PUBLISHING: UMTV tees up soundtrack.

"Flash mob" ad for T-Mobile spawns medley album

By Chas de Whalley

The online-only release TODAY (Monday) by UMTV of T-Dance - the soundtrack to T-Mobile's spectacular Life's For Sharing TV commercial - could mark a shift in the way record companies, publishers and brands work together to rekindle public interest in classic catalogue items.

Early morning commuters were filmed with 350 dancers in a "flash mob" event at London's Liverpool Street Station for this ad, which was first screened on January 15 during Channel 4's Celebrity Big Brother. The medley music track is made up of eight timeless tracks spanning 40 years - Shout (Lulu), The Only Way Is Up (Yazz), Don't Cha (The Pussycat Dolls), Get Down On It (Kool and The Gang), My Boy Lollipop (Millie), Since You've Been Gone (Rainbow), Do You Love Me (The Contours) plus a version of Johann Strauss' Blue Danube waltz.

While 30-second executions of the film are still being broadcast round the country, the full-length version has also received more than 5m hits on a T-Mobile-dedicated You Tube channel, which also offers humorous clips featuring celebrities such as Kelly Brook, Peter Crouch and Mr Motivator showcasing the Liverpool Street dance steps.

Ben Bleat of Howling Monkey, music consultant to T-Mobile's ad agency Saatchi and Saatchi, was responsible for sourcing the material and securing the sync licences.

He believes UMTV's decision to release the T-Dance medley as a digital single (with an accompanying mini album) could mark the return of novelty records like those by Stars On 45 and Jive Bunny, which proved so popular in the Eighties.