I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)
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| "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Single by The New Seekers | ||
| Released | 1971 | |
| Writer(s) | Roger Cook, Roger Greenaway, Bill Backer and Billy Davis | |
| Producer | David Mackay | |
"I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" is a pop song which originated as a jingle in the groundbreaking 1971 "Hilltop" television commercial for Coca-Cola. The song, produced by Billy Davis and performed by The New Seekers, portrayed a positive message of hope and love sung by a multicultural collection of teenagers on the top of a hill. It originally included line "I'd like to buy the world a Coke" and repeated "It's the real thing" as Coca-Cola's marketing theme at the time. It was so popular it was re-recorded by The New Seekers and The Hillside Singers as a full-length song, dropping references to Coca-Cola, and became a hit record. The version by The New Seekers reached #7 in the United States. The Hillside Singers' version was released as a successful single the same year; it reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart.
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[edit] Origins
The idea originally came to an advertising executive named Bill Backer, who was working for McCann-Erickson — the agency responsible for Coca-Cola. Backer, Roger Cook and Billy Davis were delayed at Shannon Airport in Ireland. After a forced layover with many hot tempers, they noticed their fellow travelers the next morning were talking and joking while drinking Coca-Cola. Backer wrote the line "I'd like to buy the world a Coke" on a napkin and shared it with British hit songwriters Cook and Roger Greenaway. The melody was based on a jingle by Cook and Greenway originally called "Mom, True Love and Apple Pie",[1] a version of this was recorded by Susan Shirley and released in 1971. After a lawsuit the song was reworked by Cook, Greenaway, Backer, and Billy Davis and recorded as a Coca-Cola radio commercial.
[edit] TV commercial
It was first aired on American radio on February 12, 1971, but failed. Although many radio stations refused to play it, Backer persuaded McCann-Erickson to film a commercial using the song.[1] The TV commercial, entitled "Hilltop", was directed by Haskell Wexler.[2] The first attempt at shooting was ruined by rain and other location problems. The eventual total cost of the commercial was $250,000 — an unheard of price in 1971 for an advertisement.[1] The finished product, first aired in July 1971, featured a multicultural group of young people lip syncing the song on a hill outside Rome, Italy. Radio stations began to get calls from people who liked it and Billy Davis' friends in radio suggested he record the song, but not as an advertising jingle.[2] It became so popular that the song was rewritten without brand name references, and expanded to three verses. Davis recruited a group of studio singers to take it on because The New Seekers did not have time to record it. The studio group named themselves The Hillside Singers to identify with the ad, and within two weeks the song was on the national charts. The New Seekers found time to do it, however,[1] and sold 96,000 copies of their record in one day, eventually selling 12 million total. It shot lead singer Eve Graham and the other members of The New Seekers to superstardom.[3] "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony)" climbed to UK #1 and US #7 in 1971 and 1972. The Coca-Cola Company waived royalties to the song and instead donated $80,000 in payments to UNICEF.[1]
In 2007, Campaign magazine called it "one of the best-loved and most influential ads in TV history",[4] serving as a milestone to be the first instance of the recording industry's involvement with advertising.[5] Marketing analysts have noted Coca-Cola's strategy of marrying the idea of happiness and universal love of the product illustrated by the song.[6][7]
In 1990, a follow-up to this commercial, called "Hilltop Reunion", aired during coverage of Super Bowl XXIV featuring the singers and their children, and culminating in a medley of this song and the then-current "Can't Beat the Real Thing" jingle.
In 2006 the song was used again in the Coca-Cola commercial at least in the Netherlands. The song is covered by the Dutch singer Berget Lewis. Remix prduce by Massive music team: DvM, Roy shen-Zoor And Aux. was present 13, in the Top 40, The Netherlands.
British band Oasis were sued after their recording "Shakermaker" borrowed its melody and some lyrics directly; they were forced to change their composition.[8]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" - The Hilltop Story, The Coca-Cola Company (2006). Retrieved on May 4, 2009.
- ^ a b The "Hilltop" Ad: The Story of a Commercial, Library of Congress. Retrieved on May 4, 2009.
- ^ Culley, Maureen (March 22, 2008). "I've Finished Teaching the World to Sing", Daily Mail (London), p. 18.
- ^ Hamilton, James and Tylee, John (May 18, 2007). "Ten ads that changed advertising", Campaign, p. 20.
- ^ "All about ... Advertiser-funded music", Campaign, (February 8, 2008), p. 15.
- ^ Gieryn, Thomas F. (Spring 1987). "Science and Coca-Cola", Science & Technology Studies, 5 (1) p. 12-31.
- ^ Holbrook, Morris (July 1987). "Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall, What's Unfair in the Reflections on Advertising?" The Journal of Marketing, 51 (3), p. 95-103.
- ^ Mundy, Chris (May 2, 1996). "Ruling Asses: Oasis", Rolling Stone, p. 32-35, 68.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by "Ernie (The Fastest Milkman In The West)" by Benny Hill |
UK number one single January 8, 1972 for four weeks |
Succeeded by "Telegram Sam" by T Rex |
| Preceded by "Chiisana Koi" by Mari Amachi |
Japan Oricon singles chart number one single April 10, 1972 |
Succeeded by "Yoake no Teishaba" by Shoji Ishibashi |
| Preceded by " Slaney Valley" by Larry Cunningham |
Irish Singles Chart number-one single January 8, 1972 - January 15, 1972 |
Succeeded by "Men Behind The Wire" by Barleycorn |
