‘Daisy Bell’: The first song to feature a synthesised voice
When it was first penned and published in 1892, ‘Daisy Bell’ had absolutely nothing to do with the computerised future that the 20th century promised. Written by English songwriter Harry Darce about the tax he had to pay on his imported bicycle once he came to America, ‘Daisy Bell’ was a light and frivolous song that soon found a place in both music hall revues in Britain and vaudeville stage in America.
Everyone from Dinah Shore to Nat King Cole would record the song over the years, solidifying its place as a musical standard. The “Bicycle built for two” refrain signified good times and easy living, making ‘Daisy Bell’ one of the most carefree and enjoyable songs of the time. But that would all change thanks to evolving technology and a computer demonstration that would soon find its way into popular culture.
In 1961, the workers at Bell Labs wanted to show off the capabilities of the IBM 704. Physicist John Larry Kelly Jr had created a vocoder that allowed the computer to synthesise speech. Along with accompaniment from electronic music pioneer Max Mathews, the IBM 704 was able to sing a few of the lines from ‘Daisy Bell’ to an astounded group of witnesses.
One of those witnesses just happened to be Arthur C. Clarke, the British science fiction writer. Clarke had been friends with John Pierce, one of Kelly’s colleagues at Bell Labs. When Clarke came to visit, he was invited to witness the performance of ‘Daisy Bell’ by the IBM 704. The results stuck with Clarke, and as he continued to ponder the rise in technology, the robotic and slightly nefarious version of ‘Daisy Bell’ found its way into 2001: A Space Odyssey.
In both Stanley Kubrick’s film and Clarke’s novel adaptation, as HAL 9000 is being deactivated, he begins to revert to some of his most basic functions. One of those functions turns out to be singing ‘Daisy Bell’, which Clarke incorporated from his real-life experience seeing the IBM 704 sing the song as well.
In the years since 2001: A Space Odyssey, robots and computers were often shown singing ‘Daisy Bell’ as an allusion to the film. To coincide with Mark Ryden’s art exhibit ‘The Gay ’90s’ in 2014, an entire album of ‘Daisy Bell’ covers was released featuring performances of the song from the likes of “Weird Al” Yankovic, Kirk Hammett, Mark Mothersbaugh, Katy Perry, and Tyler, the Creator.
Watch HAL 9000’s rendition of ‘Daisy Bell’ down below.
