JB Say What? » Music

Unintended consequences

Glenn — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 03:14:13 +0000

The network is abuzz with the new, currently free, program created by Microsoft Research called Songsmith. According the website, this software

generates musical accompaniment to match a singer’s voice. Just choose a musical style, sing into your PC’s microphone, and Songsmith will create backing music for you. Then share your songs with your friends and family, post your songs online, or create your own music videos.

This software is clearly targeted to amateurs and wannabes, and from all accounts it works pretty much as you expect, giving pedestrian, generally uninteresting accompaniment to one’s creations. Their commercial is an absolute hoot, and clearly demonstrates the “range” of the product.

But it turns out that serious musicians could use this software to to provide alternative arrangements to their classics. Well, not actually. But the geniuses on YouTube have taken the audio tracks from an impressive array of the artists and have seen what Songsmith can to them.

First up, Roxanne, by The Police.

Next we have We Will Rock You, by Queen.

And finally, a political/cultural statement.

Why subtitles are helpful

Glenn — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 20:34:55 +0000

Joe Cocker is, shall we say, a “unique” performer. I remember the first time I saw him on the Tom Jones show, and was amazed at the vocal pyrotechnics of this gyrating Englishman. I also was a little concerned for his mental state, as I didn’t understand a single word that he said. At long last, YouTube has explained it all to me.

Thanks to Ed for pointing this out.

[YouTube has taken down the original post, so hear is a link to another version LiveLeak.com - Joe Cocker Translated]

Music man

Glenn — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 01:59:21 +0000

I am not too proud to say that I have developed the uncanny ability of giving the illusion of being helpful. This has served me in good stead over the years, as I have made it my goal to avoid any tasks that would require removing myself from my comfort zone, which is usually watching sports on TV or doing crossword puzzles. There comes a time, however, when whatever remnants of common decency that were taught to me by my parents and mentors force me to volunteer to help out my fellow humans. It is as those key points of inflection in my life that my gift truly comes to the fore.

As an example, we were down in DC this weekend for my sister-in-law’s 25th anniversary party. We arrived early to help out with the setup for the party. More precisely, my wife arrived to help with the setup with the party. I arrived to with the goal of eating some Indian food, drinking some excellent wine, and working the puzzle page of The Washington Post. As some point, however, it became evident that I needed to give some effort to the undertaking. I volunteered to help pick out the wines for the party. What a terrible task, having to go to one of the better wine stores in the district and shop for wines that I wasn’t going to have to pay for. I struggled through.

I figured I was done for the day, and only had to worry about not completely dehydrating in the sauna-like conditions. It soon became evident that my Sudoku reverie was going to be broken by the need to once again appear to be helpful. This time, I was asked to help out by putting together the music for the evening’s party. So let’s get this straight. I get to sit in front of a computer and screen 3500 songs to find the ones that I like and then put them together into a series of playlists (one for starters, one for dinner, one for dancing, and one for the end of the evening). I got to hear a whole bunch of songs that I haven’t listed to in a long time (or ever for that matter), while everyone else actually did something useful.

The party, as it turns out, was just great. The caterer was fantastic, making life easy on everyone, and the food was out of this world. The hosts were convivial and entertaining, and made everyone feel welcome and that they were an essential part of the celebration. But the really important news is that, as has happened countless times before, my modest contributions were acknowledged well out of proportion to the effort expended.

Tom Waits meets Michael Stipe meets Adam Durwitz

Glenn — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 09:33:32 +0000

Do yourself a favor and watch this inventive video by indie artist David Ford. He performs this live in one take using a loop pedal. Very evocative backing of a pretty good song. I gotta see this guy in person. If you like this, check out some of his cover videos on YouTube including Round Here (Counting Crows), In the Air Tonight (Phil Collins), and a great version of Helpless (Neil Young).

Cineplexes aren’t just for movies anymore

Glenn — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 01:55:49 +0000

Went to the movie theater a while ago, and I remember seeing an ad for a live opera from the Met that was being broadcast into that theater. It sounded intriguing at the time, but I didn’t think much of it. The Times recently had a piece about the variety of entertainment that is now or will soon be broadcast into movie theaters.

Coming soon will be broadcasts of live baseball games, rock concerts, classic TV shows and an array of other offerings not associated with the silver screen.

Today, I read that “This American Life,”—one of my must listen-to podcasts—will be broadcasting a live show on May 1 of this year. I have only seen one episode of TAL’s Showtime television version of the show, and I was surprised at how interesting a show that is so quintessentially meant for radio could be. The good news is that the local theater “screening” the show is one that has stadium seating, and so it will be perhaps even better than seeing the show live, which we did years ago in the narrow and sightline-impaired Berklee Performance Center. Tickets go on sale April 4.

Number 9…Number 9

Glenn — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 01:40:15 +0000

For your consideration:

Paul McCartney has signed a deal to release the entire Beatles back catalog on iTunes.
The catalog includes the song “Revolution #9” from their 1968 self-titled album (The White Album).
Elliot Spitzer, the stick-in-the-mud governer of New York, was recently named as “Client #9″ in an FBI investigation into a DC-based prostitution ring.

Coincidence? You be the judge.

Jobán d’na napio

Glenn — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 04:56:19 +0000

Just came back from a concert by Béla Fleck and Chick Corea in support of their album, “The Enchantment” at Symphony Hall in Boston. Béla is one of my favorite musicians. I liked the driving bluegrasss of New Grass Revival, and have all of his albums with the Flecktones. Not to mention the spectacular work with Edgar Meyer. Chelsea’s own Chick Corea is, of course, a legend, although I will confess that I haven’t listened to much of his music since his work with Miles Davis. Watching these two super musicians play was a real treat, and they clearly love playing with each other. The sonic mixing of the piano and banjo was unexpectedly harmonious. But I have to say that the concert tonight was a mixed bag. As much as I think I should like some of the avant garde jazz riffs, it turns out that I am hopelessly attracted to melody. Fortunately, most of the songs were, if not singable, maybe a little hummable. Highlights for me were the more bluegrassy numbers, one of which closed the first set and the other during the encore. All in all a fun night of music, although I suspect I won’t be buying the album.