SFStatic said:
Don't forget the Chuck Berry ("Sweet Little Sixteen") suit against the Beach Boys for "Surfin USA".
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KEWB Anthem
- Thread starter DavidKaye
- Start date
Don't forget the Chuck Berry ("Sweet Little Sixteen") suit against the Beach Boys for "Surfin USA".
radioman148 said:SFStatic said:The jingle companies copyrighted their packages. Never heard if they paid anyone for the rights to any 4 notes. If the pattern of notes wasn't from a previously copyrighted song, probably not. (Although there is the infamous Chiffons "He's So Fine"/ George Harrison "My Sweet Lord" suit, which Harrison lost for stealing the notes. A truly idiotic outcome. George must have been a terrible witness, because Michael Jackson won a number of these suits. In most Western music (not C&W, but as differentiated from Eastern pentatonic music), there are primarily 3 chords used in the 12 tone scale, so obviously songs will have similar repeated patterns.
Don't forget the Chuck Berry ("Sweet Little Sixteen") suit against the Beach Boys for "Surfin USA".
I believe Huey Lewis sued Ray Parker Jr., alleging that the bass-rhythm line of the Ghostbusters theme was stolen from I Want a New Drug. On the other hand, Robbie Dupree got away with basically the same thing - blatantly copying the Doobie Brothers' What a Fool Believes for his ironically titled song Steal Away.
The famous "Manhattan" ("I'll take Manhattan ..." was covered by hundreds of artists and in the movie "Night and Day" with Mickey Rooney, who sang it. It was written (musically) by Richard Rogers and (lyrics) by Lorenz Hart.
It has been reported that those famous 5 notes of "Seventy Seven ..." for WABC cost up to $50,000 a year to the estate of Richard Rogers for many years for ABC to use them. WABC's entire jingle budget back in the early 60s was $45,000 for 60 tracks. Lorenz Hart got not a dime from helping create the now famous logo ... because he was the lyricist, not the music writer.
Jingle companies do copyright their packages ... especially where "new" logos are concerned. There was quite a stir in the Dallas jingle mills for years if anyone tried to emulate the WABC, WLS, WCFL or Drake logos because they were seen as "part of a package" ... and for years, until the musician's union (AFM) made changes in "bar lengths" (usually eight bars) that, at the time, constituted a copyrightable "jingle." Of course, today, few jingles are 8 bars in length ... and you can hear logo's "shared" among LA jingle houses, Dallas, Memphis and elsewhere.
Back in the day, Tanner, for example, was not allowed to produce jingles using the WABC logo because it was copyrighted by PAMS ... and Tanner was a non-union shop. So, until the company opened a "Dallas branch" called "Thunder Productions," you never heard Tanner use the WABC logo at all until the mid-70s. They did a fine package for WABC, using the PAMS singers, in fact, who were contracted as non-exclusive artists (singers now have exclusive AFTRA contracts with the likes of JAM and others, though a few still "freelance" their services to get as much work as possible.)
When "Thunder" was closed down ... the masters remained in Dallas and Tanner's jingle division (in which I worked) reverted back to Memphis and they didn't use the WABC logo again, to my memory. Note that the famous "I'll take Manhattan ..." logo had been changed by this point and changed.
When doing new packages, we always "tweaked" logos to not get into copyright problems on packages for WQXI, WSIX and others, but they were darn close to the originals. I can think of a few, in fact.
Here's an example of a Thunder Productions tracks in 1974. They were established in 1974 and gone by mid-75. By that time, ABC had stopped paying royalties on the famous "77" logo on many tracks, including these one ... and others ... that allowed, for a time, Tanner to "imitate" ... until they sold the asset and moved back to Memphis ... bringing PAMS' Marv Shaw and Chris Kershaw with them. The W-A-B-C logo stayed, however.
http://www.musicradio77.com/jingles/thundan.wav
http://www.musicradio77.com/jingles/THUN_HH.WAV
http://www.musicradio77.com/jingles/THUN_BM.WAV
Union rules made a big difference. On the famous PAMS Series 26 ("Let's Go America - All American") series in 1963 ... AFTRA forbid Dallas singers to do jingles for on-air in New York ... so, Bill Meeks had that series sung in the Big Apple. A huge cost that was later rectified when the Dallas singers became unionized under AFTRA. There were 30 tracks in that package that also featured three different stations in separate demos. WABC, KFWB and, I believe, WKLO.
It was legendary because it was the end of "long" jingles on WABC. The "Let's Go America - All American" series was meant to be patriotic, but also to identify corporate owner ... the American Broadcasting Company.
It has been reported that those famous 5 notes of "Seventy Seven ..." for WABC cost up to $50,000 a year to the estate of Richard Rogers for many years for ABC to use them. WABC's entire jingle budget back in the early 60s was $45,000 for 60 tracks. Lorenz Hart got not a dime from helping create the now famous logo ... because he was the lyricist, not the music writer.
Jingle companies do copyright their packages ... especially where "new" logos are concerned. There was quite a stir in the Dallas jingle mills for years if anyone tried to emulate the WABC, WLS, WCFL or Drake logos because they were seen as "part of a package" ... and for years, until the musician's union (AFM) made changes in "bar lengths" (usually eight bars) that, at the time, constituted a copyrightable "jingle." Of course, today, few jingles are 8 bars in length ... and you can hear logo's "shared" among LA jingle houses, Dallas, Memphis and elsewhere.
Back in the day, Tanner, for example, was not allowed to produce jingles using the WABC logo because it was copyrighted by PAMS ... and Tanner was a non-union shop. So, until the company opened a "Dallas branch" called "Thunder Productions," you never heard Tanner use the WABC logo at all until the mid-70s. They did a fine package for WABC, using the PAMS singers, in fact, who were contracted as non-exclusive artists (singers now have exclusive AFTRA contracts with the likes of JAM and others, though a few still "freelance" their services to get as much work as possible.)
When "Thunder" was closed down ... the masters remained in Dallas and Tanner's jingle division (in which I worked) reverted back to Memphis and they didn't use the WABC logo again, to my memory. Note that the famous "I'll take Manhattan ..." logo had been changed by this point and changed.
When doing new packages, we always "tweaked" logos to not get into copyright problems on packages for WQXI, WSIX and others, but they were darn close to the originals. I can think of a few, in fact.
Here's an example of a Thunder Productions tracks in 1974. They were established in 1974 and gone by mid-75. By that time, ABC had stopped paying royalties on the famous "77" logo on many tracks, including these one ... and others ... that allowed, for a time, Tanner to "imitate" ... until they sold the asset and moved back to Memphis ... bringing PAMS' Marv Shaw and Chris Kershaw with them. The W-A-B-C logo stayed, however.
http://www.musicradio77.com/jingles/thundan.wav
http://www.musicradio77.com/jingles/THUN_HH.WAV
http://www.musicradio77.com/jingles/THUN_BM.WAV
Union rules made a big difference. On the famous PAMS Series 26 ("Let's Go America - All American") series in 1963 ... AFTRA forbid Dallas singers to do jingles for on-air in New York ... so, Bill Meeks had that series sung in the Big Apple. A huge cost that was later rectified when the Dallas singers became unionized under AFTRA. There were 30 tracks in that package that also featured three different stations in separate demos. WABC, KFWB and, I believe, WKLO.
It was legendary because it was the end of "long" jingles on WABC. The "Let's Go America - All American" series was meant to be patriotic, but also to identify corporate owner ... the American Broadcasting Company.
The KEZY version, with "eleven-ninety" substituting for "seventy-seven" ("I'll take Manhattan") probably would have been in the late 60s - maybe 1970 at the latest. I don't know what company produced the jingle package - it was more in the late 60s vein - short, call-letters sung without long orchestrations - but it was quite slick...especially for a relatively small station in the LA market (Anaheim).
The "Mighty 11-90" used jingles from the Anita Kerr Singers from throughout the 60s, with an update in 1968, if memory serves correctly. They used a "unique" package from Kerr, along with some custom tracks at that time in the late 60s into the 70s.
Then hopped on the "shotgun" jingle bandwagon with jingles from TM in the early to mid-70s
KEZY was a PAMS client between the Anita Kerr and TM years.
This might bring back a memory ... from the 38 cut PAMS Series 17 ("New Frontier") for KEZY:
http://www.560.com/KEZY_1731.mp3
Then hopped on the "shotgun" jingle bandwagon with jingles from TM in the early to mid-70s
KEZY was a PAMS client between the Anita Kerr and TM years.
This might bring back a memory ... from the 38 cut PAMS Series 17 ("New Frontier") for KEZY:
http://www.560.com/KEZY_1731.mp3
I wonder if KEZY used the same Anita Kerr jingles that WLS used in the 60s?
They did ... one of the packages used was called "Personality." It was pretty strange, actually. Work Ms. Kerr did for KMPC and KFI was outstanding, but the later stuff like "Personality" that made it to WLS, KEZY and others was just not that great, in my opinion.
But, then, the classic Chuck Blore package with the fabulous "W-C-F-L ... Encore ... Encore" jingle was exceptional ... even for a Top 40 station, because of the versatility it had. Long and short cuts, strong instrumentation and, I believe, the best voices in the business ... with Hugh Heller, PAMS, TM and later offerings from many other companies not quite the class of the Johnny Mann jingles.
Whether with Blore, Larry Greene (The Metromedia Radio series for KLAC, WIP, WCBM, WASH-FM, etc.) or on his own, I'm still a big fan of that "sound" that Mr. Mann ... the former music director of "The Chipmunks" (he was, in fact, the voice of Theodore,) produced. The Anita Kerr material was lush and gorgeous, but more "musical" than "jingleish," I felt.
Gene Pauling's "Singers Unlimited" also did superb work on jingles for years and that sound is nothing but incredible, as well. TM would later sell that group on tracks produced in Los Angeles on the big soundstages. The voices were as "big" sounding as the full orchestra's used with those equally big Tom Merriman scores.
We lost one of the true titans of jingle production, session work ... and singing ... last Thursday with the passing of Jim West in Dallas. Jim came out of the Dallas jingle mills PAMS and TM to create his own work ... and legend ... under his own name for years. He will be missed. Jim was 84 at his passing.
But, then, the classic Chuck Blore package with the fabulous "W-C-F-L ... Encore ... Encore" jingle was exceptional ... even for a Top 40 station, because of the versatility it had. Long and short cuts, strong instrumentation and, I believe, the best voices in the business ... with Hugh Heller, PAMS, TM and later offerings from many other companies not quite the class of the Johnny Mann jingles.
Whether with Blore, Larry Greene (The Metromedia Radio series for KLAC, WIP, WCBM, WASH-FM, etc.) or on his own, I'm still a big fan of that "sound" that Mr. Mann ... the former music director of "The Chipmunks" (he was, in fact, the voice of Theodore,) produced. The Anita Kerr material was lush and gorgeous, but more "musical" than "jingleish," I felt.
Gene Pauling's "Singers Unlimited" also did superb work on jingles for years and that sound is nothing but incredible, as well. TM would later sell that group on tracks produced in Los Angeles on the big soundstages. The voices were as "big" sounding as the full orchestra's used with those equally big Tom Merriman scores.
We lost one of the true titans of jingle production, session work ... and singing ... last Thursday with the passing of Jim West in Dallas. Jim came out of the Dallas jingle mills PAMS and TM to create his own work ... and legend ... under his own name for years. He will be missed. Jim was 84 at his passing.
Lkeller said:If you ever visited New York in the 60s or 70s, you'll know the famous 77 WABC jingle - the notes for "77" borrowed from the song "Manhattan"...necessary royalties paid in that case, I'm sure.
The "Seventy-seven" from "I'll Take Manhattan" did require royalties to be paid, and PAMS paid them for WABC. However, the same music was used for "You're on 12-60" for KYA but PAMS never paid royalties on that use. So said Jonathan Wolfert of JAM/New PAMS sometime back.
In fact, many WABC jingle packages were reused for KYA. If there's nothing else people will remember about KYA it'll be their jingles.
Oh, and the reason that WABC got rid of the "Seventy-seven" jingles and PAMS was because they didn't want to keep paying royalties.
But then the "Music Radio" logo is also "I'll Take Manhattan" with a note missing and in a slightly different tempo. So, what determines when something infringes on copyrights?
oaktree said:They did ... one of the packages used was called "Personality." It was pretty strange, actually. Work Ms. Kerr did for KMPC and KFI was outstanding, but the later stuff like "Personality" that made it to WLS, KEZY and others was just not that great, in my opinion.
But, then, the classic Chuck Blore package with the fabulous "W-C-F-L ... Encore ... Encore" jingle was exceptional ... even for a Top 40 station, because of the versatility it had. Long and short cuts, strong instrumentation and, I believe, the best voices in the business ... with Hugh Heller, PAMS, TM and later offerings from many other companies not quite the class of the Johnny Mann jingles.
Whether with Blore, Larry Greene (The Metromedia Radio series for KLAC, WIP, WCBM, WASH-FM, etc.) or on his own, I'm still a big fan of that "sound" that Mr. Mann ... the former music director of "The Chipmunks" (he was, in fact, the voice of Theodore,) produced. The Anita Kerr material was lush and gorgeous, but more "musical" than "jingleish," I felt.
Gene Pauling's "Singers Unlimited" also did superb work on jingles for years and that sound is nothing but incredible, as well. TM would later sell that group on tracks produced in Los Angeles on the big soundstages. The voices were as "big" sounding as the full orchestra's used with those equally big Tom Merriman scores.
We lost one of the true titans of jingle production, session work ... and singing ... last Thursday with the passing of Jim West in Dallas. Jim came out of the Dallas jingle mills PAMS and TM to create his own work ... and legend ... under his own name for years. He will be missed. Jim was 84 at his passing.
WLS stopped using those personality jingles by 1968. They had been using Anita Kerr since 1960.
DavidKaye said:But then the "Music Radio" logo is also "I'll Take Manhattan" with a note missing and in a slightly different tempo. So, what determines when something infringes on copyrights?
If you're really lucky/unlucky, a jury ...
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