What did Phil Collins say on Concorde at Live Aid? Can AI tell us?

What did Phil Collins say on Concorde at Live Aid? Can AI tell us?

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Today, as you can imagine from the background and the title, it's about Live Aid, specifically a part of Live Aid. On Saturday, I was watching Live Aid, and I watched it all the way through because I haven't watched all 16 hours since about a year ago, actually. As I was watching, I thought to myself there's a famous part of the story. That's when Steve Blacknell interviews Phil Collins on Concorde. David Hepworth, Billy Connolly, Miranda Richardson, and a few others listen in from the commentary box at Wembley Stadium, but they can only hear static noise.

The static noise they were hearing sounded something like this: [Static Noise Example]

After watching things like "The Beatles Get Back" and various other things, I wondered if AI technology could be used to remove the background noise so we can hear what they're saying. I decided to use some AI on the clip of audio. The audio I used isn't from the TV transmission but from the radio broadcast because it's slightly better quality than my off-air VHS tapes. I put it through some AI, and the results were quite surprising. It allowed me to hear most of the conversation, though the quality still resembles a poor telephone line. Finally, you can get a gist of what was actually said.

Here's how it sounds post-AI: [Audio Clip]

There you go. That is how it sounds with some AI applied. Obviously, I'm no AI expert. I found a website where you upload audio and click "get rid of the noise," and that's what came out. There must be better ways of doing it than my little experiment. It proves that technology can be good as well as bad. There's been a lot of talk about AI being used for composing songs, writing tunes, and, even worse, impersonating people. For me, that's a no-go. I was listening to Boom Radio the other day; Simon Bates did a Live Aid special, and on their Jingles, they've got an AI voice of Tommy Vance doing the links. To me, that's wrong, putting words into the voice of the dead—totally against it.

Anyhow, that's what AI can do. I thought it might be an interesting thing for you to listen to.

Thanks for watching this video! I'll catch you in the next one.

Here’s the transcript from Concord:

Live Aid Commentary:

“Now I hope we're going to be able to hear from Phil Collins and Steve Blacknell somewhere way up in the sky over the Atlantic..."

*London Announcer: "Concorde to London, could I speak to Steven Blacknell, please, over?"

Concorde: "Steven Blacknell here."

London: "This is the director in London, over."

Steven Blacknell: "Phil Collins is with me. The reason we're doing this is because it can be done. Phil, it feels very nice to be here."

Phil Collins: "Basically, the whole point is it's fun and it's for the good cause."

London: "When you get to Philadelphia, what are we going to be expecting?”

Phil Collins: "Philadelphia has just woken up, so they’re behind the UK.”

Steven Blacknell: "This is Steven Blacknell and Phil Collins from Concorde."

London: "Thank you, Steven and Phil, live from Concorde."

Keywords

• Matthew North
• Live Aid
• Phil Collins
• Concorde
• AI Technology
• Noise Reduction
• Audio Restoration
• Steve Blacknell
• Interview
• Radio Broadcast

FAQ

Q: What is the main focus of this video? A: The main focus is on using AI technology to remove background noise from a famous Live Aid interview between Steve Blacknell and Phil Collins aboard Concorde.

Q: Why was the audio from the radio broadcast used instead of the TV transmission? A: The radio broadcast audio was slightly better in quality compared to off-air VHS tapes.

Q: What was the result of using AI on the audio clip? A: The AI was able to remove much of the background noise, allowing listeners to hear most of the conversation despite a poor telephone line quality.

Q: How does Matthew North feel about AI being used to impersonate deceased individuals? A: He is strongly against it, believing it is wrong to put words into the voice of the dead.

Q: What did Phil Collins mention about the time differences between the UK and Philadelphia? A: Phil noted that Philadelphia had just woken up and was behind the UK time-wise.