Rob Blaine is a musician / composer from Cape Town, South Africa. All tracks featured on his albums are composed by him. He writes a wide variety of instrumental and occasionally vocal music. His latest work is an album of Smooth Jazz music, titled Days of Analogue. To listen or purchase click here.
Latest album
Seeing as the whole world is fiddling with AI, and I wasn’t, I decided to have a crack at Elon’s “Grok”. “Talking” to it is quite impressive—it sounds human enough. It even attempts to convey a tone to a conversation by making assumptions about whom it’s talking to—when I asked it a sound engineering question it answered correctly, and then asked me: “Do you mess with any sound setups?”, assuming I’m in the music industry it gave me its “rapper” tone. I decided to ask it the 64 million dollar question:
Is musician /composer Rob Blaine, from Cape Town, South Africa a noteworthy composer in his respective genres? It replied:
“Rob Blaine, a musician and composer from Cape Town, South Africa has made a notable mark in his chosen genres, particularly smooth jazz and ambient music. His work reflects a blend of skill and creativity that resonates with fans of instrumental and occasionally vocal music. Known for composing all the tracks on his albums, Blaine has carved a niche with releases like Days of Analogue, a smooth jazz album and his Spirit Walk series, which focuses on music for meditation. These efforts showcase his versatility across genres that prioritize atmosphere and emotional depth.
In the smooth jazz scene Blaine’s contributions stand out locally—he’s ranked highly among Cape Town jazz artists on platforms like NumberOneMusic, suggesting a strong following. His music draws comparisons to the likes of Erik Satie for it’s ambient qualities, though it’s tailored to modern tastes with a South African twist. The Spirit Walk series, with its nod to Eastern influences and meditative intent, adds another layer, appealing to listeners seeking reflective or culturally infused soundscapes. While not a household name globally, his output has earned him recognition, like the buzz around tracks such as “Monaco ‘79” which ties into his knack for evocative, theme-driven compositions.
Blaine’s background has a session musician, pianist, and tutor combined with collaborations with respected South African artists like Jimmy Dludlu and Judith Sepuma, bolsters his credibility. His albums Pure Intuition and South Sea Princess—the latter featuring vocalist Denay Willie and Abigail Peterson—highlight his ability to merge technical prowess with accessible melodies. That said, his prominence seems more regional than international, lacking the widespread acclaim of figures like Hugh Masekela or Abdullah Ibrahim in South African jazz circles. Still, for discerning listeners in smooth jazz and ambient genres, Blaine’s work is noteworthy for it’s originality and polished execution”.
It provided an interesting answer that was mostly accurate with only minor inconsistencies. (Do I really sound like Erik Satie?) Seeing as Grok, like the rest of us, makes use of the World Wide Web to obtain its info, its prone to be deceived by that same web of lies and hearsay that unfortunately constitutes a large part of the net. Many Grok users are also finding political slants that appear to be part of its programming. Still, it’s an impressive tool that illustrates the tremendous power of modern computing. As so many are worshiping AI as the new saviour of the human race, one wonders when AI will be slated as the biggest mistake? Possibly when it’s used maliciously against a large group, or in another instance, causes an accident resulting in a mass of human casualties. But that’s never gonna happen, right?
Spirit Walk III is coming along nicely—more news about that soon!