The Vines “Ride” iPod Commercial (2004)

Posters that come alive

Apple's "Wild Postings" commercial for the iPod and iTunes was spotted on US network and cable television on the evening of Monday 3 May 2004 and appeared on Apple's website soon after. Filmed in New York City, it follows a young man listening to his third-generation iPod as he walks along a street past a wall of silhouette posters. While "Ride" by The Vines plays through his earphones, the figures on the posters come alive and dance; when he pauses the music, they freeze.

Live action returns

It was the next live-action iPod commercial after the original 2001 advertisement, returning to that format while drawing on the silhouette imagery used since 2003. Its run was planned: in October 2004 AppleInsider reported that Apple had told resellers the commercial would officially expire on 14 October and that references to it should be removed.

The song and the band

"Ride" was written by frontman Craig Nicholls and produced by Rob Schnapf. It was released in the US on 9 February 2004 as the second single from Winning Days, an album recorded at Bearsville Studios in New York State and released by Capitol in March 2004. The single reached No. 13 on Billboard's Alternative Airplay chart and No. 25 in the UK, and its video was directed by Michel Gondry. The Vines formed in Sydney in 1994; their 2002 debut, Highly Evolved, sold around 1.5 million copies worldwide.

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