American Express Commercial – The “Love You More” Music

Every time this American Express commercial comes on, my head involuntarily starts bobbing up and down with the rhythm. How can 30 seconds from a credit card company almost immediately change my mood for the better? Song choice, it’s all about song choice. Check out the ad then scroll down for the big reveal…

The Song. The soundtrack is called “Love You More” by Tess Henley, released in 2021. Listen to more of Tess and see a few pics on her Instagram @TessHenley. This isn’t the first time Tess has been included in a product commercial, either. Listen to another song of hers in this Truly commercial. Here’s the full track of “Love You More”…

I might not have remembered the AmEx commercial had it not been for the song they used so kudos to the advertising team. Do you like the commercial? Do you like the song? Comment below with your thoughts!

-Out of the Wilderness

Ben Stiller’s “Nutcrackers” – A New Christmas Classic?

It’s been out for a few weeks now so I finally queued up the Hulu Christmas movie Nutcrackers starring Ben Stiller. I think we’re always hungry for a heartwarming holiday movie, right? It’s rare that a modern movie comes along and becomes an instant Christmas classic. Elf is a great example. So is Nutcrackers the next one?

Pardon my French, Santa, but heck no it isn’t! Do yourself a favor–if you’re dying to watch it–by watching the trailer instead, then go do something else for an hour and a half. It’ll be more productive. My favorite movies have a little bit of everything — drama, comedy, action, romance. This movie barely had any of that and I found myself yawning………….. a lot.

When the credits began to roll, I had more than a few unanswered questions and you will, too, if you decide to watch this movie. I’ll be honest, there were one or two times I chuckled– Elizabeth the chicken (which is part of the trailer) being the biggest laugh. Most of the attempts at humor were pretty pathetic and predictable (Ben Stiller falling off the paddle board, the “how babies are made” conversation, stepping on poop).

This movie is a dud. No laughs. No holiday cheer. In fact, except for the title and a few brief ballet scenes revolving around the original “Nutcracker” musical, it had nothing to do with Christmas at all.

Give yourself a gift this year and skip this one.

-Out of the Wilderness

The Chevy Christmas Commercial – The Music, The Location, and the Truck

The Chevrolet marketing department has prioritized Christmas and if they keep creating ads like this one (or this one from last year), they will always be received with arms wide opennnnn (Creed reference). Grab a cup of egg nog and watch the ad they call “The Sanctuary,” then scroll down for more…

The Location. The commercial was filmed in Chelsea, Michigan and if you scroll through various social media comments, the locals there are very proud of their town. Here’s a Google maps image showing the Jiffy plant and the clock tower, which you can see in the commercial as the father and son drive down Main Street. Small world, I just used Jiffy to make my vegan cornbread dressing!

The Music. The song in the ad is “Time In a Bottle” by Jim Croce in 1972. Here’s the full track…

The Truck. A lot of viewers are so happy to see the square body of the 1978 Chevy C10, some even imploring Chevy to return to the boxy truck aesthetic. I’m a Chevy guy myself, and while some brands go for flashy, curvy style, I appreciate the workhorse quality of my Silverado… and to be totally honest, I appreciate it very, very much.

-Out of the Wilderness

Five Great “Little Drummer Boy” Covers

One of my favorite songs around the Christmas season is “Little Drummer Boy,” probably the most well-known version is by Bing Crosby and David Bowie. But since their duet back in the late 1970s, many (and I mean MANY) covers have been recorded so I thought December 1st is the perfect day to list a handful of my favorites. Let’s just start at the top. Justin Bieber is my favorite track while For King & Country has my favorite music video/song combo.

Justin Bieber…

For King & Country…

There’s also the Jars of Clay version, recorded in the mid-1990s.

And you can’t think about Christmas music in 2024 without mentioning Pentatonix.

Honorable mention goes to the “There I Ruined It” YouTube channel for their mashup of the song with “Apple Bottom Jeans.” You might not ever not be able to hear this version so proceed with caution.

-Out of the Wilderness

The Google Pixel 9 Gemini Live Commercial – The Music, the Dog No One Saw, and More

If you would’ve told me the music in this commercial is from a Grammy Award winning group, I would’ve been very skeptical. I wouldn’t have ended our friendship but let’s just say my Google history might include “how do I tell someone they’re loony but in a nice way”… no offense…. but the truth is it IS a Grammy Award winning group and I’M the looney one! Go figure.

Gemini, Google’s version of Siri (or should I soon say Siri is Apple’s version of Gemini?) is on full display in their recent commercial featuring the “live” function. It’s like a conversation with your friend, only more mature (right?). Take a look at the ad then scroll down for more about it…

The Dog. Did you notice the dog? I didn’t, until I watched the ad again. Easily my favorite part of the entire commercial.

The Music. The song used as the soundtrack for this commercial is “Praeambulum (Partita No. 5 in G, BWV 829)” by The Swingle Singers. The performance of this Bach composition was released as part of a Grammy-award winning album in 1964 called “Going Baroque”… here’s the full track.

The commercial provides real-life examples of when Gemini Live can be useful but all I know is, I’m here for the dog.

-Out of the Wilderness