I realize that smoking has becoming such a social taboo, that just the mere mention of it could be enough to get you black-listed from your friend’s next dinner party. That said, some of us are old enough to remember when smokers weren’t quite the social pariahs they are now.
Enter Joe Camel. Joe was to epitomize the essence of a cool smoker. 
Among his many personas, Joe flew fighter jets, drover dune buggies, played pool, entertained the ladies in a James Bond kind of way, played the guitar, and of course, played the sax.
Source: WHITEMTNHOWDY VINTAGE ADS
When I saw the above 1994 ad on eBay by WHITEMTNHOWDY VINTAGE ADS, I flashed back to playing in clubs where the smoke was so thick you could barely see the patrons sitting at the tables. Ah yes, the good ol’ days… and I was a smoker at the time as well. There was really no point in heeding the Surgeon General’s warning, since quitting my own smoking really wasn’t going to solve the problem. 😉
Today of course it’s a different matter all together. Most of us have all quit smoking. And those few hard core addicts who haven’t, find themselves relegated to the great out of doors.
I really like seller’s collection of Joe Camel ads. They are a bright, colourful reminder of a time when smoking was already no longer really socially acceptable, but not yet demonized like it is today.
Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em
I saw this post, and considered all the anisotropic velocities of the marketing campaign that it referenced.
http://www.quotegarden.com/smoking.html
Smoke.
Is it a noxious impediment, or a useful conditioner of sound?
Do modern microphones do for the sound, what smoke-filled cafes once did?
These are serious questions. It has to do with why the greatest “sounds” of the art had such an impact on an audience.
I had never heard of the smoke/sound connection. Interesting, makes sense though. Sound waves travelling through the air. Smoke in the air would potentially alter what… The wave form? The wave direction? Would it filter things out of the wave? Or???? So many possibilities. Something to ponder, as I psyche myself up for my first dive bar performance in 20 years… Oh, and this one sans smoke of course. 😈