August 12, 2005
DeepMix Rediscovers ‘70s Power Pop Icons for HP
Los Angeles—Thanks to HP, Goodby Silverstein & Partners and Los Angeles music house DeepMix, The Speedies’ 25-year wait for a hit song may finally be over. Let Me Take Your Foto, a track recorded by the group in the late 1970s when it was the toast of New York City’s punk underground appears as the soundtrack to the latest ad in HP’s critically-acclaimed Frames series.
DeepMix producer Dave Curtin rediscovered The Speedies when he was asked by Goodby to suggest a track for the new ad. Previous spots in the campaign had used tracks from The Kinks and The Cure with themes related to photography.
“By the time the agency came to us, they had heard virtually every song ever recorded that included the word ‘photograph’ or ‘picture,’” Curtin recalled. “We had to dig deep, and go to some very obscure sources to find something fresh that fit the spirit of the package.”
That eventually led Curtin to The Speedies, a group that had been a popular attraction at New York City’s early punk clubs such as Max’s Kansas City and C.B.G.B.’s, but had never landed a major label recording contract. When the group was opening for acts like The Jam, The Undertones, The Gang of Four and The Plimsouls, its members were still in high school. The Speedies drummer was just 15. At the height of its popularity, the group sold out four shows in one weekend at Max’ Kansas City. Let Me Take Your Foto was one of just two songs that the group recorded for an independent label before it broke up.
While negotiating for the rights to the song, Curtin flew to New York and had lunch with the members of the band, now in their early forties. “They were surprised and very excited to be part of this project,” said Curtin, who said that, given the interest the previous spots generated in the Kinks and Cure tunes, The Speedies could very well find themselves enjoying a renewed wave of popularity. All that remains in question is whether they can still fit into the jeans they wore in high school and can still tap into that spirit of teen angst.
Deep Mix is currently working on another spot for the HP Frames series. The new spot will be the first to employ an original music track. The Speedies music is scheduled for release in digital form on August 30th in the Apple iTunes music store. The band is releasing special song remixes and has renamed their classic song as “Let Me Take Your Photo”.
Deep Mix is located at 6255 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90028. For more information, calls (323) 769-3500.
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For additional information, contact:
Linda Rosner
Artisans Public Relations
(310) 837-6008
lrosner@artisanspr.com