Our Kind Of Town Sampler #1
Playlist (PDF)

Don says: "As a jingle collector for almost thirty years and an aficionado for even longer, I've noted over the years the myriad of jingles produced for radio stations about the communities in which they're located.

"This collection highlights some of the better examples -- the long and the short -- from the 50s to the present -- from the serious to sublime -- and from the various production houses that existed over the years.

"One of the more ambitious early projects was PAMS Series 16 'Sound Of The City.' This 1960 package sought to link the station to the community it served. It also featured a record-length song about the city which some stations added to their song rotations and distributed as 45 rpm records. KNUZ in Houston sold over 4,000 copies in a week!

"The genre flourished during the mid 60s with some memorable songs from the likes of Sande & Greene, Chuck Blore, and Hugh Heller. While 70s radio was generally characterized by short jingles or none at all, projects like TM's Sound Of Chicago and Listen To Your City and JAM's I'd Rather Be… series kept radio listeners singing about their towns. The songs have kept on coming and you'll hear works from the 80s and 90s as well.

"The final cut is a custom cut done by JAM in 1979 for WYNY New York. By length and production value alone, it would have already been a contender as the grand finale. The events of September 2001, however, make it a particularly appropriate ending for such a compilation.

'Thanks go to Mike Neff, Mark Biviano, Bill Schenold, Kevin Slater, and others who have contributed material over the years that went into this collection, as well as Tom Corbett and Jonathan Wolfert who assisted in identifying some of the cuts.

"The audio quality varies. Some cuts are first generation dubs from the masters or digital clones from CD. Others show the effects of multi-generation dubbing, magnetic tape deterioration, or simply the archaic recording technology of their time. We hope you'll forgive a little harmonic distortion here and there."

Track 01 (19:36)
Track 02 (15:41)
Track 03 (14:41)

Zip file of Our Kind Of Town #1 tracks

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Our Kind Of Town Sampler #2
Playlist (PDF)

Don says: "The original version of 'Our Kind Of Town' began as the germ of an idea somewhere around 1985. It was over eighteen years later when the project finally began to take shape and was actually mixed down to a CD. In the following several years a few dozen copies circulated to and between collectors and it was then posted on ReelRadio.com. Also in the intervening years, I received over fifty CDs from collectors with some great material and a few people started asking about a sequel and this second volume became a reality.

"The first OKOT included mostly familiar cuts from the usual suspects: PAMS, TM, JAM, Chuck Blore, and Heller. Volume 2 features lots more familiar material from these same producers but this time you'll hear more 'off the beaten path' cuts. It also includes CRC, Toby Arnold, Studio Ten, Klein &, Anita Kerr, Top Format, Alfasound, and even a K. Johnson cut from the early 1940s. Also included this time are TV imaging cuts.

"We go international, too, with cuts from stations in Canada, Jamaica, Japan, England, New Zealand, and Germany. You'll hear a some of Dick Hamilton's brilliant work under the TM, Klein &, and Heller labels. You'll hear cuts from PAMS' 'un-numbered' packages. I'll make no apologies for the plethora of Chicago, New York and California cuts. There was such a wealth of material that I still had to leave some on the cutting room floor.

"Of course, all cuts have a common theme. They all sing about the places we live. So, whether you're zigzagging up Lombard Street, weekending in Osaka, or boogying down the Schuylkill, be it the river or the expressway, turn up the volume and enjoy your visit.

"Special thanks to Anthony Cullen, Ben Atkins, Thomas Heckenmuller, David Barras, and Jonathan Wolfert, who provided material and/or assisted in identifying some of the cuts.

"This compilation contains copyrighted material and is intended for private use only. Any commercial use is strictly prohibited. Some cuts have been edited for this presentation."

Track 01 (20:17)
Track 02 (20:48)
Track 03 (19:34)
Track 04 (18:06)

Zip file of Our Kind Of Town #2 tracks