“Pink Moon” by Nick Drake is an amazing song (I’ll brook no argument here; if you don’t agree, keep it to yourself). There’s an aching wistfulness that’s so sweet it almost hurts, but at the same time there’s an ominous quality at work—the combination can leave you emotionally wrung out after just one listen. So how do you think I felt, a few years back, when said masterpiece was prominently featured in a VW television spot?

Licensing already existing music for use in an ad—it’s a charged issue for lots of people. How dare greedy corporate tools, some ask, subvert the purity of art in order to transact commerce? If the song in question is a beloved favorite, fans often feel a very real sense of anger and betrayal that extends beyond the advertiser and the agency to the artist, who they accuse of selling out. Other listeners are cynical about the practice; they expect artists to make a buck whenever possible and companies to push whatever emotional buttons they can in the attempt to increase sales. As for the artists themselves, opinions run the gamut. Some absolutely refuse to license a song under any circumstances; others welcome the exposure (and compensation). Apple’s iTunes and iPod commercials, for example, have become a regular forum for breaking previously unknown acts. 

Because I’m in the ad biz, you might expect me to defend the practice, but my sympathies tend to lie with the idealists who don’t want the emotional impact of their favorite songs compromised. Plus, as someone who has developed a TV spot or two in his day, I know that a great song is also a great shortcut; you can infuse your ad with an emotional resonance and heft it wouldn’t otherwise have, and that is totally unearned.

Which brings us back to “Pink Moon” and that VW spot. It was created to help sell cars, to be sure, and that’s an awfully mundane context for such an ethereal song, but the result…well, it’s a piece of art, itself. Maybe not on the same level as the song, but the spot transcends its origin and purpose to become a creative work as legitimate as any other. It’s sixty seconds well worth experiencing, because it communicates something human and recognizable and true, with a real emotional wallop. Which, by the way, is why it’s also great advertising. But don’t take my word for it. I just found it on YouTube, so you can see for yourself.