Selling the Sound

Selling records on television
Advertising had always played a part in selling records, but its importance expanded dramatically during the 1970s. Record companies could no longer rely entirely upon radio airplay, reviews, shop displays and the reputation of an artist. Television provided a way to take a record directly into Australian homes and present it as something larger than another addition to the catalogue.

This was particularly important for compilations and older recordings. A new studio album arrived with its own story, but a collection of previously released songs needed to be given a fresh identity. Its title, cover, track selection and advertising all had to persuade the public that familiar recordings were worth buying again.

The television commercial itself became a miniature compilation. In the space of 30 or 60 seconds, viewers could be shown the album cover, reminded of the artist’s reputation and hear a succession of recognisable songs. Carefully chosen excerpts followed one another in rapid bursts, often with titles appearing prominently on screen while a forceful voice-over reinforced the quantity and quality of the music.

The objective was not subtlety. The advertisement needed to interrupt the viewer, create immediate recognition and make the album appear irresistible before the television program resumed.

At EMI (Australia), this increasingly confident approach developed over several years. Roger Langford contributed to the company’s promotional culture through his work in public relations and product marketing during the 1970s. Billy Birmingham had joined EMI (Australia) in 1975 and by 1979 was working as its promotions manager, bringing experience in record promotion together with a strong instinct for advertising and humour. Under Peter Jamieson, these creative foundations developed into a deliberate and highly successful television-marketing strategy.

The British model
While working in Britain, Peter observed the development of EMI’s television-marketing operation under Brian Berg. Appointed in 1976 to establish EMI UK’s first dedicated television-marketing division, Brian developed a formula that demonstrated the continuing commercial value of well-presented catalogue recordings.

The division’s first major breakthrough came with 20 Golden Greats by The Beach Boys. Released in Britain in 1976, the album became an enormous success, spending ten weeks at number one.

The idea was straightforward but carefully considered, as Peter explains:

"The whole essence of those compilations is that rather than offering the 12 or 14 tracks commonly found on an album, EMI assembled 20 established hits. Although the recordings came from the back catalogue, the collection was sold at full price and full royalties were paid to the artist. Most importantly, the album contained no obscure additions included merely to fill the record. There were no passengers."

Every track had to justify its inclusion. The generous playing time and concentration of proven hits gave the public an obvious reason to buy the album, while television advertising communicated that value quickly and directly.

The success of the Beach Boys album led to further television-promoted EMI compilations featuring artists including Glen Campbell, The Shadows, Diana Ross and Buddy Holly. It established a model in which older recordings could be repackaged and sold as premium products rather than relegated to the budget market.

Applying the formula in New Zealand
Peter subsequently applied the principle at EMI (New Zealand), making a strong marketing push behind releases derived from the 20 Golden Greats formula. Albums by Diana Ross, The Shadows and other established performers were promoted as substantial collections of proven material rather than inexpensive clearances of ageing recordings.

New Zealand also exposed Peter to another important development. Graham Broughton, then managing director of PolyGram New Zealand, had coordinated cooperation between record companies to produce the Solid Gold series of contemporary-hit compilations.

Because New Zealand was a relatively small market, the companies had a strong commercial incentive to cooperate. By licensing recordings to one another, they could assemble hit collections that were more attractive than anything one company could produce using only its own catalogue.

It was the first time Peter had encountered a joint venture of that kind between major record companies. The experience showed him that competitors could work together when cooperation produced a stronger product—and provided a model he would soon take with him to Australia.

Bringing the strategy to Australia
Peter transferred to EMI (Australia) in late 1979 to run the company’s recorded-music operation, remaining until March 1983. He brought with him the lessons he had absorbed from EMI’s television-marketing program in Britain and his experience applying those ideas in New Zealand.

Peter also brought with him the collaborative model he had encountered through New Zealand’s Solid Gold series. When he proposed similar joint-venture compilations in Australia, he was told that they would be impossible because the major record companies were competitors and did not cooperate closely enough to combine their most valuable contemporary recordings.

Peter nevertheless persisted, negotiating joint ventures with Festival and Warner. These arrangements allowed EMI (Australia) to assemble compilations containing major hits controlled by different companies, producing stronger and more representative collections of current music.

“I broke that mould,” he recalled.

The resulting releases included 1980… The Music, 1981… The Sound and 1982… With a Bullet. Rather than being collections of secondary material, the albums were promoted as snapshots of each year’s popular music.

The approach culminated in the exceptional success of 1982… With a Bullet. The album reached number one on the Australian chart and remained there for five weeks. It demonstrated that a thoughtfully compiled, strongly titled and heavily advertised collection could compete with—and outsell—new albums by individual artists.

Creating the commercials
A central creative contributor to the campaigns was Billy Birmingham, EMI (Australia)’s promotions manager. His experience in record promotion meant that he understood what EMI (Australia) needed to sell, while his advertising instincts enabled him to translate that information into commercials capable of making an immediate impression.

Peter and Billy worked together from the conception of each campaign. They identified the album’s strongest selling points, considered its audience and developed the way it should be presented. Billy then created the television commercials that carried those ideas into Australian homes.

"He did all the commercials for all our TV campaigns and we sort of conceived them together. He was a complete genius and he made the most marvellous TV commercials.

"Of course, he went on to become an even bigger star with things like Austen Tayshus, the Twelfth Man and funny things like that."

EMI (Australia)’s television-promoted albums were intended to be premium products. They were not sold primarily by being cheap, but by demonstrating how much desirable music the buyer would receive. If an advertisement promised a collection of great hits, the album could not be padded with songs that only a devoted fan would recognise.

Four major campaigns a year
Under Peter, EMI (Australia) adopted a policy of mounting four major television campaigns each year. This gave television advertising a regular place in the company’s release program rather than treating it as an occasional experiment.

The campaigns covered several kinds of records. Some promoted collections drawn from the company’s extensive back catalogue. Others supported Australian performers and locally assembled compilations. Joint-venture albums brought together contemporary hits, while selected new releases by established artists were also given major television exposure.

The Rolling Stones’ Tattoo You, for example, was promoted as a contemporary release. EMI (Australia) also mounted campaigns involving Slim Dusty, international greatest-hits packages and a range of locally assembled collections.

By planning these campaigns throughout the year, the company maintained a regular television presence and provided retailers with products supported by substantial national promotion.

The PLAY Series
The principal Australian catalogue avenue for many of these specially selected and heavily promoted albums was the PLAY series, introduced in late 1980.

The PLAY series brought together albums issued across EMI (Australia)’s various labels under a common catalogue-number sequence. Capitol, Columbia, Parlophone and other EMI-controlled labels could retain their individual identities while selected releases formed part of the wider PLAY marketing program.

The series began with Anne Murray’s Greatest Hits, issued on Capitol as PLAY 1001. Other early releases included Slim Dusty’s No. 50 on Columbia as PLAY 1004 and The Beatles Ballads on Parlophone as PLAY 1005.

PLAY provided a structured avenue through which EMI (Australia) could select an album, package it as a major proposition and support it with concentrated advertising. The prefix was largely invisible to the ordinary buyer, appearing as a catalogue number rather than a prominent brand, but it linked a group of releases selected for special marketing attention.

Not every record supported by a major television campaign belonged to PLAY. Contemporary albums such as Tattoo You and the multi-company annual-hit compilations followed their own catalogue arrangements. Nevertheless, PLAY became closely associated with EMI (Australia)’s strategy of giving specially selected albums the presentation and promotional support of major new releases.

The Beatles Ballads
One of the most successful demonstrations of EMI (Australia)’s television-marketing strategy was The Beatles Ballads, issued locally on Parlophone as PLAY 1005.

The album had originated in Britain as part of EMI UK’s television-marketing program. Released there in October 1980, it brought together 20 Beatles recordings selected for their melodic and reflective qualities. Its distinctive John Byrne cover gave the collection a visual identity entirely separate from the group’s original albums.

Although The Beatles Ballads did not carry the 20 Golden Greats name, it followed the same underlying approach. Its British catalogue number, EMTV 4, identified it as part of EMI UK’s sequence of albums developed for television promotion. In Australia, its inclusion in the PLAY series placed it within EMI (Australia)’s corresponding program of specially marketed releases.

The Australian television advertisement encapsulated the entire strategy. Rather than treating the record as another repackaging of familiar Beatles material, the commercial presented it as a major new release. Brief excerpts from some of the group’s most recognisable songs followed one another rapidly, while the unusual cover and album title supplied a strong visual identity.

Mike Drayson’s deep, gravelly voice-over reinforced the central proposition: 20 of the Beatles’ greatest ballads brought together on one album. The familiar musical excerpts created one moment of recognition after another, while Mike's commanding delivery made the collection sound substantial, immediate and essential.

None of the music was new, but its selection, sequencing, packaging and presentation created a fresh product. Viewers were not simply being asked to buy songs they might already own; they were being offered a newly defined side of the Beatles in one carefully assembled collection.

The campaign proved extraordinarily influential and successful. Following its local manufacture and release on 3 April 1981, The Beatles Ballads spent seven weeks at number one on the Australian album chart. By October, more than 200,000 copies had reportedly been sold in Australia.

The album also contained an insert advertising the wider range of Beatles LPs then available, allowing the success of one heavily promoted compilation to direct buyers towards the rest of the catalogue. In this way, the campaign did more than sell The Beatles Ballads: it renewed public attention across EMI (Australia)’s entire Beatles catalogue.

The campaign demonstrated that familiar recordings could still generate enormous sales when imaginatively repackaged.

The Number Ones
That approach was continued with The Number Ones, issued by EMI (Australia) on Parlophone as PLAY 1024 on 13 May 1983.

The album was an Australian adaptation of the international 20 Greatest Hits collection, but EMI (Australia) reshaped the concept to reflect the Beatles’ local chart history. Because the group had achieved 23 Australian number-one hits, the album was retitled The Number Ones and its contents were altered accordingly.

This gave the Australian release an immediate and easily advertised point of difference. It was not simply another Beatles greatest-hits collection: it offered every one of the group’s 23 Australian chart-toppers in a single package.

As with The Beatles Ballads, the strength of the proposition could be communicated almost instantly on television. The familiar songs provided the moments of recognition, while the claim of 23 number-one hits supplied the central sales message. The bonus disc also gave the vinyl package a tangible added-value feature that could be promoted alongside the music.

Released shortly after Peter Jamieson’s departure from EMI (Australia) in March 1983, The Number Ones should not be regarded as one of his personal campaigns. It nevertheless reflected the marketing philosophy that had been firmly established during his leadership: select the strongest repertoire, give the collection a clear identity, offer genuine value and support it as a major release.

The Number Ones reached number one on the Australian album chart in June 1983 and remained in print for the rest of the decade. Its success confirmed the lesson of The Beatles Ballads: even the most familiar catalogue could be made commercially powerful again when EMI (Australia) found a fresh and unmistakably local way to present it.

The original television advertisements for The Beatles Ballads and The Number Ones can be viewed on their corresponding LP pages.

A company-wide achievement
Peter emphasised that the results were achieved by a wider team within EMI (Australia). Among those he remembered were Alex Coroneos, Les Smith and Brian Harris, together with numerous other staff involved in marketing, publicity, sales, distribution and administration.

“We had a lovely team,” he recalled.

The combination produced remarkable results. Peter recalled being told by EMI management in London that, even when including the company’s UK and American operations, EMI (Australia) was at that time the most profitable EMI company in the world, "which is an astonishing fact".

Making old music new again
The success of EMI (Australia)’s advertising program was not simply the result of purchasing more television time. The right recordings had to be selected, the collection needed a clear identity, and its title, packaging and price had to support the promise made by the commercial.

The advertisements supplied the final element. Their quick flashes of artwork, rapid excerpts from familiar songs and Mike Drayson’s gravelly, forceful voice made the records sound abundant, exciting and immediate. They did not apologise for selling older music; they celebrated how much great music EMI could place on a single album.

Through the PLAY series, the joint-venture compilations and four major television campaigns each year, EMI (Australia) turned that philosophy into a sustained release strategy. During Peter Jamieson’s leadership, advertising did more than support the records. It gave them a new identity, placed them before an enormous audience and transformed carefully chosen albums into major events.

EMI (Australia) was not merely selling records. It was selling the sound.