And the band played on.
Just over a week after Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen died at the age of 65, the music that he loved to make served as hold music during the software giant’s quarterly earnings call on Wednesday.
Five songs by the bluesy, rock-guitar outfit Paul Allen and the Underthinkers showed up at the bottom of a Spotify playlist called “MSFT Earnings: A Definitive Playlist.” It was shared on Twitter by Frank X. Shaw, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of communications.
Hold music this quarter pays tribute to Paul Allen and The Underthinkers https://t.co/orkQNdzmEg
— Frank X. Shaw (@fxshaw) October 24, 2018
Songs included “Straw Into Gold,” with Ann and Nancy Wilson; “Divine”; “Healing Hands”; “Cherries Fall”; and “Pictures of a Dream.” All appear on the band’s album “Everywhere at Once.”
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Other artists who have had their music played during hold times on Microsoft earnings calls include Prince, Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Pearl Jam, Jimi Hendrix (of course), Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra and more.
Allen was an accomplished guitar player and songwriter, and the band’s website bio quotes his memoir “Idea Man” in which he discussed the role music played in his life.
“I’ve rarely gone a week without picking up a guitar,” Allen wrote. “It’s more than a hobby; it gives me balance and keeps me in the moment, which can be a challenge with all the projects I’m pursuing at any one time … I take music with me wherever I go.”
