Despite his '60s protest era music and hippie persona, Bob Dylan has been no stranger to commercialism over the years, and now he's back with a new commercial for IBM in which he talks to their new cognitive computer, Watson.
The folk music hero has appeared, or licensed his music, to commercials for Chrysler, Chobani, Victoria's Secret and a Pepsi commercial in which the company implied The Black Eyed Pea's Will.i.am is the Dylan of our modern generation. But, this is the first commercial audiences are treated to that Dylan charm.
He walks into the library setting with an electric guitar in hand sitting down in front of a filled bookshelf and a computer supporting IBM's cognitive computing system Watson. The machine tells Dylan that he's read all of the folk legend's lyrics in order to better his language skills.
"My analysis shows that your major themes are that time passes and love fades," Watson computes.
"That sounds about right," Dylan responds.
Fans probably didn't need a computer analysis to tell them that.
Dylan even suggests that they write a song together in order to help Watson discover love. Watson even sings doo-wop, or a version of it at least. Watch the ad below.
Last year Dylan lent his stardom to Chrysler for a widely talked about Super Bowl Ad in which he provided narration about American exceptionalism and touted the accomplishments of Detroit automakers while nationalistic images of James Dean, Rout 66 and Rosie the Riveter flashed across the screen.
"Let Germany brew your beer, let Switzerland make your watch, let Asia assemble your phone," he said. "We will build your car."
This IBM commercial is decidedly less political than his work with Chrysler and less terrifying than watching a bear attack a convenience store to get some Chobani yogurt, but Dylan has never been one to shy away from controversy.
Watch some of his former commercial below.
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