And now, the moment every guitar-playing, meme-watching, YouTube-loving, airline-hating Canadian web geek has been waiting for…
United Breaks Guitars: Song 2 is up on YouTube!
Just a little over a month ago, we told you about Canadian songwriter Dave Carroll‘s battle with United Airlines. Dave had been trying, without success, to get compensation from United after his beloved Taylor six-string was smashed by baggage handlers.
After a year of bureaucratic wrangling, Dave did what any self-respecting songwriter would do: he formally gave a Ms Irlweg of United notice that he was going to record, and release, three songs and three videos telling United how he felt about his guitar’s treatment at their hands.
Dave was as good as his word. The rest is history still in the making: United Breaks Guitars got BoingBoinged, the video has nearly 5 million hits on YouTube, the airline’s been embarrassed beyond measure, and some even suggest United took a $180 million hit in their share price.
It all adds up to the most-anticipated sequel since “The Empire Strikes Back.” And guess what? The second song’s as good as the first, and the video may be even better: Bavarians replace Mariachis, there’s a prominent tuba, a canoe, songwriters Dave Gunning and Ian Sherwood make cameo appearances and a hundred volunteers from Waverly, Nova Scotia make the whole thing a community experience.
Can’t wait for Song 3!
Disclosure: I once swapped songs with Dave Carroll at O’Leary’s pub in Saint John, New Brunswick, and he showed no signs of becoming an internet superstar, despite being a heck of a songwriter. Further disclosure: Dave Gunning is a buddy of mine, and the reason I wound up playing ukulele with Andrew Farris of INXS in the lobby of a Toronto hotel, while Ian Sherwood is a musical pal who looks very classy in lederhosen and a fake mustache.