Pitchfork

We may know why the caged bird sings, but what about its undomesticated sibling, chirping its little heart out on the power line outside your window? Author/naturalist/esteemed jazz clarinetist David Rothenberg set out to discover just what inspires these feathered friends to burst into song in his 2005 book Why Birds Sing, concluding humankind's avian neighbors sing not just for practical purposes (mating, communication, etc.), but for one of the same reasons we do: pleasure.

Um, like, that's cute and all, but what's a book? We want Rothenberg's ideas distilled into a riveting, uncomplicated television documentary! With music! And famous people! And thanks to the BBC, that's just what we'll get. According to The Guardian, BBC Four will soon premiere Why Birds Sing, an 80-minute documentary inspired by Rothenberg's ideas and packed with guest spots from Jarvis Cocker, Beth Orton, Laurie Anderson, and Peter Gabriel.

The Cheetah Television-produced film was created in part at Gabriel's Real World Studios and concludes with an all-encompassing musical collaboration featuring Gabriel, Guillemots (BONUS: BAND NAMED AFTER A TYPE OF BIRD), Afro-Celt Sound System founder Simon Emmerson, composer Richard Evans, and Van Morrison bandmate Kate St John using "real bird samples to create an undeniably funky dance groove." We are not making that quote up: it's on Real World Studios' website.

According to the same site, Juana Molina features in the film as well, and it will debut sometime in March. Our boy Jarvis, meanwhile, embarks on a previously reported North American jaunt in April (with a few UK dates beforehand). His self-titled debut hits U.S. shops via Rough Trade/World's Fair April 3.

Jarvis Cockatour:

02-15 Sheffield, England - The Plug
02-16 Sheffield, England - The Plug
02-17 London, England - Astoria
02-19 Manchester, England - Academy
02-20 Glasgow, Scotland - ABC
04-23 New York, NY - Webster Hall
04-27 Indio, CA - Empire Polo Field (Coachella)
04-28 San Francisco, CA - Fillmore
04-30 Seattle, WA - Showbox
05-01 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore