Laurie Anderson - Mach 20

[patternsinchaos]

You cut off "ladies" (in ladies and gentlemen) at the beginning. ;-) Thanks for uploading this. Laurie is awesome.

[schwarzschwein]

she talks about huge sperm whales arriving the Japanese coastal waters...

[schwarzschwein]

Can someone provide a transcript of what she says ( a mean a native speaker) ?

[NHBearMan1967]

I saw this on Saturday Night Live years and years ago, but it may have been on another show as well.

[bradster67]

I remember seeing this performance the night it originally aired. It was called 'The New Show' on ABC television. Thrilled to see it again. This piece is one of my favorites from 'United States I-V'. Laurie Anderson has been and continues to be a favorite of mine. I've seen her perform live once. She's just brilliant!

[showroommeryll]

ahah genius

[MrStoevring]

i læove her

aallways

as she reachees a hathchett in her forhheade

[lingshu8]

Awesome and eerie. But she flubs a number: instead of "400 blind and desperate sperm whales" it should have been "400 million" (hence a moment later she asks "would there be room for so many million?")

Also, a minor hair-split: "Over half of them will end up as women." Actually, of those 400 million sperm, typically only 1 will end up fertilizing an egg (if any). The rest will die. Of course, the sperm that does succeed in conceiving has a 50% chance of becoming a woman.

[Seloa]

@lingshu8 I think she just means in general. All of them have the potential to become a human and in that sense half of them would become women. Actually it just seems like she's blanketing the facts over a larger scale so really... either way.

[SubversionArts]

I saw this when it was originally broadcast, and it made a huge impression on me. I've been a fan of Laurie Anderson ever since.

[seandeeify]

Good God, she's so strange.

[truvelocity]

@seandeeify Yes, it seems she is strange but that was a time in the 80's that performance art like this was common for many artists. I was a part of that movement with a group called Acme in Los Angeles.

[VIEWTUBE00000]

Sperm whales that resemble Pringles potato chips?

[warwickharris]

FAN-TASTIC! thumbs up for laurie

[piedpiperpianos]

would they know that they were sent for a porpoise??

[corbindallas30]

@piedpiperpianos niiice! lol :)

[vuotopiuscuro]

fine

[Aqene1000]

A highly unusual woman

an intriguing entertainer

[unmusica]

Thank you for posting! I saw this on TV once, early in 84, my first exposure to LA. I immediately bought "Mister Heartbreak" and was blown away, especially with the beauty of "Kokoku" and "Blue Lagoon." She came to Boston soon afterwards, and I was lucky to see her 3 times in about 2 years, (1st show was largely United States) and meet her at a book signing. Later I called a no. given me by Warner Bros; it was she who answered! I was shocked, but sent her a tape; she responded with a postcard.

[scriptfisher]

She of course means to say "400 million desperate sperm whales" instead of just "400"

[HippoSad]

brilliant!

[paulyoldmac]

i'd love to hear what thoughts this provokes

[virus56777]

the  bravery of being out of range are you all

[virus56777]

snl 's last breath  5-5

[truvelocity]

A fabulous media artist who simplifies things for even a child to comprehend, with adult irony for the rest of us. I laugh at much of her work ( in a knowing good way).

[Bonobo3D]

Wow she's amazing, What a performer and what a thought provoker!

[avapepper]

I heart Laurie.

signed, tree

[coprographia]

I only have the faintest idea who the hell she is because of Space Ghost.

[edgeways]

she's got a lot of CDs

[warhola888]

Oh my god, she was on Space Ghost!?

[nvgclourinha]

tem de ficar para a historia, pela originalidade em tudo...

[warwickharris]

BRILLIANT as ever laurie!!!!!

ciao

rick

[alvaro63025]

Es una genia

[matthiasklein100]

love her

[matthiasklein100]

love her

[ithoughtitwasjustme]

I heart Laurie! May she live a very looong and weirdly thought provoking life. :)

[ChromeLocust]

whoa.

[blahnupunk1]

I saw this as a kid and it was a complete revelation. Haven't been the same since.

[scriptfisher]

Her genius knows no bounds. Conceptual art could never have had a better ambassador.

[zedrein18]

She is actually my professor at Brown university

[c0mplexC0nfusi0n]

She's as fascinating to watch as to listen to. Wow.

[spadesghost]

OH SIT i finally found it! i saw this featured on snl YEARS ago, best weirdest thing beside max headroom i ever saw

[DIONYSES000AD]

Hi Perth.

[DIONYSES000AD]

shes awesome

[tommysonar]

genius.

[GrantMorey]

what does this song mean?

[k8fan]

Mean? It's not so much a song as a lecture about scale and drawing comparisons. Sperm the size of whales. It's just interesting.

[GrantMorey]

It is definately an avante garde song, as that is her specialty, but I wouldn't call it a lecture. Lectures are direct information. This is ambiguous art that mimics lecture in song - an act on a show. The only interpretation I can think of is that its hard to accept a message when you are overwhelmed by it.

[GrantMorey]

A child could conceptualize a bunch of oversized tadpoles moving through the ocean to Japan, but what is the significance? What about the one whale reaching Japan? How does that correlate with the conception of the egg? I thought it would go deeper than just size comparisons since it is deemed "genius". Mabye genius in the sense of novelty, but I question if it goes beyond that.

[metabutt]

it's not as much about the metaphor itself; but the setup. The voice synth modulator giving a typically female voice a male authority sound. The words she chooses and the manner in which she conveys the information.

[GrantMorey]

I agree. Very original.

[eyewoodsay]

i like 2 listen to this when im flying my space ship

[CaptMARNEY]

I luv the idiosynchroses of her speech pattern, and her body language and facial expressions in this performance make her seem like a narrator of a nature program! Laurie Anderson still performing to this day!:D

[latexinuit]

Mach 20 is not correct. 30 mph or 50 km/h is more correct.

[wrothermel]

Wow. And to think I liked the song. Thanks for clearing that up!!

[foreverdrone]

and yeah you're right...laurie anderson's voice is amazing. not only the prosody but the timbre. i think she would be worth hearing even if she were reading her grocery list.

the Voice of Authority..."now why would anyone want to talk like that?"

"...take a wild guess."

[foreverdrone]

one of the funniest parts of United States...no small distinction, considering how long it is.

saw on YouTube where Laurie was recently interviewed on Swedish television. she looks so old! she IS, I know... it's just that I look at the Mapplethorpe photo on Strange Angels...she looked good! and (earlier than that) Laurie I seem to recall turned 50 when I was in college 20 years ago! it's as if she's been ageless...until very recently.

so...

is it lou reed's fault?

[Torc0]

Now that you mention it, Lou doesn't look any older now than he did 20 years ago. Maybe he's secretly funneling his age to her!

[kludd28]

I've always loved the short, choppy, ...(pause)...emphatic way that she talks when using the 'voice of authority' filter. It's not that she doesn't perform like that without it, but the combination is so unusual, you have to listen. You have to know, what the heck is she talking about? Who cares? How do you make music like that? What an original.

[k8fan]

Yes, she was the host of that episode.

[warhola888]

Wow, that blows... me away!

[fed111r]

shes awesome i saw her and will never forget the "sandbox" story, about the greatest wisdom she ever heard in chat room, deep deep metaphorical message of life... turns out it was a 5 year old talking about playing in a sandbox... haha -

[Samrohn]

Laurie Anderson, genius.

Poet, musician, avantgardist and a critic voice of how things are in the world.

I love her, absolutely. Greatful her kind exist on the planet.

Thanks k8fan.

[dethspud]

O Superwoman!!

Laurie Anderson is the poet Laureate of the US

Be Well.

[calverticus]

YES! YES! YESSSSSSSSSS!

[miliscatis]

laurie anderson always creative and unique!

[BLUFISH61]

Absolutely positively BRILLIANT! (in my opinion)

[LunaSeaSane]

It is ridiculous that most of the insults a lot of people here bash at each other (or at some celebrity) would not be considered disrespectful. And yet, a humorous & informative piece performed with a minimum of taste & intelligence, would.

[k8fan]

Don't know why someone marked this as spam. It's not spam. It's a criticism - one that I don't agree with - but one that this person has a right to make.

[xenussister]

I don't know what your problem is Bernardette2323. This is just fun. What's wrong with that? Laurie Anderson is one of the most intelligent and interesting artists out there. In a hundred years, critics and historians will indeed write about the cultural emptiness and artistic stupidity of today, but Laurie is will still be revered by intelligent people with good taste.

[kuglepen64]

whauw

[zardozman7]

I have the similar piece on record, nice to actually have a visual to go with it. She is a pro!

[KurtKraut]

I'm curious to know in what TV show Laurie did this performance.

[k8fan]

It's right there in the description.

[sechevere]

Thank you for posting this! It's wonderful!

[warhola888]

love it

[raydeen2k]

I remember seeing this when it originally aired. I think it was from 'Fridays' or 'The New Show'. Laurie epitomized that futuristic feel of the '80's. I learned so much from her musically and performance-wise. She made ya laugh and think at the same time. Genius.

[necroculto66]

she rules

[magnavoxtv]

the weirdest thing ever i had a dream that i was wittnessing a women with a pretend males voice explaining...something then i saw this OMG........and ive never even heard of it

[rosasparx]

...explaining...something...??­? explaining what???

[Lyktwz]

She is not only wonderful, She is from outer space...

[PabloCast]

She is amazing!!!

[radiofriendly]

wow - I've missed this - thought i'd seen all on youtube...nope

[ZachsMind]

Now after seeing this, it sheds an entirely new light on her 1999 masterpiece "Moby Dick." Was she still comparing whales to sperm or was that entirely coincidental?

[dethspud]

Too Cool. Spud owned "United States Live" on cassette tape back back in the long ago. Lar kicks ass.

White Lily is also excellent.

Be Well.

[parkingst0nes]

*headexplodes* This. Stuff's. AMAZING.

[anwaya]

Do you want to go home now?

You can read the signs.

[Auntchovi]

I would kill to have a dvd of the US Live performances!!!! I agree that Laurie is one of the greatest living artists of our time.

[CorinneMarguerite]

I SAW THIS!! I remember that show!

You have to see her live!! She's amazing and extremely thought provoking, entertaining...i was in awe...

[sgtsaute]

Man this is great! Laurie is an awesome artist!

[ultang]

wow

[k8fan]

The also showed the video for "Sharky's Day" later in the show, but that is available elsewhere.

[emalyse]

Amazing.Something to actually see from United States I-IV.Thanks for posting.

[Bleedingdancer]

Laurie is brilliant.One of the great artist of our time.

[JamusAeons]

Awesome! Wish I could find a live version of From The Air