Song of the Day 2/12: IBM 7094, “Daisy Bell”
Yesterday Jason slagged Greta Van Fleet for sounding “old,” because their classic-rock sound and Robert Plant-manque lead singer make them sound like a 50-year-old band, Led Zeppelin. Well, I’m here to argue that old music is one of the best art forms for speaking to us from the past, and serves as a point of commonality for communities. Making the point for me is the first computer programmed to “sing,” the IBM 7094:
As the video explains, this was 1961. The song, better known as “A Bicycle Built for Two,” was written in 1892, and was more famously sung by a more famous computer, the HAL 9000 in “2001: A Space Odyssey,” as a tribute to this pioneer, as the AI computer is disabled by Keir Dullea. The actor who voiced HAL, Canadian thespian Douglas Rain, died last November. His rendition begins at 5:00, but you’d be half-crazy to skip the most riveting scene in one of Kubrick’s best films:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgkyrW2NiwM
It’s almost as if both the IBM programmers and Stanley Kubrick chose old music to make a point.
Also this, from the NYTimes:
Early electronic music, computer or component generated, was a tortuous process. Frequently requiring hours of effort to come up with seconds worth of music it was not for the faint of heart. My early favorite remains the soundtrack of Forbidden Planet (1956), a festival of inspired beeps, bloops as well as good old “what the hell is that?” sounds.
Remember PDQ Bach?
Great stuff. I’m glad I provoked it. 😉
That’s your wrestling name, The Provocator.