Music Featuring Non-Human Animals

[rcarlberg]

Alan Hovhaness - And God Created Great Whales
Paul Winter Consort - Wolf Eyes
Paul Winter Consort - Callings
Pink Floyd - Mademoiselle Nobs
Beaver & Krause - Walking Green Algae Blues
Bernie Krause - Gorillas in the Mix (doesn't really count)
Gentlemen Without Weapons - Transmissions (doesn't really count)

[JKL2000]

The Beatles - Good Morning

[markowitz]

Piggies The Beatles

[battema]

HATEBEAK

[bob_32_116]

The Beatles - Blackbird

There are sure to be lots of other songs featuring samples of bird calls - birds seem to be the most commonly favoured creature for sampling, followed by dogs. There is a dog barking at the end of the Beach Boys' album Pet Sounds. Also in Synesthesia, by Porcupine Tree. And, of course, in Who Let the Dogs Out? by The Baha Men. Whales appear on the song Tarwathie by Judy Collins - in fact they are the only "instruments" used on the song. ELO also used whale sounds on one of thsir albums.

One day I expect the RSPCA to initiate a class action on behalf of all the animals used on record without their consent, demanding that record royalties to be paid to animal protection organisations, cat and dog havens, and the like.

[nnknsh]

Hermeto Pascoal uses live Pigs on Salves Mass
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ldI-_jTyYU

and a chicken on

Festa dos Deuses
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWFY8gauvQQ

Ariel Karma / Richard Tinti : Osmose uses manipulated field recording of the rain forest (with lots of birds, animals and insects sound included).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAyzFwZ7DG8
http://www.discogs.com/Ariel-Kalma-R...release/909962

[viukkis]

This was a minor novelty hit in Finland in early 90's.

[ChrisXymphonia]

Are there human animals?

[Prehensile Pencil]

CANINUS is a Death-Grind band, vocals courtesy of two, snarling Pit-Bulls. Legend has it that, in the early days of the band, they had the dogs in cages on-stage, and had trained them to "growl and howl viciously" at the sight of George W. Bush pictures, which they showed them during the verses. Also that the Humane Society interjected on the dogs' behalves, so the band now uses dog-camples (?)

[walt]

In the late 1950s Jim Fassett recorded the sounds of bird song and,through manipulation of pitch and tape speed created "Symphony Of The Birds".All sounds heard are bird song,altered through studio techniques.There's a cd that came out a year or two ago on the Japanese EM label.Rather wild stuff and way way ahead of its time.Check it out.

[Zeuhlmate]

Lots of woof woof here



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Nope - the dogs arent on this version. I have a different version on a compilation album called Selected tracks lots of dogs there.

Here are some more dogs:



And there must lots of tracks with seagulls (Close to the edge? )and humpback whales around.


And some elphants:

[PeterG]

Well, the first thing that comes to mind is Terry Oldfield and his 2 albums that include whale song:
Out of the Depths Vol. 1
De Profundis: Out of the Depths Vol. 2

[Staun]

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Mr. Bojangles.

[Johnkil]

PF's Grantchester Meadows has some bird calls and other natural sounds in it. It's also, for my money, one of the prettiest songs that Mr. Waters has ever written. It always takes me to a very serene place.

[davis]

[markowitz]

Nelly the Elephant Nektar

[Mister Triscuits]

Are there human animals?

Uh, of course there are. But posts like yours remind me that some humans are vegetables.

[davis]

some humans are vegetables.

[Scrotum Scissor]

PF's Grantchester Meadows has some bird calls and other natural sounds in it. It's also, for my money, one of the prettiest songs that Mr. Waters has ever written. It always takes me to a very serene place.

His masterpiece, IMHO!

American music professor, "serious" contemporary composer and one-time Doctor Nerve member Steve MacLean has - amongst other things - released a fairly interesting work called Frog Bug Computer Guitar (on ReR), in which he arranges, intertwines and reassembles recordings of said environmental impressions with that of his own playing.

I seem to remember also that Bob Drake features his dogs on several recordings.

[rcarlberg]

Grantchester Meadows and Caninus are fascinating examples of musicians using animal noises, but the titles listed in my opening post are somewhat different. I was hoping to find more examples where musicians play music WITH the animals, rather than just using tapes as a backdrop.

Hovhaness uses the melody of the whalesong reproduced in the strings.


Paul Winter plays lines on the sax which imitate the wolves' howl.


In Mademoiselle Nobs, Seamus sings a great lead vocal, accompanied by harmonica.

This was a minor novelty hit in Finland in early 90's.

That's more like it.

Incidentally the reason I said Gentlemen Without Weapons, Bernie Krause and Jim Fassett don't count is that they sampled animal sounds and used them to create new melodies. The animals had no input, other than as a sound source.

[Dave (in MA)]

My parrot 'Monkie' singing along with the Three Stooges song.
https://soundcloud.com/chickyraptor/...ong-with-the-3

[Proglodite]

Why doesn't Gentlemen Without Weapons count? Always liked that album (though admittedly a couple of really cheesy tracks...but I've heard cheesier out of respected prog musicians...) --Peter

[simon moon]

How about, 'Cantus Arcticus' by contemporary Finish composer, Einojuhani Rautavaara? He uses recordings of birds to great effect. Beautiful piece.

Camel, 'Down on the Farm'. Several animal noises.

Are there human animals?

Yes, humans are animals.

Kingdom - animalia
Phylum - cordata
Class - mammalia
Order - primate
Family - homididae
Tribe - hominini
Genus - homo
Species - h. sapiens

[Mister Triscuits]

Grantchester Meadows and Caninus are fascinating examples of musicians using animal noises, but the titles listed in my opening post are somewhat different. I was hoping to find more examples where musicians play music WITH the animals, rather than just using tapes as a backdrop.

Kate Bush's "A Sky of Honey" has vocal sounds and musical motifs morphing in and out of the actual birdsong.

[B D]

:

I seem to remember also that Bob Drake features his dogs on several recordings.

I'd never do it on purpose because it seems corny, but If a dog barks during a take and it's a good take I don't mind that it has a dog barking on it. When I was recording the acoustic guitar for "Move the King" on 13 Songs and a Thing, my dogs (I hadn't even noticed they were in the next room sleeping) suddenly started barking at something, it was really loud and overloaded the mics, so I ALMOST stopped, you hear me suddenly speed up and play it in a funny way for a few seconds, then I thought oh that was really good, so I carried on.

I do like it when unknown elements come from the surroundings while recording, there are countless examples of it all over everything I record, for instance there is a really perfect and beautiful tone from a passing motor scooter on the first track from The Shunned Country album, and on the same album during "The Sun Slants Strangely" a crow cawing twice in the break just after the refrain, and a hunter in a nearby field shooting a rifle just as the song ends. (I often record in the garage or outdoors so I get a lot of nice things......)

Just as I started recording the guitar track for the intro to the first song on my new "Lawn Ornaments" album, it was a very windy day and the door to the studio blew open and closed and squeaked several times. I wrestled with the thought that some people would think I added the squeak deliberately, which would REALLY be corny, and should I do it again with no squeaks, but it was a fine take and it really happened so I decided to keep it.

BD
www.bdrak.com