One of the most unique and memorable solo voices to ever appear on PAMS jingles belongs to a singer by the name of Trella Hart. She was featured on "Swiszle" (Series 32) in 1966, "Fun Vibrations" (Series 33) in 1967, and a number of custom packages too. You could hear her singing "let the good times roll, get it in your soul" or "turn your mind off baby with the fun vibrations" from coast to coast. Stations couldn't get enough of her energetic, youthful sound and often had her also record liners and drop-ins for their DJs.

(left:) Some stations were so excited about having a new custom PAMS package that they would stage elaborate promotional events surrounding the jingles' debut. WKNR kicked off their new "Swiszle" package by flying Trella and some of the PAMS musicians to Detroit for a party. The station's clients and staff were treated to live music from Trella and the band, with the new jingles mixed in. In this photo we see Trella making her grand entrance into the party. Note the "WKNR Swiszle" balloon, and the Series 32 demo box label glued to her hat!

(right:)As part of the pre-recorded material that went along with Series 32, Trella sang a couple of full-length "housewife songs". Some stations played these as bona fide records and a few, like WGH in Norfolk, Virginia, even featured Trella's photo on their weekly survey. In 1970, after Trella was no longer exclusive to PAMS, she did have a single on Capitol records which reached the top 30 in many markets. She has been heard on many national commercials, and still sings with various jazz combos in the Dallas area.

 

 

(left:) This late '60s photo, although not taken at PAMS, shows Trella singing a duet with another famous voice from the PAMS era. The mild mannered insurance claims adjuster you see here is Peyton Park, whose powerful solos electrified packages like Series 34C, 35 and 36. He could sound like Ray Charles or other soul singers, which is why clients were often surprised when they met him in person. Peyton also played sax and clarinet, and did many commercial voice-overs. He passed away on September 9, 2008.

And now, back to the 1940s for a great historical photo:

These are some of the musicians and singers who performed live on WFAA radio in Dallas, Texas. These same people would often perform commercial jingles for the sponsors of their shows. When some of them went to work for Gordon McLendon's new station KLIF in 1947, the idea of performing and pre-recording themes and jingles for the station itself was born.

If we zoom in on the group shot above, you'll find these pre-PAMS faces. From left to right they are:

Dick Cole, who played trombone and sang on many PAMS jingles.
Terry Lea, who was the voice of many classic 50s & 60s jingles including "My Home Town".
Bill Meeks, who played saxophone and clarinet in this band and went on to found PAMS in 1951.
Ray Hurst, who played the vibes and guitar, and spent over two decades at PAMS writing commercial jingles and station IDs.

Some items on this page are from the private collection of Trella Hart. Rights to all photos are reserved by their respective owners.