Microsoft Songsmith spot shockingly horrid
The ads with Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld got a good spanking in the media, but they were pinnacles of human achievement compared to this apparent Microsoft creation: a long-form ad touting Songsmith, a Microsoft program that generates musical accompaniment to match a singer's voice. Hard to believe it's for real, but so far there's no evidence to the contrary. |
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the best part - there are so many good parts - is that the daughter's computer is a MacBook Pro.
Posted by: dave | Jan 13, 2009 2:17:49 PM
Wow. That is the worst ad I have ever seen, but not bad enough to be good - just bad enough to be plain bad. Microsoft -1.
Posted by: Ben | Jan 13, 2009 2:19:38 PM
Going deaf suddenly sounds like a great idea.
Posted by: Catharine P. Taylor | Jan 13, 2009 2:47:21 PM
If this is an example of the type of music that Songsmith comes up with, it's not exactly making me want to run out and buy the software so much as it just makes me want to run far, far away.
Posted by: Sean | Jan 13, 2009 3:13:34 PM
OMG... take the super long way to a selling a fairly simple idea — karaoke in reverse.
What if you start singing "The Joker" by Steve Miller? Will it produce something at least close to the real thing? If not, this product sucks... like the million of bad singers that will think they can sing. Watch out American Idol, you're gonna have whole lotta bad coming your way
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Posted by: chadschomber | Jan 13, 2009 3:49:54 PM
i think that the killer example you are looking for is here.. listeners of a discerning nature might want to cover their ears now:
http://music.metafilter.com/2943/Runnin-With-The-Songsmith
Posted by: jim | Jan 13, 2009 4:38:42 PM
Wow, this is the Cop Rock of ads!
Posted by: Becky e | Jan 13, 2009 4:51:22 PM
Am I the only one that noticed that guy is using a Mac?
Posted by: Jeremy Flint | Jan 13, 2009 5:18:11 PM
My daughter, 12, who takes singing lessons in NYC, watched the ad and did not like the singers. But she didn't criticize the hokeyness of the ad and actually became very enthusiastic about the software. I'd put this one in the same category of the "Clapper" sound-activated lamp or the "Help I've fallen and I can't get up" alert pendant. The spots are annoying and effective. Now I've got to see if this software will run on my kid's Mac.
Posted by: Dave Armon | Jan 13, 2009 5:44:04 PM
This is a funny spot, corny, but funny, and yeah it's a mac they're using for sure haha
Posted by: Nick Cicero | Jan 13, 2009 5:58:05 PM
Wow, that is atrocious
Posted by: Val | Jan 13, 2009 6:32:25 PM
This has to be some kind of parody or satire, right? You can't make an ad this bad by accident...
Posted by: Mike Rosen | Jan 13, 2009 7:13:49 PM
here is the much better version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGyInt7xMpM
Posted by: bear | Jan 13, 2009 8:01:45 PM
Is this Crispin's doing? I'm so lost, corny for the sake of being corny and memorable I suppose?
Posted by: Jennings | Jan 13, 2009 8:05:34 PM
it's real for sure, it is even on the officila microsoft page.
Posted by: flo | Jan 13, 2009 8:29:24 PM
"Uggg, I've got to make an ad for glow in the dark towel and I'd NEVER USE a glow in the dark towel."
Posted by: horrible | Jan 13, 2009 9:16:23 PM
The little girl says it comes up with "a music" to match your voice. Really? "A music?"
Posted by: Funboy | Jan 14, 2009 12:30:42 PM
There is no way this is real. It's ridiculous, and not a good ridiculous—just plain ridiculous. As noted by Becky e, that is a bedazzled Mac Book being used and Microsoft would never let that fly in any ad.
Posted by: Josh | Jan 14, 2009 1:03:56 PM
Of course, CP+B will defend this slop by claiming that it has people talking and has created a buzz.
Posted by: Stud | Jan 14, 2009 5:16:21 PM
Apparently I am the only one who's seen the cheese fest that is High School Musical*.
It's deliberately uber-uber-uber-cheesy camp in that way that kids programmes often are.
Frankly I think its alright when you consider what its trying to do. Show you the possibilities of a program you've never seen before. It made me download it, job done.
*I have not really seen High School Musical, just a few annoying bits whilst flicking tv
Posted by: Rob Mortimer | Jan 14, 2009 5:23:48 PM
Yup. That's a 17 in. MacBook Pro with one of the girly flower decals cleverly positioned over the Apple log.
The killer line is when the Asian guy says (with a straight face): "Oh, it's by Microsoft, so it's real easy to use. Right?"
Right, Pandit. At least as easy to use as the Registry and Sys.dat.config. whatever!
Time to call Chiat Day, I'd say.
Posted by: Peter Weisz | Jan 14, 2009 5:52:00 PM
http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/news/features/songsmith.aspx
it's really real. those guys in the video are the engineers
Posted by: anonomous | Jan 14, 2009 9:05:51 PM
If it's real, are they trying for ironically bad? (and missing that, as well...)
Posted by: Rich | Jan 14, 2009 10:19:17 PM
Question... if I use the glow in the dark town and I'm covered with lint... will my genitals glow in the dark as well?
Posted by: Robert | Jan 15, 2009 7:47:12 PM
in an homage to This is Spinal Tap...those of you who know the film know that the 'band' released an album to the shortest review in history--and it applies to this effort by Microsoft:
Shit Sandwich
Posted by: adrefugee | Jan 16, 2009 11:53:07 AM
95% of CPB's work is utter crap, 5% is pure genius. I think this one is pretty genius.
Posted by: towelie | Jan 20, 2009 4:40:04 PM
I blogged about Songsmith too today, it's horrible, but amusing.
Posted by: Curly | Jan 29, 2009 3:36:18 PM
Pencils + eardrums = problem solved!
Posted by: Andy Bartelsmeyer | Feb 1, 2009 5:19:55 PM
