The remarkable story of rising to the top of the music charts; a second act as a tech pioneer; and the sustaining power of creativity and art.Thomas Dolbyrsquo;s hit songs ldquo;She Blinded Me with Sciencerdquo; and ldquo;Hyperactive!rdquo; catapulted him to international fame in the early 80rsquo;s. A pioneer of New Wave and Electronica; Thomas combined a love for invention with a passion for music; and the result was a new sound that defined an era of revolutionary music. But as record company politics overshadow the joy of performing; Thomas finds a surprising second act.Starting out in a rat-infested London bedsit; a teenage Thomas Dolby stacks boxes by day at the grocery and tinkers with a homemade synthesizer at night while catching the Police at a local dive bar; swinging by the pub to see the unknown Elvis Costello and starting the weekend with a Clash show at a small night club. London on the eve of the 1980s is a hotbed for music and culture; and a new sound is beginning to take shape; merging technology with the musical energy of punk rock. Thomas plays keyboards in other bandsrsquo; shows; and with a bit of luck finds his own style; quickly establishing himself on the scene and recording break out hits that take radio; MTV and dance clubs by storm. The world is now his oyster; and sold out arenas; world tours; even a friendship with Michael Jackson become the fabric of his life.But as the record industry flounders and disillusionment sets in; Thomas turns his attention to Hollywood. Scoring films and computer games eventually leads him to Silicon Valley and a software startup that turns up the volume on the digital music revolution. His company barely survives the dotcom bubble but finally even the mavericks at Apple; Microsoft; Netscape and Nokia see the light. By 2005; two-thirds of the worldrsquo;s mobile phones embed his Beatnik software. Life at the zenith of a tech empire proves to be just as full of big personalities; battling egos and roller-coaster success as his days spent at the top of the charts. THE SPEED OF SOUND is the story of an extraordinary man living an extraordinary life; a single-handed quest to make peace between art and the digital world.
2012-05-10 2016-03-15File Name: B01D4TAYOU
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