxa.livejournal.com 2004-12-20 08:59 pm (UTC)(link)
Agreed. As someone who lives for lyrics, by the time I saw the Picturebook ad I was so overdosed on lyrical oxymorons that I literally sighed with relief.

As to the others, especially the ETrade horrorshow, I've seen it about a dozen times or so, but every time I do it still contorts me with pain. I do not get it. At all. And I worked in advertising for a while. My off the cuff guess is that the client rep likes the song and told Creative that their way of doing business was "revolutionary" and so they better use it. Somehow.

Though sometimes I wonder if the Creatives aren't using songs like Fortunate Son and Big Time as a private joke amongst themselves, knowing the client won't notice, Accounts won't notice, and wondering who, if anyone else, *will* notice.

Then I realize that I'm just thinking of one or two Creatives I used to know in particular, and that it's probably just more prolefeed.