Do you play along to TV commercials ?

[Hawk]

Yeah, sounds stupid. But I discovered I'm not the only one who does it.

I keep a drum pad set up in my living room. (God Bless my understanding wife). Whenever I hear good music, be it a TV show, a TV show intro or a TV commercial, I grab my sticks and play along.

Anyone else play along to TV ?

[f.sciarrillo]

I don't really play along with commercials. But, I do find myself compelled to play the drum part from "In the air tonight" every time I hear it ..

[moxham123]

Lots of TV commercials use songs that we play.

[Dragan Kalasa]

Well, I don't really play an instrument, but I do sing with the commercials, i.e. freecreditreport.com commercials (like none of you don't do it too) and everytime that commercial for Sprint, Boost mobile, or t-mobile - the one with that guy listening to Ciara on different phones and then she's live, I always bust out on that one, lol. My wife just thinks I have a crush on her **she is hot though**. Oh and I almost have the whistling part down for those Enzyte commercials. And because of my roots, I always have to sing to Metalocalypse when I see some episodes or watch my 1st season DVD.

Great back-up plan for not being in a band, huh??

[VENTGtr]

Used to sit and play along with everything: Commerials, TV Themes as they came on or ended, etc. Don't much anymore, but think it's a good idea...providing you're not being too much of a pest to the family.

[Big Jimi Cee]

I have my DirectTV receiver connected to a small mixer to which is also connected to my bass and guitar POD's. Since I live in an apartment while I am in Pittsburgh I use headphones so that I don't bother my neighbors. This setup is next to my TV chair so I can practice, watch TV, maybe a beer or two all from the comfort of my recliner. If I have mainstream TV on while I am practicing, I will work out or play along with anything that comes on, commericals, theme songs doesn't matter good ear training and a break from running scales and the like.

The only drawback to all of this is that I am so accustomed to playing while in my recliner that I can't play standing up anymore.

[mjb]

yep, all the tme!

[Jim Price]

I don't sing or perform anything along to commercials, but since I've been battling a cold over the past week, each time I pop a mentholyptus cough drop, I picture that sweaty Rocky-like dude from the Halls commercial dropping down from the ceiling and giving me the pep talk..."You want to be a hero...You want this!"

But I could see a big benefit to paying attention to commercial jingles and music, in that successful jingle "hooks" can hang in viewers' and listeners' heads and help sell products. And if you can develop a knack for writing catchy jingles, it could earn you some big income in the marketing world. Think of how much in royalties the person(s) who came up with the "Free Credit Report.com" jingle or the Budweiser (Bud Light?) "Real Men of Genius" jingle are earning!

[moxham123]

I don't sing or perform anything along to commercials, but since I've been battling a cold over the past week, each time I pop a mentholyptus cough drop, I picture that sweaty Rocky-like dude from the Halls commercial dropping down from the ceiling and giving me the pep talk..."You want to be a hero...You want this!"

But I could see a big benefit to paying attention to commercial jingles and music, in that successful jingle "hooks" can hang in viewers' and listeners' heads and help sell products. And if you can develop a knack for writing catchy jingles, it could earn you some big income in the marketing world. Think of how much in royalties the person(s) who came up with the "Free Credit Report.com" jingle or the Budweiser (Bud Light?) "Real Men of Genius" jingle are earning!

Barry Manilow did very well writing and singing ad jingles including many well known ones. He penned many of the jingles that he performed, including those for Bowlene Toilet Cleaner, State Farm Insurance ("Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there..."), Stridex acne cleanser, and Band-Aid ("I am stuck on Band-Aid, 'cause Band-Aid's stuck on me!" sang a jubilant struggling actor named John Travolta), among others. His singing-only credits include Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pepsi, Jack in the Box, Dr Pepper, and the famed McDonald's "You Deserve a Break Today" campaign. Manilow won two Clio Awards in 1976 for his work for Tab and Band-Aid.

JP is absolutely correct that the reason companies try to use catchy jingles is so people remember their business. Everybody knows the 1-800-Safe Auto jingle even if it is sub-standard auto insurance. As far as the "Real men of genius" ad campaign, the guy who sings all of those spots is none other than Dave Bickler, the original lead singer for the band Survivor who sang on Eye Of The Tiger.

[f.sciarrillo]

I like those freecretidreport.com commercials.

[orangekick]

I tend to sit in front of the TV with a guitar in hand. I play along with everything that comes on. I was originally surprised to notice that many TV show songs share common keys.

[songsmith]

I. Think of how much in royalties the person(s) who came up with the "Free Credit Report.com" jingle or the Budweiser (Bud Light?) "Real Men of Genius" jingle are earning!

The last time I heard, several years ago, if your song plays for at least 30 seconds on a national broadcast network, your royalty could amount to $250 each time it's broadcast. Now, understand that this is most commonly negotiated with your publishing company, who generally takes half, and of course, agents and others also take a cut. Still, somebody's getting pretty comfy off the freecreditreport.com commercials.
I've read that there's really nice money in TV themes, if they go 30 seconds. Royalties are also paid at a lesser rate for syndicated shows on local stations and cable nets, too. If you're ever charged to write a theme-song, negotiate an upfront fee, but also allow for future syndication monies.--->JMS

[Banned]

I like those freecretidreport.com commercials.

I would run them over if I saw them on the side of the road. Those cheesy commercials drive me crazy.

[Banned]

I like those freecretidreport.com commercials.

I would run them over if I saw them on the side of the road. Those cheesy commercials drive me crazy.

So, appearantly it worked!

[yodelinghippie]

The best to play to is King of the Hill... awesome drumming and an interesting guitar riff.