When Tommy Wells wrote a jingle, it was usually hard to get out of your head once you heard it. And the lyrics were always spot-on.
“When Tommy wrote, you got a tune, a song,” said Janet Meshad Wells, his wife of 42 years. “A lot of people can write music, but Tommy had melody.”
Among the most popular pieces Mr. Wells wrote is the opening theme song for the sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati.” He also wrote jingles for several local and national businesses including phone companies, home builders, airlines and food chains.
James Thomas Wells, known as Tom or Tommy to friends and family, of Sandy Springs, died Monday at home from complications related to cancer. He was 70.
His body was cremated and a memorial service has been planned for 11 a.m. Friday at St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church, Atlanta. SouthCare Cremation Society and Memorial Centers, Marietta, was in charge of arrangements.
Born and raised in Atlanta, Mr. Wells went to Vanderbilt University after graduating from Westminster in 1959. After earning a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at Vandy in 1963, he came back to Atlanta with aspirations of being a pilot in the Army, his wife said. An irregular heartbeat kept him from the cockpit, but he still served five years in the Army Reserves.
Mr. Wells’ first famous jingle was for a commercial advertising a local jeweler and its diamond ring in the mid-1960s, and many others followed. Three years later he opened Doppler Studios in Doraville, where he produced more commercial jingles and music for the big screen.
In 1974, the Wells family moved to Los Angeles, where he wrote the WKRP music and other pieces, but they couldn’t stay gone forever. They moved back to Atlanta in 1985 and Mr. Wells continued his music career in his Doppler studio. He retired from Doppler, which still exists, in 2006. But he built a small studio in his home so Mrs. Wells, who does voice-over work, could continue to record demos.
He was a guitar aficionado, his wife said, and could spend hours on the Internet researching and searching for specific guitars. He played rhythm guitar in a few bands, including the group Tommy George and the Fabulous 50s.
All kinds of instruments were common around the Wells’ home and there was a house band, in the most literal sense.
“We used to have mini jam sessions at the house,” said Jonathan Wells, a son from Chicago, adding that his two brothers and mother all possess musical abilities.
“Dad structured his life around music,” he continued. “And at the same time, he was also involved in things we were into.”
Mr. Wells was a Cub Scout Den Master, he chaperoned field trips, played tennis and loved to fish. But at his core was music.
Friend and fellow musician Rod Daniel said Mr. Wells was a quiet but powerful force who had a quick sense of humor.
“He was almost like the nucleus of an atom, he didn’t move much, he didn’t say much, but he brought everyone together,” Mr. Daniel said.
In addition to his wife and son, Mr. Wells is survived by two additional sons, Jason Wells of Portland, Ore., and Tucker Wells of Atlanta.
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