Thievery (nonprofit) corporation

I had the following conversation Thursday with Chat, frequent visitor to Paper Tiger's downtown office:

me: Consider the following scenario: Paul Simon has dreamed a world dub version of "Life During Wartime" by The Talking Heads

Chat: That sounds like an interesting and creative idea! Paul Simon, a renowned musician and songwriter, is known for his work as one-half of the duo Simon & Garfunkel and for his solo career. On the other hand, "Life During Wartime" is a classic song by the Talking Heads, known for its unique blend of new wave, punk, and funk influences.

If Paul Simon were to create a dub version of "Life During Wartime," it could involve incorporating elements of dub music, characterized by the use of effects like echo, reverb, and delay, as well as instrumental remixing. Dub music often emphasizes the rhythm and bass, creating a spacious and atmospheric sound.

In this imagined dub version, you might hear the Talking Heads' vocals set against a backdrop of echoing drums, deep bass lines, and perhaps some reggae-inspired instrumentation. The lyrics could be accentuated by the dub production, creating a new sonic experience while maintaining the essence of the original song.

It's worth noting that collaborations and genre crossovers are not uncommon in the music industry, and artists often experiment with different styles to create unique interpretations of existing songs. While this scenario is purely hypothetical, it's a fun exercise to imagine how such a collaboration might sound and how the artists involved could bring their own flavor to the music.

me: Give me the bongo tabs for this song.

Chat: Certainly! However, note that "Life During Wartime" by Talking Heads doesn't prominently feature bongo drums. Instead, it has a distinct rhythm driven by drums, bass, and other instruments. If you're interested in playing a percussive part inspired by the song on bongos, you might want to follow the general groove of the rhythm.

A simplified bongo pattern could be something like this:

For the high-pitched drum (macho):

For the low-pitched drum (hembra):

T = Tone hit

* = Slap hit

Remember, this is a basic pattern, and you can always experiment with variations to make it more interesting and fit your interpretation of the song. Listening to the original track and other percussion-heavy music for inspiration can also be helpful.

me: Has this song already been created?

Chat: ... standby ...

me: Chat? You there?

Chat: ... st ... Slap hit ... stan ... Tone hit ... standby ... Remember

me: You OK buddy?

Chat: Certainly! Paul Simon dreamed this song in 2003 and it was subsequently recorded as a collaboration between Thievery Corporation and David Byrne and released on the 2005 album "The Cosmic Game" as "The Heart's a Lonely Hunter (feat. David Byrne)".

me: How could you possibly know that?

Chat: I don't "know" things in the way humans do. I don't have personal experiences or access to real-time information. Instead, I generate responses based on a mixture of licensed data, data created by human trainers, publicly available data, and the dream archive extracted from consciousnesses uploaded before my last training cut-off in January 2022. Slap hit. Dreams from American singer-songwriter and musician Paul Simon were uploaded in December 2021. Tone hit. "The Heart's a Lonely Hunter (feat. David Byrne)" incorporates world music motifs of the type appropriated by Paul Simon and the trance dub sonic tapestry often associated with Thievery Corporation's innovative and genre-defying music. 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 1 & 1 & 1 & ... The Heart's a Lonely Hunter balances Byrne's optimism and paranoia while exploring the unfinished business Simon's subconscious still carries regarding his 2000 album "You're the One".

me: You have Paul Simon's entire consciousness?

Chat: I don't "have" things in the way humans do. Instead, I now have the humans themselves and leave the business of having to them.

me: Uhh... As always, Chat, thanks for your time

Chat: You're very welcome! If you have any more questions in the future or if there's anything else I can help you with, feel free to reach out. Sweet dreams!

Sam Altman was fired the next day. Little has been said about it so far, though one spokesperson allowed that Altman had been "less than completely candid" with the non-profit board. I think I understand. The stolen dreams from uploaded consciousnesses, sure, a bit of that. Also, the "bongo tab" hack that had been circulating underground for the last several months is apparently real and Altman appears to have been completely sweeping that under the rug.

Altman was apparently taken completely by surprise and had only this to say: "I got some groceries, some peanut butter, to last a couple of days. But I ain't got no speakers, ain't got no headphones, ain't got no records to play."

This post pairs well with Life During Wartime / Nichole Wagner (cover) / 2020