Hootie Sings For Burger King

Jahfin · Post by **Jahfin** » March 15, 2005 12:31 pm

By Bob Lefsetz

Cadillac owns "Rock and Roll".

So I'm doing my back exercises on the floor of my hotel room in
Toronto, listening to my tunes blasted through my inMotion, and the
classic Led Zeppelin song starts coming out of the speakers. I had
to JUMP UP and push the button on the iPod to hear a different track.

God, there was a time in the fall of '69 when I couldn't listen to
"Whole Lotta Love", having been subjected to it EVERYWHERE, on the
radio, the school lunchroom, friends' HOUSES, CONSTANTLY!

But it's been a mighty long time since I've found a Zeppelin track
too much to listen to, a TURN-OFF instead of a TURN-ON!

But "Rock and Roll" is finished for me. As soon as I heard that
intro all I could see in my mind's eye was a f**** Cadillac.

Give GM credit. They pulled the wool over Jimmy Page's eyes. For
$10 million, Jimmy gave up ownership of his song FOREVER! "Rock and
Roll"'s not a Zeppelin track anymore, not something meaningful that
reminds you that society is f**** and the only true religion is
rock and roll, now it's a SELL-OUT,
SUBSIDIARY to a piece of iron that's not even cool. I mean it's bad
enough that U2 made a deal with Apple, but at least the iPod is COOL!

What we've got here is what KILLED music.

Hasn't anybody noticed that video KILLED music? That once they
started putting IMAGES to songs bands stopped having careers, and
music started becoming IRRELEVANT?? To the point where MTV and VH1
barely PLAY any music anymore. It leaves a bad taste in the
audience's mouth. Music... Isn't that that art
form where good-looking people do ANYTHING to make a buck??

Justin Timberlake is one thing. But LED ZEPPELIN???

I doubt Jimmy Page is a connoisseur of American TV advertising.
Hell, he probably never even SEES the Cadillac commercials, since
you can't give away these piece of s*** cars in the U.K., where most
of the TV doesn't even have advertising ANYWAY!

But some pricks convinced him. It was easy money. There was no
DOWNSIDE!

Who decided this? Who decided that by cheapening the music by tying
it to commercials there was only a positive effect?

God, my inbox has been OVERFLOWING with negative feedback about the
Kings Of Leon spread in "Rolling Stone".

Have you seen it? The supposedly new great white hope rock band, an
act you can BELIEVE IN, is featured in a FASHION SPREAD! With
models and credits on who manufactured the clothes. Last I checked,
music was something you HEARD! You didn't SEE it AT ALL! How in
the HELL can having your band featured in a FASHION SPREAD help them?

Oh, it's EXPOSURE!!

God is music a second class citizen. In the MOVIE business,
publicists DEFINE THE TERMS of stories. But in the MUSIC business,
publicists will take ANYTHING! Will have their charges do ANYTHING
for some ink. I mean can't you have some RESPECT??? I mean who the
***** can respect these actors. They're INHERENTLY playing a role.
But music is supposed to come from the HEART! Did the
Kings Of Leon have a dream where they believed their destiny was to
be FASHION MODELS? That there was a big artistic statement in
this? That it had MEANING? Or was it just that EVERYBODY advising
them said THIS WAS A GOOD THING TO DO!

The f**** label reps don't care. Hell, RCA is headed up by
Clive. He believes whoring the act out is part of the FORMULA!
Hell, he's OUTLASTED all the acts. He's worried about HIS career,
not the act's.

I mean can't anybody say NO??

You sell a few records today, and you can't sell any records
tomorrow. You should read my e-mail. People are canceling their
subscriptions to ROLLING STONE!

But the feedback with regard to the Kings Of Leon is DWARFED by the
amount of bile focused on Darius Rucker, aka Hootie.

Have you seen this Burger King ad?

Really, it's surrealistic. You think it's an SNL routine. They
must have HYPNOTIZED Hootie to do this. God, instead of getting
PAID, after seeing the edit he should have collected all his cash to
PREVENT ITS AIRING! This is the Billy Squier pink video. In one
fell swoop, Darius Rucker has COMPLETELY TRASHED HIS CAREER! He's
DONE!

Oh, you might think he was done anyway.

Then again, didn't overexposure on MTV kill him to begin with?

Or maybe Darius wasn't hypnotized. Maybe all his handlers convinced
him it was a good idea because...they wanted their PERCENTAGE! It's
the f**** fifties/early sixties ALL OVER AGAIN! The artist gets
f**** in the ass over and over and over again. I mean what kind of
sick, f**** up world IS IT where musically ignorant pricks like
Andy Lack even get a SAY? Where people like the aforementioned
Clive dictate to the acts? Everything artists fought for in the
sixties and seventies has been taken back by the labels. Now the
LABELS dictate the terms. Hell, the acts USED to record whatever
they wanted, had whatever they wanted on the cover and the label was
FORCED to release the product.
Yup, in the seventies the contracts ENFORCED release. NOW, there's
a PLETHORA of acts that have made records that their companies won't
put out, deeming them UNCOMMERCIAL. FURTHERMORE, these same
companies won't release the acts from their contracts. They just
want them to deliver what THEY want. More commercial product. But
who really knows music, the people who LISTEN TO IT, or the people
who MAKE IT! How about Mercury insisting John Cougar
Mellencamp re-record "American Fool", but eventually caving and
having it sell MILLIONS OF COPIES AND BREAKING THE IMP!

That's what the revolution is about. Empowering the artist.
Eliminating the middlemen between him and the fan.

The sixties and seventies taught us that money comes AFTER the
fact. That if you're true to yourself, and make great art, money
RAINS DOWN!

Now money is the primary focus. And nobody new has a career. And
the business is sustained by all the OLD ACTS! Yup, thirty year old
acts dominate the top-grossers. Ever wonder WHY?

I say let's take music back.

And I'll also say you're either for us or against us. Either you're
FOR enabling the artist to express himself, or you're interested in
lining your own pockets.

(To see the Hootie video go to:
mms://od-msn.msn.com/22/mbr/a_050220_bk_promo.wmv)

My reply? Two words - Peter Grant

Parrot Monkey · Post by **Parrot Monkey** » March 15, 2005 1:10 pm

Yes, a car ad is probably the worst thing that could possibly happen to a song.

"Dream on, Dream on..." OMG, that song needs to die.

pbans · Post by **pbans** » March 15, 2005 2:18 pm

Parrot Monkey wrote:Yes, a car ad is probably the worst thing that could possibly happen to a song.

"Dream on, Dream on..." OMG, that song needs to die.

And a Burger King commericial is the worst thing that can happen to a singer.....I CRINGE every time it comes on.....it's just wrong.

PA PAR8 HED · Post by **PA PAR8 HED** » March 15, 2005 2:23 pm

Maybe Hootie just wanted to have Brooke Burke in video, and this was the only way

I must say, this is nothing new. I think the worst was when James Brown's classic "I Feel Good" was used in a laxative commercial.

Music's greatest strength from a marketing perspective is what can kill it from a fan's perspective. The right song can evoke fond memories, good feelings and positive associations - a marketer's dream.

After all, while Margaritaville was supposed to be a place in our minds, they certainly take credit cards!

a1aara · Post by **a1aara** » March 15, 2005 2:37 pm

Has anyone seen the comercial for Fifth Third Bank? It has that lame ass Wayne Brady singing "Shout". Hopefully that will kill whats left of his career.

IsleReef · Post by **IsleReef** » March 15, 2005 2:58 pm

Jimmy Buffett years ago wrote and sang the jingle song for Corona Beer.............

Blonde Stranger · Post by **Blonde Stranger** » March 15, 2005 5:30 pm

"I Just Want to Celebrate" was one of my all time favorites from my college days, then Toyota or whatever car company went and f**** it all up. Same with Iggy Pop's "Lust for Life".

Ilph · Post by **Ilph** » March 15, 2005 6:17 pm

A couple points on this one.

1) The Burger King commercial is horrible. No way around that. I honestly laugh everytime I see it because my roommate swears up and down that Hootie and the Blowfish are the best band EVER (yes, better than the Beatles, Stones, etc.) So I get a good chuckle out of the commercial at his expense.

2) Does anyone else remember the commercial from a few years ago where some big corporation is trying to buy song rights from a fictitious classic rock group so they can play their song while their customers are on hold? This article reminded me of that.

3) Damn you Jah, for putting the link to that horrid video in there. Stop the humanity!!!!!

Ilph · Post by **Ilph** » March 15, 2005 6:18 pm

IsleReef wrote:Jimmy Buffett years ago wrote and sang the jingle song for Corona Beer.............

Wasn't it an original song for Corona though? I think that's a lot different than Lynard Skinnard selling rights to Busch.

Jahfin · Post by **Jahfin** » March 15, 2005 6:54 pm

I may very well be mistaken but I thought Buffett composed an original song for Miller at one time and may have even performed it in concert a time or two.

Key Lime Lee · Post by **Key Lime Lee** » March 15, 2005 9:31 pm

For $10 million, they can have any song of mine they want....

Really, an artist "sells out" the moment they sign a record contract and engage in the business of selling their music. Are selling band tee shirts any different than taking money for a commercial? Kind of lame to criticize them for some forms of commerce but not others.

Ilph · Post by **Ilph** » March 16, 2005 7:37 am

Key Lime Lee wrote:For $10 million, they can have any song of mine they want....

Really, an artist "sells out" the moment they sign a record contract and engage in the business of selling their music. Are selling band tee shirts any different than taking money for a commercial? Kind of lame to criticize them for some forms of commerce but not others.

Some forms are lamer than others. By signing a record contract, they might be selling out to an extent, but the payoff is getting their music to a wider audience.

PalmettoSon · Post by **PalmettoSon** » March 16, 2005 8:32 am

Ilph wrote:
IsleReef wrote:Jimmy Buffett years ago wrote and sang the jingle song for Corona Beer.............
Wasn't it an original song for Corona though? I think that's a lot different than Lynard Skinnard selling rights to Busch.

Lynyrd Skynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama is now being used by KFC as well, but at least with Skynyrd, fried chicken and cheap beer go along with that whole good ol' boy image that they have cultivated since day one. My step mother went to high school with these guys, and she says they haven't really changed much. When they licensed Gimme Three Steps to Procter & Gamble for a soap called Sprirt, that seemed a little weird. At least P&G changed the words and had somebody else sing it. Surely you remember, "Gimme three soaps, gimme three soap Spirit..."

diamonddan · Post by **diamonddan** » March 16, 2005 9:39 am

Maybe, Darius thought the idea was so goofy, he'd do it for laughs.

That new Burger King dude is just weird.

Blonde Stranger · Post by **Blonde Stranger** » March 16, 2005 9:41 am

Key Lime Lee wrote:For $10 million, they can have any song of mine they want....

Really, an artist "sells out" the moment they sign a record contract and engage in the business of selling their music. Are selling band tee shirts any different than taking money for a commercial? Kind of lame to criticize them for some forms of commerce but not others.

I'm not bitching about the artists selling out, I'm bitching about not being able to enjoy a song I like without the now-indelibly-attached commercial running through my head.

Jahfin · Post by **Jahfin** » March 16, 2005 10:21 am

Has anyone here seen the rock documentary Festival Express or the the portion of Gimme Shelter (or Monterey Pop, I forget which) when the Grateful Dead is about to take the stage amid fans hollering that they should be performing for free? It seemed to be a weird time when 60s hippie ethics were still very vital but the bands (the Grateful Dead in this instance) also had to put food on the table. To me, "selling out" is when a band radically alters their sound in order to sell more records. I don't see Darius' participation in the Burger King commercial as such a move. If anything it will open them up to even more ridicule. That he's good natured enough to risk what's left of their career says he's pretty lighthearted about it. That's my take on it anyway.

PalmettoSon · Post by **PalmettoSon** » March 16, 2005 11:46 am

Jahfin wrote:Has anyone here seen the rock documentary Festival Express or the the portion of Gimme Shelter (or Monterey Pop, I forget which) when the Grateful Dead is about to take the stage amid fans hollering that they should be performing for free? It seemed to be a weird time when 60s hippie ethics were still very vital but the bands (the Grateful Dead in this instance) also had to put food on the table. To me, "selling out" is when a band radically alters their sound in order to sell more records. I don't see Darius' participation in the Burger King commercial as such a move. If anything it will open them up to even more ridicule. That he's good natured enough to risk what's left of their career says he's pretty lighthearted about it. That's my take on it anyway.

I like that way of looking at it. My step-father occassionally plays golf with Darius (who has only within the last few years come to terms with being called Hootie, the real Hootie was a bespectacled college friend of the band's) and I hope to get a straight answer from Rucker himself on what he was thinking. Until then, I'll stick with this viewpoint.

phjrsaunt · Post by **phjrsaunt** » March 16, 2005 11:46 am

That Burker King commercial is just plain scary!