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I'm not sure exactly who to credit but someone with a deep understanding of music is republishing old Billboard magazine advertisements in a Tumblr blog called Billboarding Party. And it's a blast.
What I like about Billboarding Party is it's like an old FM station: no format, you'll never know what's around the corner. One post might be for a rock artist, followed by a country act, then an R&B performer and a lounge singer. It's eclectic in a good way.
I singled out just three ads here:
A simple Percy Sledge spot from 1966 that features a nice cutout image of the singer and touting "another million seller" in "Warm and Tender Love."- A text-heavy 1975 Atco ad explaining the controversy behind Roxy Music's controversial "Country Life"
cover, which was banned in some countries because it featured two women in various states of undress. Atco, tongue in cheek in this ad, explains why it was selling two versions of the album cover in the States: One with the women completely removed and one with the original sleeve wrapped in green shrinkwrap. By the time I discovered Roxy a few years later, the green shrinkwrap was long gone, and I was left with the choice of only the censored cover. Being both a purist and prurient, I remember shelling out extra to buy the import version of the record, with its "classic" sleeve. I still have it.
- A simple 1978 note of condolence from Columbia Records to mark the passing of Chicago guitarist Terry Kath. Kath was an unbelievable guitarist -- tell me the solo on the album version of "25 or 6 to 4" isn't among the greatest ever -- but his wild side proved to be too much and he accidentally shot himself. This ad is simple, and uses "white space" to great effect.
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Billboarding Party features many more. Check out the Tom Jones ad for "She's a Lady," Rick Springfield, The Kinks, Johnny Cash, BeeGees and many more.