Dow Brewery, Brewers of Dow Ale: Bob Hahn Radio Commercial Presentation Reel # 4 (Exploring My Reel-to-Reel Catacombs, Volume 54) (MP3's)

Over the past two months, I have shared the contents of two tapes, from a group of four reel to reel tapes I recently purchased, sampler reels of the work of Canadian ad-man Bob Hahn. Volume Three of the tapes contains just two ads, in multiple minor variations, and one of those two ads is represented on Tape Four, so aside from two versions of one track, I've skipped over the third reel. Today, the fourth and final reel. There are seven ads and five other fragments on this tape, and all but the last of those twelve tracks are for the products of the Dow Brewery. 

The Dow Brewery did not survive with its good name intact for much longer after these 1961 ads, as you can read about here. 

The tracks on this tape are divided into similar ads for different markets. First there is a square dance track, one for Canadian stations and one for American stations. Aside from minor cosmetic differences, these two mainly differ in that in Canada, "Dow Brings Out the Best in Cheer", while in America, "Dow Brings Out the Best in Beer". There's a sociological research paper waiting to be written within the decision to alter those words for the differing market.There is also an isolation track of the advertising tag line. 

This is followed by two ads featuring harmonica orchestras. Both are heard with vocals in English, then in French versions (which amount to the instrumental harmonica tracks, with voiceover in French at the end. The moment at about 18 seconds into the second ad (in both languages' ads) is one of the weirder things I've heard in an ad from this era. In the English ad, it's startling; in the French ad, it makes no sense whatsoever. 

These are followed by more excerpted sections of the square dance ads - I'm not clear on the use of the two short end pieces which I've grouped together as the 9th item here (the "wild tag" listed as the 11th track is identical to the 8th track, and is not included). Finally comes the only non-Dow ad of the reel, which is for Parliament Cigarettes.  

At the end, I've included the only ads which were unique to reel three. These are American and Canadian versions of an ad for Kingsbeer. The differences here are all in the second verse - the American version focuses on the brewing and the taste of the beer, while the Canadian version repeats the first verse heard in both versions. 

Here, dear readers and listeners, the Bob Hahn Presentation Reel, Volume 4: 

TRACKS REMOVED AT REQUEST OF COPYRIGHT HOLDER

Comments

[MrFab]

Hey, comments are back?! Then I can think Mr Purse for all these wonderful ads he's been posting. That Parliament ad makes me chortle with diabolical glee.

[ZJA]

Is there any way we could get a cover pic for this one like the last few Hahn reels?

[walter]

track 5 cannot be downloaded

[Bob Purse]

Hi, ZJA, Mr. Fab and Walter,

Thanks for the request, the compliment/thanks, and for letting me know a track wasn't working, respectively. The JPG of the box is now there, and track 5 has been fixed.

Thanks for reading/listening, and for the comments!

Bob

[scott s]

did I miss reel 3?