Here is a portion of the session take recorded during the 1969 Drake Chenault session that produced the famous Rum Pum jingles. Drake is heard coaching Hal Blain, member of the famous Los Angeles "wrecking crew".   The name was derived from Blain, and others, being called first for most of the hit song recording sessions

Here are selected cuts from the PAMS session for KYLE.  This will give you a feel for the vocal group of that era, as mixed in stereo.

Sit back and listen to the jingle sampler produced by jingle collector #1 - Fred Vobbe in Ohio.  This 1974 sampler will have your toes tapping to the sounds of Pepper-Tanner.

Phil Kelly was one of Dallas' writers who contributed to the work produced at PAMS, SPOT and others. He and Whitey Thomas were partners for a time, producing commercials.

This package was a follow up to a well-received custom produced for the station by Mel Torme. This package is custom in every sense of the word. There was nothing available at the time that approached this packages musical concepts.

Phil recalled some of the details of the package.

"It was recorded in Dallas at International Recording Inc. in the spring of either 1966 or 67.  I forget which, all on a 4 track 1/2" machine!"

"The group singers were Judy Parma, Jan and Clark Gassman, Larry Muhoberac, and Dick Cole. The girl soloist was Trella Hart (still in Dallas and working by the way) other than re-arranging the Torme song for Trella Hart, I wrote all the music, lyrics and arrangements for the package."

"The KSFO guys I worked with were PD Allan Newman and APD Pete Scott (who were both certifiably crazy, therefore open to all kinds of stuff you couldn't get away with on syndicated material). We also got a large amount of input from the on air crew at the time: Sherwood, McFarlin, Collins et al."

This is one of the best-written packages of the period. Kelly combined very memorable, catchy melodies and jazzy rhythms. Hope you enjoy this great "musical" jingle package.

Produced in Los Angeles and sung by "The Collection", this was the both the musical best of SPOT and the near the end of SPOT as a company.

Paris Rutherford created this package to fit the modern country format of Los Angeles broadcaster KFOX. The Collection was Dan Alexander, Brian Beck, Susan McKune, Jim Clancy and Glenni Tia.

The modern country tag for KFOX separated it from the more traditional country formats heard outside the larger metropolitan area of the United States. This trend had started in 1965 with WJJD in Chicago.

Cedar Rapids heard these on WMT. This package uses what is considered the standard Ross logo.

This package is here for two reasons:

First, it was very popular with stations. The Westinghouse Broadcasting group used this package as witnessed by the news intro at the top of the package that was used throughout the radio group.

Secondly, this is the CRC group with Jackie Dickson, Susan McKune, Charlie Thompson and Dick Cole. This group remained in place until 1963. This demonstration tape also contains the product of a New York session done for WMGM. The out takes of the New York session survives. It illuminates how different the vocal capabilities were between the two cities

This package is all about image. As the narration explains, the package sells the station to listeners.

Gordon McLendon played this demonstation for Bill Meeks and Tom Merriman. Peggy Johnson, then wife of Ginger Johnson, presented the tape in 1955 to McLendon in Dallas during a trip to visit her family who lived in the area. McLendon instructed Meeks and Merriman to make jingles like these for KLIF. Peggy later heard similar sounding jingles on KLIF that had not been produced by Johnson-Siday.

Tom Merriman's prolific output exceeded the sales and marketing capabilities of any single company. His habit of producing custom packages for individual stations gave way to his freelance production for STUDIO TEN, a marketing and sales office operated by former PEPPER TANNER sales executive Mike Eisler. TOM MERRIMAN PRODUCTIONS was the extension of the STUDIO TEN concept.  Tom once again found himself in business for himself. This is pre-TM PRODUCTIONS and Jim Long.

"New Generation" is the turning point for Tom Merriman. We hear the short half brass half acapellas jingle style for the first time. Another station to air "New Generation" was WKYC in Cleveland.

Pick your key and pick your tempo. The ultimate connector jingles. One the air the jingles sounded good. Merriman's instructions for matching records and jingles were simple to follow. But in use, the limited variations caused the jingles to burn out quickly.

One of the frustrations with reviewing Jingle Mills output for inclusion on the web site is selection the least irritating cuts. Sometimes even the warts have warts. Here can be heard cuts grouped by call letters and without a distinctive theme or organization by package. Some jingles are repeated with different call letters. Jingle Mill produced in New York City and was one of the least expensive jingle producers from which station could purchase.

Des Moines tolerated these jingles when KSO introduced Top 40.

This New York City based producer enjoyed station popularity after the close of CRC. Here, the basic vocal style of this five voice group is heard in the acapella package for Nashville's WMAK.

The WABC logo is used note for note is a package which followed the lead of TM's Charisma package: using hit song styles on jingles. Like PAMS and TM, Atwood Richards had their own musical sound and vocal style. The rock and roll/ rhythm and blues style of the instrumental backgrounds makes this a stand out from the other jingles coming out of Dallas and Los Angeles at this time.

TOTAL SOUND "MOOGOLOGO" Demo WNOX/WIRL 1970 (added 10/24/2004)

Moog plus vocals equal MoogoLogos. TOTAL SOUND produced demos that featured the vocal group and Moog. The vocal group is the group used on most of TOTAL SOUND packages; Judy Parma, Clark Womack, Bob Biegler, Libba Weeks, Brian Beck and Charlie Thompson.

FUTURSONIC "Pacemaker Demo" 1958 (added 10/24/2004)

With no station contracts, no studio and no vocal group, Jim Wells, along with Jack Alexander and Chester McKown quit PAMS and went to Hot Springs, Arkansas to write "Pacemaker".

FUTURESONIC "Swinging Sound" Demo (added 10/24/2004)

CRC Series #2 1956 "Dallas at Dusk" (added 11/07/2004)

Dick Cole is heard on this cut produced in 1956. This is but one of several jingles in the quite lengthy package which can be traced back to the Johnson-Siday WFBR package.

CRC Series #11 "Radiant Radio" KSO 1960 (added 11/07/2004)

This is the classic Tom Merriman style of writing and CRC's vocal group at its peak. Dick Cole and Susan McKune are clearly heard.

CRC Series #25 "Big Band Bit" 1962 (added 11/07/2004)

Two things make this jingle package important: it was written and produced by Quincy Jones in New York City and WKNR Detroit used these to introduce their new call letters after dropping the use of WKMH.  

There were lots of  "Big Band Bits" sold but the vocals on this version are by far the best. This jingle package was "cool" before the word meant something other than the temperature. Like all great music, this package lived on after the death of CRC in TM's production libraries.  

Jackie Dickson (Mrs. Tom Merriman) is heard singing lead.

CRC/Tom Merriman Percussion Series 1961 (added 11/07/2004)

This is a custom package produced by Tom Merriman at CRC is 1961. The station, WHHB, was attempting to compete against the dominant RKO owned WHBQ and John Pepper's WDIA. Is this a CRC series or a Tom Merriman custom? The master tapes and all of the session takes were in Tom Merriman's possession. The cut sheets all say CRC.

IMN "Golden Era" A 1957 (added 11/08/2004)

Boise Idaho was the last place you would expect radio jingles to be produced. But here is the proof. "Golden Era" was so popular, that 2 follow up versions were created and a cover version by ROY ROSS were produced.

Maji Kinder, the lead singer and wife of package creator Rod Kinder reports:

"One thing interesting about the GE (Golden Era) Series was the fact that 20 and 30 years after we produced the package, we kept getting calls from people who wanted to know how they could get it.  We had to tell them that the cost of the rights to the songs would be prohibitive and they could never be produced again."

QUALITY JINGLE COMPANY  "$19.95 Jingle Package" Demo KTOI 1958 (added 11/08/2004)

Here is the bargain jingle package of all time, affordable by any broadcaster. For $19.95 stations could have the entire package sung with their call letters. There never was a KTOI in Chicago, or anywhere else at the time.

Cuts by QUALITY JINGLES can be heard on air checks of WQAM from around 1958.

Little is known about the company other thank it was based in Fort Worth and operated by Jerry Freeman.

QUALITY JINGLE COMPANY  "$19.95 Jingle Package" KNIA (added 11/08/2004)

This is the bargain jingle package offered by Fort Worth producer QUALITY JINGLES. KNIA is in Knoxville, Iowa.

ROY ROSS "WABC" Demo 1960 (added 11/09/2004)

Roy Ross produced these in New York. Ross had been the music director at WMGM. His work is musically complex and the vocals are in what could be called a "Broadway Chorus" style.

ROY ROSS WHUT 1961 (added 11/09/2004)

"The Heart of Hoosier Land"? We hear the standard Ross logo. WHUT was a Top 40 station but the jingles are not. Like other Ross packages, this is beautifully recorded and sung.

ROY ROSS WKBW 1960 (added 11/09/2004)

This package was on the air on scores of stations. The sound alikes of the big band hits makes this package easily confused with the IMN "Golden Era" package. This package features solo vocals over group vocals and does not use the "Ross" logo.

CRC Series #9 WDGY "The Might One" 1959 (added 11/13/2004)

Is that Tom Merriman singing baritone in the group? It is not hard to hear all that CRC had to offer: great vocals, great arrangements and great playing. Bob Farrar's hand is heard in this package when listened against later CRC output such as CRC Series #11.

This package is one heard here for Storz WDGY. The package was originally produced for KOL Seattle. It fell neatly between the popular CRC Series #8 "Wonderful" and CRC #11 "Radiant". Those 2 jingle monsters overshadowed this well crafted package.

CRC Series #11 "Radiant Radio" KSO 1960 (added 11/13/2004)

This is the classic Tom Merriman style of writing and CRC's vocal group at its peak. Dick Cole and Susan McKune are clearly heard.

Tony Griffin Productions - Super Hits "Coast To Coast" Sampler (added 01/03/2005)

Joe Meyers of WMJL Radio created this sampler of Super Hits cuts.  While a little more contemporary than most of the exhibits here, it still rocks!

Revised 03-MAY-2008