An AI-generated Beatles album I will actually listen to: "Rubber Soul, but it's Motown"

An AI experiment that transforms The Beatles' 1965 album Rubber Soul into Motown-style arrangements, reimagines all 14 tracks from the 1965 album. "It's like a Pandora's box has been opened," wrote one of the 130,000+ viewers, capturing the mix of wonder and worry in the comments section.

"I'm digging this, and I really don't want to," admitted another commenter, echoing many viewers' internal struggle.

The project was uploaded by creator Kail Tescar, with precious little information as to how it was actually creator. The only notes for the YouTube video are "Alternate reality recordings. All lyrics written by The Beatles. Music by The Ai Overlords."

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Music professionals seem rattled by the AI's sophistication. "As a musician, this is both amazing and terrifying," wrote one commenter. Another observed, "I'd buy this if it came out in the '70s – it would have already been in a dozen movies and shows and mainstream in our minds!" The AI even nailed period-specific production details, with listeners noting the authentic "Motown style mic pre-amp overdrive" and vintage tape hiss.

"In an alternate universe, the Detroit Spinners did a cover of Rubber Soul in 1976 or 77 – turns out it was a hit record and sold millions," said one fan, while another noted, "The Beatles were right back in 1967: 'Nothing is real.'"

"I'm no longer sure that I'm even real," wrote another listener.

While all the songs retain the original lyrics, most of the melodies aren't the same as the Beatles' recordings. One commenter said, "It is interesting that Norwegian Wood seems to retain the original melody, if the songs were generated solely from the lyrics," to which Tescar replied: "Agreed. It's rare that the original melody comes out on only a few. It's my belief that the structure and cadence of some lyrics just naturally dictate how they would be sung."