Did you read the news today? Oh, boy.
I feel fine because arguably the world’s most influential band — disbanded since 1970 — will release a record later this year, complete with the voice of John Lennon, deceased since 1980.
You say you want a revolution?
This is according to a BBC interview with Paul McCartney, who said that Artificial Intelligence was able to scrape John Lennon’s voice off a demo record he recorded shortly before his death.
We are talking about a love ballad titled “Now and Then,” that Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, made available to his bandmates with all her loving. Very generous.
From me to you, I am very anxious to hear it. My fiance is not. Her attitude seems to be leave well enough alone. To her, the idea is nowhere man.
Is this like robbing the grave?
Is this creation legitimate “art”?
Last year, using AI, McCartney sang a duet with Lennon at a concert.
While the high-tech spin is new, duets with the dead have been around a long time. Natalie Cole has dueted with her father, Nat King Cole, as has Lisa Marie Presley with Elvis, and Tina Sinatra with Old Blue Eyes. They came together.
Heart warming, or stomach turning?
Macabre, or nostalgic? Can we work it out?
Given AI, the Beatles could be reunited by IT engineers without the mop tops ever having to lift a guitar.
They could be relaunched as artists in hip-hop, which developed after they broke up. Or country.
Would an AI version using their voices, but not their human input, still be the Beatles? Or would it be more like a reprint of an original oil painting?
And does it matter if you could not tell the difference?
On the day this story broke, a Senate committee was hearing testimony from a mother who reported receiving a million-dollar ransom demand from kidnappers, who played the terrified pleading of her 15-year-old daughter.
But it was not her daughter, but an AI-generated sound the kidnappers had somehow obtained. It was so true, the mother believed it.
[Advisory: Create a secret safe word for your loved ones. If you ever get a panicked call from that loved one, ask for the safe word. If you don’t get it, you know it’s a scam.]
The idea of the Beatles putting out an AI album they agreed to is one matter, but how about someone doing it without their permission? Then what?
Would you buy, or download, it eight days a week?
How about if it sounded real good? Would you be tempted?
How about if you had a little help from your friends?
I may be mistaken, but I believe the Joe Biden of the White House is an AI creation.
You are mistaken.
I believe you’re mistaken also.
AI would have done a better job.
And another attempt at humor, from vince, fails miserably.
Oh, I get by with a little help from my friends, do you see anybody, I just want someone to love. That what is all about, love for the Beatles and good music that lives on.
Cleverly written
Entertaining read, Stu. And while I’m smart enough to realize AI is here to stay, whether I like it or not, it’s something I’m not yet ready to partake in, in any way, shape or form. Eventually it’ll have an effect on my life and I’ll have to deal with it, but for now, I’m like an ostrich keeping my head buried in a hole.
I’d like to try it out, but I keep getting blocked.
It’s not legitimate art but legitimate technology. Past successful entertainers will have their songs produced and listed for sale. This is a new era for the recording industry. The human feelings and personal expression is missing with the AI production. But these replicas will become a financial windfall for the owners of past hits.
As stated above, I think AI can create a realistic faux feeling.
Film already can stick a dead actor into a new scene. This is a brave new world.
I don’t even know where to begin with this one. AI can be very dangerous technology, especially in the hands of unscrupulous individuals. The Beatles did something similar with Free As A Bird back in the 1990s, but that was a bit different because three of them worked on the track. Now you have no George, so who plays the lead guitars? Would this REALLY be a Beatles song? I dunno. I just hope it’s good.
As for the folks joking about Biden being AI, well, they must have done a great job on him, then. Have you seen the U.S. manufacturing numbers? The unemployment numbers? The wage figures? The falling deficit? I’m guessing you haven’t since you make dumb comments like that. Suggestion: TURN OFF THE PHUCKING FOX “NEWS” FOR TWO SECONDS
freeze,👏👏👏👏, to you saying “As for the folks joking about Biden being AI, well, they must have done a great job on him, then. Have you seen the U.S. manufacturing numbers? The unemployment numbers? The wage figures? The falling deficit? I’m guessing you haven’t since you make dumb comments like that. Suggestion: TURN OFF THE PHUCKING FOX “NEWS” FOR TWO SECONDS”
The music would be good if you could get the real feeing into it, unfortunately A I has no feeling, It’s just music then, no concerts, nobody live, this is just a recording. As far as turning off Fox, what about CNN,MSNBC,ABC,NBC CBS,The newspapers, are they becoming just recordings too? What is A I what isin’t? Ask your Dell or HP it may be able to tell you.
It had enough feeling to fool a Mom about her daughter.
Or a nation about its president.
Stu, Impressive, suspect those Beatles titles and lines resulted as you “acted naturally”!
Must admit your blogs are “Getting Better”
Much better than when I was 64?