Sky+HD boxes are now being issued as standard by Sky TV, and they’re advertising the fact using Anthony Newley’s Pure Imagination, from his wonderful soundtrack to the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive was written and published by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer in 1944, and recorded by Mercer in the same year. Within 12 months, Bing Crosby, Kay Kyser, Artie Shaw and Johnny Green had all recorded versions. Later, Perry Como, Aretha Franklin, Mel Torme, Sam Cooke and scores more would record the song. Peugeot’s ad features snatches of lots of them, edited together to create a special version for this ad, featuring lots of old US cars singing their way to the scrapheap. Click on the Amazon link above to sample clips from the various versions.
The French vocal track on this ad is from music library Audio Network and composer Christian Marsac. You can download the full-length track via the link above for 79p (select “personal use only” from the drop down menu). Fascinatingly, the Audio Network website also reveals how much it costs to use this track in a TV advert – a surprisingly low £195.
