I've written before about how I encountered the album this comes from, Computer World, during an odd period in my life when I had no access to hi-fi gear beyond a shitty tabletop radio and one of those pre-Walkman shoebox types of cassette tape recorders. It's the only time in my adult life I have found myself in such a predicament and it only lasted six months. I was mostly doing without, which was weird enough, but a friend thought I should hear the Kraftwerk album and also Devo's New Traditionalists, which he put on the other side. I liked the Devo well enough, but Computer World is what kept bringing me back. Even at that I would not necessarily call "Computer Love" the best song on it—that would more likely be "Numbers" or "Pocket Calculator," because they also have the humor—but it's the longest, which makes me think it's the best at reproducing the experience of listening to this album, so full of such lovely, meditative, and humanizing music. Lasting more than seven minutes, and the story, such as it is, essentially a variation on the Greek story of Narcissus—so the humor is there after all, I finally see: "Could it be your face I see on my computer screen" (on the other hand, for those inclined to see in them prophets of the future, webcam interfacing decades ahead of its time)—it seems made to order for playing the way I did, in bed at night before turning in, under the covers, with the cassette recorder tucked beside one of my thighs. It was cold outside, one of the worst winters I saw in Minneapolis.
Evocative post - I recall a winter like that in Boston not too long ago, which is part of why I'm far from the East Coast this winter. Although I'm still catching some sort of cold or allergies, so go figure...
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I've been listening to this album a lot lately though not this particular song which I'll have to cue up on my iPod tomorrow when I get in my car. Funny you mention New Traditionalists as well as that's been getting a lot of play for me as well - I got both albums from a friend about a year ago along with other Devos and Kraftwerks, though somehow "We're Through Being Cool" and "Computer World" seemed to see the heaviest rotation (at least until I saw Island of Lost Souls this past summer and was turned on to their breakthrough LP via the special features).
For whatever reason, everything I play lately seems to come from the 80s; maybe I've just burnt out on 60s/70s tracks to a certain extent but I just keep coming back to stuff like these two albums, Roxy Music, Tangerine Dream, and especially - in a somewhat different vein - Jim Carroll's fantastic 1980 Catholic Boy, the title track especially becoming my favorite song of the moment.
These personal listening trends are weird, but there you have it...
That's some great stuff, Joel. I don't know the Catholic Boy album all that well but I used to have the "People Who Died" single from it and played the shit out of it for months. I'm glad you remind me of Devo as I have been thinking of them lately. As well known as they are I'm not sure how familiar people are with the music. They actually made a whole bunch of really good albums. Thanks for the comments as always and Happy New Year!
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