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November 9, 2022 11:29 am  #1


To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

That is the question, as far as one radio expert is concerned. I happen to like a lot of jingles in a Top 40 format, but this veteran warns not to have too much of a good thing - and be sure the jingles fit the overall sound of the station. 

To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

 

November 9, 2022 11:43 am  #2


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

...and then there's the cookie cutter jingles. 
 


RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person. 
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.

 
 

November 9, 2022 8:06 pm  #3


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

The only place where traditional full jingles can work is Classic Hits, where the audience was used to them. Locally, Boom doesn't use them though.

For CHR, a quick sung audio signature (This...is...KiSS) can work so long as it's produced in the same style as current music. If anything else is sung, it comes off as super-cheezy, no matter how modern the production.

 

November 10, 2022 8:24 am  #4


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

PAMs was the preeminent jingle company. Here's a series of CHUM breaks:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRniqCehUh0
The did the iconic, drawn out  "double......you....ell....ess"  heard on Dick Biondi's night show. Although based in Dallas, PAMS even did jingles in French for the Radio Mutuel stations.
Perhaps a lot of PDs today would consider them time wasters, as some were quite long. But they were part of the station's identity, and the rhythm of the sound.
 

 

November 10, 2022 9:50 am  #5


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

I agree and they had the added bonus of being exclusive to one station in a market. Plus, they were repeated more frequently than most of the songs on the playlist. To this day, those CHUM PAMS jingles are as much a part of my musical memories as the hits themselves. 

But they're not for every format. They fit perfectly into the oldies category. Would they work on whatever Virgin 99.9 is today? I'm not so sure. 

In the end, jingles on the radio are like salt in a recipe. Too much and it's inedible. But just right and it really adds to the flavour. 

(By the way, I've pointed this out before, but there's a 24/7 commercial free Internet station called "Planet Oldies," that plays exactly what its name implies. The difference between it and every other online oldies station is that they also play a PAMS or JAMS jingle between each and every song from a famous Top 40 radio station, including WABC, WLS and WGAR and WNBC. It's great to hear them again and it makes the station stand out from the others.)

     Thread Starter
 

November 10, 2022 10:56 am  #6


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

Personally, I preferred the Johnny Mann Singer jingles done for CHUM and CKLW. To me, the PAMS jingles were long winded and boring.

 

November 10, 2022 11:10 am  #7


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

Jingles in radio come and go to a certain extent and depending on the format.  Even 1050 CHUM went through a stage around late '79 to maybe 1982 when they didn't play any jingles.  Stations like Virgin, CHUM FM, even CFNY have had jingles on and off.  Virgin Radio here in Kitchener uses jingles.  Our other CHR station 91.5 The Beat is heavy with jingles and they sound decent.   CHFI has been consistent with them.  BOOM used jingles maybe 12 years ago but as I recall they weren't that great or memorable.   

Country radio is usually jingle crazy and often with a top 40 or contemporary sound.  Over in Europe jingles on music stations are all over the place.  The largest and most successful jingle companies in the world are now mostly based in Europe. BBC Radio 1 and 2 are a bit of a legend for their use of thematic music and jingles. 

 

Last edited by paterson1 (November 10, 2022 11:43 am)

 

November 10, 2022 5:03 pm  #8


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

CHUM FM and other 'Underground' FM's in Canada early on considered themselves 'too hip' for jingles...nor did they have produced spoken word IDs for many years.  It was all done live.  Eventually CHUM FM DID have jingles.   One set was produced in Vancouver by Griffiths, Gibson, Ramsay Productions.  JAM did at least one set for CHUM FM as did ReelWorld in Seattle. Personally, radio stations jingles were as exciting to me as a kid as the DJs and the music.    

 

November 12, 2022 1:51 am  #9


Re: To Jingle Or Not To Jingle?

ReelWorld is the cream of the crop today.