Recently recovered from deep within the bins at Backstreet Records in Saint John was a mid-century gem for the City: “The Song of Saint John.” The song was produced by CHSJ and was composed by Richard H. Ullman, one of the great Jingle Kings, and makes the city sound glamorous as heck.

Ullman composed jingles for radio stations across the globe in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. “The Song of Saint John” is just one in a series on “Our Wonderful Cities,” which was once heard in cities that ranged from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Hobart, Tasmania.

The song acts as both a history lesson and an uplifting jingle that incites Saint John spirit. It transports you back to the golden era of big bands and highlights all of the City’s best qualities:

Saint John has a spacious harbour and beaches for sunny days. Reversing Falls, and that’s not all! The Saint John River flows two ways! Saint John has Canada’s first museum, Lily Lake in Rockwood Park, Martello Tower and Loyalist House. Saint John’s fun even after dark!

From inside the record sleeve is this little write up about the piece:

The Song of Saint John” was produced by Radio Station CHSJ as a salute to the dynamic community which it is proud to serve. This song honours many of the features that help to make Saint John one of Canada’s leading cities: its homes, churches, schools, shops; its industries, and its tourist attractions, its people, and its surrounding communities; as well as the radio station, itself. This recording is identical with the one heard regularly on 1150 Radio. CHSJ sincerely hopes you enjoy this personal copy.

We know that “The Song of Saint John” isn’t the only city jingle Ullman composed, and we would love to hear every one of them. While Ullman might have once been heard worldwide, there’s oddly little information about him available today. The quest for the remaining jingles continues.

If all radio stations still played jingles this good, we would probably listen to a lot more radio.