Season 3: Episode 9 - Daisy Bell (or a Bicycle Built for Two)

In this episode of the A Tisket-Tasket Podcast, host Gina explores the rich history of the song 'Daisy Bell (Bicycle Built for Two)'. Initially composed in 1892 by Harry Dacer, this Victorian-era tune became a cultural phenomenon. The episode delves into its unexpected journey from the music halls of Victorian England to becoming a groundbreaking moment in artificial speech with the IBM 704 computer at Bell Labs. Gina also highlights the song’s profound influence on pop culture, including its appearance in the film '2001: A Space Odyssey' and various other media. The episode concludes with historical recordings and a reflection on the fusion of music and technology. Join Gina as she navigates through folklore, history, and the ever-evolving interplay between humanity and technology.

00:00 Introduction to the Tisket Tasket Podcast
01:17 Daisy Bell: A Victorian Classic
03:57 The Birth of Computer Music
07:38 Daisy Bell in Popular Culture
09:50 Conclusion and Musical Performances

Transcript

  Welcome to today's episode of a Tisket Tasket podcast, where I, your host Gina, dive deep into the world of nursery rhymes.

Well, normally I do. Sometimes I make an episode about my thoughts on scholarship like last week's episode about the Brothers Grimm and the Opies. You should definitely check that out. Other times I talk about songs, stories, or fairy tales. Like a few weeks ago where I covered the sea shanty, Blowin the Man Down.

Overall, this podcast is an exploration of folklore and history. Therefore, this week I'm going to talk about a song that continually gets stuck in my head. Today, we will look at the interesting history of the song of Daisy Bell, or as you might know it, A Bicycle Built for Two.

But this episode isn't just a story about a catchy tune. It's a tale that connects the music halls of Victorian England to the cutting edge developments of Bell Labs and even the chilling depths of science fiction in 2001 A Space Odyssey. Let's pedal back in time and uncover the story of Daisy Bell, a song that helped usher in the era of computer synthesized music.

The story of Daisy Bell began its life in 1892 with English songwriter Harry Dacher. According to the legend, Dacher brought his bicycle with him on a trip to America, only to be charged a customs duty upon arrival. Bemoaning this expense to his friend and fellow songwriter, William Jerome, Jerome quipped that it was lucky he hadn't brought a bicycle built for twoe duty might have been doubled.

That phrase stuck with Dacker, inspiring the creation of Daisy Bell. There is a flower within my heart, Daisy, Daisy, planted one day by a glancing dart, planted by Daisy Bell. Whether she loves me or whether she not, sometimes it's hard to tell, yet I am longing to share the lot of beautiful Daisy Bell. And of course the chorus is, Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do, I'm half crazy, all for the love of you.

It won't be a stylish marriage. I can't afford a carriage, but you'll look sweet upon the seat of a bicycle built for two. We'll go tandem as man and wife, Daisy, Daisy. Pedaling away down the road of life, I and my Daisy Bell.

When the road's dark, we can both despise policemen and lamps as well. There are bright lights in the dazzling eyes of beautiful Daisy Bell. And then the chorus. I will stand by you in wheel or woe, Daisy, Daisy. You'll be the bell which I'll ring, you know, sweet little Daisy Bell. You'll take the lead in each trip we take, then if I don't do well, I will permit you to use the break my beautiful Daisy Bell, and then followed by the chorus.

It's an adorable song, what can I say? Originally performed by British music hall singer Katie Lawrence, Daisy Bell became an instant classic, its lilting melody and romantic lyrics ensuring its place in popular culture. But who could have guessed that a decade later, that cheerful Victorian tune would play a pivotal role in the development of artificial speech?

Fast forward to 1961, where engineers at Bell Labs were at the forefront of a technological revolution. John L. Kelly Jr. and Carol Lachbaum were pioneering work on voice synthesis, using the IBM 704 computer, with assistance from Max Matthews, the so called, quote, father of computer music. They programmed the computer to sing, and the first song ever performed by a computer?

You've guessed it, Daisy Bell. In any case, this moment was groundbreaking. As Kerry O'Dell of the Library of Congress notes, the IBM 704's rendition of Daisy Bell was a, quote, a bold and singular achievement, a profound leap into a brave new world.

Odell 2009 though primitive by today's standards. This mechanical voice paved the way for modern digital music, speech synthesis, and AI driven voice assistance like Siri and Alexa. Let's go ahead and listen to a clip of the IBM 704 singing Daisy Bell. 📍  

 





 That eerie, robotic performance didn't just impress the engineers at Bell Labs.

It also caught the attention of famed science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke, who witnessed the demonstration during a visit. Inspired by what he saw, Clarke later incorporated Daisy Bell into his screenplay for, you guessed it, 2001, A Space Odyssey. One of the most iconic scenes in 2001 comes near the film's climax.

As astronaut Dave Bowman systematically deactivates the HAL 9000 computer, HAL's artificial intelligence regresses. In a haunting moment, HAL begins to sing Daisy Bell, his voice slowing and distorting as his circuits shut down. This cinematic moment cemented Daisy Bell in popular culture as a symbol of the intersection between humanity and technology.

Scholar David Kahn describes this as a quote a chilling metaphor for the fragility of artificial intelligence, its reliance on human programming, and the eerie resonance of nostalgia in machine memory. Kahn, 2010. The song's influence didn't stop there. Over the decades, Daisy Bell has been referenced and parried across various media, from video games like R.

U. R. U. R. to TV shows like Mystery Science Theater 3000. Even digital assistant Bonsai Buddy, the infamous purple virtual companion of the early 2000s, could be prompted to sing Daisy Bell. In the 1984 film Revenge of the Nerds, Takashi Brian Tochi sings a Japanese version of Daisy Bell during his tricycle race against the Alpha Betas. In 2005 Robots, when Rodney fixes Big Wheel during the slide scene, Big Wheel sings Daisy Bell. And in The Time Traveler's Wife 2009, Alba and her father Henry sing the song Daisy Bell in an attempt to stop him from traveling through time.

In TV, in Mind Your Language, the English sitcom, Mr. Brown and the students sing Daisy Bell while waiting for the caretaker Sid to unlock the classroom door. Bender, of Futurama fame, sings Daisy Bell during a montage of him in the Planet Express ship as an allusion to the film 2001.

A student choir sings Daisy Bell at the beginning of a bicycle race in mid-summer murders. The episode, the Glitch from 2009, and in an American Horror Story, the Android recreation of Mrs. Mead sings Daisy Bell and a slurred in distorted voice. There are also a number of musical recordings, of this song, and we'll listen to a few of them.

In a football club in Rotterdam, they sing,  various football chants to the tune of Daisy Bell, in any case, as you can see, Daisy Bell is a prominent song used in popular culture, often used as the intersect between technology and humanity.

 Most fascinatingly, in 2009, artists Aaron Coblin and Daniel Macy created Bicycle Built for 2000, an internet based project in which 2, 088 people from around the world each recorded a small portion of the song.

Their voices were then synthesized into a collective digital chorus, demonstrating how computer technology can unite rather than replace humanity. Coblin and Macy, 2009.

From its origins as a charming Victorian tune to its role in shaping the future of Artificial Intelligence, Daisy Bell is more than just a song, it's a testament to the ways in which technology and culture evolve together. Max Matthews pioneering work laid the foundation for digital sound manipulation, and today his legacy lives on in everything from electronic music production to video game soundtracks.

Matthews himself once said, quote, A musician can make his own instruments, Matthews 1969. Thanks to him and the other visionaries at Bell Labs, we live in a world where music is more digital, more interactive, and more experimental than ever before. And yet, even as technology advances, we keep returning to Daisy Bell.

Maybe there's something timeless about its melody. Or maybe in the age of artificial intelligence, we find comfort in a song that reminds us of our own human creativity. Or maybe it's just such a good earworm. Before I leave you today, I'm going to play two versions of Daisy Bell. The first is an 1894 version sung by Edward favored and is recorded by the Edison Photograph Company on wax cylinder.

Now, this is one of the few instances where I found the recording of the full song, so I  📍 definitely wanted to play it.

 

 The second version is from 1915, found on the Library of Congress's website, sung by Reynald Warenrath, William Hooley, Elizabeth Wheeler, who we've heard sing nursery rhymes before, and Harry McDonough. This was published by Victor Records in Camden, New Jersey. Let's go ahead and take a listen.

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 Now that's it for today's episode of a Tisket Tasket Podcast. If you've enjoyed this journey through folklore, history, music, and other fascinating topics, be sure to subscribe and leave me a review wherever you listen to podcasts. You can also follow me on social media for more behind the scenes content, however, until next time, keep listening, keep exploring, and remember, music and machines have been dancing together for a long, long time.  📍 Tune in next week, and until then, take care.