BILL MEEKS DEATH 10TH ANNIVERSARY ON TUESDAY 9/8

[RADIO TRUTH]

When you think of people who shaped the sound and evolution of radio and jingles, Bill Meeks ranks at the top of the list.

 

[oaktree]

... as does Tom Merriman, Jim West, Jon Wolfert, Bob Piper, Jody Lyons, Chuck Blore, Ken Draper & Johnny Mann -- who really brought foresight and evolution to radio jingles. The first five made Bill Meeks what he is with their creativity, execution, dedication and ability to understand radio and to define it for many years. Meeks was the business behind the creative energy. His landing WABC and WLS was his good fortune. And let's not forget Anita Kerr, either.

 

[RADIO TRUTH]

... as does Tom Merriman, Jim West, Jon Wolfert, Bob Piper, Jody Lyons, Chuck Blore, Ken Draper & Johnny Mann -- who really brought foresight and evolution to radio jingles. The first five made Bill Meeks what he is with their creativity, execution, dedication and ability to understand radio and to define it for many years. Meeks was the business behind the creative energy. His landing WABC and WLS was his good fortune. And let's not forget Anita Kerr, either.

Part of what you wrote is correct. Part of what you wrote is incorrect. I know that Tom Merriman, Bob Piper, Jody Lyons and Johnny Mann actually were musicians, could write and adapt music, and had actual music education. I don't know if the rest of the list had any formal music education.

 

[oaktree]

Yes, and lots of it. I worked with and among all of them. They were the people who put Pams on the map and, like Jim West, moved on to start their own operations, as did Toby Arnold, Jody and others in the Dallas jingle scene from working with Bill Meeks and others as competitors who were hired by Bill Meeks. People like Otis Connor and Tony Griffin came from a tier that put them on the map through their education and abilities. Tony runs one of the best jingle houses around today after his education brought him to TM. Tracy Carman, the same way.

Anita Kerr is a gifted talent and musician that goes far beyond jingle writing, composing, conducting, adapting and anything musical she ever touched. She is a master when it comes to musicianship, singing and talent and made fortunes with her talent.

Jim West was long one of the great musical talents in Dallas both with instrumental virtuosity and his great voice and creative flair. Jim died this year.

And what Chuck Blore and Ken Draper did for the jingle business from Los Angeles at KFWB and behind is, and will always remain, pure educational brilliance, more than sound.

The problem is, Mr. Meeks ran into financial difficulties and lots of them and the energy was sapped as radio went "anti-jingle" for several years back in the 70s, leading to a quick death of that great Pams sound.

Educated and true educators, all. Trust me. One doesn't create the legacy to music and radio as these people have without great amounts of educational background ... and business savvy, as well. It was a jingle jungle out there.

 

[oaktree]

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Jim Long of Dallas, Chris Kershaw of Dallas, Ron Hicklin of LA and the legendary Hugh Heller as well. All musically educated and brilliant with musicianship credits a mile long.

 

[tcarman]

I'd also like to pipe in and point out the music genius behind some of the Los Angeles productions were that of Dick Hamilton. He wrote for Heller, TM, FairWest and others. His trademark strange musical signatures and lyrics are still haunting these days. His productions in the seventies for TM included THE YOU CAMPAIGN and THE ACTUALIZERS/FUSION (later repackaged as HOT HITS).

You also can't forget Bruce Upchurch who wrote for JAM, TM, and his own Zone Radio Imaging... and Jon Wolfert who can score those PAMS and JAM packages at lightening speed... which leads to Euel Box and Bobby Farrar who wrote many of those classic PAMS packages... Greg Clancy who writes packages and vocal adaptations for both TM and Tony Griffin... and Judy Parma who has retired from the biz but was active going back to the late fifties and sang on all of the "classic" TM packages and had TotalSound and Parma Productions with her husband, Tom. There are many others, but I don't want to go on and on and on and on and on . . . . . . . . .

Oh... and as for me, I have no formal musical training.... but I'm really not in the business per se. I've been "collecting" the materials since the late sixties but CAN read sheet music. However, I'll leave the writing of charts and such to the professionals who I'm proud to have been able to work with throughout the decades. While I have an "ear" for it, they are the ones who can write the charts as fast as the rest of us can sign our names.

Tracy E. Carman
Media Preservation Foundation
www.jingles.org

 

[bigtom101]

I have to say that my 1st paying radio gig was going thru the collective output of all the names mentioned here - I went thru almost all of the Ken R jingles CD's when I worked for an internet station that played classic jingles as part of the sound. Best job for a jingle freak like me - my cell phone ringtone is either the "Remember Your Favorite" Series 27 resing for CBS-FM, or a cut from the Frank Gari package.

Glad that there are many others who love the songs between the songs...

P.S: if anyone has any KenR CD's to sell, I'd love to buy 'em.