A fine ahoy to you all out there. Unfortunately for me, I have upgraded my computer's operating system, which means everything is running great... except for my audio software. So I'm currently on the ropes as far as recording a new episode, which is a shame because I've got a really good one on deck. A double shame because I've already recorded it twice, but it sounds like shit (totally, not just a little bit, if it was a little bit it would be up right now). But third time, and working software should be the charm. Until that happens, my buddy Carl has tipped me off to this little gem.
These chaps, Komar and Melamid, and Dave Soldier began a project a number of years ago to produce true art for the people. They conducted extensive surveys with literally hundreds of individuals of countries all over the world and produced alternately the most wanted and most un-wanted paintings of each nation.
They then went further and sought out what people wanted from their music. After exhaustive research, they ended up producing one gem and one absolute piece of crap. I have only put up the "un-wanted" song because I believe, quite frankly that it is one of the best and funniest pieces of music I have ever heard. I am apparently one of only a postulated 200 people in the entire world who will think this. I have another two already accounted for, so that leaves another 197 slots still available to enjoy this piece of music... er, umm, crap.
A note from the composer:
This survey confirms the hypothesis that today’s popular music indeed provides an accurate estimate of the wishes of the vox populi. The most favored ensemble, determined from a rating by participants of their favorite instruments in combination, comprises a moderately sized group (three to ten instruments) consisting of guitar, piano, saxophone, bass, drums, violin, cello, synthesizer, with low male and female vocals singing in rock/r&b style. The favorite lyrics narrate a love story, and the favorite listening circumstance is at home. The only feature in lyric subjects that occurs in both most wanted and unwanted categories is “intellectual stimulation.” Most participants desire music of moderate duration (approximately 5 minutes), moderate pitch range, moderate tempo, and moderate to loud volume, and display a profound dislike of the alternatives. If the survey provides an accurate analysis of these factors for the population, and assuming that the preference for each factor follows a Gaussian (i.e. bell-curve) distribution, the combination of these qualities, even to the point of sensory overload and stylistic discohesion, will result in a musical work that will be unavoidably and uncontrollably “liked” by 72 plus or minus 12% (standard deviation; Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic) of listeners.
The most unwanted music is over 25 minutes long, veers wildly between loud and quiet sections, between fast and slow tempos, and features timbres of extremely high and low pitch, with each dichotomy presented in abrupt transition. The most unwanted orchestra was determined to be large, and features the accordion and bagpipe (which tie at 13% as the most unwanted instrument), banjo, flute, tuba, harp, organ, synthesizer (the only instrument that appears in both the most wanted and most unwanted ensembles). An operatic soprano raps and sings atonal music, advertising jingles, political slogans, and “elevator” music, and a children's choir sings jingles and holiday songs. The most unwanted subjects for lyrics are cowboys and holidays, and the most unwanted listening circumstances are involuntary exposure to commericals and elevator music. Therefore, it can be shown that if there is no covariance—someone who dislikes bagpipes is as likely to hate elevator music as someone who despises the organ, for example—fewer than 200 individuals of the world's total population would enjoy this piece.
Art for the people—
Your pal, Dave Soldier
June 1997
So without any further reading to do on your part, here is the most unwanted song in the world!
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