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“The Measurement Blues” Measurement Blues Live! Watch the video or Check out Martin's other songs: |
Engineers have long run into snags when trying to get a job done. These snags can give you the blues. For example, you come in on Monday morning and find your test setup decimated. You worked over the weekend and had to take equipment from your colleagues—you know you've done it, so don't deny it. You also know you could be more productive if you had the latest equipment, but a little thing called “an equipment budget” gets in the way of progress. These and other situations can give you the blues, so I decided to write a song about it. I call it “The Measurement Blues .” (Listen to the song or read the lyrics on page 2.)
Written while on a cross-country flight, “The Measurement Blues” touches on some of the reasons we get the blues as electrical engineers: equipment gone, equipment too slow, equipment out of calibration, and of course, Windows crashing during a test. That's about all I could get into a five-minute song, but there's more. Buggy software and instrument drivers, EMI problems, noise, and incomplete documentation are a few other reasons to get the blues.
What gives you the blues? Perhaps you've got your own lyrics you're just waiting to share. Send me an e-mail at .
“The Measurement Blues” was recorded on April 27, 2006, at Melville Park Studio, Boston, MA.
See what others are saying about “The Measurement Blues.”
Plus, check out the pictures and songs that other engineers have shared after listening to “The Measurement Blues.”
| Keeping the blues in tune requires a good ear, but sometimes you need help. The Intellitouch guitar tuner is cool when you have to tune in a noisy place and can't hear your strings. I wrote an article about how it works. After all, the tuner is a measurement and calibration instrument for a musical instrument. |
 “The Measurement Blues”
Listen to the song: See what others are saying about the recording. Check out Martin's other songs: |
Music and lyrics by Martin Rowe
Copyright 2006 by Martin Rowe
I got the blues, I got the measurement blues.
I got the blues, I got the measurement blues.
I got the measurement blues,
My test results are all wrong.
I spent all morning looking for my scope,
My DMM too, and that's no joke.
Now I'm ready to measure voltage and time.
I hooked up my probes that’s when my DUT died.
I got a new device, went to connect my wires
Only to find that I had lost my pliers.
I found them now, I'm ready to go.
I was ready to go, but my scope was too slow.
I went to the boss, said “I need a new scope.”
But all he said was “There's no hope.
There's no money, nothing I can do.
There's no money for equipment, you’ll just have to make do.”
I found another scope, had to beg, borrow steal.
I connected my wires and got a measurement real.
I was reelin', reelin' in the data.
I was reelin in the data, so I went out for a bite.
During my test, Windows had crashed.
My data was lost and I knew that I'd get bashed.
I got the blues, I got the measurement blues.
I got the measurement blues, just for going out to lunch.
I restarted Windows and measured again.
My data looked so good I had a celebration.
That's when I learned my gear needed calibration;
My uncertainty was high and my data was no good.
I got the blues, I got the measurement blues.
I got the blues, I got the measurement blues.
I got the measurement blues,
My test results are all wrong.
“The Measurement Blues” was recorded on April 27, 2006, at Melville Park Studio, Boston, MA.
“Didn't Neil Young also write about measurement blues?nn”Well, we work in a cubicle at the edge of town…nYou never see us because the test system's down.”nnWhoops. Wrong song. That was Revolution Blues.”
“I can relate to this musical masterpiece. However, it seems like there should be more screaming and crying involved to reflect real life :)”
“Bob,nnPerhaps you'd like to write an article on how to avoid The Measurement Blues. That is, show people how to make measurements and understand them. martin.rowe@ubm.com“