Gettin' commercial (get in the commercial)

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I know that there's been a lot of talk here and there about bands whose music has appeared in commercials, which consequently results in that band's music appearing in more ears than it ever would have otherwise. But that's not what this question is about.

Last night I saw a Taco Bell commercial that used a Man or Astroman? track (not sure which one off the top of my head). What other semi-obscure bands have you been surprised to see in a commercial? What commercials feature music that you think you recognize, but can't place? Comment or ask here.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Thursday, 16 January 2003 21:12 (twenty-three years ago)

I remember adcritic.com used to have a number of commercials with info about who performed the music within; is anyone else keeping an ongoing list of music in commercials?

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Thursday, 16 January 2003 21:15 (twenty-three years ago)

http://www.songtitle.info/

― insectifly (insectifly), Thursday, 16 January 2003 21:17 (twenty-three years ago)

There was a commercial for the Nissan 350Z before it was actually "unveiled" that sounded eerily like a Michael Hedges piece, but it turns out it was a commissioned recording by the ad firm from some music thinktank in NYC.

― paul cox (paul cox), Thursday, 16 January 2003 21:19 (twenty-three years ago)

there was a snippet from one of the tracks on jim o'rourke's bad timing used in a phildaelphia gas and electric commercial. anotehr surprise was tortoise "tin cans and twine" in a calvin klein ad...

― marcg (marcg), Thursday, 16 January 2003 21:36 (twenty-three years ago)

I was pretty surprised to hear the Swell Maps in that one car ad.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 16 January 2003 22:00 (twenty-three years ago)

A section from O'Rourke's Eureka was used in an Embassy Suites hotel ad, too.

― hstencil, Thursday, 16 January 2003 22:13 (twenty-three years ago)

the walkmen - we've been had just popped up in a saturn commercial

― chimmy, Thursday, 16 January 2003 22:36 (twenty-three years ago)

an old nissan commercial used minutemen's "love dance"

― brains (cerybut), Thursday, 16 January 2003 23:24 (twenty-three years ago)

Durutti Column in an ad for Pac Bell was sort of strange.

― JasonT., Friday, 17 January 2003 00:44 (twenty-three years ago)

I'm with Alex in NYC. Once I heard an out-of-print Swell Maps song, I just knew anything was possible.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Friday, 17 January 2003 01:27 (twenty-three years ago)

There was a Nico song, These Days, used for a commercial in Canada.. but I don't know what it was hawking.

― Alexis, Friday, 17 January 2003 02:27 (twenty-three years ago)

if i had seen that ad, i would have had some extremely viol^H^H^H^Hharsh words with the advertiser..

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Friday, 17 January 2003 02:29 (twenty-three years ago)

I was floored to hear the Monks in a Mountain Dew ad.

― Chris Barrus (xibalba), Friday, 17 January 2003 02:32 (twenty-three years ago)

Interpol was in some commercial. But the real winner for me is still the use of 'No UFOs' by Juan Atkins backing a Ford Focus commercial.

― Tom Millar (Millar), Friday, 17 January 2003 03:10 (twenty-three years ago)

Toby Keith is a 1-800-Blow-my-nose ad or something. I thought he was just in it for the whooping of non-American ass, but I guess he likes money too.
Fucking sell out. I'm gonna burn my Toby Keith 7"s

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 17 January 2003 03:14 (twenty-three years ago)

There was a Nico song, These Days, used for a commercial in Canada.. but I don't know what it was hawking.
Heh, I think this is pretty common...you remember the song or maybe what happens in the commercial, but not what it was for. I guess that could be considered poetic justice.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Friday, 17 January 2003 14:45 (twenty-three years ago)

Hey, do you Americans know that the Bank of Montreal used "Blowin' in the Wind" in a tv campaign?
How do you like your Boomer Jesus now?

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:06 (twenty-three years ago)

The Nico song was used in the series of K-Mart commercials directed by Spike Lee.

K-Mart + Nico + Spike Lee = wha?

― paul cox (paul cox), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:10 (twenty-three years ago)

The La's in a Levi's ad (which had Astin Kutcher) was sad just cuz it meant more money to Lee Mavers and less likelihood he'd have to ever record something new.

― Aaron W (Aaron W), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:20 (twenty-three years ago)

I think that was a Gap ad. But yeah, jeans.

― paul cox (paul cox), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:22 (twenty-three years ago)

the beginning of evil eye on a nissan suv ad

― jack, Friday, 17 January 2003 15:43 (twenty-three years ago)

I think I just saw a shoe commercial with Nelly in it.

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:50 (twenty-three years ago)

No, that was the video for "Air Force Ones".

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:55 (twenty-three years ago)

Oh, yeah, another thing I just remembered: "Lust For Life" in a commercial for a cruise line. I still like the song, but after being used for so many different products (cars, beer, etc) it may actually be beyond liberation.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Friday, 17 January 2003 15:57 (twenty-three years ago)

How come they don't use the line "Beating my head with liquor and drugs" in the Cruise ship commercial?

Or are 70s rocker types now golden aged enough to be prime cruisers?

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 17 January 2003 16:01 (twenty-three years ago)

I still think it's hilarious that a song about heroin can be so universally applied.

Same for the La's "There She Goes," not only used to hock denim at the Gap, but also covered by Christian crossovers Sixpence None the Richer.

― paul cox (paul cox), Friday, 17 January 2003 16:02 (twenty-three years ago)

Was it the Sixpence version that appears in the Special K commercial?

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Friday, 17 January 2003 16:04 (twenty-three years ago)

There are a lot of Severed Heads songs that should be used in commercials.

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 17 January 2003 16:09 (twenty-three years ago)

a suicide track from their basement tapes record was used in a car advert, i think it may have been 'space blue' but they all sound the same anyway

― gi66y, Friday, 17 January 2003 16:13 (twenty-three years ago)

I think that was a Gap ad. But yeah, jeans.

Thanks Paul... yeah it was the Gape.

― Aaron W (Aaron W), Friday, 17 January 2003 16:13 (twenty-three years ago)

''A section from O'Rourke's Eureka was used in an Embassy Suites hotel ad, too.''

his cover of the bacharach track was used in a commercial here in the UK for british gas (i think).

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Saturday, 18 January 2003 15:53 (twenty-three years ago)

i heard that pole were in a levi's ad,which seemed fairly surprising...
there was a terrible version of i'm sticking with you,one of my favourite velvet underground tracks,in an ad recently as well...

― robin (robin), Saturday, 18 January 2003 16:45 (twenty-three years ago)

I saw Iggy's "Wild One" used in an FTD ad the other day - I mean, flowers! It was odd.

― Kim (Kim), Saturday, 18 January 2003 19:19 (twenty-three years ago)

Moby to thread, obv.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2501964961

― Sean (Sean), Saturday, 18 January 2003 19:39 (twenty-three years ago)

Hurm. Nobody's mentioned the Flying Saucer Attack used in the Saturn commercial? The name's not coming to mind, but i'm pretty sure the track was off of _Distance_, the first singles comp.

Glad to hear the Monks are able to cash in a bit. Same for Ig, though "Lust for Life" is being run right into the dirt.

Now if only Spacemen 3's "Revolution" had gotten used as the intro music to MTV news (as legend states was >< this close to happening.)

-Matt, still waiting to hear GYBE used to advertise GE or some other corporate octopus...

― Matt Maxwell (Matt M.), Saturday, 18 January 2003 22:47 (twenty-three years ago)

I was delighted to see 'Touch sensitive' in some recent car ad or other. It means that lovely old Mark can be kept in whiskey through winter without having to resort to yet another fuckawful tour.

― Ian SPACK (Ian SPACK), Sunday, 19 January 2003 17:17 (twenty-three years ago)

Faust's "C Pluus" (or whatever it's called) for Humana, Inc., a local managed health care provider. "Venus in Furs" used in a tire commercial; Perelli, I think. Oval used in either a makeup or perfume commercial, can't remember.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Sunday, 19 January 2003 18:10 (twenty-three years ago)

Cat Power pops up on MTV a lot...

― jm (jtm), Sunday, 19 January 2003 18:23 (twenty-three years ago)

DOH, just saw that Taco Hell commercial again, but just directly preceding it was a commercial for Hyundai Accent with Tones on Tail's "GO!" in it. Doh!

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Tuesday, 28 January 2003 03:39 (twenty-three years ago)

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