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Which element, atomic number 15, has the chemical symbol P?
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Chemical Elements.com - Phosphorus (P)
Contains an "Introduction to Tungsten", among other things
If you know of any other links for Phosphorus, please let me know
Bentor, Yinon. Chemical Element.com - Phosphorus.
<http://www.chemicalelements.com/elements/p.html>.
For more information about citing online sources, please visit the MLA's Website .
This page was created by Yinon Bentor.
Use of this web site is restricted by this site's license agreement .
Copyright © 1996-2012 Yinon Bentor. All Rights Reserved.
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Phosphorus
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Which comic actor died on stage (literally) at the Sunderland Empire in April 1976?
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Phosphorus - Element information, properties and uses | Periodic Table
Chemistry in its element: phosphorus
(Promo)
You're listening to Chemistry in its element brought to you by Chemistry World, the magazine of the Royal Society of Chemistry.
(End promo)
Chris Smith
Hello - this week fertilisers, fire bombs, phossy jaw and food additives. What's the connection? Here's Nina Notman.
Nina Notman
Phosphorus is a non-metal that sits just below nitrogen in group 15 of the periodic table. This element exists in several forms, of which white and red are the best known.
White phosphorus is definitely the more exciting of the two. As it glows in the dark, is dangerously flammable in the air above 30 degrees, and is a deadly poison. Red phosphorus however has none of these fascinating properties.
So where did it all begin? Phosphorus was first made by Hennig Brandt in Hamburg in Germany in 1669. When he evaporated urine and heated the residue until it was red hot. Glowing phosphorus vapour came off and he condensed it under water. And for more than 100 years most phosphorus was made this way. This was until people realised that bone was a great source of phosphorus. Bone can be dissolved in sulfuric acid to form phosphoric acid, which is then heated with charcoal to form white phosphorus.
White phosphorus has found a range of rather nasty applications in warfare. It was used in the 20th century in tracer bullets, fire bombs, and smoke grenades. The scattering of phosphorus fire bombs over cities in World War II caused widespread death and destruction. In July 1943, Hamburg was subject to several air raids in which 25,000 phosphorus bombs were dropped over vast areas of the city. This is rather ironically considering where phosphorus was first made.
Another group of warfare agents based on phosphorus are nerve gases such as sarin. Sarin is a fluorinated phosphonate that was used by Iraq against Iran in the early to mid-1980s. And was also released in a Tokyo subway in 1995, killing 12 people and harming nearly a thousand others.
White phosphorus has also found a wide range of other uses. One of these was in phosphorus matches that were first sold in Stockton-on-Tees in the UK in 1827. This created a whole new industry of cheap lights - but at a terrible cost. Breathing in phosphorus vapour led to the industrial disease phossy jaw, which slowly ate away the jaw bone. This condition particularly afflicted the girls who made phosphorus matches. So these were eventually banned in the early 1900s and were replaced by modern matches which use either phosphorus sulfide or red phosphorus.
As well as in matches, today phosphorus has found other uses in lighting. Magnesium phosphide is the basis of self-igniting warning flares used at sea. When it reacts with water it forms the spontaneously flammable gas, diphosphine which triggers the lighting of the flare.
Super pure phosphorus is also used to make light emitting diodes. These LEDs contain metal phosphides such as those of gallium and indium.
In the natural world the elemental form of phosphorus is never encountered. It is only seen as phosphate, and phosphate is essential to life for numerous reasons. It is part of DNA, and also constitutes a huge proportion of teeth enamel and bones in the form of calcium phosphate. Organophosphates are also important, such as the energy molecule ATP and the phospholipids of cell membranes.
A normal diet provides our bodies with the phosphate it needs. With tuna, chicken, eggs and cheese having lots. And even cola provide us with some, in the form of phosphoric acid.
Today most of our phosphorus comes from phosphate rock that is mined around the world, and then converted to phosphoric acid. Fifty million tonnes are made every year and it has multiple uses. It is used to make fertilisers, animal feeds, rust removers, corrosion preventers, and even dishwasher tablets.
Some phosphate rock is also heated with coke and sand in an electric furnace to form white phosphorus which is then converted to phosphorus trichloride and phosphorous acid. And it is from these that flame retardants, insecticides, and weed-killers are made. A little is also turned into phosphorus sulfides which are used as oil additives to reduce engine wear.
Phosphate is also environmentally important. It naturally moves from soil, to rivers, to oceans, to bottom sediment. Here it accumulates until it is moved by geological uplift to dry land so the circle can start again. During its journey, phosphate passes through many plants, microbes, and animals of various eco-systems.
Too much phosphate however can be damaging to natural waters because it encourages unwanted species like algae to flourish. These then crowd out other forms of desired life. There is now a legal requirement to remove phosphate from wastewaters in many parts of the world, and in the future this could be recycled as a sustainable resource so that one day the phosphate we flush down sinks and toilets might reappear in our homes in other guises such as in dishwasher tablets and maybe even in our food and colas.
Chris Smith
Nina Notman with the tale of Phosphorus, the element extracted from the golden stream, otherwise known as urine. Next time Andrea Sella will be joining us with the explosive story of element number 53.
Andrea Sella
In 1811 a young French chemist, Bernard Courtois, working in Paris stumbled across a new element. His family's firm produced the saltpetre needed to make gunpowder for Napoleon's wars. They used wood ash in their process and wartime shortages of wood forced them instead to burn seaweed. Adding concentrated sulphuric acid to the ash, Courtois, obtained an astonishing purple vapour that crystallized onto the sides of the container. Astonished by this discovery he bottled up the greyish crystals and sent them to one of the foremost chemists of his day Joseph Guy-Lussac who confirmed that this was a new element and named it iode - iodine - after the Greek word for purple.
Chris Smith
And you can hear more about how Iodine exploded onto the world's stage on next week's Chemistry in its Element, I hope you can join us. I'm Chris Smith, thank you for listening and goodbye.
(Promo)
Chemistry in its element is brought to you by the Royal Society of Chemistry and produced by thenakedscientists.com . There's more information and other episodes of Chemistry in its element on our website at chemistryworld.org/elements .
(End promo)
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i don't know
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Which instrument does jazz musician Courtney Pine play/
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Courtney Pine - 'I became one of the most hated saxophonists of all time' | The Independent
Features
Courtney Pine - 'I became one of the most hated saxophonists of all time'
Despite his billing as one of Britain's most celebrated and influential jazz artists, Courtney Pine tells Ian Burrell that it hasn't been an easy ride to the top table
Friday 12 November 2010 00:00 BST
Click to follow
The Independent Culture
He might be Britain's most famous saxophonist, but Courtney Pine spends an awful lot of time in the dog house. Sometimes he's in the metaphorical kennel to which the jazz establishment consigns those who don't conform to its maxims. But more often he's down in the garden shed, practising his musicianship in the place he really does call "the dog house".
Recently, the sound of the instrument wafting across the gardens of Harrow, north-west London, has not been the saxophone but the rare timbre of the bass clarinet. For the first time in his long career, Pine has made an album on which he exclusively plays this "much hipper instrument", which he hopes will become "a new voice in the jazz world".
The album, Europa, is eclectic, a collection of the sounds and flavours of the European countries that Pine has toured for more than two decades. "I've been to Budapest, the Red Square and Turkey, and I'm picking up tunes and instruments and languages and I've tasted the food – and I'm thinking, 'How can I put this story into one album?'"
Tall and broad with long dreadlocks gangling from beneath a black bandana, Pine is a striking figure. His thrilling 1986 debut album, Journey to the Urge Within, transformed the jazz world and gave a platform to new British black musicians such as the pianist Julian Joseph, drummer Mark Mondesir and singer Cleveland Watkiss. The son of Jamaican immigrants, Pine later released Closer to Home, which highlighted his Caribbean roots and his teenage career as a reggae musician. He is also closer to the streets than some of his jazz contemporaries and has done collaborative work with drum'n'bass and hip-hop artists.
All of which might make an album inspired by Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, with song titles in Spanish and Norwegian, seem like a departure. Not at all, he says, arguing that the recording is a "continuation" of his story, another reflection of his life. "I've always talked about my African, Caribbean and European roots, so this makes sense. I could go and do a George Gershwin tribute or the songs of Louis Armstrong, but this is about my environment and my travels."
Although the album won't be released until 25 February, he will perform the material for the first time at the London Jazz Festival on 15 November with the band that he handpicked for the project. The jazz bassist Alec Dankworth, son of John and Cleo Laine, has lived in Spain and inspired some of the Spanish elements on Europa. On piano, Pine has the classically-trained Zoe Rahman, who was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2006. He is working with his "favourite drummer" Mondesir for the first time in 17 years.
He is hoping that the recording will leave a lasting legacy. "The album is deep, man. It's not an album I should be doing. I should be making disco commercial records with [grime rapper] Tinchy Stryder! But I just had this wake up moment – 'When are you going to do one of those albums?' I thought 'Okay, I've got my own label, I'm still gigging, I've got the bass clarinet and the musicians, let's do it now'."
The earthiness of the bass clarinet, he says, makes it ideal to tell the story of these European journeys. Asked if he's trying to raise the bar, he compares learning to play the instrument to doing the pole vault. "The reason why it hasn't been used so much in jazz is because it's so very hard to play," he says, citing American bass clarinet greats Bennie Maupin and Eric Dolphy, and European exponents Louis Sclavis from France and Henri Bok from Holland.
Pine, like some of those others, is a saxophonist who first played the clarinet at school. Now 46, his journey to the top table of British jazz has been less straightforward than some assume. Speaking in Soho, the epicentre of the London jazz world, he says he has rarely headlined at that neighbourhood's famous Ronnie Scott's club, so that when people tell him they "Saw you at Ronnie's" he treats the compliment with some suspicion. He saw his first jazz gig at that same venue as a 15-year-old, being mesmerised by the American trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, in spite of the attempts of the club's doormen to persuade the teenager that he wouldn't enjoy it.
His hopes of taking his study of the saxophone into the realms of higher education were thwarted when he was "kicked out" of school while doing his music A-level and told there was "no point" in him trying to reach university. At 16, Pine was already travelling the country at weekends with the reggae band Inity Rockers and some of his teachers, he suspects, may have wanted to take him down a peg. The experience clearly still rankles, though he is now a professor of music at Thames Valley University with honorary doctorates at Westminster and Southampton.
When he achieved fame, the jazz world, instead of rejoicing at the renewed interest in the genre, was not universal in its enthusiasm. "Because I hooked up a deal with Island Records and got lots of promotion I became one of the most hated north London saxophonists of all time," he recalls. Even now, there is "this jazz police in this country that claim they know everything about jazz," he says, adding that "this music is stronger than them."
Though he praises the London Jazz Festival for the diversity of its programme, other international events have succumbed to the commercial demands of a financially pressured music industry, meaning that an artist like Pine, who releases his material on his own label Destin-E, struggles to get bookings, in spite of having performed to crowds of 8,000 in his career.
As a teenager, Pine was aware of the iniquities of the music business when he played with reggae acts on television programmes in the Eighties and realised that some of the pop artists could neither sing nor dance. "I thought what's going on, you have this person miming on stage and getting paid six grand and you've got musicians like the great Harry Beckett playing in a pub for change," he says, referring to the great British trumpeter who died this year. "I just stuck to my guns." So he still practises religiously in the dog house, a red mark on his lip a permanent sign of dedication to his craft. His compositions usually begin on his Yamaha C3 grand piano and he composes from score using a laptop and the Sibelius computer programme.
The album that will follow Europa will be a collaborative work with some of the great veterans of British jazz. "John Dankworth has gone and Harry Beckett has gone," he says regretfully. "I want to do an album called Legends with guys like [trombonist] Rico [Rodriguez], [pianist] Russ Henderson and [saxophonist] Andy Hamilton, who is 92. I need to do something with these guys from the old school. As opposed to working with the younger musicians, I want to go the other way."
Courtney Pine appears on a double bill with New Orleans trumpeter Christian Scott at Royal Festival Hall, London SE1 (www.londonjazzfestival.org.uk) on Monday 15 November
Five to see at the London Jazz festival
Herbie Hancock, Royal Festival Hall, Saturday 13 & Sunday 14 November
A member of Miles Davis's second great quintet, the Grammy Award-winning pianist will perform the live version of his latest recording, 'The Imagine Project'.
Sonny Rollins at 80 Barbican, Saturday 20 November
The last of the great bebop saxophonists is still on form; his energy astonished the audience at last year's sold out show.
Juliette Greco Royal Festival Hall, Sunday 21 November
A muse for Sartre, Camus and Cocteau, Greco (above) sings songs by Brel and Gainsbourg and performs her first London show in 10 years.
Cleo Laine Barbican, Tuesday 16 November
The queen of British jazz is sadly without her partner of decades, Sir John Dankworth, but will appear alongside the next generation of Dankworths, bassist Alec and singer Jacqui.
Chucho Valdés Barbican, Thursday 18 November
The greatest Cuban pianist, alongside eight-piece The Afro-Cuban Messengers, performing their new release, 'Chucho's Steps'.
More about:
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Saxophone
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Which female vocalist had a 2001 hit with the song “Here With Me”?
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My Secret Life: Courtney Pine, jazz musician, 45 | The Independent
My Secret Life: Courtney Pine, jazz musician, 45
Friday 7 August 2009 23:00 BST
Click to follow
The Independent Online
My parents were ... My father, Keith, was a carpenter and my mother, Violet, was a housing manager. They are both still alive, hardworking, traditional and determined to survive in this cold environment.
The home I grew up in ... was on Bravington Road in west London. It was one room, with a steel bath to wash the kids in, a paraffin heater and a black and white telly.
When I was a child I wanted to be ... an astronaut, then a doctor. Now I am a professor and a doctor of music, so I'm not too far off.
The first time I got drunk ... When I was 15 or 16 years old I was in various reggae bands. We used to play venues around the country and I'd often acquire – and then consume – a tin or five of Tennents Super from the bars we played. Those were the days.
You wouldn't know it but I'm very good at ... cycling, though I can't seem to find the time or the right weather for it in Britain.
You may not know it but I'm no good at ... maths.
At night I dream of ... music.
I drive ... a Toyota Previa.
If I could change one thing about myself ... I would have been more determined to stay in school and fight the cultural bias of the early 1980s, which stopped a lot of people like me from achieving higher qualifications.
What I see when I look in the mirror ... Somebody who needs a haircut.
My favourite item of clothing ... SAS-style black combat socks. I wear nothing else.
I wish I'd never worn ... purple-tipped platform shoes in 1970s, which my mum used to dress me in as a toddler for trips to church and special occasions.
A book that changed me ... was 'Africa: Mother of Western Civilization' by Dr Josef Ben-Jochannan. It went against everything that I'd been taught about European history in school and opened my eyes to my cultural heritage. The last album I bought ... was a collaboration between Rudresh Mahanthappa and Kadri Gopalnath Kinsmen released on Pi records. Both men are Indian saxophonists: one was brought up and taught to play jazz in America, the other is an older southern Indian veteran who plays traditional music on his saxophone.
Movie heaven is ... Spike Lee's film 'She Hate Me'. It's a film that is full of everything: I cried, I laughed, the lot. That's what Spike always does: he comes up with things so out of the box.
The person who really makes me laugh ... is Felix Dexter. His humour is so deep you feel the pain afterwards. His punchlines make me feel as if he's lived my life; he understands life from my perspective at least. He has a way of conveying humour that's very personal to me.
The last time I cried ... was when my mother-in-law passed away.
My favourite work of art ... is the Sphinx in Giza. Even though it's damaged, it has an amazing power when you stand in front of it.
My favourite building ... is the Horniman Museum in south London. It contains every type of musical instrument you can think of.
My greatest regret ... Not practising the saxophone more when I was younger.
My five-year plan ... To provide a platform for talented jazz musicians to release music.
What's the point? Modern life is about the realisation of the constant battle between good and evil, the choice between selfishness and selflessness, yin or yang, heads or tails. If we side with negativity then we have to be ready to live (or die) with the consequences.
My life in six words ... Music reflects life / Life reflects music.
A life in brief
Born in west London in March 1964, the saxophonist Courtney Pine CBE is known for integrating modern styles, including drum'n'bass and UK garage, with contemporary jazz. Pine lives in London with his wife, Dr Jeune Guishard-Pine, and their four children. He will perform at Ronnie Scott's in London on 14 August as part of the Brit Jazz Festival. Visit ronniescotts.co.uk for details
More about:
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i don't know
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In which country was the first motorway built?
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News : celebrating 50 years since the opening of the M1 motorway - The AA
50 years of the M1
The motorway that revolutionised travel in the UK
29 October 2009
Fifty years ago on Monday (2 November), the first stretch of the M1 opened, heralding a revolution in travel, according to the AA.
The 62-miles from Berrygrove, near Watford (now junction 5) to Crick, near Rugby (now junction 18) – opened by then Transport Minister Ernest Marples – linked north and south and is still part of the UK's longest motorway.
Paul Watters, head of road and transport policy at the AA, says: "The significance of the M1 can't be underestimated – it is the backbone of the UK. It revolutionised travel as Britain's first long-distance motorway – before it opened, you'd be lucky to get to the Scottish border within eight hours from London but now you can be halfway up Scotland in that time."
The AA was instrumental in the development of the M1 – it was a founder member of the Roads Campaign Council, which put pressure on government to build new roads to reduce congestion and road accidents – and laid on a big AA presence at the opening ceremony near Slip End (now junction 10), just south of Luton.
Pictures from the AA archive on our flickr photostream »
Leading the way
The AA led the way in modernising roadside assistance, moving from the days of saluting patrols on motorcycle-sidecars to the widespread use of patrol vans with modern equipment. It formed a special motorway patrol force, equipped with Ford Escort estates and Land Rovers, and an AA spotter plane – a de Havilland Dragon Rapide piloted by a former WWII Mosquito pilot – monitored traffic flow and reported breakdowns and accidents, which were then radioed to patrols from a mobile office located at Broughton flyover, near Newport Pagnell (now junction 14).
Early days
The traffic in the early years was much quieter than now and, with no speed limit, overheating and blown engines were the most common call-outs. Retired AA motorway patrol Stan Hallard recollects watching AC Cobra cars being driven at more than 150mph.
However, Stan says that most cars of the day were simply not designed for sustained high speed driving: "We would often go out to cars where the engine had literally blown up – people would naively drive flat-out in cars that often only had a basic one-litre engine with no temperature gauge. One trip on the motorway could be the death knell of a car."
Safety equipment was limited and the hard shoulder relatively narrow and soft, so stricken cars were often just towed off the motorway – sometimes in convoy with a stricken vehicle on tow at the rear and another at the front, pushed down the hard shoulder using special rubber bumpers.
The future of the M1
The engineers who designed the M1 estimated traffic of 20,000 cars per day but it now carries up to 140,000. Without upgrades, it is estimated that traffic on the M1 will flow at between 50mph and 60mph in peak periods by 2025 and will be stop-start on many sections.
The current solution is to improve capacity largely through limited widening, such as the recently completed scheme from junction 6A to 10. The AA says that by 2030, it is likely that most of the M1 will be 'widened' through 'active traffic management' using variable speed limits, traffic control and hard shoulder running.
During this period, technology will move forward and many vehicles will be equipped with electronics that communicate with the 'road' e.g. autopilot-type speed control and 'platooning' (when groups of vehicles 'lock together' by radar cruise control). Cars will likely produce around half the CO2 they do now – many will be hybrids or use hydrogen fuel cells – and service areas will undoubtedly have electric vehicle recharging points or battery exchange facilities.
Paul Watters says: "We should never under-invest in this key part of British life and the economy – it is arguably, in communication terms, our most important motorway.
"When it opened, the M1 was able to satisfy Britain's rapidly growing demand for car travel but today it struggles to deliver. Without action, congestion will increase by around 30 per cent by 2025, costing business and households £24 billion.
"In 50 years time, the M1 and the vehicles on it may look different – and be propelled by and contain new technologies – but you can be pretty sure it will still be there linking north to south and beyond to Europe."
Factfile
M1 facts and figures
The top section of the M1 (Crick to Pepperstock) was built by John Laing; and southern parts built by Tarmac (Pepperstock to Beechtrees), and Cubitts and Fitzpatrick with Shand (Beechtrees to Berrygrove)
Construction cost for first section was £26m (£388,000 per mile at 1959 prices) or £400m at current prices
The M1 north of Rugby is the sixth busiest motorway in England (beaten by various sections of M25, M60, M62 and M6) with average daily flow 100,000 vehicles per day
The section of the M1 with the most delays (1,000 hours) for the year ending March 2009 is between junctions 19 (M6/A14) and 32 (M18), which makes it the third âmost delayedâ motorway section in the country
Motoring in 1959
Motoring facts and figures about the year 1959 (source: Whitaker's Almanack for 1961)
In April 1959, there were 192,000 miles of public highway in England, Wales and Scotland: 8,300 miles of trunk road; 19,725 miles of Class I road; 17,600 miles of Class II road; and 48,900 miles of Class III road
In the year April 1958 to March 1959, trunk road expenditure (including M1 construction costs) totalled £45.4m out of a total road expenditure of £166m
At 30 September 1959, there were 4,966,000 cars; 1,733,000 motorcycles; 1,273,000 goods vehicles; 437,000 agricultural tractors and vehicles; 92,000 hackney carriages (buses, coaches and taxis); and 55,000 trade plate licences
These provided a road tax income of £107m in the year 1958/9, of which £61.4m came from car tax
During 1959, there were 261,000 recorded road accidents which involved injury, with casualties totalling 6,520 fatalities, 80,700 serious injuries and 246,000 other injuries
History of the motorway
1924 – First motorway opened (Italy)
1958 – 5 December: Preston bypass opened by Prime Minister Harold Macmillan (first UK motorway)
1959 – 2 November: first section of M1 opened by Rt Hon Ernest Marples, Minister for Transport
1959 – Motorway regulations introduced
1962 – Anderson report on motorway signing
1963 – Worboys Report introduces present day traffic signs
1964 – Introduction of trial speed limit of 70mph on motorways
1966 – Motorway warning signals introduced following accidents in fog
1967 – Speed limit of 70mph rolled out
1967 – HGVs banned from the outside lane of motorways
1988 – All coaches first used from 1 April 1974 must have 70mph limiters fitted by 1 April 1992
1994 – Speed limiter settings lowered to 65mph for new buses and coaches and to 56mph for HGVs
Traffic growth
In 1960, cars travelled around 80 billion vehicle kms (bvkms). Today they travel around 400 bvkms.
Year-on-year traffic growth was very high between the 50s and 70s (up to 20% p.a.) but is much flatter now (just a few %)
AA facts and figures
In 1959, the AA had 2.3m members (it now has around 15m)
The famous AA salute was abolished in 1961 on safety grounds
The AA now attends almost 3,000 breakdowns on the UKâs motorways each week
Motorway breakdowns
Top motorway breakdowns attended by AA patrols (2009)
Tyre, torn/punctured – 26.4%
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Italy
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Which Chancellor, executed in 1535, became the patron saint of politicians?
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News : celebrating 50 years since the opening of the M1 motorway - The AA
50 years of the M1
The motorway that revolutionised travel in the UK
29 October 2009
Fifty years ago on Monday (2 November), the first stretch of the M1 opened, heralding a revolution in travel, according to the AA.
The 62-miles from Berrygrove, near Watford (now junction 5) to Crick, near Rugby (now junction 18) – opened by then Transport Minister Ernest Marples – linked north and south and is still part of the UK's longest motorway.
Paul Watters, head of road and transport policy at the AA, says: "The significance of the M1 can't be underestimated – it is the backbone of the UK. It revolutionised travel as Britain's first long-distance motorway – before it opened, you'd be lucky to get to the Scottish border within eight hours from London but now you can be halfway up Scotland in that time."
The AA was instrumental in the development of the M1 – it was a founder member of the Roads Campaign Council, which put pressure on government to build new roads to reduce congestion and road accidents – and laid on a big AA presence at the opening ceremony near Slip End (now junction 10), just south of Luton.
Pictures from the AA archive on our flickr photostream »
Leading the way
The AA led the way in modernising roadside assistance, moving from the days of saluting patrols on motorcycle-sidecars to the widespread use of patrol vans with modern equipment. It formed a special motorway patrol force, equipped with Ford Escort estates and Land Rovers, and an AA spotter plane – a de Havilland Dragon Rapide piloted by a former WWII Mosquito pilot – monitored traffic flow and reported breakdowns and accidents, which were then radioed to patrols from a mobile office located at Broughton flyover, near Newport Pagnell (now junction 14).
Early days
The traffic in the early years was much quieter than now and, with no speed limit, overheating and blown engines were the most common call-outs. Retired AA motorway patrol Stan Hallard recollects watching AC Cobra cars being driven at more than 150mph.
However, Stan says that most cars of the day were simply not designed for sustained high speed driving: "We would often go out to cars where the engine had literally blown up – people would naively drive flat-out in cars that often only had a basic one-litre engine with no temperature gauge. One trip on the motorway could be the death knell of a car."
Safety equipment was limited and the hard shoulder relatively narrow and soft, so stricken cars were often just towed off the motorway – sometimes in convoy with a stricken vehicle on tow at the rear and another at the front, pushed down the hard shoulder using special rubber bumpers.
The future of the M1
The engineers who designed the M1 estimated traffic of 20,000 cars per day but it now carries up to 140,000. Without upgrades, it is estimated that traffic on the M1 will flow at between 50mph and 60mph in peak periods by 2025 and will be stop-start on many sections.
The current solution is to improve capacity largely through limited widening, such as the recently completed scheme from junction 6A to 10. The AA says that by 2030, it is likely that most of the M1 will be 'widened' through 'active traffic management' using variable speed limits, traffic control and hard shoulder running.
During this period, technology will move forward and many vehicles will be equipped with electronics that communicate with the 'road' e.g. autopilot-type speed control and 'platooning' (when groups of vehicles 'lock together' by radar cruise control). Cars will likely produce around half the CO2 they do now – many will be hybrids or use hydrogen fuel cells – and service areas will undoubtedly have electric vehicle recharging points or battery exchange facilities.
Paul Watters says: "We should never under-invest in this key part of British life and the economy – it is arguably, in communication terms, our most important motorway.
"When it opened, the M1 was able to satisfy Britain's rapidly growing demand for car travel but today it struggles to deliver. Without action, congestion will increase by around 30 per cent by 2025, costing business and households £24 billion.
"In 50 years time, the M1 and the vehicles on it may look different – and be propelled by and contain new technologies – but you can be pretty sure it will still be there linking north to south and beyond to Europe."
Factfile
M1 facts and figures
The top section of the M1 (Crick to Pepperstock) was built by John Laing; and southern parts built by Tarmac (Pepperstock to Beechtrees), and Cubitts and Fitzpatrick with Shand (Beechtrees to Berrygrove)
Construction cost for first section was £26m (£388,000 per mile at 1959 prices) or £400m at current prices
The M1 north of Rugby is the sixth busiest motorway in England (beaten by various sections of M25, M60, M62 and M6) with average daily flow 100,000 vehicles per day
The section of the M1 with the most delays (1,000 hours) for the year ending March 2009 is between junctions 19 (M6/A14) and 32 (M18), which makes it the third âmost delayedâ motorway section in the country
Motoring in 1959
Motoring facts and figures about the year 1959 (source: Whitaker's Almanack for 1961)
In April 1959, there were 192,000 miles of public highway in England, Wales and Scotland: 8,300 miles of trunk road; 19,725 miles of Class I road; 17,600 miles of Class II road; and 48,900 miles of Class III road
In the year April 1958 to March 1959, trunk road expenditure (including M1 construction costs) totalled £45.4m out of a total road expenditure of £166m
At 30 September 1959, there were 4,966,000 cars; 1,733,000 motorcycles; 1,273,000 goods vehicles; 437,000 agricultural tractors and vehicles; 92,000 hackney carriages (buses, coaches and taxis); and 55,000 trade plate licences
These provided a road tax income of £107m in the year 1958/9, of which £61.4m came from car tax
During 1959, there were 261,000 recorded road accidents which involved injury, with casualties totalling 6,520 fatalities, 80,700 serious injuries and 246,000 other injuries
History of the motorway
1924 – First motorway opened (Italy)
1958 – 5 December: Preston bypass opened by Prime Minister Harold Macmillan (first UK motorway)
1959 – 2 November: first section of M1 opened by Rt Hon Ernest Marples, Minister for Transport
1959 – Motorway regulations introduced
1962 – Anderson report on motorway signing
1963 – Worboys Report introduces present day traffic signs
1964 – Introduction of trial speed limit of 70mph on motorways
1966 – Motorway warning signals introduced following accidents in fog
1967 – Speed limit of 70mph rolled out
1967 – HGVs banned from the outside lane of motorways
1988 – All coaches first used from 1 April 1974 must have 70mph limiters fitted by 1 April 1992
1994 – Speed limiter settings lowered to 65mph for new buses and coaches and to 56mph for HGVs
Traffic growth
In 1960, cars travelled around 80 billion vehicle kms (bvkms). Today they travel around 400 bvkms.
Year-on-year traffic growth was very high between the 50s and 70s (up to 20% p.a.) but is much flatter now (just a few %)
AA facts and figures
In 1959, the AA had 2.3m members (it now has around 15m)
The famous AA salute was abolished in 1961 on safety grounds
The AA now attends almost 3,000 breakdowns on the UKâs motorways each week
Motorway breakdowns
Top motorway breakdowns attended by AA patrols (2009)
Tyre, torn/punctured – 26.4%
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i don't know
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A costermonger sells fruit and vegetables, usually from a barrow. Which particular item did a costermonger originally sell?
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Mayhew London Labour, vol I.
Mayhew London Labour, vol I.
Mayhew London Labour, vol I.
OF THE STREET-SELLERS OF FISH.
OF THE KIND AND QUANTITIES OF FISH SOLD BY THE LONDON COSTERMONGERS.
Having now given the reader a general view of the numbers, characters, habits, tastes, amuse- ments, language, opinions, earnings, and vicissi- tudes of the London costermongers,-having de- scribed their usual style of dress, diet, homes, conveyances, and street-markets,-having ex- plained where their donkeys are bought, or the terms on which they borrow them, their barrows, their stock-money, and occasionally their stock itself,-having shown their ordinary mode of dealing, either in person or by deputy,
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either at half-profits or by means of boys,- where they go and how they manage on their rounds in town and in the country,-what are the laws affecting them, as well as the operation of those laws upon the rest of the community,- having done all this by way of giving the reader a general knowledge of the street-sellers of fish, fruit, and vegetables,-I now proceed to treat more particularly of each of these classes seriatim. Beginning with the street-fishmongers, I shall describe, in due order, the season when, the market where, and the classes of people by whom, the wet-fish, the dry-fish, and the shell- fish are severally sold and purchased in the London streets, together with all other con- comitant circumstances.
The facilities of railway conveyance, by means of which fish can be sent from the coast to the capital with much greater rapidity, and therefore be received much fresher than was formerly the case, have brought large supplies to London from places that before contributed no quantity to the market, and so induced, as I heard in all quarters at Billingsgate, an extra- ordinary lowness of price in this species of diet. This cheap food, through the agency of the costermongers, is conveyed to every poor man's door, both in the thickly-crowded streets where the poor reside-a family at least in a room -in the vicinity of Drury-lane and of White- chapel, in Westminster, Bethnal-green, and St. Giles's, and through the long miles of the suburbs. For all low-priced fish the poor are the costermongers' best customers, and a fish diet seems becoming almost as common among the ill-paid classes of London, as is a potato diet among the peasants of Ireland. Indeed, now, the fish season of the poor never, or rarely, knows an interruption. If fresh herrings are not in the market, there are sprats; and if not sprats, there are soles, or whitings, or mackarel, or plaice.
The rooms of the very neediest of our needy metropolitan population, always smell of fish; most frequently of herrings. So much so, indeed, that to those who, like myself, have been in the habit of visiting their dwellings, the smell of herrings, even in comfortable homes, savours from association, so strongly of squalor and wretchedness, as to be often most oppres- sive. The volatile oil of the fish seems to hang about the walls and beams of the rooms for ever. Those who have experienced the smell of fish only in a well-ordered kitchen, can form no adequate notion of this stench, in perhaps a dilapidated and ill-drained house, and in a rarely-cleaned room; and I have many a time heard both husband and wife-one couple espe- cially, who were "sweating" for a gorgeous clothes' emporium-say that they had not time to be clean.
The costermonger supplies the poor with every kind of fish, for he deals, usually, in every kind when it is cheap. Some confine their dealings to such things as shrimps, or periwinkles, but the adhering to one particular article is the exception and not the rule; while shrimps, lobsters, &c., are rarely bought by the very poor. Of the entire quantity of fish sent to Billingsgate-market, the costermongers, sta- tionary and itinerant, may be said to sell one- third, taking one kind with another.
The fish sent to London is known to Billings- gate salesmen as "red" and "white" fish. The red fish is, as regards the metropolitan mart, confined to the salmon. The other descrip- tions are known as "white." The coster- mongers classify the fish they vend as "wet" and "dry." All fresh fish is "wet;" all cured or salted fish, "dry." The fish which is sold "pickled," is known by that appellation, but its street sale is insignificant. The principal fish-staple, so to speak of the street-fishmonger, is soles, which are in supply all, or nearly all, the year. The next are herrings, mackarel, whitings, Dutch eels, and plaice. The trade in plaice and sprats is almost entirely in the hands of the costermongers; their sale of shrimps is nearer a half than a third of the entire quantity sent to Billingsgate; but their purchase of cod, or of the best lobsters, or crabs, is far below a third. The costermonger rarely buys turbot, or brill, or even salmon, unless he can retail it at 6d. the pound. When it is at that price, a street salmon-seller told me that the eagerness to buy it was extreme. He had known persons, who appeared to him to be very poor, buy a pound of salmon, "just for a treat once in a way." His best, or rather readiest customers-for at 6d. a pound all classes of the community may be said to be his purchasers-were the shopkeepers of the busier parts, and the occupants of the smaller private houses of the suburbs. During the past year salmon was scarce and dear, and the coster- mongers bought, comparatively, none of it. In a tolerably cheap season they do not sell more than from a fifteenth to a twentieth of the quan- tity received at Billingsgate.
In order to be able to arrive at the quantity or weight of the several kinds of fish sold by the costermongers in the streets of London, it is necessary that we should know the entire amount sent to Billingsgate-market, for it is only by estimating the proportion which the street-sale bears to the whole, that we can attain even an approximation to the truth. The following Table gives the results of certain information collected by myself for the first time, I believe, in this country. The facts, as well as the estimated proportions of each kind of fish sold by the costermongers, have been furnished me by the most eminent of the Billingsgate salesmen-gentlemen to whom I am under many obligations for their kindness, consideration, and assistance, at all times and seasons.
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OF THE COSTERMONGERS' FISH SEASON.
The season for the street-fishmongers begins about October and ends in May.
In October, or a month or two earlier, may-be, they generally deal in fresh herrings, the supply of which lasts up to about the middle or end of November. This is about the best season. The herrings are sold to the poor, upon an average, at twelve a groat, or from 3s. to 4s. the hundred. After or during November, the sprat and plaice season begins. The regular street-fishmonger, however, seldom deals in sprats. He "works" these only when there is no other fish to be got. He generally considers this trade beneath him, and more fit for women than men. Those costers who do sell them dispose of them now by weight at the rate of 1d. to 2d. the pound-a bushel ave- raging from 40 to 50 pounds. The plaice season continues to the first or second week in May. Dur- ing May the casualty season is on, and there is little fish certain from that time till salmon comes in, and this is about the end of the month. The salmon season lasts till about the middle of July. The selling of salmon is a bad trade in the poor districts, but a very good one in the better streets or the suburbs. At this work the street-fishmonger will sometimes earn on a fine day from 5s. to 12s. The losses, however, are very great in this article if the weather prove bad. If kept at all "over" it loses its colour, and turns to a pale red, which is seen immedi- ately the knife goes into the fish. While I was obtaining this information some months back, a man went past the window of the house in which I was seated, with a barrow drawn by a donkey. He was crying, "Fresh cod, oh! 1½d. a pound, cod alive, oh!" My informant called me to the
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window, saying, "Now, here is what we call rough cod." He told me it was three days old. He thought it was eatable then, he said. The eyes were dull and heavy and sunken, and the limp tails of the fish dangled over the ends of the barrow. He said it was a hanging market that day-that is to say, things had been dear, and the costers couldn't pay the price for them. He should fancy, he told me, the man had paid for the fish from 9d. to 1s. each, which was at the rate of 1d. per pound. He was calling them at 1½d. He would not take less than this until he had "got his own money in;" and then, proba- bly, if he had one or two of the fish left, he would put up with 1d. per pound. The weight he was "working" was 12 oz. to the pound. My inform- ant assured me he knew this, because he had borrowed his 12 oz. pound weight that morning. This, with the draught of 2 oz. in the weighing- machine, and the ounce gained by placing the fish at the end of the pan, would bring the actual weight given to 9 oz. per pound, and probably, he said the man had even a lighter pound weight in his barrow ready for a "scaly" customer.
After the street-fishmonger has done his morning's work, he sometimes goes out with his tub of pickled salmon on a barrow or stall, and sells it in saucers at 1d. each, or by the piece. This he calls as "fine Newcastle salmon." There is generally a great sale for this at the races; and if country-people begin with a penny- worth they end with a shillingsworth-a penny- worth, the costers say, makes a fool of the mouth. If they have any on hand, and a little stale, at the end of the week, they sell it at the public- houses to the "Lushingtons," and to them, with plenty of vinegar, it goes down sweet. It is gene- rally bought for 7s. a kit, a little bit "pricked:" but, if good, the price is from 12s. to 18s. "We're in no ways particular to that," said one candid coster to me. "We don't have the eating on it ourselves, and people a'n't always got their taste, especially when they have been drinking, and we sell a great deal to parties in that way. We think it no sin to cheat 'em of 1d. while the pub- licans takes 1s."
Towards the middle of June the street-fish- monger looks for mackerel, and he is gene- rally employed in selling this fish up to the end of July. After July the Billingsgate season is said to be finished. From this time to the middle of October, when the herrings return, he is mostly engaged selling dried haddocks and red herrings, and other "cas'alty fish that may come across him." Many of the street-fish- mongers object to deal in periwinkles, or stewed mussels, or boiled whelks, because, being accus- tomed to take their money in sixpences at a time, they do not like, they say, to traffic in halfpenny- worths. The dealers in these articles are gene- rally looked upon as an inferior class.
There are, during the day, two periods for the sale of street-fish-the one (the morning trade) beginning about ten, and lasting till one in the day-and the other (the night trade) lasting from six in the evening up to ten at night. What fish is left in the forenoon is generally disposed of cheap at night. That sold at the latter time is generally used by the working-class for supper, or kept by them with a little salt in a cool place for the next day's dinner, if it will last as long. Several articles are sold by the street-fishmonger chiefly by night. These are oysters, lobsters, pickled salmon, stewed mussels, and the like. The reason why the latter articles sell better by night is, my informant says, "Because people are lofty-minded, and don't like to be seen eating on 'em in the street in the day-time." Shrimps and winkles are the staple commodities of the afternoon trade, which lasts from three to half-past five in the evening. These articles are generally bought by the working-classes for their tea.
BILLINGSGATE.
To see this market in its busiest costermonger time, the visitor should be there about seven o'clock on a Friday morning. The marke opens at four, but for the first two or three hours, it is attended solely by the regular fishmongers and "bummarees" who have the pick of the best there. As soon as these are gone, the costers' sale begins.
Many of the costers that usually deal in vegetables, buy a little fish on the Friday. It is the fast day of the Irish, and the mechanics' wives run short of money at the end of the week, and so make up their dinners with fish; for this reason the attendance of costers' bar- rows at Billingsgate on a Friday morning is always very great. As soon as you reach the Monument you see a line of them, with one or two tall fishmonger's carts breaking the uni- formity, and the din of the cries and commotion of the distant market, begins to break on the ear like the buzzing of a hornet's nest. The whole neighbourhood is covered with the hand-barrows, some laden with baskets, others with sacks. Yet as you walk along, a fresh line of costers' barrows are creeping in or being backed into almost im- possible openings; until at every turning nothing but donkeys and rails are to be seen. The morn- ing air is filled with a kind of seaweedy odour, reminding one of the sea-shore; and on entering the market, the smell of fish, of whelks, red herrings, sprats, and a hundred others, is almost overpowering.
The wooden barn-looking square where the fish is sold, is soon after six o'clock crowded with shiny cord jackets and greasy caps. Every- body comes to Billingsgate in his worst clothes, and no one knows the length of time a coat can be worn until they have been to a fish sale. Through the bright opening at the end are seen the tangled rigging of the oyster-boats and the red worsted caps of the sailors. Over the hum of voices is heard the shouts of the salesmen, who, with their white aprons, peering above the heads of the mob, stand on their tables, roaring out their prices.
All are bawling together-salesmen and huck- sters of provisions, capes, hardware, and newspa-
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pers-till the place is a perfect Babel of com- petition. "Ha-a-ansome cod! best in the market! All alive! alive! alive O!" "Ye-o-o! Ye-o-o! here's your fine Yarmouth bloaters! Who's the buyer?" "Here you are, governor, splendid whiting! some of the right sort!" "Turbot! turbot! all alive! turbot!" "Glass of nice peppermint! this cold morning a ha'penny a glass!" "Here you are at your own price! Fine soles, O!" "Oy! oy! oy! Now's your time! fine grizzling sprats! all large and no small!" "Hullo! hullo here! beautiful lob- sters! good and cheap! fine cock crabs all alive O!" "Five brill and one turbot-have that lot for a pound! Come and look at 'em, go- vernor; you wont see a better sample in the market." "Here, this way! this way for splen- did skate! skate O! skate O!" "Had-had -had-had-haddick! all fresh and good!" "Currant and meat puddings! a ha'penny each!" "Now, you mussel-buyers, come along! come along! come along! now's your time for fine fat mussels!" "Here's food for the belly, and clothes for the back, but I sell food for the mind" (shouts the newsvender). "Here's smelt O!" "Here ye are, fine Finney haddick!" "Hot soup! nice peas-soup! a-all hot! hot!" "Ahoy! ahoy here! live plaice! all alive O!" "Now or never! whelk! whelk! whelk!" "Who'll buy brill O! brill O!" "Capes! water-proof capes! sure to keep the wet out! a shilling a piece!" "Eels O! eels O! Alive! alive O!" "Fine flounders, a shilling a lot! Who'll have this prime lot of floun- ders?" "Shrimps! shrimps! fine shrimps!" "Wink! wink! wink!" "Hi! hi-i! here you are, just eight eels left, only eight!" "O ho! O ho! this way-this way-this way! Fish alive! alive! alive O!"
In the darkness of the shed, the white bellies of the turbots, strung up bow-fashion, shine like mother-of-pearl, while, the lobsters, lying upon them, look intensely scarlet, from the contrast. Brown baskets piled up on one another, and with the herring-scales glittering like spangles all over them, block up the narrow paths. Men in coarse canvas jackets, and bending under huge hampers, push past, shouting "Move on! move on, there!" and women, with the long limp tails of cod-fish dangling from their aprons, elbow their way through the crowd. Round the auc- tion-tables stand groups of men turning over the piles of soles, and throwing them down till they slide about in their slime; some are smell- ing them, while others are counting the lots. "There, that lot of soles are worth your money," cries the salesman to one of the crowd as he moves on leisurely; "none better in the market. You shall have 'em for a pound and half-a- crown." "Oh!" shouts another salesman, "it's no use to bother him-he's no go." Presently a tall porter, with a black oyster-bag, staggers past, trembling under the weight of his load, his back and shoulders wet with the drippings from the sack. "Shove on one side!" he mut- ters from between his clenched teeth, as he forces his way through the mob. Here is a tray of reddish-brown shrimps piled up high, and the owner busy sifting his little fish into another stand, while a doubtful customer stands in front, tasting the flavour of the stock and consult- ing with his companion in speculation. Little girls carrying matting-bags, that they have brought from Spitalfields, come up, and ask you in a begging voice to buy their baskets; and women with bundles of twigs for stringing her- rings, cry out, "Half-penny a bunch!" from all sides. Then there are blue-black piles of small live lobsters, moving about their bound-up claws and long "feelers," one of them occa- sionally being taken up by a looker-on, and dashed down again, like a stone. Everywhere every one is asking, "What's the price, master?" while shouts of laughter from round the stalls of the salesmen, bantering each other, burst out, occasionally, over the murmuring noise of the crowd. The transparent smelts on the marble-slabs, and the bright herrings, with the lump of transparent ice magnifying their eyes like a lens, are seldom looked at until the market is over, though the hampers and piles of huge maids, dropping slime from the counter, are eagerly examined and bartered for.
One side of the market is set apart for whelks. There they stand in sackfulls, with the yellow shells piled up at the mouth, and one or two of the fish, curling out like cork- screws, placed as a sample. The coster slips one of these from its shell, examines it, pushes it back again, and then passes away, to look well round the market. In one part the stones are covered with herring-barrels, packed closely with dried fish, and yellow heaps of stiff had- dock rise up on all sides. Here a man walks up with his knot on his shoulder, waiting for a job to carry fish to the trucks. Boys in ragged clothes, who have slept during the night under a railway-arch, clamour for employment; while the heads of those returning from the oyster- boats, rise slowly up the stone sides of the wharf.
The costermongers have nicknamed the long row of oyster boats moored close alongside the wharf "Oyster-street." On looking down the line of tangled ropes and masts, it seems as though the little boats would sink with the crowds of men and women thronged together on their decks. It is as busy a scene as one can well behold. Each boat has its black sign-board, and salesman in his white apron walking up and down "his shop," and on each deck is a bright pewter pot and tin-covered plate, the remains of the salesman's breakfast. "Who's for Baker's?" "Who's for Archer's?" "Who'll have Alston's?" shout the oyster-merchants, and the red cap of the man in the hold bobs up and down as he rattles the shells about with his spade. These holds are filled with oysters-a gray mass of sand and shell-on which is a bushel measure well piled up in the centre, while some of them have a blue muddy heap of mussels
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divided off from the "natives." The sailors in their striped guernseys sit on the boat sides smoking their morning's pipe, allowing them- selves to be tempted by the Jew boys with cloth caps, old shoes, and silk handkerchiefs. Lads with bundles of whips skip from one boat to another, and, seedy-looking mechanics, with handfuls of tin fancy goods, hover about the salesmen, who are the principal supporters of this trade. The place has somewhat the appearance of a little Holywell-street; for the old clothes' trade is entirely in the hands of the Jew boys, and coats, caps, hats, umbrellas, and old shoes, are shouted out in a rich nasal twang on all sides.
Passing by a man and his wife who were breakfasting on the stone coping, I went to the shore where the watermen ply for passengers to the eel boats. Here I found a crowd of punts, half filled with flounders, and small closely- packed baskets of them ranged along the seats. The lads, who act as jacks-in-the-water, were busy feeling in the mud for the fish that had fallen over board, little caring for the water that dashed over their red swollen feet. Presently a boat, piled up with baskets, shot in, grazing the bottom, and men and women, blue with the cold morning air, stepped out.
The Dutch built eel-boats, with their bulging polished oak sides, were half-hidden in the river mist. They were surrounded by skiffs, that ply from the Surrey and Middlesex shores, and wait whilst the fares buy their fish. The holds of these eel-boats are fitted up with long tanks of muddy water, and the heads of the eels are seen breathing on the surface-a thick brown bubble rising slowly, and floating to the sides. Wooden sabots and large porcelain pipes are ranged round the ledges, and men in tall fur caps with high check bones, and rings in their ears, walk the decks. At the stern of one boat was moored a coffin-shaped barge pierced with holes, and hanging in the water were baskets, shaped like olive jars-both to keep the stock of fish alive and fresh. In the centre of the boat stood the scales,-a tall heavy apparatus, one side fitted up with the conical net-bag to hold the eels, and the other with the weights, and pieces of stone to make up for the extra draught of the water hanging about the fish. When a skiff load of purchasers arrives, the master Dutchman takes his hands from his pockets, lays down his pipe, and seizing a sort of long-handled landing-net scoops from the tank a lot of eels. The pur- chasers examine them, and try to beat down the price. "You calls them eels do you?" said a man with his bag ready opened. "Yeas," answered the Dutchman without any show of indignation. "Certainly, there is a few among them," conti- nued the customer; and after a little more of this kind of chaffering the bargain is struck.
The visitors to the eel-boats were of all grades; one was a neatly-dressed girl to whom the costers showed the utmost gallantry, calling her "my dear," and helping her up the shining sides of the boat; and many of the men had on their blue serge apron, but these were only where the prices were high. The greatest crowd of customers is in the heavy barge alongside of the Dutch craft. Here a stout sailor in his red woollen shirt, and canvass petticoat, is sur- rounded by the most miserable and poorest of fish purchasers-the men with their crushed hats, tattered coats, and unshorn chins, and the women with their pads on their bonnets, and brown ragged gowns blowing in the breeze. One, in an old table-cover shawl, was beating her palms together before the unmoved Dutchman, fighting for an abatement, and showing her stock of halfpence. Others were seated round the barge, sorting their lots in their shallows, and sanding the fish till they were quite yellow. Others, again, were crowding round the scales narrowly watching the balance, and then beg- ging for a few dead eels to make up any doubt- ful weight.
As you walk back from the shore to the market, you see small groups of men and women dividing the lot of fish they have bought together. At one basket, a coster, as you pass, calls to you, and says, "Here, master, just put these three halfpence on these three cod, and obleege a party." The coins are placed, and each one takes the fish his coin is on; and so there is no dispute.
At length nearly all the busy marketing has finished, and the costers hurry to breakfast. At one house, known as "Rodway's Coffee-house," a man can have a meal for 1d.-a mug of hot coffee and two slices of bread and butter, while for two-pence what is elegantly termed "a tight- ner," that is to say, a most plentiful repast, may be obtained. Here was a large room, with tables all round, and so extremely silent, that the smack- all of lips and sipping of coffee were alone heard. Upwards of 1,500 men breakfast here in the course of the morning, many of them taking as many as three such meals. On the counter was a pile of white mugs, and the bright tin cans stood beside the blazing fire, whilst Rodway himself sat at a kind of dresser, cutting up and buttering the bread, with marvellous rapidity. It was a clean, orderly, and excellent establish- ment, kept by a man, I was told, who had risen from a saloop stall.
Opposite to the Coal Exchange were ranged the stalls and barrows with the street eatables, and the crowds round each showed the effects of the sharp morning air. One-a Jew's-had hot- pies with lids that rose as the gravy was poured in from an oil can; another carried a stone jar of peppermint-water, at ½d. a glass; and the pea- soup stand was hemmed in by boys and men blowing the steam from their cups. Beside these were Jews with cloth caps and knives, and square yellow cakes; one old man, in a cor- ner, stood examining a thread-bare scarf that a cravatless coster had handed to him. Coffee- stalls were in great plenty; and men left their barrows to run up and have "an oyster," or "an 'ot heel." One man here makes his living by selling sheets of old newspapers, at ½d. each,
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for the costers to dress their trays with. Though seemingly rather out of place, there was a Mosaic jewellery stand; old umbrellas, too, were far from scarce; and one had brought a horse-hair stool for sale.
Everybody was soon busy laying out their stock. The wrinkled dull-eyed cod was freshened up, the red-headed gurnet placed in rows, the eels prevented from writhing over the basket sides by cabbage-leaves, and the soles paired off like gloves. Then the little trucks began to leave, crawling, as it were, between the legs of the horses in the vans crowding Thames-street, and plunging in between huge waggons, but still ap- pearing safely on the other side; and the 4,000 costers who visit Billingsgate on the Friday morning were shortly scattered throughout the metropolis.
OF THE FORESTALLING OF MARKETS AND THE BILLINGSGATE BUMMAREES.
"Forestalling," writes Adam Smith, "is the buying or contracting for any cattle, provisions, or merchandize, on its way to the market (or at market), or dissuading persons from buying their goods there, or persuading them to raise the price, or spreading any false rumour with intent to enhance the value of any article. In the remoter periods of our history several statutes were passed, prohibiting forestalling under severe penalties; but as more enlarged views upon such subjects began to prevail, their impolicy became obvious, and they were consequently repealed in 1772. But forestalling is still punishable by fine and imprisonment; though it be doubtful whether any jury would now convict an individual accused of such prac- tices."
In Billingsgate the "forestallers" or mid- dlemen are known as "bummarees," who, as regards means, are a far superior class to the "hagglers" (the forestallers of the "green" markets). The bummaree is the jobber or specu- lator on the fish-exchange. Perhaps on every busy morning 100 men buy a quantity of fish, which they account likely to be remunerative, and retail it, or dispose of it in lots to the fish- mongers or costermongers. Few if any of these dealers, however, are merely bummarees. A salesman, if he have disposed of the fish consigned to himself, will turn bummaree if any bargain tempt him. Or a fishmonger may purchase twice the quantity he requires for his own trade, in order to procure a cheaper stock, and "bummaree" what he does not require. These speculations in fish are far more hazardous than those in fruit or vegetables, for later in the day a large consignment by railway may reach Bil- lingsgate, and, being thrown upon the market, may reduce the price one half. In the vegetable and fruit markets there is but one arrival. The costermongers are among the best cus- tomers of the bummarees.
I asked several parties as to the origin of the word "bummaree," and how long it had been in use. "Why, bless your soul, sir," said one Billingsgate labourer, "there always was bummarees, and there always will be; just as Jack there is a `rough,' and I'm a blessed `bobber."' One man assured me it was a French name; another that it was Dutch. A fish- monger, to whom I was indebted for informa- tion, told me he thought that the bummaree was originally a bum-boat man, who purchased of the wind-bound smacks at Gravesend or the Nore, and sent the fish up rapidly to the mar- ket by land.
I may add, as an instance of the probable gains of the forestallers, in the olden time, that a tradesman whose family had been long con- nected with Billingsgate, showed me by his pre- decessors' books and memoranda, that in the depth of winter, when the Thames was perhaps choked with ice, and no supply of fish "got up" to London, any, that might, by management, reach Billingsgate used to command exorbitant prices. To speak only of the present century: March 11th, 1802, a cod fish (8 lbs.) was bought by Messrs. Phillips and Robertson, fishmongers, Bond-street, for 1l. 8s. February, 1809, a salmon (19 lbs.) was bought by Mr. Phillips at a guinea a pound, 19l. 19s. for the fish! March 24th, 1824, three lobsters were sold for a guinea each.
The "haggler," I may here observe, is the bummaree or forestaller or middleman of the green markets; as far as the costermonger's trade is concerned, he deals in fruit and vegetables. Of these trafficers there are fully 200 in Covent- garden-market; from 60 to 70 in Farringdon; from 40 to 50 in the Borough; from 50 to 60 in Spitalfields; and none in Portman-market; such being the only wholesale green-markets for the purposes of the costermongers. The haggler is a middleman who makes his pur- chases of the growers when the day is some- what advanced, and the whole produce con- veyed to the market has not been disposed of. The grower will then, rather than be detained in town, sell the whole lot remaining in his cart or wagon to a haggler, who re-sells it to the costers, or to any other customer, from a stand which he hires by the day. The cos- termongers who are the most provident, and either have means or club their resources for a large purchase, often buy early in the morning, and so have the advantage of anticipating their fellows in the street-trade, with the day before them. Those who buy later are the customers of the hagglers, and are street-sellers, whose means do not command an extensive purchase, or who do not care to venture upon one unless it be very cheap. These men speak very bitterly of the hagglers, calling them "cracked-up shop- keepers" and "scurfs," and declaring that but for them the growers must remain, and sell off their produce cheap to the costermongers.
A species of forestalling is now not uncom- mon, and is on the increase among the coster- mongers themselves. There are four men, having the command of money, who attend the markets and buy either fish or vegetables largely. One man especially buys almost daily
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as much fruit and vegetables as will supply thirty street-dealers. He adds 3d. a bushel to the wholesale market price of apples; 6d. to that of pears; 9d. to plums; and 1s. to cherries. A purchaser can thus get a smaller quantity than he can always buy at market, and avails himself of the opportunity.
Moreover, a good many of the more intelligent street-dealers now club together-six of them, for instance-contributing 15s. each, and a quan- tity of fish is thus bought by one of their body (a smaller contribution suffices to buy vegetables). Perhaps, on an equal partition, each man thus gets for his 15s. as much as might have cost him 20s., had he bought "single-handed." This mode of purchase is also on the increase.
OF "WET" FISH-SELLERS IN THE STREETS.
Concerning the sale of "wet" or fresh fish, I had the following account from a trustworthy man, of considerable experience and superior education:
"I have sold `wet fish' in the streets for more than fourteen years," he said; "before that I was a gentleman, and was brought up a gentle- man, if I'm a beggar now. I bought fish largely in the north of England once, and now I must sell it in the streets of London. Never mind talking about that, sir; there's some things won't bear talking about. There's a wonderful difference in the streets since I knew them first; I could make a pound then, where I can hardly make a crown now. People had more money, and less meanness then. I consider that the rail- ways have injured me, and all wet fish-sellers, to a great extent. Fish now, you see, sir, comes in at all hours, so that nobody can calculate on the quantity that will be received-nobody. That's the mischief of it; we are afraid to buy, and miss many a chance of turning a penny. In my time, since railways were in, I've seen cod-fish sold at a guinea in the morning that were a shilling at noon; for either the wind and the tide had served, or else the railway fishing-places were more than commonly supplied, and there was a glut to London. There's no trade requires greater judgment than mine-none whatever. Before the railways-and I never could see the good of them-the fish came in by the tide, and we knew how to buy, for there would be no more till next tide. Now, we don't know. I go to Billingsgate to buy my fish, and am very well known to Mr.-and Mr.- (mentioning the names of some well-known salesmen). The Jews are my ruin there now. When I go to Billingsgate, Mr.-will say, or rather, I will say to him, `How much for this pad of soles?' He will answer, `Fourteen shillings.' `Fourteen shillings!' I say, `I'll give you seven shillings,-that's the proper amount;' then the Jew boys-none of them twenty that are there-ranged about will begin; and one says, when I bid 7s., `I'll give 8s;' `nine,' says another, close on my left; `ten,' shouts another, on my right, and so they go offering on; at last Mr.-says to one of them, as grave as a judge, `Yours, sir, at 13s,' but it's all gammon. The 13s. buyer isn't a buyer at all, and isn't required to pay a farthing, and never touches the goods. It's all done to keep up the price to poor fishmen, and so to poor buyers that are our customers in the streets. Money makes money, and it don't matter how. Those Jew boys-I dare say they're the same sort as once sold oranges about the streets-are paid, I know 1s. for spending three or four hours that way in the cold and wet. My trade has been injured, too, by the great increase of Irish coster- mongers; for an Irishman will starve out an Englishman any day; besides if a tailor can't live by his trade, he'll take to fish, or fruit and cabbages. The month of May is a fine season for plaice, which is bought very largely by my customers. Plaice are sold at ½d. and 1d. a piece. It is a difficult fish to manage, and in poor neighbourhoods an important one to manage well. The old hands make a profit out of it; new hands a loss. There's not much cod or other wet fish sold to the poor, while plaice is in. "My customers are poor men's wives, -mechanics, I fancy. They want fish at most unreasonable prices. If I could go and pull them off a line flung off Waterloo-bridge, and no other expense, I couldn't supply them as cheap as they expect them. Very cheap fish-sellers lose their customers, through the Billingsgate bummarees, for they have pipes, and blow up the cod-fish, most of all, and puff up their bellies till they are twice the size, but when it comes to table, there's hardly to say any fish at all. The Bil- lingsgate authorities would soon stop it, if they knew all I know. They won't allow any roguery, or any trick, if they only come to hear of it. These bummarees have caused many respectable people to avoid street-buying, and so fair traders like me are injured. I've nothing to complain of about the police. Oft enough, if I could be al- lowed ten minutes longer on a Saturday night, I could get through all my stock without loss. About a quarter to twelve I begin to halloo away as hard as I can, and there's plenty of customers that lay out never a farthing till that time, and then they can't be served fast enough, so they get their fish cheaper than I do. If any halloos out that way sooner, we must all do the same. Anything rather than keep fish over a warm Sunday. I have kept mine in ice; I haven't opportunity now, but it'll keep in a cool place this time of year. I think there's as many sellers as buyers in the streets, and there's scores of them don't give just weight or measure. I wish there was good moral rules in force, and everybody gave proper weight. I often talk to street-dealers about it. I've given them many a lecture; but they say they only do what plenty of shopkeepers do, and just get fined and go on again, without being a pin the worse thought of. They are abusive sometimes, too; I mean the street-sellers are, because they are ignorant. I have no children, thank God, and my wife helps me in my business. Take the year through, I clear from 10s. to 12s. every week. That's not
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much to support two people. Some weeks I earn only 4s.,-such as in wet March weather. In others I earn 18s. or 1l. November, December, and January are good months for me. I wouldn't mind if they lasted all the year round. I'm often very badly off indeed-very badly; and the misery of being hard up, sir, is not when you're making a struggle to get out of your trouble; no, nor to raise a meal off herrings that you've given away once, but when your wife and you's sitting by a grate without a fire, and put- ting the candle out to save it, a planning how to raise money. `Can we borrow there?' `Can we manage to sell if we can borrow?' `Shall we get from very bad to the parish?' Then, perhaps, there's a day lost, and without a bite in our mouths trying to borrow. Let alone a little drop to give a body courage, which perhaps is the only good use of spirit after all. That's the pinch, sir. When the rain you hear outside puts you in mind of drownding!"
Subjoined is the amount (in round numbers) of wet fish annually disposed of in the metro- polis by the street-sellers: No. of Fish. lbs. weight. Salmon 20,000 175,000 Live-cod 100,000 1,000,000 Soles 6,500,000 1,650,000 Whiting 4,440,000 1,680,000 Haddock 250,000 500,000 Plaice 29,400,000 29,400,000 Mackarel 15,700,000 15,700,000 Herrings 875,000,000 210,000,000 Sprats " 3,000,000 Eels, from Holland 400,000 65,000 Flounders 260,000 43,000 Dabs 270,000 48,000 Total quantity of wet fish sold in the streets of London 932,340,000 263,281,000
From the above Table we perceive that the fish, of which the greatest quantity is eaten by the poor, is herrings; of this, compared with plaice there is upwards of thirty times the number consumed. After plaice rank mackerel, and of these the consumption is about one-half less in number than plaice, while the number of soles vended in the streets, is again half of that of mackerel. Then come whiting, which are about two-thirds the number of the soles, while the consumption to the poor of haddock, cod, eels, and salmon, is comparatively insignificant. Of sprats, which are estimated by weight, only one-fifth of the number of pounds are consumed compared with the weight of mackerel. The pounds' weight of herrings sold in the streets, in the course of a year, is upwards of seven times that of plaice, and fourteen times that of mackerel. Altogether more than 260,000,000 pounds, or 116,000 tons weight of wet fish are yearly purchased in the streets of London, for the consumption of the humbler classes. Of this aggregate amount, no less than five-sixths consists of herrings; which, indeed, constitute the great slop diet of the metropolis.
OF SPRAT-SELLING IN THE STREETS.
Sprats-one of the cheapest and most grateful luxuries of the poor-are generally introduced about the 9th of November. Indeed "Lord Mayor's day" is sometimes called "sprat day." They continue in about ten weeks. They are sold at Billingsgate by the "toss," or "chuck," which is about half a bushel, and weighs from 40lbs. to 50lbs. The price varies from 1s. to 5s. Sprats are, this season, pronounced remarkably fine. "Look at my lot sir," said a street-seller to me; "they're a heap of new silver," and the bright shiny appearance of the glittering little fish made the comparison not inappropriate. In very few, if in any, instances does a costermonger confine himself to the sale of sprats, unless his means limit him to that one branch of the business. A more prosperous street-fishmonger will sometimes detach the sprats from his stall, and his wife, or one of his children will take charge of them. Only a few sprat-sellers are itinerant, the fish being usually sold by stationary street-sellers at "pitches." One who worked his sprats through the streets, or sold them from a stall as he thought best, gave me the following account. He was dressed in a newish fustian-jacket, buttoned close up his chest, but showing a portion of a clean cotton shirt at the neck, with a bright-coloured coarse handkerchief round it; the rest of his dress was covered by a white apron. His hair, as far as I could see it under his cloth cap, was carefully brushed, and (it appeared) as carefully oiled. At the first glance I set him down as having been a gentleman's servant. He had a some- what deferential, though far from cringing manner with him, and seemed to be about twenty-five or twenty-six-he thought he was older, he said, but did not know his age ex- actly.
"Ah! sir," he began, in a tone according with his look, "sprats is a blessing to the poor. Fresh herrings is a blessing too, and sprats is young herrings, and is a blessing in 'portion" [for so he pronounced what seemed to be a favourite word with him "proportion"]. "It's only four years-yes, four, I'm sure of that- since I walked the streets starving, in the depth of winter, and looked at the sprats, and said, I wish I could fill my belly off you. Sir, I hope it was no great sin, but I could hardly keep my hands from stealing some and eating them raw. If they make me sick, thought I, the police 'll take care of me, and that 'll be something. While these thoughts was a passing through my mind, I met a man who was a gentleman's coachman; I knew him a little formerly, and so I stopped him and told him who I was, and that I hadn't had a meal for two days. `Well, by G-,' said the coachman, `you look like it, why I shouldn't have known you. Here's a shilling.' And then he went on a little way, and then stopped, and turned back and thrust 3½d. more into my hand, and bolted off. I've never seen him since. But I'm grateful to him in the
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same 'portion (proportion) as if I had. After I'd had a penn'orth of bread and a penn'orth of cheese, and half-a-pint of beer, I felt a new man, and I went to the party as I'd longed to steal the sprats from, and told him what I'd thought of. I can't say what made me tell him, but it turned out for good. I don't know much about religion, though I can read a little, but may be that had something to do with it." The rest of the man's narrative was-briefly told-as follows. He was the only child of a gentleman's coachman His father had de- serted his mother and him, and gone abroad, he believed, with some family. His mother, how- ever, took care of him until her death, which happened "when he was a little turned thirteen, he had heard, but could not remember the year." After that he was "a helper and a jobber in different stables," and "anybody's boy," for a few years, until he got a footman's, or rather footboy's place, which he kept above a year. After that he was in service, in and out of different situations, until the time he speci- fied, when he had been out of place for nearly five weeks, and was starving. His master had got in difficulties, and had gone abroad; so he was left without a character. "Well, sir," he continued, "the man as I wanted to steal the sprats from, says to me, says he, `Poor fellow; I know what a hempty belly is myself-come and have a pint.' And over that there pint, he told me, if I could rise 10s. there might be a chance for me in the streets, and he'd show me how to do. He died not very long after that, poor man. Well, after a little bit, I managed to borrow 10s. of Mr.-(I thought of him all of a sudden). He was butler in a family that I had lived in, and had a charitable cha- racter, though he was reckoned very proud. But I plucked up a spirit, and told him how I was off, and he said, `Well, I'll try you,' and he lent me 10s., which I paid him back, little by little, in six or eight weeks; and so I started in the costermonger line, with the advice of my friend, and I've made from 5s. to 10s., sometimes more, a week, at it ever since. The police don't trouble me much. They is civil to me in 'portion (proportion) as I am civil to them. I never mixed with the costers but when I've met them at market. I stay at a lodging- house, but it's very decent and clean, and I have a bed to myself, at 1s. a week, for I'm a regular man. I'm on sprats now, you see, sir, and you'd wonder, sometimes, to see how keen people looks to them when they're new. They're a blessing to the poor, in 'portion (proportion) of course. Not twenty minutes before you spoke to me, there was two poor women came up-they was sickly-looking, but I don't know what they was -perhaps shirt-makers-and they says to me, says they, `Show us what a penny plateful is.' `Sart'nly, ladies,' says I. Then they whispered together, and at last one says, says she, `We'll have two platefuls.' I told you they was a blessing to the poor, sir-'specially to such as them, as lives all the year round on bread and tea. But it's not only the poor as buys; others in 'portion (proportion). When they're new they're a treat to everybody. I've sold them to poor working-men, who've said, `I'll take a treat home to the old 'oman and the kids; they dotes on sprats.' Gentlemen's servants is very fond of them, and mechanics comes down-such as shoemakers in their leather aprons, and sings out, `Here, old sprats, give us two penn'orth.' They're such a relish. I sell more to men than to women, perhaps, but there's little difference. They're best stewed, sir, I think-if you're fond of sprats-with vinegar and a pick of allspice; that's my opi- nion, and, only yesterday, an old cook said I was right. I makes 1s. 6d. to 2s. 6d. a day, and sometimes rather more, on my sprats, and sticks to them as much as I can. I sell about my `toss' a day, seldom less. Of course I can make as many penn'orths of it as I please, but there's no custom without one gives mid- dling penn'orths. If a toss costs me 3s., I may make sixty penn'orths of it sometimes- sometimes seventy or more-and sometimes less than sixty. There's many turns over as much as me and more than that. I'm think- ing that I'll work the country with a lot; they'll keep to a second day, when they're fresh to start, 'specially if its frosty weather, too, and then they're better than ever-yes, and a greater treat-scalding hot from the fire, they're the cheapest and best of all suppers in the winter time. I hardly know which way I'll go. If I can get anythink to do among horses in the country, I'll never come back. I've no tie to London."
To show how small a sum of money will enable the struggling striving poor to obtain a living, I may here mention that, in the course of my inquiries among the mudlarks, I casually gave a poor shoeless urchin, who was spoken of by one of the City Missionaries as being a well- disposed youth, 1s. out of the funds that had been entrusted to me to dispense. Trifling as the amount appears, it was the means of keeping his mother, sister, and himself through the winter. It was invested in sprats, and turned over and over again.
I am informed, by the best authorities, that near upon 1000 "tosses" of sprats are sold daily in London streets, while the season lasts. These, sold retail in pennyworths, at very nearly 5s. the toss, give about 150l. a day, or say 1,000l. a week spent on sprats by the poorer classes of the metropolis; so that, calculating the sprat season to last ten weeks, about 10,000l. would be taken by the costermongers during that time from the sale of this fish alone.
Another return, furnished me by an eminent salesman at Billingsgate, estimates the gross quantity of sprats sold by the London costers in the course of the season at three millions of pounds weight, and this disposed of at the rate of 1d. per pound, gives upwards of 12,000l. for the sum of money spent upon this one kind of fish.
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OF SHELL-FISH SELLERS IN THE STREETS.
I had the following account from an experi- enced man. He lived with his mother, his wife, and four children, in one of the streets near Gray's-inn-lane. The street was inha- bited altogether by people of his class, the women looking sharply out when a stranger visited the place. On my first visit to this man's room, his wife, who is near her confine- ment, was at dinner with her children. The time was ¼ to 12. The meal was tea, and bread with butter very thinly spread over it. On the wife's bread was a small piece of pickled pork, covering about one-eighth of the slice of a quartern loaf cut through. In one corner of the room, which is on the ground- floor, was a scantily-covered bed. A few dingy-looking rags were hanging up to dry in the middle of the room, which was littered with baskets and boxes, mixed up with old furniture, so that it was a difficulty to stir. The room (although the paper, covering the broken panes in the window, was torn and full of holes) was most oppressively close and hot, and there was a fetid smell, difficult to sustain, though it was less noticeable on a subsequent call. I have often had occasion to remark that the poor, especially those who are much subjected to cold in the open air, will sacrifice much for heat. The adjoining room, which had no door, seemed littered like the one where the family were. The walls of the room I was in were discoloured and weather-stained. The only attempt at ornament was over the mantel-shelf, the wall here being papered with red and other gay-coloured papers, that once had been upholsterer's patterns.
On my second visit, the husband was at dinner with the family, on good boiled beef and potatoes. He was a small-featured man, with a head of very curly and long black hair, and both in mien, manners, and dress, resembled the mechanic far more than the costermonger. He said:-
"I've been twenty years and more, perhaps twenty-four, selling shell-fish in the streets. I was a boot-closer when I was young, and have made my 20s. and 30s., and sometimes 40s., and then sometimes not 10s. a week; but I had an attack of rheumatic-fever, and lost the use of my hands for my trade. The streets hadn't any great name, as far as I knew, then, but as I couldn't work, it was just a choice between street-selling and starving, so I didn't prefer the last. It was reckoned degrading to go into the streets-but I couldn't help that. I was asto- nished at my success when I first began, and got into the business-that is into the under- standing of it-after a week, or two, or three. Why, I made 3l. the first week I knew my trade, properly; yes, I cleared 3l.! I made, not long after, 5l. a week-but not often. I was giddy and extravagant. Indeed, I was a fool, and spent my money like a fool I could have brought up a family then like a gentleman-I send them to school as it is-but I hadn't a wife and family then, or it might have been better; it's a great check on a man, is a family. I began with shell-fish, and sell it still; very seldom anything else. There's more demand for shells, no doubt, because its far cheaper, but then there's so many more sellers. I don't know why exactly. I suppose it's because poor people go into the streets when they can't live other ways, and some do it because they think it's an idle life; but it ain't. Where I took 35s. in a day at my stall-and well on to half of it profit-I now take 5s. or 6s., or perhaps 7s., in the day and less profit on that less money. I don't clear 3s. a day now, take the year through. I don't keep accounts, but I'm certain enough that I average about 15s. a week the year through, and my wife has to help me to make that. She'll mind the stall, while I take a round sometimes. I sell all kinds of shell-fish, but my great dependence is on winkles. I don't do much in lobsters. Very few speculate in them. The price varies very greatly. What's 10s. a score one day may be 25s. the next. I sometimes get a score for 5s. or 6s., but it's a poor trade, for 6d. is the top of the tree, with me, for a price to a seller. I never get more. I sell them to mechanics and tradesmen. I do more in pound crabs. There's a great call for haporths and pennorths of lobster or crab, by children; that's their claws. I bile them all myself, and buy them alive. I can bile twenty in half an hour, and do it over a grate in a back-yard. Lobsters don't fight or struggle much in the hot water, if they're properly packed. It's very few that knows how to bile a lobster as he should be biled. I wish I knew any way of killing lobsters before biling them. I can't kill them without smashing them to bits, and that won't do at all. I kill my crabs before I bile them. I stick them in the throat with a knife and they're dead in an instant. Some sticks them with a skewer, but they kick a good while with the skewer in them. It's a shame to torture anything when it can be helped. If I didn't kill the crabs they'd shed every leg in the hot water; they'd come out as bare of claws as this plate. I've known it oft enough, as it is; though I kill them uncommon quick, a crab will be quicker and shed every leg-throw them off in the moment I kill them, but that doesn't happen once in fifty times. Oysters are capital this season, I mean as to quality, but they're not a good sale. I made 3l. a week in oysters, not reckoning anything else, eighteen or twenty years back. It was easy to make money then; like putting down one sovereign and taking two up. I sold oysters then oft enough at 1d. a piece. Now I sell far finer at three a penny and five for 2d. People can't spend money in shell-fish when they haven't got any. They say that fortune knocks once at every man's door. I wish I'd opened my door when he knocked at it."
This man's wife told me afterwards, that last
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inter, after an attack of rheumatism, all their stock-money was exhausted, and her husband sat day by day at home almost out of his mind; for nothing could tempt him to apply to the parish, and "he would never have mentioned his sufferings to me," she said; "he had too much pride." The loan of a few shillings from a poor costermonger enabled the man to go to market again, or he and his family would now have been in the Union.
As to the quantity of shell-fish sold in the streets of London, the returns before-cited give the following results:
Shell Fish
Oysters 124,000,000 Lobsters 60,000 Crabs 50,000 Shrimps 770,000 pts. Whelks 4,950,000 Mussels 1,000,000 qts. Cockles 750,000 qts. Periwinkles 3,640,000 pts.
OF SHRIMP SELLING IN THE STREETS.
Shrimp selling, as I have stated, is one of the trades to which the street-dealer often con fines himself throughout the year. The sale is about equally divided between the two sexes, but the men do the most business, walking some of them fifteen to twenty miles a day in a "round" of "ten miles there and ten back."
The shrimps vended in the streets are the Yarmouth prawn shrimps, sold at Billingsgate at from 6d. to 10d. a gallon, while the best shrimps (chiefly from Lee, in Essex,) vary in price from 10d. to 2s. 6d. a gallon; 2s. being a common price. The shrimps are usually mixed by the street-dealers, and they are cried, from stalls or on rounds, "a penny half-pint, fine fresh s'rimps." (I heard them called nothing but "s'rimps" by the street-dealers.) The half-pint, however, is in reality but half that quantity. "It's the same measure as it was thirty years back," I was told, in a tone as if its anti- quity removed all imputation of unfair deal- ing. Some young men "do well on s'rimps," sometimes taking 5s. in an hour on a Saturday evening, "when people get their money, and wants a relish." The females in the shrimp line are the wives, widows, or daughters of costermongers. They are computed to average 1s. 6d. a day profit in fine, and from 9d. to 1s. in bad weather; and, in snowy, or very severe weather, sometimes nothing at all.
One shrimp - seller, a middle - aged woman, wrapped up in a hybrid sort of cloak, that was half a man's and half a woman's gar- ment, gave me the following account. There was little vulgarity in either her language or manner.
"I was in the s'rimp trade since I was a girl. I don't know how long. I don't know how old I am. I never knew; but I've two children, one's six and t'other's near eight, both girls; I've kept count of that as well as I can. My husband sells fish in the street; so did father, but he's dead. We buried him without the help of the parish, as many gets-that's something to say. I've known the trade every way. It never was any good in public-houses. They want such great ha'p'orths there. They'll put up with what isn't very fresh, to be sure, some- times; and good enough for them too, I say, as spoils their taste with drink." [This was said very bitterly.] "If it wasn't for my hus- band's drinking for a day together now and then we'd do better. He's neither to have nor to hold when he's the worse for liquor; and it's the worse with him, for he's a quiet man when he's his own man. Perhaps I make 9d. a day, per- haps 1s. or more. Sometimes my husband takes my stand, and I go a round. Sometimes, if he gets through his fish, he goes my round. I give good measure, and my pint's the regular s'rimp pint." [It was the half-pint I have described.] "The trade's not so good as it was. People hasn't the money, they tells me so. It's bread before s'rimps, says they. I've heard them say it very cross, if I've wanted hard to sell. Some days I can sell nothing. My children stays with my sister, when me and my old man's out. They don't go to school, but Jane (the sister) learns them to sew. She makes drawers for the slop- sellers, but has very little work, and gets very little for the little she does; she would learn them to read if she knew how. She's married to a pavior, that's away all day. It's a hard life mine, sir. The winter's a coming, and I'm now sometimes numbed with sitting at my stall in the cold. My feet feels like lumps of ice in the winter; and they're beginning now, as if they weren't my own. Standing's far harder work than going a round. I sell the best s'rimps. My customers is judges. If I've any s'rimps over on a night, as I often have one or two nights a week, I sells them for half-price to an Irishwoman, and she takes them to the beer-shops, and the coffee-shops. She washes them. to look fresh. I don't mind telling that, because people should buy of regular people. It's very few people know how to pick a s'rimp properly. You should take it by the head and the tail and jam them up, and then the shell separates, and the s'rimp comes out beautifully. That's the proper way."
Sometimes the sale on the rounds may be the same as that at the stalls, or 10 or 20 per cent. more or less, according to the weather, as shrimps can be sold by the itinerant dealers better than by the stall-keepers in wet weather, when people prefer buying at their doors. But in hot weather the stall trade is the best, "for people often fancy that the s'rimps is sent out to sell 'cause they'll not keep no longer. It's only among customers as knows you, you can do any good on a round then."
The costermongers sell annually, it ap- pears, about 770,000 pints of shrimps. At 2d. a pint (a very low calculation) the street sale of shrimps amount to upwards of 6,400l. yearly.
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OF OYSTER SELLING IN THE STREETS.
The trade in oysters is unquestionably one of the oldest with which the London-or rather the English-markets are connected; for oysters from Britain were a luxury in ancient Rome.
Oysters are now sold out of the smacks at Billingsgate, and a few at Hungerford. The more expensive kind such as the real Milton, are never bought by the costermongers, but they buy oysters of a "good middling quality." At the commencement of the season these oysters are 14s. a "bushel," but the measure contains from a bushel and a half to two bushels, as it is more or less heaped up. The general price, however, is 9s. or 10s., but they have been 16s. and 18s. The "big trade" was unknown until 1848, when the very large shelly oysters, the fish inside being very small, were introduced from the Sussex coast. They were sold in Thames- street and by the Borough-market. Their sale was at first enormous. The costermongers distin- guished them by the name of "scuttle-mouths." One coster informant told me that on the Satur- days he not unfrequently, with the help of a boy and a girl, cleared 10s. by selling these oysters in the streets, disposing of four bags. He thus sold, reckoning twenty-one dozen to the bag, 2,016 oysters; and as the price was two for a penny, he took just 4l. 4s. by the sale of oysters in the streets in one night. With the scuttle- mouths the costermonger takes no trouble: he throws them into a yard, and dashes a few pails of water over them, and then places them on his barrow, or conveys them to his stall. Some of the better class of costermongers, however, lay down their oysters carefully, giving them oat- meal "to fatten on."
In April last, some of the street-sellers of this article established, for the first time, "oyster- rounds." These were carried on by coster- mongers whose business was over at twelve in the day, or a little later; they bought a bushel of scuttle-mouths (never the others), and, in the afternoon, went a round with them to poor neighbourhoods, until about six, when they took a stand in some frequented street. Going these oyster-rounds is hard work, I am told, and a boy is generally taken to assist. Monday afternoon is the best time for this trade, when 10s. is sometimes taken, and 4s. or 5s. profit made. On other evenings only from 1s. to 5s. is taken-very rarely the larger sum-as the later the day in the week the smaller is the receipt, owing to the wages of the working classes getting gradually exhausted.
The women who sell oysters in the street, and whose dealings are limited, buy either of the costermongers or at the coal-sheds. But nearly all the men buy at Billingsgate, where as small a quantity as a peck can be had.
An old woman, who had "seen better days," but had been reduced to keep an oyster-stall, gave me the following account of her customers. She showed much shrewdness in her conversa- tion, but having known better days, she declined to enter upon any conversation concerning her former life:-
"As to my customers, sir," she said, "why, indeed, they're all sorts. It's not a very few times that gentlemen (I call them so because they're mostly so civil) will stop-just as it's getting darkish, perhaps,-and look about them, and then come to me and say very quick: `Two penn'orth for a whet.' Ah! some of 'em will look, may be, like poor parsons down upon their luck, and swallow their oysters as if they was taking poison in a hurry. They'll not touch the bread or butter once in twenty times, but they'll be free with the pepper and vinegar, or, mayhap, they'll say quick and short, `A crust off that.' I many a time think that two pen- n'orth is a poor gentleman's dinner. It's the same often-but only half as often, or not half -with a poor lady, with a veil that once was black, over a bonnet to match, and shivering through her shawl. She'll have the same. About two penn'orth is the mark still; it's mostly two penn'orth. My son says, it's because that's the price of a glass of gin, and some persons buy oysters instead-but that's only his joke, sir. It's not the vulgar poor that's our chief cus- tomers. There's many of them won't touch oysters, and I've heard some of them say: `The sight on 'em makes me sick; it's like eating snails.' The poor girls that walk the streets often buy; some are brazen and vulgar, and often the finest dressed are the vulgarest; at least, I think so; and of those that come to oyster stalls, I'm sure it's the case. Some are shy to such as me, who may, perhaps, call their own mothers to their minds, though it aint many of them that is so. One of them always says that she must keep at least a penny for gin after her oysters. One young woman ran away from my stall once after swallowing one oyster out of six that she'd paid for. I don't know why. Ah! there's many things a person like me sees that one may say, `I don't know why' to; that there is. My heartiest customers, that I serve with the most pleasure, are working people, on a Saturday night. One couple-I think the wife always goes to meet her husband on a Saturday night-has two, or three, or four penn'orth, as happens, and it's pleasant to hear them say, `Won't you have another, John?' or, `Do have one or two more, Mary Anne.' I've served them that way two or three years. They've no children, I'm pretty sure, for if I say, `Take a few home to the little ones,' the wife tosses her head, and says, half vexed and half laughing, `Such nonsense.' I send out a good many oysters, opened, for people's suppers, and sometimes for supper parties-at least, I suppose so, for there's five or six dozen often ordered. The maid-servants come for them then, and I give them two or three for themselves, and say, jokingly-like, `It's no use offering you any, perhaps, because you'll have plenty that's left.' They've mostly one answer: `Don't we wish we may get 'em?' The very poor never buy of me, as I told you. A penny
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buys a loaf, you see, or a ha'porth of bread and a ha'porth of cheese, or a half-pint of beer, with a farthing out. My customers are mostly work- ing people and tradespeople. Ah! sir, I wish the parson of the parish, or any parson, sat with me a fortnight; he'd see what life is then. `It's different,' a learned man used to say to me-that's long ago-`from what's noticed from the pew or the pulpit.' I've missed the gentle- man as used to say that, now many years-I don't know how many. I never knew his name. He was drunk now and then, and used to tell me he was an author. I felt for him. A dozen oysters wasn't much for him. We see a deal of the world, sir-yes, a deal. Some, mostly work- ing people, take quantities of pepper with their oysters in cold weather, and say it's to warm them, and no doubt it does; but frosty weather is very bad oyster weather. The oysters gape and die, and then they are not so much as manure. They are very fine this year. I clear 1s. a day, I think, during the season - at least 1s., taking the fine with the wet days, and the week days with the Sundays, though I'm not out then; but, you see, I'm known about here."
The number of oysters sold by the coster- mongers amounts to 124,000,000 a year. These, at four a penny, would realise the large sum of 129,650l. We may therefore safely assume that 125,000l. is spent yearly in oysters in the streets of London.
OF PERIWINKLE SELLING IN THE STREETS.
There are some street people who, nearly all the year through, sell nothing but periwinkles, and go regular rounds, where they are well known. The "wink" men, as these periwinkle sellers are called, generally live in the lowest parts, and many in lodging-houses. They are forced to live in low localities, they say, because of the smell of the fish, which is objected to. The city district is ordinarily the best for winkle- sellers, for there are not so many cheap shops there as in other parts. The summer is the best season, and the sellers then make, upon the average, 12s. a week clear profit; in the winter, they get upon the average, 5s. a week clear, by selling mussels and whelks-for, as winkles last only from March till October, they are then obliged to do what they can in the whelk and mussel way. "I buy my winks," said one, "at Billingsgate, at 3s. and 4s. the wash. A wash is about a bushel. There's some at 2s., and some sometimes as low as 1s. the wash, but they wouldn't do for me, as I serve very respectable people. If we choose we can boil our winkles at Billingsgate by paying 4d. a week for boiling, and ½d. for salt, to salt them after they are boiled. Tradesmen's families buy them for a relish to their tea. It's reckoned a nice present from a young man to his sweetheart, is winks. Servant girls are pretty good customers, and want them cheaper when they say it's for themselves; but I have only one price."
One man told me he could make as much as 12s. a week-sometimes more and sometimes less. He made no speeches, but sung-"Winketty- winketty-wink-wink-wink-wink-wink-wick- etty-wicketty-wink-fine fresh winketty-winks wink wink." He was often so sore in the stomach and hoarse with hallooing that he could hardly speak. He had no child, only himself and wife to keep out of his earnings. His room was 2s. a week rent. He managed to get a bit of meat every day, he said, "somehow or 'nother."
Another, more communicative and far more intelligent man, said to me concerning the character of his customers: "They're people I think that like to daddle" (dawdle, I presume) "over their teas or such like; or when a young woman's young man takes tea with her mother and her, then they've winks; and then there's joking, and helping to pick winks, between Thomas and Betsy, while the mother's busy with her tea, or is wiping her specs, 'cause she can't see. Why, sir, I've known it! I was a Thomas that way myself when I was a tradesman. I was a patten-maker once, but pattens is no go now, and hasn't been for fifteen year or more. Old people, I think, that lives by themselves, and has perhaps an annuity or the like of that, and nothing to do pertickler, loves winks, for they likes a pleasant way of making time long over a meal. They're the people as reads a newspaper, when it's a week old, all through. The other buyers, I think, are tradespeople or working-people what wants a relish. But winks is a bad trade now, and so is many that depends on relishes."
One man who "works" the New Cut, has the "best wink business of all." He sells only a little dry fish with his winks, never wet fish, and has "got his name up," for the superiority of that shell-fish-a superiority which he is careful to ensure. He pays 8s. a week for a stand by a grocer's window. On an ordinary afternoon he sells from 7s. to 10s. worth of periwinkles. On a Monday after- noon he often takes 20s.; and on the Sunday afternoon 3l. and 4l. He has two coster lads to help him, and sometimes on a Sunday from twenty to thirty customers about him. He wraps each parcel sold in a neat brown paper bag, which, I am assured, is of itself, an in- ducement to buy of him. The "unfortunate" women who live in the streets contiguous to the Waterloo, Blackfriars, and Borough-roads, are among his best customers, on Sundays espe- cially. He is rather a public character, getting up dances and the like. "He aint bothered- not he-with ha'p'orths or penn'orths of a Sun- day," said a person who had assisted him. "It's the top of the tree with his customers; 3d. or 6d. at a go." The receipts are one-half profit. I heard from several that he was "the best man for winks a-going."
The quantity of periwinkles disposed of by the London street-sellers is 3,600,000 pints, which, at 1d. per pint, gives the large sum of 15,000l. expended annually in this street luxury. It should be remembered, that a very large con-
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sumption of periwinkles takes place in public- houses and suburban tea-gardens.
OF "DRY" FISH SELLING IN THE STREETS.
The dealing in "dry" or salt fish is never carried on as a totally distinct trade in the streets, but some make it a principal part of their busi- ness; and many wet fish-dealers whose "wet fish" is disposed of by noon, sell dry fish in the afternoon. The dry fish, proper, consists of dried mackerel, salt cod-dried or barrelled-smoked or dried haddocks (often called "finnie haddies"), dried or pickled salmon (but salmon is only salted or pickled for the streets when it can be sold cheap), and salt herrings.
A keen-looking, tidily-dressed man, who was at one time a dry fish-seller principally, gave me the following account. For the last two months he has confined himself to another branch of the business, and seemed to feel a sort of pleasure in telling of the "dodges" he once resorted to:
"There's Scotch haddies that never knew any- thing about Scotland," he said, "for I've made lots of them myself by Tower-street, just a jump or two from the Lambeth station-house. I used to make them on Sundays. I was a wet fish-seller then, and when I couldn't get through my haddocks or my whitings of a Saturday night, I wasn't a-going to give them away to folks that wouldn't take the trouble to lift me out of a gutter if I fell there, so I presarved them. I've made haddies of whitings, and good ones too, and Joe made them of codlings besides. I had a bit of a back-yard to two rooms, one over the other, that I had then, and on a Sunday I set some wet wood a fire, and put it under a great tub. My children used to gut and wash the fish, and I hung them on hooks all round the sides of the tub, and made a bit of a chimney in a corner of the top of the tub, and that way I gave them a jolly good smoking. My wife had a dry fish-stall and sold them, and used to sing out `Real Scotch haddies,' and tell people how they was from Aberdeen; I've often been fit to laugh, she did it so clever. I had a way of giving them a yellow colour like the real Scotch, but that's a secret. After they was well smoked they was hung up to dry all round the rooms we lived in, and we often had stunning fires that answered as well to boil crabs and lobsters when they was cheap enough for the streets. I've boiled a mate's crabs and lobsters for 2½d.; it was two boilings and more, and 2½d. was reckoned the price of half a quarter of a hundred of coals and the use of the pan. There's more ways than one of making 6d., if a man has eyes in his head and keeps them open. Haddocks that wouldn't fetch 1d. a piece, nor any money at all of a Saturday night, I've sold-at least she has" (indicating his wife by a motion of his thumb)- "at 2d., and 3d., and 4d. I've bought fish of costers that was over on a Saturday night, to make Scotch haddies of them. I've tried experience" (experiments) "too. Ivy, burnt under them, gave them, I thought, a nice sort of flavour, rather peppery, for I used always to taste them; but I hate living on fish. Ivy with brown berries on it, as it has about this time o' year, I liked best. Holly wasn't no good. A black-currant bush was, but it's too dear; and indeed it couldn't be had. I mostly spread wetted fire-wood, as green as could be got, or damp sticks of any kind, over shavings, and kept feeding the fire. Sometimes I burnt sawdust. Somehow, the dry fish trade fell off. People does get so pry- ing and so knowing, there's no doing nothing now for no time, so I dropped the dry fish trade. There's few up to smoking them proper; they smoke 'em black, as if they was hung up in a chimbley."
Another costermonger gave me the following account:
"I've salted herrings, but the commonest way of salting is by the Jews about Whitechapel. They make real Yarmouth bloaters and all sorts of fish. When I salted herrings, I bought them out of the boats at Billingsgate by the hundred, which is 120 fish. We give them a bit of a clean -hardly anything-then chuck them into a tub of salt, and keep scattering salt over them, and let them lie a few minutes, or sometimes half an hour, and then hang them up to dry. They eat well enough, if they're eaten in time, for they won't keep. I've known three day's old herrings salted, just because there was no sale for them. One Jew sends out six boys crying `real Yarmouth bloaters.' People buy them in preference, they look so nice and clean and fresh-coloured. It's quite a new trade among the Jews. They didn't do much that way until two years back. I sometimes wish I was a Jew, because they help one another, and start one another with money, and so they thrive where Christians are ruined. I smoked mackerel, too, by thousands; that's a new trade, and is done the same way as haddocks. Mackerel that won't bring 1d. a piece fresh, bring 2d. smoked; they are very nice indeed. I make about 10s. or 11s. a week by dry fish in the winter months, and about as much by wet,- but I have a tidy connection. Perhaps I make 17s. or 18s. a week all the year round."
The aggregate quantity of dry fish sold by the London costermongers throughout the year is as follows-the results being deduced from the table before given: Wet salt cod 93,750 Dry do 1,000,000 Smoked Haddocks 4,875,000 Bloaters 36,750,000 Red-herrings 25,000,000
GROSS VALUE OF THE SEVERAL KINDS OF FISH ANNUALLY SOLD IN THE STREETS OF LONDONS.
It now but remains for me, in order to complete this account of the "street-sellers of fish," to form an estimate of the amount of money annu- ally expended by the labourers and the poorer
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classes of London upon the different kinds of wet, dry, and shell-fish. This, according to the best authorities, is as follows: Wet Fish. \cp\ 175,000 lbs. of salmon, at 6d. per lb. 4,000 1,000,000lbs. of live cod, at 1½d. per lb. 5,000 3,250,000 pairs of soles, at 1½d. per pair 20,000 4,400,000 whiting, at ½d. each 9,000 29,400,000 plaice, at ¾d. 90,000 15,700,000 mackarel, at 6 for 1s. 130,000 875,000,000 herrings, at 16 a groat 900,000 3,000,000 lbs. of sprats. at 1d. per lb. 12,000 400,000 lbs. of eels, at 3 lb. for 1s. . 6,000 260,000 flounders, at 1d. per dozen. 100 270,000 dabs, at 1d. per dozen 100 Sum total expended yearly in wet fish 1,177,000
Dry Fish.
525,000 lbs. barrelled cod, at 1½d. 3,000 500,000 lbs. dried salt cod, at 2d. 4,000 4,875,000 smoked haddock, at 1d. 20,000 36,750,000 bloaters, at 2 for 1d. 75,000 25,000,000 red herrings, at 4 for 1d. 25,000 Sum total expended yearly in dry fish 127,000 124,000,000 oysters, at 4 a penny 125,000 60,000 lobsters, at 3d. 750 50,000 crabs, at 2d. 400 770,000 pints of shrimps, at 2d. 6,000 1,000,000 quarts of mussels, at 1d. 4,000 750,000 quarts of cockles, at 1d. 3,000 4,950,000 whelks, at 8 for 1d. 2,500 3,600,000 pints of periwinkles, at 1d. 15,000 Sum total expended yearly in shell-fish 156,650
Adding together the above totals, we have the following result as to the gross money value of the fish purchased yearly in the Lon- don streets: \cp\ Wet fish 1,177,200 Dry fish 127,000 Shell fish 156,650 Total \cp\1,460,850
Hence we find that there is nearly a million and a half of money annually spent by the poorer classes of the metropolis in fish; a sum so prodigious as almost to discredit every state- ment of want, even if the amount said to be so expended be believed. The returns from which the above account is made out have been ob- tained, however, from such unquestionable sources -not from one salesman alone, but checked and corrected by many gentlemen who can have no conceivable motive for exaggeration either one way or the other-that, sceptical as our utter ignorance of the subject must necessarily make us, still if we will but examine for ourselves, we shall find there is no gainsaying the facts.
Moreover as to the enormity of the amount dispelling all ideas of privation among the in- dustrious portion of the community, we shall also find on examination that assuming the working-men of the metropolis to be 500,000 in number (the Occupation Abstract of 1841, gives 773,560 individuals following some employment in London, but these include merchants, em- ployers, shopkeepers, Government-officers and others), and that they, with their wives and chil- dren, make up one million individuals, it follows that the sum per head, expended in fish by the poorer classes every week, is a fraction more than 6¾d., or, in other words, not quite one penny a day.
If the diet of a people be a criterion, as has been asserted, of their character, it may be feared that the present extensive fish-diet of the work- ing-people of London, is as indicative of dege- neracy of character, as Cobbett insisted must result from the consumption of tea, and "the cursed root," the potato. "The flesh of fish," says Pereira on Diet, "is less satisfying than the flesh of either quadrupeds or birds. As it con- tains a larger proportion of water (about 80 per cent.), it is obviously less nourishing." Haller tells us he found himself weakened by a fish- diet; and he states that Roman Catholics are generally debilitated during Lent. Pechlin also affirms that a mechanic, nourished merely by fish, has less muscular power than one who lives on the flesh of warm-blooded animals. Jockeys, who waste themselves in order to reduce their weight, live principally on fish.
The classes of fish above given, are, when considered in a "dietetical point of view," of two distinct kinds; viz., those which form the staple commodity of the dinners and suppers of the poor, and those which are mere relishes or stimuli to failing, rather than stays to, eager appetites. Under the former head, I include red-herrings, bloaters, and smoked haddocks; such things are not merely provocatives to eat, among the poor, as they are at the breakfast- table of many an over-fed or intemperate man. With the less affluent these salted fish are not a "relish," but a meal.
The shell-fish, however, can only be consi- dered as luxuries. The 150,000l. thus annu- ally expended in the streets, represents the sum laid out in mere relishes or stimuli to sluggish appetites. A very large proportion of this amount, I am inclined to believe, is spent by persons whose stomachs have been disordered by drink. A considerable part of the trade in the minor articles, as winks, shrimps, &c., is carried on in public-houses, while a favourite pitch for an oyster-stall is outside a tavern-door. If, then, so large an amount is laid out in an endeavour to restore the appetite after drinking, how much money must be squandered in destroying it by the same means?
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Apple
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The daughter of which famous author of many children’s books wrote “A Childhood at Green Hedges”?
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Victorian London - Publications - Social Investigation/Journalism - London Labour and the London Poor; 1851, 1861-2; Henry Mayhew - Vol.1 - Street Sellers of Fish
Victorian London - Publications - Social Investigation/Journalism - London Labour and the London Poor; 1851, 1861-2; Henry Mayhew
OF THE STREET-SELLERS OF FISH.
OF THE KIND AND QUANTITIES OF FISH SOLD BY THE LONDON COSTERMONGERS.
Having now given the reader a general view of the numbers, characters, habits, tastes, amusements, language, opinions, earnings, and vicissitudes of the London costermongers, having described their usual style of dress, diet, homes, conveyances, and street-markets, having explained where their donkeys are bought, or the terms on which they borrow them, their barrows, their stock-money, and occasionally their stock itself, having shown their ordinary mode of dealing, either in person or by deputy, either at half-profits or by means of boys, where they go and how they manage on their rounds in town and in the country, what are the laws affecting them, as well as the operation of those laws upon the rest of the community, having done all this by way of giving the reader a general knowledge of the street-sellers of fish, fruit, and vegetables, I now proceed to treat more particularly of each of these classes seriatim. Beginning with the street-fishmongers, I shall describe, in due order, the season when, the market where, and the classes of people by whom, the wet-fish, the dry-fish, and the shellfish are severally sold and purchased in the London streets, together with all other concomitant circumstances.
The facilities of railway conveyance, by means of which fish can be sent from the coast to the capital with much greater rapidity, and therefore be received much fresher than was formerly the case, have brought large supplies to London from places that before contributed no quantity to the market, and so induced, as I heard in all quarters at Billingsgate, an extraordinary lowness of price in this species of diet. This cheap food, through the agency of the costermongers, is conveyed to every poor man's door, both in the thickly-crowded streets where the poor reside -a family at least in a room -in the vicinity of Drury-lane and of Whitechapel, in Westminster, Bethnal-green, and St. Giles's, and through the long miles of the suburbs. For all low-priced fish the poor are the costermongers' best customers, and a fish diet seems becoming almost as common among the ill-paid classes of London, as is a potato diet among the peasants of Ireland. Indeed, now, the fish season of the poor never, or rarely, knows an interruption. If fresh herrings are not in the market, there are sprats; and if not sprats, there are soles, or whitings, or mackarel, or plaice.
The rooms of the very neediest of our needy metropolitan population, always smell of fish; most frequently of herrings. So much so, indeed, that to those who, like myself, have been in the habit of visiting their dwellings, the smell of herrings, even in comfortable homes, savours from association, so strongly of squalor and wretchedness, as to be often most oppressive. The volatile oil of the fish seems to hang about the walls and beams of the rooms for ever. Those who have experienced the smell of fish only in a well-ordered kitchen, can form no adequate notion of this stench, in perhaps a dilapidated and ill-drained house, and in a rarely-cleaned room; and I have many a time heard both husband and wife -one couple especially, who were "sweating" for a gorgeous clothes' emporium -say that they had not time to be clean.
The costermonger supplies the poor with every kind of fish, for he deals, usually, in every kind when it is cheap. Some confine ; their dealings to such things as shrimps, or periwinkles, but the adhering to one particular article is the exception and not the rule; while shrimps, lobsters, &c., are rarely bought by the very poor. Of the entire quantity of fish sent to Billingsgate-market, the costermongers, stationary and itinerant, may be said to sell onethird, taking one kind with another.
The fish sent to London is known to Billingsgate salesmen as "red" and "white" fish. The red fish is, as regards the metropolitan mart, confined to the salmon. The other descriptions are known as "white." The costermongers classify the fish they vend as "wet" and "dry." All fresh fish is "wet;" all cured or salted fish, "dry." The fish which is sold "pickled," is known by that appellation, but its street sale is insignificant. The principal fish-staple, so to speak of the street-fishmonger, is soles, which are in supply all, or nearly all, the year. The next are herrings, mackarel, whitings, Dutch eels, and plaice. The trade in plaice and sprats is almost entirely in the hands of the costermongers; their sale of shrimps is nearer a half than a third of the entire quantity sent to Billingsgate; but their purchase of cod, or of the best lobsters, or crabs, is far below a third. The costermonger rarely buys turbot, or brill, or even salmon, unless he can retail it at 6d. the pound. When it is at that price, a street salmon-seller told me that the eagerness to buy it was extreme. He had known persons, who appeared to him to be very poor, buy a pound of salmon, "just for a treat once in a way." His best, or rather readiest customers -for at 6d. a pound all classes of the community may be said to be his purchasers -were the shopkeepers of the busier parts, and the occupants of the smaller private houses of the suburbs. During the past year salmon was scarce and dear, and the costermongers bought, comparatively, none of it. In a tolerably cheap season they do not sell more than from a fifteenth to a twentieth of the quantity received at Billingsgate.
In order to be able to arrive at the quantity or weight of the several kinds of fish sold by the costermongers in the streets of London, it is necessary that we should know the entire amount sent to Billingsgate-market, for it is only by estimating the proportion which the street-sale bears to the whole, that we can attain even an approximation to the truth. The following Table gives the results of certain information collected by myself for the first time, I believe, in this country. The facts, as well as the estimated proportions of each kind of fish sold by the costermongers, have been furnished me by the most eminent of the Billingsgate salesmen -gentlemen to whom I am under many obligations for their kindness, consideration, and assistance, at all times and seasons.
OF THE COSTERMONGERS' FISH SEASON.
The season for the street-fishmongers begins about October and ends in May.
In October, or a month or two earlier, may-be, they generally deal in fresh herrings, the supply of which lasts up to about the middle or end of November. This is about the best season. The herrings are sold to the poor, upon an average, at twelve a groat, or from 3s. to 4s. the hundred. After or during November, the sprat and plaice season begins. The regular street-fishmonger, however, seldom deals in sprats. He "works" these only when there is no other fish to be got. He generally considers this trade beneath him, and more fit for women than men. Those costers who do sell them dispose of them now by weight at the rate of 1d. to 2d. the pound -a bushel averaging from 40 to 50 pounds. The plaice season ; continues to the first or second week in May. During May the casualty season is on, and there is little fish certain from that time till salmon comes in, and this is about the end of the month. The salmon season lasts till about the middle of July. The selling of salmon is a bad trade in the poor districts, but a very good one in the better streets or the suburbs. At this work the street-fishmonger will sometimes earn on a fine day from 5s. to 12s. The losses, however, are very great in this article if the weather prove bad. If kept at all "over" it loses its colour, and turns to a pale red, which is seen immediately the knife goes into the fish. While I was obtaining this information some months back, a man went past the window of the house in which I was seated, with a barrow drawn by a donkey. He was crying, "Fresh cod, oh! 1�d. a pound, cod alive, oh!" My informant called me to the window, saying, "Now, here is what we call rough cod." He told me it was three days old. He thought it was eatable then, he said. The eyes were dull and heavy and sunken, and the limp tails of the fish dangled over the ends of the barrow. He said it was a hanging market that day -that is to say, things had been dear, and the costers couldn't pay the price for them. He should fancy, he told me, the man had paid for the fish from 9d. to 1s. each, which was at the rate of 1d. per pound. He was calling them at 1�d. He would not take less than this until he had "got his own money in;" and then, probably, if he had one or two of the fish left, he would put up with 1d. per pound. The weight he was "working" was 12 oz. to the pound. My informant assured me he knew this, because he had borrowed his 12 oz. pound weight that morning. This, with the draught of 2 oz. in the weighingmachine, and the ounce gained by placing the fish at the end of the pan, would bring the actual weight given to 9 oz. per pound, and probably, he said the man had even a lighter pound weight in his barrow ready for a "scaly" customer.
After the street-fishmonger has done his morning's work, he sometimes goes out with his tub of pickled salmon on a barrow or stall, and sells it in saucers at 1d. each, or by the piece. This he calls as "fine Newcastle salmon." There is generally a great sale for this at the races; and if country-people begin with a pennyworth they end with a shillingsworth -a pennyworth, the costers say, makes a fool of the mouth. If they have any on hand, and a little stale, at the end of the week, they sell it at the publichouses to the "Lushingtons," and to them, with plenty of vinegar, it goes down sweet. It is generally bought for 7s. a kit, a little bit "pricked:" but, if good, the price is from 12s. to 18s. "We're in no ways particular to that," said one candid coster to me. "We don't have the eating on it ourselves, and people a'n't always got their taste, especially when they have been drinking, and we sell a great deal to parties in that way. We think it no sin to cheat 'em of 1d. while the publicans takes 1s."
Towards the middle of June the street-fishmonger looks for mackerel, and he is generally employed in selling this fish up to the end of July. After July the Billingsgate season is said to be finished. From this time to the middle of October, when the herrings return, he is mostly engaged selling dried haddocks and red herrings, and other "cas'alty fish that may come across him." Many of the street-fishmongers object to deal in periwinkles, or stewed mussels, or boiled whelks, because, being accustomed to take their money in sixpences at a time, they do not like, they say, to traffic in halfpennyworths. The dealers in these articles are generally looked upon as an inferior class.
There are, during the day, two periods for the sale of street-fish -the one (the morning trade) beginning about ten, and lasting till one in the day -and the other (the night trade) lasting from six in the evening up to ten at night. What fish ; is left in the forenoon is generally disposed of cheap at night. That sold at the latter time is generally used by the working-class for supper, or kept by them with a little salt in a cool place for the next day's dinner, if it will last as long. Several articles are sold by the street-fishmonger chiefly by night. These are oysters, lobsters, pickled salmon, stewed mussels, and the like. The reason why the latter articles sell better by night is, my informant says, "Because people are lofty-minded, and don't like to be seen eating on 'em in the street in the day-time." Shrimps and winkles are the staple commodities of the afternoon trade, which lasts from three to half-past five in the evening. These articles are generally bought by the working-classes for their tea.
BILLINGSGATE.
To see this market in its busiest costermonger time, the visitor should be there about seven o'clock on a Friday morning. The marke opens at four, but for the first two or three hours, it is attended solely by the regular fishmongers and "bummarees" who have the pick of the best there. As soon as these are gone, the costers' sale begins.
Many of the costers that usually deal in vegetables, buy a little fish on the Friday. It is the fast day of the Irish, and the mechanics' wives run short of money at the end of the week, and so make up their dinners with fish; for this reason the attendance of costers' barrows at Billingsgate on a Friday morning is always very great. As soon as you reach the Monument you see a line of them, with one or two tall fishmonger's carts breaking the uniformity, and the din of the cries and commotion of the distant market, begins to break on the ear like the buzzing of a hornet's nest. The whole neighbourhood is covered with the hand-barrows, some laden with baskets, others with sacks. Yet as you walk along, a fresh line of costers' barrows are creeping in or being backed into almost impossible openings; until at every turning nothing but donkeys and rails are to be seen. The morning air is filled with a kind of seaweedy odour, reminding one of the sea-shore; and on entering the market, the smell of fish, of whelks, red herrings, sprats, and a hundred others, is almost overpowering.
The wooden barn-looking square where the fish is sold, is soon after six o'clock crowded with shiny cord jackets and greasy caps. Everybody comes to Billingsgate in his worst clothes, and no one knows the length of time a coat can be worn until they have been to a fish sale. Through the bright opening at the end are seen the tangled rigging of the oyster-boats and the red worsted caps of the sailors. Over the hum of voices is heard the shouts of the salesmen, who, with their white aprons, peering above the heads of the mob, stand on their tables, roaring out their prices.
All are bawling together: salesmen and hucksters of provisions, capes, hardware, and newspapers -till the place is a perfect Babel of competition. "Ha-a-ansome cod! best in the market! All alive! alive! alive O!" "Ye-o-o! Ye-o-o! here's your fine Yarmouth bloaters! Who's the buyer?" "Here you are, governor, splendid whiting! some of the right sort!" "Turbot! turbot! all alive! turbot!" "Glass of nice peppermint! this cold morning a ha'penny a glass!" "Here you are at your own price! Fine soles, O!" "Oy! oy! oy! Now's your time! fine grizzling sprats! all large and no small!" "Hullo! hullo here! beautiful lobsters! good and cheap! fine cock crabs all alive O!" "Five brill and one turbot -have that lot for a pound! Come and look at 'em, governor; you wont see a better sample in the market." "Here, this way! this way for splendid skate! skate O! skate O!" "Had -had -had -had -haddick! all fresh and good!" "Currant and meat puddings! a ha'penny each!" "Now, you mussel-buyers, come along! come along! come along! now's your time for fine fat mussels!" "Here's food for the belly, and clothes for the back, but I sell food for the mind" (shouts the newsvender). "Here's smelt O!" "Here ye are, fine Finney haddick!" "Hot soup! nice peas-soup! a-all hot! hot!" "Ahoy! ahoy here! live plaice! all alive O!" "Now or never! whelk! whelk! whelk!" "Who'll buy brill O! brill O!" "Capes! water-proof capes! sure to keep the wet out! a shilling a piece!" "Eels O! eels O! Alive! alive O!" "Fine flounders, a shilling a lot! Who'll have this prime lot of flounders?" "Shrimps! shrimps! fine shrimps!" "Wink! wink! wink!" "Hi! hi-i! here you are, just eight eels left, only eight!" "O ho! O ho! this way -this way -this way! Fish alive! alive! alive O!"
In the darkness of the shed, the white bellies of the turbots, strung up bow-fashion, shine like mother-of-pearl, while, the lobsters, lying upon them, look intensely scarlet, from the contrast. Brown baskets piled up on one another, and with the herring-scales glittering like spangles all over them, block up the narrow paths. Men in coarse canvas jackets, and bending under huge hampers, push past, shouting "Move on! move on, there!" and women, with the long limp tails of cod-fish dangling from their aprons, elbow their way through the crowd. Round the auction-tables stand groups of men turning over the piles of soles, and throwing them down till they slide about in their slime; some are smelling them, while others are counting the lots. "There, that lot of soles are worth your money," cries the salesman to one of the crowd as he moves on leisurely; "none better in the market. You shall have 'em for a pound and half-acrown." "Oh!" shouts another salesman, "it's no use to bother him -he's no go." Presently a tall porter, with a black oyster-bag, staggers past, trembling under the weight of his load, his back and shoulders wet with the drippings from the sack. "Shove on one side!" he mutters from between his clenched teeth, as he forces ; his way through the mob. Here is a tray of reddish-brown shrimps piled up high, and the owner busy sifting his little fish into another stand, while a doubtful customer stands in front, tasting the flavour of the stock and consulting with his companion in speculation. Little girls carrying matting-bags, that they have brought from Spitalfields, come up, and ask you in a begging voice to buy their baskets; and women with bundles of twigs for stringing herrings, cry out, "Half-penny a bunch!" from all sides. Then there are blue-black piles of small live lobsters, moving about their bound-up claws and long "feelers," one of them occasionally being taken up by a looker-on, and dashed down again, like a stone. Everywhere every one is asking, "What's the price, master?" while shouts of laughter from round the stalls of the salesmen, bantering each other, burst out, occasionally, over the murmuring noise of the crowd. The transparent smelts on the marble-slabs, and the bright herrings, with the lump of transparent ice magnifying their eyes like a lens, are seldom looked at until the market is over, though the hampers and piles of huge maids, dropping slime from the counter, are eagerly examined and bartered for.
One side of the market is set apart for whelks. There they stand in sackfulls, with the yellow shells piled up at the mouth, and one or two of the fish, curling out like corkscrews, placed as a sample. The coster slips one of these from its shell, examines it, pushes it back again, and then passes away, to look well round the market. In one part the stones are covered with herring-barrels, packed closely with dried fish, and yellow heaps of stiff haddock rise up on all sides. Here a man walks up with his knot on his shoulder, waiting for a job to carry fish to the trucks. Boys in ragged clothes, who have slept during the night under a railway-arch, clamour for employment; while the heads of those returning from the oysterboats, rise slowly up the stone sides of the wharf.
The costermongers have nicknamed the long row of oyster boats moored close alongside the wharf "Oyster-street." On looking down the line of tangled ropes and masts, it seems as though the little boats would sink with the crowds of men and women thronged together on their decks. It is as busy a scene as one can well behold. Each boat has its black sign-board, and salesman in his white apron walking up and down "his shop," and on each deck is a bright pewter pot and tin-covered plate, the remains of the salesman's breakfast. "Who's for Baker's?" "Who's for Archer's?" "Who'll have Alston's?" shout the oyster-merchants, and the red cap of the man in the hold bobs up and down as he rattles the shells about with his spade. These holds are filled with oysters -a gray mass of sand and shell -on which is a bushel measure well piled up in the centre, while some of them have a blue muddy heap of mussels divided off from the "natives." The sailors in their striped guernseys sit on the boat sides smoking their morning's pipe, allowing themselves to be tempted by the Jew boys with cloth caps, old shoes, and silk handkerchiefs. Lads with bundles of whips skip from one boat to another, and, seedy-looking mechanics, with handfuls of tin fancy goods, hover about the salesmen, who are the principal supporters of this trade. The place has somewhat the appearance of a little Holywell-street; for the old clothes' trade is entirely in the hands of the Jew boys, and coats, caps, hats, umbrellas, and old shoes, are shouted out in a rich nasal twang on all sides.
Passing by a man and his wife who were breakfasting on the stone coping, I went to the shore where the watermen ply for passengers to the eel boats. Here I found a crowd of punts, half filled with flounders, and small closelypacked baskets of them ranged along the seats. The lads, who act as jacks-in-the-water, were busy feeling in the mud for the fish that had fallen over board, little caring for the water that dashed over their red swollen feet. Presently a boat, piled up with baskets, shot in, grazing the bottom, and men and women, blue with the cold morning air, stepped out.
The Dutch built eel-boats, with their bulging polished oak sides, were half-hidden in the river mist. They were surrounded by skiffs, that ply from the Surrey and Middlesex shores, and wait whilst the fares buy their fish. The holds of these eel-boats are fitted up with long tanks of muddy water, and the heads of the eels are seen breathing on the surface -a thick brown bubble rising slowly, and floating to the sides. Wooden sabots and large porcelain pipes are ranged round the ledges, and men in tall fur caps with high check bones, and rings in their ears, walk the decks. At the stern of one boat was moored a coffin-shaped barge pierced with holes, and hanging in the water were baskets, shaped like olive jars -both to keep the stock of fish alive and fresh. In the centre of the boat stood the scales, -a tall heavy apparatus, one side fitted up with the conical net-bag to hold the eels, and the other with the weights, and pieces of stone to make up for the extra draught of the water hanging about the fish. When a skiff load of purchasers arrives, the master Dutchman takes his hands from his pockets, lays down his pipe, and seizing a sort of long-handled landing-net scoops from the tank a lot of eels. The purchasers examine them, and try to beat down the price. "You calls them eels do you?" said a man with his bag ready opened. "Yeas," answered the Dutchman without any show of indignation. "Certainly, there is a few among them," continued the customer; and after a little more of this kind of chaffering the bargain is struck.
The visitors to the eel-boats were of all grades; one was a neatly-dressed girl to whom the costers showed the utmost gallantry, calling her "my dear," and helping her up the shining sides of the boat; and many of the men had on ; their blue serge apron, but these were only where the prices were high. The greatest crowd of customers is in the heavy barge alongside of the Dutch craft. Here a stout sailor in his red woollen shirt, and canvass petticoat, is surrounded by the most miserable and poorest of fish purchasers -the men with their crushed hats, tattered coats, and unshorn chins, and the women with their pads on their bonnets, and brown ragged gowns blowing in the breeze. One, in an old table-cover shawl, was beating her palms together before the unmoved Dutchman, fighting for an abatement, and showing her stock of halfpence. Others were seated round the barge, sorting their lots in their shallows, and sanding the fish till they were quite yellow. Others, again, were crowding round the scales narrowly watching the balance, and then begging for a few dead eels to make up any doubtful weight.
As you walk back from the shore to the market, you see small groups of men and women dividing the lot of fish they have bought together. At one basket, a coster, as you pass, calls to you, and says, "Here, master, just put these three halfpence on these three cod, and obleege a party." The coins are placed, and each one takes the fish his coin is on; and so there is no dispute.
At length nearly all the busy marketing has finished, and the costers hurry to breakfast. At one house, known as "Rodway's Coffee-house," a man can have a meal for 1d. -a mug of hot coffee and two slices of bread and butter, while for two-pence what is elegantly termed "a tightner," that is to say, a most plentiful repast, may be obtained. Here was a large room, with tables all round, and so extremely silent, that the smackall of lips and sipping of coffee were alone heard. Upwards of 1,500 men breakfast here in the course of the morning, many of them taking as many as three such meals. On the counter was a pile of white mugs, and the bright tin cans stood beside the blazing fire, whilst Rodway himself sat at a kind of dresser, cutting up and buttering the bread, with marvellous rapidity. It was a clean, orderly, and excellent establishment, kept by a man, I was told, who had risen from a saloop stall.
Opposite to the Coal Exchange were ranged the stalls and barrows with the street eatables, and the crowds round each showed the effects of the sharp morning air. One -a Jew's -had hotpies with lids that rose as the gravy was poured in from an oil can; another carried a stone jar of peppermint-water, at �d. a glass; and the peasoup stand was hemmed in by boys and men blowing the steam from their cups. Beside these were Jews with cloth caps and knives, and square yellow cakes; one old man, in a corner, stood examining a thread-bare scarf that a cravatless coster had handed to him. Coffeestalls were in great plenty; and men left their barrows to run up and have "an oyster," or "an 'ot heel." One man here makes his living by selling sheets of old newspapers, at �d. each, for the costers to dress their trays with. Though seemingly rather out of place, there was a Mosaic jewellery stand; old umbrellas, too, were far from scarce; and one had brought a horse-hair stool for sale.
Everybody was soon busy laying out their stock. The wrinkled dull-eyed cod was freshened up, the red-headed gurnet placed in rows, the eels prevented from writhing over the basket sides by cabbage-leaves, and the soles paired off like gloves. Then the little trucks began to leave, crawling, as it were, between the legs of the horses in the vans crowding Thames-street, and plunging in between huge waggons, but still appearing safely on the other side; and the 4,000 costers who visit Billingsgate on the Friday morning were shortly scattered throughout the metropolis.
OF THE FORESTALLING OF MARKETS AND THE BILLINGSGATE BUMMAREES.
"Forestalling," writes Adam Smith, "is the buying or contracting for any cattle, provisions, or merchandize, on its way to the market (or at market), or dissuading persons from buying their goods there, or persuading them to raise the price, or spreading any false rumour with intent to enhance the value of any article. In the remoter periods of our history several statutes were passed, prohibiting forestalling under severe penalties; but as more enlarged views upon such subjects began to prevail, their impolicy became obvious, and they were consequently repealed in 1772. But forestalling is still punishable by fine and imprisonment; though it be doubtful whether any jury would now convict an individual accused of such practices."
In Billingsgate the "forestallers" or middlemen are known as "bummarees," who, as regards means, are a far superior class to the "hagglers" (the forestallers of the "green" markets). The bummaree is the jobber or speculator on the fish-exchange. Perhaps on every busy morning 100 men buy a quantity of fish, which they account likely to be remunerative, and retail it, or dispose of it in lots to the fishmongers or costermongers. Few if any of these dealers, however, are merely bummarees. A salesman, if he have disposed of the fish consigned to himself, will turn bummaree if any bargain tempt him. Or a fishmonger may purchase twice the quantity he requires for his own trade, in order to procure a cheaper stock, and "bummaree" what he does not require. These speculations in fish are far more hazardous than those in fruit or vegetables, for later in the day a large consignment by railway may reach Billingsgate, and, being thrown upon the market, may reduce the price one half. In the vegetable and fruit markets there is but one arrival. The costermongers are among the best customers of the bummarees.
I asked several parties as to the origin of the word "bummaree," and how long it had been in use. "Why, bless your soul, sir," ; said one Billingsgate labourer, "there always was bummarees, and there always will be; just as Jack there is a `rough,' and I'm a blessed `bobber."' One man assured me it was a French name; another that it was Dutch. A fishmonger, to whom I was indebted for information, told me he thought that the bummaree was originally a bum-boat man, who purchased of the wind-bound smacks at Gravesend or the Nore, and sent the fish up rapidly to the market by land.
I may add, as an instance of the probable gains of the forestallers, in the olden time, that a tradesman whose family had been long connected with Billingsgate, showed me by his predecessors' books and memoranda, that in the depth of winter, when the Thames was perhaps choked with ice, and no supply of fish "got up" to London, any, that might, by management, reach Billingsgate used to command exorbitant prices. To speak only of the present century: March 11th, 1802, a cod fish (8 lbs.) was bought by Messrs. Phillips and Robertson, fishmongers, Bond-street, for 1l. 8s. February, 1809, a salmon (19 lbs.) was bought by Mr. Phillips at a guinea a pound, 19l. 19s. for the fish! March 24th, 1824, three lobsters were sold for a guinea each.
The "haggler," I may here observe, is the bummaree or forestaller or middleman of the green markets; as far as the costermonger's trade is concerned, he deals in fruit and vegetables. Of these trafficers there are fully 200 in Coventgarden-market; from 60 to 70 in Farringdon; from 40 to 50 in the Borough; from 50 to 60 in Spitalfields; and none in Portman-market; such being the only wholesale green-markets for the purposes of the costermongers. The haggler is a middleman who makes his purchases of the growers when the day is somewhat advanced, and the whole produce conveyed to the market has not been disposed of. The grower will then, rather than be detained in town, sell the whole lot remaining in his cart or wagon to a haggler, who re-sells it to the costers, or to any other customer, from a stand which he hires by the day. The costermongers who are the most provident, and either have means or club their resources for a large purchase, often buy early in the morning, and so have the advantage of anticipating their fellows in the street-trade, with the day before them. Those who buy later are the customers of the hagglers, and are street-sellers, whose means do not command an extensive purchase, or who do not care to venture upon one unless it be very cheap. These men speak very bitterly of the hagglers, calling them "cracked-up shopkeepers" and "scurfs," and declaring that but for them the growers must remain, and sell off their produce cheap to the costermongers.
A species of forestalling is now not uncommon, and is on the increase among the costermongers themselves. There are four men, having the command of money, who attend the markets and buy either fish or vegetables largely. One man especially buys almost daily as much fruit and vegetables as will supply thirty street-dealers. He adds 3d. a bushel to the wholesale market price of apples; 6d. to that of pears; 9d. to plums; and 1s. to cherries. A purchaser can thus get a smaller quantity than he can always buy at market, and avails himself of the opportunity.
Moreover, a good many of the more intelligent street-dealers now club together -six of them, for instance -contributing 15s. each, and a quantity of fish is thus bought by one of their body (a smaller contribution suffices to buy vegetables). Perhaps, on an equal partition, each man thus gets for his 15s. as much as might have cost him 20s., had he bought "single-handed." This mode of purchase is also on the increase.
OF "WET" FISH-SELLERS IN THE STREETS.
Concerning the sale of "wet" or fresh fish, I had the following account from a trustworthy man, of considerable experience and superior education:
"I have sold `wet fish' in the streets for more than fourteen years," he said; "before that I was a gentleman, and was brought up a gentleman, if I'm a beggar now. I bought fish largely in the north of England once, and now I must sell it in the streets of London. Never mind talking about that, sir; there's some things won't bear talking about. There's a wonderful difference in the streets since I knew them first; I could make a pound then, where I can hardly make a crown now. People had more money, and less meanness then. I consider that the railways have injured me, and all wet fish-sellers, to a great extent. Fish now, you see, sir, comes in at all hours, so that nobody can calculate on the quantity that will be received -nobody. That's the mischief of it; we are afraid to buy, and miss many a chance of turning a penny. In my time, since railways were in, I've seen cod-fish sold at a guinea in the morning that were a shilling at noon; for either the wind and the tide had served, or else the railway fishing-places were more than commonly supplied, and there was a glut to London. There's no trade requires greater judgment than mine -none whatever. Before the railways -and I never could see the good of them -the fish came in by the tide, and we knew how to buy, for there would be no more till next tide. Now, we don't know. I go to Billingsgate to buy my fish, and am very well known to Mr. -and Mr. -(mentioning the names of some well-known salesmen). The Jews are my ruin there now. When I go to Billingsgate, Mr. -will say, or rather, I will say to him, `How much for this pad of soles?' He will answer, `Fourteen shillings.' `Fourteen shillings!' I say, `I'll give you seven shillings, -that's the proper amount;' then the Jew boys -none of them twenty that are there -ranged about will begin; and one says, when I bid 7s., `I'll give 8s;' `nine,' says another, close on my left; `ten,' shouts another, on my right, and so they go offering on; at last Mr. -says to one of them, as grave as a ; judge, `Yours, sir, at 13s,' but it's all gammon. The 13s. buyer isn't a buyer at all, and isn't required to pay a farthing, and never touches the goods. It's all done to keep up the price to poor fishmen, and so to poor buyers that are our customers in the streets. Money makes money, and it don't matter how. Those Jew boys -I dare say they're the same sort as once sold oranges about the streets -are paid, I know 1s. for spending three or four hours that way in the cold and wet. My trade has been injured, too, by the great increase of Irish costermongers; for an Irishman will starve out an Englishman any day; besides if a tailor can't live by his trade, he'll take to fish, or fruit and cabbages. The month of May is a fine season for plaice, which is bought very largely by my customers. Plaice are sold at �d. and 1d. a piece. It is a difficult fish to manage, and in poor neighbourhoods an important one to manage well. The old hands make a profit out of it; new hands a loss. There's not much cod or other wet fish sold to the poor, while plaice is in. "My customers are poor men's wives, -mechanics, I fancy. They want fish at most unreasonable prices. If I could go and pull them off a line flung off Waterloo-bridge, and no other expense, I couldn't supply them as cheap as they expect them. Very cheap fish-sellers lose their customers, through the Billingsgate bummarees, for they have pipes, and blow up the cod-fish, most of all, and puff up their bellies till they are twice the size, but when it comes to table, there's hardly to say any fish at all. The Billingsgate authorities would soon stop it, if they knew all I know. They won't allow any roguery, or any trick, if they only come to hear of it. These bummarees have caused many respectable people to avoid street-buying, and so fair traders like me are injured. I've nothing to complain of about the police. Oft enough, if I could be allowed ten minutes longer on a Saturday night, I could get through all my stock without loss. About a quarter to twelve I begin to halloo away as hard as I can, and there's plenty of customers that lay out never a farthing till that time, and then they can't be served fast enough, so they get their fish cheaper than I do. If any halloos out that way sooner, we must all do the same. Anything rather than keep fish over a warm Sunday. I have kept mine in ice; I haven't opportunity now, but it'll keep in a cool place this time of year. I think there's as many sellers as buyers in the streets, and there's scores of them don't give just weight or measure. I wish there was good moral rules in force, and everybody gave proper weight. I often talk to street-dealers about it. I've given them many a lecture; but they say they only do what plenty of shopkeepers do, and just get fined and go on again, without being a pin the worse thought of. They are abusive sometimes, too; I mean the street-sellers are, because they are ignorant. I have no children, thank God, and my wife helps me in my business. Take the year through, I clear from 10s. to 12s. every week. That's not much to support two people. Some weeks I earn only 4s., -such as in wet March weather. In others I earn 18s. or 1l. November, December, and January are good months for me. I wouldn't mind if they lasted all the year round. I'm often very badly off indeed -very badly; and the misery of being hard up, sir, is not when you're making a struggle to get out of your trouble; no, nor to raise a meal off herrings that you've given away once, but when your wife and you's sitting by a grate without a fire, and putting the candle out to save it, a planning how to raise money. `Can we borrow there?' `Can we manage to sell if we can borrow?' `Shall we get from very bad to the parish?' Then, perhaps, there's a day lost, and without a bite in our mouths trying to borrow. Let alone a little drop to give a body courage, which perhaps is the only good use of spirit after all. That's the pinch, sir. When the rain you hear outside puts you in mind of drownding!"
Subjoined is the amount (in round numbers) of wet fish annually disposed of in the metropolis by the street-sellers:
Total quantity of wet fish sold in the streets of London
932,340,000
263,281,000
From the above Table we perceive that the fish, of which the greatest quantity is eaten by the poor, is herrings; of this, compared with plaice there is upwards of thirty times the number consumed. After plaice rank mackerel, and of these the consumption is about one-half less in number than plaice, while the number of soles vended in the streets, is again half of that of mackerel. Then come whiting, which are about two-thirds the number of the soles, while the consumption to the poor of haddock, cod, eels, and salmon, is comparatively insignificant. Of sprats, which are estimated by weight, only one-fifth of the number of pounds are consumed compared with the weight of mackerel. The pounds' weight of herrings sold in the streets, in the course of a year, is upwards of seven times that of plaice, and fourteen times that of mackerel. Altogether more than 260,000,000 pounds, or 116,000 tons weight of wet fish are yearly purchased in the streets of London, for the consumption of the humbler classes. Of this aggregate amount, no less than five-sixths consists of herrings; which, indeed, constitute the great slop diet of the metropolis.
OF SPRAT-SELLING IN THE STREETS.
Sprats -one of the cheapest and most grateful luxuries of the poor -are generally introduced about the 9th of November. Indeed "Lord Mayor's day" is sometimes called "sprat day." They continue in about ten weeks. They are sold at Billingsgate by the "toss," or "chuck," which is about half a bushel, and weighs from 40lbs. to 50lbs. The price varies from 1s. to 5s. Sprats are, this season, pronounced remarkably fine. "Look at my lot sir," said a street-seller to me; "they're a heap of new silver," and the bright shiny appearance of the glittering little fish made the comparison not inappropriate. In very few, if in any, instances does a costermonger confine himself to the sale of sprats, unless his means limit him to that one branch of the business. A more prosperous street-fishmonger will sometimes detach the sprats from his stall, and his wife, or one of his children will take charge of them. Only a few sprat-sellers are itinerant, the fish being usually sold by stationary street-sellers at "pitches." One who worked his sprats through the streets, or sold them from a stall as he thought best, gave me the following account. He was dressed in a newish fustian-jacket, buttoned close up his chest, but showing a portion of a clean cotton shirt at the neck, with a bright-coloured coarse handkerchief round it; the rest of his dress was covered by a white apron. His hair, as far as I could see it under his cloth cap, was carefully brushed, and (it appeared) as carefully oiled. At the first glance I set him down as having been a gentleman's servant. He had a somewhat deferential, though far from cringing manner with him, and seemed to be about twenty-five or twenty-six -he thought he was older, he said, but did not know his age exactly.
"Ah! sir," he began, in a tone according with his look, "sprats is a blessing to the poor. Fresh herrings is a blessing too, and sprats is young herrings, and is a blessing in 'portion" [for so he pronounced what seemed to be a favourite word with him "proportion"]. "It's only four years -yes, four, I'm sure of that - since I walked the streets starving, in the depth of winter, and looked at the sprats, and said, I wish I could fill my belly off you. Sir, I hope it was no great sin, but I could hardly keep my hands from stealing some and eating them raw. If they make me sick, thought I, the police 'll take care of me, and that 'll be something. While these thoughts was a passing through my mind, I met a man who was a gentleman's coachman; I knew him a little formerly, and so I stopped him and told him who I was, and that I hadn't had a meal for two days. `Well, by G -,' said the coachman, `you look like it, why I shouldn't have known you. Here's a shilling.' And then he went on a little way, and then stopped, and turned back and thrust 3�d. more into my hand, and bolted off. I've never seen him since. But I'm grateful to him in the same 'portion (proportion) as if I had. After I'd had a penn'orth of bread and a penn'orth of cheese, and half-a-pint of beer, I felt a new man, and I went to the party as I'd longed to steal the sprats from, and told him what I'd thought of. I can't say what made me tell him, but it turned out for good. I don't know much about religion, though I can read a little, but may be that had something to do with it." The rest of the man's narrative was -briefly told -as follows. He was the only child of a gentleman's coachman His father had deserted his mother and him, and gone abroad, he believed, with some family. His mother, however, took care of him until her death, which happened "when he was a little turned thirteen, he had heard, but could not remember the year." After that he was "a helper and a jobber in different stables," and "anybody's boy," for a few years, until he got a footman's, or rather footboy's place, which he kept above a year. After that he was in service, in and out of different situations, until the time he specified, when he had been out of place for nearly five weeks, and was starving. His master had got in difficulties, and had gone abroad; so he was left without a character. "Well, sir," he continued, "the man as I wanted to steal the sprats from, says to me, says he, `Poor fellow; I know what a hempty belly is myself -come and have a pint.' And over that there pint, he told me, if I could rise 10s. there might be a chance for me in the streets, and he'd show me how to do. He died not very long after that, poor man. Well, after a little bit, I managed to borrow 10s. of Mr. -(I thought of him all of a sudden). He was butler in a family that I had lived in, and had a charitable character, though he was reckoned very proud. But I plucked up a spirit, and told him how I was off, and he said, `Well, I'll try you,' and he lent me 10s., which I paid him back, little by little, in six or eight weeks; and so I started in the costermonger line, with the advice of my friend, and I've made from 5s. to 10s., sometimes more, a week, at it ever since. The police don't trouble me much. They is civil to me in 'portion (proportion) as I am civil to them. I never mixed with the costers but when I've met them at market. I stay at a lodginghouse, but it's very decent and clean, and I have a bed to myself, at 1s. a week, for I'm a regular man. I'm on sprats now, you see, sir, and you'd wonder, sometimes, to see how keen people looks to them when they're new. They're a blessing to the poor, in 'portion (proportion) of course. Not twenty minutes before you spoke to me, there was two poor women came up -they was sickly-looking, but I don't know what they was -perhaps shirt-makers -and they says to me, says they, `Show us what a penny plateful is.' `Sart'nly, ladies,' says I. Then they whispered together, and at last one says, says she, `We'll have two platefuls.' I told you they was a blessing to the poor, sir -'specially to such as them, as lives all the year round on bread and ; tea. But it's not only the poor as buys; others in 'portion (proportion). When they're new they're a treat to everybody. I've sold them to poor working-men, who've said, `I'll take a treat home to the old 'oman and the kids; they dotes on sprats.' Gentlemen's servants is very fond of them, and mechanics comes down -such as shoemakers in their leather aprons, and sings out, `Here, old sprats, give us two penn'orth.' They're such a relish. I sell more to men than to women, perhaps, but there's little difference. They're best stewed, sir, I think -if you're fond of sprats -with vinegar and a pick of allspice; that's my opinion, and, only yesterday, an old cook said I was right. I makes 1s. 6d. to 2s. 6d. a day, and sometimes rather more, on my sprats, and sticks to them as much as I can. I sell about my `toss' a day, seldom less. Of course I can make as many penn'orths of it as I please, but there's no custom without one gives middling penn'orths. If a toss costs me 3s., I may make sixty penn'orths of it sometimes - sometimes seventy or more -and sometimes less than sixty. There's many turns over as much as me and more than that. I'm thinking that I'll work the country with a lot; they'll keep to a second day, when they're fresh to start, 'specially if its frosty weather, too, and then they're better than ever -yes, and a greater treat -scalding hot from the fire, they're the cheapest and best of all suppers in the winter time. I hardly know which way I'll go. If I can get anythink to do among horses in the country, I'll never come back. I've no tie to London."
To show how small a sum of money will enable the struggling striving poor to obtain a living, I may here mention that, in the course of my inquiries among the mudlarks, I casually gave a poor shoeless urchin, who was spoken of by one of the City Missionaries as being a welldisposed youth, 1s. out of the funds that had been entrusted to me to dispense. Trifling as the amount appears, it was the means of keeping his mother, sister, and himself through the winter. It was invested in sprats, and turned over and over again.
I am informed, by the best authorities, that near upon 1000 "tosses" of sprats are sold daily in London streets, while the season lasts. These, sold retail in pennyworths, at very nearly 5s. the toss, give about 150l. a day, or say 1,000l. a week spent on sprats by the poorer classes of the metropolis; so that, calculating the sprat season to last ten weeks, about 10,000l. would be taken by the costermongers during that time from the sale of this fish alone.
Another return, furnished me by an eminent salesman at Billingsgate, estimates the gross quantity of sprats sold by the London costers in the course of the season at three millions of pounds weight, and this disposed of at the rate of 1d. per pound, gives upwards of 12,000l. for the sum of money spent upon this one kind of fish.
OF SHELL-FISH SELLERS IN THE STREETS.
I had the following account from an experienced man. He lived with his mother, his wife, and four children, in one of the streets near Gray's-inn-lane. The street was inhabited altogether by people of his class, the women looking sharply out when a stranger visited the place. On my first visit to this man's room, his wife, who is near her confinement, was at dinner with her children. The time was � to 12. The meal was tea, and bread with butter very thinly spread over it. On the wife's bread was a small piece of pickled pork, covering about one-eighth of the slice of a quartern loaf cut through. In one corner of the room, which is on the groundfloor, was a scantily-covered bed. A few dingy-looking rags were hanging up to dry in the middle of the room, which was littered with baskets and boxes, mixed up with old furniture, so that it was a difficulty to stir. The room (although the paper, covering the broken panes in the window, was torn and full of holes) was most oppressively close and hot, and there was a fetid smell, difficult to sustain, though it was less noticeable on a subsequent call. I have often had occasion to remark that the poor, especially those who are much subjected to cold in the open air, will sacrifice much for heat. The adjoining room, which had no door, seemed littered like the one where the family were. The walls of the room I was in were discoloured and weather-stained. The only attempt at ornament was over the mantel-shelf, the wall here being papered with red and other gay-coloured papers, that once had been upholsterer's patterns.
On my second visit, the husband was at dinner with the family, on good boiled beef and potatoes. He was a small-featured man, with a head of very curly and long black hair, and both in mien, manners, and dress, resembled the mechanic far more than the costermonger. He said: -
"I've been twenty years and more, perhaps twenty-four, selling shell-fish in the streets. I was a boot-closer when I was young, and have made my 20s. and 30s., and sometimes 40s., and then sometimes not 10s. a week; but I had an attack of rheumatic-fever, and lost the use of my hands for my trade. The streets hadn't any great name, as far as I knew, then, but as I couldn't work, it was just a choice between street-selling and starving, so I didn't prefer the last. It was reckoned degrading to go into the streets -but I couldn't help that. I was astonished at my success when I first began, and got into the business -that is into the understanding of it -after a week, or two, or three. Why, I made 3l. the first week I knew my trade, properly; yes, I cleared 3l.! I made, not long after, 5l. a week -but not often. I was giddy and extravagant. Indeed, I was a fool, and spent my money like a fool I could have brought up a family then like a gentleman -I ; send them to school as it is -but I hadn't a wife and family then, or it might have been better; it's a great check on a man, is a family. I began with shell-fish, and sell it still; very seldom anything else. There's more demand for shells, no doubt, because its far cheaper, but then there's so many more sellers. I don't know why exactly. I suppose it's because poor people go into the streets when they can't live other ways, and some do it because they think it's an idle life; but it ain't. Where I took 35s. in a day at my stall -and well on to half of it profit -I now take 5s. or 6s., or perhaps 7s., in the day and less profit on that less money. I don't clear 3s. a day now, take the year through. I don't keep accounts, but I'm certain enough that I average about 15s. a week the year through, and my wife has to help me to make that. She'll mind the stall, while I take a round sometimes. I sell all kinds of shell-fish, but my great dependence is on winkles. I don't do much in lobsters. Very few speculate in them. The price varies very greatly. What's 10s. a score one day may be 25s. the next. I sometimes get a score for 5s. or 6s., but it's a poor trade, for 6d. is the top of the tree, with me, for a price to a seller. I never get more. I sell them to mechanics and tradesmen. I do more in pound crabs. There's a great call for haporths and pennorths of lobster or crab, by children; that's their claws. I bile them all myself, and buy them alive. I can bile twenty in half an hour, and do it over a grate in a back-yard. Lobsters don't fight or struggle much in the hot water, if they're properly packed. It's very few that knows how to bile a lobster as he should be biled. I wish I knew any way of killing lobsters before biling them. I can't kill them without smashing them to bits, and that won't do at all. I kill my crabs before I bile them. I stick them in the throat with a knife and they're dead in an instant. Some sticks them with a skewer, but they kick a good while with the skewer in them. It's a shame to torture anything when it can be helped. If I didn't kill the crabs they'd shed every leg in the hot water; they'd come out as bare of claws as this plate. I've known it oft enough, as it is; though I kill them uncommon quick, a crab will be quicker and shed every leg -throw them off in the moment I kill them, but that doesn't happen once in fifty times. Oysters are capital this season, I mean as to quality, but they're not a good sale. I made 3l. a week in oysters, not reckoning anything else, eighteen or twenty years back. It was easy to make money then; like putting down one sovereign and taking two up. I sold oysters then oft enough at 1d. a piece. Now I sell far finer at three a penny and five for 2d. People can't spend money in shell-fish when they haven't got any. They say that fortune knocks once at every man's door. I wish I'd opened my door when he knocked at it."
This man's wife told me afterwards, that last winter, after an attack of rheumatism, all their stock-money was exhausted, and her husband sat day by day at home almost out of his mind; for nothing could tempt him to apply to the parish, and "he would never have mentioned his sufferings to me," she said; "he had too much pride." The loan of a few shillings from a poor costermonger enabled the man to go to market again, or he and his family would now have been in the Union.
As to the quantity of shell-fish sold in the streets of London, the returns before-cited give the following results:
Shell Fish Oysters
3,640,000 pts.
OF SHRIMP SELLING IN THE STREETS.
Shrimp selling, as I have stated, is one of the trades to which the street-dealer often con fines himself throughout the year. The sale is about equally divided between the two sexes, but the men do the most business, walking some of them fifteen to twenty miles a day in a "round" of "ten miles there and ten back."
The shrimps vended in the streets are the Yarmouth prawn shrimps, sold at Billingsgate at from 6d. to 10d. a gallon, while the best shrimps (chiefly from Lee, in Essex,) vary in price from 10d. to 2s. 6d. a gallon; 2s. being a common price. The shrimps are usually mixed by the street-dealers, and they are cried, from stalls or on rounds, "a penny half-pint, fine fresh s'rimps." (I heard them called nothing but "s'rimps" by the street-dealers.) The half-pint, however, is in reality but half that quantity. "It's the same measure as it was thirty years back," I was told, in a tone as if its antiquity removed all imputation of unfair dealing. Some young men "do well on s'rimps," sometimes taking 5s. in an hour on a Saturday evening, "when people get their money, and wants a relish." The females in the shrimp line are the wives, widows, or daughters of costermongers. They are computed to average 1s. 6d. a day profit in fine, and from 9d. to 1s. in bad weather; and, in snowy, or very severe weather, sometimes nothing at all.
One shrimp-seller, a middle-aged woman, wrapped up in a hybrid sort of cloak, that was half a man's and half a woman's garment, gave me the following account. There was little vulgarity in either her language or manner.
"I was in the s'rimp trade since I was a girl. I don't know how long. I don't know how old I am. I never knew; but I've two children, one's six and t'other's near eight, both girls; I've kept count of that as well as I can. My husband sells fish in the street; so did father, but he's dead. We buried him without the help of the parish, as many gets -that's something to say. I've known the trade every way. It never was any good in public-houses. They want such great ha'p'orths there. They'll put up with what isn't very fresh, to be sure, sometimes; and good enough for them too, I say, as spoils their taste with drink." [This was said very bitterly.] "If it wasn't for my husband's drinking for a day together now and then we'd do better. He's neither to have nor to hold when he's the worse for liquor; and it's the worse with him, for he's a quiet man when he's his own man. Perhaps I make 9d. a day, perhaps 1s. or more. Sometimes my husband takes my stand, and I go a round. Sometimes, if he gets through his fish, he goes my round. I give good measure, and my pint's the regular s'rimp pint." [It was the half-pint I have described.] "The trade's not so good as it was. People hasn't the money, they tells me so. It's bread before s'rimps, says they. I've heard them say it very cross, if I've wanted hard to sell. Some days I can sell nothing. My children stays with my sister, when me and my old man's out. They don't go to school, but Jane (the sister) learns them to sew. She makes drawers for the slopsellers, but has very little work, and gets very little for the little she does; she would learn them to read if she knew how. She's married to a pavior, that's away all day. It's a hard life mine, sir. The winter's a coming, and I'm now sometimes numbed with sitting at my stall in the cold. My feet feels like lumps of ice in the winter; and they're beginning now, as if they weren't my own. Standing's far harder work than going a round. I sell the best s'rimps. My customers is judges. If I've any s'rimps over on a night, as I often have one or two nights a week, I sells them for half-price to an Irishwoman, and she takes them to the beer-shops, and the coffee-shops. She washes them. to look fresh. I don't mind telling that, because people should buy of regular people. It's very few people know how to pick a s'rimp properly. You should take it by the head and the tail and jam them up, and then the shell separates, and the s'rimp comes out beautifully. That's the proper way."
Sometimes the sale on the rounds may be the same as that at the stalls, or 10 or 20 per cent. more or less, according to the weather, as shrimps can be sold by the itinerant dealers better than by the stall-keepers in wet weather, when people prefer buying at their doors. But in hot weather the stall trade is the best, "for people often fancy that the s'rimps is sent out to sell 'cause they'll not keep no longer. It's only among customers as knows you, you can do any good on a round then."
The costermongers sell annually, it appears, about 770,000 pints of shrimps. At 2d. a pint (a very low calculation) the street sale of shrimps amount to upwards of 6,400l. yearly.
OF OYSTER SELLING IN THE STREETS.
The trade in oysters is unquestionably one of the oldest with which the London -or rather the English -markets are connected; for oysters from Britain were a luxury in ancient Rome. Oysters are now sold out of the smacks at Billingsgate, and a few at Hungerford. The more expensive kind such as the real Milton, are never bought by the costermongers, but they buy oysters of a "good middling quality." At the commencement of the season these oysters are 14s. a "bushel," but the measure contains from a bushel and a half to two bushels, as it is more or less heaped up. The general price, however, is 9s. or 10s., but they have been 16s. and 18s. The "big trade" was unknown until 1848, when the very large shelly oysters, the fish inside being very small, were introduced from the Sussex coast. They were sold in Thamesstreet and by the Borough-market. Their sale was at first enormous. The costermongers distinguished them by the name of "scuttle-mouths." One coster informant told me that on the Saturdays he not unfrequently, with the help of a boy and a girl, cleared 10s. by selling these oysters in the streets, disposing of four bags. He thus sold, reckoning twenty-one dozen to the bag, 2,016 oysters; and as the price was two for a penny, he took just 4l. 4s. by the sale of oysters in the streets in one night. With the scuttlemouths the costermonger takes no trouble: he throws them into a yard, and dashes a few pails of water over them, and then places them on his barrow, or conveys them to his stall. Some of the better class of costermongers, however, lay down their oysters carefully, giving them oatmeal "to fatten on."
In April last, some of the street-sellers of this article established, for the first time, " oysterrounds." These were carried on by costermongers whose business was over at twelve in the day, or a little later; they bought a bushel of scuttle-mouths (never the others), and, in the afternoon, went a round with them to poor neighbourhoods, until about six, when they took a stand in some frequented street. Going these oyster-rounds is hard work, I am told, and a boy is generally taken to assist. Monday afternoon is the best time for this trade, when 10s. is sometimes taken, and 4s. or 5s. profit made. On other evenings only from 1s. to 5s. is taken -very rarely the larger sum -as the later the day in the week the smaller is the receipt, owing to the wages of the working classes getting gradually exhausted.
The women who sell oysters in the street, and whose dealings are limited, buy either of the costermongers or at the coal-sheds. But nearly all the men buy at Billingsgate, where as small a quantity as a peck can be had.
An old woman, who had "seen better days," but had been reduced to keep an oyster-stall, gave me the following account of her customers. She showed much shrewdness in her conversation, but having known better days, she declined ; to enter upon any conversation concerning her former life: -
"As to my customers, sir," she said, "why, indeed, they're all sorts. It's not a very few times that gentlemen (I call them so because they're mostly so civil) will stop -just as it's getting darkish, perhaps, -and look about them, and then come to me and say very quick: `Two penn'orth for a whet.' Ah! some of 'em will look, may be, like poor parsons down upon their luck, and swallow their oysters as if they was taking poison in a hurry. They'll not touch the bread or butter once in twenty times, but they'll be free with the pepper and vinegar, or, mayhap, they'll say quick and short, `A crust off that.' I many a time think that two penn'orth is a poor gentleman's dinner. It's the same often -but only half as often, or not half -with a poor lady, with a veil that once was black, over a bonnet to match, and shivering through her shawl. She'll have the same. About two penn'orth is the mark still; it's mostly two penn'orth. My son says, it's because that's the price of a glass of gin, and some persons buy oysters instead -but that's only his joke, sir. It's not the vulgar poor that's our chief customers. There's many of them won't touch oysters, and I've heard some of them say: `The sight on 'em makes me sick; it's like eating snails.' The poor girls that walk the streets often buy; some are brazen and vulgar, and often the finest dressed are the vulgarest; at least, I think so; and of those that come to oyster stalls, I'm sure it's the case. Some are shy to such as me, who may, perhaps, call their own mothers to their minds, though it aint many of them that is so. One of them always says that she must keep at least a penny for gin after her oysters. One young woman ran away from my stall once after swallowing one oyster out of six that she'd paid for. I don't know why. Ah! there's many things a person like me sees that one may say, `I don't know why' to; that there is. My heartiest customers, that I serve with the most pleasure, are working people, on a Saturday night. One couple -I think the wife always goes to meet her husband on a Saturday night -has two, or three, or four penn'orth, as happens, and it's pleasant to hear them say, `Won't you have another, John?' or, `Do have one or two more, Mary Anne.' I've served them that way two or three years. They've no children, I'm pretty sure, for if I say, `Take a few home to the little ones,' the wife tosses her head, and says, half vexed and half laughing, `Such nonsense.' I send out a good many oysters, opened, for people's suppers, and sometimes for supper parties -at least, I suppose so, for there's five or six dozen often ordered. The maid-servants come for them then, and I give them two or three for themselves, and say, jokingly-like, `It's no use offering you any, perhaps, because you'll have plenty that's left.' They've mostly one answer: `Don't we wish we may get 'em?' The very poor never buy of me, as I told you. A penny buys a loaf, you see, or a ha'porth of bread and a ha'porth of cheese, or a half-pint of beer, with a farthing out. My customers are mostly working people and tradespeople. Ah! sir, I wish the parson of the parish, or any parson, sat with me a fortnight; he'd see what life is then. `It's different,' a learned man used to say to me -that's long ago -`from what's noticed from the pew or the pulpit.' I've missed the gentleman as used to say that, now many years -I don't know how many. I never knew his name. He was drunk now and then, and used to tell me he was an author. I felt for him. A dozen oysters wasn't much for him. We see a deal of the world, sir -yes, a deal. Some, mostly working people, take quantities of pepper with their oysters in cold weather, and say it's to warm them, and no doubt it does; but frosty weather is very bad oyster weather. The oysters gape and die, and then they are not so much as manure. They are very fine this year. I clear 1s. a day, I think, during the season-at least 1s., taking the fine with the wet days, and the week days with the Sundays, though I'm not out then; but, you see, I'm known about here."
The number of oysters sold by the costermongers amounts to 124,000,000 a year. These, at four a penny, would realise the large sum of 129,650l. We may therefore safely assume that 125,000l. is spent yearly in oysters in the streets of London.
OF PERIWINKLE SELLING IN THE STREETS.
There are some street people who, nearly all the year through, sell nothing but periwinkles, and go regular rounds, where they are well known. The "wink" men, as these periwinkle sellers are called, generally live in the lowest parts, and many in lodging-houses. They are forced to live in low localities, they say, because of the smell of the fish, which is objected to. The city district is ordinarily the best for winklesellers, for there are not so many cheap shops there as in other parts. The summer is the best season, and the sellers then make, upon the average, 12s. a week clear profit; in the winter, they get upon the average, 5s. a week clear, by selling mussels and whelks -for, as winkles last only from March till October, they are then obliged to do what they can in the whelk and mussel way. "I buy my winks," said one, "at Billingsgate, at 3s. and 4s. the wash. A wash is about a bushel. There's some at 2s., and some sometimes as low as 1s. the wash, but they wouldn't do for me, as I serve very respectable people. If we choose we can boil our winkles at Billingsgate by paying 4d. a week for boiling, and �d. for salt, to salt them after they are boiled. Tradesmen's families buy them for a relish to their tea. It's reckoned a nice present from a young man to his sweetheart, is winks. Servant girls are pretty good customers, and want them cheaper when they say it's for themselves; but I have only one price."
One man told me he could make as much as 12s. a week -sometimes more and sometimes less. ; He made no speeches, but sung -" Winkettywinketty-wink-wink-wink -wink-wink -wicketty-wicketty-wink -fine fresh winketty-winks wink wink." He was often so sore in the stomach and hoarse with hallooing that he could hardly speak. He had no child, only himself and wife to keep out of his earnings. His room was 2s. a week rent. He managed to get a bit of meat every day, he said, "somehow or 'nother."
Another, more communicative and far more intelligent man, said to me concerning the character of his customers: "They're people I think that like to daddle" (dawdle, I presume) "over their teas or such like; or when a young woman's young man takes tea with her mother and her, then they've winks; and then there's joking, and helping to pick winks, between Thomas and Betsy, while the mother's busy with her tea, or is wiping her specs, 'cause she can't see. Why, sir, I've known it! I was a Thomas that way myself when I was a tradesman. I was a patten-maker once, but pattens is no go now, and hasn't been for fifteen year or more. Old people, I think, that lives by themselves, and has perhaps an annuity or the like of that, and nothing to do pertickler, loves winks, for they likes a pleasant way of making time long over a meal. They're the people as reads a newspaper, when it's a week old, all through. The other buyers, I think, are tradespeople or working-people what wants a relish. But winks is a bad trade now, and so is many that depends on relishes."
One man who "works" the New Cut, has the "best wink business of all." He sells only a little dry fish with his winks, never wet fish, and has "got his name up," for the superiority of that shell-fish -a superiority which he is careful to ensure. He pays 8s. a week for a stand by a grocer's window. On an ordinary afternoon he sells from 7s. to 10s. worth of periwinkles. On a Monday afternoon he often takes 20s.; and on the Sunday afternoon 3l. and 4l. He has two coster lads to help him, and sometimes on a Sunday from twenty to thirty customers about him. He wraps each parcel sold in a neat brown paper bag, which, I am assured, is of itself, an inducement to buy of him. The "unfortunate" women who live in the streets contiguous to the Waterloo, Blackfriars, and Borough-roads, are among his best customers, on Sundays especially. He is rather a public character, getting up dances and the like. "He aint bothered - not he -with ha'p'orths or penn'orths of a Sunday," said a person who had assisted him. "It's the top of the tree with his customers; 3d. or 6d. at a go." The receipts are one-half profit. I heard from several that he was "the best man for winks a-going."
The quantity of periwinkles disposed of by the London street-sellers is 3,600,000 pints, which, at 1d. per pint, gives the large sum of 15,000l. expended annually in this street luxury. It should be remembered, that a very large consumption of periwinkles takes place in publichouses and suburban tea-gardens.
OF "DRY" FISH SELLING IN THE STREETS.
The dealing in "dry" or salt fish is never carried on as a totally distinct trade in the streets, but some make it a principal part of their business; and many wet fish-dealers whose "wet fish" is disposed of by noon, sell dry fish in the afternoon. The dry fish, proper, consists of dried mackerel, salt cod -dried or barrelled -smoked or dried haddocks (often called "finnie haddies"), dried or pickled salmon (but salmon is only salted or pickled for the streets when it can be sold cheap), and salt herrings.
A keen-looking, tidily-dressed man, who was at one time a dry fish-seller principally, gave me the following account. For the last two months he has confined himself to another branch of the business, and seemed to feel a sort of pleasure in telling of the "dodges" he once resorted to:
"There's Scotch haddies that never knew anything about Scotland," he said, "for I've made lots of them myself by Tower-street, just a jump or two from the Lambeth station-house. I used to make them on Sundays. I was a wet fish-seller then, and when I couldn't get through my haddocks or my whitings of a Saturday night, I wasn't a-going to give them away to folks that wouldn't take the trouble to lift me out of a gutter if I fell there, so I presarved them. I've made haddies of whitings, and good ones too, and Joe made them of codlings besides. I had a bit of a back-yard to two rooms, one over the other, that I had then, and on a Sunday I set some wet wood a fire, and put it under a great tub. My children used to gut and wash the fish, and I hung them on hooks all round the sides of the tub, and made a bit of a chimney in a corner of the top of the tub, and that way I gave them a jolly good smoking. My wife had a dry fish-stall and sold them, and used to sing out `Real Scotch haddies,' and tell people how they was from Aberdeen; I've often been fit to laugh, she did it so clever. I had a way of giving them a yellow colour like the real Scotch, but that's a secret. After they was well smoked they was hung up to dry all round the rooms we lived in, and we often had stunning fires that answered as well to boil crabs and lobsters when they was cheap enough for the streets. I've boiled a mate's crabs and lobsters for 2�d.; it was two boilings and more, and 2�d. was reckoned the price of half a quarter of a hundred of coals and the use of the pan. There's more ways than one of making 6d., if a man has eyes in his head and keeps them open. Haddocks that wouldn't fetch 1d. a piece, nor any money at all of a Saturday night, I've sold -at least she has" (indicating his wife by a motion of his thumb) - "at 2d., and 3d., and 4d. I've bought fish of costers that was over on a Saturday night, to make Scotch haddies of them. I've tried experience" (experiments) "too. Ivy, burnt ; under them, gave them, I thought, a nice sort of flavour, rather peppery, for I used always to taste them; but I hate living on fish. Ivy with brown berries on it, as it has about this time o' year, I liked best. Holly wasn't no good. A black-currant bush was, but it's too dear; and indeed it couldn't be had. I mostly spread wetted fire-wood, as green as could be got, or damp sticks of any kind, over shavings, and kept feeding the fire. Sometimes I burnt sawdust. Somehow, the dry fish trade fell off. People does get so prying and so knowing, there's no doing nothing now for no time, so I dropped the dry fish trade. There's few up to smoking them proper; they smoke 'em black, as if they was hung up in a chimbley."
Another costermonger gave me the following account:
"I've salted herrings, but the commonest way of salting is by the Jews about Whitechapel. They make real Yarmouth bloaters and all sorts of fish. When I salted herrings, I bought them out of the boats at Billingsgate by the hundred, which is 120 fish. We give them a bit of a clean -hardly anything -then chuck them into a tub of salt, and keep scattering salt over them, and let them lie a few minutes, or sometimes half an hour, and then hang them up to dry. They eat well enough, if they're eaten in time, for they won't keep. I've known three day's old herrings salted, just because there was no sale for them. One Jew sends out six boys crying `real Yarmouth bloaters.' People buy them in preference, they look so nice and clean and fresh-coloured. It's quite a new trade among the Jews. They didn't do much that way until two years back. I sometimes wish I was a Jew, because they help one another, and start one another with money, and so they thrive where Christians are ruined. I smoked mackerel, too, by thousands; that's a new trade, and is done the same way as haddocks. Mackerel that won't bring 1d. a piece fresh, bring 2d. smoked; they are very nice indeed. I make about 10s. or 11s. a week by dry fish in the winter months, and about as much by wet, - but I have a tidy connection. Perhaps I make 17s. or 18s. a week all the year round."
The aggregate quantity of dry fish sold by the London costermongers throughout the year is as follows -the results being deduced from the table before given:
Wet salt cod
Total
�1,460,850
Hence we find that there is nearly a million and a half of money annually spent by the poorer classes of the metropolis in fish; a sum so prodigious as almost to discredit every statement of want, even if the amount said to be so expended be believed. The returns from which the above account is made out have been obtained, however, from such unquestionable sources -not from one salesman alone, but checked and corrected by many gentlemen who can have no conceivable motive for exaggeration either one way or the other -that, sceptical as our utter ignorance of the subject must necessarily make ; us, still if we will but examine for ourselves, we shall find there is no gainsaying the facts.
Moreover as to the enormity of the amount dispelling all ideas of privation among the industrious portion of the community, we shall also find on examination that assuming the working-men of the metropolis to be 500,000 in number (the Occupation Abstract of 1841, gives 773,560 individuals following some employment in London, but these include merchants, employers, shopkeepers, Government-officers and others), and that they, with their wives and children, make up one million individuals, it follows that the sum per head, expended in fish by the poorer classes every week, is a fraction more than 6�d., or, in other words, not quite one penny a day.
If the diet of a people be a criterion, as has been asserted, of their character, it may be feared that the present extensive fish-diet of the working-people of London, is as indicative of degeneracy of character, as Cobbett insisted must result from the consumption of tea, and "the cursed root," the potato. "The flesh of fish," says Pereira on Diet, "is less satisfying than the flesh of either quadrupeds or birds. As it contains a larger proportion of water (about 80 per cent.), it is obviously less nourishing." Haller tells us he found himself weakened by a fishdiet; and he states that Roman Catholics are generally debilitated during Lent. Pechlin also affirms that a mechanic, nourished merely by fish, has less muscular power than one who lives on the flesh of warm-blooded animals. Jockeys, who waste themselves in order to reduce their weight, live principally on fish.
The classes of fish above given, are, when considered in a "dietetical point of view," of two distinct kinds; viz., those which form the staple commodity of the dinners and suppers of the poor, and those which are mere relishes or stimuli to failing, rather than stays to, eager appetites. Under the former head, I include red-herrings, bloaters, and smoked haddocks; such things are not merely provocatives to eat, among the poor, as they are at the breakfasttable of many an over-fed or intemperate man. With the less affluent these salted fish are not a "relish," but a meal.
The shell-fish, however, can only be considered as luxuries. The 150,000l. thus annually expended in the streets, represents the sum laid out in mere relishes or stimuli to sluggish appetites. A very large proportion of this amount, I am inclined to believe, is spent by persons whose stomachs have been disordered by drink. A considerable part of the trade in the minor articles, as winks, shrimps, &c., is carried on in public-houses, while a favourite pitch for an oyster-stall is outside a tavern-door. If, then, so large an amount is laid out in an endeavour to restore the appetite after drinking, how much money must be squandered in destroying it by the same means?
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i don't know
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The domed folly known as the Ashton Memorial overlooks which English city?
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A Look at Lancaster
Ancient Britain � Castles � Churches/Cathedrals � Houses/Manors � Museums � Towns � Countryside � London � History & Folklore � Travel Tips
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A Look at Lancaster
by Elizabeth Ashworth
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire in the north west of England. It is the seat of the Duchy of Lancaster and much of the land is owned by Her Majesty the Queen, who also holds the hereditary title Duke of Lancaster. The town, which became a city in 1937, has a long and interesting history which stretches back to pre-Roman times. The Norman castle, which was originally built as a fortification against the Scots, stands in good repair and is still used as both a court and a prison. Once known as 'The Hanging Town' because more prisoners were sentenced to death here than at any other court in the land, it is famous for the trial of the Lancashire Witches.
In the 18th century Lancaster was an important port as the town was then accessible to sea going ships. Tidal changes resulted in the silting up of the river estuary and nowadays only small boats can sail so far up the River Lune. Most of the fine buildings in the city date from this era of prosperity and the boom in the cotton and slave trade with Africa and the USA.
Nowadays Lancaster is known for its culture, its history and its rapidly expanding University, which was established in 1964.
The Castle
As its name suggests, Lancaster was once a Roman settlement, with a fort, built by the Roman general Agricola, on the site overlooking the River Lune which is today occupied by Lancaster Castle and Lancaster Priory.
This area of northern England was fiercely fought over after the Norman Conquest by King William of England and the Scots, continuing until 1092 when King William Rufus captured Carlisle and set the border between England and Scotland along the line which still divides it today.
One of William's loyal supporters, Roger of Poitou, was rewarded by the king for his loyalty with the gift of land here, and it was probably around this time that the stone castle was built both as a residence and as a fortification against any further invasion from the north. The castle would originally have been a stone keep surrounded by wooden fencing, but advances in the techniques of warfare, including the use of catapults, meant that in later years, the area surrounding the keep came to be protected by stone walls, with towers at regular intervals from where archers could shoot at the advancing enemy. Interestingly, Lancaster was captured again in 1715 by the Jacobite army, but the occupation lasted only two days.
The ownership of the Castle passed through a succession of noble families and their names and the dates are recorded on an oak panel in the Shire Hall. Then, in 1399, Richard II claimed the Duchy as property of the monarch and the land and surrounding estates remain in the hands of the ruling king or queen to this day.
Apart from some rebuilding after the Civil War, later additions to the Castle include the 14th Century Witches Tower, the impressive gatehouse which was added at the beginning of the 15th Century in the reign of Henry IV; and the 19th Century women's prison. And until the Bankruptcy Act of 1866 it also housed a debtors' prison.
At the end of the 18th Century, a new Crown Court and Shire Hall were begun to the designs of Thomas Harrison, and were completed in 1798. Because of its security, high profile trials are still held here.
In 1821 a women's prison was built to a design by Joseph Gandy. It was designed to be a semi circle that contained five tiers of cells leading off a central gallery, so that a large number of prisoners could be supervised from one central point. It is still being used for its original purpose today, though its inmates are now male prisoners. And the conditions are an improvement on the original damp and completely dark dungeon, where visitors can get a taste of what imprisonment would have once been like as the guide clangs shut the huge door of three inch thick oak with metal studs, leaving them for a few moments, that seem like hours, in the disorientating and terrifying blackness.
Next to the dungeons is Hadrian's Tower, part of the original defensive structure, which used to house the lunatic asylum and where there is now an exhibition of instruments of torture and restraint, including long and short striding chains used on prisoners who were deported to Australia.
Also on display, in the Shire Hall, is the branding iron used to mark criminals as 'Wrongdoers' or 'Malefactors'; and the Drop Room, now used as the Jury Room, where after the year 1800, prisoners were brought before being taken out through the door to their public hanging -- a spectacle witnessed by thousands, including children from the local grammar school, who were given the morning off to watch. Before 1800 prisoners were taken to Gallows Hill, near Williamson Park, to be executed, though they were allowed to stop on the way at the Golden Lion pub for one last drink.
One of the most famous trials held at the Castle was that of the Pendle Witches in 1612. In the reign of James I there was a great fear of witches and many women who seemed a little out of the ordinary were rounded up and accused. In Lancashire, a group of women who lived in an area around Pendle Hill were tried, condemned and hanged at Lancaster for practising witchcraft.
Although the major part of the castle is still in use as a prison you can visit the law courts, the Shire Hall, with its display of heraldic shields, and the dungeons. The castle is open to visitors all year round between 10 am and 5 pm, with guided tours every thirty minute, though the visit may be restricted if the court is sitting. For more information go to .
Judges' Lodgings
The Judges' Lodgings was once the home of Thomas Covell, who was the Keeper of Lancaster Castle. He died in 1639 and there is a commemorative plaque in the Priory. The house, which is the oldest town house in Lancaster, was where judges stayed when the Assize Courts were in session in Lancaster Castle. The building is now split into two museums. As well as the robes worn by the judges, which are displayed in what was the Senior Judge's Bedroom, the Gillow Museum has an impressive collection of furniture made by Gillows of Lancaster. The furniture making business was founded in 1728 using mahogany which arrived as packing material around other cargoes.
On the top floor is the Museum of Childhood which includes a play room for children where they can try out careful reproductions of traditional games, as well as a see a recreation of a schoolroom from 1900. Meanwhile, parents can take in the superb view across Lancaster.
Contact the museum at [email protected] for more information about opening times.
The Priory Church of St Mary
Near to the Castle, and also on the site of the Roman Fort is Lancaster Priory and Parish Church, where Roman remains have been found beneath the chancel. Most of what you will see dates from the 15th Century although the Priory was founded in the 11th Century and there has been a church here since 630 AD. The doorway at the west end of the church appears to be Saxon in origin and in the north aisle there are some sculptured stones of the same period.
In 1094, Roger de Poitou bestowed the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Martin of Seez in Normandy, France, with the Church of Saint Mary of Lancaster. Provision was made for up to twenty people to claim sanctuary and remain here in safety until the end of their lives. They were to be supervised by a governor, in a place specially set aside for the purpose, probably at the west end on the north side of the tower, though no record remains of what these people were fleeing from. In 1133, the Abbot of Seez confirmed with the Pope, the right of the Prior of Lancaster to collect tithes for the sustenance of the monks who were to celebrate Divine Service at Lancaster.
However in both 1322 and again in 1389 Scottish armies invaded, and, although the Priory and the Castle seem to have been spared, much of Lancaster was destroyed. And in 1349, the Black Death killed 3000 people in Lancaster -- over half the population of the town -- and Priory income fell to �26-13s-4d per year.
In 1414, wars with France ended the association of the Priory with its headquarters in Normandy and King Henry V handed over the running of Lancaster Priory to the Bishop of Durham and other trustees who decided to give it to an English monastic house -- Brigittine Convent of Syon at Syon Park in Middlesex. The priory then survived until 1539 and the Dissolution of the Monasteries under the reign of Henry VIII which ended 445 years of monks living the religious life in and around St Mary's Church. It isn't clear whether the buildings were deliberately destroyed or just pillaged for their stones, though the parish church remained.
For more information about what you can see here and details of opening times, services and the availability of meals and refreshments in the Refectory visit the priory website.
Roman Bathhouse
As you follow the path from the Priory down to St George's Quay you will see the remains of an archaeological dig which uncovered the remains of a Roman Bathhouse.
St George's Quay
Now restored as a riverfront development, St George's Quay was built between 1750 and 1755 to warehouse tobacco, sugar, rum and cotton. The original Customs House was built in 1765 and was designed by Richard Gillow, son of Robert Gillow who began the furniture making business. It is now a maritime museum, telling the story of Lancaster's maritime trade, the history of the port, the building of the Lancaster Canal, and the fishing industry in the Lune estuary. It features four restored local fishing vessels, and an aquarium. It's open daily and there is also a shop and a cafe.
Cottage Museum
Set in a tiny 18th century cottage, just across the road from the Judges' Lodgings, here you can meet the Victorian housekeeper and learn more about early Victorian life in Lancaster.
Lancaster City Museum
Situated in the centre of the city, in Market Square, in a Georgian building you can learn more about Lancaster's history here. It is open from 10 am to 5 p m daily, except Sundays, and admission is free.
Williamson Park and the Ashton Memorial
Williamson Park is on the edge of the moors and looks down over the city. The original Edwardian Palm House is now a Butterfly House where visitors can wander freely through the recreation of a tropical forest and watch the butterflies.
The domed building at the highest point of the park which dominates the skyline and can be clearly scene from the motorway is the Ashton Memorial Folly. Designed by John Belcher, it is built of Portland stone and has a copper dome. It was built by Lord Ashton, formerly James Williamson, who became a millionaire through producing linoleum which was exported from Lancaster to destinations all over the world. He built it as a memorial to his family and also donated money to the Priory for a peal of bells and a new clock.
From pre-Roman to more modern times, Lancaster has been an important town and city. Its history traces the many changes throughout hundreds of years of British history. It's also a small and welcoming place to visit and, set in the beautiful countryside of the north west, is well worth including on a journey from the south of England to the Lake District.
The town is easily accessible from the M6 motorway as you travel north towards the Lake District. It is also served by bus and train stations.
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Lancaster
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Cornerways - Grange Over Sands | Reviews and Information
Cornerways - Grange Over Sands
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Cottage Description
Cornerways is a 2 bedroom self catering holiday accommodation that sleeps 4 and is located in Grange Over Sands, Northern England. This property does not allow pets. Local to Cartmel, Kents Bank, High Newton, Holker, Cark
Detached Property
Bed Linen Included
Washing Machine
This charming holiday bungalow is surrounded by an enclosed garden with pretty views across farmland, only 2½ miles from the delightful village of Cartmel with cobbled streets, pubs, restaurants, quaint shops and the famous 14th-century priory. The Edwardian spa town of Grange-over-Sands, 4½ miles, has a mile-long traffic free promenade, two golf courses and an excellent variety of shops and tea rooms. A mere 3 miles takes you to the southern tip of Lake Windermere with cruises on the Lake, the Aquarium of the Lakes and the Lakeside to Haverthwaite steam railway. Ideally placed to tour southern Lakeland and the Fells, walk the Cumbrian Coastal Way, or relax in the tranquil garden. Shop and pub 2½ miles.
All on ground floor: Living/dining room. Kitchen. Conservatory. 2 bedrooms: 1 double, 1 twin. Bathroom with shower over bath and toilet.
Oil CH, Electricity and bed linen included. DVD. CD. Electric Cooker. Microwave. Fridge Freezer. Enclosed lawned garden with patio and furniture. Parking (2 cars). No smoking. No children under 4 years (property on a country lane).
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The Albion - 4.7 Miles (7.5 KM)
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This 17th century coaching inn has retained much of its original character including the open log fire in the bar. Featured in the 'Good Pub Guide', it specialises in locally brewed beers.
The Jumble Room - 16.3 Miles (26.1 KM)
A fresh little place where superb food, cooked to perfection, is served in warm and friendly surroundings. Small and busy, so booking is essential.
Guy's Thatched Hamlet - 27.1 Miles (43.4 KM)
Family run for nearly three decades, Guy's Thatched Hamlet sits right next to a canal and offers dining inside and out. A top notch location, it even has its own cricket pitch.
Gibbon Bridge Restaurant - 28.7 Miles (45.9 KM)
A popular and stylish restaurant with fantastic views over the gardens and Longbridge Fells. Dine in absolute elegance in this beautiful setting.
Ravenous - 29.1 Miles (46.6 KM)
This restuarant offers an excellent range of food including steak, fish, chicken, vegetarian dishes and delicious puds! It is a small friendly restuarant with fine views of Settle market square from the window seats.
Thirteen Cafe Bar - 29.1 Miles (46.6 KM)
Visit Thirteen Cafe bar and watch the world go by whilst relaxing and sampling one of the many drinks on offer.... from freshly ground coffee to speciality teas, Czech budvar beer or wine. There is even free internet access.
Fun Days Out
Lakes Aquarium - 3.5 Miles (5.6 KM)
There are more than 30 spectacular, naturally themed habitats that show the diversity of life in the lakes including the menacing pike, eels, perch and many more.
Dave's Adventure Company - 6.1 Miles (9.8 KM)
Every journey is exciting when it's taken with Dave's Adventure Company! Discover the best of the Lake District, Cumbria and Yorkshire with group and family tours. Multiple day extreme outings are offered which feature canyoning, mountain walking, caving, abseiling, climbing, ghyll scrambling, kayaking, canoeing and climbing. See natural terrain and landmarks in a whole new way by going on an adventure with Dave's!
World of Beatrix Potter - 9.5 Miles (15.2 KM)
There is even more to see and do here now as it's just undergone a whole new refurbishment! Now all 23 of Beatrix Potter's tales are brought to life in three dimensions.
Crags Adventures - 10.1 Miles (16.2 KM)
Experience the great outdoors in a whole new way with Crags Adventures! Book a session and enjoy fresh air, natural scenery and the adrenaline rush that comes with abseilling, rock climbing or Ghyll scrambling. Services for stag and hen parties are available. Educational courses are offered that include learning how to lead, navigation skills and winter survival skills.
South Lakes Wild Animal Park - 10.2 Miles (16.3 KM)
Europe's most interactive animal park renowned for just how close you can get! You can hand feed giraffes, walk amongst and hand feed wallabies, kangaroos and many more. A truly memorable day out.
Westmorland Shopping - 10.5 Miles (16.8 KM)
Westmorland indoor shopping mall is set in the historic Lakeland market town offering a variety of your favourite shops to browse or buy.
Mountain Goat Day Tours - 10.5 Miles (16.8 KM)
Mountain Goat Day Tours bills itself as the "best way to see Lakeland." Travellers can explore all the best sights and attractions in the area by choosing a unique tour offered by Mountain Goat. Christmas shopping trips are available as well as daily tours covering Beatrix Potter's countryside, Yorkshire Dales, Ten Lakes, Hadrian's Wall, Tarn Hows and the South Lakes.
Bluebird Tours of Coniston - 11 Miles (17.6 KM)
Bluebird Tours of Coniston provide travellers with a convenient, relaxed way to see the area. groups of up to 16 individuals can book tours which cover many of the region's key landmarks and attractions. Multiple routes are available, including the Northern Lakes Explorer, Wordsworth's Lake District, Ravenglass Steam Railway and the Campbell, Coniston and Copper tour.
Ambleside (Central Cumbria) - 13.5 Miles (21.6 KM)
Ambleside (Central Cumbria) has a population of 2600, and is ideally situated in the Rothay Valley just north of the head of Lake Windermere. Another favourite for hikers and walkers.
The Lake District Walker - Day Tours - 14 Miles (22.4 KM)
The Lake District Walker offers the most exciting way to savour this lush region. Take a navigation course or traverse Scafell Pike. Go Ghyll Scrambling and slide down waterfalls, jump into refreshing pools and prepare to get wet! A wide range of instructional courses are available ranging from one to five days in length.
Black Knights Parachute Club - 18.8 Miles (30.1 KM)
Black Knights Parachute Club is a premier parachute centre that offers the UK's highest dive at 15,000 feet, and gives those who enjoy this thrilling and exhilarating extreme sport, a professional and safe environment. They also offer wingsuiting a new and growing trend that is attracting enthusiasts or "flockers" as they are known who wear special wing suits that allow them to glide and enjoy the amazing views from 15,000 ft above ground. In addition they offer a choice of dives including, formation, free flying, tandem, skydiving and more. If you choose to jump here you can be assured that you are in safe hands the team is so professional and safety conscious and the equipment is all maintained to a high standard, they have the ability to put you at ease and relieve some of those nerves. It is probably one of the most nerve wracking and scary things to can do making the decision to jump out of a plane but, it is the most exhilarating and amazing 60 seconds that you will ever have. You can jump to fulfil a personal ambition or make your jump worthwhile and raise money for a charity. It is a experience that will last with you for a lifetime. Black Knights Parachute Club is faultless and will make your experience memorable and you will be left wanting to return and jump again.
White Scar Cave - 20.3 Miles (32.5 KM)
Imagine something beautiful, sculpted by nature over years and years? White Scar Cave is the longest show cave in Britain filled with streams, waterfalls and thousands of stalactites. Take a fabulous tour through these and don't forget to look for the wonderful prehistoric mud pools...never disturbed by man.
Yorkshire Dales Falconry Centre and Hawk Experience - 26.1 Miles (41.8 KM)
If you want to partake in seeing some of the most beautiful Birds of Prey in action this is the place to be. Watch the fabulous flying demonstrations involving eagles and vultures, treat yourself to hot or cold snacks in the tearoom and take your children to explore the adventure playground.
Bowland Wild Boar Park - 27.5 Miles (44 KM)
A great day out can be had by all! The wildlife at this park include deer, llamas and goats... you can even have a go at feeding them if you wish. If you are taking your kids, there is plenty to keep them entertained including tractor rides and a play area. Take a picnic and stroll through the beautiful wooded areas or sample the home-cooked food in the on-site cafe.
Sea Life Centre - 29.2 Miles (46.7 KM)
Blackpool Sea Life Centre is one of the most fantastic underwater adventures to visit. Have close encounters with an amazing array of marine and freshwater creatures, including one of the largest collections of tropical sharks in Europe.
Rheged - 29.7 Miles (47.5 KM)
An award winning family day out, Rheged attractions include a giant cinema with a screen the size of six double decker buses, a kids play centre and an international mountaineering exhibition as well as superb shops and great food.
Impact Leisure - 29.9 Miles (47.8 KM)
Impact Leisure and Events LTD offers a number of exciting outdoor activities that range from archery, paintball and laser tag to air rifles, human table football and mini highland games. You can even record your own single as part of a pop party. Team building exercises are offered as well as services for hen and stag parties.
Beach
Morecambe Beach - 11.4 Miles (18.2 KM)
Morecambe Beach holds a special place in a lot of people's holiday memories and, following years of investment, the locals are now proud of their new 5 mile stretch of glistening sandy beach.
Biking & Hiking
Eaves Wood - 6.3 Miles (10.1 KM)
Owned by the National Trust, Eaves Wood, with its open glades and hazel coppice, is a great place for walking. Also, the ""Pepper Pot"", built to celebrate the jubilee of Queen Victoria, commands spectacular views of Silverdale and across to Morecambe Bay.
Dow Crag & Coniston Walk - 11 Miles (17.6 KM)
Beginning with a cruise on Coniston Water, the walk then passes through woodland, mines and cliffs. At about 12 hours, the walk usually takes about 7 hours.
Cycling in Lancashire - 13.5 Miles (21.6 KM)
You'll have all the time in the world to enjoy the fantastic views on a wide range of cycle routes, from the gentle to the more energetic, taking you on a scenic tour of Lancashire.
Loughrigg & Grasmere Walk - 13.8 Miles (22.1 KM)
A guided walk with superb views of Windermere. You walk along Grasmere and the onto the famous 'Coffin Road' passing Rydal Mount and Rydal Hall.
Fairfield Horseshoe Walk - 14.2 Miles (22.7 KM)
A circular walk starting in Ambleside and following the skyline reaches Faitfield summit. A walk of about 10 miles, giving you roughly 7 hours to enjoy the glorious scenery.
Easedale Skyline Walk - 16.6 Miles (26.6 KM)
The stunning views from the top of Helm Crag make the steep climb from Grasmere all the more worthwhile. The whole walk will talk approximately 7 hours to complete at about 9 miles long.
Ingleton Waterfalls Trail - 19.6 Miles (31.4 KM)
Take in the impressive waterfalls on this 4.5 mile long trail. The surrounding woodlands also provide a lovely setting and the entire area has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Ingleborough Cave - 23.7 Miles (37.9 KM)
Only revealed to the world in 1837, this series of tunnels and passages are a wonder to all who visit them. A guide will take you around the fascinating formations and explain them throughout. Discoveries are still being made and in 2001, the remains of woolly rhinoceros were uncovered at the end of the footpath!.
Off the Rails - 29 Miles (46.4 KM)
Whether it be a ride out with the family, a ride at your own pace or you want to ride through the rough stuff, call into Off the Rails for all you will need.
Golf & Sports
Holgates Leisure Club - 5.6 Miles (9 KM)
This leisure club offers a range of facilities including a 17m swimming pool, spa pool, steam room and sauna - as well as general fun sessions for all the family.
Silverdale Golf Club - 6.9 Miles (11 KM)
Situated within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Silverdale Golf Club is a course of many characters. Each hole has a character all of its own. With spectacular scenery at ever turn, Silverdale is a golfer's delight whatever age or ability.
Climb 365 - 9.7 Miles (15.5 KM)
Climb 365 offers family adventure days which are specifically designed around the ages, abilities and needs of your family. Take a trip back into nature on these Cumbrian courses in climbing. Soak up the truly beautiful scenery as you battle with the elements!
Pine Lake Watersports - 9.8 Miles (15.7 KM)
This 70 acre watersports lake offers activities such as sailing, canoeing and waterskiing. If required, tuition is also available.
Low Wood Watersports - 12.6 Miles (20.2 KM)
Watersports activity centre with a wide range of equipment available and a great location for waterskiing, windsurfing, sailing and canoeing — just a few of the activities on offer.
Casterton Golf Course - 14.5 Miles (23.2 KM)
Unique 9 hole course located amongst limestone rock with breathtaking views of surrounding countryside. Once you have tackled this fabulous green why not take advantage of a refreshment as catering is available all day and parties can be arranged.
Dalesbridge Activity Centre - 24.8 Miles (39.7 KM)
Activities here include: Caving, gorge walking, rock climbing, abseiling and mountain biking. Full tuition is available, and they cater for all abilities.
Keswick Climbing Wall - 27.2 Miles (43.5 KM)
A huge indoor climbing wall in the Lake District catering for all ages. Always ring to check times and availabilities.
Sun Soar Paragliding - 27.8 Miles (44.5 KM)
Premier paragliding school in the UK offering BHPA courses in the Lakes and Yorkshire Dales. See the stunning scenery from the air as qualified instructors guide you in a taster course of this exhilarating sport.
Settle Golf Club - 28.2 Miles (45.1 KM)
Men, women and children who love to take to the green will adore this beautiful golf course. Located below the Craven Fault Crag and besides natural terrain this 9 hole course can be thoroughly enjoyed by all.
Staining Lodge Golf Course - 28.6 Miles (45.8 KM)
Enjoy the open air and good sport at the 160 acre Staining Lodge Golf Course. This beautiful expanse includes stunning views that's conveniently located a mere 10 minutes from the M55, Blackpool, Kirkham, Poulton Le Fylde and St. Annes. Stop by the club house for a delicious homemade soup, panini, sandwich, salad or hot foods.
Settle Swimming Pool - 28.7 Miles (45.9 KM)
Have a relaxing dip in this pool which also offers fun inflatable sessions great to keep the children entertained. Close to a large shopping area and new Ribblehead walk and cycle path this is a fabulous venue for a leisurable day out.
Climbing Towers - 29.9 Miles (47.8 KM)
In the shadow of the famous Blackpool Tower, these two 20 metre high climbing towers welcome everyone whether complete beginners or experienced rock legends.
Nature Reserves
Leighton Moss Nature Reserve - 7 Miles (11.2 KM)
Leighton Moss Nature Reserve is situated near the village of Silverdale in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The largest reed-bed in North-West England, it provides a habitat for an exceptional variety of birds, including marsh harriers, avocets and bearded tits. Nature trails, hides and the option of a home-made meal in the tearoom makes a visit to Leighton Moss a memorable day out.
Ingleborough Nature Reserve - 29 Miles (46.4 KM)
The Ingleborough nature reserve covers 1,014 hectares in North Yorkshire. This gorgeous expanse of green includes the well-known Three Peaks. The terrain is mountainous and includes flower covered pastures and meadows with moors adorned in delicate heather. See ancient woodlands and many of the finest limestone pavements in all of Britain!
Gardens & Woodlands
Fell Foot Park - 3.2 Miles (5.1 KM)
With substantial access to the lakeshore of Windermere, there are some fine picnic areas and rowing boat hire; ideal for family visits. Enjoy your picnic and take in the fabulous views of the lakeland fells.
Holehird Gardens - 11.1 Miles (17.8 KM)
Holehird Gardens is the official home of the Lakeland Horticultural Society. This gorgeous, lush area features some of the most breathtaking green spaces in the region. The entire garden spans 17 spacious acres with hillsides covered in shrubs, trees, heather gardens, rocks, a walled garden and alpine houses. This location is also a popular spot for public events.
Tarn Hows - 11.1 Miles (17.8 KM)
Explore the peaceful countryside that makes Tarn Hows so relaxing! Travellers can explore lush wooded spaces while taking in the most majestic mountain views in the area. Go for a stroll or enjoy a picnic with friends. The region is also home to rare Belted Galloway cattle and Herdwick sheep.
Skelwith Force - 13.6 Miles (21.8 KM)
Skelwith Force is a beautiful waterfall located in the Lake District. Recognised as one of the smaller of its kind, this captivating land feature is very easy to access. The area includes lush growth and dark rocks that create the perfect backdrop for this tumbling performance. Water cascades over the edge, forming sprays that fill a churning pool. While the drop isn't enormous, the volume of water is very impressive.
Gresgarth Hall Gardens - 13.8 Miles (22.1 KM)
Gresgarth Hall is the concept and product of the talented garden designer Arabella Lennox-Boyd who took up residence here in 1978. These are her own private gardens that are open to the public once a month, you will need to check for opening times. They are picturesque riverside gardens, with terraces, herbaceous borders, a kitchen garden, woodland garden and bog garden that surround a beautiful house. There is a huge number of different species of plants and trees here and they are all labelled. Regardless of the time you visit you are awarded with a stunning arrangement of plants and a riot of colours and aromas. They provide an oasis of calm, peace and tranquillity and the surroundings are beautiful. There are refreshments available here, they are all homemade and delicious and are great value for money. Gresgarth Hall is a delight for both avid gardeners and non gardeners you can't help but be impressed with these amazing surroundings, the perfect place to pass a few pleasant hours.
White Platt's - 14 Miles (22.4 KM)
Located at the centre of Ambleside, White Platts is a gorgeous recreation area that offers some of the most popular miniature golf along the lakes. The 9 hole course offers a variety of challenge levels for players. The grounds also include three full size tennis courts and a bowling green.
Williamson Park - 14.2 Miles (22.7 KM)
Williamson Park comprises of 54 acres of stunning parkland and endearing parkland walks within Lancaster. The park has a number of attractions that include the magnificent Ashton Memorial, the Edwardian Butterfly House, ponds, a Pavilion cafe that offers free wifi to its customers and play areas for younger visitors. The park affords stunning views to the Fylde Coast, Morecambe Bay and the Lake District. In addition the park hosts a number of events and activities throughout the year including, concerts, plays courses as well as children's activities. Entry to the park is free but, there is a nominal fee if you want to go into the viewing gallery of the Ashton Memorial, it is a folly with lots of architectural details, and offers great views from its balconies, it has strong historical connections to the War of the Roses. There is a small charge for the Butterfly House, that also houses some mini beasts and a small animal zoo. Williamson Park is well maintained and there is lots of seating to enjoy the lovely flower beds and great views. Throughout the park you will find the staff to be friendly and approachable and they enhance your day here. Williamson Park offers something for the whole family and offers an amazing space to enjoy some lovely scenery, in a peaceful environment. It is worth checking to see what events are taking place here the summer outdoor theatre is brilliant and should not be missed if you get the opportunity.
Yorkshire Dales Falconry and Conservation Centre - 26.1 Miles (41.8 KM)
Since 1991, the Yorkshire Dales Falconry Centre has been bringing avian and human together. This unique facility is one of the few places that allow visitors to get up close and personal with majestic and powerful birds of prey. The grounds include Mrs. Feather's Tea Room which is available for birthday parties and events.
Lowther Parklands - 27.7 Miles (44.3 KM)
The Lowther Parklands consist of 150 acres of grounds with play activities for children, including rides, boating, adventure playgrounds, miniature railway and a putting green.
Model Village & Gardens - 28.9 Miles (46.2 KM)
Founded in the late 1960s, Blackpool Model Village and Gardens has long been a dominant mark on the local landscape. Encompassing 2 and a half acres, this fascinating site has been featured on TV, showcasing impressive landscaped gardens and paved paths. The attention to detail really is astounding. Allow yourself to be led back in time and visit a Scottish Castle, complete with Guardsmen and a peaceful fishing village on the Cornish coast. Witness a Tudor cricket match and more in this unique little attraction.
Local Attractions
Windermere Lake Cruises - 3.5 Miles (5.6 KM)
Windermere Lake Cruises, number 7 in the official tourist board attractions in the UK, are the most popular attraction in Cumbria. Choose a short cruise or spend all day on the beautiful lake.
Arnside and Silverdale - 5.3 Miles (8.5 KM)
The quaint villages of Arnside and Silverdale sit quietly in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the edge of Morecambe Bay. Walkers and wildlife enthusiasts in particular will appreciate the beautiful butterflies, rare birds and limestone grasslands which characterise this area. There are spectacular views and fabulous sunsets to be enjoyed across the bay.
Sailing Dinner Cruises - 9 Miles (14.4 KM)
Sailing Dinner Cruises offer the perfect experience on the beautiful Lake Windermere, as you sail aboard this luxurious 38ft cruiser yacht, taking in the beauty of the lakes and the stunning surroundings and soaking up the peace and tranquillity of the waters. The experienced skipper encourages all guests to try their hand at all aspects of sailing the yacht however, if you prefer you can simply relax on board that is fine too. This beautiful yacht can accommodate six persons on board and all safety equipment is provided. There are a choice of sailing options from half to full day hands on sailing, a murder mystery cruise, evening dinner cruise, afternoon tea cruise and champagne and cocktails cruise or you can privately charter the yacht. The skippers David and Veronica are lovely people, friendly, hospitable and knowledgeable and have lots of information and stories to tell, making for a wonderful excursion. The yacht is beautiful with lots of amenities and is very comfortable and smooth on the waters. Sailing Dinner Cruises is the only way to see the lakes, a truly memorable and delightful experience, great food, hosts and setting.
Sail 'n' Dine - 9.2 Miles (14.7 KM)
Sail 'n' Dine is located on the beautiful Lake Windermere in the picturesque Lake District, and gives you the ideal opportunity to take in the beauty and tranquillity of the lakes whilst enjoying fine wines and fantastic food. You are taken aboard a premium sailing yacht where you can relax in the comfortable and luxurious surroundings and all the amenities on board that make your trip as enjoyable as possible. The glass panoramic roof windows allow you to take in these magnificent surroundings and you will find her to be a smooth and steady on the waters. This skippered yacht can accommodate upto nine people depending on the sail option you choose. There are a choice of sail options from sailing by the hour to half days on the lake or an evening sail and dine or perhaps a romantic stay over, all will award you with the peace and tranquillity of the waters and splendid scenery. It is recommended to wear soft non-slip shoes and to wear warm clothes for those cooler days and don't forget the camera, you are assured to get some lovely photographs. Sail 'n' Dine is operated by John who is very capable, friendly, professional, knowledgeable and passionate, he will ensure you have a memorable excursion with lots of history and stories leaving you wanting to come back again. The prices are very reasonable for the quality of the overall experience and standard of service you receive, highly recommended.
Woodmatters Bush Craft and Wood Courses - 10.2 Miles (16.3 KM)
Woodmatters was created to spread awareness of the many benefits of sustainable woodlands in Cumbria. The organisation helps manage the green woodwork, Bushcraft courses and the community wood fuel scheme. Unique courses are offered through out each month, including spoon carving and family Bushcraft camping. Visitors can also shop for wood-based products such as bean poles, charcoal and kitchen utensils.
Raw War Paintball Games - 10.4 Miles (16.6 KM)
Prove your abilities on the field of battle by booking a session at Raw War Paintball! This fast-paced attraction includes 10 of the largest combat arenas in the United Kingdom. The 220 acre site contains giant wooded regions, quarries, old mines, metal military bridges, rivers, forts, concrete structures, towers and much more!
Bootleggers Bar - 10.5 Miles (16.8 KM)
Bootleggers Bar offers a wide range of live music, including seasoned artists and budding college bands. Free and paid gigs are offered throughout the week with a DJ taking over each Saturday evening. Farrers coffee, tea and free wifi are also offered. The upstairs gallery bar can be hired for private gatherings and gigs.
Raw War Paintball - 10.5 Miles (16.8 KM)
For over 6 years, Raw War Paintball has been supplying high intensity excitement to locals and travellers. Test your abilities in any of 12 paintball game scenarios. Eight unique combat arenas are available, each equipped with a variety of forts, villages, towers, bridges, rivers and old mine works. Instruction and supervision is provided to make sure everyone stays safe while they have a great time.
Lakeland - 10.5 Miles (16.8 KM)
Lakeland labels itself as one of the "U.K.'s home shopping pioneers." This enjoyable retail experience includes an enormous catalogue that focuses on home wares. Find something special for the kitchen, including unique merchandise that's difficult to find elsewhere. Around the home items include furnishings, bins, cleaning accessories, organisers, electricals, laundry accessories and travel items.
Kankku Off Road Driving Adventures - 10.7 Miles (17.1 KM)
Have you ever wanted to drive your own 4x4 on an off road adventure? Kankku Off Road Driving Adventure offers travellers the rare opportunity to take the wheel and navigate rugged terrain. Sessions are designed for drivers of all skill level, from the beginner to the seasoned adventurer. Brave visitors can choose from a variety of tour packages, including a self drive 4x4 safari, bring your own 4x4 and team convoy challenge.
Treetop Trek - 10.8 Miles (17.3 KM)
Brave travellers looking for a fun thrill can test their endurance and stamina at Treetop Trek! This exciting course includes two levels of high ropes with a low course hanging at 4 to 7 metres. The higher levels rise to 17 metres and includes swings, wobbly logs, rope bridges and much more, all tethered to big green trees!
The Morecambe Winter Gardens Theatre - 11 Miles (17.6 KM)
The Morecambe Winter Gardens Theatre started life back in 1897 and was known as the Victorian Pavilion theatre, it is located in a prime position in the middle of the promenade and has lovely views out over Morecambe Bay. It is a beautiful Victorian building with many fine architectural features and the inside is being carefully and lovingly restored to its original glory, following years of neglect. Over the years many famous and talented artists have graced the stage and today it still continues to host a range of performances that attract people to this timeless and classic theatre. In addition to the usual programme of events they hold you can become a ghost hunter and enjoy a night of paranormal activity in this haunted venue. If you would like to take a tour of the theatre these can be arranged by contacting the theatre. If you get the opportunity to visit the Morecambe Winter Gardens Theatre do, you will be helping in maintaining and bringing this beautiful building back to its former glory.
Old Man of Coniston - 11.1 Miles (17.8 KM)
Just over the village of Coniston rests the Coniston Old Man. This fell, which is part of the Furness Fells, offers captivating views and an exciting opportunity for outdoor adventure! A slate platform and cairn is found at the summit. So many make the journey that the local sheep are familiar with people and often act tame towards newcomers.
Happy Mount Park - 11.1 Miles (17.8 KM)
Happy Mount Park was first built in 1920 to serve as a traditional urban park area and it continues to serve the residents to this day but with more modern touches whilst still retaining its original charm. The park is open daily from 8.30am and closing times vary depending on the time of year, there is no charge for entry although some of the attractions will incur a cost but they are very reasonable. The park is well maintained by volunteers who do a great job in keeping it clean and tidy. There is so much available here to entertain everyone with a Splash Park, open from May through to early September, Pirates in the Park indoor play area, outdoor natural adventure play area, bowling green, 18-hole putting green, miniature railway, swing boats, trampoline, crazy golf, ornamental gardens, woodland walk, habitat trail, childrens roundabout and floodlit pitches. You could easily spend a full day here enjoying the lovely parkland setting, when the flowers are in bloom it is stunning. Throughout the year the park operates a number of themed events in addition to a selection of the best Brass Bands around playing on a Sunday from the middle of May through to the middle of September. You can bring a picnic or visit the cafe where they serve a good selection of beverages, light snacks and refreshments. Happy Mount Park offers something for everyone and is free too, not many places offer that today.
Bay Sea School - 11.3 Miles (18.1 KM)
Bay Sea School offers you the opportunity to learn how to sail in the safe environment of Morecambe Bay under the watchful eye of the highly trained and skilled instructors. It is not necessary to have any experience they take complete beginners who want to learn the basics through to those that want to complete all courses right up to Yachtmaster level. Both instructors are very friendly and passionate about what they do and have plenty of patience and encouragement for those learning to sail, and will go the extra mile in their teaching. Under their watchful instruction it won't be long till you are sailing by yourself with confidence and enjoying this wonderful sport. Sailing gives you the opportunity to escape from it all on the waters where you can revel in the peace and beauty. Bay Sea School are unparalleled in their teaching techniques and are the only place to go if looking to learn how to sail.
Blue Green Yellow Dead LIVE! - 11.7 Miles (18.7 KM)
Blue Green Yellow Dead ...Live is a unique and live action game that incorporates a maze, paintballs and zombies in this thrilling and exciting interactive game. Within the confines of this dark and eerie environment you have to seek out the three vials, blue, green and yellow or you could end up dead. You are equipped with a paintball gun but, have a number of obstacles to overcome as well as the resident zombies and your own fears. All equipment is provided and a full brief is given before you start a game. There are various levels to play with each game taking about an hour to play. It is an interactive game so can be played in a group or a s a single player and you can check the footage out afterwards. The staff are great very friendly and they are continually improving the overall experience with new rooms and new game objectives. The prices are very reasonable too and excellent value for money for what you get. Blue Green Yellow Dead .. Live is a fantastic experience full of thrills and will get your adrenaline pumping, the perfect activity for a group, will soon separate the brave from the scared!
The Dukes - 13.7 Miles (21.9 KM)
The Duke is a producing theatre and an integral and popular part of the cultural heritage here in Lancashire and they are heavily involved in outdoor theatre productions. It is also an independent cinema and home to Shattering Images, a fantastic theatre company aimed at those with learning disabilities. There are two theatre areas, a large theatre for the major productions and a smaller theatre for more intimate plays, the atmosphere here is always welcoming and friendly. They run a diverse program of events and some interesting plays, some by visiting theatre groups and musical events, as well as displays by local artists and a good combination of popular and foreign films and those by up and coming directors. Within the theatre side they strive to put on a professional performance and the result is always fantastic and the actors are excellent in portraying their characters and roles. With the varied programme of events there is always something worth seeing. There is a large bar that serves a selection of beverages and hot and cold snacks, throughout the day, it has a lively and friendly atmosphere. If you become a Friend of Dukes you get some great deals although the ticket prices are very competitive and good value. Check to see what is coming up at The Duke and come and experience this lovely theatre for yourself.
Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (LICA) - Nuffield Theatre - 13.8 Miles (22.1 KM)
Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts is found on the Lancaster University Campus, it is a real cultural hub and brings a wonderful programme of events here every year consisting of, UK and international artists, professional theatre, dance, exhibitions and concerts. It is a contemporary venue with superb facilities that are divided into the Peter Scott Gallery, Lancaster International Concerts and Nuffield Theatre. It also acts as a research and teaching facility for art, design, film studios, music theatre studies. The Peter Scott Gallery hosts exhibitions as well as preserving the University's art collection.
The Langdale Spa - 16.1 Miles (25.8 KM)
Pamper yourself with a visit to the Langdale Spa! This luxurious facility is part of the award-winning Langdale Estate. Found right at the centre of the Lake District, this venue provides access to a UV-treated swimming pool, whirlpool spa bath, massage seat, deluge shower, lounger chairs, steam room and much more!
Cocoa Hearts - 16.1 Miles (25.8 KM)
The Grasmere Chocolate Studio bills itself as the "little chocolate shop with a big heart." This unique retailer sells a rich collection of delicious confections that are guaranteed to tempt your sweet tooth. Explore handmade products or look for the perfect gift for a loved one. The studio also hosts workshops so patrons can learn more about the chocolate making process.
The Herdy Shop - 16.3 Miles (26.1 KM)
The Herdy Shop has been offering responsibly-produced merchandise since it was established in 2007. This unique retail experience carries a diverse catalogue of high quality items, ranging from mugs, kitchen wares and foot to clothing, accessories and crafting tools. A percentage of profits are donated to the Herdy Fund each year.
Sam Read Book Shop - 16.4 Miles (26.2 KM)
Sam Read Bookseller is the place for avid readers. Explore a unique collection of books that come with excellent service. The shop was originally established in 1887 by Sam Read. It passed hands five more times throughout its 123 years in operation. Sam Read's is open almost every day so you can always find time to stop by during your stay!
Forrest Hills - 16.8 Miles (26.9 KM)
Forrest Hills is an oasis of beauty and tranquillity here in Lancaster, located on border of the Forest of Bowland, it is a naturally stunning and tranquil country setting. It is positioned in 180 acres including two lakes, a river and woodland and grassland, facilities here include an 11 hole pay and play golf course and a four acre fly fishing lake. It is a lovely location with a picturesque backdrop, and lots of wildlife including, deer, hares, buzzards, kingfishers, barn owls and much more, there is a diverse range of animals living here. Forrest Hills offers lovely pleasant surroundings to pass your time.
Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway - 20.8 Miles (33.3 KM)
The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway runs for 7 miles from the coastal village of Ravenglass in the Western Lake District through two of Lakeland's loveliest valleys to Dalegarth.
Fleetwood Market - 21.2 Miles (33.9 KM)
Fleetwood Market is a bustling and vibrant traditional market that has more than 150 indoor and outdoor stalls. It is located in Victoria Street in a charming building. This large market has three different areas and has a diverse selection of stalls that include food, quality clothing and household goods all at competitive prices. Trading days are Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, as well as Bank Holidays and Tram Sunday throughout the year from 9.00am to 4.30pm. The stall holders are friendly and chatty and happily engage in banter.
Theatre by the Lake - 26.5 Miles (42.4 KM)
The Theatre by the Lake runs all year round, producing and presenting professional shows. Famous for its views across Derwent Water, the theatre has 400 seats in the main house and a newly extended 100 seat studio.
Keswick - 26.8 Miles (42.9 KM)
Keswick is a market town of about 5,000 inhabitants. It is in a fantastic setting between Derwent Water, Blencathra and Skiddaw. A favourite for Lakeland climbers and walkers.
Mecca Bingo - 28 Miles (44.8 KM)
Try your luck by joining in a few exciting games at Mecca Bingo! This inviting venue provides a number of cosy amenities so you can relax, play and try to come out a winner! A bar is available as well as dining opportunities that feature freshly prepared food. Convenient parking, free ATM and electronic bingo system are also provided.
Funny Girls - 28.5 Miles (45.6 KM)
Beautiful and brilliant, Funny Girls in Blackpool offers an unforgettable performance that is visually gorgeous. See superb actors on stage clad in outrageous costume, from towering head pieces to layers of frills and fabulous sequin-covered suits. This unique venue puts its own twist on classic entertainment! Travellers should contact the venue for admission rates and performance schedules.
Blackpool Zoo - 28.6 Miles (45.8 KM)
Kids and adults will love seeing the many animals that call Blackpool Zoo their home. Daily feeding times are available so you can plan your visit to see everything you want! Talks are also offered so visitors can learn more about each animal. On-site cafes and gift shops are also available.
Fame Factory Spotlight - 28.7 Miles (45.9 KM)
Fame Factory Spotlight offers the ultimate in entertainment! The company can produce any programme in any venue, including hotels, holiday parks, corporate events and much more! Along with classic shows featuring vibrant costumes and larger-than-life personalities, the group also offers Cinderella pantomime for tours or static locations. Contact Fame Factory Spotlight to learn more!
VIVA Cabaret Showbar & Events Suite - 28.8 Miles (46.1 KM)
See the lights, sounds and gorgeous costumes presented at the VIVA cabaret showbar in Blackpool. This multiple award-winning show provides a calendar packed with enticing programmes. Guests can stop by for a memorable performance and enjoy delicious meals ranging from three course feats to buffets and food for private parties.
Tower Ballroom - 28.9 Miles (46.2 KM)
Those who prefer more elegance and sophistication with their entertainment should plan an evening at the Blackpool Tower Ballroom. This exquisitely decorated venue looks like something out of a classic film. The location dates as far back as 1894. The dance floor is world famous as well as the stunning architecture.
Comedy Carpet - 28.9 Miles (46.2 KM)
Artist Gordon Young created the impressive Comedy Carpet in Blackpool. Referencing the memorable work of over 1,000 comedians and writers, this attraction brings songs, catch phrases, jokes and more to life. See this homage to hilarity for yourself by visiting the lofty 2,200 square metre Blackpool Tower, which contains 160,000 embedded granite letters.
Settle Play Barn - 29 Miles (46.4 KM)
The Settle Play Barn offers a safe place for children to have fun! Bring the whole family and have a great time while the little ones burn off energy. Colourful play areas provide space to romp, slide and run while the on-site cafe offers convenient meals. Weekly events are offered and include music, crafts, dancing and the cookery club.
Victoria Centre & Theatre - 29 Miles (46.4 KM)
The theatre building is 150 years old and Grade II listed, giving it a unique heritage. A professional theatre venue with drama, music and dance on offer.
Legends Blackpool - 29.2 Miles (46.7 KM)
Legends at Blackpool is one of the most highly sought attractions in the area. A number of hugely popular performers will be recreated on the stage, including Elvis, Freddie Mercury, the Blues Brothers, Robbie Williams, Buddy Holly, Neil Diamond and Elton John. This exciting venue is the "longest running seaside show in Britain."
Ma Kellys Foxhall - 29.3 Miles (46.9 KM)
Get the best of Blackpool entertainment at Ma Kellys! Billing itself as the area's premier venue, this facility hosts a range of events and programmes. See vibrant costumes and unique personalities while enjoying a bite to eat and a beverage. This facility sees bustling crowds so plan accordingly if you plan to stop by!
Paris Casino - 29.6 Miles (47.4 KM)
Paris Casino Blackpool offers guests a good time with a number of enticing activities. The venue often hosts live entertainment which is enhanced by the casino's colourful atmosphere. Players can join Poker Tournaments or play a game just for fun. A restaurant is included as well as additional gaming opportunities and special events.
Historical & Heritage Sites
Lakeland Motor Museum - 3.3 Miles (5.3 KM)
Over 30,000 motoring related exhibits including many reminiscent rarities, tastefully presented in a rather quaint former shire horse stables and courtyard setting.
Conishead Buddhist Temple - 6.4 Miles (10.2 KM)
Providing a place for quiet spiritual reflection and inspiration, the temple is used everyday for meditation and prayers. Just looking at the temple with a happy mind brings inner peace.
Levens Hall - 7 Miles (11.2 KM)
Enjoy all the charm of the Elizabethan Levens Hall. For more than five decades, this gorgeous structure has drawn in curious visitors. Tremendous conservation efforts have gone into maintaining the garden and park. Explore the Great Hall, Dining Room, Drawing Room, Library and Bedrooms while learning about the legends surrounding this great house.
Hill Top - 8.6 Miles (13.8 KM)
Hill Top is a charming landmark that includes the 17th century farmhouse of Beatrix Potter. Each room inside the structure contains a picture that hints at her classic tale. The nearby cottage garden contains a vibrant mix of beautiful flowers, vegetables and fruit. See the quaint place that inspired many famous children's tales!
Blackwell Arts and Crafts House - 9.3 Miles (14.9 KM)
Blackwell Arts and Crafts House offers visitors a unique opportunity to view up close the wonderful and highly acclaimed work of MH Baille Scott, this beautifully maintained house is a true celebration of his work and the revolutionary Arts and Crafts Movement at this time in the twentieth century. Today the house is classified as one of the most endearing historic houses in the Lake District, situated in Bowness in an idyllic position on the hill overlooking the beautiful Lake Windermere. The house is a celebration of the beauty and craftsmanship of this time and many of the wonderful original features are still here, as well as the furniture and furnishings of the time and you are free to roam around there are no restricted areas. A real bonus of Blackwell House is the amazing vistas it gives of this beautiful region of the Lake District. There are lots of stories and information pertaining to its history, as well as a number of exhibitions, there are staff available to answer any questions you might have. The house is open for the majority of the year except for the first couple of weeks in January. There is a charge for adults but children under 16 and full time students are free. The Tea Room is a warm, inviting and cosy and celebrates the simplicity of good food through their selection of homemade hot and cold dishes and beverages, they are delicious and excellently priced, and the service is very good too. The craft and book shop holds a lovely selection of the best pieces in craft, art and books and much more, you are sure to find a nice souvenir here. Blackwell Arts ad Crafts House is an impressive and interesting experience for all, it is a unparalleled example of the Arts and Crafts Movement and should not be missed.
Museum of Lakeland Life and Industry - 10.2 Miles (16.3 KM)
The award-winning Lakeland Museum offers a great way to delve deeper into the rich history of the Lake District. Find out what life was like in this isolated region before the railway and motorcar was made travel easier. Displays tell stories of the people who had a lasting impact on the district.
The Quaker Tapestry Exhibition Centre - 10.5 Miles (16.8 KM)
The Quaker Tapestry Exhibition Centre began all because of an offhand remark made by an 11 year old boy. His teacher, an accomplished embroiderer, was inspired and envisioned large tapestry panels that tell the Quaker story. The project began in 1982 and expanded over the years. Today more than 4,000 individuals of all ages across 15 countries have contributed.
Steam Yacht Gondola - 10.7 Miles (17.1 KM)
The Steam Yacht Gondola is a rebuilt Victorian steam-powered yacht that offers the most relaxing views in Coniston. Enjoy the waterside scenery while learning about how the steam engines keep the vessel moving. Open viewing windows are accessible so passengers can observe the engineer as they feed the firebox. Cruises depart from the pier in Coniston.
Brantwood - 10.9 Miles (17.4 KM)
Brantwood is a beautiful landmark that once served as the home of Victorian era art critic, John Ruskin.This tranquil treasure is historically important as a centre for contemporary arts and the environment. Approximately 30,000 visitors stop by annually, making this a popular must-see attraction in the area. Exhibitions, courses, concerts and other events are often hosted on the grounds.
Lancaster Castle - 13.5 Miles (21.6 KM)
As well as being a fortification, Lancaster Castle is also one of Europe's longest serving prisons. The Famous Pendle Witches were tried, convicted and sentenced to death here.
Cottage Museum - 13.6 Miles (21.8 KM)
Cottage Museum is located across from Lancaster Castle, it is part of a 1739 house that was partitioned around 1820 and is representative of an artisan's house of that date. This quaint museum gives a personal look at early Victorian life in a small and interesting 18th century cottage laid out over five floors, you will find a small cellar, laundry room, living room, bedroom and an attic. Opening hours are daily from Easter to September from 2pm to 5pm, and there is a nominal charge of £1 and it is so worth the money. Once you step through the tiny door you are immediately taken back to a former era, where there was no running water, central heating, electricity or even a toilet. As you wander through the small rooms you will be able to see first hand how the people lived and get a look at many original features and some of the gadgets and utensils that were used in people's daily lives, the difficulties and struggles they would have encountered, if this was someone who was well off it makes you consider what conditions the poor lived in. Just remember to watch your head as you wander around! The staff are lovely, so friendly and helpful and willing to answer any questions you might have, them dressed in period clothes is a nice touch and the stories are very interesting and entertaining. Cottage Museum will entertain people of all ages, you will be enthralled by the simplicity of life and entertained by the stories told, a delightful and insightful museum.
Lancaster City Museum - 13.7 Miles (21.9 KM)
Lancaster City Museum can be found in a grand Georgian building in the centre of the city. The museum is open Monday to Saturday and there is no entrance charge. It is a quirky but interesting museum with many features and uses imaginative presentation. The history of the city from past to present day is illustrated here and there is an extensive range of exhibits on show, they include an area dedicated to determining the ancestry of Lancaster's regiment from 1680 onwards, with medals, weapons, uniforms etc., there is also an excellent compilation of portraits and landscapes on display, artefacts, relics, medieval stone crosses and much more. In addition to the many permanent exhibits there are exhibits that frequently change together, with a range of events and activities for everyone. The exhibits are all clearly marked and well explained with information cards. The staff are so friendly and welcoming and are available if you need any information or questions answered. There are guided tours available that are taken by friendly and knowledgeable guides and are a great way to get the most out of your visit here. Lancaster City Museum narrates history in an informative and fascinating way, making it a perfect place for the whole family everyone will find something of interest here.
The Dock Museum - 14.5 Miles (23.2 KM)
Explore the fascinating history of Barrow in Furness, and discover how it grew from a tiny 19th century hamlet to the biggest iron and steel centre in the world, and a major ship-building force, in just 40 years.
Dove Cottage - 15.9 Miles (25.4 KM)
William Wordsworth is recognised as the most beloved poet in Britain. Dove Cottage is the first family home the he lived in along with his sister in 1799.This quaint little cottage contains beautiful furnishings and decor. Outside, travellers can enjoy a peaceful stroll through the nearby garden which is home to many graceful butterflies, birds and plant life.
The Grasmere Gingerbread Shop (Sarah Nelson's) - 16.2 Miles (25.9 KM)
The Grasmere Gingerbread Shop is more than a store, it's a part of local history. The business dates back to the life of Sarah Kemp, who was born in 1815. After relocating, Sarah began producing and selling gingerbread. Her popularity grew and eventually the recipe was passed on to her great niece who sold it. Today travellers can stop by for a bite of some of the best gingerbread in the United Kingdom.
Wordsworth Museum - 16.3 Miles (26.1 KM)
The Wordsworth Museum can be found right next door to the famous Dove Cottage. Travellers can round out their visit by touring both landmarks. This fascinating attraction shares information on the beloved poet with handwritten pieces, paintings, maps, artefacts and interactive displays. Visitors should check with the museum for open hours and admission rates prior to stopping by.
Muncaster Castle - 19.7 Miles (31.5 KM)
The Pennington family home since at least 1208, this impressive castle is now open for all to see. Built on Roman foundations, modifications and enhancements have been made over time as the family became more entwined in Royalty and politics. The castle itself has played an extremely important role in shaping the course of British history. Visitors can now enjoy Sino-Himalayan gardens, a meadowole maze, the world owl centre, Muncaster Interactive, numerous walks and trails, a playground, a café and a plant centre — a wonderful day out for all.
Lancaster Maritime Museum - 21.1 Miles (33.8 KM)
Lancaster Maritime Museum is located in an elegant Georgian building, the former 18th century customs house and warehouse on the banks of the River Lune. The museum is open everyday and there is a small charge although, free to locals. It is an interesting and informative museum that traces the history and industry of Lancaster through trade which, was particularly important to the growth and development of Lancaster, being at one time one of the biggest ports in England. There is an assortment of items that connect the local merchants to their business activities and include a portrait of slave trader Dodshon Forster, and portraits of other prominent people. In addition there is a model of a Waterwitch, it was a luxury horse drawn long barge that brought passengers down the Lancaster Canal from Kendal to Preston, as well as a selection of vessels constructed and used locally including dugout boats and Hector. There is a main detailed exhibit dedicated to fishing which, was a major local industry both in the past and continues to be today. Exhibits are well laid out and have lots of information on them, as well as interactive displays and hands on features, it is probably best to start with the introductory film. The staff are lovely here, very friendly and approachable, they have lots of knowledge and are happy to impart this. There is a small cafe that serves a nice selection of beverages and light refreshments in pleasant and comfortable surroundings. Lancaster Maritime Museum is a great place to learn about the maritime history of the town, it might not appeal to all but, it is nevertheless both interesting and above all informative, definitely worth a visit.
Fleetwood Museum - 21.2 Miles (33.9 KM)
Fleetwood Museum is housed in the former Custom House, it is a charming Grade II listed building, that overlooks Morecambe Bay. The history of Fleetwood is covered from past to present, there is focus on the towns prominence as a Victorian seaside resort, its cargo trade, ferry services, its lifeboats, docks, local industries, see what people wore and how they lived and much more. There are two galleries that delve into the intriguing story of the towns largely successful achievements at deep sea fishing and inshore fishing which, were main industries in the town and at one time was the biggest port in the country. You can find out all about a fisherman's life and the extreme conditions they would have had to contend with. You can also see how certain fish and shellfish were collected from the shallow waters here in Morecambe Bay. To the rear of the museum is the salvaged and restored "Harriet", one of only a few remaining smacks in the UK, in addition to other large dockland artefacts, photographs and more. There is a bright and contemporary Coffee House that serves a nice selection of light lunches, beverages and delicious cakes. The gift shop has a choice of quality gifts and souvenirs for sale. The museum is open from March through to October, on Tuesdays to Saturdays from 11.00am to 4.00pm, as well as Bank Holiday Mondays. There is a small charge for admission for adults and children are free. Throughout the year they organise a series of events, talks, exhibitions, walks and much more, full details are on their website. The museum is run by volunteers who you will be to be very friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. Fleetwood Museum has an excellent collection of exhibits that are well laid out and displayed with lots of information about them, there is something of interest for everyone here, it is a comprehensive and fascinating museum and well worth a visit.
Honister Slate Mine - 21.7 Miles (34.7 KM)
A fully guided tour into the mine itself is available several times a day, detailing the history and spectacular features of the mine. The tour also shows the current mine workings.
Settle - Carlisle Railway - 24.3 Miles (38.9 KM)
The renowned Settle-Carlisle Railway claims to be "England's most scenic railway." This historic transportation resource runs through northern England. It was built in the 1870s and offers breathtaking views of some of the finest countryside in the North Pennines and Yorkshire Dales. Visitors can still travel the Settle-Carlisle line today.
Blackpool Grand Theatre - 28.8 Miles (46.1 KM)
The Grand Theatre in Blackpool first opened its doors in 1894. Managed by Thomas Sergenson, the theatre was deemed "Matcham's Masterpiece," and is still regarded as living up to that name because it is one of very few surviving examples of Frank Matcham's work. This Victorian era theatre hosts a wide range of events and performances, including a heritage tour, Agatha Christie programmes and much more!
The Blackpool Tower Dungeon - 28.9 Miles (46.2 KM)
Witness a memorable performance inside Blackpool Tower Dungeon! This popular attraction includes special effects, theatrical actors, stages and a ride! See 10 hilarious actor-led performances and go on the mind numbing drop ride! Recognised as one of the best signature attractions in the Blackpool Resort, the Dungeon is a 70 minute journey that will transport you through 1,000 years of dark, murky Lancashire history.
Gallery on the Green - 28.9 Miles (46.2 KM)
The Gallery on the Green is a unique landmark that comes in a very compact size. The Settle Town Council purchased the Upper Settle phone box in 2009 and transformed it into what is possibly the smallest gallery in the world. The gallery can be found a mere 10 minutes walk from the Settle market.
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i don't know
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Which World War Two general was nicknamed ‘Vinegar Joe’?
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6/12/2006 • World War II
Lieutenant General Joseph ‘Vinegar Joe’ Stilwell did not give up a fight easily. As long as there was the slightest possibility of salvaging a situation, the irascible infantryman saw himself duty-bound to try. In Burma during the dark days of May 1942, Stilwell’s stubborn insistence that an attempt be made to re-establish control over retreating Chinese troops put the general and his small staff directly in harm’s way. In the midst of the chaos of a complete Allied military collapse, Stilwell finally was forced to undergo a long march to India with the Japanese snapping at his heels.
By the end of April 1942, it was obvious that Lt. Gen. Sir Harold Alexander’s Burma army could no longer hold a defensive line against the Japanese, who were pushing northward from Rangoon to Mandalay. Three Chinese armies had moved into Burma from the province of Yunnan between February and April in an effort to restore the situation. Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek had placed Stilwell in command of this Chinese Expeditionary Force. Unfortunately for the Allies, however, Stilwell found his Chinese subordinates recalcitrant in following his instructions, which were frequently contradicted by Chiang’s own direct communications with his generals. The command situation was further complicated when Chinese forces were placed under Alexander’s overall command.
As Alexander attempted to hold a defensive line from Prome in the west to Toungoo in the east, in late April the Japanese smashed the Chinese 55th Division on the Toungoo front and rapidly pushed northward toward Lashio (the starting point of the crucial Burma Road) and Myitkyina. This action panicked the Allied troops, who also gave ground along the Irrawaddy River and commenced a general retreat toward Mandalay.
Stilwell himself had arrived in Burma in March, thinking to use his Chinese troops to launch a counteroffensive against the Japanese. In February he had been dispatched to the Chinese capital of Chungking with the task of improving the fighting efficiency of the Chinese army, which was already deeply involved in fighting the Japanese. Chiang Kai-shek was the supreme Allied commander for the China theater, and Stilwell had been designated his Allied chief of staff. The Chinese had been obtaining supplies from the United States through the port of Rangoon; these were then trucked into China over the treacherous Burma Road. A major Japanese aim was to cut off this means of supply to Chiang by invading Burma and seizing that route. Because of the direct threat to Chinese interests, Chiang was willing to send troops into Burma, and Stilwell sought and eventually received command of this Chinese Expeditionary Force. But Chiang refused to permit Stilwell to use the Chinese without strings attached, and this interference made Chinese armies in the field less effective than they otherwise might have been.
With the general collapse of the entire Allied position in late April, Stilwell found himself unable to control the movements of his troops. Chiang, from his headquarters in Chungking, persisted in issuing contradictory orders both to Stilwell and the Chinese generals in Burma. In one instance, Chiang sent word to Stilwell on April 29 that Mandalay (a militarily undefendable city) was to be held at all costs. The next day Chiang reversed this edict.
Frustrating as such intrusions were, Chiang’s mercurial temperament was the least of Stilwell’s problems. In late April, Stilwell had two forward headquarters in Burma–one at Shwebo (north of Mandalay) and one at Lashio. There were small American staffs at each of these headquarters, but on April 25 the Lashio headquarters was abandoned and its staff sent on to China via the Burma Road. Stilwell was at Shwebo when Alexander ordered the evacuation of all Burma. The order was simply a confirmation of what was already taking place, as British, Indian, Burmese and Chinese troops were engaged in a chaotic scramble along escape routes to India and China.
Despite the anarchy that surrounded him, Stilwell remained calm, even after the Japanese attempted to bomb his headquarters (a traitorous Buddhist priest had divulged its location to the enemy). On April 30, Stilwell wrote in his diary: ‘Imminent danger of disintegration and collapse. We are sending 40 people to Myitkyina, 12 to Katha and leaving 20 here.’ Stilwell planned to fly to Loiwing, near Lashio, the next day in an effort to re-establish some control on the eastern front. But events were moving too fast. Loiwing, which had been a base used by Claire Chennault’s American Volunteer Group, the famous ‘Flying Tigers,’ was by then already evacuated.
Stilwell had also requested a plane at Shwebo to evacuate part of his staff to India. That plane, piloted by Colonel Caleb V. Haynes of the U.S. Tenth Air Force, arrived at Shwebo around noon on May 1, and Stilwell put 15 members of his staff on the aircraft, which flew to Calcutta. Other planes were due in later, but Stilwell had no intention of remaining at Shwebo until they arrived. Instead, he led his small party north by truck and jeep along rough trails and roads that paralleled the Mandalay-Myitkyina railroad tracks. Initially, this group consisted of about 80 people, but it would eventually grow to 114.
Stilwell reached Zigon (headquarters of the Chinese Fifth Army) late on May 1. According to his aide, Lt. Col. Frank Dorn: ‘The floundering troops of the Chinese army were his most immediate concern. His plan was to go to Myitkyina where the airfield was still in operation. From there he could fly out all Americans but a small staff and a few doctors, who would stay with the Chinese, evacuate the sick and wounded by air, and establish a base in the Hukawng Valley from which he could launch a counteroffensive to retake Burma.’ Even at that late date, and in the face of a total Allied collapse, Stilwell was still thinking in offensive terms.
The plan for getting to Myitkyina, however, depended on the availability of rail transportation. Stilwell’s transportation officer, Captain Paul Jones, scouted the rail line to the north and discovered that a collision had blocked travel both north and south. Stilwell’s party would have to continue northward by road and trail. The general remained hopeful that the tracks to Myitkyina would eventually be cleared. His party reached Pintha on the evening of May 2 and Wuntho on May 3.
At Wuntho, additional Americans joined the general’s party. ‘It is now apparent that we can no longer be of much use’ Stilwell wrote. ‘Decided to send our crowd out.’ Frustrated that he could learn little of the real situation, Stilwell came to realize that the military situation was completely lost and that his primary duty now was to get his small party to safety.
The next day, on the morning of May 4, Stilwell wrote in his diary: ‘Disintegration at Shwebo….Japs going up Chindwin River. Civil war conditions all over again. Chinese out of control. [Fifth] column busy.’ He was still looking to take a train north to Mogaung or Myitkyina, but Jones reported that the railroad was hopelessly jammed. It would be impossible to go much farther north. There were no roads to Myitkyina that could carry vehicles. The general and his growing party would have to turn west and head for the Chindwin River. From there the group could cross the mountains and eventually reach the British base at Imphal, in India’s Manipur state. Stilwell was unsure how far he could take his vehicles after turning westward, but he knew a trek over the mountains to India would require that they be abandoned at some point.
Despite the anticipated difficulties, Stilwell was also well aware of the need to get his people ahead of the mob of retreating Chinese troops, British stragglers and refugees who were trudging northward along the only good road. His frustration with the situation was evident in his diary entry for May 5: ‘If I can only get them around the corner….Battled all P.M. to get them forward, ahead of Chinese rush….Everybody fooled around, and sure enough the Chinese began to come up and pour through. They went right thru us like Red Grange.’
Late on May 5, Stilwell ordered the abandonment of all his trucks, which were continually bogging down along the primitive roads and slowing the column. After reaching the overcrowded town of Indaw on the 5th, Stilwell’s party turned west toward the Chindwin. Although he abandoned his trucks, Stilwell retained all his stalwart jeeps to transport his most critical supplies. The general believed he was ‘ahead of the deluge’ by the time he made camp on the evening of May 5.
The multinational party now consisted of 26 members of the U.S. Army (mostly officers), 15 British soldiers and 14 Chinese soldiers; a hospital unit under the command of Gordon S. Seagrave (the famous ‘Burma Surgeon’), which included 19 Burmese nurses; a small Quaker ambulance unit; and a handful of civilians, including correspondent Jack Belden of Time and Life and the Reverend Breedham C. Case. Case had long experience as a missionary working with the natives of upper Burma and could speak a number of hill tribe languages. Because of this, Stilwell let Case undertake the negotiations for the porters who would be necessary along the route.
The Stilwell group had certain advantages over the other soldiers and refugees seeking a way out of Burma. First, Stilwell himself was utterly determined to bring every member of his party out alive, regardless of the hardship involved. Second, the soldiers were still armed and knew how to use their weapons. Third, medical personnel made up a significant portion of the group, and a limited amount of medical supplies continued to be carried even after all vehicles were abandoned. The Burmese nurses also would make a strong contribution to the morale of the entire group through their singing of hymns such as ‘Onward Christian Soldiers’ and ‘The Battle Hymn of the Republic’ during the march. Finally, the Stilwell party possessed sufficient money to permit the purchase of anything worth buying en route.
On the morning of May 6, Stilwell gathered his group around him and gave them a pep talk. The party set out by foot, except for the 11 jeep drivers. The route took them through the village of Mansi and on to Magyigan. They were off the main refugee route by this time–a great relief to all concerned. British authorities had warned Stilwell that the route he proposed taking through the mountains was very difficult due to the steepness of trails on the far side of the Chindwin. A more southerly route had been suggested, but Stilwell knew the Japanese were closing in on all exits from Burma, and the easier route to Imphal, through Sittaung and Tamu, was very vulnerable to ambush from Japanese patrols. Vinegar Joe knew he would have to push his people hard, despite their suffering from a variety of ailments. Seagrave, for example, had written on April 30: ‘This talk of our tramping out of Burma has me worried. It has been a long, long time since I have had to do much footwork in the jungles, and I feel much older than forty-five, with this confounded malaria that keeps returning. And no treatment of any sort helps these four sores on my feet.’
A victorious enemy was not the general’s only concern. Stilwell was not only racing the Japanese but also the monsoon. The season was fast approaching, and torrential rains could pose another challenge to escape. Despite this Stilwell believed that with a determined effort, he could beat both. In order to succeed, he figured that the group must make at least 14 miles of progress per day, regardless of conditions. If the monsoon arrived early, the trail to India would become a muddy quagmire and streams would turn into raging torrents. The party had enough food for several days’ march, but after that it would be dependent on scavenging from the jungle, or possibly obtaining some from native villages. Stilwell had radioed India of his circumstances, but had had no confirmation that his messages had been received. As far as he knew, his group was entirely on its own.
The heavy radio that Stilwell possessed could only be transported by vehicle. When the jeeps had gone as far as possible, they too were abandoned, and the radio was destroyed. Stilwell sent his last message on May 6: ‘Gen. Brereton, New Delhi–Am heading for Homalin and Imphal, with party of one hundred. Hope to make Homalin May Tenth. If possible, send five hundred lbs of food from Imphal by carriers to meet us at Homalin. Indian govt. should be warned rice, police, and doctors urgently needed by refugees on all routes to India from Burma. Large numbers on way. All control gone. Catastrophe quite possible. End.’
Stilwell knew that food and other supplies might be obtained at Homalin, but he also knew there was the possibility that the Japanese might beat him there. If so, Vinegar Joe was prepared to go down swinging. ‘[I]f we do meet [the Japanese], they’ll have a fight on their hands,’ he told Dorn. ‘I’m not going to let them grab these people without putting up a scrap.’
Early on May 7, the real hike began. Fortunately for the column, a chance encounter with a Chinese mule train the previous day eased the burden of the party tremendously. The muleteers had been returning empty-handed from India to China when the Stilwell group spotted and captured them. From that point on, the mules would carry the heaviest loads. In addition, 60 native bearers had been requisitioned by a pair of British Forestry Service guides with Stilwell.
The column started from Magyigan with Stilwell in the lead at what the general described as an ‘easy pace’–the army regulation rate of 105 steps per minute–down the Chaunggyi River toward the village of Saingkyu. Stilwell marched his group right down the middle of the stream, which was not particularly deep, because the heavy vegetation on the riverbanks would have made overland travel difficult. Still, the midday heat was appalling, and the already weakened condition of the party began to tell as the day wore on. Several people fell out with heatstroke, or worse. When Colonel William H. Holcombe fell out of line he had to be revived with ammonia crystals. Major Frank D. Merrill, who would later command the famous ‘Merrill’s Marauders,’ staggered over to the riverbank and dropped facedown into the vegetation, having apparently suffered a heart attack. He was towed downstream on top of an air mattress while still unconscious. Stilwell commented, ‘Christ, but we are a poor lot.’
To save strength, Stilwell announced that each member of his group would personally carry no more than 10 pounds. In addition, at the prodding of his chief medical officer, Colonel Robert P. Williams, the general agreed thereafter to avoid marching during the hottest period of the day. Captain Jones recorded that ‘our rations were then porridge, rice, corned beef, and tea. Not much but it kept us going.’
The routine was now 50 minutes of marching followed by 10 minutes of rest, repeated until the midday break. After the break, Stilwell would keep his column moving, allowing for the short breaks, until he was comfortable that enough progress had been made for the day. The trek was already beginning to wear on even the hardiest members of the group, and Stilwell knew that the most difficult part of the journey lay ahead. On May 8, Japanese bombers flew overhead, causing the party to scatter for cover and reminding everyone that they were still far from safety. The hardship was not all negative; by May 9, Stilwell noted that the party was ‘gradually getting some discipline.’ Often if a person fell from exhaustion, Vinegar Joe kept trudging forward, trusting that the medical personnel in the group would administer to the ill, putting them on mules if necessary, but keeping them moving until they caught up with the rest of the column during a break period or at the nightly bivouac.
Late on the afternoon of May 9, Stilwell reached the village of Maingkaing, on the Uyu River. The Uyu was bigger than the Chaunggyi, and Stilwell hoped to be able to send his people down it by boat or raft until they reached the vicinity of Homalin on the Chindwin. Traveling by watercraft, it was thought, would be a welcome respite from walking. The village chief at Maingkaing had been apprised of the need for water transportation, but when Stilwell arrived only a few rafts had been prepared. By the next morning, however, an adequate number were ready.
The party set out down the river in five groups. An advance guard of four American officers occupied a single raft, which was about 20 feet long by 10 feet wide. The other four groups each had three rafts lashed together, so that the overall length was roughly 60 feet for each. All the vessels were rather loosely constructed of bamboo and vines, and each raft section had a thatched hut for protection from the sun. Colonel Williams commented: ‘On the rafts we were organized into three shifts, each of us on duty for one hour, off duty for two hours, throughout the 24. On duty we poled, paddled and steered. Off duty we slept, ate occasionally (usually once a day) and were always ready to go over the side to push the raft off a snag.’ Unfortunately, what Stilwell had intended as a somewhat relaxing experience proved to be an arduous one. Captain Jones noted that: ‘We had to pole in many places to get any forward momentum at all. Poling a boxy, homemade raft on a sluggish river under the hot, Burmese sun, is the kind of work that could cause a man to give up soldiering.’
While the bulk of Stilwell’s party would spend two solid days negotiating the Uyu River by raft, the general had sent his mule train and porters overland to Homalin, under the care of his 14-member Chinese army bodyguard and commanded by American Lieutenant Eugene Laybourn. Stilwell and the mules would rendezvous near Homalin on May 12.
In the meantime, the rafts began falling apart in the river. On the 11th, it began raining, a sign of the coming monsoon that could unleash itself in full force at any moment. The party continued moving toward Homalin day and night. At one point a lone British bomber passed low overhead, returned and dropped wrapped packages of food onto a sandbar. It was the first indication that anyone in India had received Stilwell’s messages requesting assistance.
When Homalin was finally reached, Stilwell discovered that it had been hastily abandoned by British officials and much of the native population. No news of the Japanese was available, and no food had been left for Stilwell’s party by the retreating British. The telegraph office was shut. When Laybourn arrived with the mules, Stilwell ordered him to swim the animals across the Chindwin and link up again with the main group on the other side of the river. The general led the rest of his party through the town to a Buddhist temple a few miles north, where they spent the night, much to the disapproval of the unfriendly priests who lived there.
On May 13, it was finally time for Stilwell to cross the mighty Chindwin, which marked the last major water barrier to the party’s successful escape from the Japanese. After a two-mile walk from the temple to the river, the general and a handful of American officers stood on the bank trying to figure out how to cross it. Colonel Dorn recounted: ‘Stilwell bit down on his cigarette holder and frowned, glaring at the river as if by sheer force of will he could compel some form of river craft to appear. Suddenly, five dugout canoes and a freight boat nosed around a bend half a mile up the angry surge of water.’ The general’s Kachin guide hailed the boatmen, who immediately responded by turning toward the shore. Stilwell directed that six lines be formed, and the boats transported the group piecemeal to the west bank of the river. Once there, Stilwell waited for the mules to arrive and the porters to get organized, describing the latter activity as a ‘hell of a mess.’ Finally, the whole party moved out into the steep Naga Hills. Stilwell remained unimpressed by the efforts of some of his officers. ‘Took it easy over good trail,’ a frustrated general noted, ‘but the sissies are pooped out. They can’t take it.’
After crossing the Chindwin, for the first time the members of Stilwell’s party knew they were probably safe from the Japanese. But it was a near-run thing. Less than 36 hours after Stilwell left Homalin, a large detachment of Japanese cavalry entered the town. Curiously, Stilwell’s group felt no real elation at the thought of having escaped from the enemy’s grasp. As Colonel Dorn noted, ‘Apathy and physical weariness seemed to pervade the entire party–that and a certain element of fear at the thought of the mountains to be crossed, the peaks and high ridges to be scaled.’
Indeed, the most difficult hiking of the entire trek would be encountered west of the Chindwin. According to Seagrave, only six people had used this mountain trail ahead of the Stilwell party in making their way out of Burma. On the afternoon of May 14, Stilwell led the group on a long climb up to the Naga village of Kawlum. Because no food had been delivered at Homalin, the party’s most immediate concern was nourishment. Upon reaching Kawlum, however, their worries ended. British administrator Tim Sharpe had led a relief expedition eastward from Imphal. After five days, he made contact with Stilwell at Kawlum. After seeing to the needs of his party, a proud Stilwell wrote: ‘Food, doctor, ponies and everything. Quite a relief, though we could have gone on by ourselves.’
Much hard climbing remained, however. Fortunately, the sick and lame among the group could now ride on pony or horseback most of the way, until the motor road to Imphal was gained. But the mountain peaks that the trail crossed reached as high as 7,500 feet. At Chammu, Stilwell was greeted by a chieftain in a bright red blanket who offered the general a bottle of rice beer as a sign of friendship and respect. At another village, the general was presented with a goat–Stilwell offered cigarettes in return. As the party progressed toward Imphal, it was repeatedly stopped by various village chiefs offering the ubiquitous rice beer, for which the usual teetotaler Stilwell developed a strong liking. The general was impressed with the Naga porters, whom he described as ‘good looking and tough, good-humored and friendly.’ He was also taken with the magnificent mountain views the steep trail afforded. On May 18, at the large village of Ukhrul (which Stilwell compared favorably with the mountain retreat of Baguio in the Philippines), the Assam Rifles of the Indian army presented Stilwell with a formal salute in honor of his arrival. The next day, after a 21-mile march, the group reached the truck head at Litan, where two American officers met the party with war news, chocolate bars, American cigarettes and whiskey.
Imphal had been bombed by the Japanese, and the bomb craters were much in evidence when Stilwell finally arrived there in the midafternoon of May 20. The truck ride from Litan to Imphal had proved to be 16 miles of pushing and pulling through thick mud, followed by 10 miles of easier driving over gravel road. By this time, the monsoon was in full fury. Stilwell, at age 59, had pushed himself and his people relentlessly, but all 114 members of his party survived the march out of Burma. The general arrived at Imphal with a bad cold, had lost at least 25 pounds and was suffering from what later turned out to be a bad case of jaundice. Several members of the group needed to be hospitalized. After a brief stay at Imphal, however, Stilwell proceeded to Tinsukia in northern Assam, where he met with Maj. Gen. Lewis Brereton of the Tenth Air Force, other American officers, and the British generals Sir Archibald Wavell and Sir Harold Alexander. From there, he flew on to his headquarters at New Delhi.
Stilwell’s trek from Burma was epic. With thousands of troops and refugees fleeing from the Japanese, the Stilwell party may well have been the only sizable group to escape with no loss of life. For many days, its presence was unknown to the outside world, and the general was even listed as missing in action. On May 12, U.S. Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall had radioed Stilwell: ‘The President, the Secretary of War, and the entire War Department are filled with admiration for the courageous manner in which you have met the hazards of the past ten days.’ At that point, Stilwell was at Homalin, barely ahead of the Japanese, and he had already destroyed his radio equipment, so the message did not reach him until May 20. In his diary entry for that date, Stilwell questioned why the War Department would send him what seemed like a congratulatory message in the face of a great military debacle. Concerning the loss of Burma, the general had already remarked to his aide, Colonel Dorn: ‘What a bitter tragedy it’s all been. Worse because it might have been avoided.’
When Stilwell arrived in New Delhi on May 24, he was greeted by a crowd of news correspondents anxious for comment on his ordeal and for his view of the military disaster. Later that evening, the general held a press conference at which he described the campaign in Burma.
‘I claim we got a hell of a beating,’ he snapped. ‘We got run out of Burma, and it is humiliating as hell. I think we ought to find out what caused it, go back and retake it.’
This article was written by Marc D. Bernstein and originally appeared in the November 2004 issue of World War II.
Marc D. Bernstein is the author of Hurricane at Biak: MacArthur Against the Japanese, May-August 1944. For further reading, see Walkout with Stilwell in Burma, by Frank Dorn.
For more great articles subscribe to World War II magazine today!
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Joseph Stilwell
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In which American state does the Mississippi river enter the Gulf of Mexico?
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War Auction
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World War 1: Ieper (Ypres), Belgium
Belgium, a country in the northwest of Europe on the North Sea. In ancient times Belgium was inhabited by the Belgae, the region was part of the Carolingian and Roman empires before breaking up into a number of feudal states during the middle Ages. The region occupied by present-day Belgium passed to the Hapsburgs in the 15th century and then to the French in the 18th century. After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, Belgium was given to the kingdom of the Netherlands, from which it gained independence as a separate kingdom in 1830. Brussels is the capital and the largest city of Belgium.
Belgium was an important chapter in the World War I. After the sudden occurence of World War I (Aug., 1914), Belgium was invaded by Germany in order to attack the French by the easiest route, this unashamed violation of Belgian neutrality shocked much parts of the world and brought Great Britain into the war, as one of Belgium's guarantors. The unexpected resistance of the Belgians against such heavy odds won widespread admiration, and German atrocities in Belgium, publicized by the Allies, played an important part in strenghtening U.S. opinion against Germany. All of Belgium except a small strip in West Flanders, which served as a battle front throughout the war (Ieper or Ypres), was conquered by Oct. 10, 1914, and the people suffered under a harsh occupation system. The Belgian army fought in West Flanders and France throughout the war under the leadership of Albert I.
Ypres or Ieper, a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. During World War I, Ieper was the centre of serious and sustained battles between the German and the Allied forces. During the war, English soldiers nicknamed the city "Wipers."
The Allied forces captured Ieper from the Germans in the First Battle of Ypres (31 October to 22 November 1914). In the Second Battle of Ypres (22 April to 25 May 1915) the German force used poison gas for the first time on the Western Front and seized high ground east of Ieper. The first gas attack occurred against British, Canadian and French soldiers, including both metropolitan French soldiers as well as Senegalese and Algerian tirailleurs (light infantry) from French Africa. Of the battles in the World War I, the largest, most-known, and most costly in human suffering was the Third Battle of Ypres (21 July to 6 November 1917, also known as the Battle of Passchendaele) in which the British, Canadians, ANZAC and French forces recaptured the Passchendaele ridge east of the city at a terrible cost of lives. After several months of fighting, the battle resulted in nearly half a million casualties to all sides, and only several miles of ground won by Allied forces. Ieper was all but destroyed by the artillery fire.
Many landmarks and memorials of the World War I and museums are worth visiting in Ieper.
1. Menin Gate Memorial - Memorial dedicated on 24 July 1927 to the missing British and Commonwealth soldiers who fell in Belgium during World War I. It has a Last Post Ceremony each night at 8:00 PM as a way for the Ypres citizens to express their gratitude towards those who died for Belgium's freedom.
2. Flanders Fields Museum - It is located right in the center of the Ypres Cloth Hall. This museum gives an excellent overview of World War I. It is a sort of an experience that takes you right into the daily life during the war.
3. Memorial Museum Passchendaele - A Museum in a beautiful setting, conveying the story of the Great War in chronological order. It has lots of information on the different battles and a large selection of authentic artifacts on display.
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Tourist Destination, Ieper, Belgium www.ambrosiahotel.beclick here.
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Frequently Asked Questions...
What is a good book on world war 2 medals given to war heroes?
I am doing a social studies project and i have to draw different medals given to world war 2 heroes. My teacher is making us use 3 non internet resources. I have absolutly no idea what books i could use. So if you know any books that would be helpful, let me know!
Answer:
You do not mention if you only want American or from any country.
There is a biography of Nancy Wake, a New Zealand born woman who studied in Australia and became an Australian citizen. I think the biography is called "The White Mouse".
She worked as a reporter in Paris and during the war was a member of the French Resistance and was nicknamed "The White Mouse" by the Gestapo.
Nancy Wake is the most decorated female of WW-2 with five (5) British medals including the George Medal (the 2nd highest British medal a non officer can win). Others include the 1939-45 Star, the France and Germany Medal, the Defence Medal and the British War Medal 1939-45. She also won three French medals and an American medal. They were (in order of seniority) -- Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, the French Croix de Guerre with Star and 2 palms, the US Freedom Medal plus the Medaille de Resistance.
There is a biography about the US (four star) General (Vinegar) Joe Stillwell who commanded American and Chinese troops in China and Burma during WW-2. The biography is called "Stillwell and the American Experience in China 1911-1845" by Barbara Tuchman. Stillwell received 10 medals of which two were WW-1.
There is a biography about Maj. General.Orde Wingate, a British soldier who saw action in Palestine, North Africa and Burma. He won the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) three times plus a Mentioned in Dispatches. In total he would have had over 7 medals which is a large number for a British soldier. (the DSO would be one medal but with bars to denote how many time won). Wingate helped the Jewish Palmach train in the 1930's which caused problems with his superiors.
There are several biographies about Field Marshall Montgomery, a British General who fought in WW-1 and WW-2. Montgomery wrote several book and autobiographies. Other Biographies about him are:
The Art of Leadership, by Montgomery
The Full Monty, by Nigel Hamilton
Monty and Patton, by Michael Reynolds
The Memoirs of Field Marshal Montgomery, by Montgomery
Monty's, by Charles Whiting
Montgomery, by Nigel Hamilton.
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I would not try Eisenhower as he received his medals after the war because he was the "Supreme Commander of Allied Forces European Theatre". Before that he had no combat or campaign medals, only service medals. Eisenhower never saw combat in his entire military career.
Patton is also a bad choice as he is greatly disliked by British and Canadians soldiers because he was a a self-centred "gung-ho" leader who stole supplies destined for the British and Canadians troops in the northern front, started battles in his area well before the scheduled time and without knowing the strengths or dispositions of the enemy, and then when his troops were in trouble it was the under-equipped British and Canadians who had to rescue the Americans while leaving their own front undermanned.
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Which Thames dredger made the headlines in 1989 when it rammed the Marchioness pleasure boat?
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August 20, 1989: 51 people killed as Thames pleasure boat Marchioness is rammed by dredger - BT
August 20, 1989: 51 people killed as Thames pleasure boat Marchioness is rammed by dredger
Partygoers in their twenties died when the anchor of the 1,880-tonne Bowbelle sliced through the side of the pleasure cruiser, which rolled over and began to capsize immediately.
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The Marchioness, a small pleasure cruiser packed with around 130 partygoers, was sunk with the loss of 51 lives when it was struck by a barge on the River Thames on this day in 1989.
The boat, which had been hired by a young entrepreneur named Jonathan Phang to celebrate the birthday of his business partner Antonio de Vasconcellos, was hit by the dredger Bowbelle near the Cannon Street railway bridge as both vessels headed downriver in the early hours of the morning.
The anchor of the 1,880-tonne barge sliced through the side of the 46-tonne Marchioness, which rolled over and began to capsize immediately; as it did so, the Bowbelle (pictured below) continued forward, pushing the stricken cruiser underneath it and deeper into the water.
The smaller boat was completely immersed in no more than 30 seconds, with most of the victims trapped in its hull. The majority of survivors had been on its upper decks when the collision occurred; police commandeered other small boats to pick them up at the scene.
An investigation found the disaster to have been caused by the poor visibility from each ship's wheelhouse, the fact that both vessels were using the centre of the river and the lack of clear instructions to the lookout on the Bowbelle.
The captain of the dredger, Douglas Henderson, was twice prosecuted for failing to keep an adequate lookout but was acquitted as the juries were unable to reach a verdict on both occasions. However, a coroner's inquest in 1995 found the victims had been unlawfully killed.
Survivors and families of victims campaigned more than 10 years for a public inquiry, which was finally held in the year 2000.
Chairman Lord Justice Clarke’s report blamed poor lookouts on both vessels for the collision and criticised the boats’ owners for failing to instruct and monitor their crews correctly.
Lord Clarke’s recommendations also led to four lifeboat search and rescue stations being set up on the Thames by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 2002, as well as changes to laws governing inland waters.
What are your memories of the Marchioness disaster? Has enough been done to prevent such things happening again? Let us know in the Comments section below.
Marchioness disaster - Did you know?
The Marchioness was launched in 1923, and had been one of the 'little ships' involved in the Dunkirk evacuation of 1940.
The boat was hired to celebrate the 26th birthday of banker Antonio de Vasconcellos, who would lose his life in the disaster; most of the other victims were also in their twenties.
Captain Douglas Henderson was not at the helm of the Bowbelle when it hit the Marchioness. It was later revealed that he had drunk either five or six pints of beer in the afternoon before the collision.
Among the victims was Frances Dallaglio, sister of future England rugby captain Lawrence. At just 19 years of age, she was the youngest person on board.
Several victims managed to escape from the stricken vessel but subsequently drowned in the strong currents on the Thames. The Bowbelle crew were also criticised for not deploying its two lifeboats and life rafts.
A decision was made by Westminster Coroner Dr Paul Knapman to cut off the hands of more than 20 victims for identification purposes - an action later criticised by Lord Clarke in his 2001 report.
A 2001 inquiry by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency into the competence and behaviour of Douglas Henderson concluded that he should be allowed to keep his master's certificate, as he met all the service and medical fitness requirements.
Seven years later, the Bowbelle – since sold to a Madeiran company and renamed Bom Rei - split in half and sank off the coast of Ponta do Sol, Madeira. It was not salvaged, and is now an attraction for divers in the area.
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bowbelle
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Which powerful illuminant gas is produce from the action of water on calcium carbide?
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HIGH TOLL FEARED IN THAMES SINKING - NYTimes.com
HIGH TOLL FEARED IN THAMES SINKING
By STEVE LOHR, Special to The New York Times
Published: August 21, 1989
LONDON, Aug. 20— For more than 100 young people enjoying a summer night's boat party on the Thames, the dancing and chatting turned to a desperate struggle for survival early today when their pleasure vessel was sunk by a barge while cruising off central London.
''It all happened terribly quickly,'' said Annette Russell, a 26-year-old executive at a London modeling agency. ''I dived off the side. The tide took me underneath the boat and out the other side. There was no time to get hold of any life jackets.''
The number of casualties in the sinking remains uncertain. There was no passenger list for the nighttime cruise by the pleasure craft, the Marchioness, which could carry 150 people. The police and rescue officials reported that 89 survivors had been found, and that the death toll could range from 20 to as high as 60. Government Inquiry
The police arrested the captain and second mate of the barge, a dredger called the Bowbelle, while its other crew members were questioned. The arrested pair were said to have been given blood tests for alcohol consumption. ''We are looking into what could be a serious criminal matter,'' a police official said.
In addition to the police investigation, the British Government announced an immediate inquiry by the Department of Transport's marine accident investigation branch. Some politicians and marine experts expressed concern that increased tourist and pleasure craft on the Thames in recent years may have created a traffic problem on the river, for which existing rules of navigation are insufficient.
The boat party was a birthday celebration for a young Londoner in the modeling business, Antonio Vascancellas, who was one of the dozens believed to have drowned. The Thames is an important British tourist attraction, with hundreds of thousands of visitors taking sightseeing river trips each year. The number of pleasure craft traveling the Thames has doubled in the last five years, a spokesman for the Port of London Authority estimated. He added that accidents were nonetheless rare and that the Thames was among the safest major river thoroughfares in the world.
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who described the sinking as ''a tragedy of the first order,'' flew back from a vacation in Austria to visit the scene, monitor the investigation and talk to survivors.
Initial police reports and estimates by some survivors indicated that about 120 people were aboard. At an afternoon news conference, however, the police said as many as 151 people could have been on the Marchioness, suggesting that the number drowned could have been as high as 60. But the owners of the Marchioness, Tidal Cruises Ltd., said tonight that the size of the party group might have been about 110. Nearly Sheared in Half
The accident occurred just before 2 A.M. today. Survivors of the crash said the Marchioness was hit from behind by the barge, turned sideways and then nearly sheared in half by the much larger vessel.
''Suddenly, it rammed us again, our boat was run over and we were underneath the water,'' said Rod Lay, 26, who managed to swim to the surface, where he was rescued and taken to a nearby hospital.
The 1,500-ton dredging barge appears to have strayed into a lane close to shore reserved for smaller boats like the Marchioness, a 90-ton craft. According to a spokesman for the Port of London Authority, the Bowbelle should have remained in the middle channel, known to seamen as the ''fairway.'' Instead, the barge appeared to have rammed the pleasure cruiser from behind in the shoreside lane.
Given the difference in size of the two vessels, Ken Dwan, whose company owned the Marchioness, said, ''It would have been like a tank running over a minicar.''
The Marchioness sank within two minutes in roughly 25 feet of water near Southwark Bridge in central London. There was a discotheque on board, with many of the young people dancing or enjoying the clear, cool summer night. Those dancing in the enclosed deck would have been most likely to have been trapped and unable to escape, given how rapidly the craft sank. Fast-Flowing River
Those missing are believed to be dead. The Thames is a fast-flowing river by the time it reaches London, which is also buffeted by strong tidal currents. For example, the first body recovered, an unidentified young woman, was found eight miles upstream from the scene of the accident, carried by the rising tide.
The treacherous conditions made the search for bodies difficult and dangerous. Divers and salvage experts also battled the currents to raise the Marchioness late today. A London ambulance spokesman said a ''number of bodies'' had been sighted in the wreck, but could not give an exact number.
Most of the survivors were taken to three London hospitals, examined and released. ''Most had minor injuries, and the majority were quite emotionally shocked,'' said Dr. Paul Davies, a surgeon at St. Thomas's Hospital.
photo of pleasure cruiser being raised from the Thames (Reuters) (pg. A1); map of London showing site of collision (pg. A2)
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i don't know
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Who played investigator Jim Hardie in the TV western series “Wells Fargo”?
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Dale Robertson, Star of TV Westerns, Dies at 89 | Hollywood Reporter
Dale Robertson, Star of TV Westerns, Dies at 89
5:55 PM PST 2/27/2013 by Mike Barnes
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Dale Robertson in "Tales of Wells Fargo"
The Oklahoma native toplined NBC’s “Tales of Wells Fargo” in the late 1950s and appeared in scores of other films and TV shows.
Dale Robertson, a veteran of movies and TV Westerns of the 1950s and ’60s who played “the left-handed gun” on NBC’s Tales of Wells Fargo, died Wednesday of lung cancer and pneumonia in a San Diego hospital. He was 89.
An Oklahoma native and member of the Cowboy Hall of Fame, Robertson also starred as gambler-turned-railroad tycoon Ben Calhoun in Iron Horse, which ran on ABC from 1966-68, and as the Texas billionaire title character in NBC’s 1987-88 adventure series J.J. Starbuck, from Stephen J. Cannell Productions.
The tall, handsome Robertson also had recurring roles on TV’s Dynasty, Dallas, Harts of the West and Death Valley Days, on which he followed Ronald Reagan and Robert Taylor as a narrator.
Robertson (who was right-handed) played Wells Fargo special agent Jim Hardie -- referred to as “the left-handed gun” -- in Tales of Wells Fargo, which was set in the 1870s and ’80s and aired on NBC from 1957-62. On the series, Hardie protected stagecoaches from outlaws and Indians, seeing them safely to their destination. He reportedly did his own stunts.
Born in Harrah, Okla., Robertson grew up around horses. He served in World War II, where he was twice wounded in combat and won bronze and silver stars. He also boxed professionally before movie scouts spotted his picture in a photography store and signed him up.
Robertson’s film credits included Fighting Man of the Plains (1949) with Randolph Scott, Call Mr. Mister (1951) with Dan Dailey, The Farmer Takes a Wife with Betty Grable (1953) and the Arctic-set Top of the World (1955).
Robertson used his Hollywood earnings to raise horses on the Haymaker Farms ranch that he built in Yukon, Okla., just west of Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma Gazette reported that at one time, he owned 235 horses, and some of the mares had five world champions.
Robertson sold the ranch and horses years ago, and in May, his wife Susan, who survives him, presided over an auction that sold much of his memorabilia and belongings.
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Dale Robertson
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Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew was reprimanded after head butting a player from which Premier League team?
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Tales of Wells Fargo (TV Series 1957–1962) - IMDb
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Agent Jim Hardie shifts over its history from being mostly an agent helping Wells Fargo cope with badguys to being the owner of a ranch near San Francisco who still does some agent work.
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After the Civil War, nomadic adventurer Cheyenne Bodie roamed the west looking for fights, women and bad guys to beat up. His job changed from episode to episode.
Stars: Clint Walker, Clyde Howdy, Chuck Hicks
Marshal Earp keeps the law, first in Kansas and later in Arizona, using his over-sized pistols and a variety of sidekicks. Most of the saga is based loosely on fact, with historical badguys... See full summary »
Stars: Hugh O'Brian, Jimmy Noel, Ethan Laidlaw
Frontier hero Daniel Boone conducts surveys and expeditions around Boonesborough, running into both friendly and hostile Indians, just before and during the Revolutionary War.
Stars: Fess Parker, Patricia Blair, Darby Hinton
Two Secret Services agents, equipped with a wide array of gizmos, work for the government in the Old West.
Stars: Robert Conrad, Ross Martin, Dick Cangey
A reformed outlaw becomes stranded after an aborted train robbery with two other passengers and is forced to rejoin his old outlaw band.
Director: Anthony Mann
Edit
Storyline
Agent Jim Hardie shifts over its history from being mostly an agent helping Wells Fargo cope with badguys to being the owner of a ranch near San Francisco who still does some agent work. Written by Ed Stephan <[email protected]>
18 March 1957 (USA) See more »
Also Known As:
Did You Know?
Trivia
The locomotive used in this series is the same one used in the series Casey Jones (1957). See more »
Connections
Good to watch it again.
4 January 2017 | by bugsmoran29
(United States) – See all my reviews
The Western Encore channel has only just recently begun to show "Tales of Wells Fargo" here in January of 2016. I haven't watched this black and white cowboy show since it originally aired on network television back in the late Fifties and early Sixties. I must admit that I am really enjoying watching Dale Robertson as the Wells Fargo special agent or troubleshooter. The show brings to mind "Have Gun, Will Travel." Hardie, like Paladin, is a man who would rather use his wits and wiles before resorting to his fists or weapon. Like Paladin, Joe Hardie, travels all over the west and into Canada, tracking down highway agents, frauds and thieves.
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i don't know
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Trappist monks are a stricter version of which religious order?
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Homepage | Becoming a Trappist Monk or Nun
Becoming a Trappist Monk or Nun
Homepage
One Order, Seventeen Monasteries of Monks and Nuns
We are the Cistercians of the Strict Observance, a religious order of the Roman Catholic Church, also known as "Trappists" or "Trappistines". We encourage you to explore our lives by exploring these pages, especially our "Newcomer's Guide." If you are interested in becoming a Cistercian monk or nun, your will find helpful information here: Steps to Becoming a Monk or Nun and links to all of our monasteries. Please enjoy exploring this site! Learn more about us →
Daily Reflection: January 19, 2017
A brother said to Pambo: “Say something to the Archbishop so that he may be edified. Pambo replied: “If he is not edified by my silence, he will not be edified by my speech.”
Which is better for the other to speak or to say nothing?
Monastic Wisdom
Abba Poemen Said
If a monk overcomes two things, he can be free from this world." And a brother asked: "What are they?" He replied: "Bodily ease and vainglory."
The Newcomer's Guide to the Trappists
An Excellent Introduction to the Trappists for Young People!
Get the basics concerning a beautiful and distinctive sixteen hundred year old monastic tradition still lived by monks and nuns in the U.S. Today.
News
What sign can this be?
What sort of sign were the shepherds given? You will find the child wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. . . .What kind of sign, then, can this be?
Indeed it is a great one, if only we understand it rightly. Such understanding will be ours if this message of love is not restricted to our hearing, but if our hearts too are illuminated by the light which accompanied the appearance of the angels. The angel who first proclaimed the good tidings appeared surrounded by light to teach us that only those whose minds are spiritually enlightened can truly understand the message.
Much can be said of this sign; but as time is passing, I shall say little, and briefly. Bethlehem, the house of bread, is holy Church, in which is distributed the body of Christ, the true bread. The manger at Bethlehem is the altar of the church; it is there that Christ's creatures are fed. This is the table of which it is written, You have prepared a banquet for me. In this manger is Jesus, wrapped in the swaddling clothes which are the outward form of the sacraments. Here in this manger, under the species of bread and wine, is the true body and blood of Christ. We believe that Christ himself is here, but he is wrapped in swaddling clothes; in other words, he is invisibly contained in these sacraments. We have no greater or clearer proof of Christ's birth than our daily reception of his body and blood at the holy altar, and the sight of him who was once born for us of a virgin daily offered in sacrifice for us.
Christmas Discourse, Aelred of Rievaulx
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Cistercians
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Although not necessarily wearing them, which item of clothing does a grabologist take great pleasure in collecting?
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Becoming a Trappist Monk or Nun
TRAPPISTS in the United States
One Order, Seventeen Monasteries of Monks and Nuns
We are the Cistercians of the Strict Observance, a religious order of the Roman Catholic Church, also known as "Trappists" or "Trappistines". For more than nine centuries we Cistercians have witnessed to the gospel of Jesus Christ by a cloistered, communal life wholly ordered to contemplation. Within the enclosure of the monastery, forgotten by the world, we joyfully embrace an ascetic discipline which fosters conversion of life to the pattern of Christ's life of prayer, sacrifice, and loving service to our neighbor. Since the arrival of the first Cistercians in North America in 1848, we have become seventeen monasteries in twelve states, living a distinctive life of hidden fruitfulness at the heart of the church. As with many other religious orders who have their origin in Medieval Christianity, our order is dedicated under the protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Our website intends to answer the needs of men and women discerning a call from God to be a Trappist monk or nun. If what you see and read here awakens in you a desire to follow Christ in the silence and solitude of a Trappist monastery, know that this is God working in your heart in response to our prayers. Please contact us and be assured that we are ready to offer you our love and assistance in your discernment process.
Don't miss the new film:
"Of Gods and Men"
Winner of the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival
The Story of our Trappist Brothers in Algeria
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i don't know
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Emil Zatopek won the 5000 and 10000 metres at the 1952 Olympics. In which event did his wife Dana also win a gold medal?
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Athletics at the 1952 Helsinki Summer Games | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com
Athletics at the 1952 Helsinki Summer Games
Date Started: July 20, 1952
Date Finished: July 27, 1952
Events: 33
Participants: 963 (776 men and 187 women) from 57 countries
Youngest Participant:
Barbara Jones (15 years, 124 days)
Oldest Participant:
John Deni (49 years, 75 days)
Most Medals (Athlete): 3 athletes with 3 medals
Most Medals (Country):
United States (31 medals)
Overview
The world had not recovered somewhat from the ravages of World War II, and the level of athletics competition was increasing yearly. The 1952 Olympics saw the début of athletes from the Soviet Union, who had competed at the 1946 and 1950 European Championships, but had passed on the 1948 Olympics, for rather Byzantine reasons. Germany also competed again, after they were not invited in 1948. Titularly Germany was to be represented by a combined team from East and West Germany, but the German team was entirely from West Germany, as the East Germans refused to compete alongside their Western counterparts. The 1952 Olympics were opened by two Finnish track legends. The torch was brought into the stadium at the Opening Ceremony by [Paavo Nurmi], the greatest athletic star in the Finnish pantheon. He then handed it to [Hannes Kolehmainen] , winner of the 5K and 10K in 1912 and the marathon in 1920, who lit the Olympic Flame. Having been opened by distance runners, it was fitting that the Helsinki Olympics were the private party of the great Czechoslovakian runner, [Emil Zátopek]. Zátopek won the 5,000/10,000 double in dominating fashion. He had never before run a marathon, but elected to enter that race as well, and won quite easily, completeing a unique Olympic distance triple. His family did quite well, as his wife, Dana Zátopková, won the women’s javelin gold medal. The German team won no events, but collected two silvers and three bronze medals. The Soviet men did won any gold medals, but [Galina Zybina] won the shot put and [Nina Romashkova-Ponomaryova] the discus throw.
Medalists
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Part of the
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Javelin
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The Lempira is the main unit of currency in which central American country?
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The Times
Emil Zatopek, whose ungainly style belied an extraordinary running talent, in his prime
Emil Zatopek, 1922-2000
The prototype of a long line of Czech sporting figures, Emil Zatopek was one of the greatest distance runners ever to grace the track. For a period of six years, 1948-54, he was supreme in the 10,000 metres, an event in which he repeatedly lowered the world record. Time and time again his blistering pace projected him into a sphere of athletics excellence where opponents simply could not survive.
So complete was his supremacy that the race itself ceased, in his great years, to be the point for him, and he had to motivate himself by keeping the world record steadfastly before him. In the 1950 European championships, for example, he was a colossal 69 seconds ahead of the second placed athlete at the finish. And at the same meeting in the 5,000 metres � an event at which he also excelled without enjoying quite the same unchallenged superiority for quite so long � he came home 23 seconds clear of the opposition.
His most astonishing Olympic Games was in 1952 at Helsinki, where he won the 5,000 metres, 10,000 metres and the marathon, even though the last event was his first attempt at the distance. Over a period of five years, 1949-54, he slashed more than half a minute off his 10,000 metre time, lowering his own world record from 29min 28.2sec to 28min 54.2sec. His 5,000 metres world record of 1954, 13min 57.2sec, was almost 20 seconds faster than the time he had posted at the 1948 Olympics when coming in second.
Statistics apart, Zatopek was one of the great personalities of the track. To the casual observer, his tortured expression, red face, lolling tongue and audible wheezings might have suggested a man in no physical condition to be participating in running races. Those hapless opponents toiling fruitlessly in his wake were in a position to testify to the contrary.
He owed his remarkable results to a natural ability allied to his relentless exposition of the principles of Fartlek � speed-training of Swedish origin � which banished for ever the until then hallowed long-distance running concept of the �steady pace�. Instead of training over race-length distances, Zatopek subjected himself to a series of punishing 400-metre sprints, �relaxing� in between them with 250 metres at the jog. This was the secret of those electrifying bursts of speed which he was capable of suddenly injecting into a race, completely upsetting his opponents� calculations and destroying their collective will.
Zatopek�s prowess on the track earned him immense prestige in Czechoslovakia. But neither prowess nor prestige could protect him from the agents of state repression in the wake of the Soviet occupation of his country in 1968. In one of the more shameful codicils to the Russian crushing of Czech reformist aspirations, Zatopek was, as a signatory of Alexander Dubcek�s Manifesto of 2,000 Words, stripped of his army rank, his Communist Party membership and his job.
For the next 30 years he lived in obscurity, performing largely menial tasks, even after he had, in error, signed up to a qualified acceptance of the post-1968 status quo. When rehabilitation came with the collapse of the Soviet empire it found him broken in health and no longer able to perform the ambassadorial role on behalf of Czech sport for which he had been so manifestly fitted in those lost years.
Zatopek and his wife Dana, had one of the great sporting marriages. A javelin thrower, Dana Zatopkova, too, won gold at the 1952 Olympics and at the 1954 European championships. And she was to carry on after he had retired to win gold again at the 1958 European championships in Stockholm.
Emil Zatopek was born in 1922 in Koprivnice, in Moravia, and grew up in Zlin, the home of Bata shoes. He himself worked at the Bata factory whose director persuaded him to take part in a sponsored 1,500 metre race, one day in 1940. Without having trained, he came second in a field of 100 youths and was persuaded to take the sport seriously. With his country dominsted by Nazi Germany athletics provided an outlet for frustrated ambition for a young man over the next few years.
Zatopek experimented relentlessly. He trained in heavy army boots to make his feet feel lighter on race days. He wore a gas mask to see if it helped his breath control. (It didn�t.) When the curfew forced him indoors he ran on the spot in a spare room. In 1944 he broke the Czech records for 2,000, 3,000 and 5,000 metres. Selected for the Czech team for the 1946 European champioships in Oslo, he came fifth, bringing his Czech record of 14min 50.2sec, established the previous year, down to 14 min 25.8sec.
By today�s standards this was a late start to an international career, but Zatopek in his mid-twenties showed he had plenty more to offer. The Finnish world record holder, Viljo Heino, was expected to dominate the 10,000 metres at the 1948 Olympics in London. But after a fierce battle lasting 15 laps Zatopek burnt the Finn off with his repeated bursts of acceleration, going on to win from the Frenchman Alain Mimoun by a margin of almost 48 seconds.
The very next day was his 5,000 metre heat and only two days after that was the final. Gustav Reiff of Belgium opened a 40-metre gap on Zatopek and appeared to have the race in the bag as they entered the last lap. But Zatopek mounted a furious charge over the last 400 metres and had closed to within two metres at the tape.
These London performances were the beginning of Zatopek�s reign as the undisputed king of the distance runners. In the 1950 European championships he avenged himself on Reiff after a pulsating battle in which the Belgian led for four-fifths of the race, until a burst of acceleration from the Czech broke his heart and reduced him to a canter in which he was passed by Mimoun for second place.
Three days earlier, Zatopek had won the 10,000 metres from Mamoun by 69 seconds. In the following year he became the first man to run 20,000 metres in under an hour, completing the distance in 59min 51.6.sec. Among Zatopek�s achievements at Helsinki in 1952, the most memorable of his three races � and undoubtedly his severest test � was the 5,000 metres.
The leaders of the field, which included the young Chris Chataway, Herbert Schade of Germany and Mimoun, were closely bunched at the bell, and Chataway launched a courageous attempt to get away from the group down the back straight. But as they rounded the last curve Zatopek put in an unanswerable burst; the hapless Chataway tripped on the kerb and fell; and the other two could find no answer to this dramatic raising of the stakes. Zatopek covered the last lap in 58.1 secs to take the tape in one of the purest displays of sheer competitive aggression ever seen on the track.
In the end the years and injury took their toll. From 1953 the star of Vladimir Kuts, of Ukraine, was in the ascendant on the international scene. And although at Berne in 1954 Zatopek easily won the 10,000 metres in which Kuts did not participate, he had to concede to the Ukrainian in the 5,000, in which he came third behind Chataway.
In 1955 Zatopek set the last two of his 18 world records, for 15 miles and 25,000 metres. The following year he retired from competition after coming sixth in the marathon at the Melbourne Olympics, a performance doubtless affected by a previous operation for hernia. Thereafter he worked as a coach in the Czech Army, rising to the rank of colonel.
Until 1968 his life continued peacefully, but both he and his wife were in the front line of opinion which supported the Prague spring reforms of Alexander Dubcek. Both were signatories of the Manifesto and when, in August that year, the tanks rolled into Prague, Emil Zatopek went to Wenceslas Square to remonstrate with their crews. Hailed as �our Olympic champion� by the crowds as he did so, he was bound to be a conspicuous target when reprisals began.
Dismissed from the army, he joined that band of dissident Czechs who found themselves part of the best-educated manual work force in any European country. For some years he dug and shovelled for a geological team searching for minerals in a remote part of the country. When western journalists asked to interview him he was always �not available�.
Finally he was given a job by the Czech sports ministry, reading foreign sports periodicals and reporting on what coaches outside Czechoslovakia were doing. He and his wife both retired in 1980 and thereafter they lived quietly, he in a state of gradually deteriorating health which had involved him in several periods in hospital. Dana Zatopkova survives him. They had no children.
Copyright 2000 Times Newspapers Ltd . This service is provided on Times Newspapers' standard terms and conditions . To inquire about a licence to reproduce material from The Times, visit the Syndication website .
Athletics
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i don't know
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Which golfer won the British Open, US Open and Canadian Open in 1971?
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Complete List of British Open Winners
By Brent Kelley
Updated January 13, 2017.
Below is the full list of British Open winners dating to the founding of the Open Championship in the mid-19th century. Before we see the list, though, let's start with the oldest major's winningest golfers.
The Most-Frequent Winners of the Open
6 wins - Harry Vardon, 1896, 1898, 1899, 1903, 1911, 1914
5 wins - James Braid, 1901, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1910
5 wins - J.H. Taylor, 1894, 1895, 1900, 1909, 1913
5 wins - Peter Thomson, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1965
5 wins - Tom Watson, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1983
4 wins - Old Tom Morris, Young Tom Morris, Willie Park Sr., Walter Hagen, Bobby Locke
3 wins - Jamie Anderson, Bob Ferguson, Bobby Jones, Henry Cotton, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Tiger Woods
2 wins - Bob Martin, Willie Park Jr., Harold Hilton, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Greg Norman, Padraig Harrington, Ernie Els
The Full Roster of British Open Champions
Here are all the winners in Open Championship history (a-amateur):
continue reading below our video
What Size Bike Should I Buy?
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Lee Trevino
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What was the name of the model tragically shot by Oscar Pretorius?
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1972 British Open - The Amazing Mexican - YouTube
1972 British Open - The Amazing Mexican
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Published on Aug 1, 2012
The 1972 Open Championship was the 101st Open Championship, held from 12--15 July at Muirfield Golf Links in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. Lee Trevino won his second straight Claret Jug, the first to successfully defend his title since Arnold Palmer in 1962. Trevino finished one stroke ahead of runner-up Jack Nicklaus, ending his bid for the grand slam. Nicklaus had won the first two majors in 1972 and was the odds-on favorite at Muirfield, where he won his first Open in 1966. Six strokes back at even-par after 54 holes, he shot a final round 66 (--5) on Saturday to tie the course record, but played the final three holes at one-over par. Trevino posted his own 66 in the third round and held on with an even-par 71, which included a chip-in for par at 17, to gain the fourth of his six major titles
Category
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i don't know
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Which aviation company manufactured the Cherokee, Comanche and Seminole light aircraft?
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Home - Piper
Piper
Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A, 600 shp
Six Seats
274 ktas / 507 km/h Max Cruise
1,484 nm / 2,668 km Range
Garmin G3000 Avionics Suite
Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A, 500 shp
Six Seats
260 ktas / 482 km/h Max Cruise
1,000 nm / 1,852 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
213 ktas / 395 km/h Max Cruise
1,343 nm / 2,487 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
213 ktas / 395 km/h Max Cruise
1,343 nm / 2,487 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
(2) Continental TSIO-360-RB 220 hp ea
Six Seats / Club Seating
200 ktas / 370 km/h Max Cruise
828 nm / 1,533 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
162 ktas / 300 km/h 75% Power Cruise
700 nm / 1,296 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
137 ktas / 254 km/h Max Cruise
880 nm / 1,630 km Range
Garmin G500 Avionics Suite
128 ktas / 237 km/h Max Cruising
522 nm / 967 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
123 ktas / 228 km/h 75% Power
848 nm / 1,570 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
115 ktas / 217 km/h Max Cruise
513 nm / 950 km Range
Garmin G500 Avionics Suite
Get more for your money
More cabin, more useful load, for $899,000
NADA – National Automobile Dealers Association January 26 - January 29
Avalon February 28 - March 5
Women in Aviation March 2 - March 4
CONEXPO March 7 - March 11
Sun ‘n Fun April 4 - April 9
AERO Friedrichshafen April 5 - April 8
EBACE May 22 - May 24
EAA AirVenture July 24 - July 30
LABACE August 15 - August 20
MMOPA September 13 - September 17
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Piper
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What is the name of the traditional stiff skirt worn by Greek and Albanian men?
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History - Piper
Piper
Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A, 600 shp
Six Seats
274 ktas / 507 km/h Max Cruise
1,484 nm / 2,668 km Range
Garmin G3000 Avionics Suite
Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A, 500 shp
Six Seats
260 ktas / 482 km/h Max Cruise
1,000 nm / 1,852 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
213 ktas / 395 km/h Max Cruise
1,343 nm / 2,487 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
213 ktas / 395 km/h Max Cruise
1,343 nm / 2,487 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
(2) Continental TSIO-360-RB 220 hp ea
Six Seats / Club Seating
200 ktas / 370 km/h Max Cruise
828 nm / 1,533 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
162 ktas / 300 km/h 75% Power Cruise
700 nm / 1,296 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
137 ktas / 254 km/h Max Cruise
880 nm / 1,630 km Range
Garmin G500 Avionics Suite
128 ktas / 237 km/h Max Cruising
522 nm / 967 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
123 ktas / 228 km/h 75% Power
848 nm / 1,570 km Range
Garmin G1000 Avionics Suite
115 ktas / 217 km/h Max Cruise
513 nm / 950 km Range
Garmin G500 Avionics Suite
History
IT ALL STARTED WITH A YELLOW AIRPLANE
When Mr. Piper introduced the Piper Cub in 1937, he had a dream. He felt that everyone should fly. And he believed that Piper could provide everyone with that freedom. 130,000 aircraft later, that dream lives on. Today, Piper Aircraft is the only general aviation manufacturer to offer a complete line of aircraft. From rugged, reliable trainers to a high-performance turboprop, from student pilot to experienced aviator Piper creates the freedom of flight for everyone.
Aircraft
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i don't know
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What name is given to the point of a planet’s orbit furthest from the sun?
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At what times are the planets closest and farthest from the Sun?
At what times are the planets closest and farthest from the Sun?
Well, I think that we might all recall some teacher somewhere telling us that the Earth is actually closest to the Sun when the Northern Hemisphere is experiencing winter (December 21), and is farthest during the summer months ( June 21) north of the equator. We were all pretty bewildered by this until we learned that the Earth's axis maintains a fixed orientation to the plane of the solar system such that when it is at 'perihelion' at the Winter Solstice, the Earth is tilted away from the Sun, and the slanting of the solar rays cause less light energy to strike the surface at a given time of the day. In the summer, when the Sun is farthest from the Earth at the Summer Solstice, the Earth's axis is tilted towards the Sun, and the light rays angle to the ground at a steeper angle. The Sun rises higher in the sky, and in the northern hemisphere, this all adds up to balmy summer days.
The other planets in the solar system travel around the Sun over different orbital periods. Their years, measured in Earth days, are very different than our own. Mercury takes 87 Earth days to go once around the sun, Jupiter takes 11.8 Earth years, and Neptune takes 164.8 Earth years. The question of when will each of the planets be closest ( perihelion) and farthest ( aphelion ) from the Sun will be different for each planet. There is no fixed time during a single EARTH year when this will happen, but instead you have to work out the locations of all the planets in their orbits and determine their perihelia and aphelia. From this you can find the appropriate Earth day, month and year when this will happen.
The easiest way I know how to do this is to go to the US Nautical Ephemeris, which is published every year, and check out their tables for the heliocentric distance of the planet from the Sun, usually given in Astronomical Units ( ie in units of the radius of the Earth's orbit of 93 million miles). You then scan the table for the date when this number is a minimum ( perihelion) and a maximum ( aphelion). Since Venus and Mercury orbit the Sun in less than one year, you can just use the 1995 or 1996 Ephemeris to look this up. For the rest of the planets, you will need to go back a bit further. It's a real bear of a process.
A shortcut is to find the current heliocentric longitude of the planet, and its change per day, and compare this with the orbital element of the planet's 'Longitude of Perihelion'. Example, For Mercury, on January 3, 1995 its longitude was 345.7 degrees, and its Longitude of Perihelion is 77.37 degrees. The planets daily longitude changes by 4.09 degrees per day, so this means that its next perihelion will occur when the planet has moved an additional 77.37 + (360.0 - 345.7) = 91.67 degrees. At a rate of 4.09 degrees/day, this will take 22.41 days from January 3, 1995 so that its next perihelion will be on January 25, 1995. Since Mercury goes once around the sun every 87.6 days, it will reach aphelion after 87.6/2 = 43.8 days after perihelion passage on January 25. Below I will list the upcoming, next perihelia and aphelia for the planets.
Distance (mega miles) Next Date Perihelion Aphelion Perihelion Aphelion Mercury 28.6 43.4 10/16/1995 11/29/1995 Venus 66.8 67.7 8/11/1995 12/1/1995 Earth 91.4 94.5 12/21/1995 6/21/1996 Mars 128.4 154.9 2/19/1996 1/28/1997 Jupiter 460.3 507.2 5/5/1999 3/29/2005 Saturn 837.6 936.2 5/26/2003 2/8/2018 Uranus 1699.0 1868.0 3/1/2050 4/17/2008 Neptune 2771.0 2819.0 3/2030 2/2112 Pluto 2756.0 4555.0 8/1989 8/2113 <\pre> Unless I have made some dumb mistake in adding and converting from elapsed days to a calendar date, these dates should be more or less correct. Jupiter's last Aphelion was on June 12, 1993, and Saturn's was on September 16, 1988. Uranus was at perihelion on June 4, 1966.
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Perihelion and aphelion
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A dish described as “a la Dubarry” would contain which vegetable?
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Earth Is Farthest From the Sun for 2013 Today
Earth Is Farthest From the Sun for 2013 Today
By Joe Rao, Skywatching Columnist |
July 5, 2013 11:27am ET
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The sun is captured in a "starburst" mode over Earth's horizon by one of the Expedition 36 crew members aboard the International Space Station, as the orbital outpost was above a point in southwestern Minnesota on May 21, 2013.
Credit: NASA
The Earth is as far from the sun as possible for the year today (July 5), but that may come as a surprise for people baking in a heat wave affecting nine western states, with temperatures at or above 100 expected across much of Southern California, southern Nevada and southern Arizona.
Of course, scorching heat has blistered most of the Southwest in recent days where highs of 115 to120 degrees over parts of Arizona, Nevada and California occurred this past weekend; the temperature at California's Death Valley actually approached 130 degrees.
With such punishing heat as this, it may be shocking to hear that today at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT), the Earth reached the point in its orbit where it is farthest from the sun in space. During aphelion, as it is called, the Earth will be 94,508,959 miles (152,097,426 kilometers) from the sun, or 3,106,399 miles (4,999,264 km) farther as compared to when the Earth was closest point to the sun (called perihelion) last New Year's Day. The difference in distance is 3.287 percent, which makes a difference in radiant heat received by Earth of nearly 7 percent. [ Earth Quiz: Do You Know Your Home Planet? ]
A climatological fallacy
If you ask most people in which month of the year they believe that the Earth is closest to the sun most probably would say we’re closest during June, July or August. But our warm weather doesn't relate to our distance from the sun. It's because of the 23.5-degree tilt of the Earth's axis that the sun is above the horizon for different lengths of time at different seasons. The tilt determines whether the sun's rays strike us at a low angle or more directly.
At the latitude of Chicago for instance, the more nearly direct rays at the summer solstice of June 21 bring about three times as much heat as the more slanting rays at the winter solstice on Dec. 21. Heat received by any region is dependent on the length of daylight and the angle of the sun above the horizon. Hence the noticeable differences in temperatures that are registered over different parts of the world.
You live here, so we figure you ought to be well grounded in Earth facts. But you might find these questions a little tough and tricky. Good luck!
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i don't know
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When the rock band Free disbanded, Paul Rodgers and Simon Kirke went on to form which other group?
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Free - Music on Google Play
Free
About the artist
Free was an English rock band formed in London in 1968, best known for their 1970 signature song "All Right Now". They disbanded in 1973 and lead singer Paul Rodgers went on to become a frontman of the band Bad Company along with Simon Kirke on drums. Lead guitarist Paul Kossoff formed Back Street Crawler and died from a pulmonary embolism at the age of 25 in 1976. Bassist Andy Fraser formed Sharks.
The band was famed for its sensational live shows and nonstop touring. However, early studio albums did not sell very well – until the release of Fire and Water which featured the massive hit "All Right Now". The song helped secure them a place at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 where they played to 600,000 people.
By the early 1970s, Free was one of the biggest-selling British blues rock groups; by the time the band dissolved in 1973, they had sold more than 20 million albums around the world and had played more than 700 arena and festival concerts. "All Right Now," remains a rock staple, and had been entered into ASCAP's "One Million" airplay singles club.
Rolling Stone has referred to the band as "British hard rock pioneers".
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$11.49
Heartbreaker is the sixth and final studio album by English rock group Free, that provided them with one of their most successful singles, "Wishing Well". It was recorded in late 1972 after bassist...
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Heartbreaker is the sixth and final studio album by English rock group Free, that provided them with one of their most successful singles, "Wishing Well". It was recorded in late 1972 after bassist...
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Free at Last is the fifth studio album by English rock band Free. The band had broken up in April 1971 due to differences between singer Paul Rodgers and bassist Andy Fraser but had now reformed.
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Fire and Water is the third studio album released by English rock group Free. The album became the band's breakthrough hit, reaching #2 in the UK charts and #17 in the US, making it the most succes...
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Free is the second album by English rock group Free, recorded and released in 1969. The band had spent time touring after their debut album Tons of Sobs the previous year, and there is a marked dif...
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Paul Rodgers
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Paul Bernard Rodgers is an English singer, songwriter and musician, best known for his success in the 1960s and 1970s as vocalist of Free and Bad Company. He now lives in Canada as a naturalized Ca...
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Paul Kossoff
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Paul Francis Kossoff was an English guitarist best known as a member of Free. He was ranked 51st in Rolling Stone magazine list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
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Rory Gallagher
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William Rory Gallagher was an Irish blues and rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, and brought up in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums th...
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Wishbone Ash
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Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular albums included Wishbone Ash, Pilgrimage, Argus, There's the Rub, and New England. Wishbone Ash a...
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Humble Pie
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Humble Pie was an English rock band formed by Steve Marriott, in Essex during 1969. They are known as one of the late 1960s' first supergroups and found success on both sides of the Atlantic with s...
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Thin Lizzy
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Thin Lizzy are a rock band formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1969. Two of the founding members, drummer Brian Downey and bass guitarist and lead vocalist Phil Lynott, met while still in school. Lynott l...
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Dr. Feelgood
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Dr. Feelgood are a British pub rock band formed in 1971. Hailing from Canvey Island, Essex, they are best known for early singles like "She Does It Right", "Roxette", and "Back in the Night". The g...
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Chicken Shack
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Chicken Shack are a British blues band, founded in the mid-1960s by Stan Webb, Andy Silvester, and Alan Morley, who were later joined by Christine Perfect in 1968. Chicken Shack has performed with ...
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Mott The Hoople
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Mott the Hoople were an English rock band with strong R&B roots, popular in the glam rock era of the early to mid-1970s. They are best known for the song "All the Young Dudes", written for them by ...
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Peter Green
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Peter Green is a British blues rock guitarist. As the founder of Fleetwood Mac, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Green's songs, such as "Albatross", "Black Magic Woman",...
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Bad Company
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Bad Company are an English hard rock supergroup formed in Westminster, London, in 1973 by two former Free band members—singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke—as well as Mott the Hoople guitari...
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Mountain
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Mountain is an American hard rock band that formed on Long Island, New York in 1969. Originally comprising vocalist and guitarist Leslie West, bassist/vocalist Felix Pappalardi, keyboardist Steve K...
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Ten Years After
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Ten Years After are an English blues rock band, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Between 1968 and 1973, Ten Years After scored eight Top 40 albums on the UK Albums Chart. In addition...
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The Groundhogs
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The Groundhogs are a British rock band founded in late 1963, that toured extensively in the 1960s, achieved prominence in the early 1970s and continued sporadically into the 21st century.
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Bad Company
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Which Austrian racing driver was the posthumous Formula One world champion in 1970?
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Bad Company Reviews
Bad Company offers a good time
Judith Salkin - The Desert Sun- July 18, 2010
Bad Company performs Friday at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino. The English rock super group was founded in 1973. Some of their hits are “Can't Get Enough” 1974 and “Bad Company.“ (Photos by Wade Byars, The Desert Sun)
Paul Rodgers performs with Bad Company in concert at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino.
One thing we need in the desert to dispel the heat is a good concert or two to distract our sun-fried brains. Friday night's concert by Bad Company in the Special Events Center at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio was the perfect antidote to the 100-plus temps outside.
Founding bandmates Paul Rodgers, Mick Ralphs and Simon Kirke, along with guitarist Howard Leese (who previously worked with Heart) and Lynn Sorenson on bass and piano, gave the audience of nearly 3,000 a good 70 minutes of heavy-hitting rock on what has turned out to be the third leg of a reunion tour that started as a one-night stand at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in 2008.
The band brought out the majority of its hits, from the opening number of “Can't Get Enough of Your Love” (which seemed to be the sentiment of the audience) to the closing strains of their self-titled named first hit, “Bad Company.”
During the past 40 years, Rodgers and Co., haven't lost any of the passion for the music that they had in the early years. Every one of the 15 songs was delivered as though they were introducing it the first time, and the pacing of the songs gave both the band and the fans the chance to build to energy-packed final tunes.
The band also made good use of the LED screens at the back of the stage, which added a theatrical effect to “Burning Sky,” along with a smoke machine and “Bad Company,” with scenes that looked like they were cut from Thomas Edison's “Great Train Robbery.”
The set list included“Feel Like Makin' Love,” “Run With the Pack,” “Gone, Gone, Gone,” “Movin' On,” “Young Blood” “Ready For Love” and “Super Star.” Missing were “Rock Steady” and “Sweet Lil' Sister,” although the screaming, dancing fans didn't seem to miss them.
Two nice breaks in speed were the second song of the night, “Honey Child,” and “Seagull,” with just Rodgers and Ralphs on stage playing dual acoustic guitars.
It was short and sweet and a great night of music.
Bad Company rocks with gusto at Pacific
George A. Paul - Orange County Register - July 18, 2010
While waiting in line Saturday night to watch Bad Company during the 2010 Pacific Amphitheatre Concert Series, one silver-haired gentleman wearing a tie-dyed shirt exclaimed, "I've waited 30 years to see this band!"
Surely he meant the latest incarnation -- the closest fans can get now to the original.
As with many classic rock acts that came to prominence in the '70s, you need a scorecard to keep track of all the lineup changes. For Bad Company, the short version goes like this: vocalist Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs, bassist Boz Burrell and drummer Simon Kirke formed in 1973, after noteworthy stints in Free (Rodgers and Kirke), Mott the Hoople (Ralphs) and King Crimson (Burrell). The supergroup, the first signed to Led Zeppelin's Swan Song Records, achieved massive success -- all but one of its '70s releases went platinum, the '74 self-titled debut eventually selling 5 million copies -- but it broke up in '82.
A few years later, Ralphs and Kirke revived the name and steered toward a more pop/rock direction. Three additional hit albums and several radio chart placements ensued, while many musicians came and went.
The full founding quartet recorded four new songs for an anthology collection and toured behind it in 1999 -- then Burrell and Ralphs exited, while Rodgers and Kirke continued until 2002. (Merchants of Cool, a live disc from that tour, featured music from the Grove of Anaheim.) Rodgers subsequently joined Queen for a well-received world tour, resulting in 2008's The Cosmos Rocks studio album, though that didn't make much of an impact.
Surviving members of Bad Company (Burrell passed away in 2006) made a short East Coast concert jaunt last summer. This past April the band's sold-out gig at London's Wembley Arena was filmed for an upcoming live DVD; a new Greatest Hits -- due out domestically sometime in the future -- landed the band in the U.K. Top 10 for the first time in decades.
But their impact continues to be felt here, including in local ways: Prior to show time in Costa Mesa, fans could donate money for a signed memorabilia raffle to benefit the Kids Rock Free music education program at Fender Center in Corona. Rodgers is an active supporter of the facility, having appeared and performed there on several different occasions.
Over the course of a 90-minute, 16-song set, Bad Company tastefully kicked out the jams before a packed venue of enthusiastic concert-goers. Ralphs, 66, walked onstage and looked happy to be back in Orange County after a long absence. He immediately motioned for everyone to stand as the guys opened with "Can't Get Enough."
Rodgers, clad in a lime green shirt and black vest, twirled the microphone stand in the air and sang with gusto. Former Heart guitarist Howard Leese, who has played in Rodgers' solo band since the late '90s, did tandem riffs alongside Ralphs.
For "Run with the Pack," Rodgers stood to play a black piano and added the first of several soulful vocal tags at the end. With the stage shrouded in smoke and lightning projected on the video screens, an ominous-sounding "Burnin' Sky" was an early highlight. Lynn Sorenson, another mainstay from Rodgers' solo band, excelled here with sinewy bass lines, while the singer delivered gritty wails at the song's conclusion.
Lightening the mood, the band's hit cover of the Coasters' "Young Blood" was simple fun, while the gorgeous ballad "Seagull" found Rodgers and Ralphs alone at the front of the stage on acoustic guitars.
Some harder-edged rock came via "Gone Gone Gone" (from 1979's Desolation Angels). Then Rodgers was back at the piano for the tranquil "Electricland," which the frontman said was inspired by Paris. He had no problem with the sustained vocal notes. Leese's 12-string guitar work on the extended intro to "Simple Man" shimmered; Rodgers infused the contemplative song with bluesy vocalizations.
The subtle folk accents on "Feel Like Makin' Love" were freshened up and elevated live, thanks to Leese's mandolin work and Rodgers' harmonica solo. Audience members loudly sang along at Rodgers' prodding, but did so even more boisterously during the poignant casualty tale "Shooting Star." Despite its non-hit status, that track's reception is equal to that of "Rock and Roll Fantasy" and "Movin' On."
For the encores, Bad Company offered up a laid-back "Ready for Love," with dreamier guitar effects that verged on the psychedelic, plus more of Rodgers' bluesy inflections. Both he and Ralphs playfully leaned on each other a few times, proving the old camaraderie remained intact.
Fittingly, images of flames and horsemen were projected on the screens as the band performed its fiery namesake tune. They pulled out all the stops. To quote another popular selection, Bad Company simply rocked steady on this evening.
Plenty of love at Bad Company concert
Jane Stevenson - Toronto Sun - Aug 5, 2010
RAMA, Ont. - Bad Company turned out to be very good company on Wednesday night as the British classic rock act, featuring three original members, played a sold-out show at Casino Rama.
Singer Paul Rodgers, whose stellar pipes were last heard fronting Queen at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto four years ago, drummer Simon Kirke and guitarist Mick Ralphs, have been joined by guitarist Howard Leese (Heart) and bassist Lynn Sorensen on their latest trek.
Opening with the classic, Can't Get Enough Of Your Love, the compact and muscular Rodgers - in a yellow shirt, black studded vest, and skin tight black pants - confidently led the group in front of a sleek-looking video backdrop that initially had the band's name (shortened to Bad Co.) in red and black lights.
A healthy crowd immediately gathered at the front of the stage.
"It's nice to see you," said Rodgers, 60, who had stripped down to a white tank top by the fourth song to show off his impressive physique which he helped keep in shape with constant mic stand lifts.
"How's everyone in Ontario tonight? Wow, what a beautiful crowd, so great to see everybody."
Turns out Rodgers has Canada to thank for Mrs. Rodgers - former Miss Canada, exercise physiologist and artist Cynthia Kereluk - who he married in the Okanagan in 2007.
"It's fantastic to be back in Canada, I gotta say," said Rodgers later as the 80-minute show came to a close. "I gotta thank Canada for my lovely wife, thank you."
Considered to be one of the first "supergroups" of the '70s, Bad Company was formed by former Free members Rodgers and Kirke with Mott The Hoople's Ralphs and former King Crimson bassist Boz Burell, who died of a heart attack at aged 60 in 2006.
On the current outing, the 66-year-old Ralphs and Leese nicely shared lead guitar duties while the 61-year-old Kirke pounded his drum kit like a man half his age.
But it was Rodgers who was the total charmer, and a versatile musician as he played piano on Run With The Pack, Electricland, and Bad Company, harmonica on Oh Atlanta - "On my way, back to Ontario," he inserted into the song - and handled acoustic guitar opposite Ralphs on the contemplative rock ballad Seagull.
"Incredible voice," said Ralphs of Rodgers after the two of them shared the stage alone.
Sadly, Leese's mandolin introduction to Feel Like Makin' Love was marred by a bad connection as it popped in and out but the song was still a standout as was Shooting Star, which saw Rodgers encouraging a crowd singalong while up on Kirke's drum riser.
Other highlights included Rock N' Roll Fantasy, with both guitarists and the bassist at the front of stage, Bad Company, during which black and white cowboy footage was shown on the video screen, and Ready For Love and Rock Steady, classic rock gems, one and all.
RATING: 3.5 out of 5
SET LIST:
Can't Get Enough Of Your Love
Honey Child
Bad Company's never out of date
Brett Milano - Boston Herald - July 28, 2010
During its ’70s heyday, Bad Company was something of a supergroup. The band’s members all came from well-established bands (Free, Mott the Hoople, King Crimson). They even had Led Zeppelin’s endorsement, as the first band signed to Zep’s Swan Song label.
These days Bad Company looks like the last of a dying breed: an English hard-rock band steeped in American soul. After many lineup changes, they’re back with three-quarters of the original (singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs and drummer Simon Kirke; founding bassist Boz Burrell died in 2006) and a set full of vintage songs (“Electricland” from 1983 was the newest one played at the Bank of America Pavilion on Tuesday). Only Ralphs’ fire has dimmed a bit: The band now has a second guitarist, original Heart member Howard Leese, who never got introduced, though he took at least half the solos.
The band’s main attraction, then and now, is lead singer Rodgers - a gritty soul shouter in the mold of Otis Redding and Tom Jones. At age 60, Rodgers still has his full vocal power, and is more inclined to improvise around his original parts. Fresh from fronting an ill-fated Queen reunion, he seems far more at home in Bad Company, with its macho, good-time vibe. Though the obvious hits were all in the set - the most obvious of all, “Can’t Get Enough,” was the opener and “Bad Company” the finale - there was room for deep-catalog tracks. Most telling was “Gone, Gone, Gone,” in which Rodgers comes up with an instant cure for the lost-girlfriend blues: “I better get the boys together and do some drinking fast.” That’s Bad Company’s worldview in a nutshell; some things never go out of date.
Boston band Township was an inspired choice to open. They do irony-free classic rock with memorable tunes, big, chunky riffs and the occasional prog workout. The band’s excitement at playing an arena was totally infectious
Bad Co. proves place in rock history
Scott McLennan - Boston Globe - July 28, 2010
Bad Company hit the Bank of America Pavilion yesterday not so much with a concert but rather a pitch-perfect classic-rock tent revival.
Standard-bearers of 1970s rock, Bad Company unfurled all the expected hits, plus a few choice deep-album cuts, before a packed crowd of devotees that knew every nuance of "Feel Like Makin' Love'' and cheered the exultation of "Seagull'' without a hint of irony.
Things could have felt terribly dated but for the pure conviction of singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs, and drummer Simon Kirke, the original members of Bad Company, joined by bassist Lynn Sorensen and guitarist Howard Leese. Founding bassist Boz Burrell died in 2006, but took part in the 1999 incarnation of the band's reunion, which continues in spurts.
Rodgers possesses possibly the strongest voice of rock's golden-age singers (talking to you, Jagger and Daltrey), and that power spurs a sense of awe within anyone who can appreciate the band's output of hit albums through the 1970s. If this was never your thing, so be it, but if a rousing sing-along to "Shooting Star'' sounds like a good night out, well then Bad Company still delivers.
Bad Company launched its crisply paced show with "Can't Get Enough,'' a bit of bluesy yearning that serves not only as a signature hit but also a template for the band's work: narrative lyrics, chunky guitar hooks, disciplined grooves.
Sure, all of the big numbers made the set list, but sensing that it was playing to the converted, Bad Company chipped in nifty obscurities like "Oh, Atlanta'' and "Gone, Gone, Gone,'' gifts to folks who own the albums as well as enjoy hearing a Bad Company tune pop up on the radio.
Touring with Leese (a regular in Rodgers's solo band), Bad Company boasts a fuller sound. But there were no signs of taking it easy among the founders, as Rodgers played harmonica and piano and Ralphs gussied up his riffs with spirited zeal.
Boston's Township proved a perfect opener for the veterans. The crowd may not have known Township's songs, but could certainly pick up its gritty vibe.
© Copyright 2010 Globe Newspaper Company.
Bad Company at Wembley Arena
David Sinclair - April 13, 2010
Bad Company is the latest group to return to celebrate all its yesterdays and find a huge crowd still waiting to do it with them. A good 30 years since their heyday, the singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs and drummer Simon Kirke have once again been touring the biggest indoor venues in Britain, together with the bass player Lynn Sorensen replacing Boz Burrell, who died in 2006, and an additional guitarist, Howard Leese.
In recent years Rodgers has been putting himself about as a bit of a solo act and as the replacement frontman of Queen, while Ralphs played a pivotal role in the reunion of Mott the Hoople before Christmas. There is not much that such men do not know about the heritage rock industry and, observing the golden rule of such shows, they gave the audience exactly the songs they wanted to hear, rendered in exactly the way they remembered them.
The biggest gamble of the night was to start — rather than finish — with their best-known hit, Can’t Get Enough, a song that immediately took you back to an era when flared jeans and power-chord machismo were the norm. Rodgers’s voice remains a finely-honed instrument, while his ability to hurl a microphone stand high in the air and catch it right on cue was similarly undiminished. If his lyrics made DCI Gene Hunt seem like a paragon of political correctness, then it was all part of the sepia-tinted time shift.
Working their way through hits including Feel Like Makin’ Love, Shooting Star and Rock’n’Roll Fantasy they played with an unerring sense of melody and economy that today’s hard rock bands rarely seem able to emulate. The encores produced a muscular Ready for Love followed by an epic version of their signature song Bad Company, on which Rodgers was still crooning about the six-gun in his hand while industrial quantities of dry ice cascaded on to the stage.
The Joe Perry Project, led by the Aerosmith guitarist, had opened the show with a motley collection of numbers, several of them from a new album, Have Guitar Will Travel. Perry took lead vocals on the trad-rock stomp of Slingshot, but the band fared better when he made way for Hagen Grohe, the man actually hired as the featured singer. There were some odd choices of cover versions but all was forgiven as Perry piled into the opening riff of Aerosmith’s Walk This Way, a song that can still set stages on fire after all these years.
Bad Company’s reunion of year is a perfect pleaser
Debbie Bennett - April 2, 2010
A seventies rock supergroup were reunited for the start of an exclusive eight-date UK arena tour.
Bad Company performed on stage together at the LG Arena in Birmingham for the first time in 30 years, in what is sure to be the rock reunion of 2010.
The three original members of vocal maestro Paul Rodgers, formerly of Free, Mick Ralphs on guitar , plus drummer Simon Kirke wowed the crowd with Bad Company classics and a few surprises thrown in. The only original band member missing was bassist Boz Burrell who died in 2006.
Opening the set with Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Rodgers immediately had the near sell-out LG on their feet from the start, with the singer moving on to the piano for Rock Steady and Run With The Pack.
A beautiful 12-string duet with guitarist Mick Ralphs for Seagull was simply breathtaking.
In the last five years Rodgers has successfully toured twice with Queen, a partnership which divided Queen, Free and Bad Company fans alike, yet gave crowds hits from all three bands.
If Rodgers was merely testing the water with his own material, then the Bad Company reunion proved the temperature was just right.
Bad Company at Jones Beach NY
Sven Knudsen - June 29, 2009
How good is a band that can open with its most recognizable song 'Cant Get Enough' and hold that level of intensity all night long?
Tonight Bad Company blew everyone away and reminded all of us what it is that makes them such a good band.
With a reportage most bands would envy they cooked from one classic to another and not just the expectable classics like 'Feel like making Love' 'Rock Steady' 'Bad Company' and the like, with the original guitarist Mick Ralphs back with Rodgers they threw in some unexpected pearler's like 'Electric Land' (Desolation Angels) and 'Young Blood' (Run with the Pack), Rodgers voice was faultless throughout, in fact his range and power has increased over the years, he is truly a wonder of nature.
Absolute highlights of the evening were 'Simple Man' and 'Seagull'
Bad Company are one of the bands from by-gone era of creativity and feel that still have got what it takes to wow an audience.
Bad Company Delivers Gem in VA Beach
Jeff Maisey, Veer Magazine - June 25, 2009
Strength and honor.
Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers, baring a striking resemblance to Russell Crowe as the lead character in the movie “Gladiator,” arrived at the Verizon Wireless Virginia Beach Amphitheater on Wednesday and handily conquered the hearts and minds of over 10,000 cheering fans.
Exactly 35 years to the day, Bad Company’s self-titled debut album was released and topped the charts in America and Europe. The original surviving lineup – Paul Rodgers (vocal/piano/guitar), Mick Ralphs (guitar) and Simon Kirke (drums) – reunited this summer for a mere 10 dates, including this June 24 concert in Virginia Beach.
The band arguably never sounded better.
Throughout the set, Rodgers gave a commanding performance. He constantly paced the stage as if he was on a workout routine, spinning the microphone stand at times and pumping his biceps with enthusiasm. Most impressive was the strength of his voice as he passionately hit note after note with pure conviction, especially on “Simple Man” and “Rock Steady.”
Bad Company wasted no time in delivering the many hits still heard on classic rock FM radio stations. They opened with “Can’t Get Enough,” which seemed to develop as a theme. Fans sang along to “Shooting Star,” “Ready for Love” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy” and they hungered insatiably for the next song to be performed.
Rodgers and company dug deep for an outstanding version of “Electricland,” a real surprise and gem for longtime fans. Equally fantastic were “Running with the Pack,” “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and “Burnin’ Sky.”
Rodgers and Ralphs broke out their acoustic guitars for a moving version of “Seagull” as Navy warplanes roared in the background on routine nighttime training maneuvers.
For the closing encore, a misty dry ice fog hovered across the stage with Rodgers positioned behind the grand piano. The first notes were instantly recognized as the triumphant “Bad Company” anthem. Like every song played, this track was full of punch on the accents and heavy on the power chords.
The Doobie Brothers served as a complimentary opening act. With original members Tom Johnson (vocals/guitar) and Patrick Simmons (guitar/vocals) leading the way, the Doobies puffed out such classics as “China Grove,” “Jesus Is Just Alright” and “Take Me in Your Arms.” The crowd favorite was “Black Water.”
The most impressive element of the Doobie’s show was the spot-on vocal harmonies and blistering guitar work.
Preview/Interview:
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The filbert is an alternative name for which nut?
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Buy Hazelnuts and Filbert Products - Nuts.com
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Perfectly dry roasted DuChilly Hazelnuts are superior and sweeter tasting than traditional hazelnuts. They make an incredible snack that's packed with nutrients.
About Hazelnuts
The hazelnut is the hard-shelled fruit of the hazelnut tree. Hazelnuts, also known as filberts from European folklore, are believed to have originated over 5000 years ago in prehistoric China. Currently, the world's top three producers of hazelnuts are Turkey, Italy, and the United States. Nearly 100% of the U.S. crop for hazelnuts comes from the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Today, hazelnuts are prized for their many health benefits, as well as for a wealth of culinary applications around the world.
Hazelnuts Health Benefits
Heart Health
Most nuts contain a high amount of unsaturated fat, aka "good" fat. Filberts contain almost 80 percent monounsaturated fat and less than 4 percent saturated fat. Replacing saturated fat with monounsaturated fat is known to reduce total blood and LDL "bad" cholesterol levels, making hazelnuts a great heart-healthy snack option.
Super Antioxidant Strength
The antioxidant levels in hazelnuts are comparable to those of many superfoods. Hazelnuts have one of the highest ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) scores of any nut; ORAC is the most widely accepted method of measuring antioxidants, the compounds that fight damaging free radicals in the body. Further, filberts contained the highest proanthocyanidins (PACs) concentration of any tree nut. PACs have antioxidant capabilities that are 20 times more potent than Vitamin C and 50 times more than Vitamin E.
#1 Nut for Folate
Hazelnuts are the richest source of folate among tree nuts. Folate, also known as folic acid or vitamin B-12, is essential for many of our body's metabolic processes. It aids the production of red blood cells, supports brain function and cardiovascular health, and reduces the risk of neural tube defects.
Even More Nutrients
The health benefits of hazelnuts don’t stop there. Like most nuts, filberts are a good source of protein, dietary fiber, iron, and potassium. They also contain over 20% of the Daily Value (DV) of copper and over 80% DV of manganese. Copper helps our bodies utilize iron and supports the development of bones and connective tissue. Manganese regulates blood sugar levels, aids calcium absorption, and supports bone health.
Taste and Uses
Hazelnuts have a delicate nutty flavor and mildly bitter skin, they are most commonly used to complement the tastes of confectionary goods, however they are also used in select savory dishes. One form of the nut you may be familiar with is the sweet spread, Nutella , which can be paired with any number of sweet and savory treats.
Hazelnuts for Sweets
Filberts pair exceptionally well with chocolate, a combination which makes Nutella, a chocolate-hazelnut spread, widely popular. Hazelnut paste is often made from roasted filberts and sugar, and is used in tortes and pastries to add a touch of elegance and sweetness, while hazelnut flour adds a nutty appeal to cakes, cookies, and baked goods.
Hazelnuts for Savory Dishes
Chopped hazelnuts can be used as a crust for fish or chicken. Hazelnut oil is renowned for its many health benefits, and can be used to dress up salads and marinades or bring a subtle nutty flavor to baking. As with cakes and cookies, hazelnuts can be added atop your favorite bread recipes for a nutritious crunch.
How are hazelnuts harvested?
Hazelnut trees thrive in cool, moist climates and require the chill to break dormancy. The trees are ready for harvest during mid-autumn when the nuts begin falling to the ground on their own; mechanical shakers are rarely used to remove nuts from the trees since they will not be ripe yet.
Instead, in commercial harvesting, various equipment is used to collect the filberts from the ground, separate them from excess leaves and empty husks, and haul them to processing facilities. The hazelnuts are dried and the remaining husks are removed manually or by machine. The nuts are then sorted by size, cleaned, and shelled or left unshelled for sale.
We also offer Wholesale Hazelnuts .
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Which French cyclist won the Tour de France four consecutive times in the 1960’s?
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Hazelnuts / Filberts (In Shell) - By the Pound - Nuts.com
Home Nuts Hazelnuts (Filberts) Hazelnuts / Filberts (In Shell)
Hazelnuts / Filberts (In Shell)
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Harvested at just the right time, these hazelnuts (filberts) from Oregon are quite tasty and are immense in size. These are graded as Jumbo, which are just huge! Loaded with nutrition, raw filberts in the shell are fun to crack and even more fun to eat. One crunch and you'll realize these are truly the best hazelnuts around.
Filberts (Hazelnuts) Nutrition
A one-ounce serving of filberts provides:
5 grams of protein
2 grams of dietary fiber
6% of the daily value (DV) for iron
A good source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats, vitamin B-6 and magnesium
Health Benefits of Filberts
Heart-Protective: A 2007 study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition demonstrated that a hazelnut-enriched diet was effective in lowering LDL "bad" cholesterol. This study suggests that the consumption of filberts and other tree nuts may lower the risk for coronary heart disease.
Control Blood Sugar Levels: Filberts may be helpful in the management of diabetes due to their high magnesium levels. A 2007 study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine associated increased magnesium intake with a lower incidence of type 2 diabetes.
Antioxidant Benefits: Hazelnuts are loaded with protective antioxidants that fight off damaging free radicals. Hazelnuts are one of the richest food sources of proanthocyanidins (PACs), which may protect against heart disease and premature aging.
Filberts Storage
In-shell filberts can be stored in the pantry for up to three months. For longer term storage, keep them in the fridge for up to nine months or store them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to one year.
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Which fashion designer, girlfriend of Mick Jagger, committed suicide in New York earlier this year?
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Designer L'Wren Scott, Mick Jagger's girlfriend, found dead - CNN.com
L'Wren Scott, noted fashion designer, found dead
Scott was Mick Jagger's longtime girlfriend
The former model introduced a Banana Republic line last year
(CNN) -- L'Wren Scott, a noted fashion designer who has been Mick Jagger's companion for more than a decade, was found dead in her New York apartment Monday of an apparent suicide, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation. She was 49.
Scott's assistant found the designer hanging from a door knob with a scarf around her neck, the official said.
There were no signs of forced entry, and police did not find a suicide note, the official said.
Click through to see people who died in 2014.
Edward Herrmann, the versatile, honey-voiced actor whose roles included patricians and politicians such as "Gilmore Girls" father Richard Gilmore, "The Practice" law professor Anderson Pearson and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, died on Wednesday, December 31. He was 71.
Luise Rainer, who won back-to-back Oscars in the 1930s for "The Great Ziegfeld" and "The Good Earth," has died at the age of 104, her daughter reported on Tuesday, December 30.
Christine Cavanaugh, who lent her distinctive voice to the title pig in "Babe," Chuckie Finster on "Rugrats" and Dexter of "Dexter's Laboratory," died December 22. She was 51.
British rocker Joe Cocker died December 22 after a battle with lung cancer, Sony Music said in a statement. He was 70.
Norman Bridwell, the creator of "Clifford the Big Red Dog," died December 12 in Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, according to his publisher, Scholastic. Bridwell was 86.
Legendary photographer Michel du Cille, a 26-year veteran of The Washington Post, died December 11 while on assignment in Liberia. The Post said du Cille, 58, collapsed "during a strenuous hike on the way back from a village" affected by the African country's Ebola outbreak.
Mary Ann Mobley, the first Miss America from Mississippi who turned that achievement into a movie career, died December 10 after battling breast cancer. She was 77.
Ken Weatherwax, who played Pugsley on the 1960s TV show "The Addams Family," died December 7, according to the Ventura County Coroner's Office. He was 59.
Ian McLagan, a fun-loving keyboardist who played on records by such artists as the Rolling Stones, Lucinda Williams, Bruce Springsteen and his own bands -- the Small Faces and its successor, the Faces -- died December 3, according to a statement from his record label, Yep Roc Records. He was 69.
American saxophonist Bobby Keys, who for years toured and recorded with the Rolling Stones, died on December 2. "The Rolling Stones are devastated by the loss of their very dear friend and legendary saxophone player, Bobby Keys," the band said on Twitter.
To the world, he was known as "Chespirito." Roberto Gomez Bolanos gained fame as a comedian, but he was also a writer, actor, screenwriter, songwriter, film director and TV producer. The legendary entertainer died November 28 at the age of 85.
British crime novelist P.D. James died November 27 at her home in Oxford, England. She was 94.
Lebanese singer and actress Sabah, one of the Arab world's most prolific entertainers with a career spanning more than six decades, died November 26, in Beirut, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported. She was 87.
Former Washington Mayor Marion Barry is dead at the age of 78, a hospital spokeswoman said on November 23. Barry was elected four times as the city's chief executive. He was once revered nationally as a symbol of African-American political leadership. But his professional accomplishments were often overshadowed by drug and personal scandals.
Acclaimed film director Mike Nichols died on November 19. Nichols, pictured here with his wife, journalist Diane Sawyer, was best known for his films "The Graduate," "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" and "The Birdcage." He was 83.
Jimmy Ruffin, silky-voiced singer of the Motown classic "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted," died November 19 in Las Vegas. He was 78.
'Knight Rider" and "Battlestar Galactica" producer Glen A. Larson passed away November 14 after a battle with cancer. He was 77.
Actress Carol Ann Susi, best known for voicing the unseen Mrs. Wolowitz on "The Big Bang Theory," died November 11. She was 62.
Henry "Big Bank Hank" Jackson, a member of the hip-hop group the Sugarhill Gang, died November 11 of complications from cancer. He was 55.
Tom Magliozzi, left, half of the "Click and Clack" team of brothers who hosted NPR's "Car Talk" radio show, died November 3. He was 77.
"House of Cards" actress Elizabeth Norment passed away at the age of 61, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed October 28 via Norment's sister Kate. According to the star's obituary in The Washington Post, Norment died of cancer on October 13 at Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York.
Jack Bruce, bassist for the legendary 1960s rock band Cream, died October 25 at age 71.
Ben Bradlee, the zestful, charismatic Washington Post editor who guided the paper through the era of the Pentagon Papers and Watergate and was immortalized on screen in "All the President's Men," died on October 21. He was 93.
Fashion designer Oscar de la Renta died on October 20, close friends of the family and industry colleagues told CNN. He was 82.
"August: Osage County" actress Misty Upham was declared dead by a Washington coroner after her body was found along a river in suburban Seattle on October 16.
Actress Elizabeth Pena died October 14, according to her manager. She was 55.
Isaiah "Ikey" Owens, the keyboardist in Jack White's backing band, died October 14. The musician also played with bands such as Mars Volta and Free Moral Agents. He was 38.
Mark Bell, who founded the highly influential techno-music duo LFO and later collaborated with Bjork on several iconic albums, died of complications from a surgery, his record label said October 13.
Actress and comedian Jan Hooks died in New York on October 9. Her representative, Lisa Lieberman, confirmed the death to CNN but provided no additional information. According to IMDb.com, Hooks was 57.
Geoffrey Holder, a versatile artist known for his ability as a dancer, actor and a pitchman for 7Up, died from complications due to pneumonia, his family's attorney said on October 6. Holder was 84.
Paul Revere, leader of the 1960s rock band Paul Revere and the Raiders, died October 4 at his home in Idaho, according to the band's website. He was 76.
Emmy-winning actress Polly Bergen, whose TV and movie career spanned more than six decades, died on September 20, according to her publicist. She was 84, according to IMDb.com.
Singer George Hamilton IV, known as the "International Ambassador of Country Music," died at a Nashville hospital on September 17 following a heart attack, the Grand Ole Opry said in a press release. He was 77.
Northern Ireland's former first minister and former Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley has died, his wife, Eileen, said in a statement on September 12. He was 88.
Richard Kiel, the actor best known for playing the James Bond villain "Jaws," died September 10 at a California hospital, St. Agnes Medical Center spokeswoman Kelley Sanchez said. He was 74.
Joan Rivers, the sassy comedian whose gossipy "can we talk" persona catapulted her into a career as a headlining talk-show host, best-selling author and red-carpet maven, died September 4. She was 81.
Jimi Jamison, lead singer of the 1980s rock band Survivor, died at the age of 63, it was announced September 2.
Acclaimed actor-director Richard Attenborough died on August 24, the British Broadcasting Corporation reported, citing his son. Attenborough was 90.
Don Pardo, the man whose voice introduced the cast of NBC's "Saturday Night Live" for decades, died at the age of 96, the network announced August 19.
Skateboarding legend Jay Adams died of a heart attack August 14 while vacationing in Mexico with his wife. He was 53.
Ed Nelson, best known for playing a doctor in the 1960s nighttime soap opera "Peyton Place," died on August 13, his family said. He was 85.
Actress Arlene Martel, whom "Star Trek" fans knew as Spock's bride-to-be, died in a Los Angeles hospital August 12 after complications from a heart attack, her son said. Martel was 78.
Actress Lauren Bacall, the husky-voiced Hollywood icon known for her sultry sensuality, died on August 12. She was 89.
Actor and comedian Robin Williams died at his Northern California home on August 11. Williams apparently took his own life, law enforcement officials said. He was 63.
JJ Murphy, an actor who was set to join the "Game of Thrones" cast, died August 8, his agent said. He was 86.
Actor Charles Keating, who had been fighting lung cancer for several years, died on August 8, his son Sean Keating said. Charles Keating was known for his role of villain Carl Hutchins on the daytime drama "Another World." He was 72.
James Brady, the former White House press secretary who was severely wounded in a 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan, has died, the White House said on August 4. He was 73. Later in the week, authorities told CNN they are investigating it as a homicide.
Theodore "Dutch" Van Kirk, the last crewman of the U.S. plane that dropped the first atomic bomb over Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945, died of natural causes on July 28, according to his daughter Vicki Triplett. He was 93.
James Shigeta, a prolific and pioneering Asian-American actor whose 50-year career included the movies "Die Hard" and "Flower Drum Song," died in his sleep in Los Angeles on July 28, his agent said. He was 81.
Skye McCole Bartusiak, who played Mel Gibson's youngest daughter in "The Patriot," died July 19, at her home in Houston, her mother said Sunday. She was 21. While investigators didn't immediately determine a cause of death, Bartusiak had been suffering from epileptic seizures, according to her mother.
James Garner, the understated, wisecracking everyman actor who enjoyed multigenerational success on both the small and big screens, died of natural causes on July 19. He was 86.
Broadway legend Elaine Stritch died July 17. According to her longtime friend Julie Keyes, Stritch died at her home in Birmingham, Michigan, surrounded by her family. She was 89 years old.
Blues guitarist and singer Johnny Winter died July 16 in a Swiss hotel room, his representative said. He was 70.
Nadine Gordimer, a South African author who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1991, died on July 13, according to her family. She was 90.
Renowned conductor Lorin Maazel died from complications of pneumonia on July 13, according to his family. He was 84.
Grammy-winning jazz bassist Charlie Haden, whose music career spanned seven decades and several genres, died July 11, according to his publicist. He was 76.
Drummer Tommy Ramone, the last living original member of the pioneering punk band The Ramones, died on July 11, according to the band's Facebook page. He was 65.
Eileen Ford, who founded the Ford Model Agency 70 years ago, died July 9 at the age of 92, the company said.
Richard Percy Jones, the actor who gave Pinocchio his voice in the 1940 Disney movie, died at his California home on July 8. He was 87.
David Legeno, known for playing Fenrir Greyback in the "Harry Potter" movies, was found dead July 6, by hikers in a remote desert location in Death Valley, California. He was 50. "It appears that Legeno died of heat-related issues, but the Inyo County Coroner will determine the final cause of death," read a press release from the Inyo County Sheriff's Department. "There are no signs of foul play."
Rosemary Murphy, an Emmy Award-winning actress known for her roles in the movie "To Kill a Mockingbird" as well as TV soap operas "All My Children" and "Another World," died July 5 at the age of 89. The New York Times cited cancer as the cause of death.
Olympian and World War II hero Louis Zamperini, the subject of the book and upcoming film "Unbroken," died July 2 after a recent battle with pneumonia. The 97-year-old peacefully passed away in the presence of his entire family, according to a statement.
Walter Dean Myers, a beloved author of children's books, died on July 1 following a brief illness, according to the Children's Book Council.
Paul Mazursky, a five-time Oscar nominee who directed and wrote such films as "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice," "An Unmarried Woman" and "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," died at the age of 84, his agent said July 1.
Actor Meshach Taylor died June 28 at his Los Angeles-area home, his agent, Dede Binder, said. He was 67. Taylor had fought a terminal illness and faded markedly in recent days, Binder said. His wife, children, grandchildren and mother surrounded him as he passed away.
Legendary soul singer Bobby Womack died June 27, according to Womack's publicist. He was 70.
Character actor Eli Wallach, seen here in "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," died on June 24, according to a family member who did not want to be named. Wallach was 98.
Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn died June 16 at the age of 54, according to a release from the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Gwynn, who had 3,141 hits in 20 seasons with the San Diego Padres, had cancer.
Radio personality Casey Kasem died June 15. He was 82 and had been hospitalized in Washington state for two weeks.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Chuck Noll died June 13. He had suffered from Alzheimer's and heart disease. He was 82.
Ruby Dee, an award-winning actress whose seven-decade career included triumphs on stage and screen, died June 12. She was 91.
Former baseball star Bob Welch passed away on June 9 after suffering a heart attack, according to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was 57.
British actor and comedian Rik Mayall, who appeared in the TV series "Blackadder," died June 9 at the age of 56, his agent said. The cause of death was not immediately reported.
Chester Nez, the last of the original Navajo code talkers credited with creating an unbreakable code used during World War II, died June 5 at his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the Navajo Nation President said. Nez was 93.
Ann B. Davis, who played Alice the maid on "The Brady Bunch," died from a subdural hematoma on June 1. She was 88.
Maya Angelou, a renowned poet, novelist and actress, died at the age of 86, her literary agent said on May 28. Angelou was also a professor, singer and dancer whose work spanned several generations.
Australian racing legend Jack Brabham died on May 19, according to Brabham's son David. Brabham, 88, was a three-time Formula One world champion.
Malik Bendjelloul, the Oscar-winning director of "Searching for Sugar Man," died suddenly on May 13, police said. He was 36.
H.R. Giger, the Swiss surrealist artist whose works of sexual-industrial imagery and design of the eponymous creature in the "Alien" movies were known around the world, died on May 12. He was 74.
Former professional tennis player Elena Baltacha died at the age of 30 after losing her battle with liver cancer on May 4. Before retiring in November, she had reached a career high of 49th in the world rankings.
Al Feldstein, who guided Mad magazine for almost three decades as its editor, died on April 29, according to a Montana funeral home. He was 88.
Oscar-nominated British actor Bob Hoskins, known for roles in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and "Mona Lisa," died April 29 at age 71, his publicist said.
Hall of Fame basketball coach John "Dr. Jack" Ramsay, who became a television analyst years after winning a league championship with the Portland Trail Blazers, died on April 28, according to his longtime employer ESPN. Ramsay was 89.
Former Barcelona soccer coach Tito Vilanova, who had been battling cancer, died at the age of 45, the club announced April 25.
Country singer Kevin Sharp died from "complications due to cancer" on April 19, his mother told CNN. He was 43.
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, the middleweight boxing contender who was wrongly convicted of a triple murder in New Jersey in the 1960s, died April 20 at the age of 76, according to Win Wahrer, the director of client services for the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the influential, Nobel Prize-winning author of "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and "Love in the Time of Cholera," passed away on April 17, his family and officials said. He was 87.
Jose Luis "Cheo" Feliciano, a giant of salsa music and a Puerto Rican legend, died in a car crash April 18 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, according to police. He was 78.
Days after being inducted into World Wrestling Entertainment's Hall of Fame, WWE superstar Ultimate Warrior died April 8. Born James Hellwig, he legally changed his name to Warrior in 1993. He was 54.
Comedian John Pinette, 50, was found dead in a Pittsburgh hotel room on April 5. Pinette died of natural causes stemming from "a medical history he was being treated for," the medical examiner's spokesman said. An autopsy will not be done because his personal doctor signed the death certificate.
Mickey Rooney, who started as a child star in vaudeville and went on to star in hundreds of movies and TV shows, died April 6 at the age of 93.
DJ Frankie Knuckles, a legendary producer, remixer and house music pioneer, died March 31 at the age of 59.
Kate O'Mara, the British actress best known for playing Joan Collins' sister on the 1980s show "Dynasty," died March 30. She was 74.
Ralph C. Wilson Jr., the founder and longtime owner of the NFL's Buffalo Bills, died at age 95, the team announced March 25.
Gwar lead singer Dave Brockie died March 23 at the age of 50, his manager said. The heavy-metal group formed in 1984, billing itself as "Earth's only openly extraterrestrial rock band." Brockie performed in the persona of Oderus Urungus.
James Rebhorn, whose acting resume includes a long list of character roles in major films and TV shows, died March 21, his representative said. Rebhorn was 65.
L'Wren Scott, a noted fashion designer and girlfriend of musician Mick Jagger, was found dead of an apparent suicide March 17, according to a law enforcement official. She was 49.
Drummer Scott Asheton, who co-founded and played drums for the influential proto-punk band The Stooges, died March 15. He was 64.
Comedian David Brenner, a regular on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show," died after a battle with cancer, a family spokesman said March 15. He was 78.
Actress Sheila MacRae, who portrayed Alice Kramden in a 1960s revival of "The Honeymooners" on "The Jackie Gleason Show," died on March 6, according to her family. She was 92.
Spanish guitarist Paco de Lucia, seen here in 2006, died February 25 of an apparent heart attack. He was 66. De Lucia transformed the folk art of flamenco music into a more vibrant modern sound.
Actor, writer and director Harold Ramis, seen here on the far left with fellow "Ghostbusters" Dan Aykroyd and Bill Murray, died at his Chicago-area home on February 24. He was 69. Other popular Ramis films include "Stripes," "Groundhog Day" and "Analyze This."
Maria von Trapp, seen here posing with a photo of her family, was the last of the singing siblings immortalized in the movie "The Sound of Music." She died February 18 of natural causes at her Vermont home, according to her family. She was 99.
Journalist Garrick Utley died at age 74 following a long battle with cancer, his wife of 40 years said in February. Utley worked for CNN after his 30-year career at NBC News.
Devo guitarist Bob Casale, known by fans as "Bob 2," died February 17, his brother and band mate announced. Casale was 61.
John Henson, the son of Jim Henson who is perhaps most notable for his portrayal of Sweetums on "The Muppets," died after a "sudden, massive heart attack," his family's company said on February 15.
Veteran actor Ralph Waite died at 85 on February 13, according to an accountant for the Waite family and a church where the actor was a regular member. Waite was best known for his role as John Walton Sr. on 'The Waltons."
Sid Caesar, whose clever, anarchic comedy on such programs as "Your Show of Shows" and "Caesar's Hour" helped define the 1950s "Golden Age of Television," died on February 12. He was 91.
Hollywood child star Shirley Temple, who became diplomat Shirley Temple Black, died February 10 at her Woodside, California, home. She was 85.
Joan Mondale, the wife of former Vice President Walter Mondale, died on February 3, according to a statement from the family's church.
Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in his Manhattan apartment of an apparent drug overdose, law enforcement sources said February 2.
Maximilian Schell died on February 1 in a Austrian hospital with his wife by his side, his agent Patricia Baumbauer said. He was 83. Schell was nominated for an Oscar three times. He won in 1962 for "Judgment at Nuremberg."
Legendary folk singer Pete Seeger, known for classics such as "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" and "If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)," died of natural causes in New York on January 27, his grandson told CNN. He was 94.
Ruth Robinson Duccini, who played one of the Munchkins in the 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz," died on January 16. She was 95.
Former Playboy centerfold Cassandra Lynn Hensley was found dead at a friend's home in Los Angeles, the coroner there said on January 17. Hensley was 34. Her cause of death was not immediately known.
Hiroo Onoda, center, salutes after handing over his military sword on Lubang Island in the Philippines in March 1974. Onoda, a former intelligence officer in the Japanese army, had remained on the island for nearly 30 years, refusing to believe his country had surrendered in World War II. He died at a Tokyo hospital on January 16. He was 91.
Russell Johnson, center, stands with Alan Hale Jr., left, and Bob Denver in an episode of "Gilligan's Island" in 1966. Johnson, who played "the professor" Roy Hinkley in the hit television show, passed away January 16 at his home in Washington state, according to his agent, Mike Eisenstadt. Johnson was 89.
Ariel Sharon, whose half century as a military and political leader in Israel was marked with victories and controversies, died on January 11 after eight years in a coma, Israeli Army Radio reported. Sharon was 85.
Franklin McCain, seen center wearing glasses, one of the "Greensboro Four," who made history for their 1960 sit-in at a Greensboro Woolworth's lunch counter, died on January 10 after a brief illness, according to his alma mater, North Carolina A&T State University.
Larry Speakes, who served as President Ronald Reagan's press secretary, died January 10 at his home in Cleveland, Mississippi, following a lengthy illness, according to Bolivar County Coroner Nate Brown. He was 74.
Poet Amiri Baraka, who lost his post as New Jersey's poet laureate because of a controversial poem about the 9/11 terror attacks, died on January 9, his agent said. Baraka was 79.
Sir Run Run Shaw, the media tycoon who helped bring Chinese martial arts films to an international audience, died at his home in Hong Kong on January 7 at age 106, the television station he founded said.
Stage, TV and film actress Carmen Zapata, who founded the Bilingual Foundation of the Arts as a means of of introducing "the rich and eloquent history of the diverse Hispanic culture to English-speaking audiences," died on January 5 at her Los Angeles home. She was 86.
Portugal football legend Eusebio, who was top scorer at the 1966 World Cup, died from a heart attack on January 5 at age 71, said his former club, Benfica.
Alicia Rhett, who had been one of the oldest surviving cast members of the classic film "Gone With the Wind," died on January 3 in her longtime hometown of Charleston, South Carolina, a retirement community spokeswoman said. She was 98.
Singer Phil Everly, left -- one half of the groundbreaking, smooth-sounding, record-setting duo the Everly Brothers -- died on January 3, a hospital spokeswoman said. He was 74.
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Shocking fashion tragedies and scandals
Her assistant told police Scott sent a text Monday morning asking the assistant to "come by, and when the assistant arrived at approximately 10:02 a.m., Scott was dead in the living room, prompting the assistant to call police," according to the official.
The New York Medical Examiner will determine the cause of death, according to Sgt. Nieves with the New York Police Department
A spokesman for Mick Jagger said that the singer was completely shocked and devastated by the news.
Rest in Peace, L'Wren Scott. You will be forever missed. pic.twitter.com/6GrbmEroYv
— Rachel Roy (@Rachel_Roy) March 17, 2014
Scott had been dating Jagger, 70, since at least 2003. The lanky former model designed clothes worn by a number of celebrities, including Madonna, Allison Williams and Christina Hendricks. She also created many of Jagger's looks for the Rolling Stones' 50th anniversary tour, which began in 2012 and is currently in Australia.
The band called off Wednesday night's show in Perth , following the news.
"Frontier Touring and Concerts West regret to announce that The Rolling Stones concert in Perth will not be going ahead as scheduled for Wednesday 19 March 2014," a statement on the Perth Arena website said . Ticket holders were told to hold on to their tickets for the show.
In addition to her haute creations, she designed a collection for Banana Republic that was introduced late last year.
"I don't really jump on anything unless I believe it will deliver the quality and standards I stay true to. It is a very fun happy collection and I think it is classic and timeless and elegant," she told Vanity Fair at the introduction last October.
Celebrities attending the event included Hendricks, Ke$ha, Rashida Jones and Michael B. Jordan, as well as Jagger.
On Monday, several stars mourned Scott on social media.
Actress Olivia Munn tweeted, "Shocked and saddened by the passing of @lwrenscott ... she was an amazing soul, talented artist and an unbelievably giving friend. RIP." Fellow designer Rachel Roy tweeted, "Rest in Peace, L'Wren Scott. You will be forever missed."
Shocked and saddened by the passing of @lwrenscott ... she was an amazing soul, talented artist and an unbelievably giving friend. RIP.
— oliviamunn (@oliviamunn) March 17, 2014
Mick Jagger's first wife, Bianca Jagger, tweeted, "Heartbroken to learn of the loss of the lovely and talented L'Wren Scott. My thoughts and prayers are with her family. May she rest in peace." Singer and actress Bette Midler tweeted, "Just got news of the beautiful L'wren Scott's death perhaps by her own hand. I am devastated. A rare, wonderful, talented soul. Goodbye."
Heartbroken to learn of the loss of the lovely and talented L'Wren Scott. My thoughts and prayers are with her family. May she rest in peace
— Bette Midler (@BetteMidler) March 17, 2014
Cosmetics maven Bobbi Brown released a statement saying "I'm devastated by the tragic news about L'Wren. She was an incredible designer who I considered my friend. My heartfelt condolences go out to her loved ones during this very sad time."
Scott was born Laura "Luann" Bambrough and raised in Utah. The statuesque beauty -- she was 6-foot-4 -- was first spotted by photographer Bruce Weber at a Calvin Klein hosiery shoot, according to Vogue.
After modeling for several years, she became a stylist and eventually designed costumes for films such as the 1996 remake of "Diabolique" and 2000's "Mercy." She also received a credit on 2007's "Ocean's Thirteen" as actress Ellen Barkin's consultant.
CNN's Shimon Prokupecz and Elizabeth Landers contributed to this report.
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L'Wren Scott
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Which motorcycle company made models called the Manx, the International and the Dominator?
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L'Wren Scott 'embarrassed and millions in debt' when she committed suicide | Daily Mail Online
Designer L'Wren Scott was 'embarrassed and millions in debt' when she committed suicide in her Manhattan apartment while 'devastated' lover Mick Jagger was on tour in Australia
Scott, 49, was found dead at 10am Monday by an assistant in her Manhattan apartment
She was more than $6million in debt, MailOnline can reveal
The designer had been in a relationship with Mick Jagger since 2001 but he was in Australia with the Rolling Stones at the time of her death
He is 'completely shocked and devastated' by the news and his spokesman reiterated that 'of course' they were still in a relationship
Friends of the designer - including actress Ellen Barkin - spent time with her dead body in her apartment before the coroner left with it at 2.45pm
Born Luann Bambrough and raised by her adoptive Mormon family in Roy, Utah but changed her name at 17 when she launched her modeling career
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i don't know
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Once punningly depicted on a British coin, the sea pink is an alternative name for which flower?
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Songs About California
Songs About California
Full List of California Songs
with Comments and Lyrics
Can You Help to Identify This Song?
(This list is much too long for its own good. Instead of trying to browse it, go to one of the short lists above then click on the "Artist" link to come to this page.)
Some of these songs are about the state itself, but most just reference a place in the state like a highway, a city, the weather, or a "California Girl." This list would be more accurately called "Songs that Refer to Somewhere in California or Something About the State" but that's a lousy title.
A lot of songs have been written about California. Many of them describe a journey to or a longing to return to an coastal paradise with constant sun, abundant new opportunities, and where everyone is eternally young and beautiful - basically a mythical place that bears little resemblance to the real Golden State now or ever. (The Spanish named the territory after a mythical island paradise they were searching for that was supposed to be full of gold and inhabited by black women whose queen was named Califa. That didn't pan out, either.)
Other songs describe the disappointment the singers find after getting to California when they discover that it's no better than where they came from. Apparently, recording a California song is now a requirement if you're a musician, even if it's only to show that you hate California stereotypes or the Entertainment Industry Establishment. Musicians such as Local H and Brooke White are even writing songs about California Songs while other musicians write about how much they hate the state. It's all good, and it's all here on the list if I know about it.
This list is in alphabetical order by artist, not by title. I'll add new songs to the list as I discover them. Let me know if there is something not here that should be. The lyrics come from the Internet, and we all know how unreliable it can be. Also, be aware that some of these songs may contain explicit lyrics. Links to song versions on YouTube or elsewhere are included if I could find them
For a much longer list, divided by regions, check out Wickipedia's List of songs about California .
Here's a list of Songs About Herps to go along with the list of songs about California to make songs about CaliforniaHerps complete.
The lyrics shown here are all the property and copyright of their owners and are provided here for educational purposes only.
Shortcut to Artist Last Name
Title (Click link to listen to song)
Description
2Pac
(see Shakur, Tupac ) A Ryan Adams Goodnight, Hollywood Blvd. Alt country, indie rock... genres seem pretty meaningless these days, but whatever you want to call it, New Yorker Adams does it very well. From 2001, this is one of those slow sad piano songs with strings. "La Cienega Just Smiled" - which is probably a reference to another street in LA - La Cienega blvd. - is another slow Adam's song from the same album "Gold" released in 2001.
"It's happening baby
They're putting up the chairs
Taking the money
And all we can do is pray
Pray for tomorrow
And do this all in time to the music
That screams like a child in the back of your mind
In a clown's saloon
So goodnight Hollywood Blvd, goodnight,
See ya soon
Goodnight Hollywood Blvd, see you sometime
Yeah, right " Admiral Radley I Heart California A 2010 song from a California Indie rock band made up of members of two influential California Indie rock bands, Earlimart, from LA, and Grandaddy, from Modesto. Long walks on the 5? What, did they break down?
"I am California... yeah?
Ice tea in my hair
Drugs fall out of diaper bags
As midwesterners stare
Long walks on the 5
Truck stops and the symphony
And I'll be here when I die
I heart California... I love California
I heart California
I heart California... I love California
I heart California" Adele Hello Adele does a little bit of California Dreaming In this song from her 2015 album "25" in which she also shows that she doesn't understand how Caller ID works.
"Hello, it's me
I was wondering if after all these years you'd like to meet
To go over everything
They say that time's supposed to heal ya
But I ain't done much healing
Hello, can you hear me?
I'm in California dreaming about who we used to be
When we were younger and free
I've forgotten how it felt before the world fell at our feet
There's such a difference between us
And a million miles
Hello from the other side
I must've called a thousand times
To tell you I'm sorry
For everything that I've done
But when I call you never
Seem to be home
At least I can say that I've tried
To tell you I'm sorry
For breaking your heart
But it don't matter, it clearly
Doesn't tear you apart anymore...."
The Adolescents L.A. Girl The Adolescents are a punk band from Fullerton formed in 1980. This song is from their first studio album "Adolescents" released in 1981. The song was also featured in the 1995 movie "Empire Records."
"We don't care, you say we're too young
Waste our time tanning in the sun
We don't care what you know or think
Spoiled rich brat you ain't so neat
L.A. girl, L.A. world
Don't tell us how to act, don't tell us what to wear
L.A. girl, L.A. world
You didn't create our scene
We don't care
We don't live our lives
To keep you satisfied
Stuck in your world of dreams again
My life starts where your life ends
You've burned out your battery has died
If it wasn't for O.C. your scene wouldn't be alive
L.A. girl, L.A. world
Don't tell us how to act, don't tell us what to wear
L.A. girl, L.A. world
You didn't create our scene...."
Gary Allan She's So California A country song from 2008.
"She's a warm summer breeze with bleach blonde hair
Like a fine red wine she can take you there
She's a walk in the sand at sunset
She's the top pulled down on the 405
She'll take you higher than Humboldt sky
She's an earthquake
And you're the fault line
So, when you feel the ground start movin' around
Hold on tight you're in for a ride
'Cause she's so California
She's a wild fire out of control headed for ya
So, when you get burned, don't say I didn't warn ya
'Cause she's so California." Dave Alvin California Snow Dave Alvin was one of the Blasters, great 80's roots rockers, who now sings beautiful folksy/country acoustic guitar-based songs. In this 1998 song, Alvin takes on the persona of a Border Patrol Officer who drives at night in San Diego County.
"I'm just tryin' to make a livin'
I'm an old man at thirty-nine
With two kids and an ex-wife
Who moved up to Riverside
I'm workin' down on the border
Drivin' back roads every night
Mountains east of El Cajon
North of the Tecate line.
Where the California summer sun
Will burn right to your soul
But in the winter you can freeze to death
In the California snow. "
Dave Alvin Here In California A nice cover version of the Kate Wolf song discussed below . Dave Alvin King of California A poor 19th century guy from east of the Ohio river promises his love that he will return and marry her after he makes his fortune in the California gold rush. That didn't work out too well for him, but it probably woudn't have been a great song if it had. This rootsy acoustic song from 1994 beautifully conjures up the era and the spirit of "Go west young man." One of my favorites.
"Well I left my home and my one true love
East of the Ohio River
My father said we'd never wed
For I had me no gold nor silver
But my darling dear, please shed no tears
But I think that it's fair to warn you
That I return to claim your hand
As the King of California" Dave Alvin Out in California This is from Dave Alvin's Interstate City album released in 1996.
"I'm sitting here drinkin' in the last bar on earth
Sittin' here drinkin in the last bar on earth...
Out in California she's takin' off her tight red skirt
The mountains out the window - they're a woman lyin' on a bed
The mountains here are shaped like a woman lying naked on a bed
She may be out in California, but I can't get her out of my head
Out in California...
They killed off the Indians, they shot all the grizzly bears
Out in California, they shot all the grizzly bears
She just stands by the window, combing out her long black hair
If a man keeps runnin', he'll run right into himself
It a man keeps movin', he'll run into himself
Out in California she's lyin down with somebody else
Out in California...
Gonna buy me a Chevy, as soon as my luck turns around
Gonna buy me a shotgun, soon as my luck turns around
Gonna drive on back to that California town
I'm sitting here drinkin' in the last bar on earth
Sittin' here drinkin in the last bar on earth...
Out in California she's takin' off her tight red skirt" Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women California's Burning After the death of a member of his backing band, The Guilty Men, Alvin assembled a new band composed of women called The Guilty Women, whose voices add a nice dimension to his harmonies. This song needs no explanation to those of us who have watched hillsides and homes go up in flames in the summer and fall and mudslides cover what remains the next winter...
"California's burning,
you can smell it in the air.
California's burning,
you can smell it in the air.
You may be rich or poor,
but you know that fire don't care.
… … … … ...
No rain for four years,
and the hills are dry and brown.
Yeah, no rain for four years,
and the hills are dry and brown.
Yeah, well where you gonna run to
when the whole wide world burns down?
… … … … ...
and they're blockin' out the sun.
Black clouds are risin'
and they're blockin' out the sun.
Some folks are sayin'
the judgement day has come.
California's burning,
no one knows when it will end.
California's burning,
no one knows when this will end.
What that fire burns down boys,
we'll just build it back again." America California Revisited America is a great and cheezy folk rock band from the '70's made up of Americans who lived in Britain as military dependants and didn't want anyone to think they were Brits before they relocated to LA, hence the name. This is from their 1972 album "Homecoming."
"Heaven may be an answer
If you're lookin' for eden in the sky
On your waters i see a strange reflection
Rumor has it i'll see you when i die
Everyone i meet is from california
There's dancin' in the streets in california
In california you watch the shadow dancer
Floating gently, gently on the sea
In california you're such a strange romancer
Come and see me when the world has set you free
Everyone i meet is from california
There's dancin' in the streets in california
Everyone i meet is from california
There's dancin' in the streets in california." America Ventura Highway From their 1972 album "Homecoming." An upbeat soft rock classic with a catchy acoustic guitar riff from the band who have been to the desert on a horse with no name. For 30 years I wondered how those lizards got up in the air, but thanks to the imaginatiion-killing-internet I now know that they're only supposed to be cloud formations.This is one of the few songs about both California, and herps. (Or at least clouds that look like herps.)
"Wishin' on a falling star
Watchin' for the early train
Sorry boy, but I've been hit by
Purple rain
Aw, come on Joe, you can always
Change your name
Thanks a lot son, just the same
Ventura Highway
Where the days are longer
The nights are stronger
You're gonna go I know
'Cause the free wind is blowin' through your hair
And the days surround your daylight there
Seasons crying no despair
Alligator lizards in the air
in the air " American Music Club California Dreamin' A very good 1994 indie rock cover (with sitar!) of the 1966 Mamas and Papas classic. American Music Club Highway 5 A dark slow dirge off "California," a 1988 album from this San Francisco based alternative rock band. Maybe back in 1988 75 was the cruising speed, but 85 is more like it these days, and that's in the slow lane...
"Highway five
Takes so much to make us feel like we're alive
A weary traveler at a smooth seventy-five
Make pretend the landscape ain't so dry
Do anything to maintain a lie
To the left, a beautiful California landscape
Dead ends in the sky
And to the right, beautiful mountains rise
High and dry
Another futile expression of bitterness
Another overwhelming sensation of uselessness
Make pretend that the landscape ain't so dry
Do anything to maintain a lie
Make pretend that the lover ain't so barren
Though in los angeles things like that don't matter" Augustana California's Burning A 2005 song from a San Diego rock band.
"California's burning, burning, burning to the ground...
and my head is turning, turning, turning round and round...
Allie's stomach's churning, churning, like a storm today...
and your mother's crying, crying, closing up the safe...
and I'm here, wondering where the sun has gone...
driving through to Mexico,
asking why there's no one home...
Encinitas likes to miss me, like nobody's child..
and my eyes like rainy Tuesdays, like to watch you smile...
and I'm here, wondering where the sun has gone...
driving through a Midwest storm,
asking why there's no one home..."
B Bad Religion Los Angeles is Burning Bad Religion is a punk rock band (with harmonies) formed in Los Angeles in 1979. This song, another one about California wildfires, is from the band's 2004 album The Empire Strikes First.
"Somewhere high in the desert near a curtain of a blue
St. Anne's skirts are billowing
But down here in the city of the lime lights
The fans of Santa Ana are withering
And you can’t deny that living is easy
If you never look behind the scenery
It's showtime for dry climes
And bedlam is dreaming of rain
When the hills of Los Angelesare burning
Palm trees are candles in the murder wind
So many lives are on the breeze
Even the stars are ill at ease
And Los Angeles is burning
This is not a test
Of the emergency broadcast system
Where Malibu fires and radio towers
Conspire to dance again
And I cannot believe the media mecca
They're only trying to peddle reality,
Catch it on prime time, story at nine
The whole world is going insane
When the hills of Los Angeles are burning
Palm trees are candles in the murder wind
So many lives are on the breeze
Even the stars are ill at ease
And Los Angeles is burning
A placard reads
Jacaranda boughs are bending in the haze
More a question than a curse
How could hell be any worse?
The flames are stunning
When the hills of Los Angeles are burnin
Palm trees are candles in the murder wind
So many lives are on the breeze
Even the stars are ill at ease
And Los Angeles is burning" Bahari California Bahari is a trio of female pop singer-songwriters and muscians that formed in Manhattan Beach in 2013. One member grew up in Kenya speaking Swahili and "Bahari" means "ocean" in Swahili. One thing I don't understand about this song is the line "Drive down to heaven on the 105." That's not exactly a scenic highway - it leads from Norwalk to El Segundo, but I guess if you go a few miles south you'll get to Manhattan Beach so maybe that's why they mention it. This is beginning to sound like that Saturday Night Live Californians sketch where all they do is give driving directions around L.A.
"It's a state of mind, it's a state of grace
Close your eyes, drift away
The nights are warm and the days are long
Come, pretty baby, where you belong
The taste of her skin makes you feel alive
Drive down to heaven on the 105
Oooh, everybody needs a little
California
I can be your California
I can be your getaway
I love ya, but I have to warn ya
You can visit but you cannot stay
Well I could be your California baby
And we could be a flawed paradise
Nothing perfect lasts forever
But baby wouldn't that be nice?
A kiss from the sun, let it burn your skin
I'll meet you tonight but don't ask where I've been
The liquor store on 7th, they don't check IDs
Yeah a pretty girl can always get whatever she needs
I can be your California
I can be your getaway
I love ya, but I have to warn ya
You can visit but you cannot stay
Well I could be your California baby
And we could be a flawed paradise
Nothing perfect lasts forever
But baby wouldn't that be nice?
California-fornia love
I can be your, I can be your...
I can be your California
I can be your getaway
I love ya, but I have to warn ya
You can visit but you cannot stay
Well I could be your California baby
And we could be a flawed paradise
Nothing perfect lasts forever
But baby wouldn't that be nice" B. J. Baker Grant Avenue This is a big musical number in the Chinese New Year's parade scene from the musical "Flower Drum Song" which was set in San Francisco's Chinatown. The 1961 movie features the star Nancy Kwan lip syncing, but the real singer is B.J. Baker. Kwan and Baker's " I Enjoy Being a Girl " number is another highlight of the movie musical which was groundbreaking in that it featured entertainers of Asian heritage instead of non-Asian actors in "yellow-face" makeup, which was common in those days. I wish someone would have told Rogers and Hammerstein, who wrote the song for the original 1958 musical, that they're called "Cable Cars" not "trolleys" in San Francisco.
"A western street with eastern manners,
Tall pagodas and golden banners
Throw their shadows through the lantern glow.
You can shop for precious jade
or teakwood tables or silk brocade
Or see a bold and brassy night club show,
On the most exciting thoroughfare I know.
We call it
You travel there in a trolley,
In a trolley up you climb,
Dong! Dong! You're in Hong Kong,
Having yourself a time.
You can eat, if you are in the mood,
Shark-fin soup, bean cake fish.
The girl who serves you all your food
Is another tasty dish!
Can't have a new way of living
Till you're living all the way
On Grant Avenue. --Where is that?--
San Francisco, That's where's that!
California U.S.A." Courtney Barnett Kim's Caravan Courtney Barnett, from Melbourne, Australia, is an outstanding singer-songwriter and a great guitar player, too. With a deadpan delivery she speak/sings about asthma attacks, organic vegetables, and house shopping, turning the mundane into the universal. After a couple of great EPs she released her first full album in March 2015 "Sometimes I Sit and Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit" on which you'll find this song which describes the devastation of Australia's environment, not California's, and mentions the Sunset Strip in Los Angeleeze only to clarify that she's not singing about it, she's singing about the Sunset Strip on Phillip Island, which is south of Melbourne, Australia, but it's a good excuse for me to put her on my list. For more great songs of hers check out Dead Fox, Avant Gardener, Depreston, Pedestrian at Best, An Illustration of Loneliness, and History Eraser.
"Watermarks on the ceiling
I can see Jesus and he's frowning at me
I see a dead seal on the beach
The old man says he's already saved it three times this week
Guess it just wants to die
I would wanna die too
With people putting oil into my air
But to be fair, I've done my share
Guess everybody's got their different point of view
I was walking down Sunset Strip, Phillip Island, not Los Angeles
Got me some hot chips and a cold drink
Took a sandy seat on the shore
There's a paper on the ground, it makes my headache quite profound
As I read it out aloud
It said "The Great Barrier Reef it ain't so great anymore
It's been raped beyond belief, the dredgers treat it like a whore"
I drank 'til I was sinking, sank 'til I was thinking
That I'm thankful for this view
We either think that we're invincible or that we are invisible
When realistically we're somewhere in between
We all think that we're nobody but everybody is somebody else's somebody
Don't ask me what I really mean
I am just a reflection
Of what you really wanna see
So take you want from me...."
Eef Barzelay Shaker Star Eef Barzelay is a singer-songwriter from New Jersey, previously with the noise rock band Clem Snide. This song is from a 2009 album covering songs from the band The Transmissionary Six. It's a solo acoustic guitar number that is not really a California song, but it's such a great song, and it does mention Death Valley, so here it is. Terri Tarantula wrote it and released the song in 2009, but this is one of those rare times where I don't prefer the original version.
"We could be unfettered
This I know for sure
Crystalize everything
Ignition contact with you, with you
Shaker shaker, start the car
Shaker, shaker star
Shaker shaker, start the car
Shaker, shaker star
Let's fall in love with a song
Drums and guitar
Drive around singin' Death Valley Rain
Again" Be Calm Honcho
Pretty on the West Coast 2013 - Together' EP
According to her website "A mountain kid living in San Francisco, Shannon Harney blends forest folk and indie pop…. Previously she recorded under the name Shannon Harney & the Everybody Band.
The West Coast refers to more than California, but, no offense to Oregon or Washington, this song is obviously not about either of those states with lines such as "...the land that the sun loves most..."
"Ain't if fun
to be pretty on the west coast
Ain't it a good time
to be free in the land that the sun loves most
I know that we are kings
I swear we'll be big
just livin out our dreams
couldn't pay us to quit
I know we are cool
I know we'll be fine
we did everything we could
to not make up our mind..."
The Beach Boys California Calling One of many of the Beach Boys' California songs, this one is from 1985 during their later incarnations.
"If everybody in the U.S.A
Could come with us to Californ-i-a
We could take 'em to a place out west
Where the good sun shines everyday
Now there's a touch o' Californ-i-a
In everyone who's ever been this way
And when your telephone begins to ring
And the operator comes on the line
California callin'
I'll be there right away
There's some beautiful women
To show me how to ride the ultimate wave
Now I've joined the surfin' nation and so
I'll take a permanent vacation and go
To the golden shores of 'Frisco Bay
I'll ride 'em all the way to Malibu
And I'll take ya' boogie boardin' with me
'Cause when we're surfin' it's so great to be free
And when you're on a California beach
You might even find 'em windsurfin' too..."
The Beach Boys California Dreaming This version of the Mamas and the Papas 1963 classic is one of my favorites. The Beach Boys California Girls The classic 1965 surf pop song that probably started the regional wars over whose girls look the best - another unnecessary war that can't ever be won....
"Well East coast girls are hip
I really dig those styles they wear
And the Southern girls with the way they talk
They knock me out when I'm down there
The Mid-West farmer's daughters really make you feel alright
And the Northern girls with the way they kiss
They keep their boyfriends warm at night
I wish they all could be California
I wish they all could be California
I wish they all could be California girls"
California Saga: Big Sur
California Saga: California The Beach Boys were sent to the Netherlands in 1972 to try to snap Brian Wilson out of his depression. The album that followed, Holland, contained three "California Saga" songs - Beaks of Eagles, Big Sur, and California:
Beaks of Eagles
"...An eagle's nest on the head of an old redwood on one of the
precipice-footed ridges
Above Ventana Creek, that jagged country which nothing but a fallen meteor will ever plow: no horseman
Will ever ride there, no hunter cross this ridge but the winged ones, no
one will steal the eggs from this fortress.
The she-eagle is old, her mate was shot long ago, she is now mated
With a son of hers.
When lightning blasted her nest she built it again on the same tree, in
the splinters of the thunder bolt.
In a broken shack an old man takes his time about dyin'
And just at the back a wild flowerbed that he'll lie in
In dawn's new light a man might venture
A horse drawn stage from Monterey.
The she-eagle is older than I: she was here when the fires of eighty-five
raged on these ridges,
She was lately fledged and dared not hunt ahead of them, but ate scorched
meat.
The world has changed in her time; humanity has multiplied,
But not here; men's hopes and thoughts and customs have changed, their
powers are enlarged, their powers and their follies have become fantastic...."
Big Sur
"...Big Sur I've got plans for you
Me and mine are going to
Add ourselves to your lengthy list of lovers
(Big Sur mount)
And live in canyons covered in springtime green
Wild birds and flowers to be heard and seen
And with my old guitar
I'll make up songs to sing.
Where bubbling springs from the mountainside
Join the Big Sur river to the oceanside
Where the kids can look for sea shells at low tide
Big Sur my astrology it says that I am made to be
Where the rugged mountain meets the water ...."
California
"Water, water, get yourself in the cool, clear, water
The sun shines brightly down on the bay
The air's so clean it'll just take your mind away
Take your mind away
Take your mind away Have you ever been south of Monterey
Barrancas carve the coast line and the chaparral flows to the sea
... ... ... ...
Have you ever been down Salinas way?
Where Steinbeck found the valley
And he wrote about it the way it was in his Travels With Charley.
And have you ever walked down through the sycamores
Where the farmhouse used to be
There the monarch's autumn journey ends
On a windswept cyprus tree." The Beatles Get Back It's a bit of a stretch to call this a California Song, but this 1969 song does include Jojo who heads west for some California grass, and I don't think they mean the kind in the yard you have to mow. This was the 12th and final song on their 12th and final studio album.
"Jojo was a man who thought he was a loner
But he knew it couldn't last
Jojo left his home in Tucson, Arizona
For some California grass
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back, get back
Get back to where you once belonged
Get back, Jojo
Go home" The Beau Brummels Bless You California The Beau Brummels were a San Francisco band in the mid 1960s, one of the creators of the "San Francisco Sound." This is from their 1968 album "Bradley's Barn" and is certainly a song with one of the world's fastest fade-outs.
"i'm forced to admit
that i'm too weak to quit
and i don't have the courage to make it alone
i'm too weak to get through a day on my own
wasted once again and i think i've fallen
i tried to stand my ground but i'm fallin down
yes, i've tasted life again and i think i've fallen
ah tell me my old friend about fallin' down
pick me up, dust me off, but don't run me through it
cause i didn't mean to do it again
tried to find my mind but my head is hollow
it's hard to speak your peace when nothin's there
so if i try to leave, please don't follow
cause i ain't really goin' anywhere
if you're lookin' for a platform
stand with me
the true reformer is the new performer
bless you california
you're the only state for me
every little person with a little radio waitin for somebody to tell 'em where to go
what you're singin's in the realm of worldly things and
when it sinks in do ya bring 'em into the fold?
tryin to find my mind but my head is hollow
it's hard to speak your peace when nothin' there
so if i try to leave, please don't follow
cause i ain't really goin' anywhere." Beck Hollywood Freaks The king of So Cal strip malls drops lobotomy beats and evaporated meats on hi-tech street, then he turns up the heat 'till the swimming pool boils with pop locking beats from Korea. Or... something like that, in this great 1999 release.
"I wanna know what makes you scream
Be your twenty million dollar fantasy
Treat you real good
Hollywood freaks on the Hollywood scene
Touch it real good if you want a piece
Party people know I'm that type of freak" Chuck Berry Promised Land In this classic 1964 rock 'n' roll version of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, the singer finally gets to L.A. and phones home.
"I left my home in Norfolk Virginia,
California on my mind.
Chuck Berry Get Your Kicks (On Route 66) A version ofthe Nat King Cole original discussed below.
Best Coast The Only Place Here's a California Band with some west coast attitude right in their name. And this upbeat pop song continues the geographical jingoism. The title alone tells you what it's about. Bethany Cosentino is a California Girl (couldn't resist) who plays guitar and sings vocals for Best Coast, a band from LA that sounds like a mix of 60's girl group sounds with surf pop. This one is from their 2012 album The Only Place, and I assume from the title, that there's more than one song about the Golden State on it.
"We were born with sun in our teeth and in our hair
When we get bored we like to sit around, sit around and stare
At the mountains, at the birds, at the ocean, at the trees
We have fun, we have fun, we have fun when we please
We wake up with the sun in our eyes It's no surprise that we get so much done
But we always, yes we always, we always have fun
Yes we always, yes we always, we always have fun
Why would you live anywhere else?
Why would you live anywhere else?
We've got the ocean, got the babes
Got the sun, we've got the waves
This is the only place for me
So leave your cold behind
We're gonna make it to the beach on time..." Best Coast California Nights From 2015
"I stay high all the time
Just to get by
I climb into the sky
And my eyes, they cry
California nights
Make me feel so happy I could die
But I try to stay alive
I never wanna get so high
That I can't come back down to real life
And look you in the eyes and say
"Baby, you are mine"
I fly through my mind
I take the way I've known
But have I really grown?
California nights
Make me feel so happy I could die
But I try to stay alive
I never wanna get so high
But I can't come back down to real life
And look you in the eyes and say
"Baby, you are mine"
I never wanna get so high
That I can't come back down to real life
And look you in the eyes and say
"Baby you, oh baby you are mine" Frank Black California Bound Frank Black is a singer-songwriter who grew up in LA and Massachussets, where he formed the essential alternative band Pixies in the mid 80s using the stage name Black Francis. Then he used Frank Black as a solo artist, then Frank Black and the Catholics, and then he went back to using Black Francis. I hope some day he makes up his mind. This is an alternative rock song from the 2002 album Black Letter Days.
"Don't worry, hey, no need for you to hide among the trees
Come into the light and you'll be free
Don't scurry, hey, it's such a lonely life up in the hills
The valley's gonna cure your every ill
Don't worry, hey, I know that you are lost but you'll be found
God willing we are California bound
God willing we are California bound
No, I never will hate you
I just want to show you the one truth
And spread my love all around
Don't worry, don't bring yourself down
Don't let your mind chase you like a hound
Don't worry, don't bring yourself down
We're coming today to save your town
No worries, heys, I know tomorrow brings the golden sun
Where there's wine and olive fruit for everyone
Do hurry, hey, now spread the news from there upon your mound
God willing we are California bound
God willing I won't put you in the ground
No, I never will hate you
I just want to show you the one truth
And spread God's love all around
Don't worry, don't bring yourself down
Don't let your mind chase you like a hound
Don't worry, don't bring yourself down
We're coming today to save your town" Frank Black Los Angeles This is a great 1992 indie hard rocker from Black Francis of the Pixies about several Los Angeleses - one in So Cal, one in Chile, one in the future (2525), and one in old movies.
"I met a man
he was a good man.
Sailin' and shorin'
making me foreign, aaaah yeah.
I wanna live in Los Angeles
not the one in Los Angeles
not the one in South California
they got one in South Patagonia
I wanna live in Los Angeles
not the one in Los Angeles
They got a bunch down in moleville
they got a bunch more still.
I wanna live in Los Angeles
not the one in Los Angeles
They got one in 25-2-5
works just like a beehive." Frank Black Ole Mulholland This is from Frank Black's (Black Francis)1994 release Teenager of the Year.
"Hey, sleepy monster in the sand
Time to get up and have a drink
Pacific Rim has a tank that thinks
That she is really something grand
Let me tell you about
When I was hanging out
Just in my dhoti, running in the dawn
Right across my lawn, I saw a coyote
Ole', Ole', Ole' for Mulholland
See the water fall
Hooray, hooray, the ants are crawling
Down on Bradbury's mall
Ole', Ole', Ole' for Mulholland
All waxed in pride, I've got a comfortable ride
And man, she could take us
Out across the salts
And out of these faults and on into Vegas
So slept a monster in the dune
Woke him up and then he drank
Pacific rim has a think tank
But does she have I.Q. for the moon?
The concrete of the aqua duct
Will last as long as the pyramid of Egypt
Or the Parthenon of Athens
Long after Joe Harriman is elected major of Los Angeles
Ole', Ole', Ole', for Mulholland
See the water fall
And hooray, hooray, the ants are crawling
Down in Bradbury's mall
Ole', Ole', Ole', for Mulholland
Yeah, it's quite a sprawl
So hooray, hooray, the sky is falling
Down on Bradbury's mall
Ole', Ole', Ole', for Mulholland, Ole'" Black Whales Rattle Your Bones Black Whales is a Seattle Band their Band Camp site tags: "alternative garage pop psyche-pop rock n roll Seattle. Rattle Your Bones is the A Side of a 7" vinyl single released in 2010.
"And oh, I try and speak,
and open up my teeth,
I can't say anything.
Tell me what you hear,
I like your point of view.
Tell me everything.
And no I can't deny,
no I can't close my eyes,
I can't fall asleep,
'cause I'll only wake up here...
In the wrong place, at the wrong time.
The wrong place, at the wrong time.
We look like trouble I guess,
and people turn their heads,
we are the dead end kids.
Here come the worker bees,
rattle your bones like tambourines.
Don't fall asleep,
'cause you'll only wake up here...
In the wrong place, at the wrong time.
The wrong place, at the wrong time. Time.
I'm going to San Francisco,
and I don't think I'm ever coming back.
I'm goin' out the window,
I'm goin' and I won't cover up my tracks, yeah,
I'm going to San Francisco,
I'm going to San Francisco,
I'm going to San Francisco,
I'm going to San Francisco...."
Blink-182 California Blink 182 is an American pop punk band from Poway formed in 1992. This is another song about the state’s good weather, from their Grammy-nominated 2016 album “California.”
"Beige little boxes in a row
Neighbors and friends that you don't know
Here's a form go wait in line
Can't you see I'm doing fine
It's what I've always wanted
Two little kids out on the lawn
Once we had love now it's gone
Good things haven't happened yet
I'm empty as a movie set
It's what I've always wanted
Hey here's to you California
Beautiful haze of suburbia
Living in the perfect weather
Spending time inside together
Hey here's to you California
Wearing all black out on the beach
Faces I've seen in magazines
Lets take a walk out on the pier
Watch the shoreline disappear
It's what I've always wanted
Hey here's to you California
Beautiful haze of suburbia
Living in the perfect weather
Spending time inside together
Hey here's to you California
Na, na na, na na, na na, na na (woah ohh)
Na, na na, na na, na na, na na (woah ohh)
Na, na na, na na, na na, na na (woah ohh)
Na, na na, na na, na na, na na (woah ohh)
Hey here's to you California
Beautiful haze of suburbia
Living in the perfect weather
Spending time inside together
Hey here's to you California” Blink-182 Los Angeles This is another good uptempo pop punk song from the band’s 2016 album “California” that seems to be a complaint about noise and light pollution. I guess.
“Day in day out
Up at 3 AM with the searchlights shining down
Day in day out
It's the blinding light underneath the dirt downtown
Whoa
Listen to the sound as they bomb the Sixth Street Bridge
Whoa
Listen to the sound of the voices south of Fifth
In Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles I'm never coming home
(I'm never coming, I'm never coming)
Come down
I've been awake for days
Knocked out
By the sound of falling rain
Come down yeah we'll watch the sun just burn away the sky
Watch the city lights die out up on Mulholland Drive
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles I'm never coming home
Wake me when this war is over
Meet me where the skyline ends
Wake me when this war is over
Meet me where the skyline ends
Wake me when this war is over
Meet me where the skyline ends
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles when will you save me
Los Angeles I'm never coming home
I'm never coming home
I'm never coming home
I'm never coming home
I'm never coming home” Blink-182 You Can't Go Home Again I forget - Thomas Wolfe was writing about San Diego, right?
“Sometimes I wonder where our lives go
And question who we used to be
Sometimes I feel like I'm the oxygen between
The cigarette and gasoline
I can't sleep cause what if I dream
Of going back to San Diego
We bought a one way ticket
So we can go see the Cure
And listen to our favorite songs in the parking lot
And think of every person I ever lost in San Diego
(To San Diego)
Can't go back to San Diego
(Can't go back to San Diego)
Abandoned houses with the lights on
Late at night I call your name
Abandoned love songs smashed across the hardwood floors
I read the sadness on your face
I can't sleep cause what if I dream
Of going back to San Diego
We bought a one way ticket
So we can go see the Cure
And listen to our favorite songs in the parking lot
And think of every person I ever lost in San Diego
(To San Diego)
Can't go back to San Diego
(Can't go back to San Diego)
I never needed to hear
All of the pain and the fear
Your secrets filled up my ears
Like the ocean blue
I never wanted to know
How deep these cuts on you go
And like a river they flow
To the ocean blue
Going back to San Diego
We bought a one way ticket
So we can go see the Cure
And listen to our favorite songs in the parking lot
And think of every person I ever lost in San Diego (San Diego)
(To San Diego)
Can't go back to San Diego (San Diego)
(Can't go back to San Diego)” David Bowie Cracked Actor From Bowie's 1973 album "Alladin Sane" this is about an aging movie actor in Hollywood.
"I've come on a few years from my Hollywood Highs
The best of the last, the cleanest star they ever had
I'm stiff on my legend,
the films that I made
Forget that I'm fifty
cause you just got paid
Crack, baby, crack,
Smack, baby, smack, is that all that you feel
Suck, baby, suck,
that you're knocking me dead
You caught yourself a trick down
on Sunset and Vine
But since he pinned you baby
you're a porcupine
You sold me illusions for a sack full of cheques
You've made a bad connection 'cause I just want your sex
Crack, baby, crack,
Smack, baby, smack, is that all that you feel
Suck, baby, suck,
give me your head
Before you start professing
that you're knocking me dead" Bow Wow Wow Do You Wanna Hold Me? Bow Wow Wow is an English worldbeat pop band assembled by Malcolm McLaren, who also invented the Sex Pistols, to promote a line of clothing. He took several musicians from Adam and the Ants and added 14-year-old Annabella Lwin as the lead vocalist. This song is from the band's third and final album When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going, released in 1983.
"Children, I wanna warn ya (Whoa-oh-oh)
'Cause I've been to California (Whoa-oh-oh)
Where Mickey Mouse is such a demon (Whoa-oh-oh)
Where Mickey Mouse is as big as a house (Whoa-oh-oh)
Ba da ba ba da ba (Whoa-oh-oh)
Ba da ba ba da ba
Life is wasted on illusion (Whoa-oh-oh)
Tom and Jerry's no solution (Whoa-oh-oh)
Evil games for cartoon demons (Whoa-oh-oh)
Pinocchio's a real boy, look around!
Ba da ba ba da ba (Whoa-oh-oh)
Ba da ba ba da ba
And I cry all night
Do you wanna hold me, hold me tight?
Do you wanna hold me? Oh yeah
Do you wanna hold me, hold me there?
Children, you got to hear me (Whoa-oh-oh)
You just got to understand me (Whoa-oh-oh)
Love and death ain't no physical thing (Whoa-oh-oh)
'Cause Mickey Mouse, he don't wanna know! (Whoa-oh-oh)...."
Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise California This is a good blues song from an American band formed in 1994 in Detroit featuring vocalist Robert Bradley. It's from the band's eponymous recording released in 2011.
"Well, I'll never forget the day
I motored into big L.A.
I remember seeing the Dodgers play some ball
Well I'll never forget the sound of all the
Greyhound bound, takin me home, to see my momma
And I never y'all, seen the stars shine in California
but I remember seeing the rain a comin down, Lord
And I never no, seen the stars shine in California
but I remember seeing the rain comin down
Well I'll never forget the time
That I toasted California wine
I remember strolling along Wilshire Boulevard
But I never forget the lights, the lights of Hollywood
and I remember a ridin down the Harbor Freeway
And I never y'all, seen the stars shine in California
but I remember seeing the rain a comin down, Lord
And I never no, seen the stars shine in California
but I remember seeing the rain comin down
Well I never forget the warmth
of that San Diego sun
And I remember going across the Golden Gate Bridge
But I never forget the day
that I motored into the big L.A.
I remember seeing the Dodgers play the ball, y'all
And I never y'all, a little star shine in California
but I remember, seeing the rain a coming down, Lord
Turn on the light
and let it shine on me
Turn on the light
and let it shine on me
The Big L.A.
Its gonna make them ride
Well I never seen the stars shine in California
But I remember, seeing the rain comin down" Cleo Brown When Hollywood Goes Black and Tan In this upbeat early 40's jazz classic, Harlem crooners, Louis Armstrong, and more will all be heading west when Hollywood goes black and tan. It's a celebration of African American entertainers in the movies, back when there were not many of them.
"Creole babies from Manhattan,
Will be leaving Harlem if they can,
Yeah, man! Oh, yeah, man!
When Hollywood goes black and tan!
Louis Armstrong with his trumpet
Will be heading westward with his band,
Yeah, man! Oh, yeah, man!
When Hollywood goes black and tan!" Jimmy Buffett Come Monday This easy listening ballad is basically a postcard to his wife from a musician tired of touring and the L.A. smog (which was really horrible back in 1974, I can assure you) and looking forward to seeing her. It's from his 1974 album "Living & Dying in 3/4 Time, which was released 3 years before his monster pop country hit "Margaritaville." When not promoting the consumption of tasty tequila-based beverages, Buffett has worked since 1981 to save the Manatees and other marine life. I'll raise a glass to that.
"Headin' up to San Francisco
for the Labor Day weekend show,
I've got my hush-puppies on,
I guess I never was meant for
glitter rock and roll.
And honey I didn't know
that I'd be missin' you so.
Come Monday It'll be all right,
Come Monday I'll be holding you tight.
I spent four lonely days in a brown L.A. haze
and I just want you back by my side.
Yes it's been quite a summer,
rent-a-cars and west bound trains.
And now you're off on vacation,
somethin' you tried to explain.
And darlin' I love you so that's
the reason I just let you go.
Come Monday It'll be all right,
Come Monday I'll be holding you tight.
I spent four lonely days in a brown L.A. haze
and I just want you back by my side.
I can't help it honey,
you're that much a part of me now.
Remember the night in Montana when
we said there'd be no room for doubt.
I hope you're enjoyin' the scenery,
I know that it's pretty up there.
We can go hikin on Tuesday,
with you I'd walk anywhere.
California has worn me quite thin,
I just can't wait to see you again..."
Eric Burdon and the Animals San Francisco Nights A 1967 song about San Francisco and the Summer of Love, and all that Hippy stuff. But a WARM San Francisco night? That doesn't sound like summer in Don't Call it Frisco to me.
"Strobe lights beam create dreams
walls move minds do too
on a warm San Franciscan night
old child young child feel alright
on a warm San Franciscan night
angels sing leather wings
jeans of blue Harley Davisons too
on a warm San Franciscan night
old angels young angels feel alright
on a warm San Franciscan night.
I wasn't born there perhaps I'll die there
there's no place left to go, San Franciscan." C Camper Van Beethoven Cowboys From Hollywood A song off the 1985 album "Telephone Free Landslide Victory" from one of the great California bands, started in the Inland Empire.
The lyrics are simple, just one line repeated a dozen times, in true quirky Camper fashion:
"Aren't y'all cowboys from Hollywood?" Camper Van Beethoven Dockweiler Beach From "El Camino Real" released in 2014.
"I am waiting in the water
I am waiting at El Segundo
I am waiting for that rogue wave
I am waiting for your body
I saw you go into the water
I saw Neptune's trident shine
Took you by the hand my darlin'
Took you in the uh-undertow
I will wait ten thousand years
I will wait ten thousand years
Eternity
Camper Van Beethoven I Live in L.A. From "El Camino Real" released in 2014
"She comes in like a star, wearing jewellery and fur
With her own entourage, hanger-onners in clogs
From some small town in Spain, it's never explained.
Sufficiently
I live in L. A.
Come and see me someday.
You can stay at my house.
I've got plenty of space.
I live in L. A.
Come and see me someday boy
If you wanna have a good time
A good time with me.
Black SUVs in the drive, tinted windows and guards
Cowboy boots and shaved heads, Italian suits, tattood necks
The party rages inside, but its never explained
La Frontera plates
Oh boy I hope it's not too late." Camper Van Beethoven Northern California Girls Another song about California Girls. From their 2013 album "La Costa Perdida"
' Northern California girls say, "Baby come home now"
You don't belong there
Everybody knows this but you
Don't you miss the ocean?
Don't you miss the weather?
Don't you miss me just a little bit?
Northern California girls say, "Come home from Texas"
You could take a fast train
Baby take the next plane
You'd be home by suppertime
There ain't nobody like me
Ain't nobody like me out there
Northern California girls say, "You don't know what you're missing"
I got a good job, stay home and play the guitar
You can raise the children barefoot on the beaches
Teach 'em how to surf and play baseball
Northern California girls say, "Come home from Brooklyn!"
You could take a fast train
Baby take the next plane
You'd be home by suppertime
There ain't nobody like me
Ain't nobody like me out there
Northern California girls say, "Everything happens for a reason"
You did what you had to do
Now it's time for you to come home
Northern California girls
Northern California girls
Northern California girls '
Camper Van Beethoven City of Industry An outtake from "El Camino Real" released in 2014 available as an iTunes extra.
"So bring a basket for the lions
Of City of Industry
Don't mind the benzene, the double helix
Don't drink the water from my tap
You know the ZIP code, it's got a good one
90601
You love your husband, but you like danger
That's why you're hanging out with me
I'm growing palm trees in wooden barrels
In City of Industry
I've got a contact, a State employee
He's got big gambling debts
I have these wise guys, we meet at Denny's
That's why you can't keep yourself away
You love your husband, yeah I'm a fella
That's why you can't keep yourself away
You love your husband, but you like danger
That's why you're hanging out with me
Meet me at Denny's, we'll plan a heist there
City of Industry
We got a bad man, we got a rock god
We got a man on the inside too
Don't mind the benzene, the double helix
Don't drink the water from the tap." Vanessa Carlton Dear California Vanessa Carlton is an American singer-songwriter from Pennsylvania whose 2002 debut single "A Thousand Miles" was a huge Grammy-nominated hit. This song is from her 2011 album "Rabbits on the Run." The singer of this one is planning on leaving California. Maybe to make room for all the other singers who sing about going there.
"As usual, I'm in a tricky predicament
Weather in my thoughts, on the roof sneaking a cigarette
Dear California, it's been nice to know ya
Tell me, will you miss me when I'm gone?
'Cause he loves me as I leave, so I'm gonna go
And I'm not in companies when you feel it most
And you keep my memory, hope ya keep me close
Would you love me as I leave?
This alchemy is making me suspicious
As if I slipped you some belladonna
That I crossed town to get, don't you know?
Yes, my grand friend checks it
Oh he loves me as I leave, so I'm gonna go
And I'm not in companies when you feel it the most
And you keep my memory, hope ya keep me close
Would you love me as I leave?
Ever-changing as the sea, it's my only hope
It's just me and my pup in the open road
But your face is like a paper-cut to the heart
Slip away while you sleep
It's easy, it's easier
Just go, I'll go, don't cry
I don't know, I don't know, but you fly
(Hey!)
Oh he loves me as I leave, so I'm gonna go
And I'm not in companies when you feel it most
And you keep my memory, hope ya keep me close
Would you love me as I leave?
Ever-changing as the sea
Would you love me as I leave?
Dear California
Would you love me as I leave?
Dear California
Would you love me as I leave?
Dear California
Would you love me as I leave?
Dear California" Hoagy Carmichael Hong Kong Blues Carmichael sings this song in the classic Howard Hawks film "To Have and Have Not" with Humphry Bogart and 19-year-old Lauren Bacall in her first film. I don't understand why the gong-kicking guy says he lives in Frisco if he lives in Tennessee, or why they send rice there (Rice-a-Roni?), but that's show biz...
"It's the story of a very unfortunate colored man
Who got arrested down in old Hong Kong
He got twenty years privilege taken away from him
When he kicked old Buddha's gong
And now he's poppin' the piano just to raise the price
Of a ticket to the land of the free
Well, he says his home's in Frisco where they send the rice
But it's really in Tennessee
That's why he said, 'I need someone to love me
I need somebody to carry me home to San Francisco
And bury my body there
I need someone to lend me a fifty dollar bill and then
I'll leave Hong Kong behind me for happiness once again'
Won't somebody believe
I've a yen to see that Bay again
Every time I try to leave
Sweet opium won't let me fly away" Carolina Liar California Bound Carolina Liar is an indie rock band from LA with a big bright sound, but the lead vocalist is originally from South Carolina, and other band members are from Sweden. But the guy in this 2008 song can't wait to get back to that California sun that everyone else is always singing about. But this time he's coming by train and not car. What does he they think he'll be able to do in California without a car? I'll bet he's planning on renting a convertible and driving down the coast highway with the top down just like they do in all the other songs. Then he'll write a song about it...
"You're miles away
Are you what surrounds you?
At least you think that life
Is something in you
We'll be on a brand new road
Chasing the sun back to the west coast
In eight hours we're California bound
We're California bound
We're California bound" Neko Case In California The Alt Country queen from the Northwest dreams of snow now that she's living in L.A. where the sun always shines and the palm trees are laughing at her. With a voice like that, she could sing the phone book and I'd still listen.
"In California I dream of snow
And all the places we used to go
With the night falling down
With the night falling down
Now I'm living in Korea Town
Waking to the sound of car alarms
I remember your face when I showed you the ticket
Said you were happy for me, your heart wasn't in it
Just a phone call away
Now there's nothing to say
As the days roll by, disconnected
In the land where the sun is always shining on
Crying alone, palm tress are laughing at me
Another fool playing songs that don't matter
For people who chatter endlessly" Neko Case Thrice All American (Tacoma) This isn't really a California song, but in her great 2000 song about her home town Tacoma Washington, which had seen better days when she wrote the song, Neko Case gets in a dig at California singing "God bless California, make way for the Walmart. I hope they don't find you Tacoma." Walmart finally found Tacoma in 2013. Maybe she should go back and visit more often.
"I want to tell you about my hometown
It's a dusty old jewel in the South Puget Sound
Well the factories churn and the timbers all cut down
And life goes by slow in Tacoma
People they laugh when they hear you're from my town
They say it's a sour and used up all place
I defended its honor, shrugged off the put downs
You know that you're poor, from Tacoma
Buildings are empty like ghettos or ghost-towns
It gives me a chill to think what was inside
I can't seem to fathom the dark of my history
I invented my own in Tacoma
There was nothing to put me in love with the good life
I'm in league with the the gangs guns, and the crime
There was no hollow promise that life would reward you
There was nowhere to hide in Tacoma
People who built it they loved it like I do
There was hope in the trainyard of something inspired
Once was I on it, but it's been painted shut
I found passion for life in Tacoma
Well I don't make it home much, I sadly neglect you
But that's how you like it away from the world
God bless California, make way for the Walmart
I hope they don't find you Tacoma" Johnny Cash Folsom Prison Blues Folsom State Prison is near Sacramento. Cash said he wrote this 1955 song after watching a movie about the prison when he was in the Air Force in Germany, but it's clear he used the melody and many of the lyrics from the 1953 song "Crescent City Blues" written by Gordon Jenkins. Jenkins sued and Cash paid him a settlement in 1968. Some say that Sam Phillips of Son Records is the one who refused to credit Jenkins. In any case, Cash's song is much better. It became a huge hit and Cash later made a classic country album recorded live at the prison.
"When I was just a baby,
My Mama told me, 'Son,
Always be a good boy,
Don't ever play with guns,'
But I shot a man in Reno,
Just to watch him die,
When I hear that whistle blowin',
I hang my head and cry." Nick Cave and Warren Ellis All the Gold in California The always cheerful Australian song and dance man does his version of the 1979 Gatlin Brothers song for the soundtrack to the HBO series True Detective.
"All the gold in California is in a bank in the middle of Beverly Hills
In somebody else's name, so if you're dreaming about California
It don't matter at all where you've played before
California's a brand new game
Tryin' to be a hero, winding up a zero
Can scar a man forever right down to your soul
Living on the spotlight can kill a man outright
'Cause everything that glitters is not gold
And all the gold in California is in a bank in the middle of Beverly Hills
In somebody else's name, so if you're dreaming about California
It don't matter at all where you've played before
California's a brand new game
All the gold in California is in a bank in the middle of Beverly Hills
In somebody else's name, so if you're dreaming about California
It don't matter at all where you've played before
California's a brand new game
Brand new game
A brand new game" Exene Cervenka Alone in Arizona Exene Cervenka was one of the vocalists from the seminal L.A. punk band X. She also sang with the Knitters and other bands. She wrote this song and included it on her 2011 album "The Excitement Of Maybe." Her former X bandmate John Doe also sings the song.
"My heart is blue with losing you
My soul is still losing you
The road is rough, I'm losing you
The sun beats down, I'm losing you
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
Found her where it shouldn't be, I'm losing you
Cactus run away from me, I'm losing you
The shades I've drawn, I'm losing you
My eyes are closed, I'm losing you
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
My heart is blue with losing you
My soul is still losing you
The road is rough, I'm losing you
The sun beats down, I'm losing you
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona
My heart's in California, I'm alone in Arizona"
Cheap Trick
California Man A 1978 cover of the 1972 song by The Move (Roy Wood's band that became The Electric Light Orchestra) with a bunch of classic boogie rock nonsense lyrics about a party where the jive is really cool and he's a California man and can't stop dancing and all that.
"Goin' to a party,
Meet me on after school.
Well we're goin to a place
Where the jive is really cool.
And if the band stops a playin'
There's a jukebox down the hall.
And with your blue dress on, your folks all gone.
You're sure to give the guys a ball.
Get that real guitar boy shakin',
I'm a California man,
Dance right on till the floors are breakin'
I'm a California man." Kenny Chesney California They don't get much bigger than Kenny Chesney in Country or any kind of music, and he has 30 million album sales and almost as many awards to prove it. This song is from his1999 album "Everywhere We Go." It's about a woman who thinks that going to sunny California will solve all her problems. Maybe it will.
"She lived at the end of a little dirt road
In a house where secrets go untold
Barefoot in a cotton dress
Dark hair in a tangled mess
And a head full of crazy dreams
She said
A place where the sun always shines
I'm goin' to California
And I'm leavin' everything behind
You can't help but feel a little bit touched
When your daddy loves you a little too much
You can wish on four leaf clovers
But all the fields have been plowed over
And there's nothin' left to do but fly away
She said
A place where the sun always shines
I'm goin' to California
And I'm leavin' everything behind
Stars burn like candles on that two-lane highway
She made her wish, and disappeared on her 18th birthday
And she said
A place where the sun always shines
I'm goin' to California
And I'm leavin' everything behind
I'm goin' to California
And I'm leavin' everything behind
Oh California
Oh California
Leavin' it all behind
California" Kenny Chesney El Cerrito Place A cover of a song written by Keith Gattis and originally recorded by Charlie Robison from Country megastar Kenny Chesney's 2012 album "Welcome to the Fishbowl." El Cerrito Place supposedly refers to some apartments in Hollywood. The song also name checks Pioneertown.
"I been hangin' round this place, I been lookin' through your space
I been waitin' for you, I've been waitin' for you
All the places that you go, all the people that you know
I've been lookin' for you, I've been lookin' for you
And all these pretty people up on El Cerrito Place
They all got somethin' in their pockets, all got somethin' on their face
They roll down to La Brea where it meets the boulevard
Singin' hallelujah while they dance over the stars
They all say they're goin' far
Me I've been lookin' for you baby, I've been lookin' for you baby
I've been lookin' for you baby, I've been lookin' for you baby
All night long, all night long, all night long
Someone said they might have seen you where the ocean meets the land
So I've been out here all night lookin' for your footprints in the sand
Did you hear the ocean singing, baby did you sing along
While you danced out in the water to some ol' forgotten song,
Were you even here at all?
Me I've been lookin' for you baby, I've been lookin' for you baby
I've been lookin' for you baby, I've been lookin' for you baby
All night long, all night long, all night long
Somehow I wound up in the desert just after daylight
Where the Joshua Trees grow that little place you always liked
These Pioneertown people ain't got too much to say
And if you ever were here baby they ain't givin' you away
Now it's been two days
I'm still lookin' for you baby, I've been lookin' for you baby
I've been lookin' for you baby, I've been lookin' for you baby
All night long, all night long, all night long
And all these pretty people up on El Cerrito Place
They all got somethin' in their pockets, all got somethin' on their face
Someone said they might have seen you where the ocean meets the land
So I've been out here all night lookin' for your footprints in the sand
Think I'll go back to the city, back to El Cerrito Place
That's the last time that I saw that pretty smile upon your face
I've been lookin' for you baby"
Chicago Southern California Purples In this rock song with a horn section released in 1969, Chicago wonders where that the fabled California sun is. L.A. is cold and cloudy when you've lost your girl and you've got the blues. Or the purples, in this case. There must be something red in L.A. that mixes with the blues.
"I thought this was a warm place
I must be in the wrong place.
Thought this was a warm place
I must be in the wrong place.
And I don't know where I'm going
Since my lover left me.
Never no smile on my face.
I am he is you are he is you are me and we are all together, woah woah.
Buddy, this ain't L.A.
I've travelled such a long way.
Buddy, this ain't L.A.
I've travelled such a long way,
And I still don't know where I'm going.
But without my baby
I better not stay." Eric Clapton San Francisco Bay Blues This is a cover of the Jesse Fuller 1954 original. It was included on Clapton's 1992 album "Unplugged" which won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
The lyrics are listed under Jessie Fuller. Gene Clark Los Angeles Gene Clark was a founding member of the great L. A. band The Byrds who pioneered folk rock in the mid 1960's. Clark wrote a lot of their songs including a couple of their best - "Eight Miles High" and "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better." "Los Angeles" is a solo recording from Flying High, released in 1998 and containing previously unavailable tracks, but I don't know when the song itself was recorded. Clark left the Byrds in 1966 and died in 1991.
"Los Angeles, city of the doomed
Los Angeles, city of the doomed
Well I loved you once but I gotta go, yeah
San Francisco, city pretty by the bay
San Francisco, city pretty by the bay
Well I loved you once but I gotta go, yeah
Well I don't know where she'll be going
Yeah I saw her about a day or so ago
Yeah I don't know if I should look for her
Well I'd say she's gone down to San Diego
Los Angeles, city of the doomed
Los Angeles, city of the doomed
Well I loved you once but I gotta go, yeah" Guy Clark L.A. Freeway A classic country/folk song from 1974 by a great Texas singer and songwriter. I like the solo version you can hear on YouTube. This song has been covered by lots of other performers.
"Pack up all your dishes.
Make note of all good wishes.
Say goodbye to the landlord for me.
That son of a bitch has always bored me.
Throw out them LA papers
And that moldy box of vanilla wafers.
Adios to all this concrete.
Gonna get me some dirt road back street
If I can just get off of this LA freeway
Without getting killed or caught
I'd be down that road in a cloud of smoke
For some land that I ain't bought bought bought" Nat King Cole Midnight Flyer Nat King Cole was an American jazz pianist who became a very popular singer. In a previous hit (below) he was driving on Route 66, but this time the singer is on a train to L.A. to try to get his girl back, something a lot of singers have tried without ever telling us if they were successful. The song won a Grammy Award in 1959.
"Midnight flyer
There'll be a whole lot of kissing
When I jump off that Santa Fe
Midnight flyer
Roll on down the track
Midnight flyer
Roll on down the track
The quicker I get there
The sooner I'll get her back
A pocket full of money
A heart full of pain
I won't be myself
Until I see her again
... ... ...
I got a whole lot of dust
On my dancing shoes
And I've got a lot of loving
That I haven't used
Be on your way
Midnight flyer
Be on your way...." Nat King Cole (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 This rock classic was written in 1946 by Bobby Troupe, recorded first the same year by the King Cole Trio, and recorded by many more musicians , including Chuck Berry in 1961 and the Rolling Stones in 1964. My family moved to California from St. Louis to L.A. driving almost the complete length of Route 66, so this song brings back some ancient childhood memories for me of motels of Indian tee-pees and my first exposure to the great southwestern deserts.
"Well if you ever plan to motor west
Just take my way that's the highway that's the best
Get your kicks on Route 66
Well it winds from Chicago to L.A.
More than 2000 miles all the way
Get your kicks on Route 66
Well it goes from St Louis,
down to Missouri
Oklahoma city looks oh so pretty
You'll see Amarillo and Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona don't forget Winona
Kingsman, Barstow, San Bernadino
Would you get hip to this kindly tip
And go take that California trip
Get your kicks on Route 66" Colonel Loud California Colonel Loud is an American rapper from Florida, Atlanta and North Carolina. This song is from his 2015 album "Plug Talk." It's a celebration of California weed, women, and sunshine that features three other rappers - T. I., Young Dolph, and Ricco Barrino.
[Verse 1: T.I.]
Catch ya ass at the red light
Wanna run at 'em sideways in a Hellcat
On some run flat
Never seen a better view, not in Malibu
Bunch of bad bitches naked in the swimming pool
Hear the waves crashing, playing spades in the living room (Cracking)
Sound like a Doggystyle interlude
Kurupt Gotti, nigga where the gas at?
Moon rock got me acting like I never had sh*t
From Bankhead to a Hollywood address
Same nigga tho
One on one get your ass kicked
Respect it more than a tad bit
Every hood every set though
Sheesh!
One time for the West Coast
LA, the Bay, from Sacramento out to San Diego, California
[Hook: Ricco Barrino]
Stay getting that work in California
And all the killers they show me love in California
I flew a bitch from the A to California
And I be smoking on the best loud in California
Ayy California, oh California
I got to get back to that place to smoke on that Cali
[Verse 2: Young Dolph]
Palm trees in the air, the top pushed back
Blowing smoke out the roof cookies to be exact
I'm always in Cali cause this is where it's at
Bitches, bud, good weather, what you know bout that
Where all the fly bitches ride Benzs and Beamers
They either wanna be an actress, or a singer
I'm at the strip club on Sunset, throwing singles
With this bad bitch from Compton, pouring lean up
Breaking down backwoods, rolling gasoline up
Left the Laugh Factory, pulled up in Inglewood
I f**k with some crips and I f**k with some bloods
And I f**k with some esé
My stash house in the Valley
Welcome to my palace
Just went and killed two shows out in Dallas
Selling OG from LA and crates from the Bay
[Hook: Ricco Barrino
Stay getting that work in California
And all the killers they show me love in California
I flew a bitch from the A to California
And I be smoking on the best loud in California
Ayy California, oh California
I got to get back to that place to smoke on that Cali
[Verse 3: Colonel Loud]
You know I gotta show the West love
I had to take a trip to Cali for the best bud
I been chilling with the goons, yeah the real thugs
Went to Sacramento nigga met a real plug
I said I'm looking for the gas where the kill at
Want the strong gotta go where the hill at
I met a bad bopper chilling out in Frisco
Like to sip the lime-a-ritas and the sisco
I hopped my ass on the 101 and headed north
And when I hit the hill I found what I was looking for
I'm feeling like a leprechaun with a pot of gold
Bags of the gas yeah the Colonel got a soul
I fly a bitch from the A with 100 racks
Put her ass in a rental told her run it back
Fly another bitch in with 200 more
Welcome to California the State of gold
[Hook: Ricco Barrino]
Stay getting that work in California
And all the killers they show me love in California
I flew a bitch from the A to California
And I be smoking on the best loud in California
Ayy California, oh California
I got to get back to that place to smoke on that Cali
[Verse 4: Ricco Barrino]
Somebody fly me out to 'Frisco
Oakland, San Jose, or Vallejo
Shout out to EPA, Sacramento
Where they keep a nigga laced with all the good smoke
I wanna fly out to LA
Meet a bad little honey with a pretty face
I wanna slide out to Inglewood
Long Beach where it feels good
Compton where the hell you at
Show me love we be looking for the loud packs
Shout out to South Central, shout out to Watts
Where the killers always got my back
I wanna chill out in Fresno (Stockton)
I wanna go to San Diego
[Outro]
I got to get back to that place to smoke on that Cali" Concrete Blonde Still in Hollywood The singer of this L.A. punk band is stuck in "the city of sin" in this song from 1986.
"I was walking down the street early this morning
Past the graveyard, voices singin' to me.
I was walking down the street, early this morning
And the silver drops of rain hung from the leaves
And I swear I heard the voices singing to me...
Singing to the rhythm of the beat of my feet,
I swear I heard the voices singing to me -
Keep on, keep on, keep on.
Still in Hollywood!
Oh WOW! Thought I'd be out of here by now.
Still in Hollywood!
My, my I'm running on a wheel and I don't know why
I don't know why.
And so it's three A.M., I'm out walking again.
I'm just a spot on the sidewalk in the city of sin.
He doesn't give a fuck, he's living under a truck.
You know it coulda been me, guess it's just my luck.
But I swear I hear the voices singing to me -
Keep on, keep on, keep on.
Still in Hollywood..." Ry Cooder In My Town From his album "Chavez Ravine" released in 2005. This song, like many of them on this album deal with Chavez Ravine which was a Mexican-American neighborhood that was torn down to build public housing in the 1950's. Before the housing was built, Dodger Stadium was built on the site. Like many cities, much of modern day L. A. was built on the destruction of poor non-white neighborhoods by rich white developers.
"Up here on the hill, it's starting to rain,
The sun's disappearing through my windowpane,
And everything's still in my room.
Then a trolley goes by with its clattering sound,
Like a clock on the wall and the rain coming down,
And somebody's chattering way down the hall from my room.
From my room, I see old town.
Crook town, wop town, and spic town.
Black town, shack town, and hick town, from my room.
Looking down through the rain,
I think the future's going my way.
And there's a freeway coming soon
Right through this dirty old room.
Can't you see a 50-story building
Where a palm tree used to be?
Well, I like a town that's flat, I like a street that's tame.
You take out the trash; they all do the same.
But get back inside and remain, until notified.
I want a town that's clean and I want a rule that's maintained.
If you're brown, back down.
If you're black, get back.
Better white than right.
Better keep it contained in my town.
Now, in my town, I'm the big cheese.
Don't like all those commie rats in the palm trees
Up there in Chavez Ravine.
They come down here to City Hall,
Creating a big scene, crying "foul ball."
We'll put the head rat on the stand.
"Are you now or have you ever been?"
Chief runs a make; director runs the names.
I write the rules; I call the game.
There's the pitch, it's good; there goes your old neighborhood.
Tell the mayor duck out the back,
Tell the monsignor keep the deal under his hat.
Chavez Ravine plugged up, Bunker Hill ripped down.
Cement mixers spreading the word around.
This here is my town.
Then the trolley stops by on its way down the hill,
And somebody's passing by my window sill.
No shoes on the stairs, no knock at the door
Of my room, of my room.
Why should I go down?" Elizabeth Cook Not California A 2010 tune from the smart and quicky country roots rocker. She didn't write it, but she sings it. It seems to be about someone who moved away from California and misses it. I've put a song of hers about a snake in the bed on the herp song list, too.
"Later on you're breaking the boxes down
There's nobody out tonight, nobody's hanging 'round
So you take the drive that used to be almost right
But now it's just empty lots around you
All these empty lots around you And they don't know
What you hold dear
That it's not California here
…
And it's not fair
And they're not us
And it's not California here...." Jonathan Coulton I Hate California An upbeat acoustic guitar tune from the 2003 first album of the singer-songwriter from Brooklyn known for writing quircky songs about science fiction and technology and geek culture and became popular using the internet. He doesn't hate the state, it's all about a girl.
"I hate California
There's something out there I just don't get
I know your friends out there must think I'm pretty strange
Because I dress as if the weather's gonna change
But it never does
I don't blame the sky for its careless shade of blue
Lord knows I don't blame you
Lord knows I don't blame you
I hate California
One more beach day come and gone
And by the time you've finished gazing at the sea
3,000 miles away there's nothing left for me
If there ever was
I hate California...."
Country Joe and the Fish Flying High A dose of Psychedelic Acid Rock from the Berkeley band, the first track off their first album released in 1967 "Electric Music For the Mind and Body" with a couple of LA mentions.
"I'm stuck on the L.A. freeway
Got rain water in my boots
My thumbs done froze, can't feel my toes
I feel a little destitute
Wheels throwing water all over my axe
And Mr. Jones won't lend me a hand
Up come two cats in a Cadillac
And they say: 'Won't you hop in, man?'
I went flying high all the way, all the way.
The one that's driving's got a bowler hat
The other's got a fez on his head
They turn around and grin and I grin back
But not a word was said
So I took out my harp and I played 'em a tune
I could see they were diggin' it
Then the one with the fez, well he turns and he says
'We'd like to help you make your trip.'
I went flying high all the way, all the way.
He said: 'We can't leave him out in the rain'
'He just might freeze and die'
'So why not put him on a plane'
'And send him home in the sky?'
So they took me to the L.A. airport
Laid twenty dollars in my hand
Well, I paid my fare, I'm in the air
Flying back home again
And I went flying high
All the way, yeah all the way, all the way
You know I went flying high all the way
Don't you know I went flying high all the way...."
Cracker El Cerrito Biologist Jeff Ahrens recommended that I add some songs from the new Cracker album, Berkeley to Bakersfield, released in December 2014, and I'm glad he did. Thanks to Cracker for producing a great fun political album about the state, dealing with topics others won't dare to touch (like the totalitarian tech industry that has overtaken our lives) leading off with "Torches and Pitchforks" (not on this list because it doesn't specifically mention the state) and it's revolutionary lyrics:
"We will fight you from the mountains
And we will fight you in the streets
And we will fight you in the valleys
You cannot take what isn't yours."
Berkeley to Bakersfield is a double album about California. The first one could be titled "Berkeley" (a liberal city with roots in social protest) with punk-based songs protesting economic inequality, much of it created by the Silicon Valley tech industry and its gentrification of the Bay Area. The second one could be titled "Bakersfield" (a conservative city with roots in the oil industry and country music) with country songs about the red state half of the golden state that most of the rest of the country is not aware of. I could list all of the songs on the album, but I'll just list a few of them below.
"El Cerrito" complains about the gentrification of the SF Bay Area fueled by the mostly south-bay tech companies and their conformist wealth-obsessed employees whose affluent lifestyles have driven up prices (especially housing prices) forcing many people to live elsewhere. There's a good article about the song in the San Jose Mercury News .
"Walkin down the street in San Francisco just the other day,
wondering what has happened to the freaks and hippies and the punks.
Everybody's squeaky clean. They look and dress and act the same.
I don't give a s@%t about your IPO I live in El Cerrito.
Mama took the Alameda transit bus to work each day.
All the way down San Pablo.
30 years the Navy Base.
Never heard her once complain about taking public transportation.
You should ride the city bus just like the rest of us in El Cerrito.
Big moustache in taxi cabs. Don't you know that ???? scabs.
Union busting techy uber alles. I said it.
Bulls@%t claims to change the world. Making Wall Street bankers even richer.
El Cerrito's got it's problems but we don't pick pockets of the workin' man.
Papa was an engineer. Worked at Hewlett-Packard.
Dumbarton bridge to times a day, then lost his job and pension.
We would go and visit him in bars in Jack London square.
I don't give a s@%t about your IPO I come from El Cerrito.
Do do do do do do do do do do do
Do do do do do do do do do do do
El Cerrito
If there is a lesson from this story to be learned.
It's not exactly what you think.
You shouldn't be concerned.
It's not that we don't like the rich,
it's simply that we think it's kind of boring.
Everybody acts and thinks the same
that's why I live in El Cerrito." Cracker Almond Grove From 2014's Berkeley to Bakersfield.
"Said goodbye to Miss Jenny, sleeping on a subway grate
Say goodbye to all the ladies, waiting for the tricks to show
Got a hundred dollars, more than I need to score
Got a hundred dollars, just enough to get me home
Yeah I'm going back home, to the cotton fields
To the almond groves, to the old homestead
See my Ma and Pa, mighty brother Jack
He went to Kandahar, but he never come back
Came from Maricopa, had no family left
Working for Evoclin, fell in with the narco set
Ended up a junkie, living in my brother's car
Don't shed a tear for me, home ain't so far
...
No he never come back
In a national boulevard, ladies don't you weep and moan
I've gone to a better place off the dirty streets
Mr Patel, won't you send my ashes home?
Spread 'em in the old family almond grove." Cracker Beautiful From 2014's Berkeley to Bakersfield.
"If you haven't heard it
If you don't know it
If you don't think it
You are beautiful
Saw you working at the coffee shop
Saw you walking down Telegraph
Pink mohawk and Doc Marten boots
Don't you know that you're beautiful?
Let's buy a record at Rasputin's
Let's see a show at Gilbert Street
An anarchists' rally at People's Park
Don't you know you're beautiful?
If you don't know it
If you haven't heard it
If you don't think it
You are beautiful
If you come to doubt it
If you don't feel it
If you haven't heard it
You are beautiful
Now you own your own coffee shop
Punk rock shows at matinees
You got a little house west of San Pablo
Don't you know you're still beautiful?
Two teenagers with blue Mohawks
Working at the local fruit co-op
Everything's different but nothing has changed
Don't you know that you're beautiful?" Cracker Big Dipper This one's slow and moody, about Santa Cruz and it's "Giant Dipper" roller coaster. David Lowery described Santa Cruz as combining "carrot juice and cigarettes." Like most of California, it's a combination of healthy/natural and carcinogenic.
"Cigarettes and carrot juice and get yourself a new tattoo
For those sleeveless days of June
I'm sitting on the Cafe Xeno's steps with a book I haven't started yet
Watching all the girls walk by
Could I take you out?
I'll be yours without a doubt on that Big Dipper
And if the sound of this it frightens you
We could play it real cool and act somewhat indifferent
And hey June why'd you have to come
Why'd you have to come around, so soon?
I wasn't ready for all this nature
The terrible green green grass
And violent blooms of flowered dresses
And afternoons that make me sleepy
But we could wait awhile
Before we push that dull turnstile into the passage
The thousands they have tread and others sometimes fled
Before the turn came
And we could wait our lives before a chance arrives
Before the passage
From the top you can see Monterey or think about San Jose
Though I know it's not that pleasant
And hey Jim, Kerouac, a brother of the famous Jack
Or so he likes to say, lucky bastard
He's sitting on the Cafe Xeno's steps with a girl I'm not over yet
Watching all the world go by
Boy you're looking bad, did I make you feel that sad?
I'm honestly flattered
But if she asks me out, I'll be hers without a doubt
On that Big Dipper
Cigarettes and carrot juice and get yourself a new tattoo
For those sleeveless days of June
I'm sitting on the Cafe Xeno's steps
I haven't got the courage yet
I haven't got the courage yet
I haven't got the courage yet" Cracker California Country Boy
From 2014's Berkeley to Bakersfield.
"Ain't no palm trees where I come from
No big waves crashing on the shore
No grid-locked traffic, no movie stars, no
In the part of California I come from
We got oil fields in the Central Valley
We cowboys out in the Mojave
Selena Valley, yeah where I come from
We got farms, far as the eye can see
Now I got good friends out in Texas
And I got family in Tennessee
But this here country boy's from California
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Ain't no place I'd rather be
From Pasa Robles to the Owens Valley
From Manchester on down the Salton Sea
It's where I pick this guitar, it's where I write these songs
Ain't no place that I'd rather be
Yeah I got good friends out in Texas
And I got family in Tennessee
But this here country boy's from California
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Ain't no place I'd rather be
Ain't no palm trees, ain't no movie stars
In the part of California I come from." Cracker King of Bakersfield From 2014's Berkeley to Bakersfield.
"I got a double wide in my own merlot vineyard
I got plenty of space to park my dually truck
I never have to deal with LA traffic
Life is good they call me the king of Bakersfield
I work from dusk to dawn for Paramount Pictures
Set carpenter and all around handy man
Back in Bakersfield I got a Sinaloan beauty
Life is good they call me king of Bakersfield
We got wide open spaces
For my friends to come drink beer
We got a stage in the back with a band two stepping all night long
I got some motorcycle riding neighbours
We never have no trouble round here
All my friends say I live like a king in Bakersfield
And I do
Yeah, play it weird man. this ain't Nashville.
...
Ain't nobody's business how you live your life
I'm a red state union man from California
Life is good they call me king of Bakersfield
Life is good they call me king of Bakersfield
Life is good they call me king of Bakersfield" Cracker Miss Santa Cruz County
From the album "Forever" released in 2002.
"So let's all be someone else
I'm tired of being myself
Let's all be someone else
You could be someone else
I know you're tired of yourself
You say you're so bored you could cry
Well let me tell you, so am I
… … …
Cracker The San Bernardino Boy From 2014's Berkeley to Bakersfield.
"In his underwear
playin' in that dirty air
and his daddy's in the Chino jail.
He'll grow up to be
dumb as dirt by 23
with the county sherriff on his trail.
714 who's that knockin' on my door
It's the San Bernardino boy.
909 everybody hide it
I've seen him over by the keg
dancin' on his broken leg
Blisters risin' on his sunburned hide.
Later on tonight
he'll be startin' up a fight
Till those billy clubs commence to wail.
714 who's that knockin' on my door
it's the San Bernardino boy
909 somebody kill the lights
It's the San Bernardino boy.
In his rusty old Trans Am,
A one-hitter in his hand
He's crankin' up that Back in Black
There's his mother on the stairs
And she offers up a prayer
For those brain cells that ain't comin' back.
714 who's that knockin' on my door
it's the San Bernardino boy
909 somebody kill those lights
It's the San Bernardino boy." Creedence Clearwater Revival Lodi John Fogerty had never been to Lodi in 1969 when he chose the city to represent a dead-end town that a down on his luck musician couldn't escape after a one night stand. "Oh Lord, stuck in Lodi Again" is now the theme of some city events in Lodi, proving there's no such thing as bad publicity, and that the people there have a good sense of humor.
"Rode in on the Greyhound
I'll be walkin' out if I go
I was just passin' through
Must be seven seven months or more
Ran out of time and money
Looks like they took my friends
Oh Lord I'm stuck in Lodi again."
Jim Croce Operator (That's Not The Way It Feels) Jim Croce was a popular folk rock singer originally from Philadelphia. This is a song from his huge hit album You Don't Mess Around with Jim 1972, released the year before he died in a plane crash at the age of 30. He's trying to find the phone number of his ex-girlfriend who moved to L.A. with his ex-friend. This song is probably incomprehensible to anyone born in the cell phone era who never talked with a telephone operator or used a pay phone that only cost a dime.
"Operator, well could you help me place this call
See, the number on the match book is old and faded
She's living in L.A
With my best old ex-friend Ray
A guy she said she knew well and sometimes hated
But isn't that the way they say it goes
Well let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it
So I can call just to tell 'em I'm fine, and to show
I've overcome the blow
I've learned to take it well
I only wish my words
Could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real
But that's not the way it feels
Operator, well could you help me place this call
'Cause I can't read the number that you just gave me
There's something in my eyes
You know it happens every time
I think about the love that I thought would save me
But isn't that the way they say it goes
Well let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it
So I can call just to tell 'em I'm fine, and to show
I've overcome the blow
I've learned to take it well
I only wish my words
Could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real
But that's not the way it feels
No, no, no, no
That's not the way it feels
Operator, well let's forget about this call
There's no one there I really wanted to talk to
Thank you for your time
Ah, you've been so much more then kind
You can keep the dime
But isn't that the way they say it goes
Well let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it
So I can call just to tell 'em I'm fine, and to show
I've overcome the blow
I've learned to take it well
I only wish my words
Could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real
But that's not the way it feels" Sheryl Crow All I Wanna Do This ain't no disco, it ain't no country club either. This is L.A. and girls just wanna have fun, by sitting around drinking beer at noon on a Tuesday with an ugly guy named Billy in a bar next to a car wash on Santa Monica Boulevard. Whatever works for you... It certainly worked for Sheryl; it's still her biggest hit, and the 1995 Grammys record of the year.
"This ain't no disco
This ain't no country club either, this is L.A.
… … … … …
We are drinking beer at noon on Tuesday
In the bar that faces the giant car wash
And the good people of the world
Are washing their cars on their lunch breaks
Hosing and scrubbing as best they can
In skirts and suits
And they drive their shiny Datsuns and Buicks
Back to the phone company, the record stores, too
Well, they're nothing like Billy and me
'Cause All I wanna do is have some fun
I got a feeling I'm not the only one...
Until the sun comes up over
Santa Monica Boulevard"
Rodney Crowell California Earthquake (A Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On) Rodney Crowell is a Country music singer-songwriter from Texas. This song is from his 1978 album "I Ain't Living Long Like This." There are also versions of Grateful Dead covers of this song that they sang live just after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
"There was a California earthquake, in the year of '83
It shook the living daylights out of the Owens County Seat
Not a building still left standing when the dust had cleared away
Just a rumble in the distance all the way to San Andrea
Oh Sherman Buck was driving his old mule into town
When a big one came and shook so hard, that it knocked him to the ground
Lord there opened up a hole so big, he thought his time was up
And it swallowed up that poor old mule and it just missed Sherman Buck
California earthquake you just don't know what you've done
We may fall off in the ocean, but you'll never make us run
You're a partner to the devil, but we ain't afraid of him
We'll build ourselves another town so you can tear it down again
Then came the quake of '99 that levelled Mission Creek
The earth was like an ocean churning, with waves of twenty feet
Lord it sounded like a thousand trains were screaming underground
Clean across to San Joachim, they heard that mournful sound
Then came one day the holocaust on San Franciso Bay
[Ninety] miles of walls came down like old Jericho that day
Might near everything the earthquake missed, a holy fire consumed
And left 'em smoke and the ashes of the dreams that can't be ruined
Build ourselves another town so you can tear it down again" D Johnny 'Scat' Davis and Frances Langford Hooray For Hollywood This is the classic and campy song from the 1937 film "Hollywood Hotel" directed by the always amazing Busby Berkeley. It was sung by Johnny 'Scat' Davis and Frances Langford on the film soundtrack and was later covered by many other singers and orchestras including Benny Goodman and Orchestra, Doris Day, Sammy Davis Jr., Johnny Mercer, Rosemary Clooney, and even Nancy Sinatra.
"Hooray for Hollywood
Where any office boy or young mechanic can be a panic
With just a good looking pan
And any barmaid can be a star maid
If she dances with or without a fan
Hooray for Hollywood,
Where you're terrific if you're even good
Where anyone at all from Shirley Temple to Aimee Semple
Is equally understood
Go out and try your luck, you might be Donald Duck
Hooray for Hollywood
They come from Chillicothes and Paducas with their bazookas
To get their names up in lights
All armed with photos from local rotos
With their hair in ribbon and legs in tights
Hooray for Hollywood
You may be homely in your neighbourhood
But if you think that you can be an actor, see Mr. Factor
He'll make a monkey look good
Within a half an hour you'll look like Tyrone Power
Hooray for Hollywood"
Alternate lyrics from later versions of the song update some of the star names:
"Hooray for Hollywood
Where any office boy or young mechanic can be a panic
With just a good looking pan
And any shop girl can be a top girl
If she pleases Mister Businessman
Hooray for Hollywood
Where you're terrific, if you're even good
Where anyone at all from TV's Lassie to Monroe's chassis
Is equally understood
Go out and try your luck, you might be Donald Duck
Hooray for Hollywood" The Dead Kennedys California Uber Alles Watching the Dead Kennedys at the Mabuhay in San Francisco back in the late 70's was one of the highlights of the SF Punk scene, for me at least. But over 30 years later Jerry Brown became governor again in 2011, while the credibility of the DKs took a hit after lead singer Jello Biafra was convicted for cheating the rest of the band out of royalties and he countered that they stole his songs which they then sold to be used in video games. "Anarchy For Sale" is another one of the band's songs. "Money Uber Alles" should be another.
"I am Governor Jerry Brown
My aura smiles
Soon I will be president...
Carter Power will soon go away
I will be Fuhrer one day
I will command all of you
Your kids will meditate in school!
Your kids will meditate in school!
California Uber Alles
Uber Alles California
Uber Alles California"
Death Cab For Cutie Bixby Canyon Bridge Indie rockers from Bellingham Washington in a song from 2007 about that tall bridge over the ocean on highway one near Big Sur that you've seen in movies and commercials. Jack Keroac ended up in Big Sur and this song is supposed to be about him.
"I descended a dusty gravel ridge
Beneath the Bixby Canyon Bridge
Until I eventually arrived
At the place where your soul had died
Barefoot in the shallow creek
I grab some stones from underneath
And waited for you to speak to me
In the silence it became so very clear
That you had long ago disappeared
And I cursed myself for being surprised
That this didn't play like it did in my mind
All the way from San Francisco
As I chased the end of your rope
'Cause I've still got miles to go" Death Cab For Cutie Why You'd Want to Live Here Another anti-L.A. song from 2001 by the Bellingham indie rockers.
"I'm in Los Angeles today...
Garbage cans comprise the medians of freeways always creaping
Even when the population's sleeping.
And I can't see why you'd want to live here.
... ... ... ... ...
The vessel keeps pumping us through this zentropic place
In the belly of the beast that is Californ-i-a,
I drank from a faucet and I kept my receipts
For when the weigh me on my way out
(Here nothing is free).
Dumping locusts into the street
Until the gutters overflow
'I might explode someday soon.'
It's a lovely summer's day
And I can almost see a skyline through a thickening shroud of egos.
(Is this the city of Angeles or demons?)
Here the names are what remain...
Stars encapsulate the gold lame
And they need constant cleaning for when the tourists begin salivating.
You can't swim in a town this shallow - you will most assuredly drown tomorrow." The Decemberists California One/Youth and Beauty Brigade The Decemberists are an American indie folk band from Portland Oregon. This is a 2003 indie pop song about the coast highway.
"Take a long drive with me
On California one, California one
...
We're lining up the light-loafere'd
And the bored bench warmers
Castaways and cutouts, fill it up
Come join the youth and beauty brigade
Nothing will stand in our way"
The Decemberists Calamity Song A 2011 tune that channels the upbeat jangly guitars of 80's REM (literally - because Peter Buck is playing them.) There's not much really about California, just the stereotypical end-of-the-world viewof the state destroyed by an earthquake, but it is a great great song.
"Had a dream
You and me and the war of the end times
And I believe
California succumbed to the fault line
We heaved relief
As scores of innocents died…" The Decemberists Los Angeles, I'm Yours This song is from the band's second album "Her Majesty the Decemberists" released in 2003
"There is a city by the sea
A gentle company
I don't suppose you want to
And as it tells its sorry tale
In harrowing detail
Its hollowness will haunt you
Its streets and boulevards
Orphans and oligarchs it hears
A plaintive melody
An ocean's garbled vomit on the shore,
Los Angeles, I'm yours
Oh ladies, pleasant and demure
Sallow-cheeked and sure
I can see your undies
And all the boys you drag about
An empty fellow found
You hill and valley crowd
Hanging your trousers down at heel
This is the realest thing
As ancient choirs sing
A dozen blushing cherubs wheel above
Los Angeles I love
Oh what a rush of ripe elan
Languor on divans
But oh, the smell of burnt cocaine
The dolor and decay
It only makes me cranky
Oh great calamity,
Ditch of iniquity and tears
How I abhor this place
Its sweet and bitter taste
Has left me wretched, retching on all fours
Los Angeles, I'm yours" Lana Del Rey
(aka Elizabeth Grant) West Coast From her 2014 album "Ultraviolence" She never mentions California, but the location is obviously LA.
"Down on the West Coast, they got their icons
Their silver starlets, their Queens of Saigons
And you've got the music, you've got the music in you, don't you?
Down on the West Coast, they love their movies
Their golden gods, and rock and roll groupies
And you've got the music, you've got the music in you, don't you?
You push it hard, I pull away, I'm feeling hotter than fire
I guess that no one ever really made me feel that much higher
Te deseo, cariño, boy, it's you I desire
Your love, your love, your love" Delta Spirit California An Indie Pop break-up or maybe unrequited love song from 2012 from a band formed in San Diego that has been labeled Indie Rock, Americana, and Soul.
"I want you to move to California for yourself,
I want you to find whatever your heart needs,
I want you to move to California for yourself, but not for me
I want you to go out there and find somebody else,
I want him to treat you like I know he should,
I want you to find somebody new for yourself, if not for me.
all of the feelings that I know you never felt,
and all of the simple words you never said,
I want you to keep them like a secret to yourself, they’re not for me.
I want you to wander silent past my outstretched arms,
I want you to hide yourself from all I see,
and though my heart will fight until its dying breath, you’re not for me." The Dictators California Sun The Dictators were a proto punk band from New York City. Some people consider them one of the very first punk bands, but they played their instruments too well to be punk in my opinion. This great version of the 1964 Rivieras classic described below is from their first studio album Go Girl Crazy! released in 1975, almost two years before the Ramones studio version. Diesel Sausalito Summer Night This is from Diesel's album "Watts in a Tank" released in 1980. They're a power pop Dutch band, so they probably didn't know that nobody calls it Frisco or that Sausalito is not Frisco, and that you shouldn't need 200 gallons of gast to get from LA to Sausalito. That's only about 2 miles per gallon.. This song sounds like Steve Miller or early Tom Petty or maybe even the Doobie Brothers, or something as dreadfully 1970's as all that, but I'm fond of it nevertheless because it reminds me of breaking down in a similarly ancient vehicle on the Grapevine back in the day and waiting all day in the one coffee shop that was there at that time for parts to arrive from Bakersfield. Now there's the usual fast food and motel jungle there, and there's probably not a Rambler left on the road.
"We left for Frisco in your Rambler
The radiator running dry
I've never been much of a gambler
And had a preference to fly
You said, "Forget about the airline
Let's take the car and save the fare"
We blew a gasket on the Grapevine
And eighty dollars on repairs
All aboard
Hot summer night in Sausalito
Hot summer night in Sausalito
Hot summer night in Sausalito" Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy California Uber Alles A hip hop version of the Dead Kennedys song that samples their version and adds new lyrics slamming then 80's Republican governor Pete Wilson. I'd love to see a newer version skewering the non-elected (the first time), Governator.
(Well, it's now 2011, so it's too late for that. Ahnold's Presidential hopes were destroyed as he retired in shame in the middle of a sex scandal - no surprise, considering all the sexual harrassment complaints that women made against him.) Dj Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince Yo Home To Bel-Air These guys are a hip hop duo from Philadelphia - Jeff Townes and Will Smith. Yes, that Will Smith, the TV star and then blockbuster movie star. They had a few hits and Grammys, including one with the song Summertime, with Smith doing the rapping. Beginning in 1990, Smith starred for several years in a TV sitcom called The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, about a teenage kid from the streets of Philadelphia man who was forced to move into his uncle's Bel-Air mansion to keep him out of trouble. This was the show's theme song, and it is some really cheezy 90's hip hop, as you would excpect from a sit com theme. It probably has a lot of nostalgic value for kids who watched the show.
"Now, this is a story all about how
My life got flipped-turned upside down
And I'd like to take a minute
Just sit right there
I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air
In west Philadelphia born and raised
On the playground was where I spent most of my days
Chillin' out maxin' relaxin' all cool
And all shootin some b-ball outside of the school
When a couple of guys who were up to no good
Started making trouble in my neighborhood
I got in one little fight and my mom got scared
She said 'You're movin' with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air'
I begged and pleaded with her day after day
But she packed my suit case and sent me on my way
She gave me a kiss and then she gave me my ticket.
I put my Walkman on and said, 'I might as well kick it'.
First class, yo this is bad
Drinking orange juice out of a champagne glass.
Is this what the people of Bel-Air living like?
Hmmmmm this might be alright.
But wait I hear they're prissy, bourgeois, all that
Is this the type of place that they just send this cool cat?
I don't think so
I'll see when I get there
I hope they're prepared for the prince of Bel-Air
Well, the plane landed and when I came out
There was a dude who looked like a cop standing there with my name out
I ain't trying to get arrested yet
I just got here
I sprang with the quickness like lightning, disappeared
I whistled for a cab and when it came near
The license plate said fresh and it had dice in the mirror
If anything I could say that this cab was rare
But I thought 'Nah, forget it' - 'Yo, holmes to Bel Air'
I pulled up to the house about 7 or 8
And I yelled to the cabbie 'Yo holmes smell ya later'
I looked at my kingdom
I was finally there
To sit on my throne as the Prince of Bel Air" John Doe Alone in Arizona
This is John Doe's cover of a song written by his former bandmate in X, Exene Cervenka , off his 2016 album "The Westerner." Doe calls the album his "psychedelic, soul record from the Arizona desert."
John Doe (featuring Kathleen Edwards) Golden State This is one of my favorite California songs. It's an upbeat guitar rocker with nice hooks and harmonies and a great chorus. (Doe said in a 3/15 interview with Marc Maron on his WTF podcast that it was the closest thing to a hit song that he's recorded.)
"The Golden State" has been the official California State Nickname since 1968. John Doe is a singer-songwriter, actor from LA, member of the LA punk band X, The Knitters, and has recorded many solo and collaborative albums. Kathleen Edwards is a Canadian singer-songwriter. (Her 2012 album Voyageur has some nice cuts on it - check out "Change the Sheets.")
"You are the hole in my head
I am the pain in your neck
You are the lump in my throat
I am the aching in your heart
We are tangled
We are living where things are hidden You are something in my eye
And I am the shiver down your spine
You are on the lick of my lips
And I am on the tip of your tongue
We are tangled
We are buried up to our necks in sand We are luck
We are fate
We are the feeling you get in the golden state
We are love
We are hate
We are the feeling I get when you walk away….
Walk away..." The Dollyrots California The Dollyrots are a pop punk band with a female vocalist that is from Florida and settled in LA in 2002. This song is from their 2010 release "A Little Messed Up."
"It's a place where the skies are blue
Not a cloud cloud in the sky to speak of
Everyone's swimming in the surf
And palm trees line the streets you walk on
Showing off your brand new fan says
Bleach blond hottie get their ditches
And walking down the Walk of Fame 'cause
Sunset Strip's where you do your business
Meet me in California
Where you can have it all, yeah
We'll be in California
The sun is shining bright
And well it starts tonight
Yeah, yeah, tonight
Can I give it a try
Going swimming in your pool, yeah
The view from the Hills is so so gorgeous
Everyone's got their brand new boards for
Day and night they walk the carpet
Meet me in California
Where you can have it all, yeah
We'll be in California
The sun is shining bright
And well it starts tonight.
... ... ... ...
Yeah, you've got California dreams
Coz the west is best, always forever" The Dollyrots California Beach Boy Another song from 2010's "A Little Messed Up."
"Went down to Venice Beach
Dirty Converse walking down the street
Never thought I'd look his way
oh no oh no oh no
Said baby whats your name
Now I'm falling for his cheesy game
But were totally not the same
oh no oh no oh no
My friends tell me I've gone crazy
Oh, no, here I go
Fell in love with a California beach boy
Oh, no, here I go
What am I thinking it's so wrong
I'm in love with a California beach boy
He drives a Mercedes
Abercrombie head down to his feet
You must wonder what I see
oh no oh no oh no
But he holds the door for me
Like he invented chivalry
To my heart he holds the key
oh no oh no oh no
My friends tell me I've gone crazy
Oh, no, here I go
Fell in love with a California beach boy
Oh, no, here I go
What am I thinking it's so wrong
I'm in love with a California beach boy" The Doors L.A. Woman In this classic rock song from 1971, LA is a lonely woman with freeways, midnight alleys and hair like a wildfire, and Jim Morrison's Mojo is risin'. I lost mine, but Austin Powers promised to help me find it.
"L.A. Woman
Into your blue, blue, blues
Into your blues
I see your hair is burnin'
Hills are filled with fire
If they say I never loved you
You know they are a liar
Drivin' down your freeways
Cops in cars, the topless bars
Never saw a woman
So alone, so alone
So alone, so alone" The Dresden Dolls Shores of California The Dresden Dolls are a duo from Boston formed in 2000 including Amanda Palmer and Brian Viglione. They describe their style as "Brechtian punk cabaret" and are part of the "Dark Cabaret" movement. This song is from their 2006 album "Yes Virginia"
"He's been trying with limited success
To get this girl to let him get into her dress
But every time he thinks he's getting close
She threatens death before he gets a chance
And that's the way it is in Minnesota
And that's the way it is in Oklahoma
That's the way it's been since protozoa
First climbed onto the shores of California
And she's been trying with limited success
To get him to turn out the lights and dance
Cause like any girl all she really wants
That fickle little bitch romance
That fickle little bitch romance
And that is why a girl is called a tease
And that is why a guy is called a sleaze
And that's why god made escort agencies
One life to live and mace and GHB
And that's the way it is in Minnesota
And that's the way it is in Oklahoma
That's the way since the animals and noah
First climbed onto the shores of California" Dressy Bessy California This is a one of those indie rock songs that sounds like everyone in the band is singing and playing their instruments for the first time and couldn't care less about the song. It's a skill that probably took them years to master. The band was formed in Denver in 1996 and has a female lead vocalist.
"Free ride, sea side
Tell me what they're doing in California
In the moonlight is so bright
Tell me what they're doing in California
Singing ah ah ah la la la
Where's that sunhat
Pack it for the weather in California
And the streelights run all night.
Tell me what they're doing in California
Can we go there this summer i'll wear a flower in my hair
If we go there this summer i'll walk right to that summer
Can we go there this summer?
Ah ah ah la la la
Where's my sunshine
All are free and friendly in California
In the moonlight, it don't feel right
Ah la la la
Tell me what they're doing in California..." Bob Dylan San Francisco Bay Blues This is Dylan's version of the Jesse Fuller 1954 original.
The lyrics are shown under Jessie Fuller. E The Eagles Hotel California I have no idea what this 1977 mega hit is really about, or if it's even about California. Some guy drives through the desert to a decadent hotel in the desert full of beautiful people, were you can check out but never leave. The best thing about it is the guitar solo.
"Her mind is tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes Benz
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys, that she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.
Some dance to remember, some dance to forget
So I called up the captain,
’please bring me my wine’
He said, ’we haven’t had that spirit here since nineteen sixty nine’
And still those voices are calling from far away,
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say...
Welcome to the hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
They livin’ it up at the hotel California
What a nice surprise, bring your alibis" J. D. Edwards West Coast Blues I can't find out much information about J. D. Edwards. Someone on YouTube says he was "more than likely a musician on the 1950's Houston, TX. blues scene." Edwards shouts out this mid-tempo blues along with electric guitar, drums, and a stand up bass that never stops.
"On my way to California
I guess I'll be on my way
On my way to California
I guess I'll be on my way
I'm tellin' everybody
This time I'm goin' to stay
Got a woman in California
That's as sweet as she can be
Woman in California
That's as sweet as she can be
Yes, she'll be waiting there for me" Anita Ellis (voice) Rita Hayworth Performer Put the Blame on Mame From the classic 1946 film "Gilda," this song must have been written by some of the top seismologists in the state because it gives the most realistic version of the origin of the great San Francisco earthquake I've heard. In her nightclub act, Gilda (Rita Hayworth) ignites the screen with her dancing and singing in a strapless black dress and long black gloves which she slowly peels off like a stripper and tosses into the crowd. Beware: you might need to make a dash for a doorway when you watch her perfomance because it could easily set off a dangerous seismic event of at least a 7.0, maybe higher.
"When they had the earthquake in San Francisco
Back in 1906
They said that old mother nature
Was up to her old tricks
That's the story that went around
But here's the real low down
Put the blame on Mame boys
Put the blame on Mame
One night she started to shim and shake
That brought on the Frisco quake
So you can put the blame on Mame boys
Put the blame on Mame...." Robert Ellis California Robert Ellis is an American singer-songwriter from Texas whose music is a mix of genres as many songs are these days. This song is off of his 2016 album "Robert Ellis" It's another song about escaping to California as promised land where you can start a new life.
"It was a long way to go
From Louisiana to Laredo
With everything that they own
Boxed up in the back of a van
She would've gone to the moon
If that's what it took to follow him
It's funny what love makes you do
Standing alone
There in the kitchen she's packing up plates again
Standing alone
She is remembering every fight with him
Thinking alone
"What am I doing here in this ghost town?"
Now that he's gone
There isn't a reason for me to stick around
And she says,
Maybe I'll move to California
With the unbroken part of my heart
I still have left
Maybe I'll fall in love again some day
I'm not gonna hold my breath
I'm not gonna hold my breath
Which way to go
When every road leads away from the things you wanted
Which way you go
When every memory is built like a home that's haunted
Closing your eyes
Dream of a place where things turn out the way you planned it
Everything dies
Dream of a place where the living resides again
And she says,
Maybe I'll move to California
With the unbroken part of my heart
I still have left
Maybe I'll fall in love again some day
I'm not gonna hold my breath
I'm not gonna hold my breath..." EMA California From her 2011 album "Past Life Martyred Saints," this one is from a young but very bitter California Girl. Beware the expletives.
"F*** California, you made me boring
I've bled all my blood out
But these red pants they don't show that
My old friends though they know that
But when I sold them I sold that
… … … … …
You're bleeding from the fingertips
You rubbed me raw, you rubbed me wrong
And I hear you and I think of you
Oh California Now you've corrupted us all with your sexuality
Tried to tell me love was free…
Tried to tell me love was free
I said them? Maybe you you you you you and me " Eminem Say Goodbye to Hollywood Detroit native Marshall Mathers raps about his troubled life again, from his 2002 album "The Eminem Show."
"Bury my face in comic books, cause I don't want to look
At nothin', this world's too much
I've swallowed all I could
If I could swallow a bottle of tylenol I would, and end it for good
Just say goodbye to Hollywood
I probably should, these problems are piling all at once
Cause everything that bothers me, I got it bottled up
I think i'm bottomin' out
But i'm not about to give up, I gotta get up
Thank God, I got a little girl
And I'm a responsible father
So not a lot of good, i'd be to my daughter layin' in the bottom of the mud
Must be in my blood cause I don't know how I do it
All I know is I don't want to follow in the footsteps of my dad
Cause I hate him so bad
The worst fear that I had was growin' up to be like his CENSORED
If you could understand why I am the way that I am
What do I say to my fans, when I tell 'em i'm...
Sayin' goodbye, sayin' goodbye to Hollywood
Sayin' goodbye, sayin' goodbye to Hollywood
Sayin' goodbye, sayin' goodbye to Hollywood
Sayin' goodbye, sayin' goodbye to Hollywood
Sayin' goodbye, sayin' goodbye to Hollywood..." Melissa Etheridge California This is from Etheridge's 2007 album "The Awakening." It's another song about someone who went west to rescue herself. I hope she brought plenty of water...
"Raised up on mid-western dreams
Only a few shall get
What everyone shall need
I took my family's burden
Strapped it to my chest
A few hundred bucks,
And a kiss for luck
And I pointed my dreams west
To California
I will find my love
I will know my peace
I will seek my truth
I am almost free
Melissa Etheridge Miss California
This is from her 2010 album, "Fearless Love." Since Etheridge has been openly gay since the early 1990's, I'd guess that one of the propositions that makes the singer feel so cold is proposition 8, the 2008 ballot proposition that outlawed same sex marriage. It was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013, so maybe she's made up with Miss California now.
"Miss California what did I do wrong ?
It seems I've loved you
For just a little too long
You've gone and left me
For some preacher's way
Miss California
Yeah yeah yeah ... "
Everclear Like a California King Singer, songwriter Art Alexakis grew up in L.A., but formed the band in Portland. This song's from '97, but it's not about the bed or about flippin' hillside board lines in the late winter and early spring, it's just more of the same intense brooding rock that made this album their best seller.
"I see you have made yourself a brand new life
Such a cool blue star with a bright new shine
I see you wear your checkered past
Just like a shining suit of gold
I know you think you look so special
I am told you have found yourself a brand new time
Watch the world stand still as years go by
I know you think you are so new and different
But it makes no sense to me
There is nothing new about you
Just another self-made man
There is nothing new that I see
Enjoy it while you can
I know you think you look so special
What makes you think you are so special?
What makes you think you are unique?
I see you smile and I get angry
As I watch you go colossal
Like a California king
What makes you think you are better than me?
What makes you think you are better?
What makes you think you are so complete?
What makes you think you are the only one immune to falling down?
Why can't you see?
I see you fall and I get happy
I will watch you burn like fire
I will watch you burn like a California king
I will watch you burn like a California king" F The Fall L.A. I really don't care if they're singing about the city of L.A. Their video seems to think so. I love this song. The music is hard and driving but sparse and minimal in that 80's post-punk way in this1985 release from the great UK band.
"Odeon
They have filled boulevards with white snow, scum-ball
L.A.
This is my happening and it freaks me out" Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard Big Sur Jay Farrar, of the pioneering Alt Country/No Depression band Uncle Tupelo (that he started in Illinois with his neighbor Jeff Tweedy, later the frontman of Wilco) and later with the band Son Volt, and Ben Gibbard, leader of Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service, got together and made an album in 2009 titled "One Fast Move or I'm Gone: Keroac's Big Sur" with lyrics based on Keroac's 1962 novel "Big Sur." This one is a beautiful slow steel-guitar drenched country folk number. I definitely need to hear some more of this album.
"This whole surface of the world
As we know it know
Will be covered with the silt of a billion years in time
I see as much as doors will allow
A long way from
Here comes the nightly mark to his nightly death
In Big Sur
The best thing to do is not be false
Rocks of the valley
Have left no hall of complaints
I'm just a sick clown, and so is everybody else
In Big Sur
In Big Sur"
Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard California Zephyr Another song from the 2009 album "One Fast Move or I'm Gone: Keroac's Big Sur" with lyrics based on Keroac's 1962 novel "Big Sur."
"Up the Hudson Valley across New York state
To Chicago then the plains
All so easy and dreamlike
Crashing the salt flat day break
I hear "I'll take you home again Kathleen"
Sad in fogwinds out there that blow
Across the rooftops of eerie old hang over San Francisco
Now I'm transcontinental
3000 Miles from my home
I'm on the California Zephyr
Watching America roll by" Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard San Francisco And another song from the 2009 album "One Fast Move or I'm Gone: Keroac's Big Sur" with lyrics based on Keroac's 1962 novel "Big Sur."
"The church is blowing a sad windblown “Kathleen”
On the bells of the skid row slums
I wake up goopy and woebegone
At the Mars Hotel on 4th and Howard
Do you remember dancing girls in St. Louis
Stan Getz on the hi-fi under midnight kitchen bulbs
We all agree it’s too big to keep up with
That we’re surrounded by life – that we’ll
Never understand it
The great magical city of the Gandharvas
Of San Francisco" Jay Farrar, Will Johnson, Anders Parker, Jim James (New Multitudes Album) Do Re Mi See Woody Guthrie below. Fatboy Slim It's a Wonderful Night Fatboy Slim is the stage name of English muscian Norman Cook. This upbeat dancable electronic song featuring vocals by Lateef the Truth Speaker from the 2004 Palookaville album only name-checks California.
"...It's a wonderful night
Come on and break it on down
You know the music search engine need a tuneup
Soon as they out the gate they all a wanna hear da corner, uh-huh
Well that was cool but now but then I heard a rumor, uh-huh
Your crew was ridin' for the White Cliffs of Dover
Uh let me tell ya how we do it in California
We'll have you on the run just like a puma
If it don't move us
Ain't paid ya dues and it ain't gonna get our roosers
We gonna lose ya to the consumer solution c'mon
It's a wonderful night
You've gotta take it from me
It's a wonderful night...." Fatboy Slim Kalifornia In this 1998 Electronica cut, a computerized voiced drones "California is druggy, druggy, druggy, druggy" over some crazy beats for a dancable six minutes. Leah Felder California Christmas A very nice tropical style Christmas song with Hawaiian steel guitar and ukelele from her 2012 album "California Christmas." Make sure to leave a mai tai out for Santa.
"Have you ever been down on Santa Monica Boulevard
When the Christmas lights are swingin' over the cars?
You forget about the sunset calling on the way to stars
Yuletide cash from cheap motels
tattoo parlors and jingle bells
Ain't it swell
Well it's another hot December in the western state
From the San Diego Beaches to the Golden Gate
It's Christmas time in Calfornia
It's Christmas time again
All the little children try to stay awake
To see Santa come callin' in that open sleigh
It's Christmas time in California
It's Christmas time again.
Have you ever been kissed right there
under the Hollywood sign?
And tinsel town is lit up in glitter tonight.
You forget about the sand still rubbin in between your toes
Oh Feliz Navidad Happy Holidays
Deck the palm trees and jingle all the way" José Feliciano California Dreamin' A great cover of the Mamas and the Papas classic 1966 song, with classical guitar accompaniment from his 1968 album "Feliciano!" The Fifth Dimension California Soul See Marlena Shaw's version. Fight Fair California Kicks Fight Fair is a pop punk band from San Diego, based in San Francisco. This song is off their 2010 album "California Kicks." They lyrics are full of abbreviations and names that are guaranteed to keep old guys from me from understanding what on earth they're trying to say.
"Hit the beach because I can California Kicks,
Grab the boards cuz the plan is to score some chicks!
Cram the buds in the van cuz we need out fix of Del Taco,
Or maybe some In-n-out,
Double Double Whole Grill, Animal Fries, YEAH!
From S.B. to S.D. at the clubs all night,
Hollywood,
But its out real life at Teddy's inside of the Roosevelts,
Bottle service at the club all night, UHH!
... ... ... ...
I hit the beach because I can California Kicks,
Grab the boards cuz the plan is to score some chicks!
Cram the buds in the van cuz we need out fix,
We need out fix,
I hit the beach because I can California Kicks,
Grab the boards cuz the plan is to score some chicks!
Cram the buds in the van cuz we need out fix,
We need out fix,
Yeah we need out fix! (Del Taco)" The Foals London Thunder The Foals are an English indie rock band formed in 2005. This song is from their 2015 release What Went Down. There's only one mention of San Francisco, and they rhyme it with "disco" which should immediately disqualify any song from inclusion on this list, but it's not the first time I've heard that rhyme in a song, and it's a song I like a lot, so here it is.
"I'm on the red eye flight to nowhere good,
how about you?
I've been in the air for hours,
meteor showers by the pool
So one last drink for summer
always leaving, never you
Come back to London thunder,
the sound of sorrows in my room,
yeah
And now the table's turned, it's over
And with my fingers burned I start anew
And now I've come back down, I'm older
I look for something else to hold on to
There is no way to realign,
upholster skin I take back every line
Lost my mind in San Fransisco,
in a worn out disco when tempers cooled
There is no water, there is no sound
Will you come around? Will you come around?
There is no space, there is no time
Where'd you draw the line?...." The Folk Implosion E.Z. L.A.
Heavy beats and spacy guitars under dreamy vocals, typical of this Boston band, give us a litany of complaints about the usual California natural disasters on this song from their 1999 album "One Part Lullaby."
"Here I am, never thought I'd be
Among the drifters and directors, a place for me
It's nothing like I thought it was after all
Feel the ground it's always moving
Down a mountain through a valley watch it all collide
Hear the other ocean churning
Helicopters up above
Rain could wash the hill away
Easy LA, it's another beautiful day
LA, alright, cold like the desert at night
Cold like the desert at night"
The Four Preps 26 Miles (Santa Catalina) The Four Preps were four wholesome clean-cut former Hollywood High School students who backed up Ricky Nelson on Ozzie and Harriet and Sandra Dee in the Gidget movie. The kind of guys your parents loved. This is their big hit from 1958 with 4-part harmony and a bouncy accompaniment.
"Twenty- six miles across the sea
Santa Catalina is a-waitin' for me
Santa Catalina, the island of romance, romance, romance,romance
Water all around it everywhere
Tropical trees and the salty air
But for me the thing that's a-waitin' there-romance
It seems so distant, twenty-six miles away
Restin' in the water serene
I'd work for anyone, even the Navy
Who would float me to my island dream
Twenty- six miles, so near yet far
I'd swim with just some water-wings and my guitar
I could leave the wings but I'll need the guitar for romance, romance, romance,
romance
Twenty- six miles across the sea
Santa Catalina is a-waitin' for me
Santa Catalina, the island of romance…" Jesse Fuller San Francisco Bay Blues Jesse Fuller was an American one-man band musician originally from Georgia who settled in Oakland in 1929. He didn't try to make a living as a musician until the 1950s. He is best known for this song which he first recorded in 1954. It has been covered by many musicians, including Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Bob Dylan , Jim Kweskin, The Weavers, The Brothers Four, Richie Havens, Eric Clapton , Paul McCartney, Hot Tuna, Janis Joplin, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Phoebe Snow , and Mungo Jerry.
"I got the blues from my baby
left me by the San Francisco Bay,
Ocean liner, and she gone so far away.
Didn't mean to treat her so bad,
Best gal I ever has had.
Said good bye, she like to make me cry
I Wanna lay down and die.
Ain't got a nickel, I ain't got a lousy dime,
She don't come back, Lord, I think I'm gonna lose my mind.
She ever comes back an' stay,
Be another brand new day,
Walkin' with my baby down by San Francisco Bay.
Sit down, lookin' through my back door,
Wonder which way to go.
That woman I'm so crazy about,
She don't want me no more.
I Think I take me a freight train
Cause I'm a-feelin' blue,
Ride on up to the end of the line
Thinkin' only of you.
Say while livin' in the city
Just about to go insane,
Sounds like I heard my baby
The way she could call my name.
She ever come back to stay,
Be another brand new day,
Walkin' with my baby down by San Francisco Bay." G Judy Garland On The Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe This song, sung by lead vocalist Judy Garland, won the Oscar for best song for its use in the movie The Harvey Girls in 1945. There's hardly any mention of the state, but the train is on its way to Califor-ni-ay, so here it is.
"Do you hear that whistle down the line?
I figure that it's Engine Number 49
She's the only one that'll sound that way
On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe
See the ol' smoke risin' 'round the bend
I reckon that she knows she's gonna meet a friend
Folks around these parts get the time of day
From the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe
Here she comes
Hey, Jim, you better get the rig
(Ooh, ooh, ooh)
She's got a list of passengers that's pretty big
And they'll all want lifts to Brown's Hotel
'Cause lots o' them been travelin' for quite a spell
On the way to Califor-ni-ay
On the Atchison, Topeka
On the Atchison, Topeka
On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe...." The Gatlin Brothers All the Gold in California Thick harmonies and a cautionary message about California fame and fortune.
Also covered by Nick Cave .
"All the gold in California,
is in a bank in the middle of Beverly Hills,
in somebody else's name.
it don't matter at all,
where you've played before.
California is a brand new game.
Tryin'to be a hero,
can scar a man forever,
right down to your soul.
Living on the spotlight,
can kill a man outright.
'Cause everything that glitters is not gold." Gin Blossoms California Sun This pop band from Arizona broke up, then re-formed and released a record in 2006, which contained this song.
"Just three days and I'm missing you more than I thought I would
I'm missing you more than i like to say
I'm hanging on a hope swinging from a rope
it's all a shame
my biggest mistake was letting you get away.
Oh baby
so bright and beautiful, yea but that was yesterday
California sun
wish you were here
can't sleep you of my mind…."
Gipsy Kings Hotel California A 1999 cover of the Eagles classic in Spanish with Flamenco guitars. Globelamp Washington Moon Globelamp is a music project by American singer-songwriter Elizabeth Le Fey, who was formerly associated with the band Foxygen. The song is from her 2015 album release "Orange Glow." Her southern California roots and connections with Olympia, Washington are apparent in the chorus of this song. It's a desire that anybody who has lived in both California and Washington, such as myself, can understand.
"Acid rain on sunny days
map the stars inside my brain
a palm tree is a satellite
what thoughts keep you up at night, my dear?
come near to me
I want a California sun and a Washington moon
in the same room, at the same time
I can't be in two different places
although i've tried
There was a rainbow in your room
so i got up to dance with you
if we kick off our muddy shoes
forget about our heavy blues
I saw colors under the covers
I want a California sun and a Washington moon
in the same room, at the same time
I can't be in two different places
although i've tried
It rains for days and days
I can't complain
when i wanted it this way
when i made it this way
credits"
Gomez California English Indie Rock from 1999.
"California got her right
You will have to wait
Calling from the Golden Gate
Sentimental sparrows
Funny how the morning's late
Funny how the morning's late
Come around with your heavenly smile
Come around and drag me out again
After a while we can sit and watch them all rush by
Come around and drag me out again
Come around and drag me out again
Always wanted to leave
Always felt that I'd get stopped
But I could never see myself
In anybody else's arms
In anybody else's arms…."
Lesley Gore California Nights When she wasn't singing about crying at her own party, or pre-feminist anthems like "You Don't Own Me", Lesley Gore sang this 1967 pop song about how much she likes nights in California.
"Along the sand,
Let's walk the shore together, now, just hand in hand.
It's gonna be fair weather, now,
When the stars come out, stop to count them in the sky.
Love California nights,
When I'm walkin' with you hand in hand by the shore,
Yes, I love California nights,
At the beach where we'd swim with the tide rolling in.
And there will be beneath the midnight sky above
Just you and me, and we will whisper words of love
While the fire light softly flickers in the sand.
Warm California nights,
With the breeze blowin' in - time for love to begin.
I would miss California nights if I went on my way,
Thinkin' now that I'll stay."
Gorillaz California and The Slipping of the Sun From "The Fall" released in 2010. This song starts with a message delivered over an airport PA system, which then fades underneath some sung lyrics about California. Maybe the singer is taking a plane to L.A.
"If you have any checked bags
They will be brought to the front of the station
To get to the front, walk
Down to the south end of the platform
And cross at the crosswalk
That'll put you right in front of the depot
Look for a sign that says 'Baggage Claim'
You should have your bag check handy to show the clerk
Give them a few minutes to get your bags to the front
If anyone is in need of a ride to the front of the station
Red Cap service will be provided on the platform
We do have one group that is going to go first
If you do need Red Cap service to arrive at the front
They will come back and pick you up on the platform
And take you to the front of the station
Taxi cabs are located on the center boulevard in front of the depot
[fades underneath]
Oh ocean, now I come again before you
Rode along with you
In the slipping of the sun
Sun on dreamers
Repeat the faithful once again
Like water off the mountains and
It's the slipping of the sun
Money is pouring
This autumn begins to focus
North claims the imperial [Incomprehensible] totem
Fantastic
Trees, lakes
Mountains
Fantastic" Ariana Grande Snow In California Ariana Grande is pop singer with an amazing four octave vocal range. This is from her Christmas Kisses EP that was released in 2013. I hate to be the one to break it to her, but I'm pretty sure that Santa is not the person who makes it rain. (People in strip clubs do that...or so I've heard....) Nevertheless, since this was released in the middle of a record drought, I want to applaud her for using her talent to encourage precipitation
"Dear Santa,
I know it's been awhile but I really need
Your help this year
Let me make this clear
See I really love him
And it's been kinda tough cause
He's only in town for the holidays
Tomorrow he's flying away
I don't need another gift
I just have one wish
This year can you
Just make it snow in California
I'll even settle for rain
Don't want him to go tomorrow morning
Give me something to make him stay
Wrapped in his arms by the fireplace
Will be the perfect gift
Let it snow let it snow let it snow
Let it snow
In Calif-orn-i-a...." Grateful Dead Estimated Prophet Classic Dead acid rock with lots of wah wah guitar and harmonica.
"California, preaching on the burning shore
California, I'll be knocking on the golden door
Like an angel, standing in a shaft of light
Rising up to paradise, I know I'm gonna shine."
Adam Gregory She's So California Here's a country singer who likes to objectify "California" girls, and country girls who look like they could be from California. At least he's not a hater. Of course, he's Canadian, and they're always nice and polite. This song's from 2006, two years before Gary Allan's country song with the same title, and the same appreciation for bleached blondes.
"Bleached blonde hair and no tan lines
at least that's what I dream at night.
Star dust eyes that shine Pacific blue.
From her toes to her halo she's been blessed
with a body you would have to buy out west .
She walks and talks a different attitude.
Her smile is so much brighter than this stupid place.
You can almost hear Hollywood calling her name.
She's so California.
She should have a star on Hollywood blvd.
drive around in a Lamborghini sports car.
Summer sun clear yeah she's sexy.
She's so Sunset Strip teases me.
Here right there on the front porch swing
I swear I hear the Beach Boys sing.
Peach street sign just like Rodeo Drive.
Tight tank top and low rise jeans.
Now I know what earthquake means.
She really makes this small town come alive.
When she walks into church in her summer dress
Oh even the preacher has to confess.
She's so California." Grimes California Claire Boucher is a Canadian musician/artist whose stage name is "Grimes" (named after the UK Grime music style) whose own style is an eclectic mix. California is from her 2015 release titled "Art Angels."
"This, this music makes me cry
It sounds just like my soul, oh
Oh I'm not ready to win
Oh lord cause I don't wanna know what they say
Cause I get carried away
Commodifying all the pain
The things they see in me, I cannot see myself
When you get bored of me, I'll be back on the shelf
And when the ocean rises up above the ground
Baby I'll drown in...
You only like me when you think I'm looking sad
California
I didn't think you'd end up treating me so bad
Oh, I, I, I
Come Monday, it's a dream
Oh, I, I, I
Broken my own heart again
Chasing something beautiful
Oh, but I don't understand what they say
Cause I get carried away
Commodifying all the pain
The things they see in me, I cannot see myself
When you get bored of me, I'll be back on the shelf
And when the ocean rises up above the ground
Baby I'll drown in...
You only like me when you think I'm looking sad
California
Guns 'N Roses One in a Million
Guns 'N Roses is a rock band formed in LA in the 1980's. This song is from their second album "GN'R Lies" released in 1988. Axl Rose wrote it about his experience of getting hustled in the Greyhound bus station when he first arrived in LA. The song caused a lot of controversy because of its apparent homophobic, racist, anti-immigrant, and anti-police lyrics. But that didn't stop the band's massive success in the late '80's.
"Guess I needed sometime to get away
I needed some piece of mind
Some piece of mind that'll stay
So I thumbed it down to Sixth and L.A. ---
So I thumbed it down to nine o six ten L.A.
Maybe a Greyhound could be my way
Police and N*****s, that's right
Get out of my way
Don't need to buy none of your
Gold chains today
Don't watch that much T.V.
Just makin' my livin', baby
Well that's enough for me
You're one in a million
Yeah that's what you are
You're one in a million, babe
You're a shooting star...."
Margo Guryan California Shake An earthquake song from a 60's pop/folk/jazz singer-songwriter, whose songs were recorded by several well-known pop singers. She's known mainly for her 1968 album "Take A Picture". This song comes from a 2001 release "25 Demos," and as far as I can tell, it was also recorded in the late 60's but it holds up very well and doesn't sound too dated. And I don't know of any other song where Earthquake sounds get to accompany the band.
"Melon-rising California sun
Drifting in a day not yet begun
Six o'clock and peaceful and serene
Floating in a Technicolor scene
Something nearly peaceful in the sound
Rising from the San Andreas ground
Overground, it starts to feel strange
Underground, it starts to rearrange
You'd better get up
And run for a doorway
No time for thinking
Your life is at stake
Everyone's doing
The California Shake
California Shake" Arlo Guthrie Comin' into Los Angeles Arlo's father sang great protest songs about Oakies fleeing the dust bowl and coming to California for work and Arlo sang about smuggling weed into L.A. on an airplane. Oh well... Arlo's a Republican now and his father must be rolling over in his grave.
"Coming in from London from over the pole
Flying in a big airliner
Chicken flyin' everywhere around the plane
Could we ever feel much finer.
Coming into Los Angeles
Bringing in a couple of keys,
Don't touch my bags if you please
Mister customs man." Woody Guthrie Do Re Mi Woody Guthrie was a great American singer-songwriter and folk musician from Oklahoma. "This machine kills fascists" was written on Guthrie's guitar, which he used to sing many songs about injustice and hard times. He wrote a number of songs about the great 1930's dust bowl and its refugees, including this one, where he warns that the Promised Land has a steep cover charge. (And it still does...) He cautions migrants to stay where they are because there isn't enough work and oo many refugees. This song has been covered by Ry Cooder, Nanci Griffith, Ani DiFranco, Dave Alvin, and Bob Dylan, among others.
"Lots of folks back East, they say, is leavin' home every day
Beatin' the hot old dusty way to the California line
'Cross the desert sands they roll, gettin' out of that old dust bowl
They think they're goin' to a sugar bowl but here's what they find
Now the police at the port of entry say
"You're number fourteen thousand for today"
Oh, if you ain't got the do re mi folks you ain't got the do re mi
Why you better go back to beautiful Texas
Oklahoma, Kansas, Georgia, Tennessee
California is a garden of Eden, a paradise to live in or see
But believe it or not you won't find it so hot
If you ain't got the do re mi
You want to buy you a home or a farm that can't deal nobody harm
Or take your vacation by the mountains or sea
Don't swap your old cow for a car, you better stay right where you are
You better take this little tip from me
'Cause I look through the want ads every day
But the headlines on the papers always say
If you ain't got the do re mi boys you ain't got the do re mi
Why, you better go back to beautiful Texas
Oklahoma, Kansas, Georgia, Tennessee
California is a garden of Eden, a paradise to live in or see
But believe it or not you won't find it so hot
If you ain't got the do re mi"
Woody Guthrie Old L.A. The lyrics to this song were written by Woody Guthrie, but apparently he never wrote music to them, similar to the songs on the great Mermaid Avenue album made by Billy Brag and Wilco. The music was written by Anders Parker and the song was recorded and released on the album "New Multitudes," a
Woody Guthrie tribute album released in 2012.
"I’ve been beatin’ my way around
In and out of a thousand towns;
But, old L.A. looks good to me.
L.A. sweetheart sweeter than honey;
Works all day and gives me the money
That’s why L.A. looks good to me.
Old LA, it’s a pretty fair place to be
Old LA, it’s a pretty fair place to be
Looks good to me, looks good to me
When I kiss you and you kiss me,
Makes me glad we both agree
That’s why LA looks good to me
It’s hey, hey, hey and ho, ho, hooo;
Our kids just like this town will grow;
That’s why LA looks good to me" Woody Guthrie Pastures of Plenty Here's another folk song from the great Guthrie about working fruit orchards around the west.
"It's a mighty hard row that my poor hands have hoed
My poor feet have traveled a hot dusty road
Out of your Dust Bowl and Westward we rolled
And your deserts were hot and your mountains were cold
I worked in your orchards of peaches and prunes
I slept on the ground in the light of the moon
On the edge of the city you'll see us and then
We come with the dust and we go with the wind
California, Arizona, I harvest your crops
Well its North up to Oregon to gather your hops
Dig the beets from your ground, cut the grapes from your vine
To set on your table your light sparkling wine
Green pastures of plenty from dry desert ground
From the Grand Coulee Dam where the waters run down
Every state in the Union us migrants have been
We'll work in this fight and we'll fight till we win
It's always we rambled, that river and I
All along your green valley, I will work till I die
My land I'll defend with my life if it be
Cause my pastures of plenty must always be free" Woody Guthrie This Land is Your Land This is his Guthrie's best-known song, written in 1940 and recorded in 1944. It was revived and recorded by many folk singers in the 1960s, including Bob Dylan, The Kingston Trio, Trini Lopez, Peter, Paul and Mary, The Seekers and Pete Seeger.
"This land is your land This land is my land
From California to the New York island;
From the red wood forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and Me.
As I was walking that ribbon of highway,
I saw above me that endless skyway:
I saw below me that golden valley:
This land was made for you and me.
I roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts;
And all around me a voice was sounding:
This land was made for you and me.
When the sun came shining, and I was strolling,
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling,
As the fog was lifting a voice was chanting:
This land was made for you and me...." H Merle Haggard A Friend in California The late great Bakersfield country singer sings about missing a friend in Texas in this song from his 1986 album "A Friend in California."
"L.A. traffic is bad this time of year
But there's a friend of yours in California
Sure wishes you were here
And as you lay your head on your pillow tonight just remember
There's a friend of yours in California sure misses you
You've got a friend in California that misses you
You've got a friend in California that sure misses you
Fort Worth can get cold this time of year
But this southern California sun is warm
You should be here
And as you lay your head on your pillow tonight just remember
There's a friend of yours in California sure misses you
You've got a friend in California that misses you
You've got a friend in California that sure misses you
You've got a friend in California that misses you
You've got a friend in California that sure misses you" Merle Haggard Beer Can Hill A song about Beer Can Hill outside of Bakersfield, where Mr. Haggard learned how to walk, run, fight, dance, make romance, pick a little cotton and a lot of guitar, and also to do a little jail time. (They used to display the pardon from prison given him by Governor Ronald Reagan at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, just down the hall from Dolly Parton's wigs. I hope it's still there.)
"You could do better, but you won't do bad, in Bakersfield."
Maybe the city could use that as its motto.
The town of Oildale has named a street after Merle. I hope that's not all they've done to honor him.
"Well, I learned how to walk and I learned how to run in Bakersfield
Should've done time over things I'd done in Bakersfield
I tasted my first taste of romance in Bakersfield
I learned how to fight and I learned how to dance in Bakersfield
Dancin' on Beer Can Hill
Overlookin' Bakersfield
Dancin' on Beer Can Hill
I made part of my livin' in a honky tonk bar in Bakersfield
Picked a little cotton and a lotta guitar in Bakersfield
Well you couldn't do better but you won't do bad in Bakersfield
Slow dancin' out here is sort of a fad in Bakersfield
I drank a lot of beer since I was a kid in Bakersfield
Did a little time over things I did in Bakersfield
Ten years later made me of the year in Bakersfield
And I'm duckin' and dodgin' and dancin' out here in Bakersfield"
Merle Haggard California Blues
(Blue Yodel #4) A country blues with lots of slide guitar. Recorded by Jimmy Rogers in 1928 and many others, including Lefty Frizell and Doc Watson.
"Well I'm goin' to California
Where they sleep out every night
I'm goin' to California
Where they sleep out every night
I'm leaving you, mama
'Cause you know you don't treat me right
Let me tell you somethin'
Mama, that you don't know
Let me tell you somethin'
Good gal, that you don't know
Well, I'm a do right papa
And got a home everywhere I go
Yeah
I got the California blues and I'm
Sure gonna leave you here
Lord, Lord
I got the California blues and I'm
Sure gonna leave you here
I may ride the blind
I aint got no railroad fare..." Merle Haggard Kern River Another California song by this Country music great from Bakersfield about love one who drowned in the Kern River. When you're driving up to Lake Isabella from Bakersfield, just at the entrance to Kern Canyon where the "Killer" Kern River flows into the valley, there's a sign that says "Danger. Stay Out. Stay Alive" with a tally of how many people have drowned in the river. Last I saw it, it was over 250.
"I'll never swim Kern River again.
It was there that I met her.
It was there that I lost my best friend.
And now I live in the mountains.
I drifted up here with the wind.
And I may drown in still water,
But I'll never swim Kern River again.
I grew up in an oil town,
But my gusher never came in.
And the river was a boundary,
Where my darlin' and I used to swim.
One night in the moonlight,
The swiftness swept her life away.
And now I live on Lake Shasta,
And Lake Shasta is where I will stay.
There's the South San Joaquin,
Where the seeds of the dust bowl are found.
And there's a place called Mount Whitney,
From where the mighty Kern River comes down.
Now, it's not deep nor wide,
But it's a mean piece of water, my friend.
And I may cross on the highway,
But I'll never swim Kern River again." Albert Hammond It Never Rains in Southern California Hammond must have visited So Cal in December in a wet year. It's a nice twist on the land of constant sunshine myth where the grass is always greener...
"Got on a board a west bound 747
Didn't think before deciding what to do.
All that talk of opportunities, TV breaks and movies
Rang true, sure rang true.
Seems it never rains in Southern California
Seems I've often heard that kind of talk before
It never rains in California
But girl, don't they warn ya
It pours, man it pours.
Out of work, I'm out of my head
Out of self respect, I'm out of bread
I'm under loved, I'm under fed
I wanna go home.
It never rains in California
But girl don't they warn ya,
it pours, man it pours." Albert Hammond Jr. 101 A nice upbeat rocker off his debut solo album "Yours to Keep" from 2006. Hammond is a member of The Strokes and the Son of Albert Hammond who sang It Never Rains in Southern California. (Above) Highway 101 runs along the entire west coast of the USA, but I'm going to assume this song is about the California highway, since Hammond grew up in LA.
"Though it took me by surprise
One by one I realized
There was something I could do
I lost my way.
I never won
Back to the 101 " Richard Harris MacArthur Park
Written by Jimmy Webb (who also wrote By the Time I Get to Phoenix), first recorded by Richard Harris in 1968, and recorded by more than 50 other musicians, including big band versions, a disco version by Donna Summer in 1978, and a country version by Waylon Jennings in 1969, this classic pop song set in a Los Angeles park has also been called one of the worst songs ever written, and I agree, its high up on that list.
"Spring was never waiting for us, girl
It ran one step ahead
As we followed in the dance
Between the parted pages and were pressed,
In love's hot, fevered iron
Like a striped pair of pants
MacArthur's Park is melting in the dark
All the sweet, green icing flowing down...
Someone left the cake out in the rain
I don't think that I can take it
'cause it took so long to bake it
And I'll never have that recipe again
Oh, no!
Beth Hart L.A. Song
(Out of This Town) Beth Hart is a singer-songwriter from Los Angeles who is hard to categorize. This 1999 song brought her some fame. It's about a woman who didn't have much luck with men, so she leaves LA, finds another loser somewhere else, then says she's gotta get back to LA. I have a feeling there have been many such round trips with her. The way she sings it at the very end, "LA" has about 92 syllables in it. Now that's talent.
"She hangs around the boulevard
She's a local girl with local scars.
She got home late, she got home late
She drank so hard the bottle ached.
And she tried and she tried, she tried and she tried,
But nothing's clear in a bar full of flies.
So she takes and she takes, she takes and she takes,
She understands when she gives it away,
She says, man I gotta get out of this town
Man I gotta get out of this pain.
Man I gotta get out of this town,
Out of this town, and out of LA."
… … … … … …
"So she took a train, she took a train,
To a little old town without a name.
She met a man, he took her in,
But fed her all the same bulls*&# again.
'Cause he lied and he lied, he lied and he lied,
He lied like a salesman sellin flies.
So she screamed and she screamed, she screamed and she screamed,
It's a different place but the same old thing.
It's all I love, Its all I hate,
It's all to much for me to take
I can't be sure where it begins,
Or if the good life lies within.
She says, man I gotta get out of this town
Now I gotta get back on that train.
Man I gotta get out of this town,
I'm out of my pain, so I'm goin back to L.A.
Back to L.A
Back to L.A
I'm goin back to L.A.
I'm goin back to L.A" Beth Hart My California This is the lead-off track from her 2010 album "My California."
I couldn't get this one out of my mind when I first heard it, so beware - Earworm Alert!
"Calling California is there anybody home
Hello California won't you please pick up the phone
I wanna say I love you but I'm a million miles away
And I am thinking of you I miss you and LA
For you and you alone I'll lay my monsters down
And we'll watch the sun come up over California
For you and you alone I'll find my way back home
And I'll love you like the sun loves California
You're my California
I have made you suffer left you waiting in the rain
While I was chasing demons in the deserts of my pain
You know me better than the poison in my veins
So my love remember when God forgets my name
For you and you alone I'll lay my monsters down
And I'll watch the sun come up over California
For you and you alone I'll find my way back home
And I'll love you like the sun loves California" PJ Harvey and John Parish Leaving California Polly Jean Harvey is a well-known singer-songwriter-instrumentalist from England. In 1988 she joined a band with John Parish, who has produced and collaborated with her since. They collaborated on "A Woman A Man Walked By" in 2009 that included this song. PJ can really shred the speakers when she wants, but this one is slow with minimal accompaniment and she sings the chorus in a very high-pitched screech guaranteed to bother most people but I think this song is a brilliant as most of her work.
"California
California I think it's time to leave
I think it's time to leave
I told no one I'd stay
I think it's time to leave
Ooh" Colin Hay Oh California An acoustic solo song from the smoky-voiced Australian singer from the 80's band Men at Work. Released in 2009.
"Thought I’d never reach the water
Had to cross the desert and the great divide
Drinking only golden promises
With white lines in my eyes
Oh, California
It’s the one big love that you cannot end
Oh, California
Yeah I can’t leave you now
Oh, California" Hawk Nelson California A 2004 pop punk tune that shows that even Christian Rockers from Ontario Canada can fall for the California as a sunshine and surfing paradise myth. What do all these people have against a few clouds and some rain, anyway?
"...I'm so tired of everything here,
The sun is calling me to the west,
Everyone's having fun out there,
My bags are packed as I'm looking out the window,
Everything is so outdated here,
I wanna move west where the sun is shining,
I want my friends to all be there,
Let's pack up and move to California,
She's got lots of friends out there,
We'll never get bored cause we can go boardin',
Let's let the sunshine take us there
...
Let's pack up and move to California,
Hop on board before we get older,
Raise your hand and shout for California" The Head and the Heart Down in the Valley This is such a great song I had to include it here. It mentions California only as a place the singer hasn't been to (I think) but the way he sings the words California and Oklahoma make these two places sound like paradise. It's an indie folk-pop song from a Seattle band, released in December 2010, with lots of great harmonies, piano, acoustic instruments, and great percussion.
"I wish I was a slave to an age-old trade Like ridin' around on railcars and workin' long days
Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways
Lord have mercy on my rough and rowdy ways
Call it one drink too many
Call it pride of a man
But it don't make no difference if you sit or you stand
'Cause they both end in trouble and start with a grin
Yeah they both end in trouble and start with a grin
We do it over and over and over again
We do it over and over and over again
............
I am on my way
I am on my way
I am on my way back to where I started
California, Oklahoma
And all of the places I ain't ever been to but
Down in the valley with
Whiskey rivers
These are the places you will find me hidin'
These are the places I will always go
These are the places I will always go" Hem Not California A 2006 song from the Indie folk rock group from Brooklyn, with Sally Ellyson on vocals. This song was also recorded by Elizabeth Cook in 2010, by this might be the original (I can't find out who wrote it.)
"Who's the girl inside of the blue-screen light
The sun is just pouring out
And everything is out of sight
Turn around the room is just black and white
She's whispering
Na na na na na na na na
Na na na na na na
And it's not true
And it's not California here...."
Jimi Hendrix California Night A straight blues number from 1965 before Jimi got big.
"Nobody loves me
Nobody cares for me at all
Nobody loves me
Nobody cares for me at all
That's why I'm on my way to Calfornia
and I won't be back 'till late Fall
On my way west(?)
I got a friend I used to know
On my way west(?)
Yes I got a friend I used to know
She lives out in Louisiana
Way down in the Gulf of Mexico…"
She wiggles when she walks
and she's built up from the ground
She wiggles when she walks, baby
and she's built up from the ground..." John Hiatt Adios to California In this 2011 country rocker, Hiatt seems to recall his time trying to make it in LA in the 80s, stuggling with alcoholism, and his wife's suicide which left him with nothing to do but turn around and return to Nashville.
"Smoky room and a thin blue light
Her arms were pale as white
Trying to outlast the night
Howling at the moon
Living in the Canyon Inn
Hangdown Hanna and Whiskey Jim
Dirty jeans and mudslide hymns
It all began with [soon]
So, adios to California
Nothing to do but turn around
Always thought there's someone coming for you
Only way you'd leave this town." Robyn Hitchcock & the Venus 3 A Man's Gotta Know His Limitations, Briggs Robyn Hitchcock is an English singer-songwriter known for his solo carrer and for his bands The Soft Boys in the late 1970s, The Egyptians in the mid 1980s, and The Venus 3, formed in 2002. This song is from the 2006 album Ole Tarantula.
"A man's gotta know his limitations, Briggs
Or he will just explode
You lived in your imagination, Briggs
You blew up in the road
I'm talking to you
and to you over there
and to you over there
You were riding in your car in San Francisco
You were riding through the weather and the rain
You were riding in your car in San Francisco
But you're never gonna ride that way again.
A girl's gotta know her situation, Clint
Or she will just move on
So if you have some information, squint
Through the keyhole or down the barrel of your gun
I'm talking to you
so you've got no excuse
I was riding in your car in San Francisco
I was riding through the weather and the rain
I was riding in your car in San Francisco
But I'll never ride with you again
A boy's gotta go just where you put him, Mel
Or he will turn to steel
And if he dies you must forget him, Mel
Unless you want him crawling through your dream
And I'm talking to you
I can talk
Well what more do you want?
We were riding in your car in San Francisco
We were riding through the weather and the rain
Riding in your car in San Francisco
But we're never gonna ride that way again
We both got a Briggs in us
Somewhere down the road
I don't know bout you folks but
This Briggs will explode
A man's gotta know his limitations, Briggs." Hole Malibu Hole is an alternative rock band formed in LA in 1989 by Courtney Love, an artist/actress/singer/songwriter. This 1998 song from the album "Celebrity Skin" has the ocean, angels, driving down the coast highway, all those typical California references, but with added images of self destruction, suffering and suicide - all of which Courtney Love certainly understands better than most of us.
"Crash and burn
All the stars explode tonight
How'd you get so desperate
How'd you stay alive
Burn the sorrow from your eyes
Oh, come on be alive again
Don't lay down and die
Hey, hey
You know what to do
Oh, baby, drive away to Malibu
Get well soon
Please don't go any higher
How are you so burnt when
You're barely on fire
I'm gonna set you free tonight, baby
Pour over me
Hey, hey
We're all watching you
Oh, baby, fly away to Malibu" Hole Pacific Coast Highway This is from Hole's album "Nobody's Daughter" released in 2010.
"I knew a boy who came from the sea
He was the only boy who ever
Knew the truth about me
I'm overwhelmed and undersexed
Baby, what did you expect?
I'm overwrought and so disgraced
I'm too ashamed to show my face
And they're coming to take me away now
What I want I will never have
I'm on the Pacific Coast Highway
With your gun in my hand"
I knew a boy who left me so ravaged
Do you even know the extent
Of the damage
My dirty little secret died
In between the sheets
And the promises that killed me
From your eyes
I'm bloody and totally bound
I don't know what to do with my hands now
I surrender, I give in
I'll kick down your door if you don't let me in
And I've lost myself completely
I look to you, my true desire
I'm on the Pacific Coast Highway
My god how did you fall so far?
Your whole world is in my hands
Your whole wide world is in my hands" Jolie Holland Goodbye California Jolie Holland, also a member of the Be Good Tanyas, is a singer from Texas who performs a mixture of folk, jazz and blues. In this song, the singer seems to be saying goodbye to California because she's contemplating suicide - to the accompaniment of a fairly upbeat band which includes a musical saw...
"Goodbye, goodbye, California
Goodbye and I’ll be moving on
I sang you my songs
I know i’m wrong
Fare thee well
And I’ll be moving on
When I’m dead and gone
My immortal home
Will hold me in its bosom
Safe and cold
Amen
Amen."
Hollywood Undead California Hollywood Undead is a rock rap group from L.A., and this 2008 song is all about booze and women and macho territorial swagger. Subjects not exactly foreign to rap music. I almost left this one off the list because of the content and the language. But who am I to censor art? OK, I did censor the lyrics for this all-ages site.
"California show me love
Get buzzed, let's get f***** up
California
So high, we'll ride all night
Comin' straight outta Cali, what? The 818 valley, what?
323, f*** horse night alley
And from Highland to Clayton, all these b****** are hatin'
'Cause the s*** that we're saying is the s*** that they're playin'
… … … ...
I'm a pirate on the streets of California
Movin' and cruisin', we're boozin' all night to the mornin'
So from dust 'till dawn, you know Undead is always on
Hit it once like a bomb, hit it twice and then I'm gone
California show me love
Get buzzed, let's get f***** up
California throw it up
Get buzzed, let's get f***** up" Lightnin' Hopkins California Mudslide Some country blues from the great Texas bluesman off his 1969 abum "California Mudslide (and Earthquake)" After the fires of the summer of 1968 that denuded many of the hills in Southern California came the heavy rains of 1968 and 1969 which led to some epic mudslides which must be what Hopkins is singing about.
"Take me outta this bottom, take me outta this bottom, baby,
Little girl, fore this water rise.
Take me outta this bottom, take me outta this bottom,
Little girl, fore this water rise.
You know I musta been born by the devil,
Po' Lightnin don't wanna be baptised.
See, it's rainin in ole California's the reason I said it,
The houses slidin down off the hill.
Many, many many friends have lost their home.
Just because the water was falling so hard,
And the mudslide had taken their home.
And I said.
Lettin ya know how it's happenin now.
Take me outta this bottom, take me outta this bottom, baby,
Po' Lightnin can't feel satisfied.
Take me outta this bottom, take me outta this bottom,
Po' Lightnin just can't feel satisfied.
Just you know many friends of mine lost they home,
By that old mudslide.
Don't take me to be wrong people,
Forgive me for my mistake.
You know, please, please, please,
Forgive me for my mistake.
Well, after all that flood come in California, do you know,
The good Lord old ground begin to shake?
That's that earthquake that was comin.
Have mercy." Lightnin' Hopkins California Showers More country blues from the great Texas bluesman off his 1969 abum "California Mudslide (and Earthquake)" It's hard to believe here in 2015 but once upon a time it used to rain in California.
"Just take a look at the weather
It keep rainin' all the time
Just take a look at the weather
It keep rainin' all the time
You know it be rainin' this minute and the next minute
You look up and you'll see sunshine
Tell me why there's rain
Why it storm in California all the time
Tell me why do it rain
Why it storm in California all the time
I don't want the rain
But you still have plenty sunshine
You know it keeps on rainin'
You know this poor man can't make no time
You know if it keeps on rainin'
You know this poor man can't make no time
You know if I can't go to my job
How I'm gonna feed this family of mine?
You know the poor children are runnin' "I'm hungry"
When I don't have a lousy dime
Poor children runnin', cryin' "Daddy I'm hungry"
And I don't have a lousy dime
That's the reason I was singin' when it started rainin' in California
Why do it keep rainin' all the time?
You know it was dark and cloudy
Raindrops settled on my window pane
You know it was dark it was cloudy
The raindrops settled on my window pane
You know my children didn't have nothin' to eat
Now peoples ain't that a cryin' shame
My poor wife walkin'
Tellin' the children this is a cryin' shame
My poor wife walkin'
Tellin' the children this is a cryin' shame
Yeah we all goin' down starvation I do believe
But your daddy ain't to blame
That's all right, that's all right
You don't have to worry no more
That's all right, that's all right
Children you don't have to worry no more
You know the sun is shinin" Lightnin' Hopkins My California "I'm goin back out in California, California
Going just to do my little run around
You know I'm goin back out in California, California
Going to do my little run around
So when I wake up the next morning
you know the news ain't over town
Yeah you know I'm goin back out in California
I'm going to make out there my home
Can't you see I'm getting ready
I won't be here long
California
Yes I'm going to make it my home
You know I'm almost ready now,
and I ain't gonna be here long
Yeah you know I'm going to Los Angeles
Walk down 6th Avenue
Reason I'm going to do it is those people
don't care hardly about what you do
I'm going back to
make out there my home
You know I'm just about ready now
boy and I ain't going to be here long" Lightnin' Hopkins Los Angeles Blues More country blues from the great Texas bluesman off his 1969 abum "California Mudslide (and Earthquake)"
"Hello Los Angeles
I be out making my own
Well since things
All my friends feel like it's wrong
But hello Los Angeles
I still may make you my home
You know one morning
Just about the day begin to break
People all told me if you go to Los Angeles
Lightnin' you making a sad mistake
But I hollered hello Los Angeles
I believe I'll be on my way
Yes if you stop having those mudslides out there
I may make that my home and I may stay
I woke up this morning
Los Angeles on my mind
I couldn't do nothin but break down
And begin to crying
When I heard about Los Angeles was underwater
Ain't nobody got no time
They didn't have no time to lose
Ever get lucky
I want you to know poor Los Angeles
Is still my friend
But everybody been wondering
Where has poor Lightnin' been" Hot Chelle Rae Tonight Tonight Hot Chelle Rae is an American dance-rock band from Nashville. This is their most successful single, from their album "Whatever" released in 2011. I have no idea what a "California dime" is, but the image of dancing on the edge of the Hollywood Sign reminds me of the failed actress who killed herself by jumping off the "H" in 1932.
"It's been a really really messed up week
Seven days of torture, seven days of bitter
And my girlfriend went and cheated on me
She's a California dime but it's time for me to quit her
La la la, whatever, la la la, it doesn't matter, la la la, oh, well, la la la
We're going at it tonight tonight
There's a party on the rooftop top of the world
Tonight tonight and we're dancing on the edge of the Hollywood sign
I don't know if I'll make it but watch how good I'll fake it
It's all right, all right, tonight, tonight
I woke up with a strange tattoo
Not sure how I got it, not a dollar in my pocket
And it kinda looks just like you
Mixed with Zach Galifianakis (Huh!)
La la la, whatever, la la la, it doesn't matter, la la la, oh, well, la la la
We're going at it tonight tonight
There's a party on the rooftop top of the world
Tonight tonight and we're dancing on the edge of the Hollywood sign
I don't know if I'll make it but watch how good I'll fake it
It's all right, all right, tonight, tonight
You got me singing like, whoa,
Come on, oh,
Just don't stop let's keep the beat pumpin'
Keep the beat up, let's drop the beat down
It's my party dance if I want to
We can get crazy let it all out...." Huey Lewis and the News The Heart of Rock & Roll Huey Lewis and the News are an American pop band based in San Francisco that had a bunch of hit singles in the 1980s and early 1990s. This song, which received a Grammy nomination for song of the year, comes from the band's album "Sports" released in 1983. It name checks a lot of places around the U.S.A. including L.A., Hollywood and the Sunset Strip and San Francisco.
"New York, New York is everything they say
And no place that I'd rather be
Where else can you do a half a million things
And all at a quarter to three
When they play their music, ooh that modern music
The like it with a lot of style
But it's still that same old back beat rhythm
That really drives them wild
They say the heart of rock and roll is still beating
And from what I've seen I believe 'em
Now the old boy may be barely breathing
But the heart of rock and roll is still beating
L.A., Hollywood and the Sunset Strip is something everyone should see
Neon lights and the pretty, pretty girls all dressed so scantily
When they play their music, that hard rock music
They like it with a lot of flash
But it's still that same old back beat rhythm
That really kicks 'em in the
They say the heart of rock and roll is still beating
And from what I've seen I believe 'em
Now the old boy may be barely breathing
But the heart of rock and roll is still beating
D.C., San Antone and the Liberty town, Boston and Baton Rouge
Tulsa, Austin, Oklahoma City, Seattle, San Francisco, too
Everywhere there's music, real live music, bands with a million styles
But it's still that same old rock and roll music that really drives 'em wild
They say the heart of rock and roll is still beating
And from what I've seen I believe 'em
Now the old boy may be barely breathing
But the heart of rock and roll is still beating
In Cleveland
Detroit, heart of rock and roll" I I See Hawks In L.A. California Country A 2006 alternative country song from the L.A. group founded in 1999. Anybody who has lived in the state for a while will sympathize with the singer.
"I am a child of the Golden State, grew up in the orchards and fields
Seen farm towns become commuter alleys
Seen shopping malls eat up the trees
Sometimes I wish for a simpler time
When you could drink right out of the stream
The loneliness around me
I’m thirty miles from a field of green
But I’m still standing in California Country
My dad moved us to Victorville in June of ’82
All summer long I traversed the Mojave, went swimming in the river water pool
On a beautiful farm sloping down to the river, September I was back in school
The bulldozers stripped the topsoil
Little flags marked the mile
I never crossed that river again
But I’m still standing in California Country
But I’m still standing in California Country
Here I land with no plan
And only now I understand
that I could never leave this land
I’m a California man
Well the radio announced the annual meteor shower starting late tonight
so we drove up the 2 to the Angeles Crest to get out of the city light
the traffic jam started down in Glendale
lit the mountains bright as day
we turned the car the other way
headed back to L.A.
disappeared into the streets
But I’m still standing in California Country
But I’m still standing in California Country" Ice Cube It Was a Good Day This song is probably Ice Cube's most successful single, off of his 1992 album "The Predator." It describes a good day in South Central L.A. while reminding us how easily it could have been a bad day.
"Just wakin up in the mornin gotta thank God
I don't know but today seems kinda odd
No barkin from the dog, no smog
And momma cooked a breakfast with no hog (damn)
I got my grub on, but didn't pig out
Finally got a call from a girl I wanna dig out
(Whassup?) Hooked it up for later as I hit the do'
Thinkin will I live, another twenty-fo'
I gotta go cause I got me a drop top
And if I hit the switch, I can make the ass drop
Had to stop, at a red light
Lookin in my mirror and not a jacker in sight
And everything is alright
I got a beep from Kim, and she can f*** all night
Called up the homies and I'm askin y'all
Which park, are y'all playin basketball?
Get me on the court and I'm trouble
Last week d***** around and got a triple double
Freakin niggaz everyway like M.J.
I can't believe, today was a good day (s***!) Drove to the pad and hit the showers
Didn't even get no static from the cowards
Cause just yesterday them fools tried to blast me
Saw the police and they rolled right past me
No flexin, didn't even look in a nigga's direction
as I ran the intersection
Went to $hort Dog's house, they was watchin Yo! MTV Raps
What's the haps on the craps?
Shake 'em up, shake 'em up, shake 'em up, shake 'em
Roll 'em in a circle of niggaz and watch me break 'em
with the seven, seven-eleven, seven-eleven
Seven even back do' Lil' Joe
I picked up the cash flow
Then we played bones, and I'm yellin domino
Plus nobody I know got killed in South Central L.A.
Today was a good day (s***!)
... ... ...
Today I didn't even have to use my A.K.
I got to say it was a good day...." Ice Cube Life in California Ice Cube took some time away from his acting to drop this 2010 rap, proving that he's still a gangsta, even if he also has a sitcom. Also see songs he made with NWA and Public Enemy.
"Dough We Get That Dough
Ooh We Got To Get More
Living Just Another Day
Living Life In California
Dough We Get That Dough
Ooh We Got To Get More" Ice Cube My Summer Vacation This is from Ice Cube's 1991 album "Death Certificate." There's too much competition in LA, so Ice Cube and his dope-slinging crew take their business to St. Louis where they triple their profit. He teaches the police that LA's not all surf and sun by importing California gang warfare, too, and ruins it for everybody. Maybe that's why he turned to acting.
"[Airport announcement] This is the final boarding call for flight 1259
departing from Los Angeles, final destination to St. Louis
Thank you.
Damn G, the spot's gettin hot
So how the F**k am I supposed to make a knot?
Police looking at niggaz through a microscope
In L.A. everybody and they momma sell dope
They trying to stop it
So what the F**k can I do to make a profit?
Catch a flight to St. Louis
That's cool, cause nobody knew us
We stepped off the plane
Four gang bangers, professional crack slangers
Rented a car at wholesale
Drove to the ghetto, and checked in a motel
Unpacked and I grab the three-eighty
Cause where we stayin, niggaz look shady
But they can't fade South Central
Cause bustin a cap is fundamental
Checkin out every block close
Seein which one will clock the most
Yeah this is the one no doubt
Bust a U Bone, and let's clear these niggaz out
Ay ay man, whassup nigga?
Yo, well this Lench Mob nigga!
[gun shots]
Now clearin em out meant casualties
Still had the L.A. mentality
Bust a cap, and out of there in a hurry
Wouldn't you know, a driveby in Missouri
Them fools got popped
Took their corner next day, set up shop
And it's better than slangin in the Valley
Triple the profit makin more than I did in Cali
Breakin off rocks like Barney Rubble
Cause them mark-ass niggaz don't want trouble
And we ain't on edge when we do work
Police don't recognize the khakis and the sweatshirts
Getting bitches and they can't stand a
Nineteen-ninety-one Tony Montana
Now the s**t's like a war
of gang violence, where it was never seen before
Punks whirl when the gat bust
Four jheri curl niggaz kickin up dust
And some of them are even lookin up to us
Wearing our colors and talkin that gang fuss
Giving up much love
Dyin for a street, that they ain't even heard of
But other motherf**kers want to stand strong
So you know the phrase, once again it's on
[TV Announcer]
Top of the news tonight, gangs from South Central
Los Angeles which are known for their driveby shootings
have migrated into East St. Louis
leaving three dead and two others injured
No arrests have been made
Police say this is a nationwide trend
with similar incidents occuring in Texas, Michigan, and Oklahoma
(female voice repeating in background:
"If it can happen here, it can happen anywhere")
BOOM, my homie got shot he's a goner black
St. Louis niggaz want they corner back
Shooting in snowy weather
It's illegal business, niggaz still can't stick together
F**kin police got the four-one-one
that L.A. ain't all, surf and sun
But we ain't thinkin, bout the boys
Feudin, like the Hatfields and McCoys
Now the s**t's gettin tricky
Cause now they lookin for the colors and the khakis
Damn, the spot's gettin hot from the battle
About to pack up and start slangin in Seattle
But the NARCs, raid about six in the morning
Try to catch a nigga while he's yawnin
Put his glock to my chest as I paused
Went to jail in my motherf**kers drawers
Tryin to give me, fifty-seven years
Face'll be full of those tattooed tears
It's the same old story and the same old nigga stuck
And the public defender ain't givin a f**k
The fool must be sparkin
Talkin about a double life plea bargain
You got to deal with the Crips and Bloods by hand G
Plus the Black Guerilla family
And the white pride don't like Northside
And it's a riot if any more niggaz die
No parole or probation
Now this is a young man's summer vacation
No chance for rehabilitation
Cause look at the motherf**cers years that I'm facin
I'ma end it like this cause you know what's up
My life is f**ked." Enrique Iglesias California Callin' Enrique Iglesias is an American pop singer and actor who sings in Spanish and English. His father was the famous Spanish singer Julio Iglesias. This song is from his 2003 album "7".
"Driving through the night,
Tears are running down my face,
I start to realise, all the things that i once said,
I promised you the world
It's nothing more than you deserve
It's killing me inside, to know I put you through this hell,
Take away my heart,
It doesn't wanna work no more
I never meant to make you cry,
California calling 20 miles to go,
And i don't, i don't know,
Should i turn around or should i leave you alone?
No i don't, i don' t know
I don't know,
I'm on the road and it feels so cold outside,
It's driving me insane, to know how much you hurt tonight,
Take away my heart, it doesn't wanna work no more,
I never meant to make you cry
California calling 20 miles to go,
And i don't, i don't know,
Shod i turn around or shod i leave you alone?
No i don't, i don' t know
I don't know,
Gotta keep on moving on,
Gotta keep on moving on,
Gotta keep on moving on,
California calling, California calling...." Iron & Wine The Desert Babbler Iron & Wine, aka Samuel Beam, is an American singer-songwriter in the acoustic folky style from the Southeast based in Austin, TX. This song is from his 2013 album Ghost on Ghost. I have no idea at all what it's about, but I'll make sure I'm not in Barstow on New Year's Eve.
"It's New Year's Eve
And California's gonna kill you soon
The Barstow boys
Bug eyes in the shadow of the moon
Black houses in the hills and roadside haunts
Dying for a place to fall apart
Who knew what you could learn to live without
Mother Mary's lying in your mouth, now
Back home the kitchen's warm with Christmas wine
And every girl has got an axe to grind
You live to look for hell, man
But you're far from the hard light tonight
So quietly we lost another year
The desert put a babbler in your ear
He will find a way to not miss you again
Barstow boys all spit into the wind
Back home the hammer always has to fall
Cross is barely hanging on the wall
Some day I know you'll never leave me
But we're far from the hard light tonight" Chris Isaac San Francisco Days A moody 1993 light rock tune from Ricky Nelson, I mean Roy Orbison, I mean Chris Isaac, who seems happy to return to his home in Sanfcisco, as the syllable-conserving natives say it.
"I'm heading for that golden gate hoping I won't be to late,
to find the one that I still love.
It's you I'm dreaming of, San Francisco nights.
San Francisco days, San Francisco nights.
San Francisco days, San Francisco nights." J Jack's Mannequin Miss California A 2008 song from an Orange County rock band. In this song, it seems like the singer is stalking Miss California and plotting to take her and hider her away somewhere. Pretty creepy....
"...I'm gonna take you to my boxcar on the beach
And I'm gonna hang the sun above your bed
And soak your hair in bleach
You'll be missed Miss California
You'll be kissed by only me
When they can't find you you'll turn into a mystery
but you're no mystery to me, Miss California
I called Jesus but he heard I hurt
his little girl, yeah,
with my reckless stare, I've been so unfair
Misplacing my affections
She had a reason not to take me back into her care
Oh, I'm just a stray dog now, I can't beg or bow
Just give me some direction.
And I'm gonna take you to the mansion where I hide
and I'm gonna paint a diamond on your hand
And you will be my bride
You'll be missed Miss California
You'll be kissed by only me
When they can't find you you'll turn into a mystery
But you're no mystery to me, Miss California
Miss California
I'll be around, I'll be around.
You'll be missed Miss California.
You'll be kissed by only me.
When they can't find you you'll turn into a mystery
But not to me."
Jan and Dean The Little Old Lady From Pasadena A classic 60's car song in the Beach Boys style.
"The little old lady from Pasadena
Go granny, go granny, go granny go
Has a pretty little flower bed of white gardenias
Go granny, go granny, go granny go
But parked in her rickety old garage
Is a brand new shiny red Super Stock Dodge
And everybody's saying that there's nobody meaner
Than the little old lady from Pasadena
She drives real fast and she drives real hard
She's the terror of Colorado Boulevard
It's the little old lady from Pasadena
If you see her on the street don't try to choose her
Go granny, go granny, go granny go
You might drive a goer but you'll never lose her
Go granny, go granny, go granny go
Well, she's gonna get a ticket now sooner or later
'Cause she can't keep her foot off the accelerator" Jamey Johnson California Riots A country tune from 2010. I think all country singers now are required to do a California song, just like rock groups. In this one, Mr. Johnson is not a fan of the perfect California girls. And I hope he never gets caught in the dark in when half of Alabama riots....
"Well I pulled off the Gravel, with my California dreams.
Leaving everything I ever loved behind.
Well I left Alabama, but it never once left me.
And it's still the only refuge in my mind.
Where you gonna be when half of California riots,
where you gonna run to when the lights go out.
Well I won't be hangin' out in California, I won't try it.
Buddy I'll be up and headed south.
All the women here look perfect, and it hardly ever rains,
and for some folks here I'm sure it's paradise.
Well I'll dabble with the fortune, rub elbows with the fame.
But I'll be damned if this is where I'm gonna die."
The Jayhawks Nevada, California The Jayhawks are an American alt/country band from Minneapolis that had some hits with "Blue," "Bad Time," and "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" This one is from their 1992 album "Hollywood Town Hall." The singer should probably invest in a good GPS navigator because there is no such place as Nevada, California. Maybe he wants to find Nevada City, CA, maybe Nevada County, CA. We'll never know for sure.
"Left his day job behind
Every fool dies trying to give his back
Kicked around on the bum
Like a child I scolded for broken toys
Can you help me to find Nevada, California?
The last thing I did was I tried to hold her
The stationmaster is gone
And I'm your lovesick cousin that never wins
First you twist, then you turn
You're on life's icy mountain, dear passenger
Can you help me to find Nevada, California?
Can you help me to find Nevada, California?
The last thing I did was I tried to hold her
Nevada, California
Behind the lies you wonder, there lies a jewel
Could it be something's wrong?
The love that won't talk to you but seldom wins
Can you help me to find Nevada, California?
Can you help me to find Nevada, California?
Nevada, California
The last thing I did is I tried to hold her"
Mason Jennings California From the 1990 home-recorded first album by this pop-folk singer-songwriter from Minneapolis.The singer is singing to someone he loves who is leaving for California and leaving him behind.
"Don't you know baby I'm a leading man
I dig down deep when I say I love you
And I can hold my own with the best of them
I guarantee you, you will never see nothing like this again
California, I hope that it wakes you
From all of the darkness
That I couldn't break through
'cause I'm gonna miss you, I'm gonna miss you
I'm gonna miss you, I'm gonna miss you
Don't you know that I did the things I could
I rubbed your back when you were sleeping
But all along baby it was understood
That you were leaving, absolutely
Since the very first day we met
California, I hope that it wakes you
From all of the darkness
That I couldn't break through
'cause I'm gonna miss you, I'm gonna miss you
I'm gonna miss you, I'm gonna miss you
Like I miss the ocean
When I go to sleep
Man, it's gonna break my heart" Billy Joel Say Goodbye to Hollywood Somehow the New Jersey piano man snuck into tinseltown and populated it with characters from a Bruce Springsteen song in a Phil Spector arrangement. Nice end lyrics...
"Bobby's drivin' through the city tonight
Through the lights in a hot new rent-a-car
He joins the lovers in his heavy machine
It's a scene down on Sunset Boulevard
Say goodbye to Hollywood
Movin' on is a chance you take
Any time you try to stay - together
Whoa
Say a word out of line
And you find that the friends you had
Are gone forever
So many faces in and out of my life
Some will last
Some will just be now and then
Life is a series of hellos and goodbyes
I'm afraid it's time for goodbye again
Say goodbye to Hollywood
Say goodbye, my baby
Say goodbye to Hollywood
Say goodbye, my baby" Freedy Johnston California Thing A good upbeat 1992 rocker from a great singer-songwriter.
"High off the roof we rise
Flying to a hand up in the sky
All the bells in the city ring
I'm doing my California thing
It was a la, a la, a la
It was a lie, a lie, a lie
I'm doing my California thing
It's happening" Al Jolson
(also Fats Waller) California Here I Come It's campy and dated, (1920's?) and you can't help but associate Jolson with offensive blackface makeup, but it's still one of the best coming back home songs ever.
"California here I come, right back where I started from...
open up that golden gate, California here I come"
K Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground Oh Lord, I Hate You California A 2010 indie tune from a Seattle band whose genre on their Myspace page is listed as Alternative/Experimental/Lounge. As far as I can tell, and I could be wrong, the singer is talking to his father who lives in Portland and is moving to Santa Cruz to get out of the rain.
"I'm always tryin' to call ya papa so Portland sounds aren't all ya know
But I'm a 21st century hang-up who can hardly use his phone
Oh no we don't mean nothin' by it
Your boys will all be fine
Sh*t I should hit I-5 south one hundred and eighty miles instead of droppin' you a line
Well I used to shake a finger at my friends who up and went and moved
Dude I am sympathizing with you more for seein' some new hues
But oh lord I hate you California I guess give me Santa Cruz
And I know it's rainin' outside and it's damn near end of June
Damn if this old dope could go rope the sun
Well I'd yank it over you
And the dogs all howl behind me
In front the cats they claw and hiss
And i guess I'm blessed to know my place is right here sittin' in the midst [or is it "mist" ?]
And that is why I got no reason to get on up and move
Dude i can understand your rationale for seein' some new hues
But oh lord I hate you California but please give me Santa Cruz"
Carole King Back to California Carole King is a New York-born composer and singer-songwriter. She wrote or co-wrote more than a hundred top 100 pop hits and has recorded at least 25 solo albums. This song is from her 1971 album "Music."
"I've been feelin' down in Atlanta
Immobile in Alabama
I'd rather be in traction
Than to be here where I am
Oh, you Georgia red clay
And green Virginia pines
I've got to make it home somehow
Before I lose my mind
So won't you carry me back to California
I been on the road too long
Take me to the West Coast, daddy
And let me be where I belong
Hey now, Philly, you street city
Been down by the railroad track
I know you can be a sweet city
But I won't soon be back
Haystack towns and smokestack cities
Are nothin' I want to see
My own house on high ground
Is the only place I want to be
So won't you carry me back to California
I been on the road too long
Take me to the West Coast, daddy
And let me be where I belong" Elle King Ex's & Oh's Elle King is a singer-songwriter and actress originally from L.A. (She's also the daughter of Rob Schneider, the comedian from Saturday Night Live and star of movie masterpieces such as Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, The Waterboy, and The Longest Yard - but don't hold that against her.) This was a hit single on the alternative and rock charts that received two Grammy nominations and comes from her 2015 debut album Love Stuff. It's a rock song about the singer's ex-boyfriends, including a California Boy who she dumped for a guy in the UK in what must have been a moment of extremely bad judgement on her part.
"Well, I had me a boy, turned him into a man
I showed him all the things that he didn't understand
Whoa, and then I let him go
Now, there's one in California who's been cursing my name
'Cause I found me a better lover in the UK
Hey, hey, until I made my getaway
One, two, three, they gonna run back to me
'Cause I'm the best baby that they never gotta keep
One, two, three, they gonna run back to me
They always wanna come, but they never wanna leave
Ex's and the oh, oh, oh's they haunt me
Like gho-o-osts they want me to make 'em all
They won't let go
Ex's and oh's...." Kings of Leon California Waiting He's upset about losing his lonely life or something. I don't get it, but it's a good rootsy rocker from 2003. And yet another song that references "Crimson and Clover."
"Little Mona Lisa laying by my side
"Crimson and Clover" pullin' overtime
Seem too close to be losin' touch
By givin' in, what am I givin' up
Am I losin' way too much
Hey
Every little thing's gotta be just right
Say
While you're tryin' to save me
Can't I get back my lonely life" The Kinks Celluloid Heroes A 1972 maudlin nostalgic classic from one of England's best and most influential bands.
"Everybody's a dreamer and everybody's a star
And everybody's in show biz, it doesn't matter who you are.
And those who are successful,
Be always on your guard,
Success walks hand in hand with failure
Along Hollywood Boulevard.
I wish my life was a non-stop Hollywood movie show,
A fantasy world of celluloid villains and heroes,
Because celluloid heroes never feel any pain
And celluloid heroes never really die.
You can see all the stars as you walk along Hollywood Boulevard,
Some that you recognise, some that you've hardly even heard of,
People who worked and suffered and struggled for fame,
Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain.
Oh celluloid heroes never feel any pain
Oh celluloid heroes never really die." Gladys Knight & the Pips Midnight Train to Georgia This R&B song was a huge hit in 1973. It's the flip side of all those songs about going to California to find a better life. The singer's boyfriend went to Los Angeles and failed to become a star, so he's taking the midnight train back to Georgia where he came from.
"L.A. proved too much for the man
(Too much for the man, he couldn't make it)
So he's leaving a life he's come to know
(He said he's going)
He said he's going back to find
(Going back to find)
Ooh, what's left of his world
The world he left behind not so long ago
He's leaving
On that midnight train to Georgia, yeah
(Leaving on the midnight train)
Said he's going back
To a simpler place and time, oh yes he is
(Whenever he takes that ride, guess who's gonna be right by his side)
I'll be with him
On that midnight train to Georgia
(Leaving on a midnight train to Georgia, woo woo)
I'd rather live in his world
(Live in his world)
Than live without him in mine
(Her world is his, his and hers alone)
He kept dreaming
Ooh, that some day he'd be a star
(A superstar, but he didn't get far)
But he sure found out the hard way
That dreams don't always come true, oh no, uh uh
(Dreams don't always come true, uh uh, no, uh uh)
So he pawned down his hopes
(Woo, woo, woo-woo)
And even sold his old car
(Woo, woo, woo-woo)
Bought a one way ticket back to the life he once knew
Oh yes he did, he said he would..." The Knitters Dry River The Knitters are a roots rock (or even alt/country) band formed in 1982 by John Doe, Xene Cervenka, and DJ Bonebrake, 3 of the 4 four members of the punk group X, along with Dave Alvin of The Blasters, and stand up bassist Jonny Ray Bartel. They put out one album, then waited more than 20 years to release their second one "The Modern Sounds of the Knitters," where this song comes from. The river is the LA river, star of many Hollywood car chase scenes.
"I was born by the river
it was paved with cement.
I was born by the river
it was paved with cement.
Still I'd stand in that dry river
and dream that I was soakin' wet.
Some day it's gonna rain
Some day it's gonna pour
Some day that old dry river
It won't be dry any more.
... ... ... ...
Fell in love with a woman
but she did not fall for me.
I fell in love with you baby
but you did not fall for me
Now I'm dry as that old river
and I'm as dead as those old trees" Diana Krall California Dreamin' This 2015 version of the Mamas and the Papas classic is a slow and moody jazz vocal version. Kris Kristofferson Me and Bobby McGee His girlfriend Janis Joplin had the hit, but Kristofferson wrote it and sings it best. After thumbing a ride across the country, singing songs and all that, he goes and lets her get away near Salinas. I always wondered why she picked Salinas. Monterey, maybe, or Big Sur, but Salinas? Maybe she was a Steinbeck fan...
"From the coal mines of Kentucky to the California sun,
Bobby shared the secrets of my soul,
Standin' right beside me through everythin' I done,
And every night she kept me from the cold.
Then somewhere near Salinas, lord, I let her slip away,
She was lookin' for the love I hope she'll find,
Well I'd trade all my tomorrows for a single yesterday,
Holdin' Bobby's body close to mine."
L The Ladybug Transistor California Stopover A song from 2007 by a Brooklyn based Indie pop band with some country twang. I have no idea what the chorus means.
"Tell me there's no room left to reason
And say it now if you dare.
Lies, all these lies
But I do hope that you still care.
Time, precious time
That I do hope that you can spare.
California, stop on over
California, stop on over
California" Kendrick Lamar
(feat. Dr. Dre) The Recipe This is some great West Coast hip hop from Bompton phenomenon Kendrick Lamar off his 2012 album "good kid, m.A.A.d. city. Lamar expands the oft-sung concept that people visit California for the women and the weather by adding weed into the mix. These days I prefer the wine, the weather, and the wildlife, but to each his own.
[Dr. Dre]
"Every morning when I wake up
Uh, money on my mind
Good times and get caked up
Sunshine coming through my blinds, I'm living but
Really though, it's never enough
10 million, that's a must
Living in California, everybody wanna visit for...
[Hook]
For the women, weed and weather
From all around the world for the
Women, weed and weather
Got that women, weed and weather
Yo, it sound clever, come and play
Wha-Wha-what more can I say
Welcome to LA"
Adam Lambert Ghost Town Adam Lambert is a singer-songwriter from San Diego who rose to fame after his appearance on American Idol. This is the title track from his 3rd album The Original High released in 2015, and it's part simple strummed guitar, and part the kind of metallic beats and atonal synthesized farts and burps that are popular in pop and dance music these days. I'm not sure exactly what's going on in the lyrics, but it seems to be about LA - Hollywood sold out, James Dean and Elvis are dead, and the singer is wandering through a rusty ghost town full of vampires. Sounds like LA to me.
"Died last night in my dreams
Walking the streets
Of some old ghost town
I tried to believe
In God and James Dean
But Hollywood sold out
Saw all of the saints
Lock up the gates
And love is a satire
And now I know my heart is a ghost town
My heart is a ghost town
My heart is a ghost town
My heart is a ghost town...."
Miranda Lambert California A big pop Country ballad about the California boy who left her from the Country superstar. A bonus track off her 2005 album "Me and Charlie Talking."
"I met him on the edge of a goodbye.
I was standing there with no place left to fly.
I was young but never green, a little wiser than my time it seemed.
He told me about the places he could hide.
Wild and kinda crazy most the time.
My heart was hanging on his every lie.
I memorized his every thought,
But the walls he had could never be brought down,
And now he's not around.
Guess I'm just a face left in the crowd.
Oh California, please come back to me....
Oh California, you're who I want to be...
Live inside of me...
Vivid picture plays inside my head.
Of things he swore we'd never do again.
He put on that LA face
And left me with a bittersweet taste of life.
And that's enough to keep me alive. Langhorne Slim Say Yes Upbeat American Indie folk rock from 2009 by Sean Scolnick from Langhorne Pennsylvania.
"Darling, nobody plans it this way.
We're floating or falling
We're gonna land either way.
Put on your blue lipstick
and I'll put on my Venus boots.
We're in California
But it might as well be the moon.
Say yes
Say yes
Say yes" Led Zeppelin Going to California This is the folksy acoustic side of Zeppelin from 1971. Here we have more girls with flowers in their hair and other unattainable things. Some say it's about Joni Mitchell.
"Spend my days with a woman unkind
Smoked my stuff and drank all my wine
Made up my mind, make a new start
Goin' to California with an achin' in my heart
Someone told me there's a girl out there
With love in her eyes and flowers in her hair"
Lil Wayne California Love (feat. Tyga) Lil Wayne is a hip hop artist from New Orleans who got signed when he was only 9 years old. He is one of the best-selling artists of all time and in 2012 he surpassed Elvis Presley as the male artist with the most songs that have charted on the Billboard Hot 100 (including songs on which he was a featured artist.)
This 2008 rap is another song about California girls. Lil Wayne lets us know what it’s like to go on a date with him and what kind of cologne he likes to wear, while Tyga rhymes morals with oral.
“We met at City Walk, Universal Studio
Uhh so beautiful
Shawty need a movie role
I am not an actor but I'm stickin to da script
Tony Montana had me stickin to da blimp
But now I got an actress stickin to my hip
And she hit with me with her fubbb
You can roll the credits and
Shawty is my fetish.
And you know I like em reddish and shawty is reddish
U kno I like em fast and shawty is da last number on my dash
Speedin like a cop behind me
Tryna catch up with this girl like sum 57 Heinz
And u deserve lobster mami
So how bout I make reservations at crustaceans for 9?
Table for two
Some drinks and some food
Couple yeah I kno's couple of jokes
Uh couple plies uh couple girl I kno lour lines.
Cup of patron
Cup of moans
Couple groans
And we hit our couple on and her goodies so good I can't make a bad sound
And her pussy so good wish I could wear it for cologne
And her pussy so wet I wish I slip and break my neck
And I take her to Rodeo
She shopped all day-o
And I f***ed her hollywood a** like she was from Vallejo
I wish dey could be California girls (California ca ca california)
Man I wish dey could be California girls (California ca ca california)
She my California love
Dat girl my California love
Uhh but shawty got da nerve though
Cause now she tellin me to stop
Now she said she wanna stop
Now I'm callin one stop: where da purple? like where da purple?
And my mamma said nerver hurt a woman but, wat if dat woman hurt me?
And dey say love is priceless but right now is dirt cheap
And we say we will fight dis until round 13 but jus like Mike Tyson we were not a sure thing.
We were only bitin on a dream in dat boxin ring and in dat boxes it's a ring... a ring
Now can somebody call dat thing and tell her shawty give me back my ring
Shawty give me back my ring... and dat one thing
And now I wish dey all...
I wish dey all could b california girls
Cus she was my California love
My California love
Da girl was my California love
[Tyga:]
Uhhh my Caliz consist from Compton to da valley
A few stallions and Rancho Cucamonga
So run those they say waitin patiently like a drumroll
From my area codes got em all from 213, 310, 323
I got a bad one up in Carson soon as we met her heart stuck
She gorgeous
Can't fall though, never been in my morals
Just plenty oral
I'm young though so before we start get ready to bounce like a 64
Yo wants yo info? sexy text me like usin a pencil and your friends been know
I'm real g yung money baby no rental
But before it all end though
Just remember:
You exited on now
tell your friend to enter
Tyga man.” LL Cool J Going Back to Cali Before appearing on sit coms and Sesame Street, LL Cool James made this hard-boiled jazzy horn-filled hip hop hit back in 1989, that still sounds as good today as it did then. His Califorinia is all about shiny black Corvette convertibles and beautiful girls in small bikinis and tall heels. No wonder he's going back.
Notorious B.I.G. made his own very X -rated version, too.
"I'm going back to Cali, Cali, Cali
I'm going back to Cali.. hmm, I don't think so
I'm going back to Cali, Cali, Cali
I'm going back to Cali.. I don't think so
Going back to Cali, stylin, profilin
Growlin, and smilin, while in the sun
The top is down, on the black Corvette
And it's fly, cause it's sittin on Dayton's
Laurents steering wheel, plushed out, gold-leaf phantom top
and three girls waiting
VRRRROOM engine's blowin, the chrome, is shining
Passing all the cars on the way
Movement of the wind, back wheels spin
Pop in a cassette and push play
I'm going back to Cali, Cali, Cali
I'm going back to Cali - yea y'all, I don't think so
I'm going back to Cali, Cali, Cali
I'm going back to Cali.." Local H California Songs Finally, a song about how there are too many California songs!
I totally agree. At least, too many bad California songs, a few of them listed here, just for fun. This song is from 2004 and the band is from Chicago, so they even throw in a gratuitous dig at New York. Bicoastal haters is what they are.
"Well I got your late night call
You're in the center of it all
You're havin’ a ball
And your really doin’ fine
A west coast time
But here’s one for the coast
The people with the most
The pretty, pretty folks
Yeah here’s one for the coast
The people with the most
The pretty, pretty folks
And here we go again
It’s never gonna end
We’re all so sick of California songs
Yeah we know you love L.A.
There’s nothing left to say
Please no more California songs
And f**k New York too
Yeah your heaven is a lie
Just more s**t that I don’t buy
Well they're headin’ for the coast
They’re movin’ out in droves
Sendin’ back reports on the radio
The message is the same
It’s getting pretty lame
California dreamin’s on the radio." Rebecca Loebe California Wickipedia 11/13: "Rebecca Loebe is an itinerant American folk/pop singer/songwriter based in Atlanta, Georgia."
This song - just acoustic guitar and her voice - is from her 2010 album "Mystery Prize." After 6 weeks in an LA Hotel, appearing on "The Voice," it's no wonder she doesn't want to stay in Cali.
"Fell asleep in Hartsfield,
A bloody mary balanced on my knee.
Studied my reflection
Caught between two panes of glass
Right there on the plane.
California, I warned you I can't stay.
Alcohol and nicotine,
Funny how they wear us down in time.
In the roughest of your water
The smallest of my stones
Grow smooth in every way.
California, I warned you I can't stay.
California, I warned you I can't stay.
How many stars
All of them ours but one?
California, how could I be more clear?
I was born for rocky soil
A coast away from here.
California, you're with me every day.
But I warned you, I warned you I can't stay.
California, I warned you I can't stay." Lyle Lovett L.A. County A country song from Lovett's 1987 album "Pontiac."
I think of it as his violent take on the ending wedding of The Graduate, but with his coal black .45 doing the talking instead of Dustin Hoffmann.
"She left Dallas for California
With an old friend by her side
Well he did not say much
But one year later
He'd ask her to be his wife
And the lights of L.A. County
Look like diamonds in the sky
When you're driving through the hours
With an old friend at your side
One year later I left Houston
With an old friend by my side
Well it did not say much
But it was a beauty
Of a coal black .45
And the lights of L.A. County
Look like diamonds in the sky
When you're driving through the hours
With an old friend at your side
So I drove on all the day long
And I drove on through the night
And I thought of her a'waiting
For to be his blushing bride
And the lights of L.A. County
They looked like diamonds in the sky
As I drove into the valley
With my old friend at my side
And as she stood there at the altar
All dressed in her gown of white
Her face was bright as stars a'shining
Like I'd dreamed of all my life
And they kissed each other
And they turned around
And they saw me standing in the aisle
Well I did not say much
I just stood there watching
As that .45 told them goodbye
And the lights of L.A. County
Look like diamonds in the sky
When you're kneeling at the altar
With an old friend at your side
And the lights of L.A. County
Are a mighty pretty sight
When you're kneeling at the altar
With an old friend at your side" Low California There just aren't many songs about California when it's cold and wet. After all, it's not all sandy beaches and palm trees.
Low is one of those indie rock slowcore bands, but this 2005 tune has a little more energy and tempo than a lot of their music.
"See yo
ur reflection in the mind
You keep your revelations wide
They knew just where to draw the line
You let them got you every time
Though it breaks your heart
We had to sell the farm
Back to California where it's warm"
It fell around you like the stars
You picked up everything they dropped
And though it breaks you like a song
You had some secrets of your own
And though it breaks your heart
We had to sell the farm Back to California where it's warm"
Lowell (featuring Icona Pop) Ride Lowell is a female Canadian singer-songwriter so far known mostly for this song which features Icona Pop, a female Swedish electropop duo. This song was featured in the 2016 film Nerve.
"Yo, kiss me
You know that you miss me
Get on the bike and go (Ride!)
Ride it like you stole it, floor it
I don't like the road, I adore it
I can see you got stars in your eyes
I can see you got stars in your eyes
I can see you got stars in your eyes
Stars in your eyes, love is in the air
Speed demon, my little angel
Pick up the pace like danger (Ride!)
Let's go to Hollywood, burn down the disco
Break away to San Francisco
I can see you got stars in your eyes
I can see you got stars in your eyes
I can see you got stars in your eyes
Stars in your eyes, love is in the air
(Ride, ride, ride!) Break the windows (Ride, ride, ride!)
Shout it out tonight
Have a bitch fit, we don't give a s**t
Love is in the air, hey, hey
(Ride, ride, ride!) Break the windows (Ride, ride, ride!)
Shout it out tonight
Have a bitch fit, we don't give a s**t
Love is in the, love is in the air...." Luna California (All the Way) Upbeat guitar pop, the opening track on 1994's Bewitched, the second album from the now defunct Indie pop band fronted by Dean Wareham formerly the leader of Galaxie 500.
"Well, she followed him from Phoenix out to California
and then she passed out on the bed
and all the little things he never even asked her for
she simply smiled and shook her head
why can't we smile just like we used to
why don't you figure anymore
why has my sympathy now turned to malice
it doesn't matter any more
and now i realize i'm livin' like a trucker does
although i haven't got the belly
and though she followed me to California all the way
i only wanna watch the telly." Lyrics Born The Bay Lyrics Born (formerly known as Asia Born) is a Tokyo born rapper/songwriter who eventually ended up in Berkeley. This is from a 2005 album.
"Ladies and Gentlemen,
We will soon touch down in the beautiful Bay area,
Please lean your seats back, cut your turn tables up,
and always hold a firm and forthright position.
We ask that you permanently stow all of your baggage behind you.
With temperatures about like this, with a slight ocean breeze,
with crisp highs and deep lows.
It's been our pleasure serving it, and we appreciate you riding high for the team.
Ladies and Gentlemen, it's a new day in the Bay.
Where the people are intelligent, articulate, eloquent,
artistic, hard-working and diligent, both progressive and politically spirited(ed), definitely in possession of the ill-latent element, we hella independent,
more than a little bit critical of the political system,
and nobody bulls****in' the Bay, that aint the way we livin',
women got that smart-ass charm, so uninhibited,
they always catch us men off guard, but cool to kick it with.
We hold a certain love for our own, known as Bay-love,
but if push comes to shove we won't hesitate to raise up,
we aint afraid of funk, the bay was made of funk,
they say we help create the funk, baby take it from this native son.
I dedicate this one to every neighborhood on every side of each bridge,
Globally we known for bein' soulfully distinct, culturally rich, totally unique, emotionally I'm linked to the place I'm from,
that's why I named this one:
The Bay... The Bay...
The Bay... The Bay…" M Jeanette MacDonald San Francisco This is the old chestnut from the classic 1936 movie "San Francisco" starring Jeanette MacDonald, Clark Gable, and Spencer Tracy, where it is played for what seems like half the movie, until the 1906 earthquake puts an end to it. It's a movie you should see at least once because it's very good up until the end when it becomes too cheesy even for a mouse.
"It only takes a tiny corner of
This great big world to make a place you love.
My home up on the hill
I find I love you still.
I've been away but now I'm back to tell you
San Francisco
You let no stranger wait outside your door.
San Francisco
Here is your wandering one
Saying I'll wander no more.
Other places only make me love you best.
Tell me you're the heart of all the golden west. San Francisco
Welcome me home again
I'm coming home
To go roaming no more."
Madonna Hollywood This is a dance pop song (with acoustic guitar) from Madonna's 2003 album American Life. Like just about any song now that uses the word "Hollywood," this song evokes the illusory dreams of wealth and fame that bring people to the entertainment capital. This was a minor hit by one of the wealthiest and most famous entertainers in the world who used Hollywood to provide her with a large part of that success, so its hard to sympathize with her complaints. Music stations always play the same songs all over the world, not just in Hollyweird.
"Everybody comes to Hollywood
They wanna make it in the neighborhood
They like the smell of it in Hollywood
How could it hurt you when it looks so good
Shine your light now
This time it's gotta be good
You get it right now
Yeah
There's something in the air in Hollywood
The sun is shining like you knew it would
You're riding in your car in Hollywood
You got the top down and it feels so good
Everybody comes to Hollywood
They wanna make it in the neighborhood
They like the smell of it in Hollywood
How could it hurt you when it looks so good
I lost my memory in Hollywood
I've had a million visions
Bad and good
There's something in the air in Hollywood
I tried to leave it but I never could
... ... ...
Music stations always play the same songs
I'm bored with the concept of right and wrong
... ... ...
I have planned my grand attacks
I will stand behind their backs
with my brand-new battle ax
Then they will they taste my wrath
They will hear me say
as the pavement whirls
"I hate California girls..." The Magnetic Fields Come Back From San Francisco One of 1999's "69 Love Songs" from Stephin Merritt, in which a woman begs a man to come back from San Francisco, and not get distracted by pretty boys in discos. Sounds like maybe he's discovered the Castro and she's barking up the wrong tree...
"Come back from San Francisco.
It can't be all that pretty,
when all of New York City misses you.
Should pretty boys in discos distract you from your novel,
remember I'm awful in love with you.
You need me like the wind needs the trees to blow in.
Like the moon needs poetry, you need me.
Come back from San Francisco and kiss me; I've quit smoking.
I miss doing the wild thing with you.
Will you stay? I don't think so,
but all I do is worry, pack bags, call cabs, and hurry home to me." The Mamas and the Papas California Dreamin' This is the 1965 folk pop hit sung with lots of harmonies, tambourines, and even a flute solo. The original version was released by Barry McGuire with backing vocals by the Mamas and the Papas, but shortly afterwards the Mamas and the Papas used the same music to make their own version.
The song has been covered by a lot of musicians, some of which are also found on this list including:
America,
"All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey
I've been for a walk on a winters day
I'd be safe and warm if I was in L.A.
California dreaming on such a winters day
Stepped into a church I passed along the way
Well, I got down on my knees and I pretend to pray
You know the preacher likes the cold he knows I'm gonna stay
California dreaming on such a winters day
All the leaves a brown and the sky is grey
I've been for a walk on a winters day
If I didn't tell her I could leave today
California dreaming on such a winters day
On such a winters day, on such a winters day" The Mamas and the Papas Pacific Coast Highway More '60s folk pop and another one about driving on the coast highway.
"Rollin' along Pacific Coast Highway -
Hummin' along to my radio.
Saw a blond hitchin' my way;
Rolled up and said "How far do you wanna go?"
She'd been hummin', thumbin', hitchin' and wishin'
For a good day on Pacific Coast Highway." Mates of State
California Another song about driving and returning to California.
I first heard the Mates of States' 2006 version of this indie pop song before I found out it was a cover of the Phantom Planets song that was used as the theme to the OC, a primetime soap opera about beautiful and spoiled California kids, the kind who always seem to be a staple on TV. The Mates of States version is moody - the Phantom Planets song rocks a bit more.
"On the stereo
Nothing’s gonna stop me now
California here we come
Right back where we started from
Pedal to the floor
Gotta get us to the show
California here we come
Right back where we started from
California!
Here we come!"
John Mayall California A wonderful 9-minute-plus jazzy blues number with a great hypnotic bass line and a sax solo. Recorded live in 1969.
This is the sort of free-form music I first heard on the pioneer California "underground" FM stations - KSAN in San Francisco and KPPC in Pasadena during their few years of great independent programming before the corporations took control again in the late 60's and early 70's. Fortunately in 2011 we have stations like KEXP, WMFU, NPR, and others that can be listened to online, so non-commercial radio music programming is still breathing, and with Youtube, hundreds of independent music podcasts, and the streaming sites, it's much easier to discover good music today than ever before.
"Goin' back to California,
so many good things around.
Don't wanna leave California,
the sun seems to never go down...
California,
so many things to be free,
California,
that's where I wanna be." John Mayer Queen of California John Mayer is a Connecticut born singer-songwriter, who is also known for his guitar playing and for being a staple of the gossip tabloids because of his many famous girlfriends. This song is from his 2012 album Born and Raised.
"Goodbye cold, goodbye rain
I'm headed out west with my headphones on
Boarded a flight with a song in the back of my soul
And no one knows
I just found out her ghost left town
The Queen of California is stepping down, down
Hello beauty, hello strange
Hello wonder, what's your name?
Looking for the sun that Neil Young hung
After the gold rush of 1971
I just found out her ghost left town
The Queen of California is stepping down, down
If you see her say, "Hello"
Just don't tell me, "I told you so"
Joni wrote Blue in her house by the sea
I gotta believe there’s another color waiting on me
To set me free
I just found out her ghost left town
The Queen of California is stepping down, down" (Frankie Beverly &) Maze Look At California Frankie Beverly relocated from Philadelphia to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1971 and his group Maze, playing a mellow soul style sometimes called "quiet storm," released their first album "Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly," which includes this song, in 1977. Samples have been used in a few hip hop versions including those by Mr. Shadow, The Scrayper Boyz, and Young Thugg.
"Look at California Look at California
Look at California Look at california
The rollin' hills seem to do something for you
It seems they're meant to be looked on by you
And when the sunshine is doing it's thing
Then you know that all you see is true
Every day every night the same old groovy feelin'
People that live a lot love a lot
And everything there is so good
Look at California
All the flowers are bloomin' all about
Every kind you and I could think of
And if you see anything that's missin'
Then they make it up to you with love
Whether up or whether down
It don't even mean a thing
Look at the things around
The peace you've found
And all that you feel is so real Look at california
Look at California
Look at California
Look at California" Bonnie McKee California Winter Bonnie McKee is a singer-songwriter who has co-written a lot of songs with Katy Perry, including "California Gurls" and a bunch of other number-one hit songs with other artists. She put this song online in 2014.
"Dreaming of palm trees tonight
This is the season, the city is sleeping
Gleaming and glistening white
But it’s always summer with you
Outside, it’s cold and gray
All the streets shine like silver lakes
And the stop lights are blinking red and green
Like something in a movie scene
Snow babe, it’s in the air
And I’m frozen but I don’t care
Cuz I’m golden as long as I’m with you
Cuz when I’m in your arms it’s like a California winter
Yeah, your love can keep me warm
When it’s storming outside
And you’re holding me tight
It’s like you take me to paradise
California winter
Yeah, your touch is like sunshine
And on my holiday
Feels like I’m in L.A.
Cuz I’m yours and I know you’re mine, yeah baby
(California-California winter, California-California winter)
When it’s storming outside
And you’re holding me tight
It’s like you take me to paradise
Dark skies, December hail
But I’m bright eyed and bushy tailed
Like I’m pool side and soaking up the sun
Even though my toes are numb
You are my angel wings
You are my North star, watch over me
And when it gets dark you always light me up
Cuz when I’m in your arms it’s like a California winter
Yeah, your love can keep me warm
When it’s storming outside and you’re holding me tight
It’s like you take me to paradise
California winter
Yeah, your touch is like sunshine
And on my holiday
Feels like I’m in L.A.
Cuz I’m yours and I know you’re mine, yeah baby
(California-California winter, California-California winter)
When it’s storming outside
And you’re holding me tight
It’s like you take me to paradise ...." Scott McKenzie San Francisco This is the 1967 pop song that gave San Francisco bound travelers an important floral fashion tip. The song never sounded as hip as the era it described, but it was a massive hit and is credited with bringing lots of young people to the city. (It was also used as an anthem during Czechoslovakia's 1968 uprising against the Soviet Union. Who knew such wimpy pop could be so revolutionary?)
"If you're going to San Francisco
Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair
If you're going to San Francisco
You're gonna meet some gentle people there
For those who come to San Francisco
Summertime will be a love-in there
In the streets of San Francisco
Gentle people with flowers in their hair" Joe Dee Messina Heads Carolina, Tails California This was the first hit back in 1996 for this female country singer from Massachusetts, but it wasn't her last.
"Heads, Carolina Tails, California.
Up in the mountains, down by the ocean.
Where? It don't matter, as long as we're goin'
Somewhere together. I've got a quarter.
Heads, Carolina Tails, California."
I always flip a coin when I'm thinking of driving thousands of miles, don't you? I also like to spin a globe and stop it with my finger pointing to where ever I want to go before buying a plane ticket. Metro Station California Another let's-get-in-the-car-and-drive-to-California song from this L.A. pop rock band's 2007 album.
"What do you say we leave for California?
If we drive all night, we can make it by the morning
And, no one else will know if we decide to go, oh
What do you say we leave for California?
We could leave our friends
And we could be together
We could leave this town
If only for the weather
I could drive
To the sound of our heartbeats
What do you say we leave for California?
If we drive all night, we can make it by the morning
And, no one else will know if we decide to go, oh
What do you say we leave for California?" Bette Midler White Christmas This is the classic nostalgic Christmas song written by Irving Berlin in the early 1940s. Bing Crosby's 1942 recording of the song became a smash hit with help from its popularity with American GI's fighting overseas during World War 2. According to the Guiness World Records it's the best-selling single of all time. But the version Crosby sings omits the opening verse which shows that the singer longing for snow is in Beverly Hills on a sunny Christmas eve. Bette Midler sings the opening verse in her version as do a few other singers including Barbara Streisand. This is from Midler's 2006 release Bette Midler - Cool Yule.
"The sun is shining, the grass is green,
The orange and palm trees sway.
There's never been such a day
In Beverly Hills, L.A.
But it's December the 24th,
And I'm longing to be up north
I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
Just like the ones I used to know.
Where the treetops glisten,
To hear sleigh bells in the snow.
I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write.
May your days be merry and bright.
And may all your Christmases be white.
I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write.
May your days be merry and bright.
And may all your Christmases be white."
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones To California A 2007 song from the Ska-Core band from Massachusetts. In this one, a guy decided to take the California trip, ran into some obstacles, but got there anyway, only to end up in the L.A. County jail.
"...To California.
He said that's where he'd find his fortune.
And where it's warmer
The weather's warmer and the girls are scorching hot.
He quit his job down at the diner.
And then he loaded up his SUV.
Just like a modern 49er.
Except for the Schlager and the PCP.
To California.
He said he'd make it there come hell
Or come high water.
He isn't doing very well.
He made it to Atlantic City.
To try to double what he brought.
Lost it to a voodoo girl named Kitty.
Totaled the truck out in the parking lot.
So he decided
He was determined not to turn back. No way.
So guess what he did?
Well he snuck aboard an Amtrak Train.
To California.
He said that's where he'd find his fortune.
And where it's warmer.
The weather's warmer and the girls are scorching hot.
To California.
Just got a postcard in the mail.
"Just to inform ya.
I'm the LA County Jail. Right now."
Miguel Leaves Miguel is a singer-songwriter-producer from L.A. who is usually placed among the curent new wave of R&B artists, although he also incorporates rock, psychedelic, electronic, funk, and hip hop styles in his music. He's another great musician who proves that genres are no longer very relevant. This song is off his 2015 album, Wildheart.
"The leaves don't change you
The leaves don't change you, so I never saw it coming
Went to hit me, Hiroshima, where did the Sun go?
Just the cruel rain pouring, you say that it's over
How could it be over, when I never saw it coming?
Sweet California, sour California
I should've known better, I should've known better
The leaves they don't change here
You know I'm from here, I never saw it coming
Where did the summer go, when you loved me?
Where did the summer go, when you loved me?
You say it's over now, how could it be over?
I never saw it coming
Sweet California, sour California
Sweet California oh, I should've known better
Should've known better
The leave they don't change here" Miguel Hollywood Dreams This is another song off Miguel's 2015 album, Wildheart, that's about a woman with dreams of Hollywood fame and with a coke habit.
"Lost angel with an urgent subtle
Jaded eyes, and this empty fixation
Sweet Hollywood sign, you're my salvation
Cokey scenes full of pipe dreams
Palm trees and a numb sensation
Chasing, uh-huh
Vivid schemes, put my name on a marquee, alright
Still waiting for my big break (big break), for fame sake, alright
And we could be better than heroes baby, alright
We could fly higher than spaceships baby, all night
Said could you ever find the magic man (magic man)
He can make it all happen (happen), alright
Lost Hollywood dreams
Say wow, up fame, became your religion woman
You need 'cause all your faith is coming
Now the walk of shame woman
It's reputation, cheap thrills, fake friends, coke binge
What a numb sensation
Then he said, "honey I can put your face on the big screen
Well aren't you looking for your big break (big break)?
Come here, for fame sake" (yeah)
And we could be better than heroes baby, alright (alright)
We could fly higher than spaceships baby, all night (all night)
Girl you're looking at the magic man
I can make it all happen (all happen)
Lost Hollywood dreams (yeah)
And we could be better than heroes baby, alright (alright)
We could fly higher than spaceships baby, all night (all night)
Said could you ever find the magic man (magic man)
He can make it all happen (all happen), alright
Lost Hollywood dreams
(Up and down Hollywood and Sunset)
(Up and down... ... ... )
Lost Hollywood dreams"
Miguel The Valley Another song from his 2015 album, Wildheart. The lyrics are a bit too explicit for me to show many here. It's about a man who ants to enjoy his time with his lover like they're "filming in the valley,' a reference to making a pornographic film in the San Fernando Valley, the heart of that branch of the film industry. Minutemen History Lesson - Part II Minutemen was a seminal early 80's punk band from San Pedro. The opening line of this song inspired the title of the definitive book about 80's American indie underground music. This song is from their great 1984 double album Double Nickles On the Dime.
"Our band could be your life
Real names'd be proof
Me and Mike Watt, we played for years
Punk rock changed our lives.
We learned punk rock in Hollywood
Drove up from Pedro
We were f***ing corndogs
We'd go drink and pogo
Mr. Narrator,
This is Bob Dylan to me
My story could be his songs
I'm his soldier child
Our band is scientist rock
But I was E. Bloom, Richard Hell,
Joe Strummer and John Doe
Me and Mike Watt, playing guitar" Missing Persons Walking in L.A. 80's New Wave female vocals meet Hair Metal guitars in this 1983 American pop hit about someone who is shocked to see a pedestrian while driving in LA:
"Walkin' in L.A., nobody walks in L.A.
Could it be that the smog's playing tricks on my eyes
or is it a rollerskater in some kind of headphone disguise
Maybe somebody who just ran out of gas,
Making his way back to the pumps the best way he can.
Walkin' in L.A.
Walkin' in L.A., nobody walks in L.A." Joni Mitchell California A 70's folk pop hit in which Joni dreams of California because Paris is too old and cold and settled in it's ways, some guy on the Greek Isles stole her camera, and she gets lonely with streets full of strangers. (It sure must be hard to be young and rich with lots of time to travel...) She keeps saying she's coming home, but then she flies to a beach in Spain to get a tan. And all this from a Canadian.
"Oh, but California
I'm going to see the folks I dig
I'll even kiss a Sunset pig
California I'm coming home." Joni Mitchell Ladies of the Canyon This is from her third album Ladies of the Canyon, which was released in 1970. The canyon is Topanga Canyon, home to lots of rock stars then and probably now. It has also been referenced in other songs, including Spirit's Topanga Windows and John Phillips' Topanga Canyon .
"Trinna wears her wampum beads
She fills her drawing book with lines
Sweing lace on widows weeds
And filagree on leaf and vine
Vine and leave are filagree
And her coats a second hand one
Trimmed in antique luxury
She is a lady of the canyon
Annie sits you down to eat
She always makes you welcome in
Cats and babies round her feet
And all are fat and none are thin
None are thin and all are fat
She may bake some brownies today
Saying, you are welcome back
She is another canyon lady
Estrella circus girl
Comes wrapped in songs and gypsy shalws
Songs like tiny hammers hurled
At bevelled mirrors in empty halls
Empty halles and bevelled mirrors
Sailing seas and climbing banyans
Come out for a visit here
To be a lady of the canyon
Trinna takes her pains and her threads
And she weaves a pattern all her own
Annie bakes her cakes and her breads
And she gathers flowers for her home
For her home she gathers flowers
And Estrella, dear companion
Colors up the sunshine hours
Pouring music down the canyon
Coloring the sunshine hours
They are the ladies of the canyon"
Keb Mo House in California Keb Mo, or Kevin Moore, is a Nashville-based blues guitarist whose been around for a while. This is off his 2004 Grammy Award-winning album "Keep it Simple." I don't think he'd have written the same lyrics after the housing bubble burst in 2008, especially in So Cal. More references here to good weather and earthquakes...
"He said, 'boy you got to be a big time actor or a corporate lawyer,
if you want to buy a house in California!'
Cause it don’t snow and it don’t rain,
ever’ day looks the same,
and before you pack your thangs,
let me warn ya’,
It’s the land of milk and honey,
but you better have good money,
If you’re lookin’ for a house in California!
Well I got me a job, my wife’s got two,
kids flippin’ burgers at the local drive-thru,
We all doin’ everything we can,
we savin’ for a house in California.
Then one day the bank starts shakin’,
the sky went dark and the earth was a quakin’
Then o’r night, it became alarmin’,
how the price dropped on a house in California!
Well it needs a roof and it needs a floor,
yeah yeah, it’s a real fixer-upper,
Friends back east said somebody should have warned ya,
about buyin’ my big house in California." Van Morrison St. Dominic's Preview This is a classic Van Morrison song from his1972 album with same title as the song. He names several locations from different times in his life, including San Francisco, where the album was recorded. "St. Dominic's" is also a Catholic church in San Francisco.
Another song on the album "Redwood Tree" is about taking shelter under a redwood tree, maybe one in Marin County where Morrison was living at the time.
"Shammy cleaning all the windows,
Singing songs about Edith Piaf's soul.
And I hear blue strains of "no regredior"
Across the street from Cathedral Notre Dame.
Meanwhile back in San Francisco
We're trying hard to make this whole thing blend,
As we sit upon this jagged
Storey block, with you my friend.
And it's a long way to Buffalo.
It's a long way to Belfast city too.
And I'm hoping the choice won't blow the hoist
'cos this town, they bit off more than they can chew.
As we gaze out on, as we gaze out on
As we gaze out on, as we gaze out on
Saint Dominic's Preview
Saint Dominic's Preview
Saint Dominic's Preview...." The Motels So L.A. The Motels is an L.A. new wave band that had some hits in 1982 and 1983 and eventually was re-formed with the name Martha Davis and The Motels. This song, drenched in cheezy 80's synthesizer sounds, is from their third album "All Four One" released in 1982.
"Walk of the town on a sunburned night
Keep in mind the dream so nice
Walk of the night that seemed so new
All of it is up to you
Jimmy cracked when he came out here
Precious dream never seemed so clear
Now he practiced a thousand times
The city that should have been his that night
And the man on the corner got something new
And something new is good for you tonight
Oh, oh, it's so so L.A.
Walk of the woman that came to say
She come and walk there every day
Her speciality was you, and she
Dreamed the same but incomplete
And the man on the corner got something new
And something new is good for you tonight
Oh, oh, it's so so L.A.
Walk of time as time goes on
Walk of pain as pain's prolonged
And the dream and the woman and the time and you
Are all very welcome to Hollywood
Cause the man on the corner got something new
And something new is good for you tonight
Oh, oh, it's so so
Oh, oh, it's so so L.A." The Mothers of Invention Who Needs the Peace Corps? Frank Zappa and the other Mothers released this song about fake hippies in the Haight on their 1968 classic album "We're Only in it for the Money." I was reminded of it after hearing it in the 1969 film set during the 1968 Chicago Riots "Medium Cool."
"What's there to live for?
Who needs the peace corps?
Think I'll just drop out
I'll go to Frisco
I'm a gypsy on my own
I'll stay a week & get the crabs &
Take a bus back home
I'm really just a phony
But forgive me
Every town must have a place
Where phony hippies meet
Popping up on every street
Go to San Francisco. . .
How I love ya, How I love ya
How I love ya, How I love ya Frisco!
How I love ya, How I love ya
How I love ya, How I love ya
Oh, my hair is getting good in the back!
Every town must have a place
Where phony hippies meet
Popping up on every street
Go to San Francisco . . .
First I'll buy some beads
And then perhaps a leather band
To go around my head
Some feathers and bells
And a book of Indian lore
I will ask the Chamber Of Commerce
How to get to Haight Street
And smoke an awful lot of dope
I will wander around barefoot
I will have a psychedelic gleam in my eye at all times
I will love everyone
I will love the police as they kick the s**t out of me on the street
I will sleep . . .
I will, I will go to a house
That's, that's what I will do
I will go to a house
Where there's a rock & roll band
'Cause the groups all live together
And I will join a rock & roll band
I will be their road manager
And I will stay there with them
And I will get the crabs
But I won't care
Because . . ."
Mötley Crüe Saints of Los Angeles Mötley Crüe are an enormously commercially successful heavy metal band formed in L.A. in 1981. They are revered for their saintly asceticism, abstinence, and rejection of all hedonism. Not!
This song is from their 2008 album "Saints of Los Angeles."
"Tonight
There's gonna be a fight
So if you need a place to go
Got a two room slum
A mattress and a gun
And the cops don't never show
So come right in
Welcome to the scene of the crime
You want it, believe it,
We got it if you need it
The devil is a friend of mine
If you think it's crazy
You ain't seen a thing
Just wait until we're goin down in flames
We are, we are the saints
We signed our life away
Doesn't matter what you think
We're gonna do it anyway
We are, we are the saints
One day you will confess
And pray to the saints of Los Angeles
Red line, tripping on land mines
Sippin at the Troubador
Girls passed out, hangin in the back lounge
Thinking everybody's gonna score
She's jacked up, down on her luck
You wan't it, you need it the devil's gonna feed it
Don't cha say it's crazy, you don't know a thing
Just wait untill we're going down in flames
We are, we are the saints
We signed our life away
Doesn't matter what you think
We're gonna do it anyway
We are, we are the saints
One day you will confess
And pray to the saints of Los Angeles...." The Mountain Goats Birth of Serpents A 2011 song with references to both herps and California from John Darnielle who started performing in Claremont, CA in 1991.
I think we've all seen those rooms with heat lamps and sweater boxes full of breeding snakes.
"Let the camera pull back till the fullness of the frame is clear and plain
Peer into the screen until you see it all like a vision in a crystal ball
Let it all fill with smoke
Is this somebody's idea of a joke?
Let the fixer work until the silver's washed away
And take the picture from the tray
Look hard at what you see and then remember you and me
And let the truth spring free
Like a jack-in the box
Like a hundred-thousand cuckoo clocks
From the Oregon corners to the Iowa corn
To the rooms with the heat lamps where the snakes get born
Crawl through the tunnel and follow, follow the light north west
See that young man who dwells inside his body like an uninvited guest
See the tunnel twist
Clutch your birth rite in your fist
Let the camera do its dirty work down there in the dark
Sink low, rise high, bring back some blurry pictures to remember all your darker moments by
Permanent bruises on our knees
Never forget what it felt like to live in rooms like these
From the California coastline to the Iowa corn
To the rooms with the heat lamps where the snakes get born" The Mountain Goats San Bernardino One guy's voice and an acoustic guitar in this sweet song from 2008. The ending gives me the impression that they were driving there to give birth to their son. (But in the bathtub of a hotel? I don't knowwhat's going on...)
"We got in your car and we hit the highway
Eastern sun was rising over the mountains
Yellow and blood red bits
like a kaleidoscope
And flaming swords may guard the garden of Eden
But we consulted maps from earlier days
Dead languages on our tongues
Holding on to our last hope And the day was bright and fine
And the highway sign said, 'San Bernardino welcomes you'
I checked us into our hotel and filled the bathtub
And you got in the warm warm water
I pulled petals from my pocket
I loved you so much just then
And it was hard but you were brave, you are splendid
And we will never be alone in this world
no matter what they say
We’re gonna be okay
We were safe inside
and our new son cried,
“San Bernardino welcomes you” The Move California Man The 1972 song by The Move (Roy Wood's band that became The Electric Light Orchestra) with a bunch of classic boogie rock nonsense lyrics about a party where the jive is really cool and he's a California man and can't stop dancing. Or something like that. A hit for Cheap Trick in 1978.
"Goin' to a party,
Meet me on after school.
Well we're goin to a place
Where the jive is really cool.
And if the band stops a playin'
There's a jukebox down the hall.
And with your blue dress on, your folks all gone.
You're sure to give the guys a ball.
Get that real guitar boy shakin',
I'm a California man,
Dance right on till the floors are breakin'
I'm a California man." Mr. Shadow Look At California This version samples the Maze song.
Mr. Shadow is a Chicano rapper from San Diego. The Mr. T. Experience Gilman Street An upbeat fun punk classic from Frank Portman and his Berkeley band. 924 Gilman Street is an all-ages, not for profit, collective music club started in 1986 in Berkeley where no racist, homophobic, misogynistic, or major label bands are allowed, that is still in operation now, almost 26 years later. The song documents and parodies typical Berkeley grass roots democracy at the same time "you can vote on whether you're gonna vote," and turns it all into an anthem for all young punks and socially conscious do-it-yourselfers.
"Seems like it was only yesterday
nothing to do and nowhere to play
but we could go down to Gilman Street
and see Op Ivy every week
no violence drugs or alcohol
just maximum rock and roll
at Gilman Street
it's the place to be
it's the seat of the punk rock scene
cause we got the beat
and we don't eat meat
it's a club it's a place it's a thing
and if the band is hell of rad
Tim will start to bounce his head
all the kids will jump up on the stage
and they'll hit the microphone in your face
and you will get a fat lip
you will get a fat lip in the pit
at Gilman street
for a zillion punk rock bands
cause they've got the club
and it's not enough
but at least it's not Bill Graham
it's Gilman Street
it's just one big family
it's a bunch of geeks
it's a load of freaks
it's a club it's a place it's a thing
it's Gilman Street."
My Morning Jacket One Big Holiday One of the best from this great great band from Kentucky, from their 2003 lp, "It Still Moves."
"Wakin' up feelin' good and limber
when the telephone it ring.
Was a bad man from California
tellin' of a stone he'd bring
and of better days.
From this town, we'd escape.
If we holler loud and make our way
we'd all live one big holiday." N Matt Nathanson Kinks Shirt Matt Nathanson is a singer-songwriter from Massachusetts who has been recording since the early 1990's. This song was released in 2013. I assume he lives or lived in San Francisco based on the oddly specific intersection he mentions which is in the Sunset district a block south of Golden Gate Park and includes a Starbucks, a gas station, a Bank, a deli, a flower shop, a Pizza joint, a Vietnamese noodle house, and a nail salon. I'm guessing he wants to meet at the nail salon to fix those chipped red fingernails.
"Rent love, run in circles.
Sweet fiction silhouette.
Meet me at 9th and irving,
Let’s do things we can both regret.
It’s all there in your chipped red fingernails.
It’s all there in the twist of your pigtails.
It’s the way she walks,
The way she talks,
About the girl in the kinks shirt.
Take me home, San Francisco.
Can’t stop thinking about the girl in the kinks shirt.
You and my imagination,
Can’t stop thinking about the girl in the kinks shirt.
Sidewalk mariachis,
I see you in your party dress.
Played out sid and nancy,
Bring on the apocalypse.
Don’t need no songs playing on the radio,
Get my truth from your thrift store halo.
Getting what you want can break your heart.
It’s the way she walks,
The way she talks,
About the girl in the kinks shirt.
Take me home, San Francisco.
Can’t stop thinking about the girl in the kinks shirt...."
The National Pink Rabbits The National is a critically acclaimed indie rock band from Cincinnati formed in 1999 that found their way to Brooklyn like so many bands. This song is from their sixth studio album "Trouble Will Find Me" released in 2013. It doesn't seem to be about California but it does name check Los Angeles.
"I couldn't find quiet
I went out in the rain
I was just soakin' my head to unrattle my brain
Somebody said you disappeared in a crowd
I didn't understand then
I don't understand now
Am I the one you think about when you're sitting in your faintin' chair drinking pink rabbits?
Am I the one you think about when you're sitting in your faintin' chair drinking pink rabbits?
... ... ... ...
You didn't see me I was falling apart
I was a white girl in a crowd of white girls in the park
You didn't see me I was falling apart
I was a television version of a person with a broken heart
You didn't see me I was falling apart
I was a white girl in a crowd of white girls in a park
You didn't see me I was falling apart
I was a television version of a person with a broken heart
And everybody was gone
You were standin' in the street 'cause you were trying not to crack up
And bona drag was still on
Now I only think about Los Angeles when the sun kicks out
Now I only think about Los Angeles when the sun kicks out..." The Neighbourhood Sweater Weather They use the British spelling of "neighborhood" but this Indie Pop band is from California. The song, from their 2013 album "I Love You," was a #1 hit on the Billboard Alternative chart.
"All I am is a man
I want the world in my hands
I hate the beach
In California with my toes in the sand
Use the sleeves of my sweater
Let's have an adventure
Head in the clouds but my gravity's centered
Touch my neck and I'll touch yours
You in those little high-waisted shorts, oh
She knows what I think about
And what I think about
One love, two mouths
Just us, you find out
Nothing that I wouldn't wanna tell you about, no
'Cause it's too cold
For you here and now
So let me hold
Both your hands in the holes of my sweater...." Willie Nelson and Lee Ann Womack Mendocino County Line A sweet country duet from 2001 with Lee Ann Womack and the Country Music Icon. The sun sinking west of the Mendocino county line seems to signify the breakup of the singers' relationship, but I wonder if they know that the ocean is west of Mendocino county, so there's not really a county line there, just a shoreline? (Maybe they're in Lake County?) Whatever, it's a good line for singing...
"Counted the stars on the 4th of July
wishing we were rockets bursting into the sky.
Talking about redemption and leaving things behind
as the sun sank west of the Mendocino County Line.
Scarce as as Monday morning feeling washed away
I orchestrated paradise, couldn't make you stay
You dance with the horses through the sands of time
As the sun sinks west of the Mendocino County Line.
I have these pictures and I keep these photographs
to remind me of a time...
These pictures and these photographs
let me know I'm doing fine
I use to make you happy once upon a time
But the sun sank west of the Mendocino County Line." Never Shout Never California Upbeat pop from 2010 recorded by Christofer Drew Ingle, who calls himself Never Shout Never.
"...I had the most amazing time last night
I dreamt I saw you again
That's when the flashback started to begin
They started slow
But they picked up fast
So I got off my ass
And I ran away
I'm having a great day [Great Day]
In Californ-I-A
[La La La La]"
New Amsterdams From California A 2003 release by the Lawrence Kansas indie pop band started by Matthew Pryor of The Get Up Kids.
"I hope that you know this is killing me
It's all in the name of the family
We only can play the cards the dealer dealt us
The end of the cycle is closing in
With you I see new hope begin again
There suddenly seems to be promise in California
La da la da da da da da da da da da da (repeat)
As heavy as all this is weighing me
Believe in the words I am promising
I'm still here for her
The distance is only an obstacle
Hardly a match for a miracle
I'm finally ready to go to California" Randy Newman I Love L.A. I'm not crazy about this song, but I could never understand if this song is a satire or was commissioned by the LA City Council. Many of Newman's other songs are satirical, and there's some of that here - New York is too cold and the people dress like monkeys and Chicago is for Eskimos. But mostly, it seems he just loves driving around L.A.
"Look at that mountain
Look at that bum over there, man
He's down on his knees
Look at these women
There ain't nothin' like 'em nowhere
Century Boulevard (We love it)
Victory Boulevard (We love it)
Santa Monica Boulevard (We love it)
Sixth Street (We love it, we love it)
I love L.A.
I love L.A.
(We love it)" Joanna Newsom In California Newsom is an amazing singer-songwriter from Nevada City with a harp, an unusual voice, and weird and often incomprehensible lyrics that I'm not going to try to deciper. Here are some of them from this song released in 2010:
"My heart became a drunken (?)
on the day I sunk in this shunt
to tap me clean
and the sorrow i have seen
since I left my home
my home on the old milk lake
where the darkness does fall so fast
it feels like some kind of mistake
just like they told you it would
just like they told you it would
... ... ... ...
and if you come and see me
you'll upset the order
you cannot come and see me
for I set myself apart
but when you come and see me
in California
you cross the border of my heart...." N.W.A. Straight Outta Compton Ice Cube is angry and nasty in this classic 1988 ganster rap song. And he and Dr. Dre had a huge success in the summer of 2015 with a movie by the same name.
"Ain't no tellin when I'm down for a jack move
Here's a murder rap to keep yo dancin
with a crime record like Charles Manson
AK-47 is the tool
Don't make me act the m……….. fool
Me you can go toe to toe, no maybe
I'm knockin niggaz out tha box, daily
yo weekly, monthly and yearly
until them dumb m……….. see clearly
that I'm down with the capital C-P-T
Boy you can't f... with me
So when I'm in your neighborhood, you better duck
Coz Ice Cube is crazy as f...
As I leave, believe I'm stompin
but when I come back, boy, I'm comin straight outta Compton"
O
Connor Oberst Sausalito Bright Eyes considers moving west and living on a houseboat in Susalito in this 2008 indie song. I hope he brings plenty of cash - it's in Marin County after all. And he should get a kayak .It's a good place to paddle.
"We should move to Sausalito,
Living's easy on a house boat.
Let the motion rock us back and forth to sleep.
And in the morning when the sun rise
Look in the water, see the blue sky.
As if heaven has been laid there at our feet.
So we remain between these waves,
sheltered for all our years.
While bikers glide by highway shrines,
Where pilgrims disappear.
Where time takes icebergs,
Where fields burn westward,
Where pilgrims disappear." Frank Ocean Thinkin Bout You Frank Ocean is a singer/songwriter/rapper born in Long Beach and raised in New Orleans. This song is from his 2012 Grammy-Award-winning debut album "Channel Orange." It uses the presumption that it never rains in Southern California to apologize for his emotional distress which is likened to a bad storm.
"A tornado flew around my room before you came
Excuse the mess it made, it usually doesn't rain
In Southern California, much like Arizona
My eyes don't shed tears, but, boy, they pour
When I'm thinkin' 'bout you (ooh, no, no, no)
I been thinkin' 'bout you (you know, know, know)
I been thinkin' 'bout you
Do you think about me still?
Do you, do you?
Or do you not think so far ahead, ahead?
'Cause I've been thinkin' 'bout forever (Oooh, oooh)...." Phil Ochs Tape From California Ochs was a protest singer in the 60's who helped to start the Yippies then wore a gold lame jacket and pretended to be Elvis onstage then became depressed and mentally unstable and killed himself.
This is a long story song, from the 1968 album "Tape from California," but we never really find out what will be on that tape. Maybe it's this song...
"Who's that coming down the road
A sailor from the sea
He looks a lot like me
I'd know him anywhere, had to stare
Feathers at his fingertips
A halo 'round his spine
He must have lost his mind
He should be put away, right away
In the corner of the night
He handed me his water pipe
His eyes were searching
Deep inside my head, here's what he said
Sorry, I can't stop and talk now
I'm in kind of a hurry anyhow
But I'll send you a tape from California
New York City has exploded
And it's crashed upon my head
I dove beneath the bed
Fighting, biting nails, turning pale
The landlord's at my window
And the burglar's at my door
I can't take it anymore
I guess I'll have to fly, it's worth a try
Someone's banging on the wall
But there's no party to recall
The singer of the shadows of his soul
So he's been told
Sorry, I can't stop and talk now
I'm in kind of a hurry anyhow
But I'll send you a tape from California…" The Offspring Cruising California
(Bumpin' In My Trunk) The Offspring is a punk band formed in Huntington Beach in 1984 that became one of the best-selling punk bands of all time. This song is from their 2012 album, Days Go By. It's sort of a punk/pop hybrid summer-song anthem about OC girls wearing g-strings made of dental floss and waving their cabooses, the sort of beach parties that I certainly was never invited to....
"Boom, boom, boom
Turn up the beat, yeah
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
California – don’t cha wish that you could come
Cause we’re never going home
Till the summer’s all gone
Ahh, summertime and the living’s easy
Cruisin’, bumpin’ my Huntington Beach
Cause the sun will shine
We have a good time
They all line up for a bump and grind
And the girl that you want
Is directly out in front
And she’s waving her caboose at you
You sneeze
She calls you out woo hoo!
‘I know you heard that bass
Bumpin’ in my trunk
B-bumpin’ in my trunk’ – Oh yeah!
‘I know you heard that bass
Bumpin’ in my trunk –uh huh
B-bumpin’ in my trunk – uh huh
B-bumpin’ in my trunk’ – Let’s go!
Boom, boom, boom
Turn up the beat, yeah
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
California – don’t cha wish that you could come
Cause we’re never going home
Till the summer’s all gone
The sun goes down
It’s another summer night here in the OC
Well I’m not no baller
Though I do have an Impala
And I might say hey
But I’d never say holla
And the girl with the gloss
And a G-string just like floss
Well she’s waving her caboose at you
I bet you do!
She calls you out woo hoo!
‘I know you heard that bass
Bumpin’ in my trunk – Uh huh
B-bumpin’ in my trunk – Uh huh
B-bumpin’ in my trunk’ – Bump that trunk!
‘I know you heard that bass
Bumpin’ in my trunk –Uh huh
B-bumpin’ in my trunk – Uh huh
B-bumpin’ in my trunk’ – Let’s go!
Boom, boom, boom
Turn up the beat, yeah
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
California – don’t cha wish that you could come
With the radio on
You’re all up freakin’
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
California – don’t cha wish that you could come
Cause we’re never going home
Till the summer’s all gone" Angel Olsen California Angel Olsen is a singer-songwriter originally from St. Louis then Chicago. I like her music very much but I have to say that this is one of my least favorite of her songs. She sings it with a very unusual style with lots of voice cracks that takes some getting used to, but definitely check out her other songs such as "The Sky Opened Up" from 2012. "California" is the B-side of her 2013 single "Sleepwalker."
"on the way to california
and i don't mean california literally
i was thinking, it's so comforting quiet
you read so softly over my head
it's late but i'm maintaining interest in the things that you say
i could listen to you speak all day
in the silence dripping wet with
kisses running down my lips
could be just a good friend
who knows at this point anyway
there's just something about the way you surrender your eyes
without this barrier of bodies, we'd already be inside
on the way to calfornia
and i don't mean california literally
i was thinking, i was thinking, i'm not dreaming
not this time anyway…." OneRepublic Good Life This is one of my favorite songs from this Colorado pop rock band, best known for their huge 2007 hit "Apologize," remixed by Timbaland. I'm also a big fan of the producing and songwriting of the band's lead vocalist Ryan Tedder, who has written some great songs for Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Adele, Leona Lewis, and many others. So I'm putting this song on the list, even though it barely mentions L.A.
"Woke up in London yesterday
Found myself in the city near Piccadilly
Don't really know how I got here
I got some pictures on my phone
New names and numbers that I don't know
Address to places like Abbey Road
Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want
We're young enough to say
Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life
Say oh, got this feeling that you can't fight
Like this city is on fire tonight
This could really be a good life
A good, good life
To my friends in New York, I say hello
My friends in L.A. they don't know
Where I've been for the past few years or so
Paris to China to Colorado
Sometimes there's airplanes I can't jump out
Sometimes there's bulls**t that don't work now
We all got our stories but please tell me-e-e-e
What there is to complain about
When you're happy like a fool
Let it take you over
When everything is out
You gotta take it in
Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life...." Roy Orbison California Blue A song co-written by Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne, released postumously in 1989 on the last album recorded by the late great tenor from Texas who began recording in the mid 1960's and produced such classics as In Dreams, Only the Lonely, Crying, In Dreams, and Oh, Pretty Woman. This one expresses the pain and loss and yearning present in most of his songs.
"Working all day And the sun don't shine
Trying to get by And I'm just killing time
I feel the rain Fall the whole night through
Far away from you California Blue
California Blue Dreaming all alone
Nothing else to do California Blue
Everyday I pray I'll be on my way
Saving love for you California Blue
One sunny day, I'll get back again
Somehow, someway But I don't know when
California Blue California Blue
Living my life With you on my mind
Thinking of things That I left far behind
It's been so long Doing all I can do
To get back to you California Blue...."
Mike O'Rourke California's Callin' Me Mike O'Rourke sent me a copy of his song which nicely evokes the 60's Beach Boys sound.
"I'm on my way to California
To maybe somewhere near LA
I'm on my way to Calfornia
The sun is out and there I'm gonna stay
California's callin' me California's Callin' me
Oh way out west under a blue sky
The ocean mist it fills the air
I'm on my way to find that blue sky
Where I won't have a worry or a care
I won't have a care
California's callin' me California's callin' me
I never thought I'd get to go
And leave behind the falling snow
I'm on my way to California
Things they should be brighter from now on
Things they should be brighter from now on
And I can hear the ocean's roar
Lying right outside my door
I'm on my way to California
To chase that dream I hold so dear
And when you think of California
Think of me darlin' whishing that you were here
California's callin' me California's callin' me
California's callin' me California's callin' me"
Buck Owens and The Buckaroos Streets of Bakersfield Written by Homer Joy and first released in 1973. Dwight Yoakam and Buck Owens had a 1988 hit with the song. Owens was a singer and guitarist. He and his band The Buckaroos were the pioneers of the "Bakersfield Sound" and racked up 21 number 1 country hits.
"I came here looking for something
I couldn't find anywhere else
Hey, I'm not tryin' to be nobody
I just want a chance to be myself
I've spent a thousand miles of thumbin'
Yes, I've worn blisters on my heels
Tryin' to find me something better
Here on the streets of Bakersfield
Hey, you don't know me but you don't like me
Say you careless how I feel
'Cause how many of you that sit and judge me
Ever walked the streets of Bakersfield
Spent some time in San Francisco
I spent a night there in the can
They threw this drunk man in my jail cell
I took fifteen dollars from that man
Left him my watch and my old house key
Don't want folks thinkin' that I'd steal
Then I thanked him as he was leaving
And I headed out for Bakersfield…" Owl City West Coast Friendship By request: from "Maybe I'm Dreaming" the 2008 debut album by Owl City, an electonic pop project from Adam Young of Minnesota. A very catchy chorus on this one.
"Aloha, my happy west coast friends
Do you feel alive
When the breaking waves arrive
And wash all around you
The beach homes and ocean side
Are quite well known by the evening tide
And we can sleep where we reside
With redwoods around us
The blue air is up there
And could I bring it down
I bottle it up and save it for a sweet summer night
I bought a one way ticket
Cause I knew I'd never see the ground
Unless I was aboard a jet plane
And we were going down
When I wiped the tears from my eyes
The warm water took me by surprise
And I woke up beside the ocean
I realized I must be in California
I must be in California
Am I awake or is this just a dream?
The new year is out here
And I will make a lovely list
Of your charms
So I'll never feel alone in your arms
I must be in California
I must be in California
I must be in California" Ozomatli City of Angels A 2007 song from the L.A.Latin hip hop rock band that is not afraid to throw in shout outs to their high school or to Manicheism.
"What you know about my city that's tic tac?
Hustle to get stacks
Even from here I hear the chit chat
Grew up Miracle Mile
Fairfax to tar traps, Hamilton High alumni
What you know Ham and cheese supreme
JB to Carthay cat LA it be the base and the catalyst
Walk Crescent Heights worldwide back to strangle us
Land of the saint and the land of the wicked
Hollywood to Bell
What a duality, arid reality
Devon Brown Shot
Brad Pits cheatin' front page reality
Stanley Miller Beatin'
DA don't want to touch it
But I love my city
Soft yet rugged
Rep LA I know the Angels will love it
City of angels! "
P Van Dyke Parks Palm Desert Van Dyke Parks' career as a singer-songwriter, actor, composer, producer, and author has been amazingly prolific. He wrote some lyrics with Brian Wilson for the Beach Boys' Smile album and played with the Byrds, etc. Born in Mississippi, he moved to LA to become a Beatnik. (I don't know how you became a Beatnik back then, but I think the first step was growing a Van Dyke then going to the Beatnik store and buying a beret and some bongo drums. Maybe I just watched too much Dobie Gillis when I was a kid.) This is a very weird song from "Song Cycle" his first album, released in 1968.
"By Palm Desert
Meanwhile in the wild west
of Hollywood age is losing hold.
Inasmuch as you are touched
to have withstood
by the very old search
for the truth within
the bounds of toxicity.
Left unsung
so I have strung the frame." Gram Parsons California Cottonfields Another story about Okies heading for the promised land from the former Byrd and Flying Burrito Brother who helped create the LA country sound of the 60's and 70's. Recorded live in 1973. Parsons died in 1973 and his friends stole his body and cremated it at Joshua Tree near Cap Rock, where the National Park Service reportedly keeps removing any evidence of the location, to keep it from being overrun by millions of Gram Parsons fans, I suppose. Emmylou Harris also does a version of this song.
"My drifiting memory goes back to the spring of 43
When I was just a child in mama's arms
My daddy plowed the ground and prayed
Someday we might leave this rundown mortgaged Oklahoma farm.
And then one night I heard my daddy
Saying to my mama that he'd finally saved enough to go
Californa was his dream of paradise
Fore he had seen pictures in magazines that told him so.
Californa cottonfields where labor camps are filled
With worried men with broken dreams
Californa cottonfields as close to wealth
As daddy ever came." Pavement Two States These 90's Indie Rock gods are obviously from NorCal (Stockton) as you can hear in this 1992 song. Nobody in SoCal wants to split the state and give up all that water. Although now(2014) some venture capitalist wants to split the state into 6 states so Silicon Valley can rule them all. That would make a mess of this web site, so for that reason I urge you to Vote No!
"Two states
There's no culture
There's no spies…"
Pavement Unfair A regular tour of the state in this loud dissonant wonderful 1994 Indie rocker. Stephen Malkmus is better than most at screaming about things that don't need screaming about and making them sound worth screaming about.
"Down in Santa Rosa over the bay
Across the Grapevine to L.A.
We got desert, we've got trees
We got the hills of Beverly
Let's burn the hills of Beverly
… … …
Up to the top of the Shasta gulch
And to the bottom of the Tahoe lake
Man-made deltas and concrete rivers
The south takes what the north delivers
You film hack, i don't use your fade
Lost in the foothills of my pride
(Trick enduro? Trocadero?) say good night
To the last psychedelic band
From Sacto, northern Cal
From Sacto, northern Cal…" Pernice Brothers PCH One Another song about the Pacific Coast Higway. This 2006 song from the grea Massachussets Indie rockers is a more realistic version of the need to go on a road trip.
"Let's leave on Saturday
Let's leave on Friday night
I can't promise
I'm not really sure we'll be all right
…
Pull the trigger, I don't care which myth I kill
Struggle through the S's, through the tunnels in the trees
through this sticky optimism hardening in me
It might do some good just to wake up by the sea
To the smell of breath and greasy hair and car seats
…
PCH One might be a catalyst, our panacea
Play the one where no one's really gone
Every answer's buried in a song
PCH One might be a mending kit
I need some mending" Katy Perry
(featuring Snoop Dogg) California Gurls It was impossible to avoid this massive pop hit in the summer of 2010. All the old California cliches are re-packaged here - greener grass, girls on the beach, palm trees and they even add some of Tupac's California Love electronic effects. Just be careful with your popsicle.
"I know a place
Where the grass is really greener
...
You could travel the world
But nothing comes close
Once you party with us
You'll be falling in love
Oooooh Oh Oooooh
We got it on lock
West coast represent
Now put your hands up
Oooooh Oh Oooooh" Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers California Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Tom Petty is one of the best selling music artists of all time. He grew up in Florida where he formed his band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. This is another California song with an apocalyptic earthquake reference.
"California's been good to me
Hope it don't fall into the sea
Sometimes you got to trust yourself
It ain't like anywhere else
It ain't like anywhere else
There's time to roll, I'm all done
It's time we better hit the road
I got work later on
It's time we better hit the road"
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Free Fallin' This song is from Petty's 1989 solo debut album "Full Moon Fever" and ranks as one of his all-time best, ranking #177 on Rolling Stone's magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
"She's a good girl, loves her mama
Loves Jesus and America too
She's a good girl, crazy 'bout Elvis
Loves horses and her boyfriend too
It's a long day livin' in Reseda
There's a freeway runnin' through the yard
And I'm a bad boy, 'cause I don't even miss her
I'm a bad boy for breakin' her heart
And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'
All the vampires walkin' through the valley
Move west down Ventura Blvd.
And all the bad boys are standing in the shadows
All the good girls are home with broken hearts
And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'
Free fallin', now I'm free fallin'
Now I'm,
Free fallin', now I'm free fallin'
I wanna glide down over Mulholland
I wanna write her name in the sky
I'm gonna free fall out into nothin'
Gonna leave this world for awhile
And I'm free, free fallin'
Yeah I'm free, free fallin'...." Madeileine Peyroux California Rain Peyroux is a jazz singer-songwriter from Georgia who grew up in New York City, southern California, and Paris.This beautiful 2006 release is slow mellow jazz with a singing style reminiscent of Billie Holliday. In a refreshing change for a California song, she sings about being stuck in cold and rainy California, longing to go somewhere far away where she belongs.
"California rain is fallin'
I can hear the summer callin'
Far away, far away
Put me on a plane tomorrow
I'll try to run from all my sorrow
Far away, far away
It's so cold here without the sun
I'm so sad here far away from everyone
What a fool to be ambitious
Moving here with all of my wishes
Far away, far away
From where my heart is
Shut the phone off and pack my bags
No more boys who boast and brag
Far away, far away
I'm so sorry for some things I've done
I'll be lonely till I can see my only one
... ... ... ...
I'm goin' back, back where I belong
Gonna catch a train
Gotta get back where I belong
Get back."
Liz Phair California
(Also titled "Why I Left California) Originally from a 1991 self-produced 4-track "Girly Sound" cassette, the song is also on her 1995 Juvenilia EP and her 2010 Funstyle album. With a solo guitar strumming in the background Phair tells a dirty joke involving a young bull and an old bull on a hill above a pasture full of cows (the same joke Robert Duvall tells to Sean Penn in Dennis Hopper's 1988 movie "Colors.") Inbetween the joke, she sings the only line in the song several times:
"And I tried to tell you before that that's why I left California." Phantom Planet California This is another song about driving and returning to California.
I first heard the Mates of States' 2006 version of this indie pop song before I found out it was a cover of the Phantom Planets song that was used as the theme to the OC, a primetime soap opera about beautiful and spoiled California kids, the kind who always seem to be a staple on TV. The Mates of States version is moody - the Phantom Planets song rocks a bit more.
"On the stereo
Nothing’s gonna stop me now
California here we come
Right back where we started from
Pedal to the floor
Gotta get us to the show
California here we come
Right back where we started from
California!
Here we come!"
John Phillips Topanga Canyon John Phillips was the leader and backing singer of the Mamas & the Papas who went on to have a solo career before resurrecting the band. This song is from his 1970 solo album "John Phillips (John, the Wolf King of L.A.)" The references to picking up drugs and being over his head in deep waters are certainly autobiographical references to his notorious drug addictions, which caused him a drug trafficking conviction and a liver transplant later in life.
"Sometimes I drive out to Topanga
And I park my car in the sand
Watching and waiting for a pickup
From my man
And maybe down to Farmer's Market
Those people, they're working in the sun
Buy and sell it for a profit
To anyone
Oh Mary, I'm in the deep waters
And it's way, way over my head
Everyone thought I was smarter
Than to be this dead
You've heard of train wrecks in the mountains
Sometimes there's shipwrecks on the sea
Mary, you must always be careful
Can't you see?
Oh Mary, I'm in the deep waters
And it's way over my head
Everyone thought I was smarter
Than to be this dead
Someone's sick in San Fransisco
Some are down in New Orleans
Others are kept in Camarillo
Picking beans
Oh Mary, I'm in deep waters
And it's way over my head
Everyone thought I was smarter
Than to be misled" Pink Gone to California Slow, soulful, moody, and atmospheric, with some sax thrown in, Pink is leaving the mean streets of Philadelphia for the promised land where the sun is always shining in this 2001 song. Haven't we seen this before? Does it ever work out?
"I'm goin' to California
To live in the summer sun
The streets are made of silver
I'm like a rabbit on the run
I'm goin' to California
To find my pot of gold
...
I'm goin far, far, far away
...
The sun is always shinin', shinin'
Or at least that's what I'm told
I'm goin' to California
There's a better life for me, yes..." Mike Posner I Took A Pill In Ibiza Mike Posner is an American singer-songwriter. He recorded an acoustic version of this song for his 2016 album At Night Alone, but the remix by Norwegian duo SeeB, released in 2015 and also included on the album, became a huge international hit.
In the song, the singer lives in L.A. and drives a sports car to impress people, but he took a pill in Ibiza to impress Swedish musician/DJ/producer Avicii. I wonder how Avicii feels about the insinuation that he thinks drugs make people cool....
"I took a pill in Ibiza
To show Avicii I was cool
And when I finally got sober, felt 10 years older
But f*** it, it was something to do.
I'm living out in LA
I drive a sports car just to prove
I'm a real big baller 'cause I made a million dollars
And I spend it on girls and shoes.
But you don't wanna be high like me
Never really knowing why like me
You don't ever wanna step off that roller coaster and be all alone
You don't wanna ride the bus like this
Never knowing who to trust like this
You don't wanna be stuck up on that stage singing
Stuck up on that stage singing
All I know are sad songs, sad songs
Darling, all I know are sad songs, sad songs.
I'm just a singer who already blew his shot
I get along with old timers
'Cause my name's a reminder of a pop song people forgot
And I can't keep a girl, no
'Cause as soon as the sun comes up
I cut 'em all loose and work's my excuse
But the truth is I can't open up...." The Presidents of the United States of America F*ck California The guy who sings this 1994 song hates San Bernardino, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Guadalupe, even Weed. But he doesn't ever really say why he hates the state, and never bothers to mention the name of the Northwest city he loves - which is probably Seattle, but could be Portland. The band is from Seattle. I love the Northwest, too, so I might like the song if the music was better. (And Green Onions is an instrumental so how could they hear it sing?)
"I'm in the mountains
They're so beautiful and crystal clear
They scrape the clouds with their top
(and f*ck California)
And the air's so clear
I drink it in it makes me drunk
I fall down and fall asleep
(and f*ck San Francisco)
... ... ... ...
I've been pounding up and down I-5
Highway wanderin's such a blast
If only I could erase L.A.
The trip woulda been so fast
This city is so beautiful
The clouds come out in the fall
And I love to see them back
(and f*ck California!)
Even on a cloudy day
The sun pokes through at the end
To make a little sunset experience
even though you're depressed
(and f*ck Santa Cruz)
Ohh I'm in Central Oregon now
Driving my little tin blue can
And I hear green onions sing
(and f*ck Guadalupe)
Green onions on the little stereo
And I feel like I'm going the right way
North way North, North, North, North, North!"
Propellerheads Take California Lots of heavy 1997 British beats and a canned voice that repeats "Take California." What more do you need? (I suspect the voice is a sample of someone important, but I don't know who.) According to Wickipedia this was the first song used in an iPod TV ad.
"Senator welcome to our microphones
Is there anything of yours that we can keep as a memento of this visit?
Take California
Temple Beautiful
(the song and the complete album)
Chuck Prophet released "Temple Beautiful," a song and an album of rocking guitar-based songs, in early 2012. The album is described on his web site as "...untimately an open love letter to San Francisco..." Check out all the songs, especially "Play That Song Again")
I remember driving by the Temple Beautiful in the early 1980's with an elderly couple who pointed out the building that was the Temple they worshipped in when they lived in San Francisco many years earlier. I had to break the news to them that it had been turned into a place where we went to listen to local punk bands.
"There she stood right next to me at the
Temple beautiful Someday, there's gonna be a revolution Till then, you need an eye on constitution
The lights came on it was a whole new world at the
Temple beautiful
I got the kid but I lost the girl at the
Temple beautiful
And now the future's here, but it feels like the past
Temple beautiful
I don't remember what happened last
Temple beautiful
Well we might've got high, we might've just left
Temple beautiful
Someday this is all gonna be gone
Temple beautiful" Public Enemy Burn Hollywood Burn Public Enemy is Hip hop group from New York that had huge critical and popular success in the '80s and '90s. This song is from Fear of a Black Planet released in 1990 and features Ice Cube and Big Daddy Kane.
"Burn Hollywood burn, I smell a riot
Goin' on first they're guilty now they're gone
Yeah I'll check out a movie
But it'll take a black one to move me
Get me the hell away from this T V
All this news and views are beneath me
'Cause all I hear about is shots ringin' out
So I rather kick some slang out
All right fellas let's go hand out
Hollywood or would they not
Make us all look bad like I know they had
But some things I'll never forget, yeah
So step and fetch this s**t
For all the years we looked like clowns
The joke is over smell the smoke from all around
Burn Hollywood burn
Ice Cube is down with the P E
Now every single bitch wanna see me
Big Daddy is smooth word to muther
Let's check out a flick that exploits the color
Roamin' thru Hollywood late at night
Red and blue lights what a common sight
Pulled to the curb gettin' played like a sucker
Don't fight the power the motherf*****
As I walk the streets of Hollywood Boulevard
Thinin' how hard it was to those that starred
In the movies portrayin' the roles
Of butlers and maids slaves and hoes
Many intelligent black men seemed to look uncivilized
When on the screen like a guess
I figure you to play some jigaboo
On the plantation, what else can a nigger do
And black women in this profession
As for playin' a lawyer, out of the question
For what they play Aunt Jemima is the perfect term
Even if now she got a perm
So let's make our own movies like Spike Lee
'Cause the roles being offered don't strike me
There's nothing that the black man could use to earn
Burn Hollywood burn Q Q-Feel Dancing in Heaven (Orbital Be-Bop) This new wave classic is the only hit from the British synthpop group from their only album also titled Q-Feel, released in 1982, but I think it's one of the best New Wave dance songs ever. The singer says he'll be the first to dance the Bossa Nova ten thousand miles above L.A., and that is close enough to California to be put on this list, which has shamefully minimal presequisites for inclusion.
"Are you ready? Here we go!
Slow, slow. Quick-quick, slow.
Countdown it's getting near to flight time
Night stars are shining in my eyes
Ma' says I'm going to be the first one
To dance the be-bop in the skies!
Dancing in heaven, I never thought
I'd ever get my feet this far (orbital be-bop)
I'll be the first to Bossa Nova
Ten thousand miles above L.A.!
Boogie my way beyond the radar
I'll bring a jive to outer space!
Hey! Here I am!
I hear the universe sing the celestial swing
I am not alone, are you receiving me clear?
There's others out here!" Quasi California This song is a brief two minutes of 1998 indie rock from a Portland band. The depressed tour guide singer of this one thinks panhandlers should be kicked into the sea. I say we give him the first boot. You have to like the end line: "sinking in the vast ambivalent sea of California." That's why I stay out of the water...
"Life is full life is grey:
At its best it's just OK.
But I'm happy to report
Life is also short.
So I find myself back in California -
I'm a coolie for the tourists,
those happy Epicureans:
Evil spectres from my own suburban upbring.
As I reveal points of interest, I can chat so pleasantly,
But it's hard to be cheerful when you feel so hopeless
And there's no reason for this dark mood.
It will pass; it will return, but will I ever learn ?
And the children of privilege begging for my spare change.
Do they need my assistance to purchase their intoxicants,
or would they best be served a swift kick
Slowly sinking in the vast ambivalent sea of California." R Rascall Flats She'd Be California A 2009 song from the Ohio country band with yet another tanned blonde with a convertible. But this time they're saying if California was a girl, it would look like her, or she should be a movie star, or something like that.
"She got the long blonde hair
Got the red sports car
And you know she's got the
Top laid back
She got the movie star smile
Got the sun-kissed tan
Yeah, she feels like that
Hey she's like a canyon drive
In a midnight sky
Those eyes are deep enough
To get lost
Her legs are palm tree tall
The way she walks
Like the heat on a runway
When the cameras go off
She's small town from the country
She ain't big time but she could be
Hey, Hollywood never looked this good
Bright as the big screen burns
Hey, I bet drivin' down Sunset
They're lookin' for a face like hers
Yeah, I've been all around this world
And she'd be California
If California was a girl" Ramones California Sun The Ramones was a punk rock band formed in 1974 in New York City that is considered the first band to define the punk rock sound. It's hard to imagine how radical they sounded in the mid 70s because their sound is so commonplace today. Many established rock music fans back then hated them because they couldn't play more than 3 chords but the Ramones also inspired thousands of others to pick up instruments and start a band, in the do-it-yourself spirit the punk movement inspired. It took many years, but eventually they have become considered one of the greatest bands of all time. This song is a great cover of the 1964 Rivieras classic described below , from Ramones second album "Leave Home" released in 1977. The Raveonettes Ode to L.A. A 2005 release from the Danish duo. This one has a Phil Specterish girl group sound with the heartbeat drums, the wo ho ho's, and an almost mono mix. And as usual, the theme is let's go to L.A. for the fun and sunshine.
"Come on let's go to where it's fun
I want a slice of L.A. sun
Whoa ho ho ho
So come along and pay the price
This ain't New York this tasty slice
Whoa ho ho ho
Take a minute listen to this town
Don't you ever feel you have to come
Take a minute she won't let you down
See you excited in her arms
L.A. and all her crazy charms
Whoa ho ho oh" Susan Raye L.A. International Airport This song was written by Leanne Scott and first recorded by David Frizzell in 1970. Susan Raye sang country music in Bakersfield with Buck Owens. Her version of this song became an international crossover pop hit in 1971.
"Standing in that silent hall waitin' for that final call
Says he doesn't love me anymore
Shaking hands I pack a bag, trembling voice I call a cab
Slowly I start walking to the door
Cab arrives he blows his horn, I stumble out in the early morn
Tell him of the place I've got to go
Hit a hundred signal lights, Peterbilts in a traffic fight
Gettin' through these doors has been so slow
L.A. International Airport
Where the big jet engines roar
L.A. International Airport
I won't see him anymore
A stewardess in a miniskirt, hippie in a leather shirt
Starlet on the way to Naples, Rome
While I'm wondering where it's at I see a Paris diplomat
College kids are trying to get back home
Baggage car goes quickly by, I see my case and I start to cry
Stumble to the lounge to be alone
While I'm trying to get some rest, bite my lips and try my best
To fight the pain that's making me leave home
L.A. International Airport
Where the big jet engines roar
L.A. International Airport
I won't see him anymore...." Red Hot Chili Peppers Californication The title of this song always reminds me of those bumperstickers on Oregon cars back in the 70's that said "Don't Californicate Oregon." It seems to be about phony Hollywood dreams, plastic surgery, unicorns, and a lot of other words that they fit in just to have something to sing - like most rock songs. Who needs lyrics that make sense as long as the music's good?
"It's the edge of the world
and all of western civilization.
The sun may rise in the East
at least it settles in the final location.
It's understood that Hollywood
Hard core soft porn
Dream of Californication
Dream of Californication" Red Hot Chili Peppers Dani California This 2006 song isn't really about the state. It's about a poor southern girl named Dani California who robs banks and was killed in North Dakota. But she's got a good name, and it's a good song, and that's good enough for this lousy list.
"Gettin' born in the state of Mississippi
Poppa was a copper and her momma was a hippie
In Alabama she was swinging hammer
Price you gotta pay when you break the panorama
She never knew that there was anything more than poor
What in the world does your company take me for?
Black bandana, sweet Louisiana
Robbin' on a bank in the state of Indiana
She's a runner, rebel and a stunner
On her merry way saying baby what you gonna
Lookin' down the barrel of a hot metal .45
Just another way to survive
California rest in peace
California show your teeth
She's my priestess, I'm your priest
Yeah, yeah" Red Hot Chili Peppers Under the Bridge Anthony Kiedis sings about the city of L.A. being his only companion and of using drugs under a bridge downtown. (Kiedis refuses to say which bridge it was, though one writer claims it was one in MacArthur Park, the same one where someone left the cake out in the rain.) A slow and emotional ballad about loneliness and drug use from the band's 1992 album Blood Sugar Sex Magik that came as a pleasant surprise from the super animated butt-flopping hard rocking band. It went on to be a huge radio hit and, with the help of a video directed by Gus Van Sant, helped the band break through to a huge new audience.
"Sometimes I feel like I don't have a partner
Sometimes I feel like my only friend
Is the city I live in, the city of angels
Lonely as I am, together we cry
I drive on her streets cause she's my companion
I walk through her hills cause she knows who I am
She sees my good deeds and she kisses me windy
I never worry, now that is a lie.
I don't ever want to feel like I did that day
Take me to the place I love, take me all the way
I don't ever want to feel like I did that day
Take me to the place I love, take me all the way, yeah, yeah, yeah
……………
is where I drew some blood
Under the bridge downtown
I could not get enough
Under the bridge downtown
forgot about my love)
Under the bridge downtown
I gave my life away" Otis Redding (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay This is one of the great R&B classics of the 1960's. Otis Redding was a Georgia born soul singer-songwriter who died in a plane crash in 1967 at the age of 26 shortly after recording this song. It became a posthumous number one record and has been covered by many other artists. Redding started writing the song when he was literally in a dock on the bay, living on a houseboat in Sausalito and it was finished in Memphis with guitarist Steve Cropper (of the Stax house band, Booker T. & the M. G.'s, and later of the Blues Brothers band).
"Sittin' in the morning sun
I'll be sittin' when the evening comes
Watching the ships roll in
Then I watch them roll away again, yeah
I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay
Watchin' the tide roll away, ooh
I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time
I left my home in Georgia
Headed for the Frisco Bay
Cuz I've had nothing to live for
And look like nothing's gonna come my way
So, I'm just gon' sit on the dock of the bay
Watchin' the tide roll away, ooh
I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time
Looks like nothing's gonna change
Everything still remains the same
I can't do what ten people tell me to do
So I guess I'll remain the same, listen
Sittin' here resting my bones
And this loneliness won't leave me alone, listen
Two thousand miles I roam
Just to make this dock my home, now
I'm just gon' sit at the dock of the bay
Watchin' the tide roll away, ooh
Sittin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time" Release the Sunbird Always Like the Sun Release The Sunbird is a side/solo project of Zach Schwartz (a.k.a. Zach Rogue) of the Indie Rock band Rogue Wave from Oakland. This song is a very nice mix of acoustic instruments and harmonies with some background electronic effects. I don't know what it's about because I can't fully understand the lyrics and I can't find any online yet. But somebody was born on a Calfornia something (shore?)
"From the time that we were born
On the California (?)
When you wanted to be everyone
In the hour of your demise
You asked if you'd be fine
When you never would (?)
Well you're always like the sun
Always like the sun
Well you're always like the sun
(?) never was" R. E. M. I Remember California A slow and moody1988 song from the great Athens, Georgia band, that I remember seeing in small crowded nightclubs before they moved up to playing stadiums. I doubt they remember that part of their time in California as fondly as I do.
"I remember redwood trees, bumper cars and wolverines
The ocean's Trident submarines
Motor boys and girls with tans
Nearly was and almost rans
I remember this
History is made
History is made to seem unfair"
Leon Rene When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano Even though I could live without ever hearing it again, I guess I should mention this 1940 hit that was written by Leon Rene and recorded by Glenn Miller, Gene Autry, Pat Boone, The Dominoes, The Five Satins,The Ink Spots, Harry James & His Orch, Guy Lombardo, Carmen McRae, and many others. The link on the left is to the Pat Boone version.
"When the swallows come back to Capistrano
That's the day you promised to come back to me
When you whispered, "Farewell", in Capistrano
Twas the day the swallow flew out to sea
All the mission bells will ring
The chapel choir will sing
The happiness you'll bring
Will live in my memory
When the swallows come back to Capistrano
That's the day I pray that you'll come back to me" The Replacements Left of the Dial The Replacements were one of my favorite bands to see live back in the 80's. The Minneapolis band was a staple on left of the dial radio stations then, and their music, and Paul Westerburg's solo work, still hold their own in the 21st century.
"Pretty girl keep growin' up, playin' make-up, wearin' guitar
Growin' old in a bar, ya grow old in a bar.
Headed out to San Francisco, definitely not L.A.
Didn't mention your name, didn't mention your name.
And if I don't see ya, in a long, long while
I'll try to find you
Left of the dial."
Thomas Rhett Die a Happy Man Thomas Rhett is a coungry singer-songwriter. This slow-burning love song is from his second studio album "Tangled Up." Besides being a number one hit for many weeks, it won a lot of awards, including Single of the Year for both the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association. Driving a sportscar up the coast of California is definitely worthy of inclusion on the singer's bucket list.
"Baby, last night was hands down
One of the best nights
That I've had no doubt
Between the bottle of wine
And the look in your eyes and the Marvin Gaye
Then we danced in the dark under September stars in the pourin' rain
And I know that I can't ever tell you enough
That all I need in this life is your crazy love
If I never get to see the Northern lights
Or if I never get to see the Eiffel Tower at night
Oh, if all I got is your hand in my hand
Baby, I could die a happy man
Happy man, baby
Baby, that red dress brings me to my knees
Oh, but that black dress makes it hard to breathe
You're a saint, you're a Goddess,
The cutest, the hottest,
It's too good to be true,
Nothing better than you
And I know that I can't ever tell you enough
That all I need in this life is your crazy love
If I never get to see the Northern lights
Or if I never get to see the Eiffel Tower at night
Oh, if all I got is your hand in my hand
Baby, I could die a happy man, yeah
I don't need no vacation,
No fancy destination
Baby, you're my great escape
We could stay at home,
Listen to the radio
Or dance around the fireplace
And if I never get to build my mansion in Georgia
Or drive a sports car up the coast of California
Oh, if all I got is your hand in my hand
Baby, I could die a happy man
Baby, I could die a happy man
Oh, I could die a happy man
You know I could girl
I could die, I could die a happy man" Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers California Desert Party Richman was a trailblazer of minimalist rock and one of the progenitors of punk rock. Born in Massachusetts, he moved to California in 1975, where he obviously spent some time in the deserts. This song, with its upbeat rythm, handclaps, raunchy saxophone mixed in with a few doo wop background vocals, always makes me want to go sleep in the sand with the lizards and the cactus.
"Everybody's dancing 'round
Yucca trees are all around
cholla, too, look out!
carrot juice and nachos, too.
... ... ... ...
Yeah, pack rats and kit fox
and petroglyphs and sleepin bags
California desert party.
They brought the harp and lyre,
they turned the hot tub higher
Yeah chaparral, and sagebrush,
and look out there's the sleepin bags
California desert party...."
Rihanna California King Bed From the title, I almost put this song on the Songs About Herps page until I learned that "California King" refers to a style of extra-large king-sized bed rather than a bed of snakes. Too bad - the image of Rihanna lounging on a big bed covered with kingsnakes is a hard one to get out of my mind...
"Chest to chest
We were always just that close
Wrist to wrist
Lips that felt just like the inside of a rose
So, how come when I reach out my finger
It feels like more than distance between us
In this California king bed
We're ten thousand miles apart
I've been California wishing on these stars
For your heart for me
My California king" Josh Ritter California Ritter is a singer-songwriter from Idaho. This is another song about going to California to warm up.(A space heater might be cheaper.) The singer knows it's been done a hundred thousand times but needs to do it himself. It's also probably been sung about that many times.
"Going out to California
gonna let the water warm my clothes.
I’m alone but I’m not lonely
gonna trade the weather for the Western coast.
No don’t cry
I’ll be back and I’ll
bring the sun to shine
in your eyes
Sunset Boulevard will strip for money.
Mulholland is a long drag for the lonely hearts.
Down along the Imperial Valley
runs a river of homelessness and cinema stars.
Don’t say
the trip’s been done
a hundred thousand times
So I will work at what work finds me
and I will take what comfort I can get
I’ll be back when I’m good and ready
California doesn’t seem to think I’m ready yet…." Rivieras California Sun The Rivieras was a rock band from Indiana, part of the early 60's "frat rock" sound that was overtaken by the British Invasion shortly thereafter. This song was a big hit in 1964. It was also recorded in the mid 70's by the Dictators and the Ramones and probably a hundred other bands.
"Well, I'm goin' out west where I belong
Where the days are short and the nights are long
Where they walk and I'll walk
They twist and I'll twist
They shimmy and I'll shimmy
They fly and I'll fly
Well they're out there a'havin' fun
In that warm California sun.
Well, I'm goin' out west out on the coast
Where the California girls are really the most
Where they walk and I'll walk
They twist and I'll twist
They shimmy and I'll shimmy
They fly and I'll fly
Well they're out there a'havin' fun
In that warm California sun.
Well the girls are frisky in old 'Frisco
A pretty little chick wherever you go
And they'll walk and I'll walk
They'll twist and I'll twist
They'll shimmy and I'll shimmy
They'll fly and I'll fly
Well they're out there a'havin' fun
In that warm California sun " Rogue Wave California Inscrutable lyrics with warm and fuzzy acoustic guitars.
"Screw California and friends that are never there and places that they ought to pretend that they even care from a false family. She could light you up like a holiday tree in the summer... and ice that will never melt from hearts of the modern children of Cicero... so lead us there."
The Rolling Stones Route 66 An early Stones cover of the Nat King Cole original from their debut album "The Rolling Stones" released in 1964. The Roots The Day A brief reference to touring and a stop in Los Angeles from the great hip hop band (also the official house band on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon) off their 2010 album "How I Got Over."
"When I wake up, I look into the mirror
I can see a clearer, vision
I should start living today
Cause today is gonna be the day, is gonna be the day
Cause today is gonna be the day, is gonna be the day
Yeah, it's like everyday I wake up
I stare into space and don't say much
Peer in the mirror, feeling dead from the face up
Coffee pots, cigarettes, morning J's, Baileys
Slowing down my day before it picks up the pace
Beats playing since the night before, thinking about writing songs
Feeling exhausted from times we toured constant
And plus the toxins I sip got me tall
Still tipsy, staring at the city from the spot we call Los Angeles
Every day is like a blank canvas
Carving my initials in the planet like I brand it
Hand picked to live this life we take for granted
Like a child with an upright bass, we can't stand it
Smiling through the trouble we face, trying to manage
My way without pumping my brakes and staying stagnant
Cause I can sit on my ass or just imagine
The madness I did on my path and paint the canvas
When I wake up, I look into the mirror
I can see a clearer, vision
I should start living today
Cause today is gonna be the day, is gonna be the day
Cause today is gonna be the day, is gonna be the day..." The Runaways California Paradise This is a 1977 song from the American all-female LA rock band formed in the late 70s, known mostly for the song "Cherry Bomb" and for their founder who went on to bigger fame - Joan Jett. But other band members also had success after The Runaways, including Micki Steele with The Bangles, and Cherie Currie, and Lita Ford with their solo projects.
Kristin Stewart starred in an interesting biopic about them in 2010 called "The Runaways" but I'd rather see a biopic about the wild producer who put the band together, Kim Fowley.
"Turn up that radio
Hear the rock and roll
Malibu shines like summer gold
Wild beaches
California summers never end
California - you're so nice
California - your paradise" The Runaways Hollywood This is one of their better known songs from the band's 1977 album "Queens of Noise."
"Each night alone I dream
That I'm a rebel roller queen
I'll be a star that shines
I can make the whole world mine
Hollywood it feels so good
Hollywood it feels so good
Each day at home I scheme
For the fame and fortune dream
Gonna be a superstar
With my fancy clothes and cars
Hollywood it feels so good
Hollywood it feels so good
I can make it, make it, make it, make it
'Cause I can take it, take it, take it,take it
Each time the radio plays
It tells of the golden days
Living fast on the go
Lets get on with the show yeah
Hollywood it feels so good
Hollywood it feels so good" S Saint Etienne Downey, California Atmospheric electronica and soft vocals from Sara Cracknell to chill you out in this 2000 release.
"Dream home
You don't, don't want to believe him now
Don't want to
Don't want to see him"
Savage Garden California Savage Garden was an Australian pop duo. This is a previously-unreleased song from their album "Truly Madly Completely: The Best of Savage Garden" released in 2005.
"I've got a cottage with a sea view,
I've got a regular summer tan,
I've been working up the courage to call you all year,
Ooooh.
But there's nothing i can say,
And there are no good words left anyway.
Besides people are cruel and the world still moves without you,
Ooooh.
And welcome to my Californian home.
You don't have to call me you can,
Leave when you want there's a
Picture by my bed and there's a,
Light in your eyes I don't know,
Well I don't know,
Why you still feel alone.
And we were dying from the get-go,
I was dreamin' but you never believed.
I was tryin' to fit myself in the spaces between,
Ooooh.
And you were kind and sometimes cruel -
You said all the world's love couldn't satisfy you.
And nothing could have hurt me as much as the truth,
Ooooh darlin'
Welcome to my Californian home,
You don't have to call me, you can,
Leave when you want there's a,
Picture by my bed and there's a,
Light in your eyes I don't know,
Tell me 'coz i wanna find out,
Do you still feel alone?
Love is elusive when you search for it,
And don't I know.
Happiness sometimes it just creeps in,
And don't I know it.
I'm goin' crazy I've been wonderin'
Do you still feel alone?
(I need to find,
Some kind of peace of mind.
I need to find...)
I've got a cottage with a sea view,
I've got a regular summer tan,
I know that I deserve more,
But I still want you...
And welcome to my Californian home,
You don't have to call me you can,
Leave when you want there's a,
Picture by my bed and there's a,
Light in your eyes I don't know,
Tell me 'coz I wanna find out do you still feel?
Welcome to my California, (I need to find)
Even though I'm no good for ya, (Some kind of peace of mind)
There's a part of me that's still waiting for you, (I need to find)
Oh oh oh,
Welcome to my happy ending, (I need to find)
Even though it's fun pretending I know, (Some kind of peace of mind)
I know you can't look back you can never go back.
(Welcome to my Californian home) I know you can never go back again,
(Welcome to my Californian home) I know you can never go back again,
(Welcome to my Californian home) I know you can never go back,
I know it, I need to find out do you still feel?...." Savage Garden Santa Monica This is an ode to the city in southern California. I'm pretty sure that anybody could tell the difference between a supermodel and Norman Mailer, especially since he's dead.
"In Santa Monica, in the winter time,
The lazy streets so undemanding
I walk into the crowd
In Santa Monica, you get your coffee from
The coolest places on the promenade
Where people dress just so
Beauty so unavoidable, everywhere you turn
It's there I sit and wonder what am I doing here?
But on the telephone line I am anyone
I am anything I want to be
I could be a supermodel or Norman Mailer
And you wouldn't know the difference
Or would you?
In Santa Monica, all the people got modern names
Like Jake or Mandy
In Santa Monica, on the boulevard,
You'll have to dodge those In-line skaters
Or they'll knock you down
I never felt so lonely,
Never felt so out of place
I never wanted something more than this
But on the telephone line I am anyone
I am anything I want to be
I could be a supermodel or Norman Mailer
And you wouldn't know the difference
On the telephone line, I am any height
I am any age I want to be
I could be a caped crusader, or space invader
And you wouldn't know the difference
Or would you?" The Scrayper Boyz Look at California This song samples the Maze version described above.
The Scrayper Boyz are Hyphy rappers from the Bay Area. Pete Seeger and Malvina Reynolds Seventy Miles A 1965 folk song about the sad state of the San Francisco Bay after many years of unregulated urban growth and unrestricted dumping of garbage and pollutants poisoned the water and filled in over 25 percent of the marshland. Save The Bay , one of the very first environmental organizations, active since 1961, eventually succeded in getting legislation passed that began the protection and cleanup of the bay (which is now home to one of the greatest concentrations of non-native species of any waterway with more than 200, and possibly as many as 400.)
"Seventy miles of wind and spray,
Seventy miles of water,
Seventy miles of open bay,
It's a garbage dump.
What's that stinky creek out there,
Down behind the slum's back stair,
Sludgy puddle, sad and gray?
Why man, that's San Francisco Bay!" Ty Segall California Commercial Segall is a singer-songwriter from SF, member of several bands including Ty Segall Band, known for its psychedelic garage rock. This is from "Goodbye Bread" a 2011 release. It's repetitous and monotonous and really short.
"Come to California
Things they are too nice
We'll stay until you die
I was gonna tell you
I remember names
Anything for fame, anything for fame
will you marry me?
You can be my wife
I have lots of money
You can settle for me
I still think you love me
I still think you love me
I'll invite our friends
Now come into our house
Yeah" Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band Hollywood Nights Seger is an American rock singer-songwriter from Detroit who had many hits, including this one, form his 1978 album "Stranger in Town."
"She stood there bright as the sun on that california coast
He was a midwestern boy on his own
She looked at him with those soft eyes,
So innocent and blue
He knew right then he was too far from home he was too far from home
She took his hand and she led him along that golden beach
They watched the waves tumble over the sand
They drove for miles and miles
Up those twisting turning roads
Higher and higher and higher they climbed
And those hollywood nights
She was looking so right
In her diamonds and frills
All those big city nights
In those high rolling hills
Above all the lights
She had all of the skills
... ... ...
It was looking so right
It was giving him chills
In those big city nights
In those high rolling hills
Above all the lights
With a passion that kills" Tupac Shakur (2Pac) California Love From Tupac's last album, released in 1996 shortly before he was shot to death.
"Now let me welcome everybody to the wild, wild west
A state that's untouchable like Elliot Ness
The track hits ya eardrum like a slug to ya chest
Pack a vest for your Jimmy in the city of sex
We in that sunshine state with a bomb ass hemp beat
the state where ya never find a dance floor empty
And pimps be on a mission for them greens,
lean mean money-makin-machines servin fiends
I been in the game for ten years makin rap tunes
ever since honeys was wearin sassoon
Now it's '95 and they clock me and watch me
Diamonds shinin', lookin' like I robbed Liberace
It's all good, from Diego to tha Bay
Your city is tha bomb if your city makin pay
Throw up a finger if ya feel the same way
Dre puttin it down for
Californ-i-a
In the city of L.A.
In the city of good ol' Watts
In the city, the city of Compton
We keep it rockin! We keep it rockin!"
Tupac Shakur (2Pac) To Live and Die In L.A. Another "katruple katrople platinum" hip hop hit from 1996
WARNING! - don't let your kids listen to this one. According to former Vice President Dan Quayle, 2pac's music incites violence. (Come to think of it, maybe Quayle was right - Tupac might have lived in LA, but was assassinated in Las Vegas.)
"No doubt... to live and die in LA
California - what you say about Los Angeles
Still the only place for me that never rains in the sun
And everybody got love.
"It's the City of Angels and constant danger
South Central L.A., can't get no stranger
Full of drama like a soap opera, on the curb
Watching the ghetto bird helicopters, I observe
So many [n-word person] getting three strikes, tossed in jail
I swear the pen right across from hell
I can't cry cause it's on now
I'm just a [n-word person] on his own now
Living life thug style
Writing to my peoples when they ask for pictures
Thinking Cali just fun and [female canines]
Better learn about the dress code, B's and C's
All them other [n-word person] copycats, these is G's
I love Cali like I love women
Cause every [n-word person] in LA got a little bit of thug in him
We might fight amongst each other... but I promise you this:
We'll burn this [female canine] down, get us pissed
To live and die in LA
Let my angel sing"
Marlena Shaw
California Soul A poppy soul tune with too many strings written by Ashford and Simpson and released by Marlena Shaw in 1969. This song has been used in movies and commercials, and sampled in rap songs. For a completely soulless version, check out the Fifth Dimension's 1968 release.
"Like a sound you hear
That lingers in your ear
But you can't forget
It's all in the air
You hear it everywhere
No matter what you do
It's gonna grab a hold on you
California soul, California soul
They say the sun comes up every morning
And if you listen carefully
The winds that ride on the high time
Whistle a melody
And so the people started to sing
And that's how the surf gave birth untold
California soul, California soul" She & Him Home A 2010 release from M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel, the film actress with Anime eyes and the TV Sit Com who was married to Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie etc. Her music is a bit too sacharine for me - it comes across as overproduced cheezy pop without any irony. But the critics love them so maybe I'm missing something. (M. Ward's solo music, on the other hand, and his work with the Monsters of Folk is much better.)
"California is a great big nation of one
They never knew what they wanted til it was already gone
What do they do with the light in the morning when they wake up alone? They just go home
They just go home Youre the nicest, nicest boy I've ever met
and then I think about you then I think about you again
And again
Why don't we just sit and stare and do nothing?
Nothing at all for a while I like the way you smile
I could be your state and I could be your nation
It doesn't get better than home, now does it?
Doesn't get better than home, now does it?" Michelle Shocked Come a Long Way An upbeat 1992 folk rocker from the American Alt Folk singer-songwriter who sings about driving her motorcycle around L.A.
"I kicked in his door at 5 AM
'I've come for my bike' I told the repo man
My 920's gonna take me far today
You can travel for miles and never leave L.A.
… … … … ...
I gunned it down to San Pedro Bay
Watched my ship sail in, watched it sail away
The sun was sinking into the sea
But a ball of fire inside of me
Was burning my motor and driving me hard
Past the big hair on the Boulevard
And up Mulholland where I made the scene
Like the one that took little Jimmy Dean
And then I shimmied up Wilshire like a little silk worm
Past the rodeo and the pachyderm
And then I stopped for coffee at an art cafe
I saw the repo man and made my getaway
Doing the Eagle Rock
Try and let my engines cool
And it's not my fault that this town shakes
I saw the falling rocks and I hit my brakes
I've come a long way, I've come a long way
I've gone 500 miles today
I've come a long way, I've come a long way
And never even left L.A." Shwayze (with Cisco) Golden Dreams Shwayze is an American rapper. This song is from his third album "Island in the Sun" released in 2011. It's essentially an upbeat guitar rock song with rapped verses.
"(Chorus):
Baby come along with me
To a land of fantasy
Where the good things are free
And everybody's smiling
To where the sun meets the sea
California, California, land of golden dreams
Pair of dice and a pair of eyes
Kill me now but I don't wanna die till I see you smile
Cryin tears of joy on the green mile
But I'm gonna stop now cause that just ain't my style
It's goin down like the Dow Jones
Soccer moms and town homes
Nukesand new calzones [?]
Kid's skippin school cause they on that home grown
Dad a alien straight ET phone home
No pro bono high school yo just wanna bone hoes [?]
I was the high fool all stoned in the photos
Chillin on the beach, solo dolo
Kick off my sneaks, watch the world in slow mo
Another year goes bye, priorities change
The tide comes in and takes us away
Sometimes stranger ain't such a bad thing
I look at them and say
(Chorus)
It's all good like I knew it would
I'll be your tour guide if you come to Hollywood
Black journey dep slept on the powership [?]
Woke up with a chick she was hot as s**t
Cruisin down sunset in the palisades [?]
Smilie face thinkin what would your daddy say
You and I blend together like a puree
Palm trees, balm weed there's no other way
We ain't models but we sittin on the runway
Hit that bottle and we make a clean getaway
Don't worry babe, it's just another vacay
Tell your momma we be back again another day
Another year goes bye, priorities change
The tide comes in and takes us away
Sometimes stranger ain't such a bad thing
I look at them and say
(Chorus)
California, California, land of golden dreams
Hey Cali baby, will you be my sugar honey
I do it from the heart so it ain't about the money
And if I got you it's a rap like a mummy
I get goosebumps every time you say you love me cause
You make me feel like love for the first time
You make me feel like eternal sunshine
(Chorus)" Sia California Dreamin' This is an excellent version of the Mamas and the Papas classic from the 2015 San Andreas soundtrack. Frank Sinatra California This song is off "The Reprise Collection" recorded in 1963 and sounds like it is Sinatra auditioning to be the state anthem.
"I've known her valleys, I've known her mountains
Her missions and her courtyards and her fountains
The giant redwoods towering in the skies of her
That grow as though as they know they show the size of her
I've often wandered her farthest reaches
Her deserts and her snow and, yes, her beaches
A land that paradise could well be jealous of
That's California, California, blessed by heaven from above
That's California, land I love."
Frank Sinatra
(Also sung by Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett, and many others.) The Lady is a Tramp This is a Rogers and Hart song from the 1937 musical comedy Babes in Arms, but it is also used in the 1957 film version of Pal Joey . Watching sleazy San Francisco nightclub singer Frank Sinatra sing it to rich society widow Rita Hayworth, who used to be a stripper, is a great musical moment. The song features an ironic view of the usual image of sunny California.
"She gets too hungry for dinner at eight
She likes the theatre and never comes late
She never bothers with people she'd hate
That's why the lady is a tramp
Doesn't like crap games with barons or earls
Won't go to Harlem in ermine and pearls
Won't dish the dirt with the rest of the girls
That's why the lady is a tramp
She likes the free fresh wind in her hair,
Life without care
She's broke and it's oke
Hates California, it's cold and it's damp
That's why the lady is a tramp
She gets too hungry to wait for dinner at eight
She loves the theatre but never comes late
She'd never bother with people she'd hate
That's why the lady is a tramp
She'll have no crap games with sharpies and frauds
And she won't go to Harlem in Lincolns or Fords
And she won't dish the dirt with the rest of the broads
That's why the lady is a tramp
She loves the free fresh wind in her hair
Life without care.
She's broke but it's oke
Hates California, it's so cold and so damp
That's why the lady... that's why the lady...
That's why the lady is a tramp" Nancy Sinatra California Dreamin' Nancy's weird orchestral/acoustic cover of the Mamas and the Papas 1966 classic is one of the best.
The Sir Douglas Quintet Mendocino In this 1969 rock classic, after thanking all his friends for all the beautiful vibrations, the singer pleads with his teeny bopper lover to stay with him in his love house by the river where life's such a groove you blow your mind in the morning. Can you dig it?
(Yes, they really sing "Can you dig it?" And it is dug.)
"Teeny Bopper, my teenage lover
I caught your waves last night
It sent my mind to wonderin'.
You're such a groove
Please stay in my love house by the river.
Fast talkin' guys with strange red eyes
Have put things in your head
And started your mind to wonderin'
I love you so, please don't go
Please stay here with me in Mendocino.
Mendocino, Mendocino,
Where life's such a groove
You blow your mind in the morning.
We used to walk through the park,
Make love along the way in Mendocino." The 6ths San Diego Zoo How can you not like a song with such good driving directions? Another one by Stephin Merritt, the musical genius behind the Magnetic Fields and the 6ths and more. This one is sung by singer-songwriter Barbara Manning.
"Met you on a traffic island
We were there all day
In the middle of the world's highway
Summer left its light green lipstick on our faces
Took us to all the pretty places
Highway 405 will take you from the boom boom room
to interstate 5 which goes right to the San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo San Diego Zoo
How could I have ever left you?"
The Skatalites Skalifornia This is an instrumental, but since it has possibly the best California song name ever, I had to include it here. The Skatalites are a ska band from Jamaica that played from 1963-1965 then formed again in 1983. This song was released in 1993. Elliott Smith L.A. Elliott Smith was an American singer songwriter born in Nebraska, raised in Texas, who lived mostly in Portland, Oregon, and died at 34 in Los Angeles, probably by suicide, although some think he was murdered. This song is from the last album he released before his death "Figure 8" released in 2000.
"The gentleman's in the lane
Spinning his hat on a cane
Stepping out, out for a change
Good morning all, it's a beautiful day
The generals are winning the war
Seemed suicidal before you came along
Now, now
I'll protect you, long as you'll stay
L.A.
Morning had to come, I'd be walking in the sun
Living in the day
But last night I was about to throw it all away
If patience started a band
I'd be her biggest fan
Look at me, I'm talking to you
I don't want the lead in your play
The star's just a part of the scene
The gentleman in green
Paying off, out on the street
I can't go home, it's not on my way
L.A.
Things I've never done, cars parked in the sun
Living in the day
But last night I was about to throw it all away
Last night I was about to throw it all away
Last night I was about to throw it all away
Last night I was about to throw it all away" Phoebe Snow San Francisco Bay Blues This is a jazzy acoustic version of the Jesse Fuller 1954 original from Snow's 1974 debut album "Phoebe Snow."
The lyrics are shown under Jessie Fuller. Social Distortion Bakersfield A 2011 release from the Orange County cow punk band which formed in the late 70's. It's about being stranded in Bakersfield. This would segue nicely into Creedence's "Lodi."
"Stranded here in Bakersfield
So close yet so far far away
Stranded here in Bakersfield
Your a million miles away yeah
So I walked out that lonely truck stop
With my head hanging down wondering
How in the hell I got myself into this mess
And more importantly
How I was going to get myself out of it
So I wrote a song for you baby girl
And I hope that when I return home
The locks ain't changed on the doors
And there's still a spot for me
On that big ole California king sized bed
Stranded here in Bakersfield
So close yet so far far away
Stranded here in Bakersfield
You a million miles away
Wont you come see me in Bakersfield
ohhhh I'm not a million miles away" Social Distortion California (Hustle and Flow) Another one from their 2011 album.
"Well, I was born, babe, with nothing to lose
But the black man taught me how to sing the blues
Made a little life outta rock ‘n’ roll
And that crazy California hustle and flow
Take me down
Take me on down the line
Shake me down
Shake me on down the line
I went too fast with that rhythm and booze
Almost ended up dead like all those other fools
Everyone’s got some sort of ball and chain
What’s life without a little pain?"
... ... ... ... ...
Living in a Hollywood movie dream
And I’m still reaching for the stars
Life gets hard and then it gets good
Like I always knew it would
Running around like you’re front page news
Lonely eyes and your motorcycle boots
Tattooed heart and your jet-black hair
Running ‘round like you don’t care." Social Distortion Highway 101 From 2004, another driving on the coast highway song.
"Take a drive baby up the coast, yea highway 101
I’ll pass Ventura and Santa Barbara too, just as fast as my motor runs
Gotta pocket full of memories, some happy and some are sad
Gotta girl standin’ by my side through the good times and the bad
... ... ... ... ...
I can still hear the mission bells and the train rollin’ through your town
Gonna leave this world behind, we’re Southern California bound
Listen to the boulevard, listen to the falling rain
I believe in love now, with all of its joys and pains
Follow the palm trees under the California sun
I believe in love now, I believe in love again" Bonnie Somerville Winding Road Another nice folk pop song about travelling the road to California, which was included on the popular Garden State Soundtrack in 2004.
"And it's a winding road
I've been walking for a long time
I still don't know
And it's a long way home
I've been searching for a long time
I still have hope
I'm gonna find my way home
And I can see a little house
On top of the hill
And I can smell the ocean
The salt in the air
And I can see you
You're standing there
And you're washing your car
And I can see California sun in your hair" Sonic Youth Expressway to Yr Skull Another anti-California Girl song from the band that was the "archetype" of the Indie movement of the '80s, off their 1986 "Evol" album. According to Michael Azerrad ("Our Band Could Be Your Life" 2001) Neil Young called this "the greatest guitar song of all time" in 1990 when the band opened for him on his Ragged Glory tour. Azerrad's description: "Moore sings the first line, dreamily, like some homicidal twist on a Beach Boys lyric. The song builds to a cataclysm...then back down to a meditative, after-the-storm feeling, the whole roller-coaster ride ending with a good three minutes of Moore and Ranaldo drawing sounds from their guitars like the music of the spheres..."
"We're gonna kill the California girls
We're gonna fire the exploding load
In the milkmaid maidenhead
We're gonna find the meaning of feeling good
And we're gonna stay there
As long as we think we should
Mystery train
Three way plane
Expressway to your skull"
Sonic Youth Death Valley '69 From 1985's "Bad Moon Rising" album, this song was co-written and co-sung by New York No Wave icon Lydia Lunch. Sonic Youth was obsessed with obsession, insanity, and violence, and the embodiment of all three - Charles Mansion, who hid out at the Barker Ranch ranch (now in Death Valley National Park) after the notorious Los Angeles murder spree until he and his followers were captured there.
"Coming down
But she started to holler
So I had to hit it
Hit it
Hit it
Hit it" Sonic Youth Pacific Coast Highway Beautiful, dissonant, and sinister noise-guitar-pop or whatever you want to call it from their 1987 album "Sister." Kim Gordon explores the dark side of the coast highway from a woman's perspective. This ain't the Mamas and the Papas' coast highway anymore....
"Come on get in the car
Lets go for a ride somewhere
I won't hurt you
As much as you hurt me
Let me take you there
Before the sun goes down
Come on give me your love
Come on baby all you have
I wanna take your breathe away
Come on baby
Just like that, you say
You make me feel so crazy
Come on get in the car
Lets go for a ride somewhere
I won't hurt you
You make me feel so crazy" The Sons of the Pioneers Sierra Nevada This song is from 1962. It's hard for me to listen to music this classic cowboy band without thinking of two things -
first - a few of John Ford's westerns, which often used their music and even featured the band as actors, (they actually acted in lots of films and TV shows) and
second - the Buttole Surfers shows I saw in the 1980's which started with Ghost Riders and Tumbling Tumbleweeds and other Sons of the Pioneers songs before they attacked the stage with their insane psychedelic thrash music, spray-painted topless dancers and high school driver's training blood-on-the-highway movies in the background.
"Way up high in Sierra Nevada
close to heaven
that's where I want to be.
Clouds drift by in Sierra Nevada
where my true love
is there waitin' for me.
Will I find my love waitin' with teardrops in her eyes
for a lover who's been to long away.
Or will this trail I'm ridin' bring an end to all her sighs
for this time I'm comin' back to stay.
Way up high in Sierra Nevada
clouds drift by
by my true love and me.
Will I find my love waitin' with teardrops in her eyes
for a lover who's been to long away.
Or will this trail I'm ridin' bring an end to all her sighs
for this time I'm comin' back to stay.
Way up high in Sierra Nevada
clouds drift by
by my true love and me." Spirit Topanga Windows Jimi Hendrix gave the guitarist the name Randy California, and they are one of the best and most forgotten LA bands of the 60's, so Spirit had to be on this list somewhere, so somebody requested I add this song about Topanga Canyon, which used to be a decadent countercultural haven, and hopefully still is. It's off their first album from 1968 "Spirit."
"watching the world through our Topanga window
seeing people running through their lies
the sun shines warm through our Topanga window
the cat lies sleeping waiting for the night
your time is going much too fast
you've got to slow it on down
or it won't last
and what we'll be will sewn in a past part
our Topanga window window window
people searching for a better season
trying to catch their moment on the run
always asking wanting what's low reason
what do you want when you just want to have some fun?
your time is going much too fast
you've got to slow it on down
or it won't last
and what we'll be will sewn in a past part
our Topanga window window window…"
Bruce Springsteen Rosalita Sure, he mentions New Jersey in every song, and cars, and girls, and guys with names like "Big Bones Billy" and this 1973 song has them all, but it's also got a little cafe in San Diego at the end of the highway run so it's on the list.
"My tires were slashed and I almost crashed but the Lord had mercy
My machine she's a dud, I'm stuck in the mud somewhere in the swamps of Jersey
Hold on tight, stay up all night 'cause Rosie I'm comin' on strong
By the time we meet the morning light I will hold you in my arms
I know a pretty little place in Southern California down San Diego way
There's a little cafe where they play guitars all night and day
You can hear them in the back room strummin'
So hold tight baby 'cause don't you know daddy's comin'" Mazzy Star California Mazzy Star was formed in Santa Monica in 1989. This is a beautiful and minimal song with Hope Sandoval's atmospheric vocals, acoustic guitars, some faint keyboards, and some bongos in the background. The song is from Seasons of Your Day, a 2013 album, and the band's first since 1996.
"I think I’m going back to California
Summer distant and it’s all far way
It’s all far
I think I’ll drift across the ocean now
Clouds looks so clear in your eyes
Let me bring you on my
Let me bring you on my friend
I think I’ll fly across the ocean
I can watch the sky turning grey
I think I’m going back
I think I’ll go back
I think I hear the whisper of old best friend
I think I hear the bells ringing in the square
California
California" Stereophonics Have a Nice Day A 2001 song from the Welsh rock band. It's about the vacuousness of tourism and conformity or something like that. That's what they should expect if they're going to places like Pier 39.
"San Francisco Bay
We asked what he meant
He said 'where ya' from?'
We told him our lot
'When ya' take a holiday
Is this what you want?'
So have a nice day
Have a nice day
Have a nice day
Have a nice day" Stereophonics Plastic California A song from 1999 by the Welsh rockers that seems to be about their ambivalence regarding the tourist charms of Calfornia. Blackpool is a seaside resort on the northwest coast of England.
"Plastic California
Looks like Blackpool outta date
Some love some hate
It's not my occupation true
But it's what you do
Some love some hate
Flip back my red striped deck chair
Prove we got nothing to prove
Gin stroke amnesia problems
d'ya feel new, ha, ha
d'ya feel new, ha, ha
d'ya feel new, ha, ha
ha, ha
Well I'm pleased to meet you" The Steve Miller Band Rock'n Me The Steve Miller Band was formed in San Francisco in 1966 and had quite a few classic rock hits, mostly in the 1970s, including this one. This is from the band's 1976 album Fly Like an Eagle. It's another song that refers to California Girls.
"Well I've been lookin' real hard and I'm tryin' to find a job
But it just keeps gettin' tougher every day
But I got to do my part 'cause I know in my heart
I got to please my sweet baby, yeah
Well, I ain't superstitious, and I don't get suspicious
But my woman is a friend of mine
And I know that it's true that all the things that I do
Will come back to me in my sweet time
So keep on rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
I went from Phoenix, Arizona all the way to Tacoma
Philadelphia, Atlanta, L.A.
Northern California where the girls are warm
So I could be with my sweet baby, yeah
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby
Keep on a rock'n me baby, baby, baby, baby, keep on rock'n...." John Stewart Gold A hit song from his 1979 album "Bombs Away Dream Babies" that features Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac. I found out about this one in the California forum on FieldherpForum.com where Jim Bass hangs out.
"When the lights go down in the California town
People are in for the evening
I jump into my car and I throw in my guitar
My heart beatin' time with my breathin'
Drivin' over Kanan, singin to my soul
There's people out there turnin' music into gold
Well my buddy Jim Bass he's a workin' pumpin' gas
And he makes two fifty for an hour
He's got rhythm in his hands as he's tappin' on the cans
Sings rock and roll in the shower
Drivin' over Kanan singin' to my soul
There's people out there turnin' music into gold
Ah, the California girls are the greatest in the world
Each one's a song in the making
Singin' rhymes with me I can hear the melody
The story is there for the takin'
Drivin over Kanan singin' to my soul
There's people out there turnin' music into gold.
Drivin over Kanan singin' to my soul
There's people out there turnin' music into gold.
When the lights go down in the California town
People are in for the evening
I jump into my car and I throw in my guitar
My heart beatin' time with my breathin'
Drivin over Kanan singin' to my soul
There's people out there turnin' music into gold.
People out there turnin' music into gold"
Sublime What I Got 1996 LA Ska punk from another short-lived band, victimized by a drug OD. Check out "Garden Grove" too.
"Life is too short so love the one you got cause you might get
runover or you might get shot
Never start no static
I just get it off my chest
Never had to battle with no bulletproof vest
Take a small example
A tip from me take all of your money and give it up to charity
Lovin's what I got
And the sublime style's still straight from long beach
It all comes back to you you're gonna get what you deserve
Try and test that you're bound to get served
Love's what I got
Don't start a riot
You feel it when the dance gets hot" Sublime Garden Grove "We took this trip to Garden Grove
It smelt like Lou Dog in the van
This ain't no reggae party $5 at the door
Get so real sometimes who wrote my rhymes
I got the microwave got the vcr I got the duece duece
in the trunk of my car
If you only knew that all the love that I found
It's hard to keep my soul on the ground
You're a fool don't you f... around with my dog
All I can see I steal as I fill up my garage
But my mind music from Jamaica
All the love that I found, pull over there's a reason
why my soul is unsound" Sugarcult Back to California A 2004 ballad from the alterative rock punk pop whatever band from Santa Barbara. Seems like this guy is thinking about driving to California to make up with his ex girlfriend but realizing that won't ever happen.
"You’re gone
Ten different ways I could end this night
Can’t do this anymore
Won’t feel you anymore
How long I’ll wait
Just to say goodbye, say goodbye
Leave it all the fights and all
Summer’s getting colder
Drive all night to hold you tight
Back to California
Days went by
We waited and I guess we’re getting older
We couldn’t win in the end." Matthew Sweet Come to California Sweet released this one in 1997. It's got his typical high tenor and backed by rocking boogie guitars and bongos.
"Started with a rose, ended up a millionaress queen
In your new electric chair, sweetly sitting there building up
steam
Watch your mind little bit, or you're gonna have to make believe
Flew into LA, caught a screening of your lifelong dream
Blew it in LA, now you're desperate to create your own scene
But watch your mind little bit, 'cause you're headed into the
machine
Come to California (come to California)
Come to California (come to California)
ooooo oooooo ooooo
Come to California, baby let it all hang out
Come to California, tell us what it's all about
But watch your mind little bit, 'cause the future is beginning
now."
T Tancred Bed Case Tancred is the solo project of singer-songwriter Jess Abbott along with two other musicians. This is an upbeat power-pop song from her third Tancred album "Out of the Garden" released in 2016. There's only a brief reference to California in the song, but it really stands out, comparing someone to the state in an almost ecstatic moment.
"I remember touching down
I remember the smell and the sound
White flowers in the parking lot
With you I remember quite a lot
These days I've become quite the bed case
Feel like I'm 5 by 5
Do I want to save the world or just cut out its insides
You make me feel like God
Even when I'm down below
You make me feel so good
I think I'm gonna blow
I think I'm gonna blow
You look like California
You put me in a coma
But I don't scare
You make me feel like God
Even when I'm down below
You make me feel so good
I Think I'm gonna blow
I think I'm gonna blow
You make me feel like God
Even when I'm down below
You make me feel so good
I think I'm gonna blow
I think I'm gonna blow
I think I'm gonna gonna blow" Thirty Seconds to Mars City of Angels Thirty Seconds to Mars is a rock band from LA fronted by lead vocalist Jared Leto, who is also an Oscar-winning actor and film director. City of Angels is off their 2013 album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams.This song sounds a lot like U-2, partly because Steve Lillywhite was the producer, but also because Leto sings with the style and urgency of Bono. Leto says that the song is the story of his brother (the drummer for the band) and his travels to Los Angeles to make their dreams come true. "It's a love letter to that beautiful and bizarre land."
"Lost in the City of Angels;
Down in the comfort of strangers, I...
Found myself in the fire burned hills,
In the land of a billion lights.
Bought my fate
Has paid off well for a mother, a brother and me.
The silver of a lake at night;
The hills of Hollywood on fire;
A boulevard of hope and dreams;
Streets made of desire.
Lost in the City of Angels;
Down in the comfort of strangers, I...
Found myself in the fire burned hills,
In the land of a billion lights."
Songwriter: Jared Leto
Published by: Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Dante Thomas (featuring Pras) Miss California This is a 2001 R&B song about a California Girl - the rich kind, with diamonds, jet skis and a Ferrari. Dante Thomas is an American man living in Germany .Pras is a rapper from New Jersey, formerly with the Fugees. The song was a much bigger hit in Europe.
"She's miss California, hottest thing in west L.A.
House down by the water, sails her yacht across the bay
Drives a Maranello, Hollywood's her favorite scene
Loves to be surrounded with superstars that know her name
She's a rich girl from the top of the food chain
Love and material things, kinda lonely
Till I met her at the Grammys, 10 mil on a diamond ring
She invites me to spend a day on the jet skis
At first it didn't mean a thing
Then she told me I'm the one that she's searched for
It was hard to believe
... ... ... ...
In a couple a days she had me a bracelet made
From Harry Winston's place
Went horseback up to the mountaintop
Showing me the land she's got
Well, it's all right, but something else is on your mind
Looking past all that shines, now the tears are running through
All those things are nice, but it's not why I'm here
I will wipe away your tears simply by just loving you, you..."
The Thrills Santa Cruz This Irish band took a summer vacation in Santa Cruz and ended up with several indie pop hits, including this one from 2003.
"Well tell me
where it all went wrong
And tell me
where you lost those damn songs
I can't say I was surprised
I heard a drink was involved
Oh you gotta be, oh you gotta be
Still living by the sea
Oh you gotta be, oh you gotta be
Cos Santa Cruz
you're not that far
Oh Santa Cruz,
no, you're not that far" The Thrills Big Sur One of those 'baby please don't go' songs from the same 2003 album as "Santa Cruz."
"So much for the city
Tell me that you'll dance to the end
Just tell me that you'll dance to the end
do do do do do do do
Hey, hey you're the monkees
People said you monkeyed around
But nobody's listening now
do do do do do do do
Just don't go back to Big Sur
Hangin' around, lettin' your old man down
Just don't go back to Big Sur
Baby baby please don't go
Oh baby baby please don't go"
Tower of Power The Oakland Stroke Tower of Power is an American horn-based funk band formed in Oakland in 1968 and probably best known for the 1973 song "What is Hip." This song is from their 1974 album "Back to Oakland."
When I lived in Oakland, I was not aware that there was a stroke, or that it had once been lost, so I have no idea what this means, other than being an excuse to get people to get up and dance, and really, what more does music need to do?
"They done found the stroke,
done found the Oakland stroke
They done found the stroke,
done found the Oakland stroke
They done found the stroke,
done found the Oakland stroke
They done found the stroke,
done found the Oakland stroke" Umberto Tozzi California A song from 1994 from an Italian pop rock singer. He sings it in Italian so I poured some of the Italian lyrics into a web translator and this is what came out (I hope it makes better sense in Italian):
"Lights on you California
It is an America where there is you
I fly just for you California
Dreaming of those avenues of heaven downward
('re Like a carillon chimes are like a music box)
Boats with your name from the Mississippi
I remember you
They speak of you pictures of hippies
These were the years of the blue hair
They had me in those years of peace
From Hawaii and older
Take me with you you are my light
Both newspapers no longer believe
So many lies sell more"
Train California 37 Finally somebody wrote a song about Highway 37 - which runs between Vallejo and Novato. I hope this means that the 94 will finally get its song, and maybe the 168, too, and let's not forget the 395.
"Knock knock, who's there?
2012 is a brand new year
Cleaning house, singing songs
Shedding light and righting wrongs
Ding dong the witch ain't dead
She's still trying to take my bread
Four more years 'til my girls all grown
Then the b*tch gotta have to leave me alone
It's all good 'cause I'm as happy as a flea
On a mountain of dogs you see
A little music cured all the hurt and put hate in six feet of dirt
I was looking for some heaven
There's no need to look no more
California 37
Took me right to heaven's door
Knock knock, woah oh
California 37 took me right to heaven's door
Here's to those who didn't think Train could ever roll again
You were the fuel that I used when inspiration hit a dead end
San Francisco got it done 415 took the 911
Thank you all for believin' in
We won't let you down again
Truth is, it was attitude
Replaced greed with gratitude
Then replaced a pretty key dude
It's all truth not being rude
Making love now, not mistakes
Working hard instead of looking for breaks
Came all the way from the eighth Great Lake
And found 37 reasons to stay
I was looking for some heaven
There's no need to look no more
California 37
Took me right to heaven's door
Knock knock, woah oh
Rock and Roll
California 37 took me right to heaven's door" Train Save Me San Francisco Train is a rock band formed in 1993 in San Francisco. This song is from their 5th studio album. Save Me, San Francisco. released in 2009, and it charted as a top 10 single.
"I used to love the tenderloin
Until I made some tender coin
And then I met some ladies from Marin
We took the highway to the one,
Up the coast to catch some sun
That left me with these blisters on my skin
Don't know what I was on,
But I think it grows in Oregon,
So I kept on goin' going on right through
I drove into Seattle rain
Fell in love then missed the train
That could have took me right back home to you
I've been high, I've been low,
I've been yes, and I've been oh, hell no!
I've been rock 'n roll and disco,
Won't you save me San Francisco?
Oh, oh
(Oh, oh, oh oh oh oh)
Every day so caffeinated
I wish they were golden gated
Fillmore couldn't feel more miles away
So wrap me up return to sender
Let's forget this five day bender
Take me to my city by the bay!
I never knew all that I had,
Now Alcatraz don't sound so bad
At least they have a hella fine merlot
If I could wish upon a star
I would hitch a cable car
To the place that I can always call my own
I've been up, I've been down,
I've been so damn lost since you're not around,
I been reggae and calypso
Won't you save me San Francisco?"
Transplants California Babylon From the 2002 first album by the punk rock/rap group formed by members of the band Rancid along with musicians from Slackers and Blink-182.
"Waitress out dressed like nurses in bondage
Brought me the check, said I want you to sign this
Union boy standing next to the rastas
There’s gonna be a strike and you ain’t gonna stop us
Three men standing and they love what they do
You won’t see it coming, cause they wanna surprise you
Consider it done, they’re gonna stand right by you
American punks don’t care about you
Hollywood what you gonna do?
Hollywood what you gonna do?
Don’t say that you don’t understand
Don’t say that you can’t comprehend
Don’t say that you don’t understand, this is california babylon, my man...."
Tristan Prettyman California Girl A slow and moody 2008 rock song that start with acoustic guitars, then builds. From a female singer-songwriter out of San Diego. This time it's the California Girl who does the singing, but she's cynical and bitter and has learned her lesson. A nice change from Daisy dukes and bikinis on top....
"I'll let you fall in love with me
Show you how easy it can be
California girl of your dreams
Sitting by the sea shore
Soaking up the summer breeze
Never gonna fall, I'm never gonna fall
For that old trick again
Never gonna fall, I'm never gonna fall
For that old trick again
I can't believe I even came
Don't even know your name
Boy you know that ain't my scene
But you gotta play by the rules
If you ever gonna win the game
Never gonna fall, I'm never gonna fall
For that old trick again
Never gonna fall, I'm never gonna fall
For that old trick again…."
The Tubes White Punks on Dope The Tubes are a rock band based in San Francisco. This is from their 1975 debut album The Tubes. The Pacific Heights the singer comes from was a very rich neighborhood in 1975, but that was when much of the city was affordable.
The song was also covered by Motley Crue in 2000.
"Teenage had a race for the night time
Spent my cash on every high I could find
Wasted time in every school in L.A.
Getting loose, I didn't care what the kids say
We're white punks on dope
Mom & Dad moved to Hollywood
Hang myself when I get enough rope
Can't clean up, though I know I should
White punks on dope
Other dudes are living in the ghetto
But born in Pacific Heights don't seem much betta
We're white punks on dope
Mom & Dad live in Hollywood
Hang myself when I get enough rope
I can't clean up, though I know I should
White punks on dope
I go crazy 'cause my folks are so f***ing rich
Have to score when I get that rich white punk itch
Sounds real classy, living in a chateau
So lonely, all the other kids will never know
We're white punks on dope
Mom & Dad live in Hollywood
Hang myself when I get enough rope
Can't clean up, though I know I should
White punks on dope
White punks on dope" U U2 California
(There is No End to Love) From Songs of Innocence, 2014.
"Barbara, Santa Barbara
California, then we fell into the shining sea
The weight that drags your heart down
Well that's what took me where I need to be
Which is here
Watching you cry like a baby
California, at the dawn you thought would never come
But it did
Like it always does
All I know
And all I need to know is there is no end to love …" The Undisputed Truth California Soul A 1971 Motown psychedelic soul cover of the Marlena Shaw song mentioned above. Unified Theory California A song from their 2000 album about the downside of the good life in CA from a rock band formed in Seattle made of ex Blind Melon and Pearl Jam musicians.
"Blue skies have chased me away from a simple life
Now I'm eating paper that's tasting funny
Out here in complicated
A cigarette and tea is all I had to eat
A metal band at scream was all I heard for weeks
Man this ain't easy, but I wish all my friends could see me
In California" V Vampire Weekend California English A nice upbeat tune with Afro pop guitar and drums and crazy use of autotune on the vocals, but you'll have to figure out yourself what California English means in this 2010 release, because I can't.
"Someone took a trip before you came to ski in the Alps
Your father moved across the country
Just to sunburn his scalp
Contra Costa, Contra Mundum, contradict what I say
Living like the French Connection, but we’ll die in LA
Blasted from a disconnected light switch
Through the condo that they’ll never finish
Bounced across a Saudi satellite dish
And through your brain to California English"
Vampire Weekend Step From 2013's "Modern Vampires of the City." Another great song from a consistently good band. I remember those Communist readers being sold on the streets when I lived in Berkeley. I bet they're still there.
"Every time I see you in the world, you always step to my girl
Back back way back I used to front like Angkor Wat
Mechanicsburg Anchorage and Dar es Salaam
While home in New York was champagne and disco
Tapes from L.A. slash San Francisco
But actually Oakland and not Alameda
Your girl was in Berkeley with her Communist reader
Mine was entombed within boombox and walkman
I was a hoarder but girl that was back then
The gloves are off, the wisdom teeth are out
What you on about?
I feel it in my bones, I feel it in my bones
I'm stronger now, I'm ready for the house
Such a modest mouse,
I can't do it alone, I can't do it alone
Every time I see you in the world, you always step to my girl
Ancestors told me that their girl was better
She's richer than Croesus, she's tougher than leather
I just ignored all the tales of a past life
Stale conversation deserves but a bread knife
And punks who would laugh when they saw us together
Well, they didn't know how to dress for the weather
I can still see them there huddled on Astor
Snow falling slow to the sound of the master
The gloves are off, the wisdom teeth are out
What you on about?
I feel it in my bones, I feel it in my bones
I'm stronger now, I'm ready for the house
Such a modest mouse,
I can't do it alone, I can't do it alone
Wisdom's a gift, but you'd trade it for youth
Age is an honor, it's still not the truth
We saw the stars when they hid from the world
You cursed the sun when it stepped to your girl
Maybe she's gone and I can't resurrect her
The truth is she doesn't need me to protect her
We know the true death, the true way of all flesh
Everyone's dying, but girl you're not old yet
The gloves are off, the wisdom teeth are out
What you on about?
I feel it in my bones, I feel it in my bones
I'm stronger now, I'm ready for the house
Such a modest mouse,
I can't do it alone, I can't do it alone
Every time I see you in the world, you always step to my girl" W Loudon Wainwright III Grey in L.A. From the album "Strange Weirdos: music from and inspired by the film Knocked Up" from 2007 LWIII is a songwriter, folk singer, and the father of all those other Wainwright singers, including Rufous below.
"When it's grey in L.A. I sure like it that way
Cause there's way too much sunshine round here
I don't know about you I get so sick of blue skies
Whenever they always appear
And I sure love the sound of the rain pouring down
On my carport roof made out of tin
If there's a flood then there's gonna be mudslides
We all have to pay for our sin
And I suppose that they'll close canyon roads
And the freeways will all start to clog
And the waters will rise and you won't be surprised
When your whole house smells like your wet dog
When it's grey in L.A. it's much better that way
It reminds you that this town's so cruel
Yeah it might feel like fun when you're sportin' sunglasses
But really you're one more fool..." Rufus Wainwright California Rufus is not a fan of the Golden State. Too much neon and too many surfers and part time models for his liking.
"I don't know this sea of neon
Thousand surfers, whiffs of freon
And big nights back east with Rhoda
California please
That all the world can't enjoy your mad traditions
Ain't it a shame that all the world
Don't got keys to their own ignitions
Life is the longest death in California
California, California
You're such a wonder that I think I'll stay in bed
Big time rollers, part time models
So much to plunder
That I think I'll sleep instead" Tom Waits Hold On Another girl takes that California trip in this moody and beautiful 1999 song, one of Waits' best songs, IMHO.
"They hung a sign up in our town
'if you live it up, you won't live it down.'
So, she left Monte Rio, son
Just like a bullet leaves a gun.
With charcoal eyes and Monroe hips
She went and took that California trip.
Well, the moon was gold, her
Hair like wind
She said don't look back just
Come on Jim
You got to hold on
Take my hand, I'm standing right here
You gotta hold on..."
Wall of Voodoo Wrong Way to Hollywood Wall of Voodoo is the L. A. new wave group that brought us the hit song "Mexican Radio" in 1983. They also did a nice cover of "Ring of Fire" the Johnny Cash song. This song is a b-side to "Far Side of Crazy" and it was also on their album "The Ugly Americans in Australia" recorded live in Australia in 1987. It's another look at the dark side of the Hollywood dream as it degenerates into drugs and prostitution.
"He walked into a mexican restaurant
Looking for some pills
She shivered on Cahuenga and Yucca
She couldn't shake the chills
An old man walked out of the Greyhound station
Where did my wallet go
And Jimmy searching lost and last seen
His mother will never know
He took the wrong way, the wrong way to Hollywood
He took the wrong way, the wrong way to Hollywood
A Babylon place where blondes die young
It's a g-string girl's revenge
Young boys baiting on S&M and Highland for family men
The old soft shoe goes on and on
And the chumps are down for the count
And the ones who last the longest get their screen test at Paramount
He took the wrong way, the wrong way to Hollywood
He took the wrong way, the wrong way to Hollywood
A flash of nausea a tembling hand
Falling where we stood
In a shallow doorway grave
Lay me down in Hollywood
He took the wrong way, the wrong way to Hollywood
He took the wrong way, the wrong way to Hollywood" Wall of Voodoo Hollywood the Second Time This is from Wall of Voodoo's 1987 album "Happy Planet."
"I-65, Illinois moon.
A voice in my ear saying,
"you're the fool".
No-it's all in your mind...
Well, I'm not moving forward tonight...
I'm falling behind.
It was windy in Reno,
he was walking alone.
There's a chill in his eyes,
and he asked himself
would he be all right?
How long will it take?
How long will it take
'til the valley rolls by
and he's home...
Hollywood the second time,
Hollywood the second time." The Wallflowers Back To California This is an uptempo rock song from the roots rock band formed in L.A. in 1989 by frontman Jakob Dylan. It's off their Rebel, Sweetheart album released in 2005. This one's not about coming to California, or leaving the state, but returning to its sanctuary from what seems to be some kind post-apocalyptic war zone. The younger Dylan has his father Bob's talent for poetic imagery in a song, for sure.
"Feels like a ghost here in this room
Not the kind that rides a saddle in a costume
All around me, all around you
In from the window for a drag of your perfume
Let's move back to California
Let's make a promise, baby
Let's both be there
Put our feet deep in the sand
This garden's only got four corners
Back to your trenches, back to California
The days keep coming and the years overlap
Been crawling all over each other like wet cats
I hear the rebels yelling out in the dunes
And I don't think it's half as funny as I used to
Let's move back to California
Let's make a promise, baby
Let's both be there
Put our feet deep in the sand
Let's leave behind these maps and handguns
We're on our way back to California
We've got California in our eyes
Come on and catch us if you can
With California in our eyes
Passing down through a valley full of lost sheep
Straight is the gate, narrow is the walkway
Mercury rising and poppies in bloom
This is the kind of thing that I can get used to
Let's move back to California
Let's make a promise, baby
Let's both be there
Put our feet deep in the sand
There's still no shortage in creating bad blood
We're on our way back to California
We've got California in our eyes
Come on and catch us if you can
With California in our eyes
Fast as we can
Come on and catch us if you can
Back to California
Fast as we can
Back to California"
Wang Chung To Live and Die in L.A. This cheezy new wave tune is from William Friedkin's great 1985 genre-bending crime movie with the same title.
"In the heat of the day
Every time you go away
I have to piece my life together
Every time you're away
In the heat of the day
In the dark of the night
Every time I turn the light
I feel that God is not in heaven
In the dark of the night
The dark of the night
I wonder why I live alone here
I wonder why we spend these nights together
Is this the room I'll live my life forever
I wonder why in LA
To live and die in LA
I wonder why we waste our lives here
When we could run away to paradise
But I am held in some invisible vice
And I can't get away
To live and die in LA
If I let myself go
And for where I just don't know
I'd maybe hit some cold new river
That led out to the sea
An unknown sea
I'd either swim or I'd drown
Or just keep falling down and down
I think its that, that makes me quiver
Just to keep falling down
Down, down, down
I wonder why I live alone here
I wonder why we spend these nights together
Is this the way I'll live my life forever
I wonder why in LA
To live and die in LA
In every word that you say
I feel my freedom slip away
I feel the bars come down around me
And I can't get away
I can't get away
I wonder why I live alone here
I wonder why we spend these nights together
Is this the room I'll live my life forever
I wonder why in LA
To live and die in LA
I wonder why we waste our lives here
When we could run away to paradise
But I am held in some invisible vice
And I can't get away
To live and die in LA" M. Ward Girl From Conejo Valley M. Ward is a singer-songwriter who also works with the groups She & Him and Monsters of Folk. This is from Ward's 2016 album More Rain. It's indie folk with some vintage synth sounds thrown in. Conejo Valley stretches from Ventura to LA County so maybe he knows the area since he grew up in Ventura County.
"Slow bring winter heart,
walks on good behavior from his self.
And my old girlfriend used to not to
but now knows him well.
Slow-thinkin' Lincoln,
used to call me deep down from his
little corner of hell.
used to not to but now knows him well.
So I say
Helicopter, throw me a line;
The girl from Conejo Valley
used to be mine.
charges for rides in his sidecar seat.
And my old girlfriend,
used to not to but now rides for free.
So I say
Helicopter, throw me a line;
The girl from Conejo Valley
used to be mine.
Helicopter, throw me a line
'Cos the girl from Conejo Valley
used to be mine." Dionne Warwick Do You Know the Way to San Jose? Nobody did cheezy '60's fem pop better than Dionne Warwick and Burt Bacharach and Hal David, as this 1968 hit proves. (And just for the record, Dionne, just get on the 101 and head north. It'll take you right there, although these days there's a lot less space there....)
"Do you know the way to San Jose?
I've been away so long, I may go wrong and lose my way.
Do you know the way to San Jose?
I'm going back to find some peace of mind in San Jose.
L.A. is a great big freeway.
Put a hundred down and buy a car.
In a week, maybe two, they'll make you a star
Weeks turn into years. How quick they pass
And all the stars that never were
Are parking cars and pumping gas
You can really breathe in San Jose
They've got a lot of space. There'll be a place where I can stay
I was born and raised in San Jose
I'm going back to find some peace of mind in San Jose." Doc Watson California Blues This is Doc Watson's version of the oft-covered 1928 Jimmy Rogers song mentioned above under Merle Haggard's version . If you like a little yodeling with your slide guitar, you'll like this version. Weezer Beverly Hills More biting social satire from these power-chord-crazy nerd rockers about a guy who dreams of living the good life, 90210 style. Weezer also does a song called "California." This one is better.
"Where I come from isn't all that great
My automobile is a piece of crap
My fashion sense is a little whack
And my friends are just as screwy as me
I didn't go to boarding schools
Preppy girls never looked at me
Why should they, I ain't nobody
Got nothing in my pocket
Beverly Hills... That's where I want to be! (gimme, gimme)
Living in Beverly Hills...
Beverly Hills... Rolling like a celebrity! (gimme, gimme)
Living in Beverly Hills... Look at all those movie stars
They're all so beautiful and clean
When the housemaids scrub the floors
They get the spaces in between
I wanna live a life like that
I wanna be just like a king
Take my picture by the pool
Cause I'm the next big thing
Beverly Hills... That's where I want to be! (gimme gimme)(gimme gimme)
Living in Beverly Hills...
Beverly Hills... Rolling like a celebrity! (gimme gimme)(gimme gimme)
Living in Beverly Hills…" Weezer California I don't know any other song shout outs to El Cerrito.
Albany should be next.
"Hoo hoo, I need your huggin
I'm here my fears close guarded
Youth costing less than the next flight
You love the beautiful West Side
The beach and gorgeous sunrise
Surfs up the waves are risin' high
I'm all alone I need you here in Santa Monica California
California
If you're on a sinking ship
The California kids
Will throw you a lifeline
And if you're up all night
Thinking about some thing you did
The California kids
Will show you the sunshine
The California kids
Will show you the starlight" Weezer Hash Pipe There are lots of different verison of the lyrics for this song online. For example, "Down on Santa Monica" (Blvd.) - a street notorious for its trick-turning prostitutes - I think the lyrics should read "tricks aren't for kids, while most lyrics show "tricks are for kids" because that's how the cereal slogan goes. Either way, this is another bone-crunching guitar rock gem from the 2001 album "Weezer" aka "The Green Album.
" I can't help my feelings
I'll go out of my mind
These playas out to get me
'Cause they'd like my behind
I can't love my business
If I can't get a trick
Down on Santa Monica where tricks aren't [are] for kids
[Chorus]
I got my ass wipe [ass wide? / eyes wide?]
(Whoa-oh-oh)
You got your big G's
I got my hash pipe
Uhhh!
I can't help my bookies [boogies?]
They get out of control
I know that you don't care
But I want you to know
The least likely flavor is a favorite treat
Of men that don't bother with the taste of a teat" Weezer LA. Girlz In this song from the bands excellent 2016 album called The White Album erudite rocker Rivers Cuomo quotes Lewis Carroll's Jabberwocky and makes reference to Dante's dedication to Beatrice in The Inferno along with lifeguard towers on Santa Monica Beach. Who cares what it means. It rocks.
Chorus:
"L.A. girls, please act your age
You treat me like I have the plague
It's the Gyre and Gimble in the wabe
L.A. girls, please act your age
Sweeten up your lemonade
And meet me down at tower twenty-eight
I think I'm in whiplash
I'm losing it mixing ammonia and bleach
I get off at Pico and sell my possessions
So you will know just how I feel
I love your long hair
But you just don't care
So please help me fathom this
World without music
And by the way, when can we talk?
(Chorus)
So would you mind if I was pregnant?
I'll sleep on the edge of your bed
Like Dante and Beatrice
We'll light up our candles
But how is this going to end?
The kids are asleep
And some women swear it's more painful than labor
To die with your sins on your head
Does anybody love anybody as much as I love you, baby?
Does anybody love anybody as much as I love you, baby?
Does anybody love anybody as much as I love you, baby?
Does anybody love anybody as much as I love you, baby?
Does anybody love anybody as much as I love you, baby?
Does anybody love anybody as much as I love you, baby?
(Chorus)" Emily Wells Los Angeles Emily Wells is an American musician from Amarillo and Indianapolis. She plays violin and lots of other instruments including sampling synthesizers and mostly produces, records, and performs her albums on her own. I have heard two versions of this song. One is a very minimal acoustic version from her 2013 album Mama Acoustic Recordings. The other is a longer version with more instrumentation and a more rythmic feel from her 2016 album Promise, to which I have provided a link. I couldn't find the minimal version anymore.
"Her mouth, it was moving
but no sound was coming out
and your back, it was turning
around
and we were always dreaming of the day that would never come
Los Angeles
I'm burning up for you
Hangin' out the window, holding on to an afternoon
She knew how to teach them boys to fight
And we were always yelling at the night,
who would never come
You and I were never one.
Los Angeles
I'm burning up for you
When you would walk down the streets and you say goodbye
All along the river tonight." Emily Wells Take it Easy, San Francisco Emily Wells is an American musician from Amarillo and Indianapolis. She plays violin and lots of other instruments including sampling synthesizers and mostly produces, records, and performs her albums on her own. This is from her 2016 album Promise. It's very minimallly arranged with just a reggae ryhthm plucked on a violin, her voice, and voice overdubs.
"Tell me what you've done to me
Can we please take it easy
It be so lovely like a gloomy afternoon
To just take it easy with you
Where do you go with your wiles and your woes
Can we please take it slow
Can we please take it easy
Can we please take it easy
Half of heart break is knowing the ropes
But a tight walker's toes are well worth the show
I got a dime for every song that jives and
wouldn't you know that I'm half broke?
Can we please take it easy
Can we please take it easy
Don't stop talking to me
When we whisper something sweet
And we're riding home, riding home in the evening
And I'm falling asleep
Don't stop talking to me
Don't stop talking to me...."
...
Don't I have it pretty little darling
Don't I have it made
Don't I have it pretty little darling
Don't I have it made" Kanye West (featuring Kendrick Lamar) No More Parties In L.A. This is a couple of rich and famous LA rappers complaining about all the fake rich and famous people in LA. Basically, it's just One Percenter problems that any of us who aren't Kanye will never have to worry about.
"La di da di da, da
I like this flavor
La di da di da, la
Let me tell you
I'm out here from a very far away place
All for a chance to be a star
Nowhere seems to be too far
No more parties in LA
Please, baby, no more parties in LA, uh
No more parties in LA
Please, baby, no more parties in LA, uh
No more (Los Angeles)
Please (shake that body, party that bod-)
Please (shake that body, party that body)
Please (shake that body, party that body)
Hey baby you forgot your Ray Bans
And my sheets still orange from your spray tan
It was more than soft porn for the K-man
She remember my Sprinter, said "I was in the grape van"
Uhm, well cutie, I like your bougie booty
Come Erykah Badu me, well, let's make a movie
Hell, you know my repertoire is like a wrestler
I show you the ropes, connect the dots
A country girl that love Hollywood
Mama used to cook red beans and rice
Now it's Denny's, 4 in the morning, spoil your appetite
Liquor pouring and niggas swarming your section with erection
Smoke in every direction, middle finger pedestrians
R&B singers and lesbians, rappers and managers
Music and iPhone cameras
This s**t unanimous for you, it's damaging for you, one thing
That pussy should only be holding exclusive rights to me, I mean
He flew you in this motherf***er on first class
Even went out his way so you could check in an extra bag
Now you wanna divide the yam like it equate the math?
That s**t don't add up, you're making them mad as fuck
She said she came out here to find an A-list rapper
I said baby, spin that round and say the alphabet backwards
You're dealing with malpractice, don't kill a good nigga's confidence
Just cause he a nerd and you don't know what a condom is
The head still good though, the head still good though
Ladies say "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo"
Make a nigga say big words and act lyrical
Make me get spiritual
Make me believe in miracles, Buddhist monks and Cap'n Crunch cereal
Lord have mercy, thou will not hurt me
Five buddies all herded up on a Thursday
Bottle service, head service, I came in first place
The opportunity, the proper top of breast and booty cheek
The pop community, I mean these bitches come with union fee
And I want two of these, moving units through consumer streets
Then my shoe released, she was kicking in gratuity
And yeah G, I was all for it
She said K Lamar, you kind of dumb to be a poet
I'mma put you on game for the lames that don't know they're a rookie
Instagram is the best way to promote some pussy
Scary
Scary
No more parties in LA
Please, baby, no more parties in LA" Brooke White California Song An upbeat country California song from 2009 about California songs where everybody lives like they are living in the movies. From what I remember of 2009, the movies were a blend of The Grapes of Wrath and Mad Max, with The Terminator in charge of Sacramento. (I lived more like an extra in Bladerunner.)
"America sang me all the way across Ventura Highway
I was chasing the sun, just chasing the sun
Walking up the boulevard, looking down and counting stars
Singing ladies of the canyon
Now freeway's frozen and the traffic's jammed
But I feel like I'm living in the movies, look at me
Hey, everybody has their song, everybody sing along
Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na
Hey, don't worry if you get it wrong
Don't you know that you still belong
Na, na, na, na, na, na, in a California song
The weather on the Golden Gate
And the sun sets on the Palisades
And the beach boys are looking at me
And I'm bought in to that perfect scene
That the Mamas And The Papas sing
I was dreaming, I was dreaming
And it's so funny how everybody lives
Like they are living in the movies like they're so cool" Wilco California Stars On the 1998 Grammy-winning album "Mermaid Avenue," Billy Bragg and the band Wilco take turns writing new melodies for lyrics that the great folk singer/songwriter Woody Guthrie wrote but never published. In this one, Guthrie wrote about resting his head and dreaming his troubles away on a bed of California stars. Jeff Tweedy and Jay Bennett from Wilco put a beautiful melody to it.
"I'd like to dream
On a bed of California stars
Jump up from my starbed
Make another day
And warm the lovers' glass
Like friendly wine
So I'd give this world
Just to dream a dream with you
On our bed of California stars" Lucinda Williams Here in California My favorite cover of the Kate Wolf song. Lucinda Williams is a great country singer-songwriter herself, but I haven't heard any California songs from her yet. She focuses mostly on Texas and the South. The song comes from a 1998 Kate Wolf tribute album. Robbie Williams I Will Talk and Hollywood Will Listen Robbie Williams is an English singer, songwriter and actor formerly with the pop group Take That. He is the best-selling British solo artist in the UK.
This dramatic name-dropping pop song is from his 2001 album, "Swing When You're Winning."
"I wouldn't be so alone
If they knew my name in every home
Kevin Spacey would call on the phone
But I'd be too busy
Come back to the old five and dime
Cameron Diaz give me a sign
I'd make you smile all the time
Your conversation would compliment mine
I will talk and Hollywood will listen
See them bow at my every word
Mr Spielberg look just what you're missing
Doesn't that seem a little absurd
Bow at my every word
Buy up the rights to my book
Live on a ranch from what the box office took
I'll go and visit the set
They'll call me their saviour
All the peoples will scorn celebrity
Lives on the moon
But, I'll be back home in June
To promote the sequel
I will talk and Hollywood will listen
See them bow at my every word
Mr. Spielberg look just what you're missing
Doesn't that seem a little absurd
Bow at my every word" Gretchen Wilson California Girls In this 2005 Country reply to the Beach Boys, Gretchen is another hater of the unreal image of women depicted by Hollywood. Worst of all, those skinny little girls don't even eat fried chicken!
"I ain't never had a problem with California
There's a lot of good women from Sacramento to Corona
But them Hollywood types after a while wear on ya
Struttin' around in their size zeros
Skinny little girls no meat on their bones
Never even heard of George Jones
Ain't you glad we ain't all California girls
Ain't you glad there's still a few of us left.
That know how to rock your world
Ain't afraid to eat fried chicken and dirty dance to Merle
Ain't you glad we ain't all California girls"
Nancy Wilson I'm Always Drunk in San Francisco (And I Don't Drink at All) Nancy Wilson is a Grammy-winning American song stylist originally from Ohio. This brassy nightclub jazz ballad is from her 1968 album "Welcome to My Love." In the San Francisco of 1968 I'll bet you could get high just breathing the air - in certain parts of town at least. I vote that we retire the Tony Bennett anthem and use this one now.
"I'm always drunk in San Francisco
I always stay out of my mind
But if you been to San Francisco
They say that things like this go on all the time
It never happens nowhere else
Maybe it's the air
Can't reallly seem to help myself
And what's more I don't care
I'm always drunk in San Francisco
I'm never feeling any pain
So tell me why does San Francisco
Just like a lover's kiss goes, straight to my brain
I guess it's just the mood I'm in
That acts like alcohol
Because I'm drunk in San Francisco
And I don't drink at all." Kate Wolf Here in California A well-known and often covered song by the San Francisco folk singer/songwriter (who died young of leukemia in 1986) from her 1981 album "Close To You"
"When I was young my mamma told me
she said 'child, take your time
don't fall in love too quickly
before you know your mind.'
She held me round the shoulders
in a voice so soft and kind.
She said 'love can make you happy
and love can rob you blind.'
Here in California
fruit hangs heavy on the vine.
There's no gold , I thought I'd warn ya,
and the hills turn brown in the summertime." Kate Wolf Redtail Hawk This is a folk song written by George Schroder in 1975 but I don't know if it was released on a Kate Wolf record until after her death on the 1986 "Gold in California" album. Most of the lyrics I found online use the line "it's just something that needs another's hand" instead of what she sings on the album version "but there's just some things that need a man's hand." You can draw your own conclusions as to why the song may have been revised to exclude any mention of gender.
"The redtail hawk writes songs across the sky
There's music in the waters flowing by
And you can hear a song each time the wind sighs
In the golden rolling hills of California
In the golden rolling hills of California
It's been so long love since you said goodbye
My cabin's been as lonesome as a cry,
There's comfort in the clouds drifting by
In the golden rolling hills of California
In the golden rolling hills of California
Yes, a neighbour came today to lend a hand
He saw I'd fixed the road as best I can
But there's just some things that need a man's hand
In the golden rolling hills of California
In the golden rolling hills of California
The redtail hawk writes songs across the sky
There's music in the waters flowing by
And you can hear a song each time the wind sighs
In the golden rolling hills of California
In the golden rolling hills of California"
Bobby Womack California Dreamin' Womack turned the Mamas and the Papas' classic into a soul classic. (It was nicely used in the 2010 British film Fish Tank, also.) The World/Inferno Friendship Society
(aka "World Inferno," The Wifs" or "Inferno") All of California and Everyone Who Lives There Stinks This is a band from Brooklyn fronted by Jack Terricloth. This song was the b-side to the 1996 single "Our Candidate." Although I don't agree with the title, I can enjoy a good California hate song that debunks the myth that if you just drive west, "Things will be better in California." "Don't stop when you hit the Ocean" is sound advice. Maybe things will be better in Hawaii? Japan?
"Good Luck, Bad Luck
It's invisible tides of highways.
Don't you think, Charlie?
It's random shit like waves.
Yeah, F*** you Charlie.
we seek family, we find augeries that say
Stop your crying, keep on driving
Things will be better in California.
You like to play it safe,
but you want what you paid for,
I can't stand California.
The next day changing tires
we attract the usual flies and homeless
and it's 'cigarettes and change man?'
Consequences that await you
bad faith you're pushing West
you can't outrun or let run over you.
I won't stoop to prayer
cause the physics were already there
when Charlie wished us luck saying
Stop your crying, keep on driving
Things will be better in California.
I'm sure we had our reasons
but I can't recall them
I can't stand California.
Foundations can never be relain
and anyway its too late for weak hearts who won't decide
Don't stop when you hit the ocean
Panicked ants on the coast of slow motion.
I smell a dream dying, die dream die.
The rotted rind of this rotted country
rots in the West and its beyond me
Why anyone would look there for anything unless
You don't care what you're finding
is blank and confining
There are no answers in California
You're dumb enough to move there
You belong there
Stop your crying, keep on driving
Stop looking to California.
Oh, your reasons are cheap and see-through and
I can't stand California." X X Los Angeles I wore out my cassette copy of this great LA punk band's amazing 1980 album "Los Angeles" while driving up and down I-5 between LA and SF back in the early 80's. (Anybody remember cassettes in cars? (Update: Anybody remember cds in cars?)
"She had to leave Los Angeles.
She found it hard to say goodbye to her own best friend.
She bought a clock on Hollywood Boulevard the day she left.
It felt sad. She had to get out."
She also seems to be a racist in the rest of the lyrics, so good riddance...
Y Neil Young California Sunset Neil Young with violins and pedal steel praising his adopted land and remembering the Canadian cold and snow he came from.
"I remember long ago
How I wondered where I'd go
While the blizzards, cold wind and snow
Pounded outside my window.
Going down in the West
All the colors in the sky
Kiss another day goodbye.
Land of beauty, space and light
Land of promise land of might.
You're my home now and it's true
California, here's to you...." Neil Young Hitchhiker In this candid autobigraphical song from 2010, Young recounts his life journey as a musician from Canada to California, and from one drug to another.
"You didn't see me in Toronto
When I first tried out some hash
Smoked some then and I'll do it again
If I only had some cash
Only had some cash.
And my head was in a glass
Taped underneath the speedometer wires
Of my '48 Buick's dash.
But I knew that wouldn't last.
Then came California
Where I first saw open water
In the land of opportunity
I knew I was getting hotter
I knew I was getting hotter.
But the neon lights
Trying to make it pay.
Can't relate to joy,
he tries to speak and
Can't begin to say." Z Frank Zappa Uncle Remus This is a progressive rock song from Zappa's 1974 album "Apostrophe." People used to have statues of African American jockeys in front of their houses holding rings that could be used as hitching posts for horses. Some of them were holding lanterns. These Lawn Jockeys are what Zappa is referring to in this song. Some people consider them symbols of racism but others point out that colored ribbons tied to the jockeys were a system of communication with escaping slaves in the days of the Underground Railroad.
"Woah, are we movin' too slow?
Have you seen us,
We look pretty sharp in these clothes (yes, we do)
Unless we get sprayed with a hose
It ain't bad in the day
If they squirt it your way
'Cept in the winter, when it's froze
An' it's hard if it hits
On yer nose
To the grindstone, they say
Will that redeem us,
I can't wait till my fro is full-grown
I'll just throw 'way my doo-rag at home
I'll take a drive to Beverly Hills
Just before dawn
An' knock the little jockeys
Off the rich people's lawn
An' before they get up
I'll be gone, I'll be gone
Before they get up
I'll be knocking the jockeys off the lawn
Down in the dew" Frank and Moon Zappa Valley Girl Legendary singer-songwriter, guitarist and ex-Mother of Invention Frank Zappa and his 14-year-old daughter Moon had a big hit with this ironic lampoon of the language of teenage girls from the San Fernando Valley back in 1982. Unfortunately, it only popularized the stereotype and "Valspeak" slang until it seemed like every young girl sounded that way, and still does.
"Valley girl
And like all these like really great shoe stores
I love going into like clothing stores and stuff
I like buy the neatest mini-skirts and stuff
Its like so bitchen cuz like everybodys like
Super-super nice...
On Ventura, there she goes
She just bought some bitchen clothes
Tosses her head n flips her hair
She got a whole bunch of nothin in there." Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention San Ber'dino This is a crazy progressive rock song from the band's last studio album "One Size Fits All" released in 1975.
"She lives in Mojave in a Winnebago
His name is Bobby, he looks like a potato
She's in love with a boy
From the rodeo
Who pulls the rope on the chute
When they let those suckers go
(Yeah-hey! Suckers!)
He got slobberin' drunk at the Palomino
They give him thirty days in San Ber'dino
Well there's forty-four men
Stashed away in Tank "C"
An' there's only one shower
But it don't apply to Bobby
You may think they're
(Oh, God, they all stay there)
The rest of their lives
In San Ber'dino
Oh Bobby, I'm sorry you gotta head like a potato
I really am
(Ketchup!)" Warren Zevon Carmelita A quiet acoustic rock song from 1976 with a beautiful melody and a dark subject - the singer, a writer with a Mexican girlfriend, has a drug problem in downtown L.A. Linda Ronstadt and others have covered it, but Zevon wrote it, and I always give the credit to the songwriters, without whom, there's nothing to sing.
"Carmelita hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town.
Well, I pawned my Smith Corona
And I went to meet my man
He hangs out down on Alvarado Street
By the Pioneer chicken stand."
And, of course, there are acoustic Spanish guitars. I think that's the law in American pop music - whenever you mention Mexico or someone with a hispanic name, you gotta have those guitars.
Rob Zombie
(Go To) California I tend to like his movies better than his music, but this one's pretty good. It's kind of metal but with horns.From his album "The Sinister Urge" released in 1998.
"Blonde haired baby standing by the road
A pistol in her hand and talking on the phone
Said go to California (go to California)
Go to California (go to California)
Sidewalk gazing diamonds in the sky
Silent movie Gods are flashing in your eye
Said go to California (go to California)
Go to California (go to California)
Get up get out
Get up get out get in
Get up get out
Get up get out get in
Lon Chaney calling
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Thrift
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In Judaism, what name is given to the ram’s horn blown in a synagogue as a call to repentance?
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Eumaeus: ulys16.htm
PAREn route to his taciturn and, not to put too fine a point on it, not yet
perfectly sober companion Mr Bloom who at all events was in complete
possession of his faculties, never more so, in fact disgustingly sober, spoke a
word of caution re the dangers of nighttown, women of ill fame and swell
mobsmen, which, barely permissible once in a while though not as a
habitual practice, was of the nature of a regular deathtrap for young
fellows of his age particularly if they had acquired drinking habits under
the influence of liquor unless you knew a little jiujitsu for every contingency
as even a fellow on the broad of his back could administer a nasty kick if
you didn't look out. Highly providential was the appearance on the scene of
Corny Kelleher when Stephen was blissfully unconscious but for that man
in the gap turning up at the eleventh hour the finis might have been that he
might have been a candidate for the accident ward or, failing that, the
bridewell and an appearance in the court next day before Mr Tobias or, he
being the solicitor rather, old Wall, he meant to say, or Mahony which
simply spelt ruin for a chap when it got bruited about. The reason he
mentioned the fact was that a lot of those policemen, whom he cordially
disliked, were admittedly unscrupulous in the service of the Crown and, as
Mr Bloom put it, recalling a case or two in the A division in Clanbrassil
street, prepared to swear a hole through a ten gallon pot. Never on the spot
PARDiscussing these and kindred topics they made a beeline across the
back of the Customhouse and passed under the Loop Line bridge where a
brazier of coke burning in front of a sentrybox or something like one
attracted their rather lagging footsteps. Stephen of his own accord stopped
for no special reason to look at the heap of barren cobblestones and by the
light emanating from the brazier he could just make out the darker figure of
the corporation watchman inside the gloom of the sentrybox. He began to
remember that this had happened or had been mentioned as having
happened before but it cost him no small effort before he remembered that
he recognised in the sentry a quondam friend of his father's, Gumley. To
avoid a meeting he drew nearer to the pillars of the railway bridge.
PARSomeone saluted you, Mr Bloom said.
PARA figure of middle height on the prowl evidently under the arches
saluted again, calling:
PARStephen of course started rather dizzily and stopped to return the
compliment. Mr Bloom actuated by motives of inherent delicacy inasmuch
as he always believed in minding his own business moved off but
nevertheless remained on the qui vive with just a shade of anxiety though
not funkyish in the least. Though unusual in the Dublin area he knew that
PARStephen, that is when the accosting figure came to close quarters,
though he was not in an over sober state himself recognised Corley's breath
redolent of rotten cornjuice. Lord John Corley some called him and his
genealogy came about in this wise. He was the eldest son of inspector
Corley of the G division, lately deceased, who had married a certain
Katherine Brophy, the daughter of a Louth farmer. His grandfather
Patrick Michael Corley of New Ross had married the widow of a publican
there whose maiden name had been Katherine (also) Talbot. Rumour had it
(though not proved) that she descended from the house of the lords Talbot
de Malahide in whose mansion, really an unquestionably fine residence of
its kind and well worth seeing, her mother or aunt or some relative, a
woman, as the tale went, of extreme beauty, had enjoyed the distinction of
being in service in the washkitchen. This therefore was the reason why the
still comparatively young though dissolute man who now addressed
Stephen was spoken of by some with facetious proclivities as Lord John
Corley.
PARTaking Stephen on one side he had the customary doleful ditty to tell.
Not as much as a farthing to purchase a night's lodgings. His friends had
all deserted him. Furthermore he had a row with Lenehan and called him to
Stephen a mean bloody swab with a sprinkling of a number of other
uncalledfor expressions. He was out of a job and implored of Stephen to
tell him where on God's earth he could get something, anything at all, to do.
No, it was the daughter of the mother in the washkitchen that was
fostersister to the heir of the house or else they were connected through the
mother in some way, both occurrences happening at the same time if the
whole thing wasn't a complete fabrication from start to finish. Anyhow he
was all in.
PARI wouldn't ask you only, pursued he, on my solemn oath and God knows
I'm on the rocks.
PARThere'll be a job tomorrow or next day, Stephen told him, in a boys'
school at Dalkey for a gentleman usher. Mr Garrett Deasy. Try it. You may
mention my name.
PARThough this sort of thing went on every other night or very near it
still Stephen's feelings got the better of him in a sense though he knew that
Corley's brandnew rigmarole on a par with the others was hardly deserving
of much credence. However haud ignarus malorum miseris succurrere disco
etcetera as the Latin poet remarks especially as luck would have it he got
paid his screw after every middle of the month on the sixteenth which was
the date of the month as a matter of fact though a good bit of the
wherewithal was demolished. But the cream of the joke was nothing would
get it out of Corley's head that he was living in affluence and hadn't a thing
to do but hand out the needful. Whereas. He put his hand in a pocket
anyhow not with the idea of finding any food there but thinking he might
lend him anything up to a bob or so in lieu so that he might endeavour at all
events and get sufficient to eat but the result was in the negative for, to his
chagrin, he found his cash missing. A few broken biscuits were all the result
of his investigation. He tried his hardest to recollect for the moment
whether he had lost as well he might have or left because in that
contingency it was not a pleasant lookout, very much the reverse in fact. He
was altogether too fagged out to institute a thorough search though he tried
to recollect. About biscuits he dimly remembered. Who now exactly gave
them he wondered or where was or did he buy. However in another pocket
he came across what he surmised in the dark were pennies, erroneously
however, as it turned out.
PARThose are halfcrowns, man, Corley corrected him.
PARAnd so in point of fact they turned out to be. Stephen anyhow lent
him one of them.
PARThanks, Corley answered, you're a gentleman. I'll pay you back one
time. Who's that with you? I saw him a few times in the Bleeding Horse in
Camden street with Boylan, the billsticker. You might put in a good word
for us to get me taken on there. I'd carry a sandwichboard only the girl in
the office told me they're full up for the next three weeks, man. God, you've
to book ahead, man, you'd think it was for the Carl Rosa. I don't give a
shite anyway so long as I get a job, even as a crossing sweeper.
PARSubsequently being not quite so down in the mouth after the two and
six he got he informed Stephen about a fellow by the name of Bags
Comisky that he said Stephen knew well out of Fullam's, the
shipchandler's, bookkeeper there that used to be often round in Nagle's
back with O'Mara and a little chap with a stutter the name of Tighe.
Anyhow he was lagged the night before last and fined ten bob for a drunk
his practised eye, was not without perceiving that he had succumbed to the
blandiloquence of the other parasite. Alluding to the encounter he said,
laughingly, Stephen, that is:
PARHe is down on his luck. He asked me to ask you to ask somebody named
Boylan, a billsticker, to give him a job as a sandwichman.
PARAt this intelligence, in which he seemingly evinced little interest, Mr
Bloom gazed abstractedly for the space of a half a second or so in the
direction of a bucketdredger, rejoicing in the farfamed name of Eblana,
moored alongside Customhouse quay and quite possibly out of repair,
whereupon he observed evasively:
PAREverybody gets their own ration of luck, they say. Now you mention it
his face was familiar to me. But, leaving that for the moment, how much did
you part with, he queried, if I am not too inquisitive?
PARHalf a crown, Stephen responded. I daresay he needs it to sleep
somewhere.
PARNeeds! Mr Bloom ejaculated, professing not the least surprise at the
intelligence, I can quite credit the assertion and I guarantee he invariably
does. Everyone according to his needs or everyone according to his deeds.
But, talking about things in general, where, added he with a smile, will you
sleep yourself? Walking to Sandycove is out of the question. And even
supposing you did you won't get in after what occurred at Westland Row
station. Simply fag out there for nothing. I don't mean to presume to dictate
to you in the slightest degree but why did you leave your father's house?
PARTo seek misfortune, was Stephen's answer.
PARI met your respected father on a recent occasion, Mr Bloom
diplomatically returned, today in fact, or to be strictly accurate, on
yesterday. Where does he live at present? I gathered in the course of
conversation that he had moved.
PARI believe he is in Dublin somewhere, Stephen answered unconcernedly.
Why?
PARA gifted man, Mr Bloom said of Mr Dedalus senior, in more respects than
one and a born raconteur if ever there was one. He takes great pride, quite
legitimate, out of you. You could go back perhaps, he hasarded, still
thinking of the very unpleasant scene at Westland Row terminus when it
was perfectly evident that the other two, Mulligan, that is, and that English
tourist friend of his, who eventually euchred their third companion, were
patently trying as if the whole bally station belonged to them to give
Stephen the slip in the confusion, which they did.
PARThere was no response forthcoming to the suggestion however, such
as it was, Stephen's mind's eye being too busily engaged in repicturing his
family hearth the last time he saw it with his sister Dilly sitting by the ingle,
her hair hanging down, waiting for some weak Trinidad shell cocoa that
was in the sootcoated kettle to be done so that she and he could drink it
with the oatmealwater for milk after the Friday herrings they had eaten at
two a penny with an egg apiece for Maggy, Boody and Katey, the cat
meanwhile under the mangle devouring a mess of eggshells and charred fish
heads and bones on a square of brown paper, in accordance with the third
precept of the church to fast and abstain on the days commanded, it being
quarter tense or if not, ember days or something like that.
PARNo, Mr Bloom repeated again, I wouldn't personally repose much trust in
that boon companion of yours who contributes the humorous element, Dr
Mulligan, as a guide, philosopher and friend if I were in your shoes. He
knows which side his bread is buttered on though in all probability he never
realised what it is to be without regular meals. Of course you didn't notice
as much as I did. But it wouldn't occasion me the least surprise to learn that
a pinch of tobacco or some narcotic was put in your drink for some ulterior
object.
PARHe understood however from all he heard that Dr Mulligan was a
versatile allround man, by no means confined to medicine only, who was
rapidly coming to the fore in his line and, if the report was verified, bade
fair to enjoy a flourishing practice in the not too distant future as a tony
medical practitioner drawing a handsome fee for his services in addition to
which professional status his rescue of that man from certain drowning by
artificial respiration and what they call first aid at Skerries, or Malahide
was it?, was, he was bound to admit, an exceedingly plucky deed which he
could not too highly praise, so that frankly he was utterly at a loss to
fathom what earthly reason could be at the back of it except he put it down
to sheer cussedness or jealousy, pure and simple.
PARExcept it simply amounts to one thing and he is what they call picking
your brains, he ventured to throw out.
PARMr Bloom and Stephen entered the cabman's shelter, an
unpretentious wooden structure, where, prior to then, he had rarely if ever
been before, the former having previously whispered to the latter a few
hints anent the keeper of it said to be the once famous Skin-the-Goat
Fitzharris, the invincible, though he could not vouch for the actual facts
which quite possibly there was not one vestige of truth in. A few moments
later saw our two noctambules safely seated in a discreet corner only to be
greeted by stares from the decidedly miscellaneous collection of waifs and
strays and other nondescript specimens of the genus homo already there
engaged in eating and drinking diversified by conversation for whom they
seemingly formed an object of marked curiosity.
PARNow touching a cup of coffee, Mr Bloom ventured to plausibly suggest to
break the ice, it occurs to me you ought to sample something in the shape of
solid food, say, a roll of some description.
PARAccordingly his first act was with characteristic sangfroid to order
these commodities quietly. The hoi polloi of jarvies or stevedores or
whatever they were after a cursory examination turned their eyes
apparently dissatisfied, away though one redbearded bibulous individual
portion of whose hair was greyish, a sailor probably, still stared for some
appreciable time before transferring his rapt attention to the floor. Mr
Bloom, availing himself of the right of free speech, he having just a bowing
acquaintance with the language in dispute, though, to be sure, rather in a
quandary over voglio, remarked to his protégé in an audible tone of voice à
propos of the battle royal in the street which was still raging fast and
furious:
PARA beautiful language. I mean for singing purposes. Why do you not write
your poetry in that language? Bella Poetria! It is so melodious and full.
Belladonna. Voglio.
PARStephen, who was trying his dead best to yawn if he could, suffering
from lassitude generally, replied:
pushing the cup of what was temporarily supposed to be called coffee
gradually nearer him.
PARSounds are impostures, Stephen said after a pause of some little time, like
names. Cicero, Podmore. Napoleon, Mr Goodbody. Jesus, Mr Doyle.
Shakespeares were as common as Murphies. What's in a name?
PARYes, to be sure, Mr Bloom unaffectedly concurred. Of course. Our name
was changed too, he added, pushing the socalled roll across.
PARThe redbearded sailor who had his weather eye on the newcomers
boarded Stephen, whom he had singled out for attention in particular,
squarely by asking:
PARAnd what might your name be?
PARJust in the nick of time Mr Bloom touched his companion's boot but
Stephen, apparently disregarding the warm pressure from an unexpected
quarter, answered:
PARThe sailor stared at him heavily from a pair of drowsy baggy eyes,
rather bunged up from excessive use of boose, preferably good old
Hollands and water.
PARYou know Simon Dedalus? he asked at length.
PARI've heard of him, Stephen said.
PARMr Bloom was all at sea for a moment, seeing the others evidently
eavesdropping too.
PARHe's Irish, the seaman bold affirmed, staring still in much the same way
and nodding. All Irish.
PARAll too Irish, Stephen rejoined.
PARAs for Mr Bloom he could neither make head or tail of the whole
business and he was just asking himself what possible connection when the
sailor of his own accord turned to the other occupants of the shelter with
the remark:
PARThough he was slightly hampered by an occasional stammer and his
gestures being also clumsy as it was still he did his best to explain.
PARBottles out there, say. Fifty yards measured. Eggs on the bottles. Cocks
his gun over his shoulder. Aims.
PARHe turned his body half round, shut up his right eye completely. Then
he screwed his features up someway sideways and glared out into the night
with an unprepossessing cast of countenance.
PARPom! he then shouted once.
PARThe entire audience waited, anticipating an additional detonation,
there being still a further egg.
PARPom! he shouted twice.
PAREgg two evidently demolished, he nodded and winked, adding
bloodthirstily:
PARBuffalo Bill shoots to kill,
Never missed nor he never will.
PARA silence ensued till Mr Bloom for agreeableness' sake just felt like
asking him whether it was for a marksmanship competition like the Bisley.
PAR
PARWhy, the sailor replied, relaxing to a certain extent under the magic
influence of diamond cut diamond, it might be a matter of ten years. He
toured the wide world with Hengler's Royal Circus. I seen him do that in
Stockholm.
PARCurious coincidence, Mr Bloom confided to Stephen unobtrusively.
PARMurphy's my name, the sailor continued. D. B. Murphy of Carrigaloe.
Know where that is?
PARQueenstown harbour, Stephen replied.
PARThat's right, the sailor said. Fort Camden and Fort Carlisle. That's where
I hails from. I belongs there. That's where I hails from. My little woman's
down there. She's waiting for me, I know. For England, home and beauty.
She's my own true wife I haven't seen for seven years now, sailing about.
PARMr Bloom could easily picture his advent on this scene, the
homecoming to the mariner's roadside shieling after having diddled Davy
Jones, a rainy night with a blind moon. Across the world for a wife. Quite a
number of stories there were on that particular Alice Ben Bolt topic, Enoch
Arden and Rip van Winkle and does anybody hereabouts remember Caoc
O'Leary, a favourite and most trying declamation piece by the way of poor
John Casey and a bit of perfect poetry in its own small way. Never about
the runaway wife coming back, however much devoted to the absentee. The
PARWe come up this morning eleven o'clock. The threemaster Rosevean
from Bridgwater with bricks. I shipped to get over. Paid off this afternoon.
There's my discharge. See? D. B. Murphy. A. B. S.
PARIn confirmation of which statement he extricated from an inside
pocket and handed to his neighbour a not very cleanlooking folded
document.
PARYou must have seen a fair share of the world, the keeper remarked,
leaning on the counter.
PARWhy, the sailor answered upon reflection upon it, I've circumnavigated a
bit since I first joined on. I was in the Red Sea. I was in China and North
America and South America. We was chased by pirates one voyage. I seen
icebergs plenty, growlers. I was in Stockholm and the Black Sea, the
Dardanelles under Captain Dalton, the best bloody man that ever scuttled a
ship. I seen Russia. Gospodi pomilyou. That's how the Russians prays.
PARYou seen queer sights, don't be talking, put in a jarvey.
PARWhy, the sailor said, shifting his partially chewed plug. I seen queer
things too, ups and downs. I seen a crocodile bite the fluke of an anchor
same as I chew that quid.
PARHe took out of his mouth the pulpy quid and, lodging it between his
teeth, bit ferociously:
PARKhaan! Like that. And I seen maneaters in Peru that eats corpses and the
livers of horses. Look here. Here they are. A friend of mine sent me.
PARHe fumbled out a picture postcard from his inside pocket which
seemed to be in its way a species of repository and pushed it along the table.
The printed matter on it stated: Choza de Indios. Beni, Bolivia.
PARAll focussed their attention at the scene exhibited, a group of savage
women in striped loincloths, squatted, blinking, suckling, frowning,
sleeping amid a swarm of infants (there must have been quite a score of
them) outside some primitive shanties of osier.
PARChews coca all day, the communicative tarpaulin added. Stomachs like
breadgraters. Cuts off their diddies when they can't bear no more children.
See them sitting there stark ballocknaked eating a dead horse's liver raw.
PARHis postcard proved a centre of attraction for Messrs the greenhorns
for several minutes if not more.
PAR
There was no message evidently, as he took particular notice.
PARThough not an implicit believer in the lurid story narrated (or the
eggsniping transaction for that matter despite William Tell and the
Lazarillo-Don Cesar de Bazan incident depicted in Maritana on which
occasion the former's ball passed through the latter's hat) having detected a
discrepancy between his name (assuming he was the person he represented
himself to be and not sailing under false colours after having boxed the
compass on the strict q.t. somewhere) and the fictitious addressee of the
missive which made him nourish some suspicions of our friend's bona fides
nevertheless it reminded him in a way of a longcherished plan he meant to
one day realise some Wednesday or Saturday of travelling to London via
long sea not to say that he had ever travelled extensively to any great extent
but he was at heart a born adventurer though by a trick of fate he had
consistently remained a landlubber except you call going to Holyhead
which was his longest. Martin Cunningham frequently said he would work
a pass through Egan but some deuced hitch or other eternally cropped up
with the net result that the scheme fell through. But even suppose it did
come to planking down the needful and breaking Boyd's heart it was not so
dear, purse permitting, a few guineas at the outside considering the fare to
Mullingar where he figured on going was five and six, there and back. The
trip would benefit health on account of the bracing ozone and be in every
way thoroughly pleasurable, especially for a chap whose liver was out of
order, seeing the different places along the route, Plymouth, Falmouth,
Southampton and so on culminating in an instructive tour of the sights of
the great metropolis, the spectacle of our modern Babylon where doubtless
he would see the greatest improvement, tower, abbey, wealth of Park lane to
renew acquaintance with. Another thing just struck him as a by no means
bad notion was he might have a gaze around on the spot to see about trying
to make arrangements about a concert tour of summer music embracing the
most prominent pleasure resorts, Margate with mixed bathing and firstrate
small blame to our vaunted society that the man in the street, when the
system really needed toning up, for the matter of a couple of paltry pounds
was debarred from seeing more of the world they lived in instead of being
always and ever cooped up since my old stick-in-the-mud took me for a
wife. After all, hang it, they had their eleven and more humdrum months of
it and merited a radical change of venue after the grind of city life in the
summertime for choice when dame Nature is at her spectacular best
constituting nothing short of a new lease of life. There were equally
excellent opportunities for vacationists in the home island, delightful sylvan
spots for rejuvenation, offering a plethora of attractions as well as a bracing
tonic for the system in and around Dublin and its picturesque environs
even, Poulaphouca to which there was a steamtram, but also farther away
from the madding crowd in Wicklow, rightly termed the garden of Ireland,
an ideal neighbourhood for elderly wheelmen so long as it didn't come
down, and in the wilds of Donegal where if report spoke true the coup d'il
was exceedingly grand though the lastnamed locality was not easily
getatable so that the influx of visitors was not as yet all that it might be
considering the signal benefits to be derived from it while Howth with its
historic associations and otherwise, Silken Thomas, Grace O'Malley,
George IV, rhododendrons several hundred feet above sealevel was a
favourite haunt with all sorts and conditions of men especially in the spring
when young men's fancy, though it had its own toll of deaths by falling off
the cliffs by design or accidentally, usually, by the way, on their left leg, it
being only about three quarters of an hour's run from the pillar. Because of
course uptodate tourist travelling was as yet merely in its infancy, so to
speak, and the accommodation left much to be desired. Interesting to
fathom it seemed to him from a motive of curiosity, pure and simple, was
whether it was the traffic that created the route or viceversa or the two sides
in fact. He turned back the other side of the card, picture, and passed it
along to Stephen.
PARAt this remark passed obviously in the spirit of where ignorance is
bliss Mr B. and Stephen, each in his own particular way, both instinctively
exchanged meaning glances, in a religious silence of the strictly entre nous
variety however, towards where Skin-the-Goat, alias the keeper, not
turning a hair, was drawing spurts of liquid from his boiler affair. His
inscrutable face which was really a work of art, a perfect study in itself,
beggaring description, conveyed the impression that he didn't understand
one jot of what was going on. Funny, very!
PARThere ensued a somewhat lengthy pause. One man was reading in fits
and starts a stained by coffee evening journal, another the card with the
natives choza de, another the seaman's discharge. Mr Bloom, so far as he
was personally concerned, was just pondering in pensive mood. He vividly
recollected when the occurrence alluded to took place as well as yesterday,
roughly some score of years previously in the days of the land troubles,
when it took the civilised world by storm, figuratively speaking, early in the
eighties, eightyone to be correct, when he was just turned fifteen.
PAR
PAROur soi-disant sailor munched heavily awhile hungrily before
answering:
PARI'm tired of all them rocks in the sea, he said, and boats and ships. Salt
junk all the time.
PARTired seemingly, he ceased. His questioner perceiving that he was not
likely to get a great deal of change out of such a wily old customer, fell to
woolgathering on the enormous dimensions of the water about the globe,
suffice it to say that, as a casual glance at the map revealed, it covered fully
three fourths of it and he fully realised accordingly what it meant to rule the
waves. On more than one occasion, a dozen at the lowest, near the North
Bull at Dollymount he had remarked a superannuated old salt, evidently
derelict, seated habitually near the not particularly redolent sea on the wall,
staring quite obliviously at it and it at him, dreaming of fresh woods and
pastures new as someone somewhere sings. And it left him wondering why.
Possibly he had tried to find out the secret for himself, floundering up and
down the antipodes and all that sort of thing and over and under, well, not
exactly under, tempting the fates. And the odds were twenty to nil there was
really no secret about it at all. Nevertheless, without going into the minutiae
of the business, the eloquent fact remained that the sea was there in all its
glory and in the natural course of things somebody or other had to sail on it
and fly in the face of providence though it merely went to show how people
usually contrived to load that sort of onus on to the other fellow like the hell
idea and the lottery and insurance which were run on identically the same
lines so that for that very reason if no other lifeboat Sunday was a highly
laudable institution to which the public at large, no matter where living
inland or seaside, as the case might be, having it brought home to them like
that should extend its gratitude also to the harbourmasters and coastguard
service who had to man the rigging and push off and out amid the elements
whatever the season when duty called Ireland expects that every man and so
on and sometimes had a terrible time of it in the wintertime not forgetting
the Irish lights, Kish and others, liable to capsize at any moment, rounding
which he once with his daughter had experienced some remarkably choppy,
not to say stormy, weather.
PARThere was a fellow sailed with me in the Rover, the old seadog, himself a
rover, proceeded, went ashore and took up a soft job as gentleman's valet at
six quid a month. Them are his trousers I've on me and he gave me an
oilskin and that jackknife. I'm game for that job, shaving and brushup. I
hate roaming about. There's my son now, Danny, run off to sea and his
mother got him took in a draper's in Cork where he could be drawing easy
money.
PARWhat age is he? queried one hearer who, by the way, seen from the side,
bore a distant resemblance to Henry Campbell, the townclerk, away from
the carking cares of office, unwashed of course and in a seedy getup and a
strong suspicion of nosepaint about the nasal appendage.
PARWhy, the sailor answered with a slow puzzled utterance, my son, Danny?
He'd be about eighteen now, way I figure it.
PARThe Skibbereen father hereupon tore open his grey or unclean
anyhow shirt with his two hands and scratched away at his chest on which
was to be seen an image tattooed in blue Chinese ink intended to represent
an anchor.
PARThere was lice in that bunk in Bridgwater, he remarked, sure as nuts. I
must get a wash tomorrow or next day. It's them black lads I objects to. I
hate those buggers. Suck your blood dry, they does.
PARSeeing they were all looking at his chest he accommodatingly dragged
his shirt more open so that on top of the timehonoured symbol of the
mariner's hope and rest they had a full view of the figure 16 and a young
man's sideface looking frowningly rather.
PARTattoo, the exhibitor explained. That was done when we were Iying
becalmed off Odessa in the Black Sea under Captain Dalton. Fellow, the
name of Antonio, done that. There he is himself, a Greek.
PARDid it hurt much doing it? one asked the sailor.
PARThat worthy, however, was busily engaged in collecting round the.
Someway in his. Squeezing or.
PARSee here, he said, showing Antonio. There he is cursing the mate. And
there he is now, he added, the same fellow, pulling the skin with his fingers,
some special knack evidently, and he laughing at a yarn.
PARAnd in point of fact the young man named Antonio's livid face did
actually look like forced smiling and the curious effect excited the
unreserved admiration of everybody including Skin-the-Goat, who this
time stretched over.
PARAy, ay, sighed the sailor, looking down on his manly chest. He's gone
too. Ate by sharks after. Ay, ay.
PARHe let go of the skin so that the profile resumed the normal expression
of before.
PARNeat bit of work, one longshoreman said.
PARAnd what's the number for? loafer number two queried.
PAREaten alive? a third asked the sailor.
PARAy, ay, sighed again the latter personage, more cheerily this time with
some sort of a half smile for a brief duration only in the direction of the
questioner about the number. Ate. A Greek he was.
PARAnd then he added with rather gallowsbird humour considering his
alleged end:
PARAs bad as old Antonio,
For he left me on my ownio.
PARThe face of a streetwalker glazed and haggard under a black straw
hat peered askew round the door of the shelter palpably reconnoitring on
her own with the object of bringing more grist to her mill. Mr Bloom,
scarcely knowing which way to look, turned away on the moment
flusterfied but outwardly calm, and, picking up from the table the pink sheet
of the Abbey street organ which the jarvey, if such he was, had laid aside,
he picked it up and looked at the pink of the paper though why pink. His
reason for so doing was he recognised on the moment round the door the
same face he had caught a fleeting glimpse of that afternoon on Ormond
quay, the partially idiotic female, namely, of the lane who knew the lady in
the brown costume does be with you (Mrs B.) and begged the chance of his
washing. Also why washing which seemed rather vague than not, your
washing. Still candour compelled him to admit he had washed his wife's
undergarments when soiled in Holles street and women would and did too
a man's similar garments initialled with Bewley and Draper's marking ink
(hers were, that is) if they really loved him, that is to say, love me, love my
dirty shirt. Still just then, being on tenterhooks, he desired the female's
room more than her company so it came as a genuine relief when the keeper
made her a rude sign to take herself off. Round the side of the Evening
Telegraph he just caught a fleeting glimpse of her face round the side of the
door with a kind of demented glassy grin showing that she was not exactly
all there, viewing with evident amusement the group of gazers round
skipper Murphy's nautical chest and then there was no more of her.
PAR
PARO that, Stephen expostulated, has been proved conclusively by several of
the bestknown passages in Holy Writ, apart from circumstantial evidence.
PAROn this knotty point however the views of the pair, poles apart as they
were both in schooling and everything else with the marked difference in
their respective ages, clashed.
PARHas been? the more experienced of the two objected, sticking to his
original point with a smile of unbelief. I'm not so sure about that. That's a
matter for everyman's opinion and, without dragging in the sectarian side
of the business, I beg to differ with you in toto there. My belief is, to tell you
the candid truth, that those bits were genuine forgeries all of them put in by
monks most probably or it's the big question of our national poet over
again, who precisely wrote them like Hamlet and Bacon, as, you who know
your Shakespeare infinitely better than I, of course I needn't tell you. Can't
you drink that coffee, by the way? Let me stir it. And take a piece of that
bun. It's like one of our skipper's bricks disguised. Still no-one can give
what he hasn't got. Try a bit.
PARCouldn't, Stephen contrived to get out, his mental organs for the moment
refusing to dictate further.
took a sip of the offending beverage.
PARStill it's solid food, his good genius urged, I'm a stickler for solid food,
his one and only reason being not gormandising in the least but regular
meals as the sine qua non for any kind of proper work, mental or manual.
You ought to eat more solid food. You would feel a different man.
PARLiquids I can eat, Stephen said. But O, oblige me by taking away that
knife. I can't look at the point of it. It reminds me of Roman history.
PARMr Bloom promptly did as suggested and removed the incriminated
article, a blunt hornhandled ordinary knife with nothing particularly
Roman or antique about it to the lay eye, observing that the point was the
least conspicuous point about it.
PAROur mutual friend's stories are like himself, Mr Bloom apropos of knives
remarked to his confidante sotto voce. Do you think they are genuine? He
could spin those yarns for hours on end all night long and lie like old boots.
Look at him.
PARYet still though his eyes were thick with sleep and sea air life was full
of a host of things and coincidences of a terrible nature and it was quite
within the bounds of possibility that it was not an entire fabrication though
at first blush there was not much inherent probability in all the spoof he got
off his chest being strictly accurate gospel.
that is rather a far cry, you see once in a way, Marcella the midget queen. In
those waxworks in Henry street I myself saw some Aztecs, as they are
called, sitting bowlegged, they couldn't straighten their legs if you paid
them because the muscles here, you see, he proceeded, indicating on his
companion the brief outline of the sinews or whatever you like to call them
behind the right knee, were utterly powerless from sitting that way so long
cramped up, being adored as gods. There's an example again of simple
souls.
PARHowever reverting to friend Sinbad and his horrifying adventures
(who reminded him a bit of Ludwig, alias Ledwidge, when he occupied the
boards of the Gaiety when Michael Gunn was identified with the
management in the Flying Dutchman, a stupendous success, and his host of
admirers came in large numbers, everyone simply flocking to hear him
though ships of any sort, phantom or the reverse, on the stage usually fell a
bit flat as also did trains) there was nothing intrinsically incompatible about
it, he conceded. On the contrary that stab in the back touch was quite in
keeping with those italianos though candidly he was none the less free to
admit those icecreamers and friers in the fish way not to mention the chip
potato variety and so forth over in little Italy there near the Coombe were
sober thrifty hardworking fellows except perhaps a bit too given to
pothunting the harmless necessary animal of the feline persuasion of others
at night so as to have a good old succulent tuckin with garlic de rigueur off
him or her next day on the quiet and, he added, on the cheap.
PARSpaniards, for instance, he continued, passionate temperaments like that,
impetuous as Old Nick, are given to taking the law into their own hands
and give you your quietus doublequick with those poignards they carry in
the abdomen. It comes from the great heat, climate generally. My wife is, so
to speak, Spanish, half that is. Point of fact she could actually claim
Spanish nationality if she wanted, having been born in (technically) Spain,
i.e. Gibraltar. She has the Spanish type. Quite dark, regular brunette, black.
I for one certainly believe climate accounts for character. That's why I
asked you if you wrote your poetry in Italian.
PARThe temperaments at the door, Stephen interposed with, were very
passionate about ten shillings. Roberto ruba roba sua.
PARQuite so, Mr Bloom dittoed.
PARThen, Stephen said staring and rambling on to himself or some unknown
listener somewhere, we have the impetuosity of Dante and the isosceles
triangle miss Portinari he fell in love with and Leonardo and san Tommaso
Mastino.
of the sun. Coincidence I just happened to be in the Kildare street museum
today, shortly prior to our meeting if I can so call it, and I was just looking
at those antique statues there. The splendid proportions of hips, bosom.
You simply don't knock against those kind of women here. An exception
here and there. Handsome yes, pretty in a way you find but what I'm
talking about is the female form. Besides they have so little taste in dress,
most of them, which greatly enhances a woman's natural beauty, no matter
what you say. Rumpled stockings, it may be, possibly is, a foible of mine but
still it's a thing I simply hate to see.
PARInterest, however, was starting to flag somewhat all round and then
the others got on to talking about accidents at sea, ships lost in a fog, goo
collisions with icebergs, all that sort of thing. Shipahoy of course had his
own say to say. He had doubled the cape a few odd times and weathered a
monsoon, a kind of wind, in the China seas and through all those perils of
the deep there was one thing, he declared, stood to him or words to that
effect, a pious medal he had that saved him.
PARSo then after that they drifted on to the wreck off Daunt's rock, wreck
of that illfated Norwegian barque nobody could think of her name for the
moment till the jarvey who had really quite a look of Henry Campbell
remembered it Palme on Booterstown strand. That was the talk of the town
that year (Albert William Quill wrote a fine piece of original verse of
distinctive merit on the topic for the Irish Times), breakers running over
her and crowds and crowds on the shore in commotion petrified with
horror. Then someone said something about the case of the s. s. Lady
Cairns of Swansea run into by the Mona which was on an opposite tack in
rather muggyish weather and lost with all hands on deck. No aid was given.
Her master, the Mona's, said he was afraid his collision bulkhead would
give way. She had no water, it appears, in her hold.
PARAt this stage an incident happened. It having become necessary for
him to unfurl a reef the sailor vacated his seat.
only launch that year. Right enough the harbours were there only no ships
ever called.
PARThere were wrecks and wreckers, the keeper said, who was evidently
au fait.
PARWhat he wanted to ascertain was why that ship ran bang against the
only rock in Galway bay when the Galway harbour scheme was mooted by
a Mr Worthington or some name like that, eh? Ask the then captain, he
advised them, how much palmoil the British government gave him for that
day's work, Captain John Lever of the Lever Line.
PARAm I right, skipper? he queried of the sailor, now returning after his
private potation and the rest of his exertions.
PARThat worthy picking up the scent of the fagend of the song or words
growled in wouldbe music but with great vim some kind of chanty or other
in seconds or thirds. Mr Bloom's sharp ears heard him then expectorate the
plug probably (which it was), so that he must have lodged it for the time
being in his fist while he did the drinking and making water jobs and found
it a bit sour after the liquid fire in question. Anyhow in he rolled after his
successful libation-cum-potation, introducing an atmosphere of drink into
the soirée, boisterously trolling, like a veritable son of a seacook:
PARThe biscuits was as hard as brass
PARAfter which effusion the redoubtable specimen duly arrived on the
scene and regaining his seat he sank rather than sat heavily on the form
provided. Skin-the-Goat, assuming he was he, evidently with an axe to
grind, was airing his grievances in a forcible-feeble philippic anent the
natural resources of Ireland or something of that sort which he described in
his lengthy dissertation as the richest country bar none on the face of God's
earth, far and away superior to England, with coal in large quantities, six
million pounds worth of pork exported every year, ten millions between 990
butter and eggs and all the riches drained out of it by England levying taxes
on the poor people that paid through the nose always and gobbling up the
best meat in the market and a lot more surplus steam in the same vein. Their
conversation accordingly became general and all agreed that that was a
fact. You could grow any mortal thing in Irish soil, he stated, and there was
that colonel Everard down there in Navan growing tobacco. Where would
you find anywhere the like of Irish bacon? But a day of reckoning, he stated
crescendo with no uncertain voice, thoroughly monopolising all the
conversation, was in store for mighty England, despite her power of pelf on
account of her crimes. There would be a fall and the greatest fall in history.
The Germans and the Japs were going to have their little lookin, he
affirmed. The Boers were the beginning of the end. Brummagem England
was toppling already and her downfall would be Ireland, her Achilles heel,
which he explained to them about the vulnerable point of Achilles, the
Greek hero, a point his auditors at once seized as he completely gripped
their attention by showing the tendon referred to on his boot. His advice to
every Irishman was: stay in the land of your birth and work for Ireland
and live for Ireland. Ireland, Parnell said, could not spare a single one of
her sons.
PARSilence all round marked the termination of his finale. The
impervious navigator heard these lurid tidings, undismayed.
PAR
PARThat's right, the old tarpaulin corroborated. The Irish catholic peasant.
He's the backbone of our empire. You know Jem Mullins?
PARWhile allowing him his individual opinions as everyman the keeper
added he cared nothing for any empire, ours or his, and considered no
Irishman worthy of his salt that served it. Then they began to have a few
irascible words when it waxed hotter, both, needless to say, appealing to the
listeners who followed the passage of arms with interest so long as they
didn't indulge in recriminations and come to blows.
PARFrom inside information extending over a series of years Mr Bloom
was rather inclined to poohpooh the suggestion as egregious balderdash
for, pending that consummation devoutly to be or not to be wished for, he
was fully cognisant of the fact that their neighbours across the channel,
unless they were much bigger fools than he took them for, rather concealed
their strength than the opposite. It was quite on a par with the quixotic idea
in certain quarters that in a hundred million years the coal seam of the sister
island would be played out and if, as time went on, that turned out to be
how the cat jumped all he could personally say on the matter was that as a
host of contingencies, equally relevant to the issue, might occur ere then it
was highly advisable in the interim to try to make the most of both countries
even though poles apart. Another little interesting point, the amours of
whores and chummies, to put it in common parlance, reminded him Irish
soldiers had as often fought for England as against her, more so, in fact.
And now, why? So the scene between the pair of them, the licensee of the
place rumoured to be or have been Fitzharris, the famous invincible, and
the other, obviously bogus, reminded him forcibly as being on all fours with
the confidence trick, supposing, that is, it was prearranged as the lookeron,
a student of the human soul if anything, the others seeing least of the game.
And as for the lessee or keeper, who probably wasn't the other person at all,
he (B.) couldn't help feeling and most properly it was better to give people
like that the goby unless you were a blithering idiot altogether and refuse to
have anything to do with them as a golden rule in private life and their
felonsetting, there always being the offchance of a Dannyman coming
forward and turning queen's evidence or king's now like Denis or Peter
Carey, an idea he utterly repudiated. Quite apart from that he disliked
those careers of wrongdoing and crime on principle. Yet, though such
criminal propensities had never been an inmate of his bosom in any shape
or form, he certainly did feel and no denying it (while inwardly remaining
what he was) a certain kind of admiration for a man who had actually
brandished a knife, cold steel, with the courage of his political convictions
PARHe took umbrage at something or other, that muchinjured but on the
whole eventempered person declared, I let slip. He called me a jew and in a
heated fashion offensively. So I without deviating from plain facts in the
least told him his God, I mean Christ, was a jew too and all his family like
me though in reality I'm not. That was one for him. A soft answer turns
away wrath. He hadn't a word to say for himself as everyone saw. Am I not
right?
PARHe turned a long you are wrong gaze on Stephen of timorous dark
pride at the soft impeachment with a glance also of entreaty for he seemed
to glean in a kind of a way that it wasn't all exactly.
PAREx quibus, Stephen mumbled in a noncommittal accent, their two or four
eyes conversing, Christus or Bloom his name is or after all any other,
secundum carnem.
PAROf course, Mr B. proceeded to stipulate, you must look at both sides of
the question. It is hard to lay down any hard and fast rules as to right and
wrong but room for improvement all round there certainly is though every
country, they say, our own distressful included, has the government it
deserves. But with a little goodwill all round. It's all very fine to boast of
mutual superiority but what about mutual equality. I resent violence and
intolerance in any shape or form. It never reaches anything or stops
anything. A revolution must come on the due instalments plan. It's a patent
absurdity on the face of it to hate people because they live round the corner
and speak another vernacular, in the next house so to speak.
PARMemorable bloody bridge battle and seven minutes' war, Stephen
assented, between Skinner's alley and Ormond market.
PARYes, Mr Bloom thoroughly agreed, entirely endorsing the remark, that
was overwhelmingly right. And the whole world was full of that sort of
thing.
conflicting evidence that candidly you couldn't remotely ....
PARAll those wretched quarrels, in his humble opinion, stirring up bad
blood, from some bump of combativeness or gland of some kind,
erroneously supposed to be about a punctilio of honour and a flag, were
very largely a question of the money question which was at the back of
everything greed and jealousy, people never knowing when to stop.
PARThey accuse, remarked he audibly.
PARHe turned away from the others who probably and spoke nearer to,
so as the others in case they.
PARJews, he softly imparted in an aside in Stephen's ear, are accused of
ruining. Not a vestige of truth in it, I can safely say. History, would you be
surprised to learn, proves up to the hilt Spain decayed when the inquisition
hounded the jews out and England prospered when Cromwell, an
uncommonly able ruffian who in other respects has much to answer for,
imported them. Why? Because they are imbued with the proper spirit. They
are practical and are proved to be so. I don't want to indulge in any because
you know the standard works on the subject and then orthodox as you are.
But in the economic, not touching religion, domain the priest spells poverty.
Spain again, you saw in the war, compared with goahead America. Turks.
It's in the dogma. Because if they didn't believe they'd go straight to heaven
when they die they'd try to live better, at least so I think. That's the juggle
on which the p.p's raise the wind on false pretences. I'm, he resumed with
dramatic force, as good an Irishman as that rude person I told you about at
the outset and I want to see everyone, concluded he, all creeds and classes
pro rata having a comfortable tidysized income, in no niggard fashion
either, something in the neighbourhood of £300 per annum. That's the vital
issue at stake and it's feasible and would be provocative of friendlier
intercourse between man and man. At least that's my idea for what it's
worth. I call that patriotism. Ubi patria, as we learned a smattering of in
our classical days in Alma Mater, vita bene. Where you can live well, the
sense is, if you work.
PAROver his untastable apology for a cup of coffee, listening to this
synopsis of things in general, Stephen stared at nothing in particular. He
could hear, of course, all kinds of words changing colour like those crabs
about Ringsend in the morning burrowing quickly into all colours of
different sorts of the same sand where they had a home somewhere beneath
or seemed to. Then he looked up and saw the eyes that said or didn't say the
words the voice he heard said, if you work.
PARCount me out, he managed to remark, meaning work.
PARThe eyes were surprised at this observation because as he, the person
who owned them pro tem. observed or rather his voice speaking did, all
must work, have to, together.
PARI mean, of course, the other hastened to affirm, work in the widest
possible sense. Also literary labour not merely for the kudos of the thing.
Writing for the newspapers which is the readiest channel nowadays. That's
work too. Important work. After all, from the little I know of you, after all
the money expended on your education you are entitled to recoup yourself
and command your price. You have every bit as much right to live by your
pen in pursuit of your philosophy as the peasant has. What? You both
belong to Ireland, the brain and the brawn. Each is equally important.
PARYou suspect, Stephen retorted with a sort of a half laugh, that I may be
important because I belong to the faubourg Saint Pàtrice called Ireland for
short.
PARI would go a step farther, Mr Bloom insinuated.
PARBut I suspect, Stephen interrupted, that Ireland must be important
because it belongs to me.
PARWhat belongs, queried Mr Bloom bending, fancying he was perhaps
under some misapprehension. Excuse me. Unfortunately, I didn't catch the
latter portion. What was it you ....?
PARStephen, patently crosstempered, repeated and shoved aside his mug
of coffee or whatever you like to call it none too politely, adding:
PARWe can't change the country. Let us change the subject.
PARAt this pertinent suggestion Mr Bloom, to change the subject, looked
down but in a quandary, as he couldn't tell exactly what construction to put
on belongs to which sounded rather a far cry. The rebuke of some kind was
clearer than the other part. Needless to say the fumes of his recent orgy
spoke then with some asperity in a curious bitter way foreign to his sober
state. Probably the homelife to which Mr B attached the utmost importance
had not been all that was needful or he hadn't been familiarised with the
right sort of people. With a touch of fear for the young man beside him
whom he furtively scrutinised with an air of some consternation
remembering he had just come back from Paris, the eyes more especially
reminding him forcibly of father and sister, failing to throw much light on
the subject, however, he brought to mind instances of cultured fellows that
promised so brilliantly nipped in the bud of premature decay and nobody to
blame but themselves. For instance there was the case of O'Callaghan, for
one, the halfcrazy faddist, respectably connected though of inadequate
means, with his mad vagaries among whose other gay doings when rotto
and making himself a nuisance to everybody all round he was in the habit
of ostentatiously sporting in public a suit of brown paper (a fact). And then
uncommon calibre who could provide food for reflection would amply
repay any small. Intellectual stimulation, as such, was, he felt, from time to
time a firstrate tonic for the mind. Added to which was the coincidence of
meeting, discussion, dance, row, old salt of the here today and gone
tomorrow type, night loafers, the whole galaxy of events, all went to make
up a miniature cameo of the world we live in especially as the lives of the
submerged tenth, viz. coalminers, divers, scavengers etc., were very much
under the microscope lately. To improve the shining hour he wondered
whether he might meet with anything approaching the same luck as Mr
Philip Beaufoy if taken down in writing suppose he were to pen something
out of the common groove (as he fully intended doing) at the rate of one
guinea per column. My Experiences, let us say, in a Cabman's Shelter.
PARThe pink edition extra sporting of the Telegraph tell a graphic lie lay,
as luck would have it, beside his elbow and as he was just puzzling again,
far from satisfied, over a country belonging to him and the preceding rebus
the vessel came from Bridgwater and the postcard was addressed A. Boudin
find the captain's age, his eyes went aimlessly over the respective captions
which came under his special province the allembracing give us this day our
daily press. First he got a bit of a start but it turned out to be only
something about somebody named H. du Boyes, agent for typewriters or
Sandymount, for interment in Glasnevin. The deceased gentleman was a
most popular and genial personality in city life and his demise after a brief
illness came as a great shock to citizens of all classes by whom he is deeply
regretted. The obsequies, at which many friends of the deceased were present,
were carried out by (certainly Hynes wrote it with a nudge from Corny)
Messrs H. J. O'Neill and Son, 164 North Strand Road. The mourners
included: Patk. Dignam (son), Bernard Corrigan (brother-in-law), Jno.
Henry Menton, solr, Martin Cunningham, John Power, .)eatondph 1/8 ador
dorador douradora (must be where he called Monks the dayfather about
Keyes's ad) Thomas Kernan, Simon Dedalus, Stephen Dedalus B. ,4., Edw.
J. Lambert, Cornelius T. Kelleher, Joseph M'C Hynes, L. Boom, CP
M'Coy, - M'lntosh and several others.
PARNettled not a little by L. Boom (as it incorrectly stated) and the line of
bitched type but tickled to death simultaneously by C. P. M'Coy and
Stephen Dedalus B. A. who were conspicuous, needless to say, by their total
absence (to say nothing of M'Intosh) L. Boom pointed it out to his
companion B. A. engaged in stifling another yawn, half nervousness, not
forgetting the usual crop of nonsensical howlers of misprints.
PARIs that first epistle to the Hebrews, he asked as soon as his bottom jaw
would let him, in? Text: open thy mouth and put thy foot in it.
PARIt is. Really, Mr Bloom said (though first he fancied he alluded to the
archbishop till he added about foot and mouth with which there could be
no possible connection) overjoyed to set his mind at rest and a bit
flabbergasted at Myles Crawford's after all managing to. There.
PARWhile the other was reading it on page two Boom (to give him for the
nonce his new misnomer) whiled away a few odd leisure moments in fits
and starts with the account of the third event at Ascot on page three, his
side. Value 1000 sovs with 3000 sovs in specie added. For entire colts and
fillies. Mr F. Alexander's Throwaway, b. h. by Rightaway-Thrale, 5 yrs,
9 st 4 lbs (W. Lane) 1, lord Howard de Walden's Zinfandel (M. Cannon)
PARThere was every indication they would arrive at that, he, Bloom, said.
PARWho? the other, whose hand by the way was hurt, said.
PAROne morning you would open the paper, the cabman affirmed, and
read: Return of Parnell. He bet them what they liked. A Dublin fusilier was
in that shelter one night and said he saw him in South Africa. Pride it was
killed him. He ought to have done away with himself or lain low for a time
after committee room no 15 until he was his old self again with no-one to
point a finger at him. Then they would all to a man have gone down on
their marrowbones to him to come back when he had recovered his senses.
Dead he wasn't. Simply absconded somewhere. The coffin they brought
over was full of stones. He changed his name to De Wet, the Boer general.
He made a mistake to fight the priests. And so forth and so on.
PARAll the same Bloom (properly so dubbed) was rather surprised at their
memories for in nine cases out of ten it was a case of tarbarrels and not
singly but in their thousands and then complete oblivion because it was
twenty odd years. Highly unlikely of course there was even a shadow of
truth in the stones and, even supposing, he thought a return highly
inadvisable, all things considered. Something evidently riled them in his
death. Either he petered out too tamely of acute pneumonia just when his
various different political arrangements were nearing completion or
whether it transpired he owed his death to his having neglected to change
his boots and clothes-after a wetting when a cold resulted and failing to
consult a specialist he being confined to his room till he eventually died of it
amid widespread regret before a fortnight was at an end or quite possibly
they were distressed to find the job was taken out of their hands. Of course
nobody being acquainted with his movements even before there was
absolutely no clue as to his whereabouts which were decidedly of the Alice,
where art thou order even prior to his starting to go under several aliases
such as Fox and Stewart so the remark which emanated from friend cabby
might be within the bounds of possibility. Naturally then it would prey on
his mind as a born leader of men which undoubtedly he was and a
commanding figure, a sixfooter or at any rate five feet ten or eleven in his
stockinged feet, whereas Messrs So and So who, though they weren't even a
patch on the former man, ruled the roost after their redeeming features
were very few and far between. It certainly pointed a moral, the idol with
without the faintest suspicion of a smile, merely gazed in the direction of the
door and reflected upon the historic story which had aroused extraordinary
interest at the time when the facts, to make matters worse, were made public
with the usual affectionate letters that passed between them full of sweet
nothings. First it was strictly Platonic till nature intervened and an
attachment sprang up between them till bit by bit matters came to a climax
and the matter became the talk of the town till the staggering blow came as
a welcome intelligence to not a few evildisposed, however, who were
resolved upon encompassing his downfall though the thing was public
property all along though not to anything like the sensational extent that it
PARThe king of Spain's daughter, Stephen answered, adding something or
other rather muddled about farewell and adieu to you Spanish onions and
the first land called the Deadman and from Ramhead to Scilly was so and
so many.
PARWas she? Bloom ejaculated, surprised though not astonished by any
means, I never heard that rumour before. Possible, especially there, it was
as she lived there. So, Spain.
PARCarefully avoiding a book in his pocket Sweets of, which reminded
him by the by of that Capl street library book out of date, he took out his
pocketbook and, turning over the various contents it contained rapidly
finally he.
PARDo you consider, by the by, he said, thoughtfully selecting a faded photo
which he laid on the table, that a Spanish type?
PARStephen, obviously addressed, looked down on the photo showing a
large sized lady with her fleshy charms on evidence in an open fashion as
she was in the full bloom of womanhood in evening dress cut ostentatiously
low for the occasion to give a liberal display of bosom, with more than
vision of breasts, her full lips parted and some perfect teeth, standing near,
ostensibly with gravity, a piano on the rest of which was In Old Madrid, a
ballad, pretty in its way, which was then all the vogue. Her (the lady's) eyes,
dark, large, looked at Stephen, about to smile about something to be
admired, Lafayette of Westmoreland street, Dublin's premier photographic
artist, being responsible for the esthetic execution.
PARMrs Bloom, my wife the prima donna Madam Marion Tweedy, Bloom
indicated. Taken a few years since. In or about ninety six. Very like her
then.
PARBeside the young man he looked also at the photo of the lady now his
legal wife who, he intimated, was the accomplished daughter of Major
Brian Tweedy and displayed at an early age remarkable proficiency as a
singer having even made her bow to the public when her years numbered
barely sweet sixteen. As for the face it was a speaking likeness in expression
but it did not do justice to her figure which came in for a lot of notice
usually and which did not come out to the best advantage in that getup. She
could without difficulty, he said, have posed for the ensemble, not to dwell
on certain opulent curves of the. He dwelt, being a bit of an artist in his
spare time, on the female form in general developmentally because, as it so
happened, no later than that afternoon he had seen those Grecian statues,
perfectly developed as works of art, in the National Museum. Marble could
give the original, shoulders, back, all the symmetry, all the rest. Yes,
puritanisme, it does though Saint Joseph's sovereign thievery alors
(Bandez!) Figne toi trop. Whereas no photo could because it simply wasn't
art in a word.
PARThe spirit moving him he would much have liked to follow Jack Tar's
good example and leave the likeness there for a very few minutes to speak
for itself on the plea he so that the other could drink in the beauty for
himself, her stage presence being, frankly, a treat in itself which the camera
PARThe vicinity of the young man he certainly relished, educated,
distingué and impulsive into the bargain, far and away the pick of the
bunch though you wouldn't think he had it in him yet you would. Besides
he said the picture was handsome which, say what you like, it was though at
the moment she was distinctly stouter. And why not? An awful lot of
makebelieve went on about that sort of thing involving a lifelong slur with
the usual splash page of gutterpress about the same old matrimonial tangle
alleging misconduct with professional golfer or the newest stage favourite
instead of being honest and aboveboard about the whole business. How
they were fated to meet and an attachment sprang up between the two so
that their names were coupled in the public eye was told in court with letters
containing the habitual mushy and compromising expressions leaving no
loophole to show that they openly cohabited two or three times a week at
some wellknown seaside hotel and relations, when the thing ran its normal
course, became in due course intimate. Then the decree nisi and the King's
proctor tries to show cause why and, he failing to quash it, nisi was made
absolute. But as for that the two misdemeanants, wrapped up as they largely
were in one another, could safely afford to ignore it as they very largely did
till the matter was put in the hands of a solicitor who filed a petition for the
party wronged in due course. He, B, enjoyed the distinction of being close
to Erin's uncrowned king in the flesh when the thing occurred on the
historic fracas when the fallen leader's, who notoriously stuck to his guns to
the last drop even when clothed in the mantle of adultery, (leader's) trusty
henchmen to the number of ten or a dozen or possibly even more than that
penetrated into the printing works of the Insuppressible or no it was United
Ireland (a by no means by the by appropriate appellative) and broke up the
typecases with hammers or something like that all on account of some
scurrilous effusions from the facile pens of the O'Brienite scribes at the
usual mudslinging occupation reflecting on the erstwhile tribune's private
morals. Though palpably a radically altered man he was still a commanding
figure though carelessly garbed as usual with that look of settled purpose
which went a long way with the shillyshallyers till they discovered to their
vast discomfiture that their idol had feet of clay after placing him upon a
pedestal which she, however, was the first to perceive. As those were
jokes of the cabman and so on who passed it all off as a jest, laughing 1530
immoderately, pretending to understand everything, the why and the
wherefore, and in reality not knowing their own minds, it being a case for
the two parties themselves unless it ensued that the legitimate husband
happened to be a party to it owing to some anonymous letter from the usual
boy Jones, who happened to come across them at the crucial moment in a
loving position locked in one another's arms, drawing attention to their
illicit proceedings and leading up to a domestic rumpus and the erring fair
one begging forgiveness of her lord and master upon her knees and
promising to sever the connection and not receive his visits any more if only
the aggrieved husband would overlook the matter and let bygones be
bygones with tears in her eyes though possibly with her tongue in her fair
cheek at the same time as quite possibly there were several others. He
personally, being of a sceptical bias, believed and didn't make the smallest
bones about saying so either that man or men in the plural were always
hanging around on the waiting list about a lady, even supposing she was the
best wife in the world and they got on fairly well together for the sake of
argument, when, neglecting her duties, she chose to be tired of wedded life
and was on for a little flutter in polite debauchery to press their attentions
on her with improper intent, the upshot being that her affections centred on
PARAt what o'clock did you dine? he questioned of the slim form and tired
though unwrinkled face.
PARSome time yesterday, Stephen said.
PARYesterday! exclaimed Bloom till he remembered it was already tomorrow
Friday. Ah, you mean it's after twelve!
PARThe day before yesterday, Stephen said, improving on himself.
PARLiterally astounded at this piece of intelligence Bloom reflected.
Though they didn't see eye to eye in everything a certain analogy there
somehow was as if both their minds were travelling, so to speak, in the one
train of thought. At his age when dabbling in politics roughly some score of
years previously when he had been a quasi aspirant to parliamentary
honours in the Buckshot Foster days he too recollected in retrospect (which
was a source of keen satisfaction in itself) he had a sneaking regard for
those same ultra ideas. For instance when the evicted tenants question, then
at its first inception, bulked largely in people's mind though, it goes without
saying, not contributing a copper or pinning his faith absolutely to its
dictums, some of which wouldn't exactly hold water, he at the outset in
principle at all events was in thorough sympathy with peasant possession as
voicing the trend of modern opinion (a partiality, however, which, realising
his mistake, he was subsequently partially cured of) and even was twitted
with going a step farther than Michael Davitt in the striking views he at one
time inculcated as a backtothelander, which was one reason he strongly
resented the innuendo put upon him in so barefaced a fashion by our friend
at the gathering of the clans in Barney Kiernan's so that he, though often
considerably misunderstood and the least pugnacious of mortals, be it
repeated, departed from his customary habit to give him (metaphorically)
one in the gizzard though, so far as politics themselves were concerned, he
was only too conscious of the casualties invariably resulting from
having been there, so to speak. On the other hand it was altogether far and
away too late for the Sandymount or Sandycove suggestion so that he was
in some perplexity as to which of the two alternatives. Everything pointed to
the fact that it behoved him to avail himself to the full of the opportunity, all
things considered. His initial impression was he was a shade standoffish or
not over effusive but it grew on him someway. For one thing he mightn't
what you call jump at the idea, if approached, and what mostly worried him
was he didn't know how to lead up to it or word it exactly, supposing he did
entertain the proposal, as it would afford him very great personal pleasure if
he would allow him to help to put coin in his way or some wardrobe, if
found suitable. At all events he wound up by concluding, eschewing for the
nonce hidebound precedent, a cup of Epps's cocoa and a shakedown for
the night plus the use of a rug or two and overcoat doubled into a pillow at
least he would be in safe hands and as warm as a toast on a trivet he failed
to perceive any very vast amount of harm in that always with the proviso no
rumpus of any sort was kicked up. A move had to be made because that
merry old soul, the grasswidower in question who appeared to be glued to
the spot, didn't appear in any particular hurry to wend his way home to his
dearly beloved Queenstown and it was highly likely some sponger's
bawdyhouse of retired beauties where age was no bar off Sheriff street
lower would be the best clue to that equivocal character's whereabouts for a
few days to come, alternately racking their feelings (the mermaids') with
sixchamber revolver anecdotes verging on the tropical calculated to freeze
the marrow of anybody's bones and mauling their largesized charms
betweenwhiles with rough and tumble gusto to the accompaniment of large
potations of potheen and the usual blarney about himself for as to who he
in reality was let x equal my right name and address, as Mr Algebra
remarks passim. At the same time he inwardly chuckled over his gentle
repartee to the blood and ouns champion about his god being a jew. People
could put up with being bitten by a wolf but what properly riled them was a
bite from a sheep. The most vulnerable point too of tender Achilles. Your
god was a jew. Because mostly they appeared to imagine he came from
Carrick-on-Shannon or somewhereabouts in the county Sligo.
PARI propose, our hero eventually suggested after mature reflection while
prudently pocketing her photo, as it's rather stuffy here you just come home
with me and talk things over. My diggings are quite close in the vicinity.
You can't drink that stuff. Do you like cocoa? Wait. I'll just pay this lot.
PARThe best plan clearly being to clear out, the remainder being plain
sailing, he beckoned, while prudently pocketing the photo, to the keeper of
the shanty who didn't seem to.
PARYes, that's the best, he assured Stephen to whom for the matter of that
Brazen Head or him or anywhere else was all more or less.
PARAll kinds of Utopian plans were flashing through his (B's) busy brain,
education (the genuine article), literature, journalism, prize titbits, up to
date billing, concert tours in English watering resorts packed with hydros
and seaside theatres, turning money away, duets in Italian with the accent
perfectly true to nature and a quantity of other things, no necessity, of
course, to tell the world and his wife from the housetops about it, and a slice
of luck. An opening was all was wanted. Because he more than suspected he
had his father's voice to bank his hopes on which it was quite on the cards
he had so it would be just as well, by the way no harm, to trail the
conversation in the direction of that particular red herring just to.
PARThe cabby read out of the paper he had got hold of that the former
viceroy, earl Cadogan, had presided at the cabdrivers' association dinner in
London somewhere. Silence with a yawn or two accompanied this thrilling
announcement. Then the old specimen in the corner who appeared to have
some spark of vitality left read out that sir Anthony MacDonnell had left
Euston for the chief secretary's lodge or words to that effect. To which
absorbing piece of intelligence echo answered why.
PARGive us a squint at that literature, grandfather, the ancient mariner put in,
PARAnd welcome, answered the elderly party thus addressed.
PARThe sailor lugged out from a case he had a pair of greenish goggles
which he very slowly hooked over his nose and both ears.
PARAre you bad in the eyes? the sympathetic personage like the townclerk
queried.
PARWhy, answered the seafarer with the tartan beard, who seemingly was a
bit of a literary cove in his own small way, staring out of seagreen portholes
as you might well describe them as, I uses goggles reading. Sand in the Red
Sea done that. One time I could read a book in the dark, manner of
speaking. The Arabian Nights Entertainment was my favourite and Red as
a Rose is She.
PARHereupon he pawed the journal open and pored upon Lord only
knows what, found drowned or the exploits of King Willow, Iremonger
having made a hundred and something second wicket not out for Notts,
during which time (completely regardless of Ire) the keeper was intensely
occupied loosening an apparently new or secondhand boot which
manifestly pinched him as he muttered against whoever it was sold it, all of
them who were sufficiently awake enough to be picked out by their facial
expressions, that is to say, either simply looking on glumly or passing a
PARTo cut a long story short Bloom, grasping the situation, was the first
to rise from his seat so as not to outstay their welcome having first and
foremost, being as good as his word that he would foot the bill for the
occasion, taken the wise precaution to unobtrusively motion to mine host as
a parting shot a scarcely perceptible sign when the others were not looking
to the effect that the amount due was forthcoming, making a grand total of
fourpence (the amount he deposited unobtrusively in four coppers, literally
the last of the Mohicans), he having previously spotted on the printed
pricelist for all who ran to read opposite him in unmistakable figures, coffee
2d, confectionery do, and honestly well worth twice the money once in a
way, as Wetherup used to remark.
PARCome, he counselled to close the séance.
PARSeeing that the ruse worked and the coast was clear they left the
shelter or shanty together and the élite society of oilskin and company
whom nothing short of an earthquake would move out of their dolce far
niente. Stephen, who confessed to still feeling poorly and fagged out,
paused at the, for a moment, the door.
PAROne thing I never understood, he said to be original on the spur of the
moment. Why they put tables upside down at night, I mean chairs upside
down, on the tables in cafes.
PARTo which impromptu the neverfailing Bloom replied without a
moment's hesitation, saying straight off:
PARTo sweep the floor in the morning.
PARSo saying he skipped around, nimbly considering, frankly at the same
time apologetic to get on his companion's right, a habit of his, by the bye,
his right side being, in classical idiom, his tender Achilles. The night air was
certainly now a treat to breathe though Stephen was a bit weak on his pins.
PARIt will (the air) do you good, Bloom said, meaning also the walk, in a
moment. The only thing is to walk then you'll feel a different man. Come.
It's not far. Lean on me.
PARAccordingly he passed his left arm in Stephen's right and led him on
accordingly.
PARYes, Stephen said uncertainly because he thought he felt a strange kind of
flesh of a different man approach him, sinewless and wobbly and all that.
PARAnyhow they passed the sentrybox with stones, brazier etc. where the
municipal supernumerary, ex Gumley, was still to all intents and purposes
wrapped in the arms of Murphy, as the adage has it, dreaming of fresh
fields and pastures new. And apropos of coffin of stones the analogy was
not at all bad as it was in fact a stoning to death on the part of seventytwo
PAROn the roadway which they were approaching whilst still speaking
beyond the swingchains a horse, dragging a sweeper, paced on the paven
ground, brushing a long swathe of mire up so that with the noise Bloom
was not perfectly certain whether he had caught aright the allusion to
sixtyfive guineas and John Bull. He inquired if it was John Bull the political
celebrity of that ilk, as it struck him, the two identical names, as a striking
coincidence.
PARBy the chains the horse slowly swerved to turn, which perceiving,
Bloom, who was keeping a sharp lookout as usual, plucked the other's
sleeve gently, jocosely remarking:
PAROur lives are in peril tonight. Beware of the steamroller.
PARThey thereupon stopped. Bloom looked at the head of a horse not
worth anything like sixtyfive guineas, suddenly in evidence in the dark quite
near so that it seemed new, a different grouping of bones and even flesh
because palpably it was a fourwalker, a hipshaker, a blackbuttocker, a
taildangler, a headhanger putting his hind foot foremost the while the lord
of his creation sat on the perch, busy with his thoughts. But such a good
poor brute he was sorry he hadn't a lump of sugar but, as he wisely
reflected, you could scarcely be prepared for every emergency that might
crop up. He was just a big nervous foolish noodly kind of a horse, without
a second care in the world. But even a dog, he reflected, take that mongrel
in Barney Kiernan's, of the same size, would be a holy horror to face. But it
was no animal's fault in particular if he was built that way like the camel,
ship of the desert, distilling grapes into potheen in his hump. Nine tenths of
them all could be caged or trained, nothing beyond the art of man barring
the bees. Whale with a harpoon hairpin, alligator tickle the small of his
back and he sees the joke, chalk a circle for a rooster, tiger my eagle eye.
These timely reflections anent the brutes of the field occupied his mind
somewhat distracted from Stephen's words while the ship of the street was
manoeuvring and Stephen went on about the highly interesting old.
PARThe horse having reached the end of his tether, so to speak, halted
and, rearing high a proud feathering tail, added his quota by letting fall on
the floor which the brush would soon brush up and polish, three smoking
globes of turds. Slowly three times, one after another, from a full crupper he
mired. And humanely his driver waited till he (or she) had ended, patient in
his scythed car.
PARSide by side Bloom, profiting by the contretemps, with Stephen passed
through the gap of the chains, divided by the upright, and, stepping over a
strand of mire, went across towards Gardiner street lower, Stephen singing
more boldly, but not loudly, the end of the ballad.
Und alle Schiffe brücken.
PARThe driver never said a word, good, bad or indifferent, but merely
watched the two figures, as he sat on his lowbacked car, both black, one
full, one lean, walk towards the railway bridge, to be married by Father
Maher. As they walked they at times stopped and walked again continuing
their téte à téte (which, of course, he was utterly out of) about sirens
enemies of man's reason, mingled with a number of other topics of the same
category, usurpers, historical cases of the kind while the man in the sweeper
car or you might as well call it in the sleeper car who in any case couldn't
possibly hear because they were too far simply sat in his seat near the end of
lower Gardiner street and looked after their lowbacked car.
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i don't know
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In the Chinese zodiac, 2014 is the year of which animal?
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Chinese New Year 2014 Horse: What Does Your Zodiac Animal Mean?
Chinese New Year 2014 Horse: What Does Your Zodiac Animal Mean?
The Huffington Post Canada
Updated:
01/23/2014 6:56 pm EST
A worker walks by a Lunar New Year decoration displayed outside a shopping mall in Beijing Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2014. Chinese will celebrate the Lunar New Year on Feb. 1 this year which marks the Year of Horse on the Chinese zodiac. (AP Photo/Andy Wong) | ASSOCIATED PRESS
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The beginning of the year offers many opportunities for astrology lovers to indulge, with everything from year-long horoscope forecasts predicting love and finances to resolutions tailor-made for your sign . But as the Lunar New Year celebrates the beginning of the Chinese Year of the Horse in 2014, there's a whole group of zodiac animals offering an entirely new take on what the stars might be forecasting for you this year.
"Chinese horoscopes are based on the birth years of individuals," explains Paul Ng, a professional feng shui master based in Toronto who also gives personal life readings. Feng shui and the Chinese zodiac both have roots in the I Ching, the ancient Chinese text that helps people determine lucky dates, among other predictions.
Each year, Ng analyzes how the Chinese zodiac will affect everything from the global political climate to what the world's health will look like in the coming months. And most importantly, he tells us how our birth sign will affect us in 2014.
Take a look at Ng's predictions for 2014, the Chinese year of the wooden horse. Don't know your Chinese zodiac sign? Use this tool to find it — and read below to see what it will mean this year.
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Current Slide
Horse: Born in 2002, 1990, 1978, 1966, 1954, 1942, 1930, 1918
The year of the horse means there is leadership associated with this sign this year, so your authority may increase, according to Ng. However, the impulsive behaviour of the horse can lead to recklessness, so stay away from gambling and speculations.
Work: Those in positions of authority will do well, but chancy businesses, like the stock market, are a bad idea.
Wealth: Don't expect to make a lot money, and value the income you have.
Relationships: There won't be a lot of excitement in your love life, and if you are engaged, you might want to delay your marriage until next year.
Health: Watch your health this year — you'll get tired and can catch bugs easily. Make exercise and rest a priority.
Sheep or Goat: Born in 2003, 1991, 1979 ,1967, 1955, 1943, 1931, 1919
This is a "connecting" year for you, says Ng. Take advantage of your good relationships with other people, particularly for male sheep.
Work: Those who work in cars, analysis, public relations, entertainment, surgery, butchery and police work should expect to do well this year.
Wealth: Expect stability, with a slight increase in money this year. Simplify your investment portfolio, advises Ng.
Relationships: You'll be quite beloved this year, so watch out for love triangles. If you're married, make sure to demonstrate love toward your spouse.
Health: You are healthier this year than last, but be careful of small accidents. Drive carefully and take your time when working.
Monkey: Born in 2004, 1992, 1980, 1968, 1956, 1944, 1932, 1920
It's important for the monkey to spread themselves around in order to gain success this year, says Ng, either travelling or moving.
Work: Industries that are good for the monkey to work in include sales and marketing, law, education, travel and the financial world — things based around movement.
Wealth: Money is looking good for monkeys, with the potential for promotions and investments reaping rewards.
Relationships: If you're single, this won't be a great year for you, but those who are married can feel confident in the endurance of their union.
Health: Your overall health is good. Be careful of accidents such as from driving.
Rooster: Born in 2005, 1993, 1981, 1969, 1957, 1945, 1933, 1921
This is gearing up to be a big year for roosters, according to Ng. There are many opportunities for your work or business, but your personal relationships might be volatile. Rely on your friends for help.
Work: You do better outside an office than inside, in jobs like police work, the law and politics.
Wealth: Be careful with your money this year — don't gamble.
Relationships: There's a lot of love headed your way, but watch out for fights in your relationships. Take a step before continuing to argue, or they could end.
Health: Small accidents could be an issue for you, and pay attention to your heart and lungs.
Dog: Born in 2006, 1994, 1982, 1970, 1958, 1946, 1934, 1922
This should be a lucky year for dogs, notes Ng. Everything from work and investments to relationships are on the upswing.
Work: Work within your natural creativity in the arts, music, architecture or writing. Even the stage is great for you.
Wealth: Use instincts, rather than logic, when making investments — it will help keep your money stable.
Relationships: Consider proposing if you haven't already, and if you are married, demonstrate more love toward your spouse. Be humble when interacting with others.
Health: Enjoy your good health, but watch out for overeating.
Boar or Pig: Born in 2007, 1995, 1983, 1971, 1959, 1947, 1935, 1923
Get ready for a great year, says Ng — you'll make friends, have breakthroughs in business and be surrounded by help. However, this all will need some effort at the beginning.
Work: Great industries for you include metaphysics, religion, public relations, human resources, media and politics.
Wealth: Money will be stable for you this year, but don't gamble or invest in speculative markets.
Relationships: Nothing exciting, but nothing bad here either, as your relationships stay flat but stable.
Health: You will feel much better than last year, and even if you get sick, you'll recover quickly.
Rat: Born in 2008, 1996, 1984, 1972, 1960, 1948, 1936, 1924
The rat is in opposition this year, so this could mean losing some money this year. However, the rat sign is generally lucky, which can help keep you out of trouble.
Work: Show business is great for you, including things like pageants and the arts. Be sure to stay away from gambling.
Wealth: Ng holds to the old saying, "If you are not greedy, you will not lose money."
Relationships: Try to be quiet and patient this year, as otherwise, many of your relationships will consist of arguing.
Health: Areas of the body to watch for include the lungs, kidney and waist. Get lots of exercise and rest.
Ox: Born in 2009, 1997, 1985, 1973, 1961, 1949, 1937, 1925
The ox is in conflict with the horse, which could mean arguments with other people this year, says Ng. However, the ox is a sign of authority, potentially signifying promotions.
Work: Good environments include politics, the army or police work, where a promotion might be waiting for you. But watch out for enemies.
Wealth: Don't expect a lot of money, but your income is proportional to your authority level.
Relationships: There isn't a lot of romance expected for you this year. Be patient with the people in your life.
Health: Your health is fine, just watch out for small accidents.
Tiger: Born in 2010, 1998, 1986, 1974, 1962, 1950, 1938, 1926
This should be a good year for tigers, according to Ng. It could bring luck, joy, romance, spirituality and learning opportunities.
Work: You do well in business that have to do with blood, such as surgery and the army, as well as teaching and philosophy. If you are self-employed, expand your business.
Wealth: This should be a year of stability for your money.
Relationships: Romance is in the stars. If the opportunity is there, consider marriage. If you're married, watch out for temptations from extramarital affairs.
Health: Watch out for sharp objects, and be careful of accidents and bleeding.
Rabbit: Born 2011, 1999, 1987, 1975, 1963, 1951, 1939, 1927
This will be a year of romance and controversy, with lots of happiness everywhere for rabbits. Just be careful about your non-romantic relationships with others.
Work: Entertainment, speaking and sales roles all suit you — mental work is better for you than physical.
Wealth: This year, the more you work, the more you make.
Relationships: Romantic entanglements await, but watch out for love triangles.
Health: There's a mild concern about sharp objects.
Dragon: Born in 2012, 2000, 1988, 1976, 1964, 1952, 1940, 1928
This should be a good year for dragons, as horses and dragons together have great energy. Health and wealth abound.
Work: Working with both blood (surgery, butchery, soldiers) as well as spirituality (philosopher, priest) are in your favour.
Wealth: You would do well in travel or trading businesses. Invest based on your intuition.
Relationships: It does not look like a particularly romantic year for dragons.
Health: You have a general tendency to get into accidents, but other than that, you'll be very health.
Snake: Born in 2013, 2001, 1989, 1977, 1965, 1953, 1941, 1929
Last year was a year of conflict for the snake, says Ng, so this year is a money year.
Work: Keeping in line with your money year, businesses that are good for you include finance and the stock market. Entertainment can also work for you.
Wealth: Bring in the dollars! Both your regular and speculative incomes are looking good.
Relationships: Think about marriage, if you haven't already. And be sure to express love toward your spouse if you're already hitched.
Health: Keep your immune system boosted, as you'll be prone to colds and the flu. Exercise and rest plenty.
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Horse
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Which rock group did Steve Marriot form with Peter Frampton after leaving The Small Faces?
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The Chinese Zodiac, 12 Zodiac Animals, Find Your Zodiac Sign
The Chinese animal zodiac, or shengxiao (/shnng-sshyaoww/ ‘born resembling’), is a repeating cycle of 12 years, with each year being represented by an animal and its reputed attributes. Traditionally these zodiac animals were used to date the years.
The 12 Animals of the Chinese Zodiac
In order, the 12 animals are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig.
What Your Chinese Zodiac Animal Sign Is
Your Chinese Zodiac sign is derived from your birth year, according to the Chinese lunar calendar. See the years of each animal below or use the calculator on the right to determine your own sign.
Rat: 2008, 1996, 1984, 1972, 1960
Ox: 2009, 1997, 1985, 1973, 1961
Tiger: 2010, 1998, 1986, 1974, 1962
Rabbit: 2011, 1999, 1987, 1975, 1963
Dragon: 2012, 2000, 1988, 1976, 1964
Snake: 2013, 2001, 1989, 1977, 1965
Horse: 2014, 2002, 1990, 1978, 1966
Goat: 2015, 2003, 1991, 1979, 1967
Monkey: 2016, 2004, 1992, 1980, 1968
Rooster: 2017 , 2005, 1993, 1981, 1969
Dog: 2018, 2006, 1994, 1982, 1970
Pig: 2019, 2007, 1995, 1983, 1971
Find Your Chinese Zodiac Sign
Choose your date of birth and find out about your Chinese zodiac sign.
You are a:
Love:
Health:
Those born in January and February take care: Chinese (Lunar) New Year moves between 21 January and February 20. If you were born in January or February, check whether your birth date falls before or after Chinese New Year to know what your Chinese zodiac year is.
Chinese Zodiac Love Compatibility — Is He/She Right for You?
People born in a certain animal year are believed to have attributes of that animal, which could either help or hinder a relationship.
An important use of Chinese Zodiac is to determine if two people are compatible, in a romantic relationship or any kind of relationship. In ancient times people were faithful to Chinese Zodiac compatibility and often referred to it before a romantic relationship began. Even nowadays some people still refer to it.
Take our online test on the right and find how suitable you and your partner are. See our Chinese Zodiac Love Compatibility Charts
Chinese Zodiac Love Compatibility Test Is she/he compatible with you? Take the test and see...
Boy's Name:
Date of Birth:
It’s BAD LUCK When Your Zodiac Year Comes Around!
As the Chinese zodiac recurs every 12 years, your animal year will come around when you are 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, etc.
According to ancient Chinese superstition, in your birth sign year, he will offend the God of Age, and will have bad luck during that year. The best way to avoid bad luck during this year is by wearing something red given by an elder (relative), such as socks, a neck cord, underwear, a waistband, a bracelet, or an anklet.
Read more on How to be Lucky in Your Zodiac Year .
Chinese Zodiac Years Have Two Different Starts!
There are two dates a Chinese zodiac year could be said to start on, and neither is January 1! China traditionally uses two calendars: the solar calendar and the lunar calendar.
The traditional solar calendar has 24 fifteen-day solar terms, and the first, called ‘Start of Spring’, falls on February 4 (or 5).
The lunar calendar has 12 or 13 months and starts on Chinese New Year, which is somewhere in the period January 21 to February 20.
Most Chinese people use lunar New Year as the start of the zodiac year. But for fortune telling and astrology, people believe ‘Start of Spring’ is the beginning of the zodiac year.
Chinese Zodiac Origins — Why 12 Animals
The 12 animals were chosen deliberately, after many revisions. The zodiac animals are either closely related to ancient Chinese people’s daily lives, or have lucky meanings.
The ox, horse, goat, rooster, pig, and dog are six of the main domestic animals raised by Chinese people. The other six animals: rat, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, and monkey are all loved by the Chinese people.
Why the 12 Zodiac Animals Are in That Order
The 12 Chinese Zodiac animals are in a fixed order according to Chinese Yin and Yang Theory and perceived attributes.
The yin or the yang of the animals is defined based on the odd or even number of their claws (or toes, hoofs). The animals are then arranged in an alternating (complementary) yin-yang sequence.
Usually an animal has is the same number of claws on its front and rear legs. However the rat has four toes on its fore legs and five on its hind legs. As the old saying goes, “a thing is valued in proportion to its rarity”, so the Rat ranks first of the 12 zodiac animals. It uniquely combines the attributes of odd (yang) and even (yin). 4+5=9, and yang is dominant, so the Rat is classified as odd (yang) overall.
Zodiac Animal
Amiability without fidelity leads to immorality.
Chinese Zodiac Hours — Each Hour is Associated with a Zodiac Animal
Chinese zodiac hours
It is widely known that each year is associated with a Chinese zodiac animal, but in Chinese culture the 12 zodiac animals are also associated with hours of a day.
In ancient times, in order to tell the time, people divided a day into twelve 2-hour periods, and designated an animal to represent each period, according to each animal’s “special time”.
According to Chinese astrology, though not popularly used, a person’s personality and life is more decided by his/her birth hour than year. The zodiac hour is widely used for character and destiny analysis.
Rat
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i don't know
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Invar is an alloy chiefly consisting of iron and which other metallic element?
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Synonyms and Antonyms for alloy_iron | Synonym.com
Synonyms and Antonyms for alloy_iron
1. alloy iron (n.)
cast iron containing alloying elements (usually nickel or chromium or copper or molybdenum) to increase the strength or facilitate heat treatment
Synonyms:
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Nickel
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Which Coronation Street character has been played fro several years by Chris Gascoyne?
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Metals and alloys terminology - Vocabulary List : Vocabulary.com
Metals and alloys terminology
September 16, 2012 By EUinterpreter
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solder together by using hard solder with a high melting point
General purpose filler metal, can be used with brazeable aluminiums in all types of brazing.
an alloy whose main constituent is nickel
For carbides, stainless steels, tool steels, and nickel alloys.
a nickel-base alloy with chromium and iron
For complex chromium-titanium carbides, stainless steel, Stellite, Inconel.
a mixture of substances having a minimum melting point
Close to eutectic, narrow melting range, suitable for low heating rates, e.g. in furnace brazing.
the pressure exerted by a vapor
Low vapor pressure.
a mixture containing two or more metallic elements
For joining aluminium and its alloys.
steel containing chromium that makes it resistant to corrosion
For carbides, steels, stainless steels, cast iron, and nickel refractory alloys.
neutron flux
the rate of flow of neutrons
Extensively used in nuclear industry except in high- neutron flux regions and in contact with liquid sodium or potassium.
a metal that is common and not considered precious
Generally provides joints stronger than the base metals.
of or relating to or containing iron
Free-flowing, for ferrous alloys, nickel, copper and their alloys, and combinations.
a silver-white alloy containing copper and zinc and nickel
For copper alloys, brass, nickel silver, bronze, mild steel, stainless steel, nickel, and Monel.
of or relating to or containing nitrogen
Good performance in nitrogen-bearing atmospheres.
melting point
the temperature below which a liquid turns into a solid
Due to low melting point suitable for joining copper to brass, as dezincification of brass is less pronounced.
the flues and stops on a pipe organ
Used for fluxless brazing in refrigeration, air conditioning, medical gas pipework, and heat exchangers.
the malleability of something that can be drawn into threads or wires or hammered into thin sheets
Strontium refines grain structure of the brazing alloy, improving ductility and toughness.
a heavy grey-white metallic element
Can be used also on silver, tungsten and molybdenum.
(biochemistry) a waxy transparent material that occurs in the cuticle of plants and consists of highly polymerized esters of fatty acids
85 7 8
a polyvalent metallic element that resembles chromium and tungsten in its properties; used to strengthen and harden steel
Can be used also on silver, tungsten and molybdenum.
a reddish-brown color resembling the color of polished copper
Light copper color.
any of various forms of aluminum oxide occurring naturally as corundum
Traces of bismuth and beryllium disrupt the surface aluminium oxide.
a drill for penetrating rock
Excellent wetting properties, used extensively for attaching tungsten carbide bits to cutting tools and rock drills.
a compound containing nitrogen and a more electropositive element (such as phosphorus or a metal)
Does not outgas during titanium nitride coating.
relating to or situated at an interface
Titanium forms an interfacial layer with Si3N4, yielding TiN, TiSi, and Ti5Si3.[70]
an alloy of copper and aluminum with high tensile strength and resistance to corrosion
For joining tungsten carbide, beryllium copper and aluminium bronze to steel.
the art of making and decorating pottery
Widely used for joining metalized ceramics to metals in vacuum.
an artifact made of hard brittle material produced from nonmetallic minerals by firing at high temperatures
Widely used for joining metalized ceramics to metals in vacuum.
form or shape beforehand or determine the shape of beforehand
Preforms made by rapid solidification.
corrosion
erosion by chemical action
Can be used for joining aluminium and titanium to dissimilar metals; the risk of galvanic corrosion then has to be considered.
one whose business is to exchange the money of one country for that of another country
Used for fluxless brazing in refrigeration, air conditioning, medical gas pipework, and heat exchangers.
a very hard alloy of cobalt and chromium with cobalt as the principal ingredient; used to make cutting tools and for surfaces subject to heavy wear
For complex chromium-titanium carbides, stainless steel, Stellite, Inconel.
steel whose characteristics are determined by the amount of carbon it contains
For use on brass, bronze, and low carbon steel.
capable of being shaped or bent or drawn out
Ductile, slow-flowing.
(of reputation) free from blemishes
For carbides, steels, stainless steels, cast iron, and nickel refractory alloys.
to remove oxygen from a compound, or cause to react with hydrogen or form a hydride, or to undergo an increase in the number of electrons
Can be used for brazing stainless-steel to phosphorus- deoxidized or OFHC copper.
a soft bluish-white ductile malleable toxic bivalent metallic element; occurs in association with zinc ores
Absence of lead and cadmium allows use of long heating cycles.
anneal
bring to a desired consistency by heating and cooling
May facilitate stress cracking of some alloys by liquid metal embrittlement; prior stress relief annealing is required then, or use of a higher melting point alloy that does not melt until stress relief temperature of the base metal is reached.
a hard malleable ductile silvery metallic element that is resistant to corrosion; used in alloys; occurs in pentlandite and smaltite and garnierite and millerite
For alloys of iron, copper, and nickel.
join or fuse with an alloy
General purpose filler metal for aluminium soldering/brazing with a torch.
a silvery ductile metallic element found primarily in bauxite
Free-flowing, most fluid of aluminium filler metals.
jet engine
a gas turbine produces a stream of hot gas that propels a jet plane by reaction propulsion
For high-temperature applications e.g. on jet engines, especially on stainless steel; maximum service temperature 371 °C. Used in many jet engine subassemblies for US Air Force.
a binary compound of carbon with a more electropositive element
For attaching carbides to alloy steels.
in a manner of stopping and starting at irregular intervals
Flow point 705 °C. Maximum service temperature 149 °C ( intermittently 204 °C).
soft solder
solder that melts at a relatively low temperature
Used where joint strength needs to be higher than achievable by solders and temperature must be low, e.g. thermostatic bellows operating at temperatures too high for soft solders and requiring being joined below their annealing temperature.
the act of making something wet
Excellent wetting of carbides, stainless steel and copper.
steel with less than 0.15% carbon
Brasses are often used on mild steel assemblies.
of white tinged with grey
Grayish-white color.
a fabric woven from goat hair and camel hair
Similar to Cusil- ABA.
titanium
a light strong grey lustrous corrosion-resistant metallic element used in strong lightweight alloys (as for airplane parts); the main sources are rutile and ilmenite
Can be used for joining aluminium and titanium to dissimilar metals; the risk of galvanic corrosion then has to be considered.
of a white that resembles silver
Silver-white color; used in silversmithing due to color match.
fitting consisting of threaded pieces of pipe for joining pipes together
Used in refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and brass and copper pipe fitting.
powder metallurgy
the metallurgy of powdered metals
Can be used for infiltrating porous components made by powder metallurgy ("infiltration brazing"); the lubricity of silver and its resistance to galling makes it attractive for bearings.
a light strong brittle grey toxic bivalent metallic element
Traces of bismuth and beryllium disrupt the surface aluminium oxide.
thermostatic
of or relating to a thermostat
Used where joint strength needs to be higher than achievable by solders and temperature must be low, e.g. thermostatic bellows operating at temperatures too high for soft solders and requiring being joined below their annealing temperature.
a supernatural smith and king of the elves
860/882[79] – Wieland Porta Optimum 880.
an empty area or space
Suitable for vacuum brazing.
a ductile malleable reddish-brown corrosion-resistant diamagnetic metallic element; occurs in various minerals but is the only metal that occurs abundantly in large masses; used as an electrical and thermal conductor
For aluminium-to-aluminium and aluminium-to- copper.
a colorless and odorless inert gas
Fluxless brazing requires vacuum, argon or dry hydrogen atmosphere.
turbine that converts the chemical energy of a liquid fuel into mechanical energy by internal combustion; gaseous products of the fuel (which is burned in compressed air) are expanded through a turbine
Used in some gas turbine applications.
alloy steel that is suitable for making tools
For carbides, stainless steels, tool steels, and nickel alloys.
device that transfers heat from one liquid to another without allowing them to mix
For heat exchanger return bends, hot water cylinders, refrigeration pipes.
the degree of hotness or coldness of a body or environment
High-strength, low- temperature.
very hard mineral used as an abrasive
Can be used for brazing ceramics, metal-ceramics, graphite, diamond, corundum, sapphire, ruby.
a small jet-propelled winged missile that carries a bomb
1015/1055[85] – Wieland Porta IP V-1.
reduce or cause to be reduced from a solid to a liquid state
Tendency to liquation, has to be heated rapidly through the melting range.
thermocouple
a kind of thermometer consisting of two wires of different metals that are joined at both ends; one junction is at the temperature to be measured and the other is held at a fixed lower temperature; the current generated in the circuit is proportional to the temperature difference
Used for e.g. immersion heaters and thermocouple harnesses.
anything added to fill out a whole
Free-flowing, most fluid of aluminium filler metals.
a longitudinal slice or boned side of a fish
Can fill gaps and form fillets.
the process whereby heat changes something from a solid to a liquid
Tendency to liquation, has to be heated rapidly through the melting range.
the transmission of heat or electricity or sound
High electrical and thermal conductivity.
electrical conduction through a gas in an applied electric field
Requires very intense heating, e.g. electric arc.
not limited in use or function
General-purpose.
the fractional change in length or area or volume per unit change in temperature at a given constant pressure
Coefficient of expansion matching many common materials.
any of the chemically inert gaseous elements of the helium group in the periodic table
Can be used without flux in hydrogen, inert gas, or vacuum.
a brittle grey crystalline element that is a semiconducting metalloid (resembling silicon) used in transistors; occurs in germanite and argyrodite
Low tarnishing due to germanium content; transparent passivation layer of germanium oxide protects against silver sulfide formation.
a worker hired on a temporary basis
Cu-Zn 855/915[29] – Hi- Temp 080.
a silver alloy with no more than 7.5% copper
See also Argentium sterling silver.
contact that allows current to pass from one conductor to another
For electrical contacts and copper-tungsten electrodes.
steel who characteristics are determined by the addition of other elements in addition to carbon
For attaching carbides to alloy steels.
a state of constant change
Used with flux.
chromium
a hard brittle multivalent metallic element
As the braze does not contain active elements, the carbon-based material may have to be surface-treated for sufficient wetting, e.g. by a solid-state reaction with chromium.[34]
an open or empty space in or between things
Gap-filling.
utility consisting of the pipes and fixtures for the distribution of water or gas in a building and for the disposal of sewage
Used in plumbing.
the property of flowing easily
Fluidity decreased on copper and increased on silver due to dissolution of base metal.
electronic device consisting of a system of electrodes arranged in an evacuated glass or metal envelope
For alloys like kovar and invar to copper, for vacuum tubes.
slightly purplish or bluish dark grey
Maximum service temperature 149 °C, intermittently 204 °C. Steel gray color.
the process of cooling or freezing for preservative purposes
Used in refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and brass and copper pipe fitting.
British political cartoonist (born in New Zealand) who created the character Colonel Blimp (1891-1963)
Low vibration resistance.
annealing
hardening something by heat treatment
May facilitate stress cracking of some alloys by liquid metal embrittlement; prior stress relief annealing is required then, or use of a higher melting point alloy that does not melt until stress relief temperature of the base metal is reached.
disposed to or engaged in defiance of established authority
Corrosion- resistant.
having no definite form or distinct shape
100
volatilize
make volatile; cause to pass off in a vapor
In furnace brazing the heat cycles should be kept short, as otherwise zinc could volatilize and leave pinholes in the alloy.
a hard brittle grey polyvalent metallic element that resembles iron but is not magnetic; used in making steel; occurs in many minerals
Does not tend to produce porous fillets despite manganese content.
a monetary standard under which the basic unit of currency is defined by a stated quantity of silver
Hallmark-compliant, specifically tailored to meet sterling silver standard, used in jewellery.
come to the starting point of a cycle
For stainless steels, nickel, molybdenum, tungsten, and fast brazing cycles on titanium.
conduit consisting of a long hollow object (usually cylindrical) used to hold and conduct objects or liquids or gases
Good for tight-fitting copper pipes and tubing.
an aperture or hole that opens into a bodily cavity
860/882[79] – Wieland Porta Optimum 880.
a trivalent metalloid element
Good for materials where copper-brazing would require too high temperature or where boron alloys would be detrimental.
used as a lubricant and as a moderator in nuclear reactors
When brazing cast iron, graphite must be removed from the surface to assure good wetting.
stimulate (muscles) by administering a shock
For carbon steel and galvanized steel.
the process by which a substance combines with oxygen
Oxidation resistance exceeds palladium-bearing alloys.
an alloy of iron with small amounts of carbon
Suitable for automotive industry for brazing steel components where higher-temperature bronze alloys can not be used.
a fluorocarbon with chlorine
Used for special purposes, e.g. brazing CFC (carbon fibre composites), pure copper, copper-zirconium alloys and molybdenum.[33]
containing within itself the means of propulsion or movement
Suitable for automotive industry for brazing steel components where higher-temperature bronze alloys can not be used.
having the consistency of a soft or soggy mass
Melts through mushy state, tends to liquate.
dissimilar
not alike
Can be used for joining aluminium and titanium to dissimilar metals; the risk of galvanic corrosion then has to be considered.
of or relating to the teeth
Dental solder.
a rare soft silvery metallic element
Indium improves wetting of ferrous alloys.
any property used to characterize matter and energy and their interactions
Very similar mechanical and physical properties and application temperature.
solid-state
consisting of semiconductor materials and components and related devices
As the braze does not contain active elements, the carbon-based material may have to be surface-treated for sufficient wetting, e.g. by a solid-state reaction with chromium.[34]
turbine in which steam strikes blades and makes them turn
For steam turbine blades.
a chemical element or alloy that is usually a shiny solid
Free-flowing, most fluid of aluminium filler metals.
most desirable possible under a restriction
860/882[79] – Wieland Porta Optimum 880.
thermal
relating to or associated with heat
Excellent strength and ductility during cooling, which is an advantage over silver brazes when joining materials with dissimilar thermal expansion.
tableware made of silver or silver plate or pewter or stainless steel
For iron, silverware, and nickel alloys.
the engine that powers and aircraft
For band instruments, brass lamps, ship piping, aircraft engine oil coolers.
surface tension
phenomenon at a liquid's surface from intermolecular forces
Good wetting, high strength, low creep, high corrosion resistance, high thermal conductivity, high surface tension, zero wetting angle.
a cutting implement; a tool for cutting
Excellent wetting properties, used extensively for attaching tungsten carbide bits to cutting tools and rock drills.
In vacuum silver may evaporate above 900 °C. 28 72
Ag60Cu30Sn10 Ag-Cu 600/730[1]
600/720[39][52]
602/718[71] – AG 402, BAg-18, BVAg-18, AMS 4773, Braze 603, Braze 604 (VTG grade for vacuum systems, with reduced volatile impurities), Cusilitin 10, BrazeTec 6009.
a compound of sulphur and some other element that is more electropositive
Low tarnishing due to germanium content; transparent passivation layer of germanium oxide protects against silver sulfide formation.
pinhole
a small puncture that might have been made by a pin
In furnace brazing the heat cycles should be kept short, as otherwise zinc could volatilize and leave pinholes in the alloy.
a system that keeps air cool and dry
Used in refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and brass and copper pipe fitting.
a bluish-white lustrous metallic element
Unsuitable for vacuum brazing due to high zinc content.
US Air Force
the airforce of the United States of America
For high-temperature applications e.g. on jet engines, especially on stainless steel; maximum service temperature 371 °C. Used in many jet engine subassemblies for US Air Force.
a soft silver-white or yellowish metallic element of the alkali metal group; turns yellow in air; occurs in celestite and strontianite
Strontium refines grain structure of the brazing alloy, improving ductility and toughness.
the framework and covering of an airplane or rocket
Often used for joining skins to honeycomb cores of airframe structures made of precipitation-hardened steels.
formerly a large constellation in the southern hemisphere between Canis Major and the Southern Cross; now divided into Carina and Pyxis and Puppis and Vela
Ag-Cu-Zn – 18.3 25.62 45.75 1.93
Ag50Cu20Zn28Ni2 Ag-Cu-Zn 660/707[8]
modulus
(physics) a coefficient that expresses how much of a specified property is possessed by a specified substance
When joining martensitic stainless steels, cracks appear in the fillets on cooling (due to volume strain caused by martensitic transition of the base metal) and may reduce fatigue life of the joint; this can be prevented by a time-intensive stress relief heating just above the martensitic transition of the base metal, or by using BNi-1A, a reduced-carbon version, which reduces modulus of the filler alloy enough to prevent crack formation.[5]
zirconium
a lustrous grey strong metallic element resembling titanium
Used for special purposes, e.g. brazing CFC (carbon fibre composites), pure copper, copper- zirconium alloys and molybdenum.[33]
capable of existing or taking place or proving true
Used where ductility is important and low tolerances are not achievable.
the act of bringing about something
For induction, torch and furnace brazing.
an industry that builds housing
Used in construction industry, electrotechnics and automotive industry.[46]
an enclosed chamber in which heat is produced for a building
Usable for both flame and furnace brazing.
a divine presence believed by Quakers to enlighten and guide the soul
Light copper color.
a hard grey lustrous metallic element that is highly resistant to corrosion; occurs in niobite and fergusonite and tantalite
Wets tungsten, molybdenum, tantalum and superalloys.
of a white tinged with yellow
Yellow-white color.
the act of bringing two things into contact
For joining aluminium and its alloys.
a visual attribute of things from the light they emit
Grayish-white color.
junction by which parts or objects are linked together
Ductile copper-copper joints.
continuous amorphous matter that tends to flow
Free-flowing, most fluid of aluminium filler metals.
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
Grayish-white color.
the process of becoming warmer; a rising temperature
Close to eutectic, narrow melting range, suitable for low heating rates, e.g. in furnace brazing.
hinder or prevent, as an effort, plan, or desire
Supplied as Trifoil – copper foil sandwiched between braze alloy foils.
get excessively and undesirably hot
Large use on small electric motors, where soft soldering would fail on overheating.
the substance that is acted upon by an enzyme or ferment
Narrow melting range, low erosion of substrates.
an alloy of copper and tin and sometimes other elements
For copper, copper alloys, brass, bronze.
a learning process in which an organism's behavior becomes dependent on the occurrence of a stimulus in its environment
Used in refrigeration and air conditioning systems, and brass and copper pipe fitting.
a visible suspension in the air of particles of a substance
Low vapor pressure.
lubricity
feeling morbid sexual desire or a propensity to lewdness
Can be used for infiltrating porous components made by powder metallurgy ("infiltration brazing"); the lubricity of silver and its resistance to galling makes it attractive for bearings.
the process of becoming hard or solid by cooling or drying or crystallization
Preforms made by rapid solidification.
a person who starts a course of action
Avoid fillets, these tend to be crack initiators.
become more focused on an area of activity or field of study
Limited use in specialized applications.
an alloy of copper and zinc
For copper, copper alloys, brass, bronze.
using the minimum of time or resources for effectiveness
Economical.
willingness to respect the beliefs or practices of others
Used where ductility is important and low tolerances are not achievable.
causing harm or injury
Good for materials where copper-brazing would require too high temperature or where boron alloys would be detrimental.
a heavy brittle diamagnetic trivalent metallic element
Traces of bismuth and beryllium disrupt the surface aluminium oxide.
any mechanical force that tends to retard or oppose motion
Excellent corrosion resistance when joining aluminium metals.
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
Can be used also on silver, tungsten and molybdenum.
capable of being shaped or bent
For use on cast and malleable iron.
capable of being put to use
Usable for both flame and furnace brazing.
an engine that causes a bladed rotor to rotate
For steam turbine blades.
galvanic
pertaining to electric current by chemical action
Can be used for joining aluminium and titanium to dissimilar metals; the risk of galvanic corrosion then has to be considered.
semiconductor
a substance as germanium or silicon whose electrical conductivity is intermediate between that of a metal and an insulator; its conductivity increases with temperature and in the presence of impurities
Used for die attachment and attachment of metal lids to semiconductor packages, e.g. kovar lids to ceramic chip carriers.
a silver-white metallic element of the platinum group that resembles platinum; occurs in some copper and nickel ores; does not tarnish at ordinary temperatures and is used (alloyed with gold) in jewelry
Oxidation resistance exceeds palladium-bearing alloys.
a nonmetallic univalent element that is normally a colorless and odorless highly flammable diatomic gas; the simplest and lightest and most abundant element in the universe
Fluxless brazing requires vacuum, argon or dry hydrogen atmosphere.
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i don't know
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Which is England’s northernmost landlocked county?
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The Counties of England | English County Guide
County of Bedfordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Bedford, Central Bedfordhsire, Luton
Where is Bedfordshire? Bedfordshire borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east.
County of Berkshire Tourism Website
Districts: West Berkshire, Reading, Wokingham, Bracknell Forest, Windsor and Maidenhead, Slough
Where is Berkshire? Berkshire borders Greater London to the East, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire to the North, Wiltshire to the West, and Hampshire & Surrey to the SOuth. The royal residence of Windsor Castle is in Berkshire.
City of Bristol Tourism Website
Districts: Bristol
Where is Bristol? Bristol is sandwiched between Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Built around the River Avon, the city of Bristol is the most populous city in South West England.
County of Buckinghamshire Tourism Website
Districts: South Bucks, Chiltern, Wycombe, Aylesbury Vale, Borough of Milton Keynes
Where is Buckinghamshire? Buckinghamshire borders 6 counties including Greater London to the south-east, Hertfordshire to the east, and Oxfordshire to the west.
County of Cambridgeshire Tourism Website
Districts: Cambridge, South Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, Fenland, East Cambridgeshire, Peterborough
Where is Cambridgeshire? Cambridgeshire lies directly west of Norfolk and Suffolk and has a northen border with Lincolnshire. Cambridgeshire is home to the famous university and the magnificent Ely cathedral.
County of Cheshire Tourism Website
Districts: Cheshire West & Chester, Cheshire East, Warrington, Halton
Where is Cheshire? Cheshire borders Wales to the east and Liverpool & Manchester to the North. Cheshire boasts the beautiful city of Chester, not to mention some very famous cheese.
City of London Tourism Website
Districts: London postcodes of EC, WC & E1
Where is the City of London? The Square Mile or City of London is in the middle of Greater London on the north side of the Thames between the boroughs of Westminster and Tower hamlets. It is England's smallest ceremonial county.
County of Cornwall Tourism Website
Districts: Cornwall, Isles of Scilly
Where is Cornwall? With Devon to its east, Cornwall is in the far south western corner of the UK and has the longest stretch of continuous coastline in Britain.
County of Cumbria Tourism Website
Districts: Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, District of South Lakeland, Borough of Copeland, Borough of Allerdale, District of Eden, City of Carlisle
Where is Cumbria? Cumbria is in the furthest north western corner of England, with the Scottish Border to the north and the Irish Sea to the west. Cumbria is predominantly rural and includes the Lake District, considered one of England's most outstanding areas of natural beauty.
County of Derbyshire Tourism Website
Districts: High Peak, Derbyshire Dales, South Derbyshire, Erewash, Amber Valley, North East Derbyshire, Chesterfield, Bolsover, Derby
Where is Derbyshire? Derbyshire borders Yorshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, and Staffordshire to the south-west. Derbyshire & the Peak District offers a spectacular landscape in one of the most beautiful & inspiring parts of the British Isles.
County of Devon Tourism Website
Districts: Exeter, East Devon, Mid Devon, North Devon, Torridge, West Devon, South Hams, Teignbridge, Plymouth, Torbay
Where is Devon? Situated between Cornwall to the west and Somerset to the east, Devon is one of the largest English counties and boasts rolling countryside, beautiful beaches and hundreds of events & activities.
County of Dorset Tourism Website
Districts: Weymouth and Portland, West Dorset, North Dorset, Purbeck, East Dorset, Christchurch, Bournemouth, Poole
Where is Dorset? With the English Channel to the south, Dorset's northern borders are with Somerset, Wilshire & Hampshire. Dorset's charming countryside and breathtaking views has been designated as an �Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty�.
County of Durham Tourism Website
Districts: County Durham, Hartlepool, Darlington, Stockton-on-Tees
Where is Durham? County Durham is a north eastern county of England, bordered by North Yorkshire to the south and Northumberland to the north.
County of Yorkshire Tourism Website
Districts: East Riding of Yorkshire, Kingston upon Hull
Where is the East Riding of Yorkshire? East Riding of Yorkshire is borderd by North & South Yorkshire and also the River Humber along its southern edge. Its county town is Beverley.
County of East Sussex Tourism Website
Districts: Hastings, Rother, Wealden, Eastbourne, Lewes, Brighton & Hove
Where is East Sussex? The county of East Sussex is bordered by its western namesake to the west and Kent to the north & east.
County of Essex Tourism Website
Districts: Harlow, Epping Forest, Brentwood, Basildon, Castle Point, Rochford, Maldon, Chelmsford, Uttlesford, Braintree, Colchester, Tendring, Thurrock, Southend-on-Sea
Where is Essex? Essex is an eastern county of England located to the northwest of London. It's bordered by Cambridge & Suffolk to the north and Hertfordshire to the west. The county town of Essex is Chelmsford.
County of Gloucestershire Tourism Website
Districts: Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Cheltenham, Cotswold, Stroud, Forest of Dean, South Gloucestershire
Where is Gloucestershire? Gloucestershire is a western county of England bordering Herefordhsire & wales to the west and Somerset & Wiltshire to the south. Its county town is the city of Gloucester.
Greater London Tourism Website
Districts: The 32 London boroughs
Where is Greater London? Greater London is in south east England and is surrounded by the Home Counties of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Essex, Berkshire, Surrey, & Kent.
County of Manchester Tourism Website
Districts: Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford, Trafford
Where is Greater Manchester? Greater Manchester borders Lancashire & West Yorkshire to the north, and Cheshire & Derbyshire to the south.
County of Hampshire Tourism Website
Districts: Gosport, Fareham, Winchester, Havant, East Hampshire, Hart, Rushmoor, Basingstoke and Deane, Test Valley, Eastleigh, New Forest, Southampton, Portsmouth
Where is Hampshire? Hampshire borders Sussex & Dorset to its East & West, and Wiltshire, Berkshire & Surrey along its northern edges.
County of Herefordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Herefordshire
Where is Herefordshire? Herefordshire is sandwiched between Herefordhsire to the east and the Welsh border to the west.
County of Hertfordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Three Rivers, Watford, Hertsmere, Welwyn Hatfield, Broxbourne, East Hertfordshire, Stevenage, North Hertfordshire, St Albans, Dacorum
Where is Hertfordshire? Hertfordshire is one of the home counties and is bordered by Bedfordshire to the north, Essex to the east, Buckinghamshire to the west, and Greater London to the south.
Isle of White Tourism Website
Districts: Isle of Wight
Where is the Isle of Wight? The Isle of Wight is located in the English Channel about 4 miles south of the Hampshire coastline
County of Kent Tourism Website
Districts: Sevenoaks, Dartford, Gravesham, Tonbridge and Malling, Medway, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Swale, Ashford, Canterbury, Shepway, Thanet, Dover
Where is Kent? Kent is located in the far south east corner of England and borders Essex & London to the north, and Surrey & East Sussex to the west & south. To the southeast it also has a border with France which is halfway along the Channel Tunnel.>
County of Lancashire Tourism Website
Districts: West Lancashire, Chorley, South Ribble, Fylde, Preston, Wyre, Lancaster, Ribble Valley, Pendle, Burnley, Rossendale, Hyndburn, Blackpool, Blackburn with Darwen
Where is Lancashire? Lancashire borders Greater Manchester to the south, Cumbria to the north and North yorkshire to the east.
County of Leicestershire Tourism Website
Districts: Charnwood, Melton, Harborough, Oadby and Wigston, Blaby, Hinckley and Bosworth, North West Leicestershire, Leicester
Where is Leicestershire? Leicestershire is in the very heart of England and borders no fewer than 7 counties inlcuding Nottinghamshire to the north and Northants to the south.
County of Lincolnshire Tourism Website
Districts: Lincoln, North Kesteven, South Kesteven, South Holland, Boston, East Lindsey, West Lindsey, North Lincolnshire, North East, Lincolnshire
Where is Lincolnshire? Lincolnshire is on the East coast of England with the Humber and the Wash forming part of its northern and southern boundaries respectively.
County of Merseyside Tourism Website
Districts: Liverpool, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Wirral
Where is Merseyside? Merseyside is on the West coast of England surrounded by the counties of of Lancashire, Greater Manchester & Cheshire.
Districts: Norwich, South Norfolk, Great Yarmouth, Broadland, North Norfolk, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Breckland
Where is Norfolk? Norfolk borders Suffolk to the south and Lincolnshire & Cambridgeshire to the west.
County of North Yorkshire Tourism Website
Districts: Selby, Borough of Harrogate, Craven, Richmondshire, Hambleton, Ryedale, Borough of Scarborough, City of York, Redcar and Cleveland, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees south of the Tees)
Where is North Yorkshire? North Yorkshire is a large county in the north of England stretching almost from coast to coast.
County of Northamptonshire Tourism Website
Districts: South Northamptonshire, Northampton, Daventry, Wellingborough, Kettering, Corby, East Northamptonshire
Where is Northamptonshire? Northamptonshire is in the East Midlands region and is bordered by eight other counties including Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire & Lincolnshire.
County of Northumberland Tourism Website
Districts: Northumberland
Where is Northumberland? Northumberland is the northernmost county, bordering Cumbria to the west & County Durham to the south.
County of Nottinghamshire Tourism Website
Districts: Rushcliffe, Broxtowe, Ashfield, Gedling, Newark and Sherwood, Mansfield, Bassetlaw, Nottingham
Where is Nottinghamshire? Nottinghamshire is the northernmost county, bordering Cumbria to the west & County Durham to the south.
County of Oxfordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Oxford, Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, Vale of White Horse, West Oxfordshire
Where is Oxfordshire? Oxfordshire is in the South/Central region of England and borders Warwickshire & Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Gloucestershire & Wiltshire to the west.
County of Rutland Tourism Website
Districts: Rutland
Where is Rutland? Rutland is a small landlocked county of central England bordered by Leicestershire & Lincolnshire to the north and Northamptonshire & Cambridge to the south.
County of Shropshire Tourism Website
Districts: Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin
Where is Shropshire? Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England bordering Wales to the west.
County of Somerset Tourism Website
Districts: South Somerset, Taunton Deane, West Somerset, Sedgemoor, Mendip, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset
Where is Somerset? Somerset is a county in South West England bordering Bristol & Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south, and Devon to the west.
County of Yorkshire Tourism Website
Districts: Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster, Barnsley
Where is South Yorkshire? South Yorkshire is a county in central northern England, bordered by the rest of Yorkshire to the north and Derby, Nottinghamshire & Lincolnshire to the south.
County of Staffordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Tamworth, Lichfield, Cannock Chase, South Staffordshire, Stafford, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire Moorlands, East Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent
Where is Staffordshire? Staffordshire is a county in central northern England, bordered by the rest of Yorkshire to the north and Derby, Nottinghamshire & Lincolnshire to the south.
County of Suffolk Tourism Website
Districts: Ipswich, Suffolk Coastal, Waveney, Mid Suffolk, Babergh, St Edmundsbury, Forest Heath
Where is Suffolk? Suffolk is a county in East Anglia and borders Norfolk to the north, The North Sea to the east, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south.
County of Surrey Tourism Website
Districts: Spelthorne, Runnymede, Surrey Heath, Woking, Elmbridge, Guildford, Waverley, Mole Valley, Epsom and Ewell, Reigate and Banstead, Tandridge
Where is Surrey? Surrey is one of the Home Counties and borders Greater London & Berkshire to the north, Kent to the east, East & West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire to the west.
County of Tyne & Wear Tourism Website
Districts: Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland
Where is Tyne and Wear? Tyne and Wear Tyne is a county which borders Northumberland to the north, the North Sea to the east, and Durham to the south.
County of Warwickshire Tourism Website
Districts: North Warwickshire, Nuneaton and Bedworth, Rugby, Stratford-on-Avon, Warwick
Where is Warwickshire? Warwickshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England bordered by Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Worcestershire & Staffordshire.
County of West Midlands Tourism Website
Districts: City of Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall, Sandwell, City of Birmingham, Solihull, City of Coventry
Where is West Midlands? West Midlands borders Shropshire & Staffordshire to the north and Worcestershire & warwickshire to the south.
County of Sussex Tourism Website
Districts: Worthing, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, Crawley, Mid Sussex, Adur
Where is West Sussex? West Sussex is a coastal county of southern England, bordering Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the south, & Hampshire to the west.
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West Yorkshire
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DZ are the international registration letters for which Nort African country?
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The Counties of England | English County Guide
County of Bedfordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Bedford, Central Bedfordhsire, Luton
Where is Bedfordshire? Bedfordshire borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east.
County of Berkshire Tourism Website
Districts: West Berkshire, Reading, Wokingham, Bracknell Forest, Windsor and Maidenhead, Slough
Where is Berkshire? Berkshire borders Greater London to the East, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire to the North, Wiltshire to the West, and Hampshire & Surrey to the SOuth. The royal residence of Windsor Castle is in Berkshire.
City of Bristol Tourism Website
Districts: Bristol
Where is Bristol? Bristol is sandwiched between Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Built around the River Avon, the city of Bristol is the most populous city in South West England.
County of Buckinghamshire Tourism Website
Districts: South Bucks, Chiltern, Wycombe, Aylesbury Vale, Borough of Milton Keynes
Where is Buckinghamshire? Buckinghamshire borders 6 counties including Greater London to the south-east, Hertfordshire to the east, and Oxfordshire to the west.
County of Cambridgeshire Tourism Website
Districts: Cambridge, South Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, Fenland, East Cambridgeshire, Peterborough
Where is Cambridgeshire? Cambridgeshire lies directly west of Norfolk and Suffolk and has a northen border with Lincolnshire. Cambridgeshire is home to the famous university and the magnificent Ely cathedral.
County of Cheshire Tourism Website
Districts: Cheshire West & Chester, Cheshire East, Warrington, Halton
Where is Cheshire? Cheshire borders Wales to the east and Liverpool & Manchester to the North. Cheshire boasts the beautiful city of Chester, not to mention some very famous cheese.
City of London Tourism Website
Districts: London postcodes of EC, WC & E1
Where is the City of London? The Square Mile or City of London is in the middle of Greater London on the north side of the Thames between the boroughs of Westminster and Tower hamlets. It is England's smallest ceremonial county.
County of Cornwall Tourism Website
Districts: Cornwall, Isles of Scilly
Where is Cornwall? With Devon to its east, Cornwall is in the far south western corner of the UK and has the longest stretch of continuous coastline in Britain.
County of Cumbria Tourism Website
Districts: Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, District of South Lakeland, Borough of Copeland, Borough of Allerdale, District of Eden, City of Carlisle
Where is Cumbria? Cumbria is in the furthest north western corner of England, with the Scottish Border to the north and the Irish Sea to the west. Cumbria is predominantly rural and includes the Lake District, considered one of England's most outstanding areas of natural beauty.
County of Derbyshire Tourism Website
Districts: High Peak, Derbyshire Dales, South Derbyshire, Erewash, Amber Valley, North East Derbyshire, Chesterfield, Bolsover, Derby
Where is Derbyshire? Derbyshire borders Yorshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, and Staffordshire to the south-west. Derbyshire & the Peak District offers a spectacular landscape in one of the most beautiful & inspiring parts of the British Isles.
County of Devon Tourism Website
Districts: Exeter, East Devon, Mid Devon, North Devon, Torridge, West Devon, South Hams, Teignbridge, Plymouth, Torbay
Where is Devon? Situated between Cornwall to the west and Somerset to the east, Devon is one of the largest English counties and boasts rolling countryside, beautiful beaches and hundreds of events & activities.
County of Dorset Tourism Website
Districts: Weymouth and Portland, West Dorset, North Dorset, Purbeck, East Dorset, Christchurch, Bournemouth, Poole
Where is Dorset? With the English Channel to the south, Dorset's northern borders are with Somerset, Wilshire & Hampshire. Dorset's charming countryside and breathtaking views has been designated as an �Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty�.
County of Durham Tourism Website
Districts: County Durham, Hartlepool, Darlington, Stockton-on-Tees
Where is Durham? County Durham is a north eastern county of England, bordered by North Yorkshire to the south and Northumberland to the north.
County of Yorkshire Tourism Website
Districts: East Riding of Yorkshire, Kingston upon Hull
Where is the East Riding of Yorkshire? East Riding of Yorkshire is borderd by North & South Yorkshire and also the River Humber along its southern edge. Its county town is Beverley.
County of East Sussex Tourism Website
Districts: Hastings, Rother, Wealden, Eastbourne, Lewes, Brighton & Hove
Where is East Sussex? The county of East Sussex is bordered by its western namesake to the west and Kent to the north & east.
County of Essex Tourism Website
Districts: Harlow, Epping Forest, Brentwood, Basildon, Castle Point, Rochford, Maldon, Chelmsford, Uttlesford, Braintree, Colchester, Tendring, Thurrock, Southend-on-Sea
Where is Essex? Essex is an eastern county of England located to the northwest of London. It's bordered by Cambridge & Suffolk to the north and Hertfordshire to the west. The county town of Essex is Chelmsford.
County of Gloucestershire Tourism Website
Districts: Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Cheltenham, Cotswold, Stroud, Forest of Dean, South Gloucestershire
Where is Gloucestershire? Gloucestershire is a western county of England bordering Herefordhsire & wales to the west and Somerset & Wiltshire to the south. Its county town is the city of Gloucester.
Greater London Tourism Website
Districts: The 32 London boroughs
Where is Greater London? Greater London is in south east England and is surrounded by the Home Counties of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Essex, Berkshire, Surrey, & Kent.
County of Manchester Tourism Website
Districts: Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford, Trafford
Where is Greater Manchester? Greater Manchester borders Lancashire & West Yorkshire to the north, and Cheshire & Derbyshire to the south.
County of Hampshire Tourism Website
Districts: Gosport, Fareham, Winchester, Havant, East Hampshire, Hart, Rushmoor, Basingstoke and Deane, Test Valley, Eastleigh, New Forest, Southampton, Portsmouth
Where is Hampshire? Hampshire borders Sussex & Dorset to its East & West, and Wiltshire, Berkshire & Surrey along its northern edges.
County of Herefordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Herefordshire
Where is Herefordshire? Herefordshire is sandwiched between Herefordhsire to the east and the Welsh border to the west.
County of Hertfordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Three Rivers, Watford, Hertsmere, Welwyn Hatfield, Broxbourne, East Hertfordshire, Stevenage, North Hertfordshire, St Albans, Dacorum
Where is Hertfordshire? Hertfordshire is one of the home counties and is bordered by Bedfordshire to the north, Essex to the east, Buckinghamshire to the west, and Greater London to the south.
Isle of White Tourism Website
Districts: Isle of Wight
Where is the Isle of Wight? The Isle of Wight is located in the English Channel about 4 miles south of the Hampshire coastline
County of Kent Tourism Website
Districts: Sevenoaks, Dartford, Gravesham, Tonbridge and Malling, Medway, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Swale, Ashford, Canterbury, Shepway, Thanet, Dover
Where is Kent? Kent is located in the far south east corner of England and borders Essex & London to the north, and Surrey & East Sussex to the west & south. To the southeast it also has a border with France which is halfway along the Channel Tunnel.>
County of Lancashire Tourism Website
Districts: West Lancashire, Chorley, South Ribble, Fylde, Preston, Wyre, Lancaster, Ribble Valley, Pendle, Burnley, Rossendale, Hyndburn, Blackpool, Blackburn with Darwen
Where is Lancashire? Lancashire borders Greater Manchester to the south, Cumbria to the north and North yorkshire to the east.
County of Leicestershire Tourism Website
Districts: Charnwood, Melton, Harborough, Oadby and Wigston, Blaby, Hinckley and Bosworth, North West Leicestershire, Leicester
Where is Leicestershire? Leicestershire is in the very heart of England and borders no fewer than 7 counties inlcuding Nottinghamshire to the north and Northants to the south.
County of Lincolnshire Tourism Website
Districts: Lincoln, North Kesteven, South Kesteven, South Holland, Boston, East Lindsey, West Lindsey, North Lincolnshire, North East, Lincolnshire
Where is Lincolnshire? Lincolnshire is on the East coast of England with the Humber and the Wash forming part of its northern and southern boundaries respectively.
County of Merseyside Tourism Website
Districts: Liverpool, Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens, Wirral
Where is Merseyside? Merseyside is on the West coast of England surrounded by the counties of of Lancashire, Greater Manchester & Cheshire.
Districts: Norwich, South Norfolk, Great Yarmouth, Broadland, North Norfolk, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Breckland
Where is Norfolk? Norfolk borders Suffolk to the south and Lincolnshire & Cambridgeshire to the west.
County of North Yorkshire Tourism Website
Districts: Selby, Borough of Harrogate, Craven, Richmondshire, Hambleton, Ryedale, Borough of Scarborough, City of York, Redcar and Cleveland, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees south of the Tees)
Where is North Yorkshire? North Yorkshire is a large county in the north of England stretching almost from coast to coast.
County of Northamptonshire Tourism Website
Districts: South Northamptonshire, Northampton, Daventry, Wellingborough, Kettering, Corby, East Northamptonshire
Where is Northamptonshire? Northamptonshire is in the East Midlands region and is bordered by eight other counties including Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire & Lincolnshire.
County of Northumberland Tourism Website
Districts: Northumberland
Where is Northumberland? Northumberland is the northernmost county, bordering Cumbria to the west & County Durham to the south.
County of Nottinghamshire Tourism Website
Districts: Rushcliffe, Broxtowe, Ashfield, Gedling, Newark and Sherwood, Mansfield, Bassetlaw, Nottingham
Where is Nottinghamshire? Nottinghamshire is the northernmost county, bordering Cumbria to the west & County Durham to the south.
County of Oxfordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Oxford, Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, Vale of White Horse, West Oxfordshire
Where is Oxfordshire? Oxfordshire is in the South/Central region of England and borders Warwickshire & Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Gloucestershire & Wiltshire to the west.
County of Rutland Tourism Website
Districts: Rutland
Where is Rutland? Rutland is a small landlocked county of central England bordered by Leicestershire & Lincolnshire to the north and Northamptonshire & Cambridge to the south.
County of Shropshire Tourism Website
Districts: Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin
Where is Shropshire? Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England bordering Wales to the west.
County of Somerset Tourism Website
Districts: South Somerset, Taunton Deane, West Somerset, Sedgemoor, Mendip, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset
Where is Somerset? Somerset is a county in South West England bordering Bristol & Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south, and Devon to the west.
County of Yorkshire Tourism Website
Districts: Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster, Barnsley
Where is South Yorkshire? South Yorkshire is a county in central northern England, bordered by the rest of Yorkshire to the north and Derby, Nottinghamshire & Lincolnshire to the south.
County of Staffordshire Tourism Website
Districts: Tamworth, Lichfield, Cannock Chase, South Staffordshire, Stafford, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire Moorlands, East Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent
Where is Staffordshire? Staffordshire is a county in central northern England, bordered by the rest of Yorkshire to the north and Derby, Nottinghamshire & Lincolnshire to the south.
County of Suffolk Tourism Website
Districts: Ipswich, Suffolk Coastal, Waveney, Mid Suffolk, Babergh, St Edmundsbury, Forest Heath
Where is Suffolk? Suffolk is a county in East Anglia and borders Norfolk to the north, The North Sea to the east, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south.
County of Surrey Tourism Website
Districts: Spelthorne, Runnymede, Surrey Heath, Woking, Elmbridge, Guildford, Waverley, Mole Valley, Epsom and Ewell, Reigate and Banstead, Tandridge
Where is Surrey? Surrey is one of the Home Counties and borders Greater London & Berkshire to the north, Kent to the east, East & West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire to the west.
County of Tyne & Wear Tourism Website
Districts: Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland
Where is Tyne and Wear? Tyne and Wear Tyne is a county which borders Northumberland to the north, the North Sea to the east, and Durham to the south.
County of Warwickshire Tourism Website
Districts: North Warwickshire, Nuneaton and Bedworth, Rugby, Stratford-on-Avon, Warwick
Where is Warwickshire? Warwickshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England bordered by Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Worcestershire & Staffordshire.
County of West Midlands Tourism Website
Districts: City of Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall, Sandwell, City of Birmingham, Solihull, City of Coventry
Where is West Midlands? West Midlands borders Shropshire & Staffordshire to the north and Worcestershire & warwickshire to the south.
County of Sussex Tourism Website
Districts: Worthing, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, Crawley, Mid Sussex, Adur
Where is West Sussex? West Sussex is a coastal county of southern England, bordering Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the south, & Hampshire to the west.
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i don't know
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Orange Peko and Dust are grades of which consumable commodity?
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History of Tea | Moore Coffee and Tea
History of Tea
A tradition as old as civilization.
There is only one plant that produces tea, Camellia sinensis. This single plant produces many varietals which in turn can be produced into thousands of types of teas. The differences are based on where the tea is grown, how it is plucked and how it is processed. The character, flavor and body of quality tea is much more complex than coffee. There are three types of tea: black, green, and oolong.
The process for making tea originated in China and was transplanted by the British to India and Ceylon in the last century, and to Kenya in this century. Like coffee plants, tea likes hot days, cool nights, and plenty of rain. And, also like coffee, most high quality tea is grown at higher altitudes in mountainous regions.
In general, tea is harvested every seven days in the growing season. When picked in the orthodox manner, only the uppermost leaves and terminal buds are plucked by hand. However, as the demand for mass-produced, cheap tea has increased, some growers have switched to rude machines that basically remove the top of the plant, leaves, stems, and all.
An Overview of Tea History
According to legend, tea was discovered by the Chinese Emperor Shen Nong in 2737 B.C. The Emperor was boiling water in the garden and a leaf from the camellia plant fell into the pot. Upon drinking the resulting infusion, he felt revived and refreshed and declared the brew to have medicinal powers.
Tea was originally brewed with raw, un-processed wild leaves steeped in boiling water. As the refinement developed, the leaves were dried, crushed and then pressed into “cakes” which were broken up and placed into boiling water. Special containers for preparing and enjoying tea were not created until about 960 B.C. It was also around this time that the forerunner of the Japanese Tea Ceremony was developed: fresh green tea leaves are dried, powdered and then whisked into a bowl of hot water.
Around 1370 B.C., processed leaves replaced the tea cakes and tea is traded as a commodity throughout Asia and Europe. The Chinese would hold their monopoly on tea until the 1800’s when the British were able to successfully grow tea in what was then their largest colony, India. And tea probably arrived in the Americas before it reached England, with heavily sugared green tea proving to be very popular in the New World colonies. Of course, any good American knows that on 16 December, 1773, a group of Americans, dressed as Mohawk Indians, threw about 340 chests of tea into Boston Harbor, protesting King George II’s new increased tax on tea. This act also explains the U.S.’s preference for coffee over tea.
Today, more tea is consumed worldwide than any other beverage with the exception of water. Outside of China, the three largest tea consumers are the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Turkey. Just as each country produces a different variety of tea, so too does each country produce a different beverage that they label either “tea” or “tay”, “cha” or “chai”.
Black Tea
Fully processed, is black in appearance. The tea is allowed to ferment and is amber in color when brewed. Some black tea is set on screens and smoked for flavoring. Black teas contain more caffeine than their counterparts, green and oolong, and are more familiar to Westerners.
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Tea
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Which bird takes its name from the erectile feathers seen around its neck in courtship?
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US State Department - Policy - Directorate of Defense Trade Controls
Airborne Imaging System that bring commercial-level geospatial data to a variety of applications
USML XIII(a)
DEI 1064_4 Clock Processor Fast Warm-Up ASIC
Device Engineering Incorporated (DEI)
An Application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)
USML XI(c)(1)
Ceramic Housing for a Transceiver Device
Kyocera America Inc
Ceramic housing that functions as a printed circuit board for a transceiver device
USML XI(c)(2)
#2 T-AA Chrome Spear Drill Holder (Model: Rev 0)
Allied Machine and Engineering Corporation
Specialized holder for precision drilling used in the manufacture of production equipment
CCATS
Inline Scout Mount (Part Nbr: ISM-M)
Arisake LLC
Mounting adapter that attaches a Surefire M300 or M600 series light to an M-Lok rifle handguard
EAR99
Solid State Linear Amplifier (Class AB) capable of driving a resistive, capacitive or inductive load
CCATS
2 Series T-A Form Insert (Model: 950314-3 Rev B)
Allied Machine and Engineering Corporation
Accessory used to drill holes into armored vehicles
CCATS
Washer, Flat Part Number: 11678182
Bright Lights USA, INC
The item is a washer on the M113 armored personnel carrier (APC)
EAR99
6 Series T-A Special Angle Blade
Allied Machine and Engineering Corporation
A specialty cutting blade used for drilling titanium
EAR99
Intercommunication Set Control, Model C3942(P)/AIC-18
Andrea Systems LLC
panel-mounted assembly for intercommunication and radio-monitoring facilities for aircraft and ground installations
CCATS
1 Series T-A Special Point caliber bore
Allied Machine and Engineering Corporation
A coring insert for the production of drilling holes and modified to core a .223 caliber bore
CCATS
Z Series T-A Special Angle Insert (Model: 141218-37 Rev A)
Allied Machine and Engineering Corporation
Accessory modified to include a chip-breaker used in production of gun barrels below .50 caliber
CCATS
Wireless router in a portable form factor
ECCN 5A002.a.1
05/26/2016
Wave Relay 5100 Handheld Man Portbale Unit with Radio Module 1100, M/N: MPU5 L-Band, P/N: WR-5100 + RF-110
Persistent Systems, LLC
A secure, scalable, peer-to-peer network that provides data, video, and voice connectivity
ECCN 5A002.a.1
05/26/2016
Wave Relat 5100 Handheld Man Portable unit with radio Module 2100, M/N: MPU5 S-Band, P/N: WR-5100 + RF-2100
Persistent Systems, LLC
A secure, scalable, peer-to-peer network that provides data, video, and voice connectivity
ECCN 5A002.a.1
05/26/2016
GromaTech Radio - Mobie Ad-hoc Network with Case (GTR-1200); GromaTech Radio - Mobile Ad-hoc Network without Case (GTR-1020)
GromaTech LLC
A handheld mobile ad-hoc networkiing radio and the radio board without an enclosure, to allow for integration into other systems
ECCN 5A002.a.1
50 BMG Quick Detach (QD) Mount Part/Model number: LT107
LaRue Tactical
This item is an aluminum optic mount consists of an aluminum base mount that receives split rings that grip multiple different day optical sights
EAR99
LaRue Tactical min Day Optic Sight Mount Model/Part Number: LT-105
Austin Precision Products
This item is a miniature day optical sight mount that attaches to a firearm rail by use of a single speed lever clamp
EAR99
N/A
Microsemi
Semiconductor transisto. This subject transistor is used where the circuit needs to control a part of the circuit connected to the 0Volt side or where high side control is required. This transistor will be used in maintnenance of an aviation TPS-70 radar
CCATS
HV3911
Microchip Technology, Inc
HV3922 High Voltage PIN Diode Driver; monolithic, high voltgage quad- output driver, designed for frequency - hopping radios
CCATS
50 Watts VHF & UHF Self Tuning Amplifiers, M/N AR-50 and AR75M50 and variations thereof
AR Kalmus Corps
Self tuning amplifiers that amplify and input signal
ECCN 3A611.x
Lamp Module and Power Supply
Excelitas Technologies Corp
Internal Lighting Strip Assembly (ILSA) system to be tested & Qualified for use in the Cygnus Spacecraft, which is a cargo ship that re-supplies the space station
ECCN 9A515.x
AR-Scope, USA with Navmar Applied Sciences Corporation
Augmeted Reality software used to assist an AirForce Loadmaster with pre-flight checks
USML VIII(i)
Crawford Strand Burner System (Signle or Triple Strand)
Design Integrated Technology, Inc
A device used to measure the burn rate of solid or gel-based propellants by burning single or triple strands of a given propellant in a closed chamber located within the device
ECCN 1B608.a
HICAP E15
Cornet Technology Inc
Ethernet switch designed to connect computers, sensors, radios, etc, located within a vehicle creating a highly effective mobile network
USML XI(a)(5)(i)
Glass Fabric Prepreg - TG22N - AR251C - 750/30 - 1SP, 50"
Aldila Golf Corp
Prepreg material used to make sports and recreation items as well as naval submarine items
ECCN 1A990
Lava Black Polymer-Metal Matrix (Model nbr: GRV - NY-060-CU BLK)
Polyone Corporation
Lava Black Ploymer-Metal Matrix which is a custom-made polymer
08/12/2016
Video Tracker to test shipboard radar and fire system alignment
USML II(h)
03560897-000
Measurement Specialties Inc. (a TE Connectivity company)
LVDT is a component of the throttle controls of the F-CK-1 Indigenous Defense Fighter aircraft used by the Taiwanese Air Force
ECCN 9A610.x
600 Series Light Body, Part No. LB-600
Arisaka, LLC
A low-profile tactical flashlight body compatible with Surefire Scout Light heads, tailcaps, and mounts, designed as a streamlined replacement body for Surefire Scout Light M600 weapon lights
EAR99
Compact, Spring Operated Accu-Pistol Brace
Steady Shot LLC
Collapsible, Compact, Spring Operated, Universal forearm brace for pistols and revolvers
CCATS
Computer for unmanned aerial vehicles
CCATS
Quade Release System Part Numbers: 1060V, 9406V, 9402
John C. Tucker Co. Inc
This item is a quick release system used on commercial and military tactical vests. The only difference between the commercial and military parts are the color, black is for commercial and green or tan is for military
EAR99
Finger Stop, CMR, Part No. FS-C
Arisaka, LLC
A small/low profile control accessory/finger stop, approximately 0.8" tall, which mounts to a Centurion Arms CMR rifle handguard, and is used as a reference point or an additional grip when firing a rifle
EAR99
Finger Stop, M-LOK, Part No. FS-M
Arisaka, LLC
A small/low profile control accessory/finger stop, approximately 0.8" tall, which mounts to an M-LOK rifle handguard, and is used as a reference point or an additional grip when firing a rifle
EAR99
300 Series Light Body, Part No LB-300
Arisaka, LLC
A low-profile tactical flashlight body compatible with Surefire Scout Light Heads, tailcaps, and mounts, designed as a streamlined replacement body for Surefire Scout Light M300 weapon lights
EAR99
Offset Scout Mount, KeyMod, Part No. OSM-K
Arisaka, LLC
An offset mounting adapter for attaching a Surefire Scout M300 or M600 series tactical flashlight to aftermarket handguards or rail systems for tactical rifles
EAR99
Offset Scout Mount, M-Lok, Part No. OSM-M
Arisaka, LLC
An offset mounting adapter for attaching a Surefire Scout M300 or M600 series tactical flashlight to aftermarket handguards or rail systems for tactical rifles
EAR99
Optic Leveler (Combo), Part No. OL-Combo
Arisaka, LLC
In inexpensive, easy-to-use tool for leveling scopes mounted in rings or one-piece mounts
EAR99
Unfinished mirror that is shaped and finely ground on one side
EAR99
3 Series Guided T-A Holder (Model: Rev A)
Star USA, Inc
Specialized portable drill honder that has a bushing and a bearing area on the holder which facilitates improved drill accuracy
CCATS
Ring Light Mount (Model Number: CMR)
Arisaka, LLC
A ring light mount accessory which attaches to a CMR
EAR99
Tailcap (Model: Clicky)
Arisaka, LLC
Tailcap replacement switch for the Arisaka 300 and 600 series Light Bodies, Surefire Scout and E-Series Lights
EAR99
Tailcap (Model: Momentary)
Arisaka, LLC
Tailcap replacement switch for the Arisaka 300 and 600 series Light Bodies, Surefire Scout and E-Series Lights
EAR99
Intelligence Cycle Course
The Soufan Group, LLC
A Module of a course that teaches participants the basics of turning data into actionable intelligence. This module focuses on teaching the Intelligence Cycle
Not subject to the ITAR or EAR
07/11/2016
Training services for use of the "Alternative"
Alternative Ballistics, LP
Training services for the use of the "Alternative"
Not a defense service
Lens Element 5 for Fisheye Lens for single Lens for Celestial Compass, Drawing #10080655
JENOPTIK Optical Systems, LLC
A lens element of a fisheye lens assembly for use in a celestial compass
USML XII(e) and (f)
Lens Element 2 for Fisheye Lens for Single Lens for Celestial Compass, Drawing # 10594552
JENOPTIK Optical Systems, LLC
A lens element of fisheye lens assembly for use in a celestial compass
USML XII(e) and (f)
Lens Element 1 for Fisheye Lens for Single Lens for Celestial Compass, Drawing # 10080651
JENOPTIK Optical Systems, LLC
A lens element of a fisheye lens assembly for use in a celestial compass
USML XII(e) and (f)
Power amplifier in frequency range of 20 to 512 MHz
ECCN 3A611.x
P/N: 865-000188
IDD Aerospace
A bezel assembly used as interfaces in the F-35 cockpit. It integrates lights to light control panels, and incorporates night-vision filters to allow for compatibility with night vision operations
USML VIII(h)(1)
SEAMS software Platform for Digital Thread
RJ Lee Group Inc
Software designed to store, index, and search information
CCATS
Wave Glider for Maritime Domain Awareness System
Liquid Robotics, Inc
A modular and scalable system that allows for long term surface monitoring addressing a range of maritime missions
CCATS
Handgun Accessory Adapter, P/N: TA-1
Chambermax LLC
This item is a replacement back fitting for a pistol slide to allow for more convenient gripping on the slide, placement of an iron sight further back, aiding hand use when using gloves, handicapped
USML I(h)
OpenVision X-Ray System , Model No. OVCF-SEC-70
QSA Global, Inc
A lightweight, portable real-time video x-ray imaging system specifically designed for hand-held inspections."
CCATS
M-Series Cable Assembly Model number: M-Series Part number: MA-241-006-261-A0000-ZDX
AirBorn, Inc
The item is a cable assembly that is configured with two EAR99 connectors, with extended wire length and two twisted into pairs, commercial wire, and latch spring attached in one of the cavities
EAR99
Smart Blade Radio System Model Number: RT-4050 Part Number: 270-3186-040
Rockwell Collins
This item is a product to provide clear, available and reliable VHF/UHF Air Traffic Control (ATC) communications for both civil and military operations at airport facilities. It consists of a modular, small form-factor TCP/IP-based RF transceiver, along with a compact power amplifier
ECCN 3A611.a
N/A
NASA
Interface drawing for a secondary optics structure of an Advance Mirror Design (AMD) for a spacecraft showing the structure and attach points and placement of the mirror. The engineers and scientist use the drawing to build and AMD structure and system to be used for AMD optical system housed in the spacecraft
USML XV(f)
N/A
NASA
Questions and Answer that address the drawing specifications and spacecraft system parameters for the Advance Mirror Design (AMD) project, to include maximum surface astigmatism and not to exceed value of RMS. NASA engineers and scientists use the information to build the AMD system for optics housed in the spacecraft
USML XV(f)
Portable Raman Improvised Explosive Detector
Alakai Defense Systems, Inc
Portable eye safe chemical detector of narcotics, hazardous materials, pollutants, and explosive residues
ECCN 1A004.d
Variable Reluctance Sensor for F-35
Motion sensors, Inc
Variable reluctance ("VR") sensor used in connection with the hydraulic motor that operates the weapons bay door o the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter
USML VIII(h)(1)
v1
Tresys Technology, LLC
XD Guardian Cross domain solution and data diode. The XD Guardian provides controlled uni-directional and bi-directional data transfer between two networks. This XD Guardian supports file transfers and data streaming, and allows for configurable filtering of data during transmission
USML XIII(b)(4)
N/A
Perkins Technical Services, Inc
The Power Supply Docking Station (PSDS) provides the capability to operate one ot two radios and one or two power amplifiers utilizing AC power worldwide, automatically, and is a one-box solution to tactical communications
ECCN 3A611.x
V-Bat 76C
Martin UAV LLC
A UAV which can fly up to 8 hours at altitudes up to 15,000 feet, has a speed range of 0 to 90 knots, a range of 300 miles limited by fuel and 30 miles limited by telemetry)
ECCN 9A012.a
Space Standards and Architectures Course
Space Infrastructure Foundation
This is an interactive course on technical space standards (open standards) and how to use them
Not subject to the ITAR not subject to the EAR
04/15/2016
Training Service: "Introduction to Carbines (M4)"
CAGN Global Ltd
A course designed to provide basic knowledge and skills associated with operating a carbine safely and accurately
USML I(i)
The system introduces high-energy physics and particle detectors to physics students
EAR99
Connector Cable Assembly (Part Number: NM-212-051-161-JC00-283)
AirBorne, Inc
An assembly that carries electrical signals and low power currents between printed circuit boards
EAR99
N/A
Streit USA Armoring LLC
Titan APC vehicle designed for civilian law enforcement and border protection use. The subject Titan APC is built on a BAE Caiman MRAP Category II 6&6 chassis
USML VII(e )
ENFORCER Hardware Security Module
Private Machines, Inc
A cryptographically strong hardware security module that comforms to Security Level 4, as set forth in U.S. NIST FIPS Publication 140-2
ECCN 5A002.a.1
Optical Grade germanium raw material in the form of single crystals and rods
EAR99
H-Bar Location of Miss and Hit (LOMAH) Target System (Precision Open Air Target); P/N: 170-0200
Oakwood Controls Corporation
An Acoustical target and peripherals for the detection and location of supersonic projectiles. This system was designed to provide instant feedback on long-range shooting
USML IX(a)(1)(ii)
CoroCAm 8 9Hz
Ox Creek Energy Associates Inc
Camera that creates images from each of its three distinct and separate wavelength cameras that are overlaid with one another in order to create a unique perspective of a scene
ECCN 6A993.a
PCOT6 SWIR, SWIR-NIR, and SWIR-VIS Cameras
United Technologies Corp., Sensors Unlimited, inc
SWIR, SWIR-NIR, and SWIR-VIS cameras with 640x512 FPAs, and major components
ECCNs 6A003.b.4.a ; ECCN 6A002.a.3.c ; EAR99
01/27/2016
Laser module that uses fiber optics to enchance the beam
ECCN 6A005.e.2
Basic Training of the atmospheric plasma spray process
Oerlikon Metco (US) Inc
A spray system process that can be applied to any base material provided it is suitable for the coating used
EAR99
Z-Bolt Class IIIa Handheld Green Dot Laser (Model: BTG-10G-ADJ)
Bea, of Light Technologies, Inc
The Z-Bolt Class IIIa handheld Green Dot Laser is used as a green dot laser pointer, as a handheld unit, or on a firearm
ECCN 0A987.f
D/SD Encoder Model# 6800R
Delta Information Systems
An HD/SD video encoder that compresses video and audio signals, multiplexing them with metadata and other system information for real-time video transmission applications
ECCN 7A994
Software Defined Radio Waveform Development Systems and software Defined Radios
ECCN 5A002.a.1
Magazine Release Assist Model Number: GL-2333, GL-2333-S, and C-2401
Columbus Precision Tools, Inc
This item is a firearm magazine release device that helps a firearm operator to remove a magazine quickly and without additional physical effort from the operator
USML I(h)
Head Worn Display, M/N: Scorpion/MicroMax/Dragonfly
Thales Visionix inc
Head Worn display that consists of an inertial tracker, diplay, and system processor
EAR99
Lumus Display Unit, M/N: PD-14
Thales Visionix inc
Display unit that utilizes light optical waveguide technology to present video or symbology into the use line of sight
EAR99
Zeus 9Hz Thermal imaging Riflescopes: M/V: 4 160-9, 7 160-9, 3 336-9 and 5 336-9
Armasight, inc
Thermal imaging riflescopes that operate at the 9 Hz frame rate
USML XII(c)
P-22 Clip-On night Vision Device; M/V: SDI, IDI, & QSI
Armasight, inc
Night vision weapon clip-on sight w/Generation 2+ image intensifier tube
ECCN 0A987.e
General Dynamics - Applied Physical Sciences
Shipboard system to monitor wind and waves and predict motion
EAR99
Accu-Pistol Brace
Omar Tarazi Steady Shot LLC
The item is a universal detachable forearm brace for a handgun that connects to pistols via modified magazine baseplate, and to a revolver via a modified grip
EAR99
CSNE151 Sensors
Honeywell International Inc
Sensor that detects electrical current in a wire, with typical applications to incude monitoring the operational status of motors. The Two versions of this submission were designed for use on Category VII Aircraft
ECCN 9A610.x
Leupold BX-2 Tactical 10x42mm Binoculars, Black, Mil-L Reticle 115935, Model-P/N 115935
International Equipment Supply Group, inc
Tactical binoculars
Aluminum telescope mount for round tube telescopic firearm sights
EAR99
Systems Tool Kit Spacecraft Object Library (STK SOLIS)
AGI, inc
Desktop modeling & simulation software for analyzing spacecraft rotational dynamics and closed-loop attitude determination and control
ECCN 9D515
1) Ferromagnetic Pure Boron Complexes and 2) Pure Boron Nanoparticles
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc
Pure Boron complexes and pure elemental boron, respectively
ECCN 1C011.b
Foundational Computer Training, Defensive Cyber operations, Computer and mobiles Forensics Training Services
root9B, LLC
These Services are considered a form of cybersecurity training
EAR99
Endpoint Encryption Library (Version: 1.0)
Web Sensing LLC
Software used in remote sensor to provide two-way authentication
ECCN 5D002.c.1
Discoidal Ceramic capacitor, P/N: 104010C9112 K6BC
API Technologies, Corp
Discoidal feed-through ceramic capacitor, the dimensions of which have been modified from commercial standards for use in tank ammunition
USML III(d)(3)
Advanced software Defined Radio (ASDR) Satellite Transceiver
Comtech Mobile Datacom Corporation
L-Band Satellite transceiver used for ground vehicular asset tracking via satellite
CCATS
Specialised Imaging Ltd., Tring, Herts. UK HP23 5EF
All SIM Models using commercial GEN 2 MCP tubes bonded to CCDs
ECCN 6A003.b.3
MicroIR Thermal Camera Core, M/N: TWV640i, P/N: 8500499-X
BAE Systems Information and Electronics Systems Integration, inc
Slow Video Thermal camera Core
ECCN 6A993.a
Helicopter Helmet ; M/V: EVO 152 NVG; P/N: E 152 N
Helicopter Helmet LLC
Single visor helicopter helmet made of Kelvar and Fiberglass with polycarbonate lenses
EAR99
Connector Flex ssembly, P/N: Hmm122MBE9H71EF22
IEH Corporation
Two printed circuit board connectors with two flex cables running between them
ECCN 0A604.x
Constant Tension Winch; M/V: CT 22
Allied Systems Company
Hydraulic winch with ability to meter the line tension
ECCN 8A609.x
T3RX Steel Target System; IPSC Version
Steel Ops Ltd
03/8" AR-550 Steel Plate with brace to be used as a shooting target
EAR99
Software and support services for the defense system information network
USML XI(d) and XIII(l)
Concrete Mix for Electro-magnetic Wave/Pulse Shielding
UNL Office of Research Compliance Services
A conductive concrete mixture configured to provide EMP shielding and reflect and/or Absorb EM waves
CCATS
Motion Platform/Simulator; M/V: 6H3000; P/N: 6DOF-0100
InMotion Simulation, LLC
A motion platform used to simulate the movement of a ground vehicle for training military personnel
CCATS
ATragMX and Trimble Rec 400X
Horus Vision LLC
Software installed in PDA for firearm aiming
EAR99
Stellar reference unit (SRU) onboard the JUNO Mission spacecraft; Custom built
Selex ES, S.p.A (formerly Selex Galileo)
An optical device which detects star orientation and brightness relative to the spacecraft
ECCn 7A004.a
Unmanned Aircraft System equipped with sensor payload and wing camera for a variety of applications
ECCN 9A012.a
Atmospheric Turbulence Profilers, M/Ns PR-10-1000 and PR-50-1500
MZA Associates Corp
Systems that use imaging cameras to measure turbulance along a line of sight
EAR99 and ECCN 6A003.b.4.a
Atmospheric Turbulence Profiler and Diagnostic Products, M/Ns PD-05-600 and PR-05-600
MZA Associates Corp
Systems that use imaging cameras to measure turbulance along a line of sight
EAR99
Elastromeric Isolator, P/N: EE-12195
ITT Enidine Inc
Molder rubber that provides shock isolation for a GPS receiver that is part is part of a defensive fire control system
USML XII(e)
Anti Contact Drills - Vehicle (11-I-00587) Participant Guide and PowerPoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation that provides the student with basic knowledge of vehicle anti-ambush principles
EAR99
Crowd Control Measures (10-I-00567) PowerPoint Oresentation and Participant Guide
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation that povides the student with a basic understanding of techniques used in controlling crowds
EAR99
Terrorist Operations Participant Guide and PowerPoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation that provides that student with an overview of various types of terrorist operations
EAR99
PR Spotting Participant Guide and PowerPoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instuction documentation used to train students on the effects of weather on a sniper
EAR99
SN - PR Shooting Positions Participant Guide
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation used to provide the student with an introduction to sopported shooting positions
EAR99
Mount and enclosure to develop a comlete SWIT spectrometer
ECCN 9A515.x
SN-PR Moving Targets Participant Guide and Powerpoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation used to provide the students on types of, and methods of engaging, moving targets
EAR99
SN-PR Methods of Observation Participant Guide and PowerPoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation used to train students on methods of observation available to a sniper
EAR99
Instructor Development - Carbine Instructor participant guide and Powerpoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation used to train students on providing instruction on the use of carbine firearms
EAR99
Intro to movement and Tactics w/DD PowerPoint Presentation and Participant Guide
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation used to provide students with an introduction to movement and tactics with diversionary devices
EAR99
Carbine Instructor (12-N-00626) PowerPoint Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Five individual lesson plans designed to train student instructors on effective carbine firearm instruction
EAR99
Rapid Response Planning Team (10-I-00408) Participant Guide (PG) & Rapid Response Planning (10-I-00409) Participant Guide)
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation that provides the student with general information on rapid reponse planning pertaining to counter terrorism operations
EAR99
SN - PR Spotting Participant Guide and PowerPoint Point Presentation
Constellis Holdings, LLC
Instruction documentation used to provide students with an introduction of the sniper's role as a spotter
EAR99
Add-on software for ocean current mapping radar that provides vessel detec tion data.
ECCN 6D002
Inline Scout Mount
Arisaka LLC
Mounting adapter to attach a Surefire M300 or M600 series light to a KeyMo d rifle handguard
EAR99
TufNose Fairings, Model TN865, P/N 79200060, Other ID 60300029
Rolls-Royce Canada
A drag-reducing fairing system for towed Underwater cables to eliminate st rumming and increase cable life
ECCN 8A609.x
Three Axis Flight Motion Simulator, Model S-458R-3M
Carco Electronics
Equipment designed for testing missile guidance and control systems
CCATS
Kaizen Eye, M/N: Quad Unit
Kaizen Kinetics International
Remote Controlled (RC) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Drone Aerial Photogra phy and Video
CCATS
Reduces the chord-wise force on the BO 105 helicopter blade during flight
ECCN 9A991.d
Erosion Protection Shell (outer) 1120-15154
Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH
Provides leading-edge protection for the BO 105 helicopter blade
ECCN 9A991.d
Erosion Protection Shell (center) 1120-15155
Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH
Provides leading-edge protection for the BO 105 helicopter blade
ECCN 9A991.d
Portable Hydraulic Test Stand H106 D33354
Avtron Aerospace, Inc.
Hydraulic Power Unit for Pressure and Flow
EAR99
Portable Hydraulic Test Stand H106 D33354
Avtron Aerospace, Inc.
Hydraulic Power Unit for Pressure and Flow.
EAR99
Erosion Protection Shell (inner) 1120-15156
Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH
Provides leading-edge protection for the BO 105 helicopter blade
ECCN 9A991.d
Soil or liquid matrix CRMs containing trace amounts of explosive materials
EAR99
X-Band 100 Watt Block up Converter UB61000-050
Locus Microwave Inc.
X-Band 100 Watt Block up Converter can be used on indoor or outdoor SATCOM systems
USML XI(c) USML XI(a)(5)
25,000 Usable PLD Gate pASIC 3 FPGA Combining High Performance and High Density QL3025 QL3025-2PQ208C
QuickLogic
210mAmp 3.3Volt 2nd Level Speed 25k PLD Gates 204I/Os 400MHz p-ASIC 3FPGA
ECCN 3A991
Standard Cantilever Probe Card for BAE Systems
JEM America Corporation
Interface card for testing integrated circuits
ECCN 3B992
MVR IV multi-band video receiver
Applied Micro Design Inc
hand held multi-band video receiver
USML XI(a)(5)
S-Band 75W MMIC HPA CMPA2735075F
Cree, Inc.
Packaged 75W 2.7-3.5GHz GaN MMIC power amplifier
ECCN 3A982
Prototypes Mark I and Mark II based on novel technology of explosive detection
Emitech, Inc.
Highly sensitive and selective optochemical explosive detection system
ECCN 1A004.d.
development of new composite matrerials for transparent body armor
USML X(e)
TRX Sentrix Navigation and Tracking System Release 2.0
TRX Systems
Navigation and tracking for personnel inside, undergrounds, and in areas where GPS is not accurate.
ECCN 7A994
Mounting Plate Fan Hub JLT02135
Accuride Corporation at its Imperial Group Business Unit
Mounting plate or bracket used to mount the cooling fan hub to the engine block in vehicles.
ECCN 9A018
TFOCA-2 Connectors See attachment 1 TFOCA II, 4&12 Channel TFOCA
Optical Cable Corporation
4 and 12 Channel Fiber Optic Connector
ECCN 5A001.c.
Potassium Perchlorate (KClO4) Per Specification MIL--P-217A Grade B, Class 1
American Pacific Corporation - Utah Operations, Western Electrochemical, 10622 West 6400 North, Cedar City, UT 84721
KClO4 is an oxidizer typically used in manufacture of pyrotechnics and airbag propellants.
EAR99
Software to synthesize geotagged still/video images to create 3D scene for overlay on maps
EAR99
01/24/2011
Analog FM/Spread Spectrum Microwave Datalink System for CSIST UAV, Components, Installation, and Technical Data CSIST Version
Broadcast Microwave Services, Inc.
Analog FM/Spread Spectrum Microwave Datalink System for UAV, Related Services and Technical Data
ECCN 5A001.b.3 (FM/Spread Spectrum Microwave Datalink System ECCN 5E002.a (components) ECCN 5E001.b.4 (Technical Data) USML VIII(i) (Installation on the Unmanned Arial Vehicle)
05/01/2011
VERTICAL MIXER 18 PUMM
B&P PROCESS EQUIPMENT AND SYSTEMS LLC
THE DUAL PLANETARY MIXER HAS TOTAL CAPACITY OF 600 U.S. GAL. AND A WORKING CAPACITY OF 420 U.S. GAL.
ECCN 1B117
Perchlorate Biodegradation System for Industrial Wastewater Patent # 6,077,432
Applied Research Associates, Inc.
Product will biodegrade dilute solutions (<1%) of perchlorate and nitrate in wastewater
EAR99
Termination Unit component for IFF End-Item 4078482-0501 RSL Part Number 809141/000
Raytheon Company
Termination Unit completes a circuit on transponder replicating a crypto installation for operation.
ECCN 6A998.a.
RADCOLUBE FR257 5 GL PL NATO CODE NO. H-538 9150013912087 MIL-PRF-87257
ADCO INDUSTRIES, INC
HYDRAULIC FLUID, FIRE RESISTANT; LOW TEMPERATURE, SYNTHETIC HYDROCARBON BASE, AIRCRAFT ADN MISSILE
EAR99
Emergency/Triage (E/T) Light Version 1 and version 2 V1 and/or V2
Southwest Synergistic Solutions is manufacturer (assembler) of final product. Some components of foreign origin.
Four colors in one light used for triaging patients. V1 and V2 have an infrared (880 nm) LED
EAR99
Vehicle Engine Management Display (VEMD) NVG Compatible B19030 G xxx
Thales Avionics SA
Dynamic Global RDSS RDSS Unit 18599
DyHold LLC
Rapid Deployment Shelter System (RDSS)
EAR99
Compact Network Storage Recorder II CNSII VR-CNS-00
Systran Corp
CNSII is a secure data storage device.
ECCN 5A002
01/14/2011
SNAPNET connectors sold individually or attached to precut wearable cabling Each order has a custom PN
Physical Optics Corporation
May require authorization from DOC
02/11/2011
Transformer Rectifier Unit (TRU) FTR1011
Electrocube, Inc.
Power Supply (TRU) Transformer Rectifier Unit AC to DC converter, 400Hz: 28Vdc.
USML VIII(h)
Aircraft Sensing and Utility Systems and Components
Crane Aerospace and Electronics
Aircraft Proximity and Pressure Sensing Systems and Components
ECCN 9A991.d.
14-bit, 5 MHz Sampling Analog to Digital converter
USML XI(c)
02/08/2011
VDSU-1407 VDSU-1407-04-03-00
Primagraphics Limited, Letchworth, United Kingdom; owned by same parent as Dy4, Inc. Parent is Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc.
Video Management System
02/04/2011
VRDV-4010 VRDV-4010-52-52
Primagraphics Limited, Letchworth, United Kingdom, owned by same parent as Dy4, Inc. Parent is Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc.
Dual channel video recorder, configured for NTSC video format and Y/C video signal format.
USML VIII(h)
6000 Element Shortwave Infrared Linear Imaging Sensor
Princeton Lightwave, Inc.
Installed in cameras for earth resource monitoring
ECCN 6A002.a.l.c
08/04/2011
AVDU-2650 AVDU-2650-72-38-DN-HT
Primagraphics Limited, Letchworth, United Kingdom; owned by same parent as Dy4, Inc. Parent is Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc.
Multi-function 10.4" LCD Display
01/19/2011
AVDU-3824 AVDU-3824-72-38-DN-HT
Primagraphics Limited, Letchworth, United Kingdom; owned by same parent as Dy4, Inc. Parent is Curtiss-Wright Controls, Inc.
Multi-function 15" LCD Display
Seal/Bearing Assembly 20221-500-A1 20221-500-A1 RVD
Ettem USA, Inc.
Consists of a mechanical seal and roller bearing contained in a steel housing
ECCN 8A002.c.
01/26/2011
Steering Systems for use on military vehicles in the light, medium, and heavy GWVR categories Various
TRW, Sheppard, and others
ECCN 9A018.b. (under 20,000 pounds of capacity) ECCN 9A990.b./c. (greater than 20,00 pounds of capacity)
02/10/2011
Unified Gaming Controller Station with Display UGCS-400 / Station
Kutta Technologies, Inc.
USML XI(a)(5)
05/10/2011
Double barrel side-by-side rifle, .450 caliber, barrel longer than 20", antique (made before December 31, 1898) Ground Guidance 2.6
J & W Tolley, England
Antique rifle, double barrel, designed for use with black powder
USML I(a)
Shadows Filters and Lighting Systems 98020, 98023 Civilian Aircraft Type Numbers
REB Technologies
NVG Compatible Cockpit Lighting Kits
USML VIII(h)
F-16 Gun Drive Test Stand H941 A33834
Avtron Aerospace, Inc.
Hydraulic Motor Test Stand with test software.
USML VIII(h) USML VIII(i) (for related technical data and defense services)
01/07/2011
Control, Engine Electronic - EEC296-1 (PT6T-9) EEC296-1 1000604
Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation
Electronic Engine Control (EEC) for the Pratt and Whitney Canada PT6T-9 turboshaft engine
ECCN 9A003.a.
Advanced Combat Optical Gunsight (ACOG) TA31RCO-M4 and TA31RCO-M4CP 1240015341114
Trijicon, Inc.
4x32 ACOG USMC Rifle Combat Optic (RCO) with Red Dual Illuminated Reticle
USML I(f)
FAI-22M Monopulse Secondary Surveillance Radar Antenna FAI-22M
Antenna Associates Inc.
Monopulse Secondary Surveillance Radar Antenna
EAR99
Sightmark AN/PVS 14 1x24 Gen 3 Grade A Kit SM14001K
Sightmark
Universal Weapons Rack M2 UMRM2
Spacesaver Corporation
Rack designed for storage of military equipment
EAR99
Field Density Altitude Compensator-XR FDAC-XR
Adaptive Consulting and Training Services, LLC
The FDAC-XR is a slide-rule device which rifle shooters use to determine firing solutions.
USML I(i)
Rotor Blade with Sleeve and Conduction 1120-15156
Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH
BO 105 helicopter blade with wrap and electrical discharge conductor for vibration damper install
Consult with DOC to satisfy other applicable requirements prior to export
03/08/2011
Greenough Advanced Rescue Craft Model 3.6
Rapid Response Technology, LLC
Advanced rescue craft (water powered engine)
ECCN 8A992.f.
Instrument Control Panel (ICP) NVG Compatible C19269 xx
Thales Avionics SA
Electro-Mechanical Expulsive De-Icing System (EMEDS)
USML VIII(h) ECCN 9A991 (When specifically configured, adapted or modified for civil applications)
01/27/2011
EB Tough VoIP family of Products (Field and Desktop Phones; Terminal; PoE Injections, and Network Extenders 9303734; 9303757; 9300043
Elektrobit Wireless Communications Ltd
EB Tough VoIP Field and Desktop Phones, Terminals, PoE Injectors and Network Extenders
Consult with Dept of Commerce prior to export.
03/08/2011
AF30 10 MIL 9045 8040012942354
3M
Consult with Dept of Commerce prior to export.
02/08/2011
Module Nondispersive Delay Line LR338-55-0/04/08/12 101537
Phonon Corporation
SAW (Surface Acoustical Wave) Tapped Delay Line
USML XI(c)
02/10/2011
Front Subassembly and Associated Mechanical Components for L 3 Guardian SME PED Secure Wireless Handheld Smartphone (Parts) 0N717538
L 3 Guardian
Parts for Front and Rear Subassemblies and Subcomponents for L 3 Guardian secure cell phone
EAR 99
Tasking for Imagery Geospatial Exploitation and Reporting (TIGER)
Lockheed Martin Corp
Raptor 45 cm X-band USAT
Integral Systems Inc (Satcom Solutions division)
Portable Ultra Small Aperture Terminal for Satellite Communications
The Raptor-X45 X-band (USAT) Version V2 USML XI(a)(5) The Raptor-X45 X-band (USAT) Version V1 ECCN 5A991.g.
06/24/2011
QT625 XO Class S QT625C, QT625L All variants of the above
Q-TECH Corporation
Hybrid Crystal Oscillator (XO) - Class S
USML XV(e)
QT800 TCXO Class S QT800 Series All variants of the above
Q-TECH Corporation
Low profile hybrid, hermetically sealed temperature compensated crystal oscillators (TCXO).
USML XV(e)
General Dynamics Fixed Satellite Dish Antenna Terminals
General Dynamics SATCOM Technologies
Satellite Dish Antenna Terminals
USML XI(c) (do incorporate or employ items currently controlled on the USML) ECCN 5A991.g (DO NOT incorporate or employ items currently controlled on the USML and CCL ECCN 5A002 when encryption is incorporated)
03/24/2011
General Dynamics Transportable Satellite Dish Antenna Terminals
General Dynamics SATCOM Technologies
Satellite Dish Antenna Terminals
USML XI(c) (if items incorporate or employ items that are currently controlled on the USML. ECCN 5A991 (if items do NOT incorporate or employ items that are currently controlled on the USML and CCL ECCN 5A002 when encryption s incorporated.
03/08/2011
General Dynamics On-The-Move (OTM) Satellite Dish Antenna Terminals
General Dynamics SATCOM Technologies
Bracco Diagnostics, Reactive Skin Decontamination Lotion (RSDL)
Alston & Bird LLP
Personal skin decontamination lotion in sponge.
ECCN 1A004.a.3.
07/26/2011
All Cummins Inc., Navistar, Detroit Diesel and Caterpillar reciprocating piston engines suitable for military vehicle usage. All models and versions.
Cummins, Detroit Diesel, Navistar, and Caterpillar (see Table I in the PEO CS&CSS letter)
All military vehicle reciprocating piston engines.
ECCN 9A018
Medical Interior and related technical data and services for the Kamov Ka-226 helicopter
Air Methods Corporation
ECCN 9A991
04/15/2011
Un-machined Titanium Castings For: Navy Standard, Titanium Centrifugal Pump as listed below 1000 GPM Navsea Drawing No. 803-5773203 4320012274925
Buffalo Pumps
ECCN 8A992.f.
02/08/2011
Petro-Flex Storage Bladder Pillow Tank 25 gal. through 50,000 gal. 25 gal. through 50,000 gal. 25 gal. through 50,000 gal.
Tank/Fabric Collapsible
Collapsible rubberized tank for liquid fuel
EAR99
Information Technology Consulting Services For U.S Navy
NILS A RESARE
Customizing and assembly of non-military firearms
USML I(a) USML I(i) (some Gunsmithing services)
02/11/2011
Resodyn Acoustic Mixers, Inc. 130 North Main Street, Suite 630 Butte, MT 59701
500 gram Bench Top Mixer
May require authorization from the DOC. Contact DOC Prior to export
02/11/2011
MSK5971RH Rad hard positive 3Amp Low Dropout Adj Voltage Regulator Industrial Grade Verison MSK5971RHS, MSK5971RHL MSK5971RHD OR RHU (leadforms
M.S. Kennedy
Industrial grade Radiation hard Voltage regulator Microcircuit.
USML XV(e)
WEAPON SIGHT POLARIZER LSU & STZ LSU000-WSP-FP & STZ000-WSP-FP
TENEBRAEX CORPORATION
POLARIZING FILTER FOR ATTACHMENT TO RIFLESCOPE TO REDUCE GLARE OR REFLECTIONS
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
02/25/2011
Real-Time Four-Dimensional Data Assimilation system ("RTFDDA")
UCAR
Software that assimilates weather observations to produce a short-term weather forecast.
EAR99
Climate Four-Dimensional Data Assimilation system ("CFDDA")
UCAR
Software that assimilates climate data to produce weather information used for long-term planning.
EAR99
Alloy Steel Bars and Tubes
The Timken Corporation
ASTM A29/A29M-05-compliant, low-sulfur, hot-rolled, alloy bars and tubes
EAR99
A collection of geospatial software tools for time, data, imagery, and video management.
USML XIII(l)
Electron Cyclotron Resonance Propulsion engine ABA
Reisz Engineers
Electric propulsion engine for in-space use.
USML XV(e)
DP Series H Bridge DC Motor Reverser Prototype DP Series
Crydom Inc
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
04/08/2011
Garmin Display Unit ("GDU") 620 Cockpit Monitor Display GDU 620
Garmin
Cockpit monitor display incorporated into Garmin's primary flight display and multifunction display
ECCN 7A994
Buried Guard Ring/Parasitic Isolation Device Technology
Silicon Space Technology Corporation (developer of technology)
technology to improve the reliability of industrial semiconductors operating in extreme environments
ECCN 3E001
Position Transmitter 8TJ39ABA2 6620-00-106-9 GE Part Number 4010T15P01
AMETEK Aerospace and Defense
Sensor that transmits mechanical rotational motion by electrical means to a remote indicator.
USML VIII(h)
Airport Surveillance Radar, Primary Surveillance Radar
Raytheon Canada Limited
air traffic control primary surveillance radar
ECCN 6A008.f.
Serverless Multi-User Chat (sMUC) Software N/A - Prototype only
CoCo Communications Corp.
Chat research for mobile networks, combining public standards IETF RFC 5740, XMPP XEP 0282
USML XI(a)(7)
FLASH Hostile Fire Detection System 201018-001
Oceanit Laboratories, Inc.
Detects and locates weapons fire; interfaces with multiple systems
USML XI(a)(7)
Microwave Assemblies and Passive Microwave Components A20-MH166,A15-ML088,A25-MH243A A90-MX002, A90-MX002 (comp.)
AKON, Inc.
Microwave assemblies operating over 1-18 GHz, less than 100 mW output power... (see attachment)
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/07/2011
Militarized Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (MDMFC) Laptop Power Supply Project
University of North Florida (UNF), UNF - North West, University of Florida
Subcontract to assist UNF in development and testing of the MDMFC
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/10/2011
D TEK MFG Co. LLC
Base seat pan to hold padding and restraint system for a blast attenuating seat
ECCN 9A018.b.
CSC's Vulnerability Research Labs business unit
incident response software
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/24/2011
Garmin Touchscreen ("TS") Controller GTC 570
Garmin
Device for controlling various Garmin flight navigation systems components
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Flight Management System ("FMS") Controller GCU 475 and GCU476
Garmin
Alphanumeric, soft key, push-button data input device for FMSs
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Garmin Automatic Flight Control System ("AFCS") Controller GMC 7XX
Garmin
Data input device for AFCSs, consisting of controls to enable various functions such as direction
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Navigation ("NAV") and Communications ("COM") Radios Garmin GNS 430W and GNS 530W
Garmin
Receivering and transmitting devices for navigation and communication
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Secure Network Processor AARIS-457, ver 1.0
IBM [under exclusive contract with ITT Corporation for this item]
Secure Network Processor
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/24/2011
Garmin Audio Panel GMA 1347
Garmin
Control device for an aircraft's communications systems.
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Hybrid - High Reliability Radiation Hardened DC-DC Converter CRH10011514T
International Rectifier Corporation
A basic electronic part converting an unregulated input voltage to a well regulated output voltage
USML XV(e)
03/29/2011
Gyro SDG1000 SDG1000-XXX-XXX
Systron Donner Inertial Division of BEI Sensors and Systems Company, Inc. , 2700 Systron Drive, Concord, CA 94513
single axis quartz MEMS gyro with self-contained electronics
ECCN 7A994
Armadillo Remote Audio/Video System V# 900003
Macro USA Corporation
paper used in a primer cap
EAR99
Garmin Display Unit ("GDU") 1400W Cockpit Monitor Display GDU 1400W
Garmin
Cockpit monitor display incorporated into primary flight display and multifunction display
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Display Unit ("GDU") 1400W Cockpit Monitor Display GDU 1400W
Garmin
Cockpit monitor display incorporated into primary flight display and multifunction display
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Display Unit ("GDU") 1400W Cockpit Monitor Display GDU 1400W
Garmin
Cockpit monitor display incorporated into primary flight display and multifunction display
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Display Unit ("GDU") 1400W Cockpit Monitor Display GDU 1400W
Garmin
Cockpit monitor display incorporated into primary flight display and multifunction display
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Touch Screen Controller GTC 570
Garmin
Touch Screen Controller desktop-style, icon-driven interface built on a new "shallow" menu structure
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Touch Screen Controller GTC 570
Garmin
Touch Screen Controller desktop-style, icon-driven interface built on a new "shallow" menu structure
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Touch Screen Controller GTC 570
Garmin
Touch Screen Controller desktop-style, icon-driven interface built on a new "shallow" menu structure
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Touch Screen Controller GTC 570
Garmin
Touch Screen Controller desktop-style, icon-driven interface built on a new "shallow" menu structure
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Touch Screen Controller GTC 570
Garmin
Touch Screen Controller desktop-style, icon-driven interface built on a new "shallow" menu structure
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
Garmin Integrated Avionics Unit GIA 63W
Garmin
Remote-mounted avionics unit housing GPS/WAAS, VHF COM, VHF NAV & glideslope receivers
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Various Garmin line replacement units (LRUs)
Garmin
change pre-existing configuration settings in various LRUs
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Various Garmin line replacement units (LRUs)
Garmin
LRUs related to central maintenance & health monitoring systems
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Various Garmin line replacement units (LRUs)
Garmin
LRUs related to synoptics interfaces in central maintenance & health monitoring systems
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Garmin Integrated Avionics Unit GIA 63W
Garmin
Remote-mounted avionics unit contains certain autopilot functions
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Garmin Engine and Airframe Interface (adapter) GEA 71
Garmin
monitors sensor inputs & drives annunciator outputs for aircraft airframe & engine systems
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
Garmin Data Concentrator Unit GCD 41
Garmin
data concentrator unit that integrates HSDB, ARINC 429& 717 I/Os, RS-485 & discrete inputs
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/18/2011
various Garmin line replacement units (LRUs) GMA 36
Garmin
fully-featured remote digital audio processor unit
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
03/17/2011
DataDoors Features as specified in LOE
i-cubed, information integration & imaging, LLC
Geographic data management software
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
04/08/2011
Regal Propellant mixer 300 Regal
Littleford Day Inc
mixing machine used for making composite propellants
ECCN 1B117
Stowage Containers 737 AEW&C Aircraft H8751-001 thru 005
Heath Tecna, Inc.
Stowage Containers for the 737 Airborne Early Warning & Control Aircraft
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
04/13/2011
Orcosolve Violet (Triarylmethane Dye) 419
Organic Dyestuffs Corporation (Orco)
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
04/10/2011
Accuracy 1st Development Group, Inc.
Ballistic Solving Nomograph
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
04/04/2011
Continuous cast alloy slab; green coil for heat treatment ST21; ST22; VJ04; SJ14; ST09 110: 02; 05; 04; 08; 10
United States Steel Corporation
Hardenable Alloy Steel In Continuous Cast Slab or Hot Rolled Coil Form
EAR99
Dual Mag Coupler Kit 66411
Prezine, LLC
Device that couples two 30-round 5.56 MM magazines together.
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
04/04/2011
Advanced Digital Forensic Solutions, Inc.
forensic triage tool used for field based document and media exploitation
ECCN 5D002
Nano Jumper Assembly Nano Jumper Assembly NM-2J2-015-PP1-JJ00-A38
AirBorn, Inc.
Two passive electrical connectors connected by wire.
USML XV(e)
Urban Reasoning for Geospatial ExploitatioN Technology
BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration, Inc.
3D urban object recognition and exploitation system
USML XI(b)
Flip up Front & Rear Sights FFS & FRS
Tactical Arms Israel
Flip Up Front Sights and Flip Up Rear Sights
EAR99
Medium Walled Fluid Film Journal Bearing Part # GPB1663 and GPB1662
Waukesha Bearings
Medium Walled Fluid Film Bearings used in naval surface vessel gearboxes.
USML VI (f)
06/17/2011
120 M LED Flashlight and Weapon Light Mount (Quick Reaction Mount) w/ Tapeswitch Dual Function Tailcap Novatac 120M/ QRM/RSDT5
Novatac, Inc.
120 Lumen Programable Flashlight with Quick Reaction Weapon Mount
EAR99
Passive Electrical Connector R-Series Connector RM622-448-881-9300-H45
AirBorn, Inc.
448 position receptacle connector with center jackscrew hardware
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
05/24/2011
Small spacer, Large spacer 21322-01W3S, 21333-01W3S
Mercury Machining, Inc.
LARGE / SMALL SPACERS MADE OF COMMERCIAL NYLON 6/6, < .5" x.25", MACHINED TO CUSTOMER SPECS.
eaR99
Endurance 30 Entire Product Family
Allied Motion Motor Products Corporatioin
3.0" diameter PMDC brush motor
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
05/25/2011
Endurance 30 Entire Product Family
Allied Motion Motor Products Corporatioin
3.0" diameter PMDC brush motor
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
05/25/2011
TRI-40 Radar Altimeter Indicator, NVG ASSY, BASIC UNIT, NVG TRI 40 1901-3040-1X, where X=0 or 1
FreeFlight Systems
NVG version of TRI-40 Radar Altimeter Indicator
ECCN 7A994
RAD-40 Radar Altimeter Indicator, NVG ASSY, BASIC UNIT, NVG RAD 40 84939-10-0100
FreeFlight Systems
NVG compatible version of RAD-40 Radar Altimeter Indicator
ECCN 7A994
Tool to predict the placement of Chemical and/or Biological detectors
USML XIV(m)
PR 5 5/8" Polymer Picatinny Rail PR
Tactical Arms Israel
5 5/8" Polymer Picatinny Rail that attaches to the existing vent holes on the AR15/M16 hand guard.
EAR99
GAPS (Geospatial Analysis and Planning Support) software, customer support service and user instructions data
Toyon Research Corporation
GAPS is a Geospatial Information Systems (GIS) product for analysis in a geographic area.
USML XI(d)
OPSM one point sling mount
Tactical Arms Israel
OPSM one point sling mount clamps for AR15 /M16 carbine buffer tube without buffer tube removal.
EAR99
Sarix TI Series Thermal IP Cameras Tl6xx,Tl6xx-x,Tl6xx-X1,Tl61xx,
Pelco by Schneider Electric 3500 Pelco Way, Clovis, CA 93612-5699
Thermal Camera 640 x 480 res. Each Model has three levels of refresh 8.33ip,25Hz,30Hz
ECCN 6A003.b.4.f for 25/30 Hz ECCN 6A993.a for 8.33 Hz
06/23/2011
LIGHTWEIGHT GALAXY SERIES TRUE ON-LINE UPS GRSLPFC11-3K60-115-115-Y11-5M-
NOVA ELECTRIC DIVISION, TECHNOLOGY DYNAMICS, INC.
LIGHTWEIGHT AC REVERSE TRANSFER TRUE ON LINE UPS SYSTEM
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
06/24/2011
React Short Grip Black RSG
Mission First Tactical
Forward Grip designed to attach to a 1913 picatinny rail
EAR99
React Fullsize Grip Black REG
Mission First Tactical
Forward Grip designed to attach to a 1913 picatinny rail
EAR99
React Folding Grip BLACK RFG
Mission First Tactical
Forward Grip designed to attach to a 1913 picatinny rail that locks in a 90 and 45 degree position.
EAR99
React Mag Grip BLACK RMG
Mission First Tactical
Forward Grip designed to attach to a 1913 picatinny rail that nests into the magwell of a M16/M4
EAR99
React Quick Detach Grip Black RQDG
Mission First Tactical
Forward Grip designed to attach to a 1913 picatinny rail that has secured storage.
EAR99
React Torch Grip Black RTG
Mission First Tactical
Forward Grip Flashlight mount that attaches to1913 picatinny rail and has secured storage.
EAR99
Nightingale Model# DC-9-32/VC-9C/C-9C Part # USAF 73-1681, 73-1682, 73-1683 Mfr S/N 47668, 47670, 47671
McDonnell Douglas/Boeing Aircraft Company
EAR99
07/26/2011
TPR15X and TPR15P Dual Picatinny rails mounted on an AR15/M16 front sight. Part # TPR15X and TPR15P
Tactical Arms Israel
Dual Picatinny rails mounted on AR15/M16 front sight.
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
07/08/2011
Universal External Life Raft System - Eurocopter
Apical Industies - Prime, Carbon by Design - Sub Tier
Emergency Float System for Helicpoter
ECCN 9A991.d.
CAP, WATER CANTEEN Part # D5-81-139 National Stock# 8465009302077
LIGHTHOUSE FOR THE BLIND, INC.
CAP, WATER CANTEEN
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
07/12/2011
NOVIS SE Camera System 1000/2000 Model #SE 2000 Part #DIRV-2000
BitRage NOVIS Corp.
Wireless Infrared Video Camera System mountable on small arms. (Video sent via 2.4 GHZ wireless)
USML XII(c)
Brake - Multiple Disk Part # 2-1578-45
Goodrich Corporation Aircraft Wheels and Brakes
Aircraft Brake
Magnesium Elektron North America, Inc
Magnesium Alloy Rolled Sheet & Plate
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
07/08/2011
Unterminated Radio Connector Cable Sub-assembly with associated technical data TE-32C, TE-32D, TE-32M, TE-32R
Supplynet, Inc.
32-Pin COTS connector with guide pin and commercial cable for use with Harris radios.
EAR99
Integrated Surveillance and Information System ("ISIS") ISIS Data Warehouse
Zu Industries, Inc.
software and hardware for a communications database
ECCN 4A994.b
Services for Integrated Surveillance and Information System ("ISIS")
Zu Industries, Inc.
consult., instal. (including configuration), integration, maintenance, repair, and training for ISIS
ECCN 4E992
Lithium Ion Aircraft Battery Assembly variation of MAR-9516
EaglePicher Technologies, LLC
Electrical power system for the P-8A aircraft
USML VIII(h)
Aircraft Pilot Seat for C-130 Models A-H Model 066 Part # 3A066-0005-02-1 National Stock # 1680015106844
Ipeco Holdings Ltd.
Cockpit crew seat for fixed wing transport aircraft
ECCN 9A991.d.
Air Over Conduction Cooled ATR Series 717 7179008C01
SIE Computing Solutions, Inc
Size 1/2 ARINC 404 ATR Enclosure
ECCN 6A998.a.
Protectojet Model 5 Ejection valve + Tube + Belts
Ispra Israel Product Research Company Ltd.
Parts from metal for teargas ejector
USML XIV (f)(1)
07/22/2011
L-Band SATCOM Transceivers and Up/Down Converters Series 80000 and 85000 74606, 74607 and 74608 81000, 82000, 83000
L-3 Communications Narda Microwave East
Commercially available SATCOM Transceivers and Up/Down Converters for SATCOM Communications Link
EAR99
Common Access Card Authentication Software & related services (hereinafter, "CAC Software") CAC V2.2 004743MIU and others
Ricoh Americas Corporation (software developer)
Software to authenticate users for access to Ricoh multi-function products
ECCN 5D992
Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Image Resolution Research Project
Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, Inc. (MERL)
Develop mathematical models (equations and algorithms) to improve SAR radar image resolution.
USML XI(d)
08/09/2011
MBUS® (Magpul® Back-Up Sight) Front & Rear (Gen I, Gen II) 512-, 513-, 514-, 515-0000 MAG245, MAG246, MAG247, MAG248
Magpul
Molded plastic sighting devices for Category I firearms
ECCN 0A987
ChemPro Ver 2/Ver i/Ver DM E04624000/E02523000/ChemProDM
Environics Oy
Gerotor
Nichols Portland Division, Parker Hannifin
The gerotor is a positive displacement pumping unit consisting of an inner rotor and outer rotor.
ECCN 2B999
RANGEMASTER 9000 M/N 9000 P/N RM9K
MEGGITT TRAINING SYSTEMS, INC.
A menu driven, Windows based system that controls targetry, security system, ventilation, & lighting
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
08/09/2011
Tactical Emergency Release System (TERS)
Phantom Industries, 1475 N. Broadway, Walnut Creek, CA 94596
Single point, emergency release buckle for carrier for tactical vest.
ECCN 1A005
Gyro Stabilized Platform (GSP) M/N GSP/ V1 P/N GSP
Aerial Exposures
Gyro stabilized rifle platform that stabilizes rifles from various platforms to include helicopters.
USML I(h)
ECU-Chill Environmental Control Unit M/N ECU-Chill 550 P/N FP0008 & FP00014 NS # 4120015901647
Aspen Systems Inc., Thermal Division
Air conditioner for electronics enclosures, including transit cases, mobile, and fixed installations
EAR99
McCann Industries Remington 700 Scope Base
McCann Industries, LLC
A base mount for attaching rifle scopes to Remington 700 Rifles
EAR99
SRS ("Sealed Reflex Sight" or "Solar Reflex Sight") (Tentative) M/N To begin with "SR" (Tentative)
Trijicon, Inc.
Sealed red dot reflex gun sight for use with small arms
ECCN 0A987
2011 Phase 1 NASA SBIR award for investigating a technology for extracting water from brine
Paragon Space Development Corporation
2011 Phase 1 NASA SBIR awarded to Paragon SDC
ECCN 9E001
Midwave-IR Airborne Spectrographic Imager (MASI-600) M/N MASI-600 P/N 02077100
ITRES Research Limited
Airborne imaging camera for slow moving manned aircraft
ECCN 6A002.b.
Surveillance Antenna 20 MHz to 6 GHz M/N SAS-260HV-20 P/N B0759-500
Antenna Research Associates, Inc.
Broadband passive conical monopole operating from 20 MHz to 6 GHz; 2 RF ports provided
EAR99
Graphics Research Corporation Limited, a subsidiary of the QinetiQ Group, UK
Naval architecture design and analysis software
Modules A004, A005, A012, A014 and C006 package indvidually or as part of software suite USML Vi(g) Modules A000, A001, A002, A003, A009, A010, A011, A020, A021 package indvidually or as part of software suite ECCN 8D001. Modules A006, A007, A013, A022, C001, C002, C004 and C005, package indvidually or as part of software suite is ECCN 8D992
08/02/2011
(IES is developing a specialized piece of equipment for a special use. Additional copies are not anticipated.)
Integrated Environmental Services, Inc.
Integration of components for disposal of WWI vintage chemical weapons.
EAR99
Civil turbofan engines for light civil aircraft M/N FJ33-5A P/N 79400-xxx
Williams International Co., LLC
FJ33-5A Engines provide more thrust and reliability for civil certified light jet aircraft
ECCN 9A001.a.
Passive Electrical Connector M/N M-Series Connector P/N MA-241-032-261-0000-FL3
AirBorn, Inc.
Two row passive electrical connector
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
08/22/2011
Silent Guardian® Commercial Security System M/N SG-DD1000
Raytheon Company
Commercial Acoustic and Electro-Optical Security System
EAR99
Data Bus Relay P/N DBRM2000
North Hills Signal Processing
XPW308/17 Turbofan Engine & Flight Test Data
Pratt & Whitney Canada
XPW308/17 powers Scaled Composites' WhiteKnightTwo aircraft. Data is related to installation tests.
USML IV(h) & IV(i)
H91 Optical Rifle Scope Reticle Pattern
Horus Vision
H91 Optical Rifle Scope Reticles Patterns
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
08/02/2011
H25 Optical Rifle Scope Reticle pattern
Horus Vision
H25 Optical Rifle-Scope Reticles patterns
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
08/02/2011
Seenite Mini
Vector Developments, Ltd., Unit 2 Designer House, Anglebury Business Park, Sandford Lane, Wareham, Dorset, BH20 4DY, UK
High-resolution thermal imaging camera system used in civilian yachting market.
USML XII(c)
Mobile Gantry Crane M/N 100813 LOFO P/N 100813-001
Teal Sales Inc. dba Nova-Tech Engineering
Semi Automatically Guided Gantry Crane for manipulating aircraft
EAR99
Ace Controls Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of Kaydon Corporation
Recoil Damper for AR-15 Carbine
USML I(h)
08/23/2011
Magpul, USGI Ranger Plate, L-Plate, Speedplate, PMAG Ranger Plate and PMAG Floor Plate (collectively "magazine attachments")
Magpul Industries Corporation
Magazine attachment products designed to aid in grasping a magazine
The Magpul Rubberized Loop and Speedplate are EAR99 The USGI Range Plate, L-Plate, PMAG Ranger Plate, and the PMAG Floor Plate are USML I(h)
08/23/2011
TUNEABLE TRANSLATOR M/N DN-W3-29/19-C32694 P/N 198200-1
MITEQ, INC.
USML XV(e)
08/23/2011
ELECTRIC MOTOR OPERATED VALVE ACTUATORS NUTATING MOTOR -SHIPBOARD 20003-1 (BASIC UNIT W/O EXTR 4810013939887 QTR TURN OR MULTITURN VALVE
MORPAC INDUSTRIES, INC., II7 FRONTAGE RD N., PACIFIC, WA 98047
BRONZE HOUSING ELECTRIC OPERATOR FOR SMALL VALVES (UP TO 10 ")
ECCN 8A992.f.
Allegro 20/20 Weapons Shot Counter WPS-2254 Weapons Shot Counter TWP-5223-PG-100-B, WSC-6022-BA
Visible Assets, Inc.
Weapons Shout Counter with mean kinetic shots, (interval statistics).
EAR99
TA1/TA30 Aluminum Scope Rings. P/N TA1/TA30
Tactical Arms Israel
Aluminum Scope Rings that attach a 1" or 30mm scope to a Picatinny rail.
ECCN 0A987
Electronic level measurement system ("E-level")
University of Arizona
System for measuring slope variations of large horizontal flat surfaces
USML XV(e)
G16 Replacement pistol grip for AR15/M16 P/N G16 and G27
Tactical Arms Israel
Replacement pistol grip for AR15/M16 includes storage and ergonomic design.
USML I(h)
09/10/2011
ACP is a vertical and horizontal adjustable cheek piece that mounts on to a Picatinny rail located on the buttstock.
Tactical Arms Israel
ACP is a adjustable cheek piece that mounts on to a Picatinny rail on a collapsible buttstock.
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
09/10/2011
SAFTY-T-STIX 9mm, .223mm, .762mm 40cal and .45mm Barrel Plugs. P/N S223,TS223,TS9,TS762,S40,545
Tactical Arms Israel
Polymer sticks inserted in to a pistol or rifle barrel to prevent a round from entering the chamber
Contact DOC prior to export for CCATS.
09/10/2011
MOE Hand Guards, Ladder/XT and XTM Rail Panels, Illumination Kit & Polymer Rail Sections (collectively "attachment hardware")
Magpul Industries Corporation
Attachment hard ware products for mounting other accessories on the firearm
Ladder XT and XTM Rail Panels, Illumination Kit, and the Polymer Rail Sections EAR99����� The MOE Hand Guards USML I(h)
09/15/2011
MOE Grip, MOE+ Grip, MOE Vertical Grip, Rail Vertical Grip, Mission Adaptable Grip and Angled Fore Grip (collectively "Grips")
Magpul Industries Corporation
Gripping devices for Category 1 firearms
The MOE Vertical Grip, Rail Vertical Grip, and the Angled Fore Grips is EAR99��������������� The MOE Grip, MOE+, and the Mission Adaptable Grip (MIAD) are USML I(h)
09/15/2011
Multimission Sling Systems (MS2™/MS3™), Rail Sling Attachment (RSA™) and Ambidextrous Sling Attachment Point (ASAP®)
Magpul
Slings and sling attachments for Category I firearms
The Multimission Sling Systems (MS2/MS3) and the Rail Sling Attachment (RSA) are EAR99���� Ambidextrous Sling Attachment Point (ASAP) is USML I (h)
09/15/2011
SSG Selector Set, B.A.D. Lever, and Enhanced Aluminum Trigger Guard and MOE Trigger Guard ("Firearms Control Products")
Magpul Industries Corporation
Firearm Control Products that assists in accessibility or control of Category 1 firearms
USML I(h)
09/15/2011
CPX38-1BTP Development engine as defined in the parts list attached to Block 9 of this application.
General Electric Co. acting by and through its GE Aviation Business Unit
5000 Shaft Horsepower Class Commercial Turboprop Engine
ECCN 9A001.a.
Supplemental Type Certificate SR01611SE Eurocopter BK117 - All Models
Aviation Specialties Unlimited, Inc.
Night Vision Imaging System Lighting modification of aircraft cockpits for NVIS compatibility.
ECCN 9A991.d.
09/21/2011
Conical Log Spiral Antenna 1 GHz to 10 GHz / Left or Right Hand Circular Polarization (AR/AL) CLS-110/A CLS-110/AR and CLS-110/AL
Antenna Research Associates, Inc.
Broadband transmit/ receive antenna for 1 GHz to 10 GHz operation with SMA-f connector
EAR99
160TH SOAR RANGER Diesel Long Box Vehicle M11WH90ML
Polaris Industries Inc.�
All Terrain Vehicle
The Ranger Diesel Long Box Vechicle, Model:M11WH90ML is EAR99������������� Stealth Illuminator infrared light is ECCN 0A918.a.
09/21/2011
160TH SOAR RANGER Diesel Crew Vehicle M11WH90MK
Polaris Industries Inc.
All Terrain Vehicle
The RANGER Diesel Crew vechicle model: M11WH90MK is EAR99 Stealth Illuminator infrared light is ECCN 0A918.a.
09/21/2011
STILETTO MAST 4M, 6M, 10M, 15 METER 911867 depends on color finish
Willburt Company the
EvolV Battle Stock Attachment E2BSA
Mission First Tactical
Saddle that attaches to collapsible buttstock
EAR99
Fortified Gas A Carbon ("FCA") 12x30, 4x10, 12x20
Calgon Carbon Corporation
FCA is an activated carbon used in respirators and designed to filter acid and inorganic gases.
EAR99
EvolV 2.2" Picatinny Rail E2PR2
Mission First Tactical
2.2" Picatinny Rail can be mounted on standard M16/M4 Handguard.
EAR99
S-Band Pulsed Power Transistor model 2735GN-100M
Microsemi Corp RFIS - TS
Microwave Transistor, General Purpose, S-Band Common Source, Class AB Pulsed Power
USML XI(c)
Panteao Productions Make Ready with Jessie Abbate: A Woman's Guide to USPSA PMR014
Panteao Productions LLC
Athena Digital Excision Processor Technology (ADEPT) AD-2800
The Athena Group, Inc.
Ultra-low-power anti-jam (AJ) GPS IP core "technology".
USML XI (a) (4) (ii)
10/18/2011
Extinguisher, Fire, Carbon Dioxide, 15 LB, Portable, Permanent Shutoff, Navy Shipboard Use MIL-15# CO2 / ANSUL/ PRYO-CHEM 431999, 551887, 551888 4210002030217 Brand names Ansul, Pyro-Chem
Tyco Fire Protection Products, Marinette, WI. , sold under brand names: ANSUL and PYRO-CHEM
CO2 Fire Extinguisher, portable, 15 LB, NON- SHAT CYLINDER meets MIL-E-24269B (SH)
ECCN 8A992.f.
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tools & Crew Aids (ETCA) systems, subsystems, components, related technical data & services
�Hamilton Sundstrand (HS), Oceaneering International Inc., Oceaneering Space Systems Division (OII)
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tools & Crew Aids systems, subsystems, components, related data
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tools and Crew Aid (ETCA) Systems, Subsystems, Components ECCN 9A004.b. All technical data concerning development USML XV(f)
10/13/2011
MIL-SPEC 5.5-22x50 Riflescope Model # MIL-SPEC 2250 Part # M196 and M202
Nightforce Optics, Inc.
Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) system, subsystems, components, parts, accessories, software and related technical data
Hamilton Sundstrand (HS); ILC Dover; Oceaneering International Incorporated; United Space Alliance; Air-Lock
Extravehicular Mobility Unit system, subsystems, components, software and related technical data
EAR99
Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) system, subsystems, components, parts, accessories, software and related technical data
Hamilton Sundstrand (HS); ILC Dover; Oceaneering International Incorporated; United Space Alliance; Air-Lock
Extravehicular Mobility Unit system, subsystems, components, software and related technical data
Extravehicular Activity (EVA) and Technical Data and Services related to the Extravehicular Mobility Unit System is ECCn 9A004.b. And all technical data concerning development and production is USML XV(f)
10/13/2011
Engineering Support Services for Commerce controlled software products
Raytheon Trusted Computer Solutions, wholly owned subsidiary of Raytheon Company
Engineering Support Services
USML XIV(k)
10/21/2011
Joint Recovery and Distribution System (JRaDS) Recovery Trailer System (RTS) JRaDS Recovery Trailer System 80145-207-21 2330015900423
The Boeing Company
The JRaDS RTS is a trailer system that performs recovery operations and logistics distribution.�
ECCn 9A018.b.
WIRELESS ACCELEROMETER TECHOLOGY (FOR USE WITH ROTORCRAFT HUMS [HEALTH & USAGE MONITORING SYSTEMS])
(OF THE TECHNOLOGY) KCF TECHNOLOGIES INC. & LORD CORPORATION
THIS IS TECHNOLOGY FOR USING WIRELESS ACCELEROMETERS (AS OPPOSED TO WIRED) WITH ROTORCRAFT HUMS
ECCN 9E991
NIGHTHAWK ICU INDUSTRIAL CONTROLLER / DATA CONCENTRATOR UNIT NIGHTHAWK ICU-IL-XX 100-0054-01
AITECH DEFENSE SYSTEMS, INC.
NIGHTHAWK ICU INDUSTRIAL CONTROLLER / DATA CONCENTRATOR UNIT
ECCN 4A994
Cable, Waterproof, Military Radio 12839EA001
The Phoenix Company of Chicago, Inc.
Cable, Waterproof
Antenna Feeds and Associated Components (corrugated horns, wideband orthomode junctions, mounting brackets, di and triplexers)
Custom Microwave, Inc. (U.S.), MacDonald Detwiller and Associates (Canada)
component of antenna which feeds radio waves to the rest of the antenna structure
Request CCATS with DOC
Linear Regulator Hermetic Package OMR9608SF
International Rectifier
Radiation Hardened, Ultra low dropout linear regulator designed for space applications
USML XV(e)
DEFENZ® 130G (OPH) enzyme product
Genencor, an E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company
Enzyme-based decontamination solution designed for neutralizing VX and related toxins
USML XIV(f)(6)
DEFENZ® 120 (OPAA) enzyme product
Genencor, an E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company
Enzyme-based decontamination solution designed for neutralizing VX and related toxins
USML XIV(f)(6)
Wet/Dry Auto-Injector Soluject
Meridian Medical Technologies, Inc.
2 chamber auto-injector delivery system that combines liquid and dry APIs at the time of injection
EAR99
Thermoelectrically Cooled NIR imaging and spectroscopy system
ECCN 6A003.b.4.a.
11/10/2011
Field Information Support Tool (FIST) / Field Information Reporting Support Tool (FIRST) / INformation About LifE (INABLE) Baseline International Version
Krestrel Technology Group LLC
Android Software Phone & Laptop Application and Web Enabled Portal with backend MySQL database.
ECCN 5D002.c.1
Fast Mobile Data Center FAST MDC 20-6 MDC 20-6
World Wide Technology Inc.
Transportable customized mobile data center that frees organizations from immovable structures.
Designed and configured to government specification USML XI(c)������������������������������� When not configured for military application EAR99
11/10/2011
Hovering Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (HAUV) Mk1
Bluefin Robotics Corporation
Underwater robot for ship hull and pier bulkhead inspection
ECCN 8A992
AVID LLC
Software tool for use in the design of aircraft and other vehicles.
All miitary aircraft models and related information are USML VIII (i) Remaining software product is ECCN 9D991
11/22/2011
Constant Resolution Visual System (CRVS) 90A020247
The Boeing Company
The CRVS is a high fidelity, full field of view, visual display system for training.
EAR99
Aluminum extrusion - for the manufacture of latch levers for the Eurofighter 2EFML36110-1/A
Kaiser Aluminum Alexco
Aluminum extrusion - for the manufacture of latch levers for the Eurofighter
USML VIII (h)
Aluminum extrusion - for the manufacture of Umbilical Guide Housings for the Eurofighter OEFMC36102-1/A
Kaiser Aluminum Alexco
Aluminum extrusion - for the manufacture of Umbilical Guide Housings for the Eurofighter
USML VIII (h)
Mobile Water Treatment System
To be determined. Likely a US or Foreign Subsidiary or Pall Corporation.
System to be used to process water from any water source and provide drinking water to user.
EAR99
Coolant Supply Hose Assembly Part # 55121 National Stock # 4720013521824
Hydraflow
Phoenix H-60 Leakproof Transmission Drip Pans H-60 DP3-5-01 5340015477028 SIC 3728 NAICS 336413
Phoenix Products, Inc.
Primary function is to eliminate fluid leaks into the helicopter's passenger compartment.
USML VIII (h)
Phoenix H-60 Leakproof Transmission Drip Pan H-60 DP4M-5 1660015588747 CAGE 042g6
Phoenix Products, Inc.
Primary function is to eliminate fluid leaks into the helicopter's passenger compartment.
USML VIII (h)
C-130A-J Trough Assembly - Liferaft Compartment, Forward C-130A-J Models 360629
Lockheed Martin Corporation Aeronautics Company
C-130A-J Trough Assembly - Liferaft Compartment, Forward
USML VIII (h)
Supplemental Type Certificates SR01476SE, SR02104SE, SR02130SE, SR01383SE, SR01634SE, etc. as listed on submission letter.
Aviation Specialties Unlimited, Inc.
Night Vision Imaging System Lighting modification of aircraft cockpits for NVIS compatibility.
ECCN 9A991
Beginner's Ready to Fly First Person View Platform E381
Event38
Serial Synchronous ECL Interface with 16 channel LVDS PCIe8 LX LVDS-E/SSE/3vPC 019-14003 all revisions
Engineering Design Team, Inc. a HEICO company
8-lane PCIe data capture card with 16 channel LVDS and 3 channel synchronous serial ECL interfaces
ECCN 4A994.j.
IM-PTZ-16T 25-30 Hz Thermal Imaging Camera IM-PTZ-16T-L, IM-PTZ-16T-H
Iris Innovations
Thermal Imaging Camera with�a 25-30 Hz Refresh Rate
ECCN 6A003.b.4.b
Printed Wideband Metamaterial Antennas for Ballistic Panels
The University of Tennessee, Office of Research
Antenna system being developed under the Small Business Technology Transfer program
USML XI(c)
Passive Electrical Nano Jumper Assembly Connector N-Series Connector NM-2J2-015-PP1-JJ00-A38
AirBorn, Inc.
Two passive electrical connectors connected by wire
USML XV(e )
Ballista (Developer's License/User License) Version 1.1 (and later)
DreamHammer, Incorporated
Ballista is the world's first commercial control segment software for all unmanned systems.
USML VIII(i), VI(g), and XX(d)
12/05/2011
3U VPX Power Supply 10116 101162xx-xx
Curtiss-Wright Controls Electronic Systems, Inc.
Low voltage DC-to-DC power supply module with embedded software
USML XI(c)
Glass Tubing GE 012 PN 37168 and 36938
General Electric glass reformatted into tubing by Photonis USA
Lead Glass Tubing
AIR64-9Hz
Vionics Corp
640 x 480 uncooled microbolometer infrared 8-14 uM USB camera; 9 frames per second; no display
USML XII(c)
P-8A Electro-Optical/Infrared(EO/IR) Pressure Box 143A7600
Boeing
ECCN 9A991.d.
12/09/2011
PW127G Turboprop Engine. The engine's Electronic Engine Control (EEC132) is excluded from this request. PW127G 3045350
Pratt&Whitney Canada
Turboprop engine used on the CASA C-295 cargo aircraft. This CJ request excludes the EEC132 EEC.
ECCN 9A991.d.
HMVS Technology, S-92 HMVS Assembly, H-60 HMVS Assembly, HMVS Common Component
LORD Corporation
HUB MOUNTED VIBRATION SUPRESSION HARDWARE/TECHNOLOGY
H060 HMVS Assembly USML VIII(h) HMVS Technology ECCN 9E003.d. S-92 HMVS Assembly ECCN 9A991.d.
12/09/2011
Rechargeable Batteries, Chargers and associated Accessories - complete list in Enclosure 1 Matrix (48 line items) BB-503A/U thru BTP-70822-xxx
Bren-Tronics, Inc.
Rechargeable Batteries and Charging Systems
EAR99
6250 SERIES ALUMINUM PASTES 6250x (x=A,B,C, etc.)
CERMET MATERIALS, INC.
ALUMINUM PASTE FOR SOLAR CELL APPLICATIONS
EAR99
Infrared Laboratories, IREM I Infrared Emission Microscope
Orion Labs
Its uses a 256x256 PICNIC HgCdTe infrared detector which operates in the short wave infrared band
ECCN 6A003.b.4; System is classified as EAR99
12/13/2011
Passive electrical connector R-Series connector RM252-040-312-5516-731 AirBorn Drawing # CDG8055
AirBorn, Inc.
Wireless network of C/B, Rad and explosive detectors for command & control functionality.
USML XI(a)
Lightcraft laser propelled vehicle Model #200-3/4 and X-25LR
Franklin B. Mead, Jr. (Mead Science and Technology)
A laser propelled trans-atmospheric vehicle concept
USML IV (h) for the laser propulsion device
USML IV(i) for the associated technocal data
12/23/2011
Non-Standard Optical Windows Dimensions(mm), e.g.114x89x5.9
Wint Corporation
Window used to seal optical enclosures & protect fragile optical components
USML XII(e) and EAR99
Aviation Crew Seat, Pilot/Co-pilot/Flight Engineer/Observer Model 076 and 077 3A076 & 3A077 1680011967291
Ipeco Holdings Ltd.
C-5 seats to Lockheed Spec 4E90000 & 4E90001 for Pilot/Co-pilot/Flight Engineer/Navigator/Observer
ECCN 94991.d
Electrical Interconnect Package Lids, Ring Frames, Base Plates, Heat Sinks and Solder Preforms Various - Family
Hi-Rel Products, Inc.
Designed specifically for use in Commercial applications contact DOC for CCATS.
Designed specifically for use in Military Applications subject to licensing at DOS
12/23/2011
BioFlash E System (instrument and BioDisc)
PathSensors, Inc.
Fixed/transportable system that identifies biopathogens and bioagents (viruses, bacteria and toxins)
USML XIV(f)
Universal Tactical Display (UTD) MA-0032-04
Black Diamond Advanced Technology
(UTD) connects to any computer and creates a rugged, reliable Human-Machine Interface (HMI)
EAR99
Phase Shifters & Phase Trimmers (also referred to as "line stretchers")
Astrolab, Inc. (U.S.), Com Dev, Ltd. (United Kingdom), Space Systems/Loral (U.S.), EMS Technologies, Inc. (U.S.)
A phase shifter/trimmer is a device used to delay/advance the phase within a microwave signal path.
Request CCATS from DOC
JK PNL MNT 8X8K W/10" TFE LDS SP67318
L-Com, Inc.
Panel mounted ethernet connector (RJ45) with 10" long TFE-insulated wire leads
EAR99
Integral Stirling Micro Coolers and Cold Finger (various) K508; K562S: K527 / CF 708B118A: 762B602A; 137B011A
Ricor Cryogenics & Vacuum Systems, Kibbutz, En-Harod, IHUD 18960 Israel
Integral Stirling Micro Cooler and Cold Finger and Stator
USML XII(e)
Solar Battery Charger NiCd11 1038665
Meggitt Training Systems, Inc.
Weatherproof Charging Interface between Solar Cells and 11-Cell Nickel-Cadmium Battery
Contact DOC for CCATS
MAIN ROTOR PITCH LINK UPPER ROD END, TAIL ROTOR SPHERICAL etc LB6-1501-3-2, LB4-1501-2-2 etc
LORD CORPORATION
COMPONENTS FOR AW149/AW189 HELICOPTER ROTORS
ECCN 9A991.d.
Flat ribbon electric cable with flat conductors F2.5x25B-12-047-N
Temp-Flex Cable, Inc
Flat ribbon electric cable incorporating flat copper conductors; delivered on 100 foot spools
Contact DOC for CCATS
New electroplating technique to deposit pure aluminum coating.
USML VIII(i)
T51/65 & T51/65 HP & SP turning machines model # T51/65 & T51/65 SP
Hardinge Inc.
ECCN 2B001
01/13/2012
CSI-Hand Controller Handle (also known as Control Station Intelligent) Model # 46 693 (base part number) part # 46 693 365 01
Curtiss-Wright Antriebstechnik GmbH, Badstrasse 5, CH-8212 Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Switzerland
Hand Controllers used in multiple commercial/military applications
USML VII(g)
01/13/2012
2-Hand Ergonomic Deflection Controller Handle Model # 46 693 (base part number) Part # 46 693 081 09
Curtiss-Wright Antriebstechnik GmbH, Badstrasse 5, CH-8212 Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Switzerland
Hand Controllers used in multiple commercial/military applications
USML VII(g)
PCIe8LX DDSP 1G//220T/QSH/1G 019-03442 all revisions
Engineering Design Team, Inc.
PCI Express board set for standard computers with large FPGA and Ethernet interfaces
Software USML XI(d) Hardware ECCN 4A994
01/13/2012
1-Hand Symmetric Fixed Controller Handle 46 693 (base part number) Part # 46 693 002 09
Curtiss-Wright Antriebstechnik GmbH, Badstrasse 5, CH-8212 Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Switzerland
Hand Controllers used in multiple electronic commercial/military applications
USML VII(g)
High Reliability Radiation Hardened Power MOSFETs (discrete semiconductors) JANSR and JANSF 2N7261 See Attachment A
Microsemi Corporation
Radiation hardened MOSFETs qualified up to 100kRad and 300kRad
ECCN 9A004.b.
Nose Wheel Assembly 40-474 (long p/n 040-47400)
Parker Hannifin Corporation Aircraft Wheel & Brake Division
the nose wheel assembly supports the braking operation during landing and taxiing.
ECCN 9A991.d.
Coupling Dummy with Wire Rope Assembly N13048H N13048X (X=family of parts)
Haldex Brake Products
Intended use is to cover up glad-hands when glad-hands are not in use.
EAR99
LTT Hydraulic Surge Brake Actuator
Cequent Performance Products, Inc.
One piece hydraulic surge brake actuator that connects to trailer and activates trailer's brakes.
EAR99
Voltage Controlled Oscillator VCO-XXX (family list attached
RF Micro Devices, Inc.
These products are Voltage Controlled Oscillators (VCO)
Contact DOC for CCATS
Rapid Information Overlay Technology (RIOT)
Raytheon Company
Technology Group (Previously Strategic Solutions Group) a business segment of Jacobs Technology Inc.
FMT is a suite of 2 software applications to manage a fleet of vehicles
USML VII(h)
Bus bar kit for Lithium Ion Battery M/N W2M;LI-ION;GSAT-6;GSAT-10 P/N ECI -34137;35777;36018;36425
ELDRE Corporation
Bus bar: conductors that transfer electrical power from a source to various devices.
USML XV(e)
Linear Technology Corp High Performance Dual Comparator M/N RH 119
Linear Technology Corporation
radiation hardened high performance dual comparator integrated circuit
USML XV(e)
X-RHex Hexapedal Robot for Sensorimotor Tasks
The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania
X-RHex is a hexapedal robot with a single actuator per leg designed to carry modular payloads.
ECCN 2B997
Dual Port NC/NT PCI-X Interface 2GB or 4GB RAM APG-HS1760 17822-001
Avionics Interface Technologies
Dual lPort NC/NT PCI-X Interface, supporting Mil-Std-1760E and AS5653
USML XI (c)
Max-Viz EVS (Enhanced Vision System) 756500056
Max-Viz, Inc.
General Aviation Enhanced Vision System
ECCN 6A003.b.4.b
Max-Viz EVS (Enhanced Vision System) 756500055
Max-Viz, Inc.
General Aviation Enhanced Vision System
ECCN 6A003.b.4.b
SAGE Advisor™ software Version 1
Lockheed Martin Corporation
Suite of apps designed to bring information access and collaboration to public safety personnel.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Octal Latch Integrated Circuit 74EE373
Novatek
A 74??373 Compatible Octal Latch (Spec Sheet Attached) with a wide operating temperature range
EAR99
SOC-100 Hemispherical Directional Reflectometer SOC-100 0100-0001
Surface Optics Corporation
Fully-closed, fully-automated rebreather for recreational divers.
ECCN 8A992.h for indivdual rebreathers for personal use; ECCN 8A002.q exports not for personal use
02/22/2012
Hydrothermally-grown Potassium Titanium Oxide Phosphate (KTP) non-linear optical crystal
Advanced Photonic Crystals
NLO crystal used as an SHG to produce 532nm green light and as an OPO for near-IR generation to 4 �m
Designed and developed for military lasers USML XII(e) ; designed and developed for civil/commercial configurations EAR99
02/22/2012
Subminiature double-balanced mixer DBM-XXX (family list attached)
RF Micro Devices, Inc.
These products are subminiature double-balanced mixers
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Virgin Galactic Commercial Suborbital Space Tourism Experience and Related Required Safety-related Training and Briefings
Virgin Galactic, LLC (provider of service)
Commercial suborbital space tourism experience
Contact DOC/Do not require licensing by DOS
01/22/2012
ANVIS Compatible Flight Simulator Cockpit Assemblies and Bezels 50A13xS where "x"= 3-6,8,9
Airco Industries, Inc. dba Photo Etch
ANVIS Compatible Flight Simulator Cockpit Assemblies and Bezels
ECCN 7A994
MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rail for use with standard LaRue QD levers
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
PVS-14 QD Pivot Mount LT755-14
LARUE TACTICAL
Pivoting mount for the PVS-14 designed to be placed behind LT-mounted Aimpoints (Comp M2, M3 and M4)
USML XII(e)
Modular AC Power Inverter MAC-500 MAC-Stick
Espey Mfg & Electronics Corp
Rugged case with 28VDC Input, 120 VAC Vehicle Inverter
EAR99
M16 IBC Brand Cleaner P/N 13309
US Conec
Cleaner for 1.6 mm pin and socket termination in a M38999 connector
EAR99
Night Vision Binocular Housing (NVPR)
N-Vision Optics LLC
Helmet mountable night vision binocular housing, without image intensifier tube
USML XII(e)
Jeep J8 Bumper Front Bumper
Roush Yates Performance Products
Front Bumper designed to fit all Jeep J8s and some Jeep JK Wranglers
ECCN 9A018.b
RF Power Transistor Silicon Bipolar IB3042
Integra Technologies, Inc.
RF power transistor assembled on a BeO carrier with MOS capacitors for partial impedance matching
ECCN 0A521
Marketing, Operation and Maintenance Technical Data for the CPX38-1BTP
General Electric Co. acting by and through its GE Aviation Business Unit
Technical Data
ECCN 9E003.a FOR HOT SECTION DATA, ECCN 9E991 FOR ENGINE COMPONETS NOT COVERED BY 9E003, 2E003.f FOR COATINGS USED FOR THERMAL AND EROSIONS PROTECTION AND EAR99 FOR "USE" DATA WHEN ALL 6 TYPES OF "USE" DATA
05/30/2012
L-Band Pulsed Power Transistor model JTDB 75 JTDB75 and JTDB75C
Microsemi Corp RFIS - TS
Microwave Transistor Common Base 75Watt Pk, 40% Duty, Avionics Systems
EAR99
An abbreviated version of DVB-S2 Low Density Parity Check (LDCP) IP core
AHA Products-Comtech (USA); Creonics (Germany); Turbo Concepts (French company owned by Newtec in Belgium)
A commercial ONE-way broadcast satellite standard code, shortened for use in a TWO-way data system
EAR99
M-Series Connector MM-272-009-000-4100-XD4 AirBorn Drawing # CDG16775
AirBorn, Inc.
Continuous Compliance Monitoring and Reporting (CCMR) Version 2.0
Lunarline, Inc.
The CCMR solution provides continuous security monitoring of an organization's information systems.
ECCN 5D002.c.1
Commercial aircraft robotic nondestructive inspection and evaluation system hardware and software COM100 COM100IC
Aerobotics, Inc.
Robotic nondestructive inspection and evaluation system for commercial aircraft structures.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Military aircraft robotic nondestructive inspection and evaluation system hardware and software MIL100 MIL100IC
Aerobotics, Inc.
Robotic nondestructive inspection and evaluation system for military aircraft structures.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Drag Link Assembly L24VT8527B11 Modified for end use on HEMTT
TRW Automotive U.S., LLC - Commercial Steering Systems
Drag Link Assembly for commercial or off-road vehicle
EAR99
Air & Marine Operations Surveillance System (AMOSS) software AFNORTH Mexican AMOSS 2012 Version
L-3 National Security Solutions, Inc., Global Security Solutions - formerly L-3 Services Inc., GS&ES
AMOSS is a situational awareness tool that displays the air picture in US and surrounding airspace
ECCN 6D003.h.1
Redeployable Secure Operations Center (RSOC)
MTNGS
6 sided paneled solution built off of the ICD 705 SCIF standards.
USML XI(b)(3)
Fundamental Research on Superconducting Photonic-Band Gap Accelerator Cavity for High-Current Accelerator Applications
Los Alamos National Security LLC
Novel RF Cavity Concept for Future Accelerators
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Rugged Tactical Handheld Device (RTHD-2) Revision 2.0 716592-1
Miltope Corporation
AIRCREW SEAT RESTAINTS FAMILY-AIRCREW SEAT RESTRAINTS 015-870146 1680015904019 MA-16, MA-8, ETC.
Conax Florida Corporation
DUAL SENSING INERTIA REEL SYSTEM
ECCN 9A991.d
09/06/2012
Incremental encoder: read head and disc (rotary) or scale (linear) LP20 (rotary); LE18 (linear) LP20 and LE18
Gurley Precision Instruments
Incremental encoders for low-dose, non-MIL applications, e.g. medical
USML XV(e)
Thermal Camera Thermal Camera w/ TFFE Sensor 51000760
Optex Systems, Inc.
Thermal Camera is designed typically used for night vision w/ 320 x 240 pixels 45mm sensor array.
ECCN 6A003.b.4.b
Boeing 787 Aircraft Thrust Reverser Test Jeep 3A 610900512
Bay Shore Fluid Power
Hydraulic / Electrical power supply for testing Boeing 787 Aircraft Thrust Reversers
EAR99
ALQ-131 POD COOLER P-CH3002A 230/60/3 2CX HG NG 621055846
IMI CORNELIUS INC.
Kiple Acquisition Science Technology Logistics & Engineering Inc
The Material Fate Model predicts the fate of liquids on and in various materials
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Chemical Vapor Deposition ("CVD") Pyrolytic Boron Nitride ("PBN") system (the "CVD-PBN system")
TevTech, LLC
ECCN 2B005.a.
09/17/2012
Cartier wafer to make electronic components for use in Spacebus 4000 commercial satellite project 1095605 Cartier wafer
TriQuint Semiconductor
foundry service for electronic components for commercial satellite
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
09/17/2012
Faro wafer to make electronic components for use in Spacebus 4000 commercial satellite project Faro wafer
TriQuint Semiconductor
foundry service for electronic components for commercial satellite
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
09/17/2012
Zeus wafer to make electronic components for use in Spacebus 4000 commercial satellite project Zeus 1095603
TriQuint Semiconductor
foundry service for electronic components for commercial satellite
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Miranda wafer to make electronic components for use in Spacebus 4000 commercial satellite project 1074345
TriQuint Semiconductor
foundry service for electronic components for commercial satellite
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
All-Radius Instant Emergency Strongback (ARIES) Leak Arresting Kit 001 ARIES001
Physical Sciences Inc.
Wavey Washer or Thrust Washer similar to common compression spring
EAR99
Teleoperation and Vision Based Obstacle Detection and Avoidance Software Infrastructure
Quantum Signal, LLC
Software infrastructure to be integrated with UGV to allow tele-operation/obstacle detect/avoid
USML VII(h)
Three Patient Litter System (TPLS) 15-0026 15-00266-01-P01-A01
LifePort, Inc
Three patient litter system modified for installation in a BLACK HAWK helicopter.
ECCN 9A991.d.
Model 3100 Recording Cluster SCS-3100-R
TriaSys Technologies Corporation
A recording system for monitoring several microphones and audio sensors.
ECCN 5A980
WinDemod Modem and Fax Processing Software WinDemod DEM-ALL-W
TriaSys Technologies Corporation
Windows-based software for demodulating recorded files containing Fax and Modem signals.
USML XI(d)
S2 Radio Frequency Spectrum Analyzer S2-RFSA FC0040-B24, -B16, -B08
S2 Corporation
Wideband Radio Frequency (RF) Spectrum Analyzer (SA) 0-40 GHz, also known as an RF "signal analyzer"
ECCN 3A002.c.1
Teaching/Training Techniques for Accurate Shooting from Fast Moving Platforms (see CJ 740-12)
EMPYREAL SCIENCES LLC
Slides for Proposed course to Teach/Train Shooters in Techniques based on material in CJ 740-12
USML IX(e)
ATLAS 2QB Mock-up Model Exhibit Mock-up Model 33-003
Heilmaier & Boehm, Germany
Trade show exhibit, scale mock-up of ATLAS 2QB, an Advanced Laser Threat Alerting System
EAR99
Silent Guardian® Commercial Security System SG-R50
Raytheon Company
Commercial Millimeter Wave Security Protection System
USML XVIII(a)(5)
Stage 1 Compressor Disk, Blade, and Retaining Ring T58-GE-16 and T58-GE-16A DSK:5014T20P01 BLD:6007T31P04 Ring: 4014T15P01
GE Aviation
Compressor assembly for T58 & CT58 engines & related drawings & specs, including 3 parts listed above
ECCN 9A991.d for the hardware and 9E991 for the associated data
09/24/2012
TAwS - Total aircraft Wash System Part# AWS/TAWSP10175DT/M
Petter Investments, Inc.
Aircraft washing and rinsing, plus turbine engine flush, all mounted on trailer.
EAR99
100 AMP EQUALIZER, MILITARY 71-100
Vanner, Inc.
24VDC to 12VDC, 100 Amp Battery Equalizer with silicone gel potting
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Radiation Hardened Adjustable Positive Voltage Regulator HS1-82C54R-Q
Intersil Corporation
RAD HARD CMOS PROGRAMMABLE INTERVAL TIMER, DIP, CLASS V
USML XV(e)
Radiation Hardened Adjustable Positive Voltage Regulator HS9-6664RH-Q
Intersil Corporation
RAD HARD 8K X 8 CMOS PROM, FLATPACK, CLASS V
USML XV(e)
Nivisys Commercial Thermal System Commercial Thermal System
Nivisys, LLC. 400 South Clark Drive, Suite 105. Tempe, AZ 85281
Commercial thermal sight using low resolution 160x120 image core with 25 micron pixels.
USML XII(c)
Current Limiting Fuse ETN-6796A and ETN 7750 114817A00 and 117288A00 Mersen Cat No LF5H400RD
L-3 SPD Electrical Systems
Systems Engineering & management Company (SEMCO)
Enables Video Transmission with Military Radios, Wireless Modems, Sat Phones, Wired/Wireless LAN
USML XI(a)(7)
Entropix HF High Data Rate Modem EPX-1201
Entropix
Modem for transmission of data at rates up to 96.0 kbps over High Frequency (HF) radios
USML XI(d) FOR XI(a)(5)
PURest Air Dryer 07 N5011H
Haldex Brake Products Corporation
Intended use is for air drying/purifying contaminants
EAR99
CFx electrode or pasted cathode plate 60-30-676-0
EaglePicher Technologies, LLC
CFx electrode or pasted cathode plate
USML XI(b)
SOTECH's services to commercial customers related to SOTECH's integrated surveillance and information system (ISIS)
SOTECH
Consulting, survey, assessment, assembly, integration, config., maintenance, and support related to ISIS
ECCN 4E992
Blue Ridge Research and Consulting, LLC
EAR99
Routine Ship Repair and Maintenance Services for Military Sealift Command and Maritime Administration non-combatant ships
BAE Systems Ship Repair Inc
Routine Ship Repair and Maintenance Services
ECCN 8E992
SLA-2000 Video Processing Board SLA-2000-OEM
Sightline Applications Inc
Quad channel video processing board providing on-board stabilization, tracking and video enhancement
ECCN 4A994
Video processing DSP firmware library SLA-2000-LIB
Sightline Applications Inc
DSP video processing library provides video stabilization, tracking, enhancement, etc
ECCN 4D994
11/27/2012
The Alternative
We have contracted with Pacific Plastics, 11495 Sorrento Valley Road, San Diego, CA 92121 to make product for us.
A non-lethal device that is attached to the end of the barrel of a pistol.
ECCN 0A985
Joint Fires Product Line Joint Terminal Attack Controller Training System Core 3.1.1
Nova Technologies
Core infrastructure which can be extended to training system for Joint Terminal Air Controllers
USML IX(e)
Electrically Conductive Structural Adhesive Luna XP Adhesive Products
Luna Innovations Incorporated
Epoxy adhesives that offer high electrical conductivity coupled with good mechanical performance
EAR99
Mission Critical Enclosures (MCE) MCE1 and MCE2
Lockheed Martin Corporation Mission Systems & Sensors
General purpose electronic equipment enclosure
USML VI(f)
Model 700 Scope Mount MNT-RM700
Leapers, Inc.
Scope Mount for Remington Model 700 Long Action Rifle
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Telemetry Transmitter for transmitting weather data to Receiver RDSA-232
USML XI(c)
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T251-500
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 1.0 - 2.5 GHZ, 500 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T21-250
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 1.0 - 2.0 GHZ, 250 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T188-250
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 8.0 - 18.0 GHZ, 250 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T251-250
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 1.0 - 2.5 GHZ, 250 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
Dual Directional Coupler DDC4026-100-40KFWR28 28-325-30F-40F-40R-6-6
ATM, Advanced Technical Materials
FREQUENCY 26.5 - 40.0 GHZ, dual directional coupler for external power measurement or calibration
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Diesel Engine C-13 600hp 344-6170
Caterpillar
Intel i7 based processor module
ECCN 4A994
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T82-250
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 2.0 - 8.0 GHZ, 250 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T84-250
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 4.0 - 18.0 GHZ, 20 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
11/23/2012
V287 Single Board Computer (plus subassemblies, V287 Base Board and P80XMD Processor Module) V287 Single Board Computer 97-2120-000
General Micro Systems, Inc.
Core 2 Duo Based Single Board Computer for Blood Analyzer System
EAR99
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T4026-40
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 26.5 - 40.0 GHZ, 40 WATT EMC TESTING AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
REAR SIGHT FOR AR-15/M16 SAME PLANE LOW PROFILE MCTAR-SPLP
MIDWEST INDUSTRIES, INC.
REAR SIGHT FOR AR-15 / M16
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Tricold Refrigerated Container System (TRCS) TRCS Type I and III Type 1and 3 #814501598482
Mainstream Engineering Corporation
The TRCS consists of an insolated shipping container integrated with refrigeration system
EAR99
TRAVELING WAVE TUBE AMPLIFIER T4026-40 PT84-2KW
INSTRUMENTS FOR INDUSTRY
FREQUENCY 4.0 - 8.0 GHZ, 120 WATT AVG power and 2KW Pulse, TWT EMC TEST AMPLIFIER
USML XI(c)
Blue Ridge Research and Consulting, LLC
EAR99
Routine Ship Repair and Maintenance Services for Military Sealift Command and Maritime Administration non-combatant ships
BAE Systems Ship Repair Inc
Routine Ship Repair and Maintenance Services
ECCN 8E992
SLA-2000 Video Processing Board SLA-2000-OEM
Sightline Applications Inc
Quad channel video processing board providing on-board stabilization, tracking and video enhancement
ECCN 4A994
Video processing DSP firmware library SLA-2000-LIB
Sightline Applications Inc
DSP video processing library provides video stabilization, tracking, enhancement, etc
ECCN 4D994
Earthrise Space, Inc. System Payload Accommodation Planner's Guide Rev. 2
Earthrise Space, Inc.
Guide to adapt different payloads to be delivered to the lunar surface.
PUBLIC DOMAIN
Near Field Electromagnetic Ranging (NFER®) Real Time Location System (RTLS) System
The Q-Track Corporation
Near Field Electromagnetic Ranging (NFER®) Real Time Location System (RTLS) System
EAR99
Adaptive Compliant Control Surface Actuation for aircraft (ACCSA)
FlexSys, Inc.
Adaptive Compliant Control Surface Actuation technology for aircraft
USML VIII(f) AND THE TECHNICAL DATA IS UNDER USML VIII(i)
12/07/2012
Part # 2N3506J Other Id: JAN2N3506
Semicoa Corporation
S4080 Turbo Code Decoder Core -FPGA S4080-FPGA
iCODING
IP Core for performing Turbo Code Decoding on a transmitted RF signal from a satellite.
USML XV(f)
Power Processor Control Unit ("PPCU")
L-3 Electron Technologies, Inc.
Power source and control unit for ion thrusters and interface with satellite spacecraft systems
USML XV(f)
Launch Vehicle Toolbox 1.0 TB-LVT
Princeton Satellite Systems
MATLAB toolbox for launch vehicle sizing, design, and performance analysis
USML IV(i)
Aircraft Pressure Transducer APTE-1000 IS-APTE-512/513/514-1000
Kulite Semiconductor Products, Inc
Silicon piezo-resistive pressure transducer with internal amplifier.
ECCN 9A991.d
KVM Switch, Rugged KVM-ARG-001
Argon Corporation
Rugged KVM switch box used to control the Keyboard, Video or Mouse of a remote computer
EAR99
BDP collects & analyzes massive amounts of open source information obtained from the internet.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
ROFI Protective Vests, Suits, and Visor
ROFI, AS
Protective vests, suits, and visors used used in humanitarian demining operations
ECCN 1A005
MCT (HgCdTe) Detector with Integrated Stirling Cooler DC313/x
Bruker Optik GmbH, a subsidiary of Bruker Optics Inc.
Single element HgCdTe detector with an integrated Stirling Cooler, cold finger and dewar
ECCN 6A002.d.2.a.
Radar Enhanced Vision System (REVS) 01580000-01
Sierra Nevada Corporation
Radar sensor designed to help vision in a degraded visual environment
ECCN 6A008.a.1
Test Program Set (TPS) for Radar receiver controller PC Board
Agilent Technologies
Chemical detection instrument for semi-volatile organic compounds
ECCN 1A004.c
Echotek Series - DCM-V6-OVPX - EchoCore FDK DCM V6 15-0358/PC8167-2
Mercury Systems Inc.
Software, drivers, and related firmware
USML XI(d)
Riegl VQ-820-G Hydrographic Airborne Laser Scanner VQ-820-G
Riegl Laser Measurement Systems GmbH
Hydrographic Airborne Laser Scanner to survey sea beds or river beds when mounted to an aircraft
ECCN 6A008.j.3
Squire UAS Squire 1.0 suas0000001
Fiberdyn Corporation
General Purpose Small Unmanned Aircraft System
ECCN 9A012.a
Ranger Fire Support System (RFSS) Mortar Carrier Vehicle
Polaris Industries Inc.
All Terrain Vehicle with Mortar and Machine Gun Mounts and Mortar Ammunition Rack
USML VII(c)
Benelli M4 Raven Stock Complete Package A.1.10.1430
Advanced Technology International, USA LLC
Aftermarket adjustable stock, forend, heatshield, rail shroud, mag tube and follower
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC)
Extract, Transfer, Load (ETL) and Data Management Software
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Sand Mixers #M300XLD and #M100XLD #100156 and #100157
Palmer Manufacturing and Supply, Inc
Sand mixers receive a consistent flow of sand & liquid resin and mix them.
EAR99
Infrared Labs Emission Microscope IREM-III
Infrared Laboratories, Inc.
Emission Microscope for Failure Analysis
ECCN 6A003.b.4
VZK6901J1 Series Amplifier, VZA6902J1 Series Amplifier, VTK6193D4/D4X TWT, VTA6193A4/A4X TWT
Communications & Power Industries LLC -Satcom Division, Communications & Power Industries LLC -Microwave Power Products
Instrumentation amplifier and Traveling Wave Tubes
USML XI(c)
Tactical Chat System Tactical Chat System v1.0
Trident Systems Inc.
Chat server software and chat client software.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Electronic Foot Pedal Assembly WM-540 EFPA 133219
Williams Controls Inc.
Single-engine, light utility helicopter used for both military and civilian purposes
ECCN 9A991.b
03/07/2013
1) Sensor Plug-in Bundle QUEST2+viXsen; 2) QUEST2 Plug-in (part no. 991-2259-01); 3) viXsen Plug-in (part no. 991-2210-02) Part# 1) 991-2263-01
Quantum3D, Inc.
Real time atmospheric effects in NVG, IR, Day Camera and EO modeling simulation applications.
USML IX(e)
Top Rail Mount for AK MTU014
Leapers, Inc.
Low-profile Picatinny top rail for scope and accessory mounting
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Microburst Software Defined Radio MSDR-30-3800-28
DataSoft
Embedded Software Defined Radio for telecom, industrial automation, wireless broadband, academic R/D
USML XI(a)(5)
Aetios ISR Data Management System 231303-2 231303-100
ITI Solutions, Inc.
Puritan (USA) (Palmer purchases this from Puritan)
Magnetic Separators remove metal particles from reclaimed sand to allow the sand be used again.
EAR99
Dual Sand Blend (for sand mixers): #M300XLD and #M100XLD #100104 and #100124
Palmer Manufacturing and Supply, Inc.
Dual Sand Blend is an optional upgrade that allows sand mixers to use to blend 2 different sands.
EAR99
Analytic Framework for Network Enabled Systems (AFNES) Model Framework Software 2.0
The Boeing Company
Software framework used to build custom analytic modeling and simulation application.
USML XI(d)
Pneumatic Transporters 3TM and 9TM Transporter #200200 and #200201
Macawber
Pneumatic Transporters use compressed air to transport grain size sand from one location to another.
EAR99
SDAM Sand Reclamation System SDAM Shakeout /Attrition Mill #190006
Palmer Manufacturing and Supply, Inc.
Through a vibratory process the sand mold is broken and the metal casting is removed.
EAR99
Power Supply ELI1234 CH-MIL594AC-5121256 REV 0 ELISRA PSA #9800K04301
U.S. ETA ( ETA-USA)
AC/DC switching power supply, converter; consist of commercially available components
USML XI(c)
Spray Coating KP-55 Paint System 2000020
Palmer Manufacturing and Supply, Inc.
Spray coaters are used to apply coatings to molds after the sand has been cured.
EAR99
Inertial Navigation Unit, Tactical Advanced Land Inertial Navigator (TALIN3000) HG9740BZ2 6605015536536
Honeywell International Inc.
Inertial Navigation Unit, Tactical Advanced Land Inertial Navigator (TALIN3000)
USML XII(d)
Jetpower III Diesel Ground Power Unit (GPU) D-60,-90,-120,-140,-160,-180
John Bean Technologies, Inc.
Jetpower III Diesel GPU is ground equipment that provides power to on ground aircraft.
EAR99
AC Motor w/ Gearbox EM3099 EM3099-1
Electromech Technologies
3 phase, 400 Hz Electric Motor
USML VIII(h)
Endurance Series PMDC Brush Motors
Allied Motion Technologies Inc., Motor Products Corporation
Permanent Magnet DC Brush Motors
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Drum Style Slip Ring 1001928 Series
Aeroflex Incorporated/Aeroflex Motion Control Products
Drum style slip ring with flange 10 million rev life
USML XI(c)
SIM Box Investigation Kit Hadrian C5X P/Ns: C50; C51; C52; C53
G3 Technologies, Inc.
Portable SIM Box Investigation Kit with IMSI/IMEI Catcher and Direction Finding Antenna
ECCN 5A001.e
Shipboard Cable LSDSGU / MilSpec 24643/15-02UN LSDSGU-4 MIL-DTL-24643/15-02UN
General Cable Technologies Corp. / or / The Monroe Cable Company / or / LS Cable Company Inc.
1000V, 2 conductor, watertight, low-smoke shipboard cable
ECCN 8A992.f
12W GaAs Power Amplifier MAAP-010169
M/A-COM Technology Solutions Inc
Power Amplifier for use in Wireless applications
ECCN 3A001.b.2.a
Low Temperature Blade Fatigue Detection System
Mechanical Solutions
System detects/conducts failure rate analysis on turbomachinery blades operating in up to 1000 deg F
EAR99
Stage 2 Turbine Blade J85 6009T98P02
GE Aviation
blade for J85 gas turbine engine high pressure turbine & related drawings & specs
ECCN 9A991.d
EnduraMax Series of Brushless DC motors and drives Entire Product Series
Allied Motion Technologies Inc., Motor Products Corporation
Brushless DC motor and Drive
EAR99
Python Solid Oxide Fuel Cell MPSFC-1.2-KW
Watt Fuel Cell Corp.
Electrochemical device that directly converts the energy available in liquid fuel into electricity
USML XIII(h)
05/07/2013
Shipping Assembly for Aqueous Film Foam (AFFF) 3%/6% 5 & 55 gallon containers 431411, 068218, 431410, 032727 4210011440291
Ansul Inc., Marinette WI sold under brand names: Ansul and Pyro-chem
5 and 55 gallon shipping assembly for water based foam suppression
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Precipitation Static Simulator Test Set Model PSTS-60P 900060 4920015175596
Wyle Inc.
Generates static electricity to find poor airframe bonds that can cause EMI to airborne instruments.
USML VIII(h)
Wideband Integrated Bioaerosol Sensor (WIBS) 4A AAA-0145
Droplet Measurement Technologies
A commercial sensor designed to detect naturally occurring, biologically based particles
ECCN 1A004.c.1
06/05/2013
Signals Defenses Film 2500
CP Films, Inc., a subsidiary of Eastman Chemical Company, 200 South Wilcox Drive, Kingsport, Tennessee 37662
Optically clear RF/IR/UV attenuating substrate film for windows
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
06/05/2013
Signals Defenses Film SD2510
CP Films, Inc., a subsidiary of Eastman Chemical Company, 200 South Wilcox Drive, Kingsport, Tennessee 37662
Optically clear RF/IR/UV attenuating substrate film for windows
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
High Speed IP Packet Inspection Engine (HIPPIE®) Poliwall® PW-ESE and PW-CCF
TechGuard Security, LLC
IP filtering product to block traffic by country of origin
ECCN 5A002.a.1
Carry Handle Mount for AR MNT-992T, MNT-993, MNT-993TR
Leapers, Inc.
Picatinny Mount with Single Rail or Tri-rails to Use on AR with Carry Handle
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
RF-7800W Broadband Ethernet Radio (BER) RF-7800W-OU500
Harris Corporation, RF Communications Division
The RF-7800W is a broadband Ethernet radio providing LAN extension of IP data over wireless links
ECCN 5A002.a.1
Deep Drawn Enclosure 8" X 10" X 5" Brass 74141 Part # 141-465
Tabet Manufacturing Co., Inc.
Enclosure part used in manufacturing electrical junction boxes
EAR99
Hydrogen Thyratron JAN 8613 / HY 1A 101-1016
Excelitas Technologies Corp., previously PerkinElmer
Hydrogen Thyratron
06/05/2013
Signals Defenses Film SD1000
CP Films, Inc., a subsidiary of Eastman Chemical Company, 200 South Wilcox Drive, Kingsport, Tennessee 37662
Optically clear RF/IR/UV attenuating substrate film for windows
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Copper crushers used to measure chamber pressures of newly manufactured ammunition
EAR99
HybridShield(R) Fire Protection Fire Protective Coating
NanoSonic Inc.
HybridShield Fire Protection is a fire retardant paint that can be spray deposited
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Discovery 5X IDI Model# IDI Part # NSBDISCOV52IDI1
Armasight, Inc
Long Range Night Vision Bi-Ocular (Gen 2)
ECCN 6A992.b
Cast steel roller bracket
Concurrent Technologies Corporation and Oldenburg Group Incorporated
high strength steel casting to be used on a crane for the Freedom class Littoral Combat Ships (LCS)
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Assured Sharing for Tactical Embedded Environments (ASTEE™)
Raytheon Company
Data management and protection software
USML XIII(b)(4)
Port Security Barrier (PSB) Steel,Composite,P, T, V, Fixed
Truston Technologies, Inc.
Floating barrier systems installed to protect ships and waterfront assets from waterside threats
EAR99
magnet for end-use in hydraulic equipment for Aircraft Auxiliary Power Units
ECCN 9A991.d
Tripod Mount and all parts, accessories, components and associated technical data. 13048915-1 (for tripod mount)
Marvin Land Systems
The Tripod Mount provides a stable platform for the Tow Launcher during launch operations.
USML IV(h) AND (i)
Shaft & Disk � Rotor 1 � Forging M2F0018
Avio S.p.A
Liquid Oxygen Turbo Pump (TPLOX), Shaft & Disk Rotor Forging
ECCN 9A004.b
Turbo Prop Constant Speed Governor Assembly (CSG) 8210 8210-134
Woodward, Inc.
A constant speed governor changes the pitch of a propeller to keep the engine at a constant speed
USML VIII(h)
Technical data for Testing a Secondary Mirror Assembly (SMA) Bid-Number 07-375
Exelis, Inc Geospatial Systems
Technical documents that describe the mirror testing and verification approach
USML XV(f)
Aluminum Alloy 7075-T6 Tube 9.060 OD x 5.910 ID x 40.000 LG
American Handforge
Aluminum Alloy 7075-T6 Tube 9.060 OD x 5.910 ID x 40.000 LG
ECCN 1C202
Night Vision compatible Overlay for Flotation/Raft Control Panel 1-1095-01
CMP Display Systems, Inc. / Ducommun LaBarge Technologies, Inc.
Engine Driven Rotary Screw Air Compressor
Vanair Manufacturing, Inc
Engine Driven Rotary Screw Air Compressor used for tools, digging, or air spade work
EAR99
PRIME-PRO SDI, IDI, & QSI NKMPRIMEP32 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Night Vision Monocular (GEN 2)
ECCN 6A992.b
NYX-14 PRO SDI, IDI, & QSI NSMNYX14P126 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Multi-Purpose Night Vision Monocular (GEN 2)
ECCN 0A987.f.
NYX-7-PRO SDI, IDI, & QSI NSMNYX7P012 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Night Vision Goggles (GEN 2)
ECCN 6A992.b
NYX-7 SDI, IDI, & QSI NSMNYX70012 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Night Vision Goggles (GEN 2)
ECCN 6A992.b
Discovery 8X SDI, IDI, & QSI NSBDISCOV82 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Long Range Night Vision Bi-Ocular (Gen 2)
ECCN 6A992.b
Discovery 5X SDI, & QSI NSBDISCOV52 SDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Long Range Night Vision Bi-Ocular (Gen 2)
ECCN 6A992.b
Discovery 3X SDI, IDI, & QSI NSBDISCOV32 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Long Range Night Vision Bi-Ocular (Gen 2+)
ECCN 6A992.b
CO-MR SDI, IDI, & QSI NACCOMR0012 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Medium Range Night Vision Clip-On System (GEN 2)
ECCN 0A987.e
CO-MINI SDI, IDI, & QSI NACCOMINI12 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
Short/Medium Range Night Vision Clip-On System (GEN 2), Miniature
ECCN 0A987.e
Isotopic Water Analyzer Model# IWA-45 EP Part# 912-0026-0(XXX)
Los Gatos Research Inc
Instrument for measurement of both isotopic liquid water and water vapor
EAR99
Nemesis 4X SDI, IDI, & QSI NRWNEMESI42 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
4X Night Vision Riflescope (GEN 2)
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Nemesis 6X SDI, IDI, & QSI NRWNEMESI62 SDI1/IDI1/QSI1
Armasight, Inc
6X Night Vision Riflescope (GEN 2)
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Methane Carbon Isotope Analyzer Model# MCIA Part# 907-0005-0(XXX)
Los Gatos Research Inc
Instrument for measurement of the isotopic ratios in methane
EAR99
ARINC 429 FPGA Controller Rev B 02-0153
Curtiss Wright Controls Integrated Sensing, Inc.
Firmware code to provide ARINC 429 interface
USML XI(c)
IC, FLASH MEMORY, PROGRAMMED, ARINC 429 Rev C 01-0639 NUMONYX P/N: M25P40-VMN3TP
Numonyx device, programmed by CURTISS WRIGHT
IC, SERIAL FLASH MEMORY, 4 MB, PROGRAMMED
USML XI(c)
07/03/2013
Pre-swaged sealed annular bearings, up to 1.5 inch and over 1.5 inch P26000 Series Bearings P26000-P26170
Rexnord Industries, LLC
Pre-swaged sealed annular bearings, up to 1.5 inch and over 1.5 inch
USML VIII(h)
Mission Analysis Environment (MAnE) MAnE/3.5
Jerry L. Horsewood dba SpaceFlightSolutions
Mission Design and Optimization Software for Space Exploration
USML XV(f)
Heliocentric Interplanetary Low-thrust Trajectory Optimization Program (HILTOP) HILTOP/2.3
Jerry L. Horsewood dba SpaceFlightSolutions
Mission Design and Optimization Software for Space Exploration
USML XV(f)
High Mobility Restraint System ; and 5 Point Restraint System 930-US-002;900-US-266
Takata Protection Systems Inc.
Substrate (Cu bonded on Si3N4, Al bonded on AlN, or Cu bonded on AlN) 30C4627
Powerex Inc
A custom substrate (the dimensions and etched pattern are custom to the application)
USML VIII(h)
Filter Element - Oil ACC691F1612 P&WC Part Number 3075014-01
Pall Aeropower Corporation
Disposable Filter Element use to filer oil in the PT6A-68 Turboprop Engine.
ECCN 9A991.d
HVAC Components and system. Commonly know as Heating and Air Conditioning.
Manufactures for HVAC components are sourced and located in the global market
Engineering, Design, Testing, and Service of HVAC
EAR99
Sight Riser Ural 5-1 Riser 10mm Rear
Shapeways / any
10mm Dovetail extension for rear sight of Izhmash Ural 5-1 rifle.
EAR99
Multiplex Network Transfomer X-1411 C8839-13
Pulse Electronics, Inc.
Nitros Oxide, Carbon Monoxide Analyzer Model# N2O/CO Part# 913-0015-0(XXX)
Los Gatos Research Inc
Instrument for continuous measuring of ambient levels of nitrous oxide and carbon monoxide
ECCN 3A999.f
The Ballistic Edge HELO Spider System
The Ballistic Edge
Small caliber weapon stabilization system
USML I(h)
The Ballistic Edge Software HELOSOF HELO Solution on the Fly Card
The Ballistic Edge
Graphic card with offset aiming points for small arms caliber weapons from helicopter shooting.
USML i(i)
Power Module 1J9012 Zapper, Power Module
Eaton
Monitoring unit for chip detection system
USML VIII(h)
Micro-DTG (Dynamically Tuned Gyro) Electronics Module 2200039
Southern Research Institute
Electronics module for the G2000 DTG.
USML XII(e)
EXP4 - 4 slot PCI Express expansion system PCIe8 EXP4, 1U 095-04116
Engineering Design Team, Inc. a HEICO Company
1U PCIe expansion system with four slots for PCIe 2.0 x8.
ECCN 4A994
Planar Triode 690 Y-690A 5960013173202
Communications & Power Industries LLC, Microwave Power Products Division (Eimac)
Power Grid Tube
VACUUM ELECTRON TUBE USED AS A VOLTAGE REGULATOR
USML XI�
DeSoto Military Epoxy Polyamide Primer 515X410
PPG Industries Inc.
Low IR Primer -Type II (MIL-PRF-85582)
USML XIV(f)(5)
Miniature Thermal Imaging Core Vcore 3200-Series Vcore 3217, Vcore 3225
Vectronix Inc.
VOx microbolometer FPA based thermal imaging core, 320 x 240 pixel array, 17 or 25 micron pitch
ECCN 6A003.b.4
Mobile ILS Mobile Instrument Landing Syst
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Transportable landing system to provide course and glidepath signals to approaching aircraft
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Multi-Patient Stacking System (MPSS) IMMSS 869-9100
Air Methods Corporation
Interim MEDEVAC Mission Support System
USML VIII(h)
Space Computer Corporation In-Scene Image Stabilization (ISIS) Software
Exelis, Inc. Space Computer Corporation
H-BEF 1006447
Briteview Technologies, Inc / 3M
Cut 3M Optical Films (17" x 17" sheets) to a desirable size for installation in a 10.4" LCD.
EAR99
Si Solid State Detector IES Cluster
Micron Semiconductor Limited
Flight Qualified Silicon Solid State Detector
USML XV(e)
Aimpoint red dot reflex sight CompM4s 12172 1240015515762
Aimpoint AB, Jagershillgatan 15, Malmo 21375, SWEDEN
Non-magnifying reflex sight for use on small arms
USML I(f)
Motor Gear Sensor Spring Assembly ("MGSSA") 299293
Woodward MPC, Inc.
Mechanical Assembly that uses motors, gearing, sensors, springs, linkages and cams to actuate 2 axis
USML VIII(h)
Transportable Port Security Boat TPSB-C
Kvichak Marine Industries, Inc
Tonwrap Head Version 01 4G13558 and PL 4G13558
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Piece part designed to go into a hydrophone
USML XI(c) AND FOR TECHNICAL DATA USML XI(d)
07/22/2013
Tonwrap Tail Mass Version 01 4G13559 and PL 4G13559
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Piece part designed to go into a hydrophone
USML XI(c) AND FOR TECHNICAL DATA USML XI(d)
07/22/2013
Mobile Multifunction ARM Processor Chip (MMAP) Design Files MMAP-001DF Design Files MMAP-001DF
Exelis Inc
Design files with information to manufacture the Mobile Multifunction ARM Communication Processor
ECCN 3E001
SEP TSVR Cable V2 C-119
Tactical Micro
Cable attachment that attaches to a M1 Tanks to serve as a video signal splitter
USML XI(c)
Leupold BX-2 Tactical 10x42mm Binoculars, Black, Mil-L Reticle 115935
Leupold
TLS Apex Geolocation System Apex
Transmitter Location Systems, LLC
System used to isolate, identify and resolve interference with commercial satellite services
ECCN 7A994
5000 Gallon Refueler 300 GPM System MDL-5MA-300A-MR-PLDAS_7421 1FVHCYBS4DHFA2352
Garsite LLC
Vehicle equipped for refueling military jets.
USML VIII(h)
Portable Fabric Shelters (see attachment) CAMSS20EX
CAMSS
Portable, temporary fabric and aluminum shelter systems
EAR99
C-Band RF/IF Digital Receiver Upgrade RCB/DR Series C-Band Upgrade DR2000/3000 RCB2000/3000/4000
L-3 Communications Telemetry East (L-3 TE)
Existing RCB/DR Receiver upgrade to add C-Band capability internally
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
rScene Unattended RF Sensor System rS 1000
McQ Inc.
Unattended RF Sensor that detects vehicles and personnel using commercial automotive radar component
EAR99
1 lb hovering microUAV and operator ground control system (GCS)
USML VIII(f)
TRIMBLE NOMAD HANDHELD PDA NOMAD
TRIMBLE
Handheld PDA for ballistic software (no ballistic software installed, handheld PDA only).
ECCN 5D992
Alastar™ - Situational Awareness Version 2
Advanced Technology International dba SCRA Applied R&D
A GIS software application providing mobile and Ops Center personnel enhanced situational awareness
ECCN 5D002
Nano Core (R) Thermal Imaging Core (Enclosure 1) NanoCore320 5000971(-1,-2-3)
L-3 Communications Corporation, Warrior Systems Division-IRP Garland
Infrared camera core based on 320x240, 17 micron amorphous silicon detector
ECCN 6A003.b.4.b
Load Demand Stop Start System (LDSS) LDSS 30748
L-3 Communications Westwood Corporation
LDSS enables generator sets to be utilized as a microgrid to reduce fuel consumption
ECCN 2A994
Mixed Flow Engine Cooling Fans 61200, 61350 & 93350
SCFM Corporation
Engine Cooling Fans for Diesel Engines
EAR99
08/05/2013
Family Of Tethered StarTower Aerostats w/Ground Stations, Mooring Sys , Models: 100-12, 100-25, 200-40, 200-57, 500-91, 500-16 StarTower Aerostat Systems
Near Space Systems, Inc. dba Global Near Space Services
Tethered StarTower Aerostat Systems with ground stations and mooring systems
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Slide-on replacement for original collapsible butt stock.
USML I(h)
Flow Divider and Dump Valve Flow Divider FD251 26550-XX
Goodrich Corporation (Montreal, Canada)
Divides fuel flow between manifolds during engine start and operation
USML VIII(h)
TM FIRMWARE FOR MODEMS, BROADCAST AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
TM TECHNOLOGIES INC
FIRMWARE TO INCREASE SIGNAL DATA RATES FOR GIVEN BANDWIDTH
ECCN 5A991
Aeroptic Mapping System 1C+ 600200
The KEYW Corporation
Aerial photographic image collection and ortho-photo map generation.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
TM FIRMWARE FOR MODEMS, BROADCAST AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
TM TECHNOLOGIES INC
FIRMWARE TO INCREASE SIGNAL DATA RATES FOR GIVEN BANDWIDTH
ECCN 5A991
SmartSpice RadHard 4.6.5.R SSRH (SmartSpice RadHard)
Silvaco, Inc.
S-92 helicopter cabin subassembly ("Improved Cabin") as improved for the Canadian Maritime Helicopter Project ("CMHP")
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. ("MHI")
S-92 cabin subassembly as improved and used on the CH-148 helicopter
ECCN 9A991.d
Liquid Cooling System for Compact Airborne Early Warning Gulfstream Aircraft
Gulfstream, w/ Major Components from Pacific Design Technologies and Cox & Company
Liquid Cooling System for equipment on Gulfstream aircraft with components from PDT and Cox & Co.
USML VIII(h)
09/04/2013
GPS/INS SDN500 SDN500-XXXX
BEI Sensors and Systems Company, Inc., Systron Donner Inertial Division 2700 Systron Drive, Concord, CA 94518
MEMS Integrated GPS/INS Tactical System
USML XII(d)
Widely Tunable Infrared Source (WTIRS)
Under development by Genia Photonics, EOS Photonics, Northwestern University, and Corning Incorporated
Widely Tunable Infrared Source (WTIRS) (i.e., a laser).
EAR99
Multi-Channel Terminal (MCT) Membrane 900925-T
DRS Technologies Canada Co.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCTAS
09/04/2013
LwM lightweight ironless Halbach array electric motor for Theta Tech Solutions, LLC (for IARPA Great Horned Owl Program)
Toyon Research Corporation & Lightweight Magnetics, Inc.
Ultralight ironless frameless ring electric motor
USML VIII(f)
Optical Day Scopes POSP 4x24
Belarus Optical Mechanical Association (BelOMO); Vavilov Factory, Minsk
Optical Day Scopes for Hunting and Sporting rifles, Airsoft Air rifles
ECCN OA987
Oil Tube, Check Valve, Assy of 3041283
ITEFLEX Aerospace �Smith Tubular Systems- Laconia
Oil tube assembly for PT6A-25C turborprop engine powering Pilatus PC-7 Mk II trainer aircraft
USML VIII(h)
Onmission R1.0 NMC 100 1001
Oceus Networks
The ONmission is a network management system for monitoring and managing the Xiphos 4G LTE system.
ECCN 5D002.a.1
VZK6901J1 Series Amplifier, VZA6902J1 Series Amplifier, VTK6193D4/D4X TWT, VT6193A4/A4X TWT
Communications & Power Industries LLC - Satcom Division, Communications & Power Industries LLC - Microwave Products Division
Instrumentation Amplifier and Traveling Wave Tubes
USML XI(c)
Passive Safety Valve (PSV) Actuator P50-1863 WI-1863
TiNi Aerospace, Inc
Helmet Mounted Multi Function Strobe Light
EAR99
Optical rifle scope PO 4x24P
Belarus Optical Mechanical Association (BelOMO), Vavilov Plant, Minsk
Optical Day Scope for Hunting and Sporting rifles, Airsoft Air rifles or PCP air rifles
ECCN 0A987
Optical rifle scope PO 10x42
Belarus Optical Mechanical Association (BelOMO), Vavilov Plant, Minsk
Optical Day Scope for Hunting and Sporting rifles, Airsoft Air rifles or PCP air rifles
ECCN 0A987
Optical rifle scope PO 10x42
Belarus Optical Mechanical Association (BelOMO), Vavilov Plant, Minsk
Optical Day Scope for Hunting and Sporting rifles, Airsoft Air rifles or PCP air rifles
ECCN 0A987
BIT 2X, 6X and 10X
Armasight, Inc
Software for handling and analyzing massive real-time data
USML XI(d)
Test and Simulation Multiprotocol Carrier Boards for PCI systems EXC-4000PCI EXC-4000PCI/A1F1I1K1
Excalibur Systems, Inc.
Multiprotocol IO: 5-10 ARINC 429 channels, 1 MIL-STD-1553, 20 Discrete I/O, 2-4 Serial Channels
ECCN 7B994
Resonance Ultrasonic Vibration (RUV) Tool RUV-CP1
Ultrasonic Technologies, Inc.
Resonance Ultrasonic Vibration (RUV) tool to detect cracks in ceramic armor plates.
EAR99
Accommodation Ladder CSL Tech Spec 071-N2522262
PaR Marine / Marine Systems Technology Ltd
Retractable accommodation ladder to embark/disembark large vessels
ECCN 8A992.f
Kevlar Tubing a.k.a Aramid Tubing RE126 H2/H6/N2S/N15/N11/N8/N3
Southern Mills, Inc. d/b/a TenCate Protective Fabrics USA
Fabrics that protect against flame and small particle debris.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Alticam Vision C-EO family of camera gimbals C-EO 049EO1 0499EO1
Alticam Vision Inc
Small camera gimbal systems with COTS daylight cameras
EAR99
Instructional Courses entitled "Civilian Response to Terrorist Threats" 1 day or 2 days
SIG SAUER, Inc.
Instructional Courses offered at SIG SAUER Academy
EAR99
ADC-VPX6-GIGE OpenVPX Carrier Card ADC-VPX6-GIGE ADC-VPX6-GIGE/xxxx
Alpha Data Inc.
6U OpenVPX standard carrier circuit card assembly
USML VI(f)
Battery Holder (BA3058/U) 5008902 6160013725994
Exelis Night Vision and Tactical Communications Systems (NVTCS) formerly ITT Night Vision
Battery Holder for two (2) AA batteries connected in series.
EAR99
HybridShield Anticorrosion
NanoSonic, Inc.
This product can be painted or sprayed on a bare or painted surface to inhibit corrosion growth
EAR99
Underwater 3-D Damage Assessment Tool (3-DDAT) Romer Infinite 2.0 CMMS arm
Phoenix International Holdings, Inc.
Underwater 3-dimensional imaging device used on damaged ships
ECCN 8A992.e
Heatsink Assembly and Aluminum Enclosure 1017160-1 and 1017052-1
Cofan USA
Heatsink Assembly and Aluminum Enclosure
USML XI(c)
Concentrator Inverted Metamorphic Multi-junction ("C-IMM") Solar Cell For Terrestrial Application
EMCORE Corporation
Non-space-qualified Concentrator Inverted Metamorphic Multi-junction Solar Cell for terrestrial app
EAR99
Drug-filled BinaJect platform labeled as ATNAA FPM1 6505013627427
Meridian Medical Technologies, Inc.
Atropine and pralidoxime chloride auto-injector
USML XIV(h)
Drug-filled BinaJect platform labeled as DuoDote FPAE 6505015811327
Meridian Medical Technologies, Inc.
Atropine and pralidoxime chloride auto-injector
USML XIV(h)
ONTOS7 Surface Preparation Tool PN 7000-00100
ONTOS Equipment Systems, Inc., represented by SET North America
Surface preparation tool using atmospheric plasma to remove native oxides and films.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
EARS Shoulder-Worn Acoustic Targeting System (SWATS) Mfg. Part No: 57100-700 NATO Stk No: 7610-09-510-6288
QinetiQ North America, Inc.
Acoustic sensor system worn on the shoulder that provides gunfire detection and location
USML XI(a)
Air-Flow-By Cooled Hi Density Server 6601 6U Open VPX Processing Module HDS6601 910-56099
Mercury Systems Inc.
Air-Flow-By Cooled processing module with Octal Intel processors for general purpose processing
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Gi-100: Two vision system GI-100 511000
General Inspection, LLC
This machine is used to detect defects in flat cylindrical parts such as nuts, washers and stampings
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
L-3 Communications Avionics Systems Inc.,
Electronic Standby Indicator GH-3000/3100 component of the ESIS
ECCN 7A994
Ballistic Tape BT10 / ST17 (A, ASP & B-grade) 5772 (A-grade)/5945 (A-grade) 5773 & 5774 / 5946 & 5947
DSM Dyneema, LLC
Layered ballistic material for the manufacturing of personal and vehicle armor.
ECCN 1C990
Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) 630-601-01-202 1910015786923
Austal USA, LLC
USML VI(a)
11/14/2013
Final Trainer Programming Report for Close-In Weapon System Maintenance Trainer (CIWS-MT Block 1 Upgrade) Training Device 11G2 Section 1 Book 1 of 2 P656/A006-1F
Cubic Defense Systems, now known as Cubic Defense Applications, Inc.
Final Trainer Programming Report-Close-In Weapon System Maintenance Trainer Training Device 11G2
USML IX(e)
Enclosure Ring Retrofit Assembly 46130
Central Research Laboratories
Retrofit glove port ring assembly
EAR99
U.S. Army Advanced Helicopter Universal Controls Program (AHUCS)
TRIUMPH ENGINE CONTROL SYSTEMS, LLC
Full Authority Digital Engine Control FADEC Box, Electric Fuel Control, & Metering Pump
USML XIX(e)
Spaceline "Space Flight Participant" Travel Ticket Passenger Bay Ticket/1.1
Spacedesign Corporation
"Space Flight Participant" transport Earth-to-space and/or space-to-Earth, one-way or round-trip.
EAR99
Igniter CH31960-1 P&W Part # 4133725
Champion Aerospace LLC
Ignition System Igniter for Pratt and Whitney F-135 Main Engine Combustor
USML XIX(f)(1)
Small Inexpensive Robot for EOD (SIRE) SIRE v1
Tactical Electronics and Military Supply LLC
The Sire is a small, disposable, inexpensive cargo delivery platform for EOD units.
USML IV(c)
Automated Test Re-Test (ATRT): Test Manager
Innovative Defense Technologies, LLC
Concrete blocks that absorb small arms ammunition and grenade fragments
EAR99
TGA2813 MMIC amplifier
TriQuint Semiconductor
This GaN MMIC power amplifier is capable of providing 100 Watts of output power from 3.1 to 3.5 GHz
ECCN 3A001.b.2.a
Cavity Combline (CCL) Ver 1.0
SW Filter Design
Design software for passive microwave components
EAR99
ZERO SPEED STABILIZER SYSTEM QC1800, ARC3001, QP2020 QCHUL18000-EI, QCARC30012, etc
QUANTUM MARINE ENG OF FLORIDA INC. , QUANTUM CONTROLS BV
ZERO SPEED STABILIZER SYSTEM
USML VI(f)
12/03/2013
Bearing Half Sleeves, Camshaft Half Sleeve Bearings, Bearings Sleeves, Crankshaft Half Sleeve Bearings, & Camshaft Half Sleeve
Mahle Industries (formerly Clevite)
Bearings utilized in L-3 CPS' AVDS diesel engines
ECCN 9A018.b
Thermal Ribbon Analysis Platform (TRAP) Version 1.0
Quantum Signal, LLC
PC-compatible desktop device (HW/SW) for scanning & processing latent images on used thermal ribbons
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
imMix Micromixing Hyperspectral Imager 1 liter blender version MRC-920-060
Kemeny Associates LLC dba Middleton Research
The imMix system is a computerized blender with a built-in near-infrared hyperspectral imager.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
12/17/2013
SWIR Spectral Imager with Enhanced Spectrograph; 100Hz MCT LVDS, frame grabber and cable included SWIR-LVDS-100-N25E 06SPC00020
Spectral Imaging Ltd. Oulu, Finland
High-speed hyperspectral line imager (push-broom) in the range 970-2500 nm.
ECCN 6A003.b.4.a
Chemical Protective Patient Wrap System (PPW) Generation II 41896838
M-C Industries, Inc.
Sewn product designed to protect an individual from all types of chemical exposure
ECCN 3A992.a
Chemical Protective Patient Wrap System (PPW) Generation II 41896838
M-C Industries, Inc.
Sewn product designed to protect an individual from all types of chemical exposure
ECCN 1A004.b
STATIC RAM, 512K X 8, 20NS ACCESS, DATA RETENTION 5962-95600 /K 5962-9560008M9A
MICROSS COMPONENTS
RF SHIELD, TOP AND BOTTOM, P1 MODEM BOARD, GOVERNMENT SYSTEMS DIVISION MODEM
ARMSTRONG MOLD CORPORATION
Top and Bottom Modem PWA RF Shield
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
High Pressure Air Conditioning Unit Model# ACU-401
TLD-ACE Corporation
High Pressure Air Conditioning Unit
EAR99
CH-53K Landing Gear Retract Actuators Sikorsky CH-53K 06250-12804-104 FA100127-004
Triumph Actuation Systems, LLC
Landing Gear Retract Actuators for the CH-53K helicopter
ECCN 9A610.x
Zirconium Potassium Perchlorate Mixture specially formulated for use in Squib Valve initiator P/N 17399400-1
United Technologies Aerospace Systems (Universal Propulsion Company)
Zirconium Potassium Perchlorate Mixture specially formulated for use in Squib Valve initiator
USML V(c )(6)(ii)(b)
Connector, Electrical, Plug, Coaxial, Type TNC 30095 5935010598037 Lockheed part number C8825-1-1
Phoenix Logistics, Inc.
The LamB is a weapon-mounted visible and infrared Laser and Illumination Targeting Aid.
USML XII(b)
300GHz Multiplier Chain (x2x2) VDIMC3.4-296/304 (Buyer's)
Virginia Diodes, Inc.
A frequency multiplier (input ~75GHz, output ~300GHz), with attached input isolator and bias box.
ECCN 3A001.b.7
Digital Echo™ Digital Echo™ v 2.0-C
Leidos, Inc.
Digital Echo™ is an integrated suite of applications for data collection, indexing, and analytics.
USML XI(d)
Structural Analysis Memo DDM ID REA12RA057
Pratt & Whitney
Stress analysis for F135 gas turbine engine diffuser case flange
USML XIX(g)
GE-124 Fused Quartz Material Machined and/or Polished to Dimensions for a Military Application
Squire Sanders (US) LLP
GE-124 Fused Quartz Material Machined and/or Polished to Dimensions for a Military Application
USML XIII(e)
HDMS (High Dexterous Manipulation System)
RE2, Inc.
A small, lightweight, robotic bimanual manipulator and torso
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
High Speed Successive detection Log Video Amplifiers with Limited RF Output A17-MH202 SDLVA
AKON, Inc
Military Land Vehicle Fire/ Explosion Detection Suppression System (AFES) Various military land vehicles
Kidde Dual Spectrum
Fire/Explosion detection and fire suppression for military land vehicles.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Secure Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) EMPEST model SCIF 240120120-TSC
Armag Corporation
SCIF designed to suppress radio frequency emanation
USML XI(b)(3)
Digital Test System (DTS) Z2090B-342
Agilent Technologies
Custom test system designed for production test of a wide variety of digital modules.
ECCN 3A992.a
Secure Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) non-TEMPEST models 240120120-SC
Armag Corporation
SCIF designed only for sound attenuation, but not to suppress emanation of info bearing signals
USML XI(b)(3)
Depot SX401R-4 Various - Multi Configurations
General Micro Systems, Inc.
Small form factor Atom based NAS/Storage System
ECCN 4A994.a
ECU-Chill Environmental Control Unit ECU-Chill 550 FP-00027
Aspen Systems, Inc.
Air conditioner for electronics enclosures, including transit cases, mobile, and fixed installations
EAR99
Web Sites for hosting data and information Open Source Solution Searchable and Interactive
KAIROS NETWORK, INCORPORATED
F110-GE-132 Turbofan Engine F110-GE-132 9556M10G01
GE Aviation
The F110-GE-132 is the latest aero gas turbine engine in the F110 fighter jet engine family.
USML XIX(a)(1)
VALVE, TEMPERATURE & PRESSURE 26659-5331 (11-708)
ACTRONICS INCORPORATED
THERMOSTATIC DEVICE MUCH LIKE AUTOMOTIVE THERMOSTAT TO CONTROL OIL TEMPERATURE IN AIRCRAFT ENGINE
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
IADS Version 8.1 See IADS Price Sheet
SYMVIONICS, Inc.
IADS is software for analyzing and displaying air vehicle telemetric flight test data.
EAR99
Northwest UAV Reciprocating Engine NW-44
Northwest UAV Propulsion Systems
Reciprocating engine for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Portable Power Generation & R C Hobby Airplanes
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Wideband Signal Processing (WiSP) and 4th-Order Programmable CMOS Filter technologies.
Newlans, Inc.
WiSP & 4th-order state variable filter fabricated in CMOS and operating from 700 MHz to 4 GHz
EAR99
03/20/2014
WiSP & 4th-order state variable filter fabricated in CMOS and operating from 700 MHz to 4 GHz TFSS
Amerex Corporation
03/12/2014
SeaBat 7130 and SeaBat 7131
Teledyne RESON A/S, Fabriksvangen 13, 3550 Slangerup, Denmark and Teledyne RESON Inc., 100 Lopez Road, Goleta, CA 93117
Dual-Frequency, Forward-Looking, 3-D, Multi-Beam Sonar System for Small Unmanned Underwater Vehicles
ECCN 6A991
Carry Handle for AR MNT-950
Leapers, Inc.
Detachable Carry Handle with Rear Sight to Use on AR with Flat Top
EAR99
CARBONFIRE 10 EOP-26420
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT CORP CONTRACTS THE MANUFACTURING TO VARIOUS COMPANIES
CABONFIRE10 IS 10" LONG BARREL THAT IS USED AS A TOOL TO NEUTRALIZE IMPROVSISED EXPLOSIVE DEVICES
ECCN 1A006.b
Wideband Signal Processing (WiSP) and 4th-Order Programmable CMOS Filter technologies.
Newlans, Inc.
WiSP & 4th-order state variable filter fabricated in CMOS and operating from 700 MHz to 4 GHz
EAR99
Viper Fiber Placement System Viper 1200, F-35 applications
Fives Machining Systems Inc., Fives Cincinnati (formerly MAG IAS, LLC)
Automated composites processing machine for the layup of complex carbon fiber parts
ECCN 1B001.g
Analytic Framework for Network Enabled Systems (AFNES) Core Software 2.0
The Boeing Company
Software framework used to build custom analytic modeling and simulation application.
USML IX (e)
Develop strategic plan for diplomatic security
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Assessment of Saudi diplomatic security forces
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
VALVE, TEMPERATURE & PRESSURE D1443-32C (11-362)
ACTRONICS INCORPORATED
THERMOSTATIC DEVICE MUCH LIKE AUTOMOTIVE THERMOSTAT but CONTROLS OIL TEMPERATURE IN AIRCRAFT ENGINE
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
VALVE, TEMPERATURE & PRESSURE D1970-75C (11-581)
ACTRONICS INCORPORATED
THERMOSTATIC DEVICE MUCH LIKE AUTOMOTIVE THERMOSTAT but CONTROLS OIL TEMPERATURE IN HELICOPTER
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Advanced Nanotube and Carbon Growth CVD System SOLR-RFCVD-2000 001
Solarno Inc.
Chemical Vapor Deposition System to grow carbon nanotubes and other carbon for basic research
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
HAI HLF Acoustic Sources HAI HLF-2, 3, 4, 5, 6, HVLF-1
Hydroacoustics, Inc.
Low frequency, broadband, high power acoustic source for research and acoustic test and evaluation
ECCN 6A001.a.1.c.2
RoboXap Xap SP (Small Platform)
XADS
Electrical discharge system to detect buried wires, cables and metallic objects.
CONTACT DOC FOR CCATS
Scope Mount with Shell Deflector for SKS MTU017
Leapers, Inc.
SKS Receiver Cover Scope Mount
USML I(h)
Modular Deployable Perimeter Security System MDPSS 80CW200TN
HDT Expeditionary Systems, Inc. (Subsidiary of Hunter Defense Technologies, Inc.)
EAR99
06/25/2014
Generator Set, Skid Mounted, Diesel Engine Driven, 100kW and 200kW MEP-1080 and MEP-1090 12-1080 and 12-1090 LAMPS
L-3 Communication Westwood Corporation
Near-infrared cameras with InGaAs sensor used in multiple commercial and industrial applications
ECCN 6A003.b.4.a
Higher Order Mode fiber module, OFS Part Number ErHOM-FEC-MOD ErHOM-FEC-MOD
OFS Fitel, LLC
Higher Order Mode fiber module
ECCN 6A005.e.2
Filter 5MMB5-70/T7-1.0 IB-01460 and 5MMB5-00062
K & L Microwave, Inc.
Chip and Wire Micro Miniature Filter
EAR99
Ground Renewable Expeditionary Energy Network System (GREENS) GENERATION II GREENS GEN II 6117016185094
UEC Electronics
GREENS is a modular, man?portable solar energy conversion and management system.
USML XIII(h)
Self-contained Hybrid Integrated Evolution Life-support Device (SHIELD) SHIELD-001
OHG Innovative Technologies
low profile, lightweight, compact, extended duration, hybrid, sustained respiratory system
ECCN 1A004.a.
MK 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS)
Lockheed Martin Corporation Mission Systems and Training
MK 41 VLS is a missile launcher which is installed below deck in naval surface combatant vessels.
USML IV(b)
Man portable Satellite Communication Termina
Tampa Microwave LLC
Ground based, portable SATCOM terminals in X, Ku and Ka band
ECCN 5A991
RADIATION TOLERANT VOLTAGE CONTROLLED SAW OSCILLATOR API725 SERIES AP725-XXXX.XXXX
API TECHNOLOGIES CORP/SPECTRUM MICROWAVE
SPACE QUALIFIED VCSO WITH RUGGGEDIZED HYBRID CONSTRUCTION
EAR99
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i don't know
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Which lone gunman went on the rampage around the town of Hungerford in 1987?
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Hungerford Massacre | World History Project
Source: 'Inside Story: 20 years on - how the Hungerford massacre was reported'; The Independent, August 13, 2007 Added by: Colin Harris
The Hungerford massacre occurred in Hungerford, Berkshire, England, on 19 August 1987. The gunman, 27-year-old Michael Robert Ryan, armed with two semi-automatic rifles and a handgun, shot and killed sixteen people including his mother, and wounded fifteen others, then fatally shot himself. A report on this incident was commissioned by the Home Secretary, Douglas Hurd, from the Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police, Colin Smith. It remains, along with the 1996 Dunblane massacre and the 2010 Cumbria shootings, one of the worst criminal atrocities involving firearms in British history.
The massacre led to the Firearms Act 1988, which banned the ownership of semi-automatic centre-fire rifles and restricted the use of shotguns with a magazine capacity of more than two rounds. The Hungerford Report had demonstrated that Ryan's collection of weapons was legally licensed.
Source: Wikipedia Added by: Colin Harris
A man has shot 14 people dead in the Berkshire town of Hungerford.
Police identified the gunman as Michael Ryan, 27.
Local people described him as a "loner" and a "gun fanatic".
Ryan was armed with an automatic rifle, a pistol and at least one hand grenade when he went on the rampage early on Wednesday afternoon.
His victims included his mother and a police officer who tried to tackle him in Hungerford which lies about 60 miles (96km) west of London.
Source: '1987: Gunman kills 14 in Hungerford rampage'; BBC On This Day, news.bbc.co.uk Added by: Colin Harris
The local Hungerford police station was in the process of being renovated and had only two telephone lines working on that day. In addition to this, the local telephone exchange could not handle the amount of 999 calls that were being made, as Ryan wreaked havoc across the suburbs and people desperately tried phoning for help. In a further twist of fate, the local police helicopter was in for repair but police mechanics eventually made it ready for flight and it was deployed at around the time Ryan shot his mother. Adding to the sound of gunfire in the area was the fact that the Thames Valley firearms squad were in training, about 40 miles away.
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Michael Ryan
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Who won the best actor Oscar in 1997 fro the film Shine?
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Hungerford massacre: Reluctant remembrance 25 years on - BBC News
BBC News
Hungerford massacre: Reluctant remembrance 25 years on
By Adam Williams BBC News
18 August 2012
Close share panel
Image caption Hungerford's memorial to the 16 people who died on 19 August, 1987
"People just want to forget about it, but they can't," says Bryan Geater, whose daughter was nearly killed by gunman Michael Ryan 25 years ago.
Say the name Hungerford and most people will associate the town with the events of Wednesday, 19 August, 1987.
That summer afternoon Ryan, a 27-year-old unemployed labourer, killed 16 people, injured 15 more and then turned the gun on himself to end a six-hour shooting spree.
He changed the lives of residents in the west Berkshire town forever and society's attitudes towards possessing firearms.
With the anniversary this weekend, visit Hungerford today and you will find a town which remembers the tragedy, but respectfully consigns the horrific events to the history books.
'Callously murdered'
Mr Geater's daughter Myra was seriously injured by one of Ryan's bullets, which hit her in the leg after flying through the front window of their family home.
Who was Michael Ryan?
The 27-year-old was one of Hungerford's 5,500 residents and lived with his mother, Dorothy in a terraced house in South View.
An only child, Ryan's father Alfred died in 1985, aged 80.
He was described by locals as "a loner" and "a gun fanatic".
On the day of the shootings, he was armed with two semi-automatic rifles and a handgun.
The first of his victims, mother-of-two Susan Godfrey, was shot seven miles to the west of Hungerford, in a picnic area of Savernake Forest, Wiltshire around 12:30 BST.
Having murdered 16 people, including his mother, and injuring another 15 in and around Hungerford, he shot himself while barricaded inside a classroom at the John O'Gaunt Community Technology College just before 18:30 BST.
The 74-year-old still lives in the same house with his wife Diana and every year the family leaves town on 19 August to escape mention of the events.
But Mr Geater admits a turning point came three years ago when the detached house opposite was demolished and replaced by four new properties.
Jack and Myrtle Gibbs were among Ryan's last victims as he entered their Priory Road detached home and shot them.
From his porch bench across the road, Mr Geater looks forlornly at the new builds as he ponders the question of what the massacre means a quarter of a century later.
He said: "To see that house opposite come down was a God-send.
"Jack and Myrtle were great friends of ours, who were callously murdered inside their home.
"To step out the front door everyday and see that was a terrible reminder."
He added: "He (Ryan) just flipped that day and the more the media highlights these things, the more it becomes an eye-opener for people who want to try and make a name for themselves, like we keep seeing in these terrible shootings in America."
Hungerford will not be marking the 25th anniversary with a memorial service either at the town's St Lawrence Church or by the memorial plaque and gates at the entrance to the football and recreation ground.
Raw memories
The decision to take a low-key approach was made in 2007, as the then town mayor Peter Harries decided 20 years was a better time to remember the events.
And that's how many people in Hungerford want it to be conducted.
Image caption Michael Ryan set his former home in South View, Hungerford, alight during the shootings
The Reverend Andrew Sawyer moved to Hungerford in 1990, while memories were still raw.
He said: "There'll be prayers during the Sunday service and we'll mark it in the same way we do every year. There's a small memorial by the vestry inside the church and fresh flowers will be placed in a vase beneath it.
"The town has moved on dramatically in terms of population and character in 25 years. What Michael Ryan did that day is only a small part of Hungerford's history, it doesn't define it.
"It's understandable when people don't want to talk about it. Within the town, there's a reticence, we don't want to be labelled forever because of what Michael Ryan did.
"But of course, it was the first place where one of these terrible tragedies happened."
No warning signs
Ron Tarry was the town's mayor in 1987. In the months and years which followed, he helped play a part in setting up a memorial fund for the victims' relatives which raised in excess of £1m.
Image caption Ron Tarry: "Nobody had any idea it would happen"
Years later, he would also be contacted by families affected by similar shooting sprees, by Thomas Hamilton in Dunblane in 1996 and Derek Bird in Whitehaven, Cumbria, in 2010.
He said: "People from both towns would call me and say 'how did you deal with it all?'
"In Dunblane, it was hard to compare, as Thomas Hamilton went out and deliberately shot at children in a school.
"There were warning signs about him in the run-up to that tragic day, he was known to authorities and was being watched. If all that information had been put together then something or someone could have stopped it.
"With Michael Ryan, nothing like that was feasible. Nobody had any idea it would happen and I think there's absolutely no way anyone could have avoided it."
Following the massacre, the government came under pressure to tighten the law on gun ownership.
The resulting Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 banned a variety of weapons and controls were tightened further after the Dunblane killings.
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i don't know
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Who played scout Flint McCullough in the TV western series “Wagon Train”?
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Wagon Train (TV Series 1957–1965) - IMDb
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Stories of the journeys of a wagon train as it leaves post-Civil War Missouri on its way to California through the plains, deserts and Rocky Mountains. The first treks were led by gruff, ... See full summary »
Stars:
Elizabeth McQueeny is traveling with her girls, heading to a finishing school in the West. When her real purpose becomes known, all the females want her gone but her worth to all shows itself before ...
9.6
Ella Lindstrom loses her husband on the wagon train ride west from Boston. With her seven children she decides to stay the course against the wishes of Major Adams. It gets more complicated when she ...
9.6
Bettina May leads three generations of her family across the plains. Other members of the wagon train as well as some family members become concerned with her over bearing nature and the level of ...
9.4
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Title: Wagon Train (1957–1965)
7.5/10
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Nominated for 7 Primetime Emmys. Another 5 nominations. See more awards »
Photos
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Frontier hero Daniel Boone conducts surveys and expeditions around Boonesborough, running into both friendly and hostile Indians, just before and during the Revolutionary War.
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A Civil War veteran with a sawed-off rifle as a holstered weapon makes a living as a bounty hunter in the Wild West of the 1870s.
Stars: Steve McQueen, Wright King, Olan Soule
The Shiloh Ranch in Wyoming Territory of the 1890s is owned in sequence by Judge Garth, the Grainger brothers, and Col. MacKenzie. It is the setting for a variety of stories, many more ... See full summary »
Stars: Doug McClure, James Drury, Lee J. Cobb
It is the 1870s in Wyoming Territory. Slim Sherman and his 14-year-old brother Andy try to hang on to their ranch after their father is shot by a land grabber. They augment their slight ... See full summary »
Stars: Robert Fuller, John Smith, Spring Byington
Marshal Earp keeps the law, first in Kansas and later in Arizona, using his over-sized pistols and a variety of sidekicks. Most of the saga is based loosely on fact, with historical badguys... See full summary »
Stars: Hugh O'Brian, Jimmy Noel, Ethan Laidlaw
Edit
Storyline
Stories of the journeys of a wagon train as it leaves post-Civil War Missouri on its way to California through the plains, deserts and Rocky Mountains. The first treks were led by gruff, but good-at-heart Major Seth Adams, backed up by his competent frontier scout, Flint McCullough. After Adams and McCullough, the wagon train was led by the avuncular Christopher Hale along with new scouts Duke Shannon and Cooper Smith. Many stories featured the trustworthy assistant wagonmaster Bill Hawks, grizzled old cook Charlie Wooster and a young orphan, Barnaby West. Written by Doug Sederberg <[email protected]>
18 September 1957 (USA) See more »
Also Known As:
Major Adams, Trail Master See more »
Filming Locations:
(252 episodes) (season-1-6 and 8) |
75 min
Black and White (Seasons 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8)| Color (Season 5)
Aspect Ratio:
Did You Know?
Trivia
Robert Horton was born July 29, 1924. His replacement on the show, Robert Fuller, was born July 29, 1933. See more »
Connections
(Buffalo, New York) – See all my reviews
As a lad way back in the day I was one big fan of this TV series. Even at that age I appreciated all the famous guest stars this series seemed to attract.
Take a look at the film credits of Ward Bond. You can hardly find a player, male or female, who at one point did not work with Ward Bond. All the more remarkable when you consider his rightwing politics and championing of the blacklist. The man was hated in some circles, but apparently no one denied his talent.
It was a simple concept, Ward Bond as Major Seth Adams and his team led a group of hardy pioneers across the plains and mountains to California post Civil War. EAch episode focused on those traveling in a particular wagon or someone they met on the way who was usually a name guest star.
Wagon Train was enormously popular. When Ward Bond died in November of 1960 it was national news. It was quite a month, his death and that of Clark Gable almost put the election of a new president named Kennedy out of the headlines.
Bond's death also allowed Wagon Train to pioneer what Law and Order later perfected, the revolving change of regulars. Only Frank McGrath and Terry Wilson stayed with the show for the entire run.
Frank McGrath and Terry Wilson were a pair of stunt men who worked a whole lot for John Ford and though they had done some roles with dialog in front of the camera, Wagon Train made their faces familiar to the public. McGrath was funny little guy as cook Charlie Wooster who must have kept them all amused because the regulars were forever complaining about his lousy cooking.
Wilson played Bill Hawks and comments have been made about the horrible continuity Wagon Train had. It sure did and the most glaring example was that when the show first started, Hawks had a wife named Emily in that first season. She was not only dropped. but later on Hawks referred to himself as a bachelor. Couldn't do that today.
John McIntire replaced Bond and was more than adequate as the father figure wagonmaster. There was a good episode that introduced McIntire as a temporary and sadistic wagonmaster played by Lee Marvin takes over and at the same time, the train picks up McIntire who's just seen his family massacred by Indians. McIntire is a former wagonmaster and he and Marvin have a confrontation.
Robert Horton was scout Flint McCullough and several episodes featured him in the lead and they took him to the places he was scouting with guest stars there for him to interact with. Supposedly political differences were pretty rife between him and Bond. He quit as he was planning to do anyway as I remember even after Bond died. Bad career move though, he never got anything as good as Flint McCullough again.
After that a host of new regulars came on the show, Robert Fuller, Denny Miller, and Michael Burns. The train came to an end in 1965. I was sorry to see it end.
Hallmark channel runs Wagon Train sometimes, here's hoping they start them again.
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Robert Horton
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Which type of deer is named after a French missionary?
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Flint
Flint McCullough
Robert Horton�s role as the intrepid scout, Flint McCullough, on �Wagon Train� is probably his most well remembered, and loved, role. That he made this character so real for us is a tribute to his ability, determination and thoroughness as an actor. One of the first things Mr. Horton did upon getting the role was to drive across the country from Missouri to California, to follow as closely as was possible the actual route taken by the pioneers on the wagon trains. He also wrote a �biography� for Flint, to keep the character consistent for all the various script writers and directors, and he has been kind enough to share that biography with us. The following background for �Flint,� was in Mr. Horton�s own words, �Based on the 'Jean LeBec Story,' and what I have said, or has been said about me so far in the series. It is historically accurate, and, if now and then improbable, still within the range of possibility.�
Flint McCullough Biography
By Robert Horton
Flint was born in 1839 in Virginia, the son of a middle class family. His mother was a native of Virginia, his father an immigrant from Scotland who earned his living as a teacher at Virginia�s College of William and Mary.
By selecting the teaching profession as his father�s occupation, and by choosing Virginia as his mother�s home, I feel that both a certain grace in his everyday living habits can (easily) be explained, as the old South was certainly the home of graciousness in early America, and also his early contact with education would not be too difficult to understand.
In 1850 his family moved from Virginia and headed west for Salt Lake City. I chose this year, as this was the year the University of Utah was founded. This would give a logical reason for the move from the father�s standpoint economically, and if you chose to have him interested or converted to the Mormon faith you would only double the motivation. This would also give young �Flint,� now eleven, his first contact with the problems of crossing the plains, acquaint him with the Oregon Trail as far as the South Pass, and then through the pass to Fort Bridger, and on to Salt Lake. As you know, this route was the route of the Donner Party, the Mormons, and a great majority of those pushing on to California.
While at Fort Bridger, where the wagon trains were accustomed to stopping for repairs and supplies, �Flint� meets Jim Bridger. By 1850 Bridger was already a legend and had been spoken of most generously in Fremont�s book, published in 1842, �Reports on Expeditions Exploring the Rocky Mountains.� It stands to reason that a person who could read and who planned to make the trek west would certainly have read this book sometime within the eight years after it was published, especially in an academic environment. Therefore, Flint knows about Bridger, and can have a kind of hero worship for the scout, and Bridger, who took up the study of Shakespeare when he was in his later years, could be flattered and more than casually interested in a young boy who could read, and had read about him. This friendship can be developed in imagination, as Bridger often went through Salt Lake City.
In the winter of 1852 the Mormons had a particularly bad cold season, and during this winter, in my story, I choose to have Flint�s father pass away with pneumonia. This I feel would aid in Flint�s maturation, as now he, in essence, would be the head of the family. This would also serve in motivating an even closer relationship between him and Jim Bridger, the later becoming a kind of father. This relationship now opens up and explains Flint�s understanding of Indians. The Mormon people were on friendly terms with the Ute tribe, and this tribe spoke a dialect of the Siouan language, one of the great linguistic families of the North American Indians, engulfing nearly all the tribes who lived between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. Add to this the fact that Bridger had two wives, both squaws, picturesquely named, Blast Your Hide, a Cheyenne, and Dang Your Eyes, an Arapahoe, and you further explain Flint�s understanding and acceptance of Indians and their customs, and as he was Jim Bridger�s friend, the Indians accepted him. Bridger was celebrated across the frontier as a scout, trapper, hunter, and fur trader, and by linking Flint�s life with his, from 1850 through 1857, the how in my characterization of Flint can be gradually explained.
To continue, in 1855 Bridger returned East, and ultimately was hired as a scout by General Albert Sydney Johnston. In my story Flint goes with him, crosses the plains for the second time, and with the advent of the Civil War why shouldn�t Flint cast his lot with the South. After all, his mother was from Virginia.
At the end of the Civil War, with the South in ruin, Flint returns to the thing he knows best: the frontier. The last I heard of him, he was scouting for Major Seth Adams.
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i don't know
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In mythology, which female gave Theseus a ball of thread to guide him out of the labyrinth?
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Theseus Adventures
Theseus Adventures
See More Theseus Adventures Pictures >
Once, there was a young boy named Theseus . Nobody knew who his father was, for both King Aegeus of Athens and Poseidon had been fond of his mother Aethra . Right before Theseus was born, Aegeus said to Aethra , "If we shall have a son, then when he becomes of age, tell him to lift this rock and take my sword and sandals." Aegeus then hid both his sword and his sandals under a large boulder and set sail for Athens .
This happened in a small town called Troezen , where Theseus grew into a strong, young man. When Aethra thought it was time, she took Theseus to the large boulder and told him to lift it. Theseus wrapped his mighty arms around the boulder and lifted it with no difficulty at all. Then, he threw the boulder into a nearby forest. Aethra then told him to take the sword and sandals and go to Athens .
Theseus Journeys to Athens
Aethra and her father begged Theseus to go to Athens by sea, for horrible robbers and bandits inhabited the road, but Theseus was bold and went overland. After a few miles, he met a large man with a shiny club. "I am Periphetes, the cudgel man, and I'm going to bash your head with this club," he said. "That's a mighty fine club you have there," replied Theseus .
"Pure brass."
"It's just wood wrapped in brass."
"Here, look at it to make sure."
Periphetes handed the club to Theseus . Theseus hit Periphetes on the side of the head with it. "Not bad," thought Theseus , "not bad at all. I think I'll keep this."
Theseus continued on his journey. Not much further, he saw a giant man with a battle axe, standing on the side of the road. "I am Sciron and these are my cliffs. To pass you must wash my feet as a toll!" the man said. "What would happen if I didn't?" replied Theseus . "I will chop off your head with this axe, and don't think that puny little twig you're carrying will save you, you're absolutely...WRONG!!!!" Sciron yelled. So, Theseus sat down and started to wash Sciron's feet. Theseus looked over the side of the cliff, and saw a monstrous turtle at the bottom. That's when her realised that Sciron was the infamous giant that threw people off the cliff for his man-eating turtle. When he took a grasp of Sciron's foot, Theseus jerked aside and hurled Sciron off the cliff.
Theseus walked further ahead when he saw a man that looked remarkably like Sciron. The man said, "Could you do me a favor young man? Hold this pine tree down for me." The man's name was Sinis, the pine-bender. Sinis bent a pine tree down and waited for Theseus to hold the tree down with him. Then, Sinis let go, expecting Theseus to be catapulted in the air; however, Theseus held it down. Sinis stooped down to get a better look at the tree, thinking that it had been broken, when Theseus let go of the tree, hitting Sinis in the chin and knocking him unconscious. Theseus then tied Sinis' legs to one bent pine tree, his arms to another. Then, Theseus let go, the trees ripping Sinis in half; vultures screamed with delight.
Theseus went on his way again. After a few miles, it got dark. Theseus saw a large house up ahead of him. He decided to ask the owner for a bed for the night, so he walked up to the door and knocked. A man came to the door and said, "Welcome young man. Come in, you look tired. My name is Procrustes. I have a magic bed for you to stay the night on. It is exactly six feet long, but can fit anyone, be they short or tall." Theseus had been warned about a man named Procrustes. His so called "magic" bed did fit anyone, but in an unpleasant way. If a person was too short, Procrustes would chain their arms and legs and stretch them. If they were too tall, he would chop off their legs until they were just right. Procrustes led Theseus into the room where the bed was. Theseus pushed Procrustes onto the bed and chopped off his legs; and just so Procrustes wouldn't feel any pain, he sliced his head off too.
Theseus Recognized
The next morning Theseus reached Athens . It was the largest city he had ever seen. He went to the palace where Aegeus lived. Aegeus had married Medea , who (being a sorceress) had him under her power. With her powers, Medea recognized Theseus and knew that he would try to get rid of her. So she told Aegeus that Theseus had come to kill him and that she would give Theseus poisoned wine. Aegeus , unaware that Theseus was his son, agreed. He invited Theseus to a banquet; however, when Theseus was just about to drink his wine, Aegeus recognized the sword and threw the wine cup to the floor. Theseus and Aegeus were filled with happiness. Medea left in a chariot drawn by dragons.
Theseus Journeys to Minos
Theseus and Aegeus were happy for a long time, but when the time of the spring equinox came, all Athenians were in desperation, as a ship with black sail approached Athens . Theseus begged his father to tell him why the Athenians were sad, but Aegeus said nothing.
Theseus went down to the harbor and asked the captain of the black-sailed ship what was happening. The captain told him about how Androgeus, the eldest son of King Minos of Crete , had accidentally been killed in Athens . Minos was very angry. He attacked Athens and demanded that the Athenians pay a yearly tribute of seven young man and seven young women to be fed to the Minotaur . The Minotaur was a monster, half man and half bull, residing in the Labyrinth, a large maze under King Minos ' palace.
Theseus went back to Aegeus and said, "I will go to Crete as one of the victims and I will slay the Minotaur!" "No, my son," said Aegeus , "you mustn't go. You are my only son. The only heir to the throne." "I must go, father. I must prove that I am a hero ." said Theseus . In the end, Aegeus let Theseus go, but made him promise that if he returned back to Athens alive, he should change the black sails to white ones. So, Theseus volunteered to go as one of the fourteen tributes.
When Theseus and his companions landed at Crete , Minos was there to welcome them. He asked each of them who they were. When he asked Theseus , he said, "I am Theseus , prince of Athens , son of Poseidon!" "If you were the prince of Athens ," Minos said, "wouldn't old Aegeus be your father? To prove you are the son of Poseidon , fetch my ring," he said, throwing it into the sea. Praying to Poseidon , Theseus dived into the water. He saw the nymph Thetis , who gave him the ring and an old crown. Theseus went back to shore holding the ring and the crown; Minos laughed.
That night Theseus was visited by Minos ' daughter Ariadne . She said to him, "Theseus, I want to help you kill the Minotaur , but promise me to take me with you to Athens afterwards, and make me your queen." Theseus agreed and Ariadne gave Theseus a ball of silk thread, telling him to tie it to the entrance of the Labyrinth, unrolling it as he moved through the tunnels. The string would lead him back to the entrance.
The following day, Theseus and his companions were forced into the Labyrinth. Theseus tied the string onto a rock and told everyone to follow him. He led them towards the center of the Labyrinth where the Minotaur was. When they got there, they saw the beast sleeping. Theseus jumped on it and ripped off one of its horns. Theseus started poking with the horn at the Minotaur , who was furious. Then, Theseus ran to a safe distance and threw the horn like a javelin. The horn ripped into the monsters neck and was stuck there. The Minotaur , enraged, charged at Theseus , but fell dead before reaching him. Everyone cheered and Theseus became a hero! They followed the thread back to the entrance of the Labyrinth.
Theseus , Ariadne , and the rest of the tributes boarded the black-sailed ship and set sail for Athens . One night, the god Dionysus came to Theseus and said, "You mustn't marry Princess Ariadne , for I have chosen her as my own bride. Leave her on the island of Naxos." Theseus did as the god told him, but he was so sad that he forgot to change the sails. As the ship approached Athens , Aegeus sat on a cliff watching and waiting for Theseus to come; when he saw the black sails, he jumped into the sea. As a result, that fatal stretch of water was named after him and became the Aegean.
Theseus Adventures Is also called Adventures of Theseus, The Adventures of Theseus, Theseus' Adventures.
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Ariadne
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Which is the only state of the USA to share a land border with Maine?
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Ariadne - about the name Ariadne
About Ariadne Designs
Who was Ariadne?
Many clients ask us about our name so this page tells you something about Ariadne and why we chose the name
We chose the name Ariadne because she is synonymous with webs and weaving.
Ariadne herself was a Greek princess from mythology.
Ariadne (Greek Αριάδνη), in Greek mythology (Latin Arianna), was daughter of King Minos of Crete and his queen, Pasiphaë, daughter of Helios, the Sun-titan. She aided Theseus in overcoming the Minotaur and escaping from the labyrinth using a ball of red fleece thread to guide him. According to legend Theseus abandoned Ariadne on the Island of Naxos. There is a famous painting by Titian in which the Greek god Bacchus falls in love with Ariadne (he raises her into heaven and turns her into a constellation).
The figure of Ariadne originates from the Greek Island of Crete. The story of Ariadne and Theseus may symbolically represent the overthrow of the Minoan empire by Greece. The Minoans had a Goddess based culture and it could be that Ariadne is a representation of a Minoan Goddess. In Minoan culture acrobats leapt over bulls during major festivities, it is possible that the Minotaur is derived from the Minoan bulls. Sir Arthur Evans suggested that the labyrinth was in fact the royal palace of Knosos in Crete which he excavated. Knosos had over 1300 rooms and so was indeed like a labyrinth.
The name Ariadne means "most holy", composed of the Cretan Greek αρι (ari) "most" and αδνος (adnos) "holy" or "pure". The name certainly suggests a possible link between Ariadne and the Minoan Goddess. Some have suggested that Ariadne was the Minoan snake Goddess .
Other uses of the name Ariadne
In mythology Ariadne was the bride of the god Dionysus.
There is a " Saint Ariadne " and Ariadne is a female first name more common in Europe.
These days you find the name Ariadne all over the web - but Ariadne Designs Ltd was one of the first companies to use the name in the context of the world wide web. We were formed originally in 1996 and have been developing innovative websites and spreading the word ever since.
We are a company dedicated to improving the web through well designed websites. Just as Ariadne helped Thesius escape the labyrinth so we can help you to get through the maze of the World Wide Web.
You can find out more about Ariadne from the following sources:
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i don't know
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How are the lovers Vrechen and Sali described in the title of a 1906 opera by Frederick Delius?
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Full text of "Frederick Delius"
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LIBRARY OF WELLESLEY COLLEGE PURCHASED FROM Parents Library Fund FREDERICK DELIUS Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from Boston Library Consortium IVIember Libraries http://www.archive.org/details/frederickdeliusOOwarl J k H r -A kfi'FK > ^'\, FREDERICK DELIUS AT SEVENTY From the brush drawing by Edmond Kapp In the collection of Mr. Felix Aprahamian FREDERICK DELIUS by PETER WARLOCK (Philip Heseltine) REPRINTED WITH ADDITIONS ANNOTATIONS AND COMMENTS BY HUBERT FOSS New York OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1952 First published 1923 Revised edition 1952 This book is copyright under the Berne Con- vention. No portion of it may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Inquiries should be addressed to the publisher. //Z /9SX Printed in Great Britain by THE BRISTOL TYPESETTING CO., BRISTOL, for OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, INC., 114 Fifth Avenue, New York 11, N.Y. CONTENTS Preliminary Note 7 Introduction 9 FREDERICK DELius by Peter Warlock 27 I Delius' Life 29 2 His Operas 74 3 His Choral and Orchestral Works 99 4 His Music Viewed as a Whole 120 Additions, Annotations, and Comments 137 Postscript 191 Appendix : A List of Frederick Delius' Compositions 196 Index 217 PRELIMINARY NOTE '"T'HE text of the main pages of this volume have been -■- reset (on pp. 29-136) from a copy of the original book, Frederick Delius by Philip Heseltine, as printed by the Mayflower Press, Plymouth, for John Lane the Bodley Head, Ltd., and published by the latter firm in 1923. The reprint is, so far, exact; no alteration or editing has been done, save the correction of an occasional misprint in the original text, the minor adjustment of commas to suit the present house-style of the publishers, and the spelling of the possessive case of the composer's name in the form ' Delius',' not ' Delius's.' Pagination is of course changed, but the run- ning headlines have been retained. It was judged best to omit the preface, which was general and not special in its intention, and in style better suited to 1922 than 1952. Heseltine's own list of the composer's works has been used with additions and alterations explained on p. 187. Even his own full and pleasant index has been preserved as far as possible, with the page-numbers suitably changed and additions in a similar style made to refer to the new pages. Towards the preparation of this book many people have given me valuable and willing aid. My gratitude is first of all due to Mr. Roger Quilter, Mr. Charles Kennedy Scott, and Mr. Percy Aldridge Grainger for the rich personal reminiscences they have contributed on pages 155-7, ^57" 170, and 170-180 respectively. I offer them my sincere thanks in the sure knowledge that in so doing I write on behalf of all their readers. Next, I would wish to thank the 7 8 PRE LIMINARY NOTE composer's sister, Mrs. Glare Delius Black, and Mr. Felix Aprahamian for valuable help and guidance; but I should add that all responsibility for facts and opinion found in my pages rests solely upon me. To Mr. Edmond Kapp I am indebted for his splendid autolithograph of 1932, re- produced as the frontispiece; also to Mr. James McKay Martin for his criticisms and encouragement. Finally, Miss Margaret Pace and Miss Patricia Flanders have read through my proofs for me and in other ways helped me, and my thanks are offered to them. H. F. INTRODU CTIO N by Hubert Foss AFTER careful and loving consideration, it has been decided to reprint, in its pristine state, Philip Heseltine's study of Frederick Delius. I think it is a wise and proper decision, and I have attempted" to amplify what is patently an incomplete record of the composer's life and works — was it not published eleven years before his death? The argu- ments in favour and against this (almost) holograph reprint are rehearsed below, for the reason that the arguments themselves throw a light on the biographer, another on the public life of Delius — a great English composer — in relation to our national ways of music-making, another on the posi- tion that Delius, as an historic figure, occupies at the moment. In a separate chapter, I have attempted to com- ment here and there on Heseltine's text, mainly with a view to adding to it, and to append some notes referring to later sources and ideas — those of others and my own. Out of all this compounded book will emerge, I deeply hope, some sense of that curiously complicated, yet oddly simple character, Frederick Delius, To those who merely know the sounds, bathe in the beautiful warm, sunlit sea of harmony in this music which Ritter said was to Debussy as Wagner was to Weber — to those people it may come as a surprise to discover a character of immense virility and even obstinacy. ' Delius' music is so tender,' said Norman O'Neill. The man Delius was not tender but purposeful and pro- jective. The legend that has grown out of his paralysed 9 1* 10 FREDERICK DELIUS blindness and the *^ continuelle pdmoison de delicats jrotte- merits disaccord' is entirely at variance with the trapper of dreams himself. He was a trained poacher in the wilds of his own soul, and he set his nets with the usual poacher's disregard of others' convenience. But he sought and caught his own thoughts. The arguments in favour of an entire and unaltered re- print of Heseltine-Warlock are easy to marshal. The book itself it a work of art, a charming and penetrating study of a musical poet's mind. For itself alone, as a piece of English prose, it is worth reading and re-reading. Cecil Gray^ des- cribes it as ' a thoroughly sound, and sometimes exceedingly brilliant piece of work, both as biography and as criticism . . . There are sections of the book which are among the finest things in English musical criticism, alike for the soundness of aesthetic judgment and eloquence and grace of style.' Though Heseltine was 28 when he wrote the book and 29 when it was published, there hangs about it a deli- cious scent of youth and enthusiasm. ' Nimble and light of limb,' the prose seems to dance with an informed enthu- siasm, as of a schooled ballerina helping kindly in a beginners' company. And critically, Heseltine was a beginner in the Delius cause. Articles there had been, but no book; so sesthetically aware a writing was this, so sensi- tively alive not only to Delius' music but to other move- ments of artistic expression, that it holds an historic place both in Delius' career as a composer and in our musical history. Above all, this reprinted book is full of Delius- — of his words, his views, his influence, his musical intentions and achievements. What matter if, at times, the praise of the master is a little high-pitched in its consistent key? Is it not easier to blame entertainingly than to praise convinc- "- Peter Warlock: Cape, 1934. INTRODUCTION 11 ingly? The heckler, not the seconder of the motion, is the man who catches the reporter's ear. In the early 1920's, an extraordinary sympathy existed between the composer and the critic-biographer; at times it partook of the sentimen- tality of calf-love, but was none the less genuine for that. Heseltine's book has a natural beauty of its own, as Delius' music has. It tells us many things that can be found in other places only if they have been rooted up, not always kindly, from their first soil of blooming and replanted by another hand. There is no comparable book on Delius; the later books are additional, but they are not equal works of art. Heseltine stands firm. The arguments on the opposing side are less cogent and less artistic, but may be discussed as being both interesting and informative and not always disadvantageous. The strongest of them is the self-evident fact of incompleteness. Apart from Delius' own contributions, it contains no per- sonal memories earlier than 19 10, and the book closes its narrative eleven years before the subject's death. More, in this very personal book, the author has done his utmost to keep his attitude to the composer impersonal; thus he dis- closes no letters and gives but the vaguest impressions of this 20 years' friendship. Many of the Delius-Heseltine letters have been revealed in print. Heseltine himself, accu- rate in so many ways, was careless over his own possessions; his nomadic instincts and swift mind made him a poor hoarder of treasures; some of Delius' own letters may be lost, but Heseltine's were preserved and form a most valu- able source of information (even if in or alio obliqua) about Delius' personality, apart from the light they throw on Heseltine and musical conditions in England in the period after the First World War. The extant letters can be read in extenso in Cecil Gray's Peter Warlock. The biographies and reminiscences of the English musi- cians of the 1900-20 period contain curiously little refer- 12 FREDERICKDELIUS ence to Delius. He remained outside the Royal College, Royal Academy ' movements/ and those in them left his music as aloof as the composer's life abroad. Not a refer- ence in the index is to be found in the lives and memoirs of Parry, Stanford, Mackenzie, not one in Fuller Maitland's A Doorkeeper of Music or Graves' Post-Victorian Music. There are mentions in Basil Maine's Elgar, mostly for the purpose of comparison. Some charming memories are pre- sented to us by Derek Hudson in his life of Norman O'Neill (Quality Press, 1945); some interesting but less charming memories and comments in Cecil Gray's Musical Chairs. The composer's personal friends have written Httle about him, no doubt for two reasons — the personal quality of their friendship, and their knowledge of Delius' distaste for newspaper or other non-critical exposure. The composer's sister, Mrs. Clare Delius Black, has given us a valuable personal and family record in Frederick Delius — Memories of my Brother — by Clare Delius (Ivor Nicholson and Watson, 1935), and a vivid account of the last years of crippledom and blindness has been written by Eric Fenby in his Delius as I knew him (Bell, 1936). Sir Thomas Beecham's A Mingled Chime (Hutchinson 1934) also contains much information, but only up to 1923. These are scattered sources, and in present times it is not at all certain that the books from which their words flow remain actively in print. The seeker after the elusive personality of the great English composer will ha^^e to assemble many fragments into an intelligible pattern of mosaic design, and likely involve himself in library research. Professor Arthur Hutchings, in his Delius (Macmillan, 1948), has essayed a conflatus of biographical facts and fancies derived from some of the sources mentioned above, but adds little to our knowledge, while much that is essential to the true picture of this remarkable figure is omitted or blurred. To this area, then, extend the available sources of in- INTRODUCTION 13 formation — material separated, unconnected, elusive, in its first form of expression protected by copyright for many years to come. A legitimate and not surprising wonder arises in the mind whether this moment is a suitable — a possible — one for a definitive life of Frederick Delius. Can any moment in the future, indeed, ever be suitable ? An official biography would palpably lose ' the first fine careless rap- ture ' of Heseltine's book, would reduce sister Clare's con- vincing words to bare historical skeletons and amanuensis Fenby's almost passionate account of his life at Grez to bald statistics. Photographic, even anatomical in its mental analysis, such a biography may he, unless perhaps the whole story were romanticized. Best plan of all (it would seem), let Delius' own letters and relics light up the text and enliven the plain tale. Even here, there are difficulties. It is a matter of common knowledge that the Delius Trust possesses in its safes a quantity of Deliana (if I may venture the word), mostly unknown to us today and seem- ingly inaccessible to the enquiring scholar. That long-suffer- ing and long-sighted woman, Jelka Rosen, who married and stood by and later looked after Delius, gathered in her store a large number of letters and writings that are now in the possession of the Delius Trust. To these docu- ments it would seem Sir Thomas Beecham is the only per- son who has free access. The matter is touched on in a manner by Cecil Gray in his 'Musical Chairs. After Delius' death in 1934, Gray was asked by Jelka Delius to consider the project of writing the ' official life ' — a task he hesitated to undertake. Beecham then announced that he himself would be the official biographer; that office, in 1950, he retains, with sole prescript on the relevant papers. But so far, he has not written the life. Not one word from his pen has been printed for us to read. And, it is not unkind to ask, will his book-of-the-future be a definitive biography? It is not Vv^rong, I fancy, to expect of a conductor that he 14 FREDERICK DELIUS will conduct, and of a writer that he will write; that each should understand his own medium technically is a sine qua lion. How much of Delius and how much of Beecham will be dispensed to make up this new biographical com- pound, no one can guess, and, until the Delius Trust's docu- mentary museum is laid open to the eyes of scholars and musicians, no one will be able to find out. The Beecham book may be an ipse dixit; but the identity of the ipse will need careful defining. Nothing, it is apparent, so far raises more than a flimsy hurdle to the re-issue of Heseltine's own book. There re- mains to be discussed only the subtle question of that author's own views on his subject. Philip Heseltine changed his views on Delius' music. The fact is indisputable. Hutchings describes his anti-Delius phase, and puts it down partly to Heseltine's breadth of interest in expressive music of every kind, a quality Delius conspicuously lacked; in this matter there arose a funda- mental conflict of mind and temperament between the two men. Hutchings writes, Heseltine ' grew out of his first intoxi- cation and recognized the value of other vastly different means of expression.' Fenby records a visit of Heseltine's to Grez around 1928 when in conversation the latter ex- pressed the opinion that ' out of Delius' enormous output, three of the major works only would live — Sea-Drift, A Village Romeo and Juliet, and Appalachian Otherwise, whenever there was an opening to attack the music he had once championed, he thrust his critical rapier in, hilt and all.' Gray in his Warlock biography makes a similar record. I myself heard on many occasions Heseltine denigrate both Delius and his music. We know that he refused the appeal to go out and give secretarial help to the crippled composer. But like quantities of other facts, this one is neither plain nor simple. Heseltine was an extremely changeable man. In INTRODUCTION 15 considering the relationship between the composer and the critic, we find ourselves confronted with the oddest dual dichotomy; and neither in art nor in psychology do two and two add up invariably to four. The man Delius was totally unlike his music, the one displaying a most purposeful character, the other the vivid nebulosity of dreams. So with Heseltine. The tender, imaginative, poetical youth became hardened — ^it was only to be, expected — in the rough and tumble of the musical world. The hardening process however was a strange one, for Heseltine deliberately cultivated a kind of carapace as a protection again ' the slings and arrows.' He created out of one side of his nature a second personality, that other man ' Peter Warlock,' who eventually absorbed and well- nigh strangled the sensitive visionary who was Heseltine. The violence of Warlock's reaction against everything beloved by Heseltine is a main motif in Cecil Gray's bio- graphy. It manifested itself not only against Delius, but against many of his old friends, with whom (it is well known) he was liable to quarrel irreparably. The Warlock alter ego was a harsh and penetrating critic, without any weaknesses of personal sympathy — suspicious of them, in fact. Now, it is arguable that under the staring light of the dissecting table, no music is more easy to pick to pieces of unmeaning shape than Delius', for the music is first and last a living emotional expression; stifle the breathing vitality, and the merest fool could become a merely analy- tical critic. Cecil Gray, a sympathetic admirer of Delius' music, goes so far (in Musiccd Chairs) as to say that ' nothing is a flawless masterpiece,' and inclines to the view that the composer's work after his first great period showed a tendency to tail off in accomplishment. Warlock's cold objectivity of criticism can be explained partly by the reaction of Warlock against Heseltine, partly 16 FREDERICK DELI us by the throwing off, with unnecessary violence, of the influ- ence Delius had over his youthful years. But, I repeat, Warlock was a changeable man. We have no idea, can only surmise, what would have happened had ' Warlock ' not finally submerged ' Heseltine ' and brought both to an un- timely death in 1930. Cecil Gray gives us a strong and hopeful lead here. After the middle period of ' exaggera- ting its defects and minimizing its virtues out of all propor- tion to actuality,' ' the triumphant apotheosis ' (writes Gray) ' of the art which had meant so much to him in his youth, and for which he had worked so hard, brought about a strong reaction towards it once more.' Heseltine ' threw himself heart and soul into the organization of the [1929 Delius] festival, the success of which must un- doubtedly in large part be ascribed to his untiring efforts and enthusiasm. Similarly, the mystical sentiment and introspective melancholy of these last songs — as they were to prove to be — and the romantic idealism of the letters, were precisely those qualities against which Peter Warlock was wont to inveigh most furiously. How true it is that on revient toujours a son premier amour, both in art and in life ; how often we find it happening ! So often, indeed, that one is tempted to regard it as a natural and inevitable coda, a presage of the impending end.' Both the influence which Delius wielded over ' Hesel- tine ' and the reaction of ' Warlock ' against it are impor- tant in the study of the composer's life and music. The story of their friendship is one of grave and loving romance, between the older man, experienced in musical dreams, and the lad, seeking some dreams in which he might at once believe, in his striving towards the light. A full account with a large number of letters is given by Cecil Gray in his Feier Warlock, which is equally illuminating of the com- poser and his young friend. No Delius-lover can afford to miss it. True, Delius (probably Mrs. Delius) preserved more INTRODUCTION 17 letters by Heseltine than Heseltine those by Delius. But even if those letters could be reprinted here in full they give but incomplete testimony of Delius' mind and character; nor is the whole episode possible to epitomize; for it is only the interplay of the two minds, divided in age by 30 years, that gives the true psychologcial picture. The first contact was purely musical. Heseltine, though (we are assured) no infant prodigy while at Eton, was un- doubtedly aesthetically impressionable at the age of 16 (19 10). Then it was that he heard a performance of the unaccompanied part-song On Craig Dhu, the beauty of which opened a new continent of musical possibilities for him. One readily sympathizes. I think I was 19 years of age, and with some 1 2 and more years of musical study as background, when I first heard Delius' music — Brigg Fair conducted by Sir Henry Wood; the impression it instantly branded on me is quite indelible. It was soon after Hesel- tine had determined to gather all available scores of this new-found wonder-music that he visited the Fontainebleau neighbourhood to stay with his uncle, the painter Joseph Heseltine, who was well acquainted with the composer in person. Again, memory brings sympathy; I can remember yet the first time, after being nurtured on a musical fare of the dead masters, that I met a live composer, who started with a blank ruled sheet and created music for me to sing and play, apparently out of nothing. The juncture of these two meetings, musical and corporeal, had an immense effect on the boy's mind, so that in 1914 we find him writing to his late music-master, Colin Taylor, ' I spend most of my time saturating myself with Delius' music. I am sure there is no music more beautiful in all the world; it haunts me day and night— it is always with me and seems, by its con- tinual presence, to intensify the beauty of everything else for me.' The friendship was impressive ; but it must be added that 18 FREDERICK DELI us Delius was obsessive. Certain circumstances added to the impressiveness. Having no offspring himself, Delius had a curious interest in the younger people, particularly those who showed a sensitive understanding of his music. Nor- man O'Neill has recorded (Derek Hudson's biography of him) Delius' interest in his two successive babies and even of his wish to stand sponsor to them — a point that stands at the antipodes from the composer's normal view of the Christian religion and its practices. In such of his letters as we have been so far allowed to see, we find a curious old-world courtesy, not only in the Heseltine correspond- ence but in that with Eric Fenby as well. Of courtesy it is much less Than Courage of Heart or Holiness, Yet in my walks it seems to me That the Grace of God is in courtesy. So wrote Hilaire Belloc. Courtesy began to decline with trench-warfare in the first of the world conflicts, and went out altogether with the armoured Blitzkrieg of the second. We must think back, those that have the age to remember, or, if we are younger, read the fiction of the last hundred years. To be treated as even a semi-equal by the great musical master was much, to be encouraged in such kind and calm terms was even more, for the trouble the elder took in his correspondence with the younger is touch- ing to us today, and must have been like a breath from the pure air of heaven itself, scented with nectar and ambrosia, to the imaginative Etonian. There is much, too, of that other side of Delius, that obsessive purposefulness which forced him to live on and to compose music during a long, wasting sickness which would have caused many men to abandon striving after the mind's good things in favour of a gradual, carefully tended death-in-life. Under this sweetness, we can indeed find Delius, the self- centred artist (and let us be clear, here, that it was more INTRODUCTION 19 the visionaiy artist than the musical craftsman who for so long obsessed Heseltine). We can read in Eric Fenby of a similar tale, but I shrink from trying to reflect one rainbow- ray of Grez-sur-Loing as he pictures it in Delius at I knew him : the same courtesy, the same obsessiveness. It was, perhaps, fortunate that Fenby was also a Yorkshireman. No less eclectic composer than Delius ever lived. He derived from nowhere, it would seem. No one sensitive to musical sound since the i8oo's has not at one time or another been affected by Chopin's registration, and Grieg's influence (the older and younger composers were friends) is at times obvious. A. K. Holland has wisely called our composer ' pre-eminently a folklorist,' and in such guise he descends from the distant ages of man's first struggling efforts. Cecil Gray (A Survey of Contemporary Music, Oxford, 1924) makes a similar point. This music could not have been written, one is sure, before Goethe, Berlioz, Keats, Wordsworth, Debussy, and even Wagner, though the same shrewd critic (in Musical Chairs) accounts DeHus along with Borodin and Moussorgsky, Debussy and Ravel, as one who gave release from the Kundry spell of Bayreuth. Yet the sounds of it all came from, apparently, nowhere. Elgar is reported to have said that music was in the air all around one, ready by those who had the magic hands and ears (like Rima with the spider's spin) to gather a gossamer bobbin for weaving into a patterned texture. After the years, we can see and hear that Rima's delicate wood-lore was more innately Delius' possession than Elgar's. No comparison between the composers is desirable or needed here but it may be permitted to add that Elgar's was a mundane world, of libraries and festivals and orchestral players, while Delius' was one of dreams. ' The ideal life for an artist, at any rate for a musician ' (writes Clare Delius), ' should be one of contemplation in the heart of serenity.' For many years Delius experienced this : he hated noise, irrelevancy 20 FREDERICK DELIUS of conversation, external interruptions of very temporary and no significant meaning. Many of us do, but few of us have the hard-headed, selfish determination to secure quiet, even if that were possible. But then, not this writer nor every one of his readers has an offering to place in the world's poor-box equal to that of Delius. For all his retirement in France, the composer was obses- sive in two ways. As a composer, he exhibited an extra- ordinary potency. Most composers were far more positive and active in the laborious task of obtaining performances of their works. Job-getting Delius abhorred; he sought no publicity or admiring success, and only towards the end of his life would he consent to any sort of official recognition. He was out of the coteries of the day; and if his exclusive- ness can be said to have made him cliquey, then he made his own clique, tout seul, self-contained. The music, how- ever nebulous it may appear under sympathetic analysis, had and still has the supreme quality of compulsion. With- out any seeming attempt to do so, it compels the listener's attention and firmly holds it. This priceless power of com- pulsion is exactly what is most lacking in the music of Delius' contemporaries. Parry, Stanford, and Mackenzie. With a hundred other admirable qualities, they could not so compel audiences and musicians to listen that they were able to retain a firm place in the orchestral repertoire, nor even sometimes to win second and third performances. Cecil Gray writes (to quote Musical Chairs once more) that in the 1910-20 period the English Revival 'meant less than nothing to me, apart from the equivocal figure of Delius, who . . . was more a continental than an insular figure.' Equivocal in nationality maybe, but not musically equi- vocal. The garden of Delius has vitality of soil; whence- soever the seeds came, each plant recurs in its season as a new years runs its round. In a herbaceous border — I think of that at New College, Oxford — a visitor may be familiar INTRODUCTION 21 with the name and the growing process, even with the botany, of every plant ; he can never become familiar with its beauty. Each visit, if he hcis clear eyes, reveals a new delight; and for each generation, such a garden will pro- vide a new and lasting series of experiences. The complaint is heard, at times, of luxuriousness, lusciousness, in Delius' music, which would suggest the rank, swift-growing, swift- dying vegetation of jungle swamps. Prehensile in their mag- netic attraction these musical growths mxay be but not like a tropical creeper. The garden is healthy; it re-seeds itself, and its flowers continue to blossom. Of Delius' obsessiveness as "a man, there is ample evi- dence — the life of his devoted wife, Jelka Rosen the painter as she had been, the whole of Eric Fenby's account of the later years as he knew them, are but two sources. Fenby, like Heseltine, was at first swallowed whole in the compo- ser's spider's web. Sir Thom^as Beecham's account of his early relations with Delius give a short but clear picture of both composer and man in this aspect of his qualities. Beecham (A Mingled Chime) writes : ' Delius in his own way was a complete man, carved by nature in a clear and definable piece out of the rough and shapeless stone of her raw material ; a signpost to others on the way of life, a light to those in darkness; and an unfailing reassurance to all who strove to preserve their faith in those two supreme virtues, honesty and independence.' Beecham came so deeply under the composer's spell that he tended, after the original enchantment, to neglect other living English com- posers. Sir Arnold Bax {Farewell my youth, Longman's, 1 943) quotes the conductor as having said after directing a concert of British music during the First World War (' ill- balanced and of unwieldly length,' writes Bax) : ' Well, I think we have successfully paved the way this afternoon for another quarter of a century of German music ! ' In many respects, Beecham confesses he was in hearty disagreement 22 FREDERICK DELIUS with Delius' views — two people recognisable as men could hardly be more unalike. Yet Beecham was obsessed to a strange degree by both composer and man, as we can see from the first Delius Festival he sponsored in 1929, twenty- one years after their first meeting, the second Delius Festi- val of 1946, and the Delius Society Recordings begun in May 1933. In another passage {ibid. pp. 11 1-2) Beecham comments on the difficulty of memorizing the actual notes that the composer wrote — atmosphere, maybe, could be re- called but not the delicate delineation. Is not this, surely, one more example of the man's compelling mind — that, standing outside the taught traditions, not caring for and unstudied by the academic pundits and their pupils, he could still govern our imaginations with indomitable power? Other similar pictures can be envisaged from the various personal accounts mentioned already, and reference will have, no doubt, to be made to them in ensuing pages. They are not all equally pleasant. Underneath Fenby's love and devotion, beneath his loyal reminiscences, lies a picture of a tyrant; resistance to sickness no doubt caused the tyranny, but its roots were in his blood, his ancestry, his Yorkshire upbringing, his determination (so prolonged) to become a composer of the calibre and characteristics he desired. Cecil Gray (Musical Chairs) goes farther than most, calling him ' not a lovable man at the best of times ' ; but there is much in Clare Delius' pages, much in Gray's own Peter Warlock, much in Heseltine's book and the story of his friendship, much indeed in Fenby and Norman O'Neill, to show that Gray's sympathies at the time of his visits to Grez and Delius' at the same period were totally irreconcilable. After commenting on the ' contrast between his art and his per- sonality,' Gray explodes into the description that Delius was ' a violent, bigoted, doctrinaire atheist.' Far be it from me, who did not know the man, to agree with such a down- INTRODUCTION 23 right, damning criticism. Behind the too blinding Kght of its prose, some supporting shadows can be detected. Hesel- tine once described DeHus to me (I cannot after the years quote his word, but see p. 107) as being like a very conven- tional and straight-laced country parson of the old school, only completely inverted. Fenby rails with some vigour against his deliberately anti-Christian attitude. And one can- not help observing from the Warlock correspondence (as well as from Fenby's book) how prone Delius was to give advice to the young — and with what gusto he did it ! In a letter of Jan. II, 1 91 3, the composer wrote to Heseltine : 'You ask me for advice in choosing between the Civil Service^, in which you seem to have no interest whatever, and music, which you love, I will give it to you. I think that the most stupid thing one can do is to spend one's life doing some- thing one hates, or in which one has no interest; in other words it is a wasted life. I do not believe in sacrificing the big things of life to any one or anything . . . children always exaggerate the duty they have to their parents. Parents seldom sacrifice anything at all for their children ... I should advise you to study music . . . Everything depends upon your perseverance. One never knows how far one can go . . . Emerson says in one of his essays . . . something to this purpose, " A man who works with his whole soul at anything whatever will make it a success before he is fifty." and I believe this to be perfectly true. One's talent develops like muscles that you are constantly training. Trust more in hard work than inspiration.' With due alterations in sentiment, this letter is suspi- ciously like an old-fashioned Sunday sermon; it has the true homiletic flavour. In 1 9 1 2 Delius wrote : ' If you want some advice from someone who really likes you and feels real interest in your welfare you can come to me without the slightest restraint. On any subject or question I will ^ How times have changed ! 24 FREDERICKDELIUS tell you what I really think, and I can assure you that very few people can tell one what they really think. When they do they are always invaluable.' The bright light thrown by this kind and generous but observably schoolmasterly offer is increased to a higher psychological penetration by a sentence in the same letter that a delay in reply would mean that ' I am occupied with something very absorbing,' the athletic but obsessional exercise of his faculties in the peace of Grez. If little cause for wonder can be found in Delius and his music or in these preceding words for the absorption of the youth Heseltine into this gigantic but remote swirl of an unharnessed gulf-stream of music, the same pages, and particularly the letters, can give good reason for a violent reaction against it — an attempt to reach shore against the tide under the power of personal swimming. Not one of his teachers — not his first friends — not Delius himself could have reckoned upon the erection of the mask of Peter Warlock. But, in reality, the first dreams lived on under the blazoned (if somewhat historical novel) armour of Elizabethan revelry and bawdry. The raucous mock- adventurous side (that which was Warlock), Delius could never understand. Fenby relates how deeply distasteful to him were Warlock's rowdy friends, though Delius him- self was a great lover of good food, good wine, and con- viviality at his own table. Another influence on Heseltine asks for a moment of investigation. Bernard van Dieren (1884- 1936) was one of the most remarkable men I have met in my life. A fluent linguist, an expert technician in subjects as remote as mediaeval bookbinding and revolver shooting, X-rays and trick-cycling, he combined vast intellectual energy and power with a long continuing and painful debilitation of the body which, having been trained as a doctor in Holland, he only too well understood. Van Dieren wielded INTRODUCTION 25 a potent force on Heseltine and on others of his genera- tion — it is not this study's task to assess its moral, or even its intellectual, value. He had an almost Yogi-like capacity for attaining ' calm peace, and quiet ' ; in this way he could be ranked aside Delius. But whereas Delius' music put emotion foremost and intellect behind, van Dieren's method of composing was almost the opposite. His scores are among the most complex in pattern of our times, for he was a master of contrapuntal device. They do not lack emotion, on the other hand, but they express that emotion in the most distantly intellectual, almost astronomical terms. The new friendship that sprang up between Heseltine and van Dieren had a marked effect on the former. The Delius influence had been mainly harmonic; that of the French-English-Dutchman was melodic and contrapuntal. Heseltine-Warlock had discovered, not merely by studying scores of older and newer masters, a different approach to the art of composing music from that which had obsessed him since the days of his mid-teens. Under this influence, reports Gray (Peter Warlock) ' a sudden complete change took place. He [Warlock] learnt to purify and organize his harmonic texture by means of contrapuntal discipline, and the thick, muddy chords which characterized the early songs gave place to vigorous part-writing.' I have never felt that the influence of van Dieren out- weighed the influence of Delius in the run of Heseltine's life. I have no doubt, in my own mind, that the Warlock legend was partly an unconscious sub-creation of Delius', and that the growth of it was assisted, almost semi-uncon- sciously, by the strange mind of van Dieren. Perusal of Gray's life of the dual man helps to tell one, but (I speak from personal knowledge) even there, frank though that book seems to be, much is omitted. The fact remains with us that Philip Heseltine wrote this book about Frederick Delius in love — a prose-poem 26 FREDERICKDELIUS invaluable, unrepeatable. We may, as an aside, glance at some other indications that linked the aspirant boy and the achieving man into a lasting friendship. First is the untiring diligence with which Heseltine made arrangements and transcriptions of Delius' works. The second is the admi- rable skill and fitness of those arrangements. The third is Heseltine's own string-piece — the Serenade — designed as a tribute in 1923 to Delius on his sixtieth birthday. This short but exquisite work could not have been written by one who did not know and admire the works of Delius : but is that not suitable? It is in toto unlike in the extreme to Delius' music, an individual work by a most personal com- poser, yet, in its very idiom, it pays a high compliment to a beloved friend and an admired master. Introducing these forthcoming pages to the reader (if he has read so far), I suggest that in them we find the true soul of Philip Heseltine, before it was overlaid by the Frankenstein-like Peter Warlock : that it was this beautiful young spirit who sought Delius and whom Delius delighted to try to guide; and that, for these reasons — whatever other book may appear with later, more intimate, even more important information contained between its covers — this study by Heseltine will remain a work of art, one that through its affection and sympathy reveals Delius as no other and later book can. I commend it to the lover of Delius' music, in the hope that he will enjoy it for as many years as I have. FREDERICK DELIUS by Peter Warlock DELIUS' LIFE ' And masculine is found to be Hadria, the Adriatic sea.' IT seems an arbitrary decision, but there is an air of predestined finaHty about it that carries conviction and seems to forbid further inquiry. As an equally mysterious contingency one records the fact that Frederick Delius is a Yorkshireman, bom at Bradford, on January 29th, 1863; and those whose especial hobby it is to theorize about the influence of nationality upon art may exercise their ingenuity upon the strange fact that, of the three men who stand for all that is best in their respective arts in the Eng- land of today, two are Englishmen by naturalization — Jacob Epstein, the sculptor, Joseph Conrad, one of the greatest masters of prose that have ever employed the English language, and the third, Frederick Delius, English by virtue of his father's naturalization. His family history does not support the picturesque and appropriate notion that his name is derived from the traditional home of Apollo. It is simply a Latinized form of Delij — for the family is of Dutch origin — the termination signifying no more than a desire to give a scholastic appearance to a name associated for many generations with spiritual pastors and masters. The Deliuses seem to have been ever a rest- less and adventurous clan, for already in the sixteenth cen- tury we find branches of the family in England (Gualter Delius, a friend and associate of Philip Melanchthon), in Malaga, and in Messina. The direct ancestry of the com- 29 30 FREDERIGKDELIUS poser can be traced back to one Johannes Delius, who was Pastor at Kleinenbremen-bei-Minden from 1604 to 1634. His son, grandson, and great-grandson were all in the Church, and tracing the pedigree through Daniel Conrad Delius (i 697-1 768) who was Biir germeister of Versmold, and Carl Ludwig (i 750-1810) who held the post of super- intendent in the little town of Heepen, we come to the composer's grandfather, Ernst Friendrich Delius (1790- 1831) who ser\^ed under Bliicher in the Napoleonic wars, was wounded at the battle of Ligny, and ended his days as Biir germeister of Bielefeld in the province of Westphalia. He was very musical, as the saying is, and would have become a musician, had circumstances not compelled him to follow the profession of law. His second son, Julius (i 822-1 901), came to England at an early age to join his elder brother Ernst, who was already established in a busi- ness in Manchester. In the course of time, he started a business of his own in Bradford, became a naturalized Englishman in 1850, and in 1856 married Fraulein Kronig of Bielefeld, who was only seventeen years of age at the time of her marriage. The earliest recollections of Frederick, who was their second son, are best given in his own words : ' My father loved music intensely and used to tinker on the piano when he knew he was alone. He was a great concert-goer and he often had chamber music in the house. My mother was not musical at all, but she had great imagination, and was rather fantastically inclined. She was very romantic, and out of the smallest episode would invent a wonderful story, which she then came thoroughly to believe. My brother, Max, and I used to buy " penny- dreadfuls," such as Dick Turpin, Sixte en-string Jack, and Sweeny Todd, the Barber of Fleet Street — ^in this tale the barber's customers used to disappear through a trap-door, and were taken away to be converted into pork-pies ! We used to read these books in bed when we were supposed to DELIUS^LIFE 31 be asleep, and we had a contrivance to turn the gas up or down by means of a string. Once, my mother caught us in the act and confiscated a whole pile of these penny- dreadfuls. A few days later we surprised her, with a very red and excited face, poring over them herself. We Hved in a house called Claremont, Horton Lane, which was, at that time, out of the town and on the edge of the moors, on the road that leads towards Bingley. We children had two ponies and I loved riding over the moors to Ilkley — ^then only a tiny village — where we often spent the summer. Once, my brother Max, who was two- years younger than myself, and I, after reading some extraordinary story, ran away from home so as to have an adventure. I was then about eight years old. We actually got up one morning at four o'clock, having previously laid in a store of necessary provisions, which consisted chiefly of sweets, and made our way on foot across the moors to Ilkley. We arrived there late in the afternoon; it was beginning to rain, and our prospects looked very miserable, when we were suddenly confronted by a friend of the family, who knew us very well and wondered what we were doing there. Our confused answers must have made him suspicious, for he took us to the railway station, telegraphed to our parents, and handed us over to the guard of the Bradford train. ' As a little boy, I used to take sudden and violent dis- likes to people, and developed a strange habit of going to visit quite unknown people, to whom I had taken a fancy. One of my great likes was a sailor-lad who sometimes came to Bradford. He belonged to a big merchant-vessel and I loved to hear him talk about his travels in strange lands and seas. His departure on a fresh voyage always filled me with envious sadness. I cannot remember the first time when I began to play the piano : it must have been very early in my life. I played by ear, and I used to be brought down in a little velvet suit after dinner to play for the company. My 32 FREDERICK DELIUS mother would say : " Now make up something," and then I improvised. When I was six or seven, I began taking violin lessons from Mr. Bauerkeller, of the Halle Orchestra, who came over from Manchester especially to teach me. Later on, I had another teacher, Mr. Haddock from Leeds. My first great musical impression was hearing the posthumous Valse of Chopin which a friend of my father's played for me when I was ten years old. It made a most exrtaordinary impression on me. Until then, I had heard only Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven, and it was as if an entirely new world had been opened up to me. I remember that after hearing it twice I could play the v/hole piece through from memory.' Other musical impressions of the early seventies that are specially recalled are the hearing of Grieg's Humoresken, a performance of the Walkurenritt under Sir Charles Halle, and a performance of Lohengrin at Covent Garden. These predilections are particularly interesting by reason of the fact that there was no dearth of good music in the family circle. Julius Delius would often entertain at his house the artists who came to Bradford to give a public concert; and musical soirees at Claremont were of frequent occurrence. Joachim and Piatti were among the musicians with whom Frederick was thus brought into contact at an early age; and his father's passion for chamber music brought the quartet parties and other players from Manchester, Leeds, and the neighbourhood, to the house at regular intervals. To his son^ however, this surfeit of good things became a little wearisome, and developed in him a distaste for cham- ber music which lasted for many years. Even now, it is evident that while Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven command his respect, his love and enthusiasm are reserved for Chopin, Wagner, and Grieg, the only composers who have percept- ibly influenced the formation of his own style. The young DeHus, after a few years' attendance at the DELIUS^LIFE 33 Bradford Grammar School, was sent to the International College at Spring Grove, Isleworth.^ He spent three years at this institution (1876-9). He confesses to having been neither diligent nor quick at learning. He had no aptitude whatever for mathematics : the only subjects that interested him were geography, which stirred the Reiselust in him, and French and German, of which he had already acquired a fair knowledge in his childhood. He was a keen cricketer, how- ever, and in his last year won the prize bat for the best average during the term. He continued his violin lessons, while at Isleworth, with a Mr. Deichmann and had special permission to join an amateur orchestra, conducted by a Mr. Sommers, which rehearsed at Chiswick once a week. At this time, he was confirmed by the Bishop of London, and he recalls the fact that he was seized with an uncon- trollable fit of laughter just before his turn came to re- ceive the laying-on of hands. It had been decided that Frederick should enter his father's business — which dealt with wool imported from Australia — and on leaving Spring Grove he returned to Bradford and took his place in the office. The work proved most uncongenial to him and the lack of any intellectual or artistic life in Bradford depressed him greatly. After a few months, his father arranged that he should go to Chemnitz, in Saxony, as a volontaire in the big manu- facturing firm of Wilhelm Vogel. The firm derived scant benefit from his services, nor did his knowledge of business methods perceptibly increase. But the free life in the Ger- man town proved delightful after the dull monotony of Bradford. There was a good theatre in Chemnitz where opera was performed as well as drama; and there were ex- cellent orchestral concerts every week. Violin lessons were continued with Hans Sitt, who was later on to become * See Maurice Hewlett, " The Gods in the Schoolhouse " (English Review: December, 191 2.) 2 34 FREDERICKDELIUS Delius' violin-master at the Leipzig Conservatorium, and time was found to visit Dresden, where the young musician was greatly impressed by a performance of Carl Goldmark's Konigin von Saba, and Berlin, where he heard for the first time Die Meistersinger — a far greater revelation. He returned to Bradford in the spring of 1 88 1, but before many weeks had passed he persuaded his father to send him to Sweden on business connected with the firm. So, on June i, he embarked at Hull, on a steamship bound for Gothenburg. This first visit to Scandinavia was a great event in his life, and the affection he developed for these northern countries and their people — heightened by his subsequent friendship with some of their greatest men — has led him to spend some weeks of every year there ever since. After a few days at Gothenburg, he went to Norrkoping, where business was to be transacted, and there he succeeded in getting so many orders for the firm that his father was surprised and de- lighted at the apparent blossoming of his commercial abili- ties. Owing, no doubt, to his youth and to the ingenuous charm of his personality, he was well received wherever he went, and orders poured in for the firm. When he reached Stockholm, he quite abandoned him- self to enjoyment of the lovely surroundings and the gay life of the city ; and what with supper-parties, excursions by land and water, picnics, impromptu concerts in the open air, and above all the entrancingly lovely summer nights, business receded far into the background, and Stockholm seemed like Paradise after dingy Bradford, with its third- rate theatre and sordid amusements. So business was com- pletely forgotten for a while, and an extended tour in Nor- way, ending up at Bergen and in no way connected with the buying and selling of wool, was the cause of consider- able friction with the family, when the truant returned to England in the autumn. But, in consideration of services indubitably rendered at Norrkoping and elsewhere^ he was DELIUS^LIFE 35 forgiven, and a short while afterwards we find him with another agent of the firm at Saint-Etienne, near Lyons. This proved a dull town, with very little going on and no music to be heard. Boredom became quite intolerable and in the following February Delius paid a visit to the Riviera, where he remained for six weeks until recalled to Saint-Etienne by a peremptory telegram from his father. An extraordinary run of luck at Monte Carlo added considerably to his en- joyment of this illicit holiday. Soon afterwards, his father sent him off to Scandinavia on a second business expedition, which, from a commercial point of view, was a most dismal failure, though two months were spent very pleasantly in exploring the many beauties of the two countries. By this time, he had thoroughly made up his mind that business w^as not his vocation. But there remained the problem of convincing his father of the fact, a task which was more difficult than it might have been had not the elder son, Ernest, a born wanderer, already refused to have anything to do with the business and taken himself off to a sheep- ranch in New Zealand. It was not simply a question of wool or music in Frederick's case. Music as a profession was entirely out of the question, to Julius ; despite his apprecia- tion of the musical ability of others, it seemed as absurd for one of his sons to imagine that he could become a musi- cian as to announce his intention of travelling to the moon. To such people — and they constitute a vast majority — music, and every other art, is a pleasurable luxury; it is impossible for them to conceive it as being a necessary con- stituent of life. For them it is a relaxation, a relief from the worries of serious business, essentially a thing of leisure hours. It is impossible to convince them that artistic talent cannot be cultivated to the fullest extent in the spare time that remains after the really important affairs of the day are over. In the autumn of 1882, Fred was sent to Manchester to 36 FREDERICK DELIUS another firm, in the forlorn hope that he might there develop a more serious interest in the work. But Manches- ter, though a more agreeable place than Bradford, did not heighten his taste for a commercial career. A trip to Paris ' on business ' in the following year proved as abortive as the second excursion to Scandinavia — and indeed one is in- clined to marvel at the long endurance of Julius' touching faith in his son's commercial activities. After this, Fred announced that he had definitely finished with the business and there ensued one of those painful family conflicts which are recorded with such monotonous iteration in the bio- graphies of artists. This unpleasant state of affairs persisted throughout the winter. The elder Delius was resolved that his son should remain in the business and no nonsense about it. The son was determined to escape at almost any price from the artistically chilling atmosphere of the north of England — where the condition of music was very different forty years ago from what it is today. If it were out of the question that he should be allowed to devote himself exclu- sively to music, it ought, he reflected, at least to be possible to effect a compromise that would secure him an environ- ment and conditions of life which would not prevent or hinder overmuch the development of his musical abilities. He felt instinctively that, in the right surroundings, his soul would expand like a flower in the sun. Meanwhile, in great dejection of spirit, he spent whole days in the library, poring over maps and books of travel, for his Reiselust had awakened again. There was in particular an old Mappa Mundi which fascinated him, for it seemed still to be full of the glamour associated with the voyages of the first ex- plorers of far-distant countries. The Florida peninsula was always catching his eye; it seemed to be a country where the wild luxuriance of Nature, in one of her most extrava- gant moods, could be enjoyed in solitude without officious interference on the part of human kind. And so, one day, DELIUS^LIFE 37 after a more than usually violent scene with his father, it dawned upon him that orange-growing in Florida was his true vocation. His father, though he did not immediately acquiesce in this new proposition^ was no doubt secretly relieved to find that the horrid notion of becoming a musi- cian had been, for the time at any rate, abandoned; and after what seemed an interminable deal of discussion, hesi- tation, and delay, it was finally settled that Fred should emigrate to Florida as an orange-planter. Investigations were made, letters of introduction procured, and in March, 1884, he left Liverpool on the Cun-arder Gallia for New York, proceeding thence by steamer down the coast to Fernandina in Florida. The Solano grove, where Delius settled, was an old Spanish plantation of some hundred and twenty acres on the edge of virgin forest. There was a little wooden house on a bluff, overlooking the broad St. John's River, and there he lived alone for three months without seeing a single human being, white or black. This was the crucial period of his life. Remote from the false culture and super- ficial distractions of modern civilization, he was free at last to receive that interior illumination which Nature is always ready to give to those whose hearts have not been hardened by materialism and external trivialities. It is significant that in the lives of almost all great saints and sages, seers and mystics, there has been a period of retirement from the world of activity : and in this period their eyes have been opened to the supersensual world, and they have crossed the frontier of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is at such times that there comes . . . that blessed mood, In which the burthen of the mystery, In which the heavy and the weary weight Of all this unintelligible world, Is lightened— that serene and blessed mood 38 FREDERICKDELIUS In which the affections gently lead us on, — Untilj the breath of this corporeal frame And even the motion of our human blood Almost suspended, we are laid asleep In body, and become a living soul : While with an eye made quiet by the power Of harmony, and the deep power of joy, We see into the life of things. It was at this time that Delius first saw clearly where his life's work lay. His vision was no longer blurred by the arti- ficialities of modern life. In his solitary communion with Nature he had found himself and realized that he could trust his own intuition against others' reason. He was, how- ever, rash enough to write triumphantly to his father and tell him that he had now quite definitely made up his mind to devote himself wholly to music. This announcement was interpreted by the old man as another change of front on the part of the young scapegrace, who never seemed to be of the same mind for more than a few months together, nor able to stick to any work he put his hand to. The result was that the orange-grove was promptly purchased outright with a view to preventing further vacillation. Sundry negroes were then requisitioned to attend to the oranges, while the young owner of the plantation continued to revel in the natural beauties of his surroundings, which were of no mean order. Palm trees abounded, and in the forest there were immense magnolias, forty or fifty feet high, whose heavy fragrance, mingled with that of the orange blossom, floated across the river, so that one could sniff it in mid-stream more than two miles from either bank. The shaddock — or grape-fruit — grew wild, and quantities of the fruit lay rotting under the trees. On the higher ground were dense pine-woods, and in the swamps and marshes, which extended for many miles away to the west, grew the hibiscus, yellow-bell jasmine, and trumpet-flowers in wild profusion. And there was no lack of excitement in the daily DELIUS^LIFE 39 round. There were the rattlesnakes which, in the early autumn when they become blind and slough their skins, wander up country from the low-lying ground and will strike at anything that crosses their path. One evening, when Delius and his negro servant were out in quest of quails, the nigger suddenly seized his master by the arm and jerked him backwards with such violence that his gun went off in the air; he had been on the point of stepping on an enormous rattlesnake, five or six feet in length. Then there were the alligators. They lived in the creeks and swamps adjoining the river and were hunted by three men in a boat in the following manner. One man had the gun, another a strong rope, while the third paddled the boat along, very silently. The man with a gun had a lan- tern fastened on the top of his head, which acted as a searchlight. The alligator is generally discovered by his eyes, which gleam out of the darkness like two big blood-red rubies. He seems to be fascinated^ unable to move when the glare of the lantern is turned upon him, and you can some- time approach within ten yards of him before firing. It is, in most cases, necessary to get very close to him, for the eye is the spot to aim at — unless his mouth happens to be open, which is an unlikely contingency. The boat must always be kept towards the head of the beast, because he can swamp you with one whisk of his powerful tail; and the man with the rope must lasso the alligator as soon as he is shot, or the body will sink like a stone. Dehus' best alligator was no less than seven yards long, but an attack of malaria, caught through sitting out late at night in the marshes, compelled him to abandon the sport. At this time, Delius had already composed one or two little pieces, but his efforts at expressing himself in music had hardly progressed beyond the stage of improvisation. Now that he had determined to devote himself seriously to the study of music, he felt the necessity of having a piano. 40 FREDERICKDELIUS So, when he went down the river to the town of Jackson- ville, to transact some business connected with the purchase of his estate, he paid a visit to the music-store of Meredy and Payne, to negotiate the hire of an instrument. Now, it happened that while he was trying one of the pianos that were offered to him, there passed by the open door of the shop an individual who was so struck by the beauty of the sounds proceeding from inside that he came in and begged to be made acquainted with the young man who was playing. This individual was Thomas F. Ward, organist of the Jesuit Church of SS. Peter and Paul in Brooklyn, the son of a Spanish priest and an Irish kitchen-maid. He was inclined to consumption and had been sent by the Fathers of his Church to the South, in the hope of restoring his health. It was a romantic encounter. A lively sympathy between the two musicians led to their returning together to the orange grove, with the piano. Ward was an excellent musician, some nine years older than Delius, and it is not too much to say that the whole of Delius' technical equip- ment is derived from the instruction he received from Ward in the course of his six months' sojourn on the plantation. The young composer developed very rapidly. He worked with a demoniacal energy, and in a short time he had as good a knowledge of musical technique as the average student at the institutions acquires in the course of two or three years. In his teaching. Ward wisely confined himself to counterpoint, seeing that his pupil's natural instincts had already provided him with a finer sense of harmony than could ever be gained from text-books and treatises. Delius still maintains that harmony is a thing of instinct alone ; harmony came naturally to him when he was a little boy and his harmonic sense developed naturally in his early manhood, so that, when he came later on to study what is falsely called the science of harmony at Leipzig, he found it narrow, mechanical, and unreasonable. Counterpoint is DELIUS^LIFE 41 the basis of the flow, the movement, the rhythm — in the proper sense, meaning the interdependence and balance of parts as movement in their relation to the whole — in music. Harmony, like Beauty, is little more than the successful event of clear thinking in sound. It is a result rather than a process of expression. And yet it is difficult for us, at the present day, to realize that up to the close of the sixteenth century, when what is known as the polyphonic period of music came to an end, the vertical relation of two or more voices — that is to say, the sum total of sound obtained by dropping an imaginary perpendicular across two or more lines of melody and thus arresting their flow — was an aspect of music that was never considered per se. The con- cept of chords as such had not yet developed. There are many pages of Palestrina, for example, which seem to us to consist of simple sequences of chords; but Palestrina wrote these passages as independent melodies in an ordered interrelation, from which their harmony or fitting-together naturally resulted. The Middle Ages, of course, were no less prolific of theorists who attempted to lay down definite laws, which should govern this interrelation, than succeed- ing centuries have been. But we must not forget that per- formance has always preceded theory in music; and to regard harmony as a natural instinct, in Western peoples, would enable us to realize more clearly than we do at present how the composers of the polyphonic period con- trived to write what we regard as harmony before the con- cept of harmony^ as such had defined itself in the human mind. This view of harmony as an instinct is corroborated by the fact that harmony was undoubtedly practised by the ^ The improvement and increasing use of keyboard instruments which enabled one man to perform music that had previously necessitated three or four separate voicfes doubtless played a great part in developing the concept of harmony, viewed as sequence-of- chords, in the late sixteenth century ; and the faculty of improvisation has since greatly stimulated the growth of a definitely harmonic sense. 42 FREDERICKDELIUS musically uncultured long before it made its appearance, even as a contrapuntal derivative, in any written composi- tions or treatises that have come down to us. We know, for example, that the country-folk in Wales and in Northum- bria were heard singing in many parts as early as the twelfth century. Delius speaks with admiration of the musical instincts of the negroes who worked on his plantation. One of them possessed the astonishing faculty of whistling passages in thirds, and all took a keen delight in singing. It is unlikely that any of them had ever heard any music other than their own traditional songs, yet when these were sung in chorus inner parts would be improvised with extraordinary taste and skill. Their harmony was not that of the hymn- book — ^with which such negro melodies as have been pub- lished are almost invariably associated — but something far more rich and strange which aroused the enthusiasm of Delius and baffled Tom Ward's attempts to analyse it by any methods known to the theorists. The only musical treatise read by DeHus at this time was that of Berlioz on the orchestra; but that is more like a romance than a text-book, and, although the list of possible shakes on the bassoon may be out of date, it is still one of the most suggestive and inspiring volumes that can fall into the hands of a young musician. Though Delius learned much that was valuable from Ward's precept, he learned even more from his admirable performance of the great masters— especially Bach, of whom his knowledge equalled his love — on the piano at the plantation and on the organ of a Roman Catholic Church in Jacksonville, which was occasionally visited for this purpose. After a while, how- ever, Delius began to feel the need of a more specifically musical environment. He wanted to hear more music, to mix with other composers and exchange ideas with them; and he felt — mistakenly enough as he afterwards realized DELIUS^LIFE 43 — that there were professors in Germany who could teach him more of musical technique than the admirable Ward, whose modesty in respect of his own attainments probably fostered this erroneous notion. So he wrote again to his father, begging for permission to leave the plantation — for a little while, at any rate — and go to Leipzig to study com- position at the Conservatorium. This request met with a flat refusal, but the musician had made up his mind that, father or no father, he would somehow contrive to get to Germany. At this point. Providence again stepped in in the form of his elder brother who arrived suddenly from Australia and agreed to take over the estate. He left it soon afterwards, as abruptly as he had come, and was next heard of in Sumatra. The immediate problem which confronted the younger Delius was to secure financial independence. He left the Solano grove in August 1885 and went to Jacksonville, where, with the assistance of Ward, he set up as a music- teacher, and managed to add to his slender resources by singing in the choir at the local synagogue, and, on occa- sions, playing the organ. After six weeks of this not very profitable employment, a friend drew his attention to a newspaper advertisement of a certain Professor Ruckert of Danville, Virginia, who wanted a music-master for his two daughters. There was apparently no capable musician in Danville, and the terms of engagement were that the appli- cant should receive free board and lodging in return for instructing the young ladies and that the Professor would do his utmost to secure him other pupils in the neighbour- hood. Delius applied for the post, and backed by glowing testimonials from Ward and the Chief Rabbi of Jackson- ville,^ obtained it. The distance from Jacksonville to Dan- * A piece of astonishing altruism, seeing that DeUus has no Jewish blood. 44 FREDERICK DELIUS ville is more than five hundred miles, and Delius had barely enough money for the journey. But he took a steamer up the coast as far as Charlestown (South Carolina) and pro- ceeded thence by train to Danville, where he arrived in the middle of the night, with but one dollar in his pocket. The Professor was at the station to meet him, a gaunt figure with a carrot-red goatee, veritable incarnation of the cartoonist's Uncle Sam. In the matter of pupils he had been as good as his word, for he had already secured several and next morning there appeared in the local newspaper a flam- boyant advertisement, which heralded the arrival of ' Pro- fessor' Delius, the eminent violinist and composer, and ended a long panegyric of his artistic virtues by expressing a hope that the folk of Danville would avail themselves of this unparalleled opportunity to become initiated into the mysteries of the violin, piano, harmony, counterpoint, form, etc., etc. ' Professor ' Delius did not belie the reputation thus thrust upon him. He was indeed at this time a very capable violinist — ^shortly after his arrival in Danville, he performed the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with conspicuous success at a concert given by the Young Ladies' Baptist College — and on the piano he had developed, all untaught, a very efficient technique of his own, which was destroyed at Leipzig when it became necessary for him to learn the orthodox technique of piano-playing. Life at Danville passed pleasantly enough. His pupils consisted chiefly of the daughters of wealthy tobacco- planters, and in a short time he had made quite a respect- able sum of money and achieved great popularity. Mean- while, his parents, who had had no news of him since he left the plantation in the preceding year, became alarmed at his prolonged silence, and caused inquiries to be made about him in Jacksonville, whence they learned he had long since disappeared. This period of anxiety seems to have convinced them that he was in earnest in his resolve to DELIUS^LIFE 45 become a musician, and as soon as liis whereabouts had been discovered, his mother wrote begging him to come home and teUing him that his father had relented and that he would be allowed to go to Leipzig as he desired. Dan- ville was loath to lose him, but he was not slow to grasp his long-desired opportunity. He reached New York about the middle of June, and after spending ten days on Long Island with an old Isleworth friend, sailed for Liverpool in the Aurania, making the acquaintance of David Bispham on the voyage. By the beginning of August, he was established in Leip- zig, in one small room on the top story of a house in Harcourtstrasse — cimex lectularius caused him to beat a hasty retreat from his first lodging. Here he seemed to be in the very centre of musical activity. He entered the Con- servatorium as a student (it was then in the old building in the Neumarkt, though the new one near the Gewandhaus was opened shortly afterwards) and attended the classes of Hans Sitt, Reinecke, whom he remembers as a beautiful Mozart player and a cultured musician despite the limita- tions of his taste, and Jadassohn, who was neither a beauti- ful player nor a cultured musician. Among his fellow- students were Edouard Schilsky, who was regarded every- where as the rising genius; Percy Pitt and Ernest Hutcheson : and Robin Legge, though not a student at the Conservatorium, was resident in the city. During this first year at Leipzig, Delius, like many another student, intoxi- cated with his own enthusiasm, thought of little else but music ; all his days and a good part of his nights were spent in hearing music, writing music, playing music, and talking music. There were the Wagner performances at the opera-house, where Nikisch and Mahler shared the task of conducting. After a Tristan performance at the opera, the students were usually in no mood to attend a counterpoint lecture 46 FREDERICKDELIUS at the Conservatorium at eight o'clock the next morning; and it was one of Reinecke's little jokes, when he came into the lecture hall and faced a solitary student, to exclaim : ' Es ist wohl wieder Tristan gewesen ! ' Then there were the orchestral concerts at the Gewandhaus, where, during Delius' student-days, Brahms and Tchaikovsky conducted performances of their own works, and the chamber con- certs at the Kammermusiksaal, where the fine performances of the Brodsky Quartet taught Delius to appreciate the later quartets of Beethoven. It was here, too, that he first met Busoni, who had come to Leipzig for the first performance of one of his string quartets. His visit coincided with that of Tchaikovsky, and Delius recalls Tchaikovsky's irritation at the ' classicality ' of Busoni's work. In the summer of 1887, Delius went for a solitary walking-tour in the south of Norway, and in the following autumn — having by this time a very good knowledge of the Norwegian language — he made the acquaintance of several Scandinavian musicians in Germany. He spent much of his leisure hours in the company of Christian Sinding, and when Grieg arrived towards the end of the year the three became almost inseparable companions. The influence that Grieg had already exercised on the susceptibilities of Delius through his music was greatly enhanced by his lovable personality; a lasting intimacy sprang up between the two composers, and when Grieg died, twenty years later, Delius felt that he had lost his best friend. On Christmas Eve, 1887, Grieg gave a party, to which Sinding, Halvorsen, and DeUus were invited. Each had brought with him a new composition, which was to be played and criticized by the company after supper — Delius' work was a Schlittenfahrt for orchestra — but the good cheer and general festivity of the occasion prevented the realiza- tion of this project. It was in the early spring of 1 888 that Delius first heard 47 one of his compositions performed. This was an orchestral suite entitled Florida. For a large barrel of beer the services of an excellent orchestra of sixty performers were secured; the players assembled in the large hall of the Restaurant Rosenthal early in the morning, and under Hans Sitt's direction rehearsed the work for nearly two hours. Sinding and Grieg, who comprised the audience, expressed their admiration for the work in the warmest terms. Soon after- wards, Delius accompanied Grieg to London, where the latter was due to give some concerts at St. James' Hall. Delius' pere was also in London, and seized the opportunity of pointing out to his son the futility of wasting more time and money on the pursuit of music. Where, he would like to know, were the results of his eighteen months in Leipzig ? What had he to show for them? Exactly what it was that the old man expected to be shown, or what kind of results would have appeased his anger, it is a little difficult to know. But, fortunately, Grieg was at hand, and he was already something of a celebrity; a little dinner-party at the Hotel Metropole was arranged and Grieg's whole-hearted praise of his son's ability could not fail to soften the old man's heart. Had it not been for his generous and kindly intervention on the part of Grieg, Delius' allowance — slender enough at all times, considering the wealth of his father — would probably have been cut off and the com- poser on the threshold of his career would have had no choice but to return to Bradford and the office stool. The meanness of Delius' father was, however, atoned for by the generosity of his Uncle Theodore, who had developed a great liking for his musical nephew. Delius spent the summer of 1888 with his uncle in Paris, and later in the year took a small cottage in Ville d'Avray, close to the lake. In the following spring, he moved to Croissy, a village on the Seine, where he remained a year and a half, at the end of which time he settled down in Paris in a 48 FREDERICKDELIUS pleasant flat in the neighbourhood of the Lion de Belfort (33 Rue Ducouedic) which he occupied for more than six years. UnHke the majority of young artists, Delius did not come to Paris to develop and indulge an abnormal taste for absinth, venery, or sartorial eccentricities. He led a very quiet life and got through a prodigious amount of work. Three operas, a string quartet, a sonata for violin and piano, two orchestral works as well as a large number of songs and smaller pieces date from this period. He was technically proficient and sure of his own imaginative powers. But his admirable faculty of self-criticism did not allow him the luxury of mistaking the exuberance that comes with the first consciousness of creative ability, well equipped for its executive task, for a complete and absolute manifestation of mature genius; and, with the exception of a few of the songs, scarcely any of the compositions of this period have been published or indeed performed — though many musical reputations of the present generation have grown up on a far less worthy foundation. Delius did not associate himself with musical circles in Paris : in fact, he rather avoided them, though a few of the younger French composers were among his acquaint- ances.^ Florent Schmitt and Ravel, in particular, knew and admired his work at this time; Schmitt made the piano transcriptions of his first two operas Irmetin and The Magic Fountain in 1893, and Ravel performed the same office for Margot-la-Rouge some years later. But it was among the painters and literary men rather than the musicians that Delius found kindred spirits and true friends, chiefest and best of whom was Jelka Rosen, who became his wife and, with her unfailing sympathy and devotion, allied to materially practical as well as great artistic and literary ^ Of the older generation of composers, Andre Messager, whom he frequently met at his Uncle Theodore's house, used to express his liking for Delius' fairy opera Irmelin in the most cordial manner. DELIUS^LIFE 49 abilities, has ever proved an ideal companion and helpmate to him. Of the rest, particular mention must be made of August Strindberg, Paul Gauguin, and Dr. Encausse — better known under his pen-name of ' Papus ' — ^with whom Delius collaborated in a curious little pamphlet entitled Anatomie et Physiologie de Forchestre (Chamuel : 1894).^ ' I met Strindberg,' writes Delius, ' at the studio of Ida Eriksen, a Swedish sculptress married to William Mollard, a Franco-Norwegian composer. Later on I saw him quite frequently at the cremerie of the Mere Charlotte, in the Rue de la Grande Chaumiere (Montparnasse) where artists received unlimited credit. Paintings were sometimes accepted in lieu of payment and at one period six or seven magnificent Gauguins were to be seen on the walls. It was a little place of the utmost simplicity, where hardly ten people could sit down at a time and where one's meal generally cost one franc, or one franc fifty, including coffee. Strindberg lived in a pension de famille just opposite, at No. 12. Among the habitues of the Mere Charlotte at that time were Strindberg, Gauguin, Mucha, a Czech designer of decorations and affiches, Leclerc, a poet, a Polish painter named Slivinsky, the maitre de ballet from the FoHes- Bergeres — also a Czech — and myself. I lived at Montrouge and generally took my meals at home, but I occasionally lunched or dined at the cremerie to meet Gauguin and Strindberg. Or I would sometimes fetch Strindberg for a walk in the afternoon and we would go through the Luxem- bourg Gardens and around the Pantheon, up the Boulevard Raspail and down the Boulevard St. Michel, turning down the Boulevard St. Germain towards St. Germain des Pres, then up through the Rue de Toumon, the Galeries de ^Long since out of print and now quite unprocurable, Delius is inclined to regard it as a youthful indiscretion, but it is very favour- ably referred to in Paul Gilson's Le tutti orchestral. I have unfortunately not been able to see a copy of this pamphlet. 50 FREDERICKDELIUS rOdeon, and back through the Luxembourg Gardens. Another favourite walk of ours was to the Jardin des Plantes. Strindberg was greatly interested in monkeys, and had a theory that the gorilla was descended from the union of a shipwrecked sailor and a female monkey. He was also occupied with alchemy at that time and claimed to have extracted gold from earth which he had collected in the Cimitiere Montpamasse. He showed me pebbles entirely coated with the precious metal and asked me to have one of these samples analysed by an eminent chemist of my acquaintance. My friend examined it and found it to be covered with pure gold. He was hugely interested and expressed the desire to make Strindberg's acquaintance. So I arranged a meeting in my rooms for a certain Wednes- day afternoon at three o'clock. My friend arrived quite punctually, but wc waited an hour in vain for Strindberg. At a quarter past four a telegram arrived, bearing these words : "I feel that the time has not yet come for me to disclose my discovery — Strindberg." The scientist went away very disappointed, saying to me : " Je crains que votre ami est un farceur." Another day Strindberg told me that he had discovered a way of making iodine at half the usual cost, and that he had inspired an article in the Temps about this new method. The article created an immense sensation, especially in Hamburg, where iodine seemed to be almost monopolized, for in one day iodine dropped forty points on the Hamburg Exchange. Unfor- tunately nothing more was ever heard of this affair. Shortly after Paul Verlaine had died, Strindberg showed me a large photograph of the poet on his death-bed and asked me what I saw on it. I answered candidly that I saw Verlaine lying on his back, under rather a thick eiderdown, only his head and beard being visible; and a pillow that had fallen on the floor and was lying there rather crunched up. Strindberg, however, asked me, did I not see the huge DELIUS^LIFE 51 animal lying on Verlaine's stomach and the imp crouching on the floor? At the time, I could never really make out whether he ^vas quite sincere or merely trying to mystify me. However, I may say that I believed implicitly in his scientific discoveries at that time. He had such a convinc- ing way of explaining them and was certainly very ambi- tious to be an inventor. When Rontgen rays had just been discovered and first began to be talked about, he confided to me one afternoon over an absinth at the Cafe Closerie des Lilas that he himself had discovered them ten years ago. His interest in spiritualism caused Leclerc and me to play a trick on him. I asked them both to my rooms one even- ing, and after dinner we had a seance of table-rapping. The lights were turned down and we joined hands round a small table. After ten minutes' ominous silence, the table began to rap and Leclerc asked it what message the spirits had for us. The first letter rapped out was M, and with each letter Strindberg's interest and excitement seemed to increase, until the momentous word MERDE had been spelled in its entirely. I do not think he ever quite forgave us for this. It was at this time that Strindberg wrote his Sylva Sylnarum. He was extraordinarily superstitious, and often in the course of our walks he would suddenly refuse to go up a certain street on the pretext that some accident or misfortune was awaiting him there. He was constantly imagining that attempts were being made to assassinate him by occult or other means.^ On one occasion Edvard Munch, the Norwegian painter, and I called on him at his rooms in the Rue d' Arras. He was poring over his retorts, stirring strange and evil-smelling liquids, and after chatting for five or ten minutes we left him in most friendly manner. Next day Munch received a post card from him : " Your attempt to assassinate me by the method has failed. ^ For Strindberg's own account, see his Inferno. 52 FREDERICKDELIUS Tak for sidst " : and when Przbechevsky and his wife, old friends of Strindberg's, arrived in Paris, he confided to me that they had only come to kill him. Several of us would often foregather at night in Mollard's studio, and when we left, our host would accompany us downstairs in order to empty their boite a ordures and give their dog a little fresh air and exercise. Strindberg had been great friends with this couple and had been taking his meals with them for a couple of months at least. It appears that he was there alone one night, it was getting late and they were evidently very tired, when the hostess suggested "si nous descendions la boite a ordures," a ceremony which had become quite a well-known institution. Strindberg went down with them and said good night in his usual friendly way ; but he never entered their house again, having taken the allusion to the boUre a ordures as a personal insult to himself. Shortly after Munch's supposed attempt on his life, I went away to Norway and on returning heard that Strindberg had left Paris for Sweden. I never saw him again.' Gauguin had returned from Tahiti on what was to prove his last visit to Paris and had taken a studio in the Rue Vercingetorix. His genius was quite unrecognized save by a little group of his intimate friends and the exhibition of the paintings he had brought back with him from the South Seas in 1893 attracted little attention and few buyers. Delius, who had just received a small legacy at this time, gave him 500 francs (approximately £20) for the large ' Nevermore ' (which Gauguin referred to in a letter written some years later as one of his best works) and this sum — paltry though it seems when we consider that the present value of the picture is about a hundred times as much — was considered generous, and indeed was considerably in excess of what Gauguin would have asked for the work. The legacy which made this purchase possible had been bequeathed by the good Uncle Theodore, who in the year delius^'life 53 before his death had secured the first public performance of one of his nephew's works. This was an orchestral work Sur les cimes^ (inspired by Ibsen's poem Paa vidderne), which was performed at Monte Carlo in the winter of 1893. It was about this time that Delius' second opera The Magic Fountain — a three-act work for which he wrote the text himself — ^was accepted by Eduard Lassen for pro- duction at the opera-house at Weimar. The parts were copied, the text was translated into German, and prepara- tions for the performance were actually being made when the composer began to have misgivings about the value of his work. Perhaps he felt^ like Strindberg, that the time had not come to disclose his discoveries to the world, for he withdrew the opera and the proposed performance never took place. Such stringent self-criticism, born of the resolve to give out to the world nothing short of the best of which one feels oneself potentially capable, is rare indeed amongst musicians. It is not every day that a chance of seeing one's works mounted at a first-rate opera-house comes along, and to have resisted the temptation for the sake of self-critical scruples implies a degree of artistic conscientiousness which it would be hard to excel. Acquaintanceship with Bergliot Bjomsen who was studying with Mme Marchesi in Paris brought Delius an invitation from her father, Bjornesteme Bjomsen, the poet and dramatist, with whom he spent a summer at Anlestad in Gausdal (Norway). Soon afterwards he met Knut Hamsun and Gunnar Heiberg in Paris, and at the latter's invitation composed some incidental music for his play Folkeraadet — ' Parliament ' — which was pro- duced at Christiania in the autumn of 1897. The spring of the year found Delius back on his estate in Florida, which had never been disposed of, in the company of Halfdan Jebe, a Norwegian violinist and vagabond in the literal * This work should be distinguished from the earlier Paa vidderne which was based upon quite different musical material. 54 FREDERICK DELIUS sense of the word; and it was during this holiday that he made the first sketches of his Piano Concerto. But he returned to Europe in time to attend the rehearsals of Folkeraadet. The play is a satire on the platform-patriotism of politicians. The country being threatened with invasion, it is decided that all the members of parliament shall personally take arms in its defence. With much bombast and heroic posturing they sally forth, but a political dissen- sion arises and the swords that should have been directed against the enemy are turned by the warriors against each other. In the meanwhile, the enemy has been put to flight by a well-timed explosion of dynamite, effected single- handed by an hotel waiter. The discovery of the parlia- mentary corpses leads to a supposition that the noble fellows have perished in their country's cause, and preparations are made for a public funeral of great splendour. But when the true facts of the ' victory ' become known, the funereal mood gives place to one of cynical merrymaking and the waiter is carried through the streets in triumph. The play, naturally, met with a mixed reception, especial fury being aroused by Delius' satirical metamorphosis of the Norwegian national anthem. One outraged patriot even went so far as to fire off a blank cartridge at the conductor of the orchestra at a subsequent performance by way of protest ; and this incident caused Dehus to be turned out of his hotel. The play enjoyed a succes de scandale; the theatre was sold out every night for six weeks and con- troversy waxed hot and strong. Delius sought refuge at the Grand Hotel, where every evening at six o'clock Ibsen was to be seen sipping his vesperal whisky. The aged drama- tist was much intrigued by the controversy and not a little amused, for he said to Delius : ' We're only barbarians up here in the north.' Finally, the students of the University held a solemn debate on the matter, ' and after due con- sideration, decided that the musical expression of Norwe- DELIUS^LIFE 55 gian patriotism had not been in any sense ill-used.' So Delius was acquitted and Ibsen expressed his satisfaction * that the Norwegian students had not disgraced them- selves.' In the meanwhile, Delius scores had been travelling about Gennany from one Kapellmeister to another. They were generally returned with a letter pointing out that they were technically unplayable; but one conductor merely inserted a slip bearing the laconic inscription : optisch unmoglich — ' optically impossible,' or to put it more briefly unreadable. There w^as, how^ever, a conductor in Elberfeld whose eyesight and musical discernment were equal to the task of appreciating the remarkable qualities displayed in these scores. This was Dr. Hans Haym who gave practical proof of his appreciation by performing the Fantasy-Over- ture, Over the Hills and Far away, at a concert of the Elberfelder Concert-Gesellschaft in November, 1897. One is astonished to find that protests were made against the inclu- sion in the Society's programmes of a work of so ' revolu- tionary ' a nature ; for the overture is orthodox enough in form and its harmonic scheme contains nothing that one might imagine would seem unusual to ears well accustomed — as those of the Elberfeld audience were in 1897 — to Wagner and the earlier tone-poems of Richard Strauss.^ But if the work offended sundry members of the town council — who, it is said, threatened to dismiss Dr. Haym from his position if he repeated the offence, which he did, in an aggravated form, though happily with impunity, when he produced the Nocturne Paris some years later — it served as Delius' introduction to Professor Julius Buths, of Diisseldorf, who became and remained until his death ^ In 1 9 1 2 I heard a German audience hiss lustily after a per- formance of Debussy's Iberia ; and the fact that works by Saint-Saens, Gounod, and Cesar Franck were well received on the same occasion proves the demonstration to have been prompted by musical and not by ' nationalistic ' motives. 56 FREDERICK DELIUa an enthusiastic admirer and propagator of Delius' music. This occasion served also to bring Dehus into contact with Alfred Hertz — then conductor of the Elberfeld opera-house. The following year was spent chiefly in Paris, where, amongst other things, the Nachtlied ^arathustras, which now forms the final section of A Mass of Life, was com- posed. The time had now come when Delius could take stock of his achievements with the most conscientiously critical eye and find much that seemed worthy of the standard he had set himself to achieve. He accordingly resolved to give a concert of his works in London, not so much for the purpose of self-advertisement, which he had always avoided, as for the pleasure of hearing several of his larger compo- sitions adequately rendered, and perhaps partly for the satisfaction of finally justifying his musical career in the eyes of his croaking relatives by exhibiting the ' results ' they had so incredulously demanded a few years before. The co-operation of Alfred Hertz — who in the meanwhile had migrated to the Breslau opera-house — was secured and the Kapellmeister embarked with enthusiasm upon the difficult task of collecting a scratch chorus and orchestra of vast numbers, and coaching recalcitrant soloists.^ The chorus was obtained by advertisement, all the singers being amateurs with the exception of a few men from the Covent Garden opera chorus. The orchestra mustered ninety-four performers and was led by Delius' old friend Half den Jebe, who travelled from Norway especially for the purpose. After a good deal of rehearsing (in the course of which one of the soloists invariably had to sing with his fingers in his ears lest he should be distracted by the, to him, out- ^ It was largely on the strength of the success he achieved at this concert that Hertz secured his appointment as conductor at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York. He is now conductor of the San Francisco symphony concerts. [But see further reference on page 150. — Ed.] DELIUS^LIFE 57 landish and incomprehensible sounds proceeding from the orchestra) the following programme was presented on Tues- day evening, May 30th, 1899, at the old St. James' Hall to a fairly large and by no means unappreciative audience which listened attentively from half-past eight until nearly midnight. Part I 1 . Fantasia for orchestra, ' Over the Hills and Far away.' 2. ' Legende,' for violin and orchestra. (Solo violin : Mr., John Dunn.) 3. Third and Fourth movements from Suite for orchestra ' Folkeraadet.' 4. Danish Songs (with orchestral accompaniment). ' Through long, long years.' ' Let springtime come, then.' ' Irmelin Rose.' ' On the seashore.' ' Wine roses.' (Singer : Mlle Christianne Andray.) 5. Symphonic poem for orchestra, ' The Dance goes on.' 6. ' Mitternachtslied.' (From Nietzsche's ^arathustra.) For baritone solo, men's chorus and orchestra. (Soloist : Mr. Douglas Powell.) Part H Excerpts from ' Koanga ' (opera in 3 acts with a prologue and epilogue.) 1. (a) Prelude to Act HI. (b) Quintet and Finale of Act I. 2. Act II. (Soloists : Mme. Ella Russell, Miss Tilly Koenen, Mr. G. A. Vanderbeek^ Mr. William Llewellyn^ and Mr. Andrew Black.) The one-man programme was, at that time, of far less frequent occurrence than it has since become. The concert given two and a half years previously by six young British 58 FREDERICK DELIUS composers (Granville Bantock, William Wallace, Arthur Hinton, Erskine Allon, Stanley Hawley, and Reginald Steggall) had proved a sufficiently startling event for the London public, and the Delius concert must have been far more disconcerting. However, the London press critics, all unprepared for the occasion, seeing that not a note of Delius had ever been heard in England before, save perhaps a few early songs which Augeners' had published, acquitted themselves on the whole with far more sanity and sobriety of judgment than they have displayed on many subsequent occasions — though there were, it is true, some displays of the kind of imbecility which has become traditionally associated with the appearance of artistic genius. The following paragraph from the Sunday Sun may be cited as an example : * It is not easy to associate optimism with a composer who takes for a subject for musical illustration such a work as " Also sprach Zarathustra " by Friedrich Nietzsche.^ M. Delius' music is bizarre and caco- phonous to a degree almost unapproached. There is nothing beautiful in ugliness, though M. Delius evidently is not of my way of thinking. The ugliness of some of his music is really masterly. Oh ! if he could be persuaded to look on the brighter side of things, to give us music that would cheer us, not that which blights us as a March wind blights young shoots. If M. Delius may be claimed as one of the rising English school of composers it is his manifest duty " to cheer up." It is so much more easy to be a pessimist than an optimist. His gifts are undeniable. Would that some * For instance : Lust tiefer noch als Htrzeleid. Weh spricht — Vergeh ! Doch alle Lust will Ewigkeit, Will tiefe, tiefe Ewigkeit. (!!) The Musical Times described Delius' work as a setting for baritone solo, male chorus and orchestra of an incoherent poem called Also sprach Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche. DELIUS^LIFE 59 god would give him the gift to see himself as I see him. I want to be cheered by music, not depressed. Life itself gives one one's share of the blues. Heaven help us if our young composers are going to assist ! On the other hand, M. Glazounov is a good deal of an optimist . . .' etc. etc. The Times was as hostile to Delius on this as on many subsequent occasions. The Morning Post, however, v/as very favourable. A brief report which appeared the next morning informed the readers of that journal that ' the concert did not end until so late an hour that we are compelled to postpone our remarks concerning works that -are far too important to be dismissed in a few words.' The second notice appeared on June 3rd. ' ... It is long since we have heard so striking a work [as The Dance goes on]. The music palpitates with excitement and sends the blood tingling through one's veins. It is splendidly graphic and intensely engrossing. The Mitternachtslied for baritone solo, men's chorus, and orchestra is taken from Nietzsche's Also sprach ^ara~ thustra, the work which has inspired one of Richard Strauss's latest symphonic works. Here again Mr. Delius shows himself deeply impressive and original. He does not shrink from employing the strangest and most perilous har- monic progressions . . . We have said enough to show that in Mr. Delius we recognize a musician of very great and noble talent. His music is essentially of to-day, or, rather, of tomorrow, which is all in its favour. That it may speedily make its way is our most earnest wish.' The Morning Advertiser was of opinion that ' Mr. Delius has fully justified his appeal to the musical public, that he has shown himself to be possessed of genuine, we might also add commanding, talent, and that his further acquaintance is eminently desirable.' The Daily Mail found that 'his music has spirit and manliness, imagination and honest feeling.' 60 FREDERICKDELIUS The Westminster Gazette, referring to the one-man pro- gramme, remarked that ' the practice is obviously not with- out its drawbacks, for the composers, even of established position, are few whose music is capable of withstanding this particular test. But when it brings to light a musician of such signal merit as Mr. Delius these disadvantages may be cheerfully overlooked. Certainly, it may be hoped that enterprising concert managers may no longer allow his un- questionable talents to languish unrecognised . . . He is a musician not only of promise but of achievement .... Mr. Delius himself was summoned more than once to acknowledge the applause of an appreciative audi- ence.' In the Lady we read : ' England ought to know some- thing about one of the few composers of genius she has the good fortune to possess ... I have used the word genius — a rash action — but I think no one present at the Delius concert last week could have had it far from his lips. The bold harmonies and complex details disturbed one at first, but by the end of the concert one was convinced that these were not of the bizarre affectations of a clever young man, but part of an original composers great design. Mr. Delius' peculiar gift is the welding of apparently ireconcilable musical atoms into an exquisitely simple whole.' And in the Pall Mall Gazette : ' We confess to have felt some amazement before this music. There are certain designs which when the eye first looks upon them show nothing but a bewildering multiplicity of detail. Then, as custom brings its happy magic, the unity of the design gradually grows apparent, until one merely wonders that at any time it should have worn a different appearence. Now we will not say that the details of Mr. Delius' style fell at any time last night into a single and coherent design. But after patient and resolute hearing, it became evident that there was gi'owing and ever growing coherence. The extreme origi- DELIUS^LIFE 61 nality of phrasing, the audacious harmonies, the moving of waters (as it may be described) within the depth of the music far below the surface, the obscurity of expression, the daring discords — these things began to unite now and then into such fine single effects that one felt them to be the signs, if not the proof, of something not unlike real greatness.' In the Musical Standard Mr. E. A. Baughan^ wrote, in the course of a two-page article : ' Personally, I admit that some of Mr. Delius' music sounded discordant to my ears, harsh, uninviting, and ugly. But I could hear that he made it so with a definite purpose" in view, and I can quite imagine that I might get to like those discords if I knew them better. That is what happened with Wagner's music . . . Certainly as a critic, I can register my likes or dislikes, but I have no right to say to a composer " You must not speak to me in that tone of voice, I am not used to it." The rebuke is puerile, for that tone of voice to which I object may be part of the very individuality of the com- poser. But this is surely opening the doors to a crowd of incom.petently eccentric composers who rely on arousing our attention by shocking our ears? Is it so indeed? The objection has not much basis in fact, for nothing is easier for a skilled critic^ than recognizing when a composer is eccentric through want of technique, as Perosi is, and when he is purposely adding to the vocabulary of music as Richard Strauss and this Fritz Delius have added.' Four years later John F. Runciman summed up the criticisms of this concert by saying : ' The truth was that we didn't know what the devil to make of this music; and most of us were frank enough to say so. That there was ^ To whose credit it should be remembered that he contributed to the Nation the only illuminating article evoked by the production of Arnold Schonberg's Five Orchestral Pieces in 191 2. " Surviving specimens of this bird have considerably decreased in numbers since 1899, if this be so! 62 FREDERICK DELIUS intention, real mastery of notes; that every sound procee- ding from the orchestra was meant by the composer; that there was no bungHng, not from beginning to end an un- anticipated effect — all this every competent critic knew. But the strains sounded unpleasant in our ears.' In the mean- while, however, Runciman had taken the trouble to make himself better acquainted with this music, and his article concludes by saying that Delius ' has already done enough to justify me in calling him the biggest composer we have produced for many a long day. Seeing that he is cosmopoli- tan, he can scarcely be claimed for England; but at least he was born here ... I do not expect, I do not want anyone to accept him as a heaven-sent genius merely on my recom- mendation ; but with a full sense of the responsibility of the situation, I say that those who will take the trouble to hear his music and try to understand it will find themselves well paid for their pains.' These criticisms have been quoted at considerable length in order to show that, if Delius' music seemed obscure at a first hearing, it was not by any means unfavourably received in this countr}^ Several critics expressed the desire to become better acquainted with it and the audience had shown clear signs of enthusiasm at the concert which may justly be said to have achieved an artistic success. Yet during the next eight years no work of Delius was ever per- formed in England, or even asked for by an English con- ductor; and it was not until the performances of Appalachia (at the Nieder-Rheinisches Musikfest, Dussel- dorf) in 1905, Sea-Drift (at the Tonkiinstlerfest des Allge- meinen Deutschen Musikvereins, Essen) in 1906, and A Village Romeo and Juliet at Berlin in 1907 had evoked extraordinary tributes of praise from the German Press that any English concert-giver bethought himself again of Delius. Small wonder that when Theodor Szanto broke the long silence by playing the revised version of his Pianoforte DELIUS^LIFE 63 Concerto in London in 1907 the musical public had almost forgotten his existence. A few weeks later the enterprise of another foreigner — Fritz Cassirer who had succeeded Hertz at the Elberf elder Stadttheater and had conducted A Village Romeo and Juliet in Berlin — gave London its first oppor- tunity of hearing Appalachia. Early in 1908 Seiior Arbos I>erformed Lije^s Dance (a revised version of The Dance goes on) at an Albert Hall Sunday concert, and Granville Bantock gave the first performance of Brigg Fair at a con- cert in Liverpool. These, however, were sporadic perform- ances which would probably have led no farther than the concert of 1899 towards a widespread recognition of the composer had there not appeared at this time a young con- ductor who, if he had done nothing else, would have earned the gratitude of all discerning music-lovers in England for his ten years' splendid championship of the cause of Delius. We are indebted to him for the only performances that have hitherto (1922) been given in England of A Mass of Life, A Village Romeo and Juliet, Songs of Sunset^ North Country Sketches, and the Epilogue from Koanga; and though others have, on rare occasions, performed Appalachia, Paris, Brigg Fair, and the two pieces for small orchestra. On hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring and Summer Night on the River, no one has rendered them with a more profound and sympathetic understanding than Thomas Beecham. He was not content with giving single performances; realizing that the musical public in England must have their attention directed to a new composer times without number before they become aware of his existence, he never let a concert season go by without introducing one or more works of Delius into his programme. His activities in London alone include two separate productions of A Village Romeo and Juliet (1910 and 1920), two complete performances of A Mass of Life (1909 and 19 13), two 64 FREDERICKDELIUS Delius orchestral concerts (191 1 and 1914)^ besides a large number of performances of individual works, not only at his own orchestral concerts but also at those of the Royal Philharmonic Society, the London Symphony Orchestra, and the National Sunday League. It is not too much to say that but for Beecham the greater part of Delius' out- put would still be unknown in England today. The lead given by Beecham in his performance of the orchestral works up and down the country has not been followed by other conductors to anything like the extent one might have expected, and that would have been fully justified by the success these works achieved with the public; and the English musical press has been singularly apathetic^ to- wards Delius until quite recently. Let me be quite clear on this point. It is not that the critics have failed to notice each new work with a certain amount of appreciation when it was first performed. There have been favourable notices in plenty but no general recognition of the fact that Delius was more than a promising talent amongst many such. Although it was evident from the persistence with which he performed his works that Beecham set more store by Delius than by any other living composer, there was found no critic in England to share his enthusiasm and to help him in his uphill task of familiarizing the public with an ^ June, 1914, at the Duke's Hall, Royal Academy of Music. It was undoubtedly to this concert that Mr. Edwin Evans referred when he wrote in the English Review (September, 1915): ' It is only too apparent that if professional musicians love music at all, which is not always the case, it is emphatically their music that they love and nobody else's. Last year the concert-hall of one of our leading institutions was taken for a programme of music by one of the most prominent composers of British birth. Scarcely a single member of the professional staff put in an appearance, and the students abstained with a unanimity which almost suggested that they had been warned.' ^ The attitude of English critics towards him was wittily summed up a few years ago by Sydney Grew who wrote : ' In Gfermany, Delius is accepted as a master. Here in England opinion is divided, those who do not know his works disputing the judgments of those who do.' delius^'life 65 unknown and somewhat difficult composer by writing not notices of a few lines but articles providing definite infor- mation and throwing light on the music. One cannot reiterate too often that it is the musical critic's business — that is, if he is to merit the title of critic rather than that of mere journalistic hack — not merely to comment on what the pubhc is afforded the opportunity of hearing for itself but to be ahead of the public in his know- ledge, of music, so as to be in a position to advise the public in advance not only what to go and hear when they get the chance, but what to buy and study in their own homes — since familiarity with contemporary music can hardly be gained in this country from public performances alone. And, incidentally, it must not be supposed that conductors, singers, and performers generally, stand less in need of guidance and advice than the listening public. With the exception of an article in the Birmingham Daily Post in 1907 by Ernest Newman (who is also to be credited with an admirable programme-analysis of Sea-Drift) I have seen no essay by an English critic inspired by a true sense of Dehus' importance and a desire to impart it to the musical public of this country. In thus enlarging upon our indebted- ness to Sir Thomas Beecham for the greater part of our knowledge of Delius' works, I have no wish to overlook the excellent performances that have been given by Granville Bantock in the north of England, by Balfour Gardiner and, during the last two or three years, Sir Henry Wood in Lon- don. But the credit of establishing Delius' reputation in this country belongs to Beecham alone. He is unquestionably a man of genius. In the early days of his career he Uved for music. He was scarcely ever with- out a score in his pocket or under his arm — and that his knowledge of the scores he studied v/as thorough to the last detail is proved by his readiness and ability to conduct a complex work from memory at a moment's notice, if by 3 66 FREDERICKDELIUS some mischance the score has disappeared. This contin- gency arose at Hanley on one occasion when Sea-Drift was to be given. Between the last rehearsal and the time fixed for the performance the score vanished — and such conclu- sions as can explain the phenomenon may be drawn from the fact that this particular copy has never yet been found. But Beecham, not a whit disconcerted, went ahead with the performance and, in the presence of the composer, gave as fine a rendering of the work as he has ever given with the score in front of him. It cannot be pretended that Beecham was uniformly suc- cessful in his performances of Delius; but his failures were due, not to any lack of musical ability or understanding, but to sheer carelessness and lack of adequate preparation. His genius was such that it would carry him through circumstances that would cause a lesser man to break down completely. Much can be done by taking pains, but genius can do infinitely more than taking pains alone can ever accomplish; and the fact that it can do so much with- out taking any pains at aU tempts it at times to over-esti- mate its powers. When Beecham took pains over a work of Delius no one could have desired a subtler or more sensitive interpretation. But it is beyond the power of any man to give an authoritative performance of a work with which either he himself, from want of study, or the performers, from want of rehearsal, are not sufficiently familiar. Appar- ently from the former cause, the first perfonnance of North Country Sketches in 191 5 failed to do justice to some of the loveliest pages Delius has even written, and manifestly from the latter, the performance of A Mass of Life at Govent Garden in 1913 was not merely mediocre but appalling. The unfortunate chorus travelled from the Mid- lands in the morning, rehearsed all the afternoon — their only rehearsal with the orchestra — and with scarcely an hour's respite, had to tackle this long and exacting work delius^'life 61 in the evening. The performance naturally resembled what indeed it was — a second rehearsal held in peculiarly trying circumstances. 'A work of this nature,' as Sir Thomas Browne has said, 'is not to be performed upon one leg.' It may seem ungracious to draw particular attention to these two failures among so many successes, but seeing that neither of the works has yet been performed in London again, it is possible that some who heard them may have blamed the music for the disagreeable effect produced by the performance. Beecham is a man of extraordinary versatility ; so far from being a mere musician, in the technical sense, his interests and indeed his achievements cover a wide field. He is one of the most brilliant talkers of the present day, and not merely brilliant, but lucid and profound at the same time; there are very few subjects to which he has not devoted a good deal of thought and about which he does not hold an individual and finely reasoned opinion. Such breadth of vision and range of intellect are rare qualities among musi- cians, who are too apt to believe that music springs from other music and not from direct contact with life in all its diversity. But music cannot satisfactorily be one interest among many. Music demands the whole man with all his faculties focused upon it; and in no department of music is this necessity more apparent than in that of opera. We are so accustomed to operatic productions built up of hetero- geneous elements thrown together with no synthetic plan, that most of us have lost sight of the fact that opera is a form of art which demands a co-operation between its con- stituent factors so close that these shall appear to be ]unc- tioning organically in obedience to a single mind. Delius has summed up the matter by saying : ' Every gesture of the actors in my work must be controlled and ordered by the conductor, for my music is conceived in that spirit. Only thus can the whole be made comprehensible to the public. 68 FREDERICKDELIUS An actor stage-manager will be no good whatever, for he will make the singers act from the stage and not from the music.' Beecham is ideally fitted for this difficult position of con- ducior-regisseur. He has, in addition to his musical attain- ments, a thorough knowledge and experience of the theatre and the taste to direct, if not actually to execute, the scenic designs : above all, he has the ability to convey his wishes and to impose his ^vill upon all concerned. In some produc- tions he was extraordinarily successful ; in others, he was too easily contented with the old departmental system. The 1 9 10 production of A Village Romeo and Juliet could scarcely be called a production at all in a theatrical sense. The orchestral playing was superb and the singing passable, but old stock scenery (augmented by an enormous m^erry- go-round actually hired from a travelling circus for the Fair scene) combined with old stock gestures of the traditionally ' operatrical ' order rendered the conception and design of the work wholly unintelligible. The second production, in 1920, was improved by the substitution of scenery which, though still too heavily realistic for the work, had at least the merit of having been specially designed for it; but the action revealed but few traces of the hand of the regisseur. Deeply grateful as one must be for the chance of hearing this miraculous work at all, one's gratitude for the musical excellences of the production is tempered by regret for its dramatic defects, which is made the more keen by the reflection that, if there is one man living who understands the character of the work well enough to give us a perfect performance, that man is Sir Thomas Beecham. The interval of time between the London concert in 1899 and the performances already mentioned, beginning in 1907, which served to reintroduce Delius to the English public, was occupied primarily with the composition of A Village Romeo and Juliet (1900-1), Sea-Drift (1903), and DELIUS^LIFE 69 A Mass of Life (1904-5) and secondarily with the growth of DeUus' musical reputation in Germany. In France, though he has made his home in that country for the last thirty years, he is still entirely unknown. On two occasions only have any of his compositions been heard in Paris. In 1901 Mile. Christianne Andray sang six of the Danish Songs at an orchestral concert of the Societe Nationale de Musique con- ducted by Vincent d'Indy, and in 1913 Beecham gave a performance of Appalachia. The nocturne Paris has never been heard in the city which inspired it. It was produced at Elberfeld in 1901, and at one of Eusoni's concerts of new and seldom-heard works in Berlin in 1902. In 1903 the Mitternachtslied was performed at the annual Tonkiinstler- fest (held each year in a different centre) at Basle. The spring of 1904 saw the production of Lifers Dance by Julius Buths at Diisseldorf and of Koanga at Elberfeld under Fritz Cassirer's direction, the cast including Clarence Whitehill (Koanga), Max Birkholz (Martinez), Georg Forster (Perez), Rose Kaiser (Palmyra), and Charlotte Lengenberg (Glo- tilde) ; and in the autumn Dr. Haym conducted the Piano- forte Concerto (first version, in three movements) at Elber- feld, the solo part being played by Julius Buths. But it was the performance, already referred to, of Appalachia and Sea-Drift at the music festivals of 1905 and 1906, which won Delius the universal attention and almost unanimous approval of the German press. It was at a Lower Rhine Festival, by the way (in 1902), that Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, after having fallen comparatively flat in Eng- land, elicited an outspoken tribute of admiration from Richard Strauss which caused Elgar to return home a much greater composer, in the eyes of his compatriots, than he went away. Later in the year Appalachia was repeated in Berlin by Oscar Fried. This performance created a pro- found impression, Busoni, who was amongst those present, being so overcome with emotion that, when he came into 70 FREDERICK DELIUS the artist's room to congratulate the composer, he burst into tears. In February, 1907, came the production of A Village Romeo and Juliet at the Komischen Oper in Berhn which, judging from a detailed account by Max Chop in Kritik der Kritik, must have been a most grisly affair. As in the London production three years later, the orchestra alone, under Fritz Cassirer, did justice to the work. In June, 1 908, the second part of A Mass of Life was produced at the Tonkiinstlerfest at Munich. William Ritter, in the Courier Musical, after referring to Delius as 'le triom- phateur de ces fetes ' deplores the omission from the pro- gramme of the first part of the Mass (to make room for — inter alia — a Flagellant enzug by one Karl Bleyle!) and concludes ' G'est veritable peche de passer sur une telle CEuvre en dix lignes de chronique.' He atones for his sin by a three-page article in another French paper — Lugdnnum, July, 1908 — in the course of which occurs an interesting comparison between Delius and Debussy : ' Ce que Wagner fut a Weber, M. Dehus Fest a M. Debussy. Plus complet, plus organique, plus fort, il est tout aussi subtil et multi- nuance. Comme lui, il parait vetu d'arc-en-ciel dilue; une continuelle pamoison de delicats frottements d' accords nous chatouille delicieusement et, cependant, quelque chose de fort et de salubre regne dans F ensemble, et F architecture de Foeuvre connait une elevation a grandes lignes audacieuses et un plan large et aere, mais ferme et defini. On sait d'oii Fon part, par oil Fon va, ou Fon aboutit.' In the same year Max Chop's enthusiastic monograph on Delius was pub- lished in Berlin, and Sea-Drift received its first English per- formance at the Sheffield Festival, Wood being the conduc- tor and Frederic Austin the soloist. In 1909 occurred the only two premieres which Delius has conducted in person — A Dance Rhapsody (No. i) at Hereford (Three Choirs Festival) and hi a Summer Garden DELIUS^LIFE 71 at a Philharmonic concert in London. The latter work was rewritten after the first performance and was first played in its present form by Emil Mlynarski in Edinburgh in 191 3. These experiments and a performance of Appalachia which he directed at Hanley convinced Delius that he had no gift for conducting. Like many other composers, he is inclined to listen to the music instead of controlling it. He was further handicapped at Hereford by a severe chill. There followed in the years 1910 to 191 5 the various performances under Beecham that have already been dealt with. In 1 9 1 o Brigg Fair had its first Continental perform- ance at the Tonkiinstlerfest at- Zurich and so great was its success that in that year alone it was played by thirty-six different orchestras in Germany. In 1 9 1 4 arrangements had been made for the production of Fennimore and Gerda at Cologne, but the war prevented any further performances of Delius' work in Germany for five years. The opera was finally produced at Frankfurt-am-Main, Gustav Brecher conducting, in November, 1919, and met with a very favourable reception. In 1899 Delius bought a little property at Grez-sur- Loing, near Fontainebleau, and here he has lived ever since, save for his summer trips to Norway and occasional excursions to England or Germany to attend performances of his work. Grez was a favourite haunt of Robert Louis Stevenson in the 'seventies and in his Essays of Travel he has given a charming description of the little village which has hardly changed at all since he knew it : 'It lies out of the forest, a cluster of houses, with an old bridge and an old castle in ruin and a quaint old church. The inn garden descends in terraces to the river, stableyard, kailyard, or- chard, and a space of lawn, fringed with rushes and em- bellished with a green arbour. On the opposite bank there is a reach of English-looking plain, set thickly with willows and poplars. And between the two lies the river, clear and 12 FREDERICK DELI us deep, and full of reeds and floating lilies. Water-plants cluster about the starlings of the low long bridge, and stand halfway up upon the piers in green luxuriance. They catch the dipped oar with long antennas, and chequer the slimy bottom with the shadow of their leaves. And the river wan- ders hither and thither among the islets, and is smothered and broken up by the reeds, Hke an old building in the lithe, hardy arms of the climbing ivy.' Delius' house stands a couple of hundred yards back from the river; its position above the bridge corresponds with that of the inn below it, and between the house and the river there is a little strip of garden, a fish-pond, and a tiny orchard. In such rustic seclusion Delius has lived for over twenty years and it is here that all his best works have been written. It would be difficult, even if it were justifiable to speak of Delius' personality save in reference to his art, to attempt to make a differentiation between Delius, the man, and Delius, the musician. Art is always greater than the artist through whom it is created, considered simply as an indivi- dual ; and a knowledge of the irrelevant idiosyncrasies of an artist's daily life is more likely to hinder than to help us in our understanding and appreciation of his work. Anecdotes recording popular and wholly trivial incidents lead to the most unwarrantable generalizations and thus a ' character ' of the artist is built up which is not only fictitious but per- haps quite at variance with the spirit of his work. There are, indeed, as we shall see later on, apparent ' false rela- tions ' between certain views expressed by Delius himself and the spirit that breathes through much of his best v/ork. But these discrepancies are superficial, arising from the sim- plicity of his temperament, which lacks the consciously syn- thetic faculty of harmonizing apparent contradictions, and the self-consciously analytical faculty of reducing everything to its lowest terms which has become perhaps the greatest curse of all the curses modern art is heir to. The real Delius DELIUS^LIFE 73 may be known in his work, and only in his work. It is only the little artist whose personality is more fully revealed in his social than in his creative activities; and it is only the little works of art that are merely the expression of their maker's personality. 3* HIS OPERAS AMONG the Chippewa Indians of North America, we are told, ' there is no musical notation : a picture of the idea of a song is drawn on a bark-strip, from which another person who has never heard it can sing it accurately.' This, like so much in the art of so-called primitive races ^ puts us all to shame. We cannot draw a picture of the idea of a piece of music from which another person who has never heard the music can get an accurate impression of it. Yet if there is any purpose in musical criticism, that purpose is surely to convey, by words rather than by pictures, ' the idea of a song ' to others who have never heard it. Our chief enemy is time. We can hold the score of a symphony in our hands, complete and whole and all at once : but to hold the music signified by that score, the idea of the song, in the mind in a like completeness and wholeness is a very different and vastly more difficult pro- position. When listening to music, we are subject to all the limitations which time imposes : but when we reflect upon what we have heard, when we try to sum it all up and to distil its quintessence, we have to pit ourselves against time in an effort to transcend its inhibitions and its restrictions on the mind. To see a picture of music whole, like a picture, to grasp the rhythm and design not merely of particular sections but of the entire work — and, as the result of this process, to be able to comprehend and share with its com- 74 HISOPERAS - 75 poser the complex synthesis of moods and states of mind the work expresses — such is the task of the writer on music. This being admitted, it is painfully apparent that when we speak or write about music — and here the professional critic is in much the same case as the man who tries to record the impressions of his first concert — we embark upon a well- nigh impossible task. Music, for us, only begins where words end : how then can we hope to translate the message of music into words? Only the simplest music yields to our attempts to draw a satisfactory verbal picture of the idea inspiring it. We have lost the art of the old magicians who could compass the universe in a pentacle. One may call music the outward and audible signification of inward and spiritual realities — which seems to suggest that there is something else behind and beyond the music itself that is not the music. Yet are we justified in assuming this separate- ness? Is it not, in a sense, the expression that makes the thought, the symbol that creates for us the reality, that is — as far as we can ever know it — ^the reality ? The fact is that when we come to the fundamental ques- tion of what music really is, we are all — composers, critics, and public alike — very much in the dark. Music's a rum go. Composers cannot tell you themselves how or why they write this or that kind of music, and professional critics are too often inclined to avoid the simpler, fundamental prob- lems of the art, taking refuge either in the current cant of musical journalese, which skilfully proffers the minimum of meaning with the maximum of verbiage, or in technicalities which the ordinary music-lover — who is always more in- terested in music's relation to life than in its relation to other music — finds more bewildering than the most abstruse specimen of actual composition. Thus, the simplest and most natural questions of the non-musician are apt to prove the most embarrassing to the theorist and the critic who have so long taken these elementary problems for granted as 76 FREDERICKDELIUS already solved that they have no answer but gibberish or evasion. Time was when musical criticism dealt only with external forms : the subject-matter or text or programme of a work, and the technical resources employed in its expression. Now, however, a reaction has set in and an increasing recognition of the absolute independence of every art is apparent. Needless as it may appear to some readers, one cannot too often reiterate and emphasize, for the sake of others, that music is not a translation of something other than itself, and that music cannot be translated into any other medium. As an example illustrating the necessity for such seemingly unnecessary iteration I quote from a pamphlet recently printed for private circulation among the teachers of an English county education authority. The writer, after ci- ting Jules Combarieu's definition of music as 'the art of thinking in sound,' without, however, either acknowledging its authorship or adding M. Combarieu's qualification ' without concepts' proceeds to ' evolve quite nice musical phrases to express ideas ' (with musical examples) and sug- gests that ' perhaps we can invent a kind of phrase-book such as you get when travelling in a foreign country, but instead of " What is the French, German or Italian for such and such a question," we must say " What is the music for ... . ?" ' etc., etc. ' So we begin to think in sound.' Such a conception of the function of music, as a mere alternative or substitute for speech or gesture, is puerile, and we may safely take it as an axiom that whatever can adequately be expressed in words, colour, or in sculptural or graphic form needs no musical reduplication, nor can it ever provide the raison d'etre of a purely musical composition. The complete libretto of an opera, the most detailed analysis of a piece of ' programme-music,' tell us nothing whatever about the actual music. But the music itself may tell us infinitely more than the text or programme around HISOPERAS Tl which it has been ostensibly written — so much more, in- deed, that the value of music associated with words or with a progi'amme may be estimated by this something-more alone. This something-more is again indefinable; but it is something abstract and universal of which the particular manifestation — word, phrase, poem, or programme — is but one of many possible types or examples. When we hear that a certain work has been inspired by, or is the expression of, some particular emotion of its creator — his love for a par- ticular woman, his dislike of a particular class of his fellow- men, and so on — we understand, if the work is of any real significance, that these emotional incidents may have prompted the composer to express in universal terms some- thing of which they present a particular aspect. A great work is the expression not of one particular emotion but of thousands which have interacted upon one another and woven themselves into a complex mood. But art that does not express something infinitely greater than this little per- sonal complex is relatively unimportant — certainly not a manifestation of genius. In the majority of cases a composer could not detail incidents and emotions of daily life and trace back to them the impulse to create a particular work. But even where a clue is given, whether in some personal anecdote, or in a programme, or in a text which actually accompanies the music or is set to the music, the clue, the text, and the programme are only hints regarding the actual content of the music, even as one might affix an appropriate motto or quotation to a chapter-heading. The story of Newton and the apple is symbolically, even if not actually, true. Newton's theory of gravitation expressed, so to speak, not only the falling of apples, but also the movements of other bodies. It applied no less to apples than to other bodies; but had the discovery been one that related to apples alone, its importance would have been trifling. Thus the particular incident, emotion, mood, poem, or pro- 78 FREDERICK DELIUS gramme which provides the initial impulse for the creation of a musical work is expressed, but at the same time so expanded that its individual importance is dwarfed by the ulterior tsignificance of the finished work as a whole. We cannot, then, reach the heart of music through the text or programme with which it is associated. We may set the imagination to spin stories and to paint word-pictures of what the music has suggested to us once we have heard it; but even that fascinating game does not bring anyone who has not heard it very much nearer to the music itself, for music is not only an untranslatable but almost an unpara- phrasable language. But if we take the text or the pro- gramme as a mere starting-point, we may see in what direc- tion it is capable of expansion, we may feel how the composer has extracted something universal from a personal or a particular subject; and we may derive aesthetic satis- faction from observing how minute particulars are revealed, individually expressed but contained inevitably in the syn- thesis of the whole work. A superficial examination of some of the madrigalists, both Italian and English, of the late sixteenth century might lead one to suppose that they were unduly preoccupied with pictorialism and word-painting and that they paid greater attention to the verbal details of their poem than to its meaning and spirit. But on closer inspection we find many poems which, although possessing considerable charm and felicity of expression, have no very profound meaning : and yet the music to which they are allied seems charged with an intensity and depth of mean- ing that almost overwhelms them. This is more noticeable in the Italian than in the Enghsh madrigals; but it is evi- dent that words such as ' death,' ' pain,' ' care,' and many others were often treated by the composers in their full con- notation, regardless of their particular context. A poem of formal and stereotyped character, concerned with nothing more tragic than the impending demise of a rejected lover. H I S OPERAS 79 would serve as a framework over which a composer would weave a musical tapestry embodying his whole conception of mortality. And it is in this Ught that we must regard the texts of the operas and the choral works, in their relation to the music which Delius has associated with them. When A Village Romeo and Juliet was produced in Lon- don in 1 9 1 o, it was stigmatized by the reporters as * un- dramatic' But the word was hasty and ill-chosen. What was. meant was that the work was lacking in the melo- dramatic element which had characterized the favourite operas of the nineteenth century. The same criticism might be applied to Tristan and Isolde. When it was revived in 1920 London's musical newspaper-men collectively decided that Dehus' opera was not an opera at all. This brilliant discovery is almost as enlightening as the old proposition to the effect that Homer's works were not written by Homer - at all but by some one else of the same name. It is recorded that when Cesar Franck's symphony was produced, the fact that an english horn figured in the score was sufficient proof for one critic that the symphony could not be a sym- phony at all; the dear fellow was quite unaware that more than a century earlier Haydn had composed an indubitable symphony in which two of these disgraceful instruments were shamelessly employed throughout. It would seem that it is asking too much of the a.verage English critic to expect that he shall be able to discover what a composer has aimed at in his work before deciding whether he has achieved his aim or not. He has grown so accustomed to regard an opera as a mere play set to music that his sense of what is fit and proper to the form is very sadly perturbed when he is con- fronted with a work which is simply the overflowing of music on to the stage, the projection of emotions under- lying music into visible as well as audible reality. For Delius, as for Mozart, Weber, Wagner, and every other great operatic composer, opera is as much a musical form as the 80 FREDERICKDELIUS sonata or the symphony. In all music, in the classical sym- phony as much as in the modem symphonic poem, there is an underlying programme; the programme may be con- cerned with the abstract interplay of thought and emotion, or it may be derived from definite facts and occurrences in the external world — or rather with the emotions aroused by them — but in either case it is a programme. The difference between a concert and an operatic performance lies solely in this fact, that in the one case the programme of the music we hear is revealed to our ears and imagination alone, while in the other a particular and visible exemplification of it is put before our eyes to assist the workings of our imagination — but the imagination, the active faculty of reception, must be no less alert in the latter case than in the former. Music expresses in general terms what may be ex- emplified by particular instances, in words or actions : the music is, so to speak, a summary statement of a general pro- position, the explanatory examples are like similes or meta- phors which may refer to simple and commonplace episodes of everyday life, or may equally be the creations of a soar- ing imagination. I have said that the underlying programme may be of two kinds — roughly speaking, psychological on the one hand, factual on the other; but these two kinds are them- selves necessarily interrelated. The psychological programme can usually be exemplified by facts : and the programme of externals can be no more than the shadowing-forth of inner relations, for these exterior happenings can only assume a musical importance in so far as they symbolize or evoke their corresponding states of mind. Musical creations are, indeed, magical formulae for evoking particular states of mind in which the universal may be apprehended from par- ticular angles — or a complexity of such states of mind in a particular and ordered relation. These relations which can be generalized and so encompassed and expressed by music HISOPERAS 81 could not be even postulated in words without the aid of an impossible kind of psychological algebra. We cannot state an emotional crisis in words, but we can sometimes provide an example of how a particular individual will behave under the stress of such emotion, his words and actions expressing particularly a condition which music must necessarily generalize , however strong the individu- ality of its composer may be. Thus in an opera the plot or story is just an example, a visible particularization of what the music is telling us in broader and more universal terms. When a composer is said to be inspired by his subject, it is too often taken for granted that the subject itself suggested the work to him in the first instance, that he is adumbrating his subject as though it were a thing exterior to himself. So the music of an opera is supposed to have been generated by its text. In some cases this may be true; but in others, the majority, the subject or programme of a musical com- position is no more than a convenient framework upon which the composer may construct a work whose emotional or psychic basis was already clearly defined in his mind before he lit upon his subject. This explains the com- mon phenomenon of the composer who wants to write an opera but spends years — fruitlessly as a rule — ^looking for a suitable libretto. Sometimes he is driven in desperation to making it himself, and if he is not, as Wagner was, gifted with literary as well as musical ability the unaccustomed medium proves too much for him and the result is a failure which may result in the waste of much good music — as in the case of Delius' two earliest operas Irmelin and The Magic Fountain. For although opera is primarily a musical form, the libretto is by no means a negligible factor in its composition. But it is not the dominant factor. It is subser- vient to the music, but there must be no artistic disparity between text and music. The music should be not an illustra- tion of its text but a new presentation, in terms of another 82 FREDERICK DELIUS art, as well as an intensification of the elements of which the text was made; and the text is one of many other pos- sible illustrations of the emotional basis of the music which has its origin in the experience or in the imagination of the composer. And, as appreciation is the inversion and neces- sary correlative of creative activity, the sympathetic listener wHl recognize its truth in reference to his own experience or imagination. Each character in the drama is a medium into which the composer projects a part of himself, pro- viding common ground whereon he may meet the corres- ponding projections of each member of his audience. All oj>era of this kind is either parable or pure symbolism. But we cannot always have pure parable — a plain straight- forward story or ' plot ' and a complicated, exactly parallel inner story running alongside of it, with an ulterior moral or emotional significance. And the personification method of the mediaeval drama would somehow be unconvincing at the present day. We can sympathize with the protagonists in the crudest drama of love and jealousy and hatred when it is performed by real dramatis personce, even on the cinematograph, whereas if the matter were so far abstracted as to be played by mere personifications of the passions in- volved — as in the Moralities of the Middle Ages — ^we should be left cold and unmoved. To effect a nice balance between these two extremes is the problem that confronts the operatic composer and his librettist — ^those, that is to say, who realize that an opera must be something more than the addition of appropriate music to a self-subsistent play. The chief difficulty inherent in the problem is the necessity of avoiding particular detail which might tend to obscure or hinder the general development of the work, and yet at the same time to make the particular exemplification of the music shown on the stage a coherent and compact image of the initial conception. DeHus has by no means finally solved the problem either in A Village Romeo and Juliet or in his HISOPERAS 85 later opera, Fennimore and Gerda, but these works, to- gether with Bela Bartok's Bluebeard, are practically the only examples contemporary music can show of the prob- lem having been tackled with any great measure of success. The relation between the music and the drama in this kind of opera is in many respects similar to the relation between the respective contributions of the poet and traditional legend in the Greek drama. The Greeks took the plot of a play for granted; the story, in its bare outline, was always known beforehand, so that it was not necessary for the dramatist to expound it in every detail; a play was judged solely on the strength of the poet's treatment of a familiar subject. The parallel with modern opera is further shown by reference to the choruses in the Greek drama which almost invariably universalized the thought or emotion which has been expressed in a particular embodiment in the preceding scene; and one of the greatest effects in Greek drama is that species of irony which depends for its proper appreciation upon the fact that the audience as well as one of the characters on the stage is in possession of knowledge which is supposed to be as yet concealed from the other protagonist in the dialogue. Clearly, then, if the audience were not already acquainted with the plot of the whole play, many scenes would have been almost unintelligible. So it is with opera. The drama or action can only sketch out in rough outline the general drift of the work by a particular example : the intimate and subtle detail, which, paradoxi- cal as it may seem, is the means by which the particular example is made universal, must be left for the music to fill in. The story of A Village Romeo and Juliet, which is taken from a tale in Gottfried Keller's Folk of Seldwyla, is very simple. Manz and Marti are two farmers whose lands are separated only by a narrow strip of ground which has been let run wild since the death of its former owner. The right- 84 FREDERICKDELIUS ful heir is the latter's bastard son, known as the Dark Fiddler, but he has turned vagabond and cannot or will not claim his estate. This strip of wild land has been the play- ground of Manz's son Sali and Marti's daughter Vrenchen from their earliest years. Little by little each of the two farmers surreptitiously encroaches upon the untilled field, until one day there is a violent quarrel over it and each goes his way in anger taking his child with him. Years pass : the anger of the two farmers persists, resulting in a long- drawn-out action at law which so far from benefiting either reduces both of them to the verge of beggary. But the en- forced separation and loneliness have unconsciously ripened the early friendship of the children into love, and they meet in secret on the wild land which seems to stand in their lives for glamour and romance, a blessed retreat from the dreary world of commonplace existence ; there the wind whispers thrilling secrets, and the mysterious music of the Dark Fiddler who comes and goes like the wind, no one knows whence or whither, is like an invitation into a future bright with golden expectations. But there comes a day when Marti spies them out, and in a great rage tries to tear his daughter from her lover's arms. Sali promptly fells him to the ground and when we next hear of him he has become a permanent inmate of the lunatic asylum. Vrenchen is now left quite alone and destitute. Sali comes to her on the last night she may spend in her old home; they fall asleep together by the dying embers of the fire and both dream that they are being married in the old church of Seldwyla. But reality breaks in upon their dream with the light of dawn. Sali tries to show a bold face and cheer- fully declares that their dream shall all come true, but Vrenchen is less hopeful and pathetically cries out for one long, happy, care-free day with her lover. So they go out into the world together, penniless and friendless. They come to a great fair — effective microcosm of the world — but their HISOPERAS 85 hopes of an innocent day's enjoyment are soon frustrated by the malicious tongues of local busybodies, which begin to wag furiously when they are observed together. And so they wander ruefully away towards another place the still- hopeful Sali knows of : and this is called the Garden of Paradise. It is really a tumble-down old inn by a river at the foot of the mountains. Here, Sali feels sure, they will be quite unknown and there will be no country gossip to m_ake hurtful remarks about them. But there is no peace for them here. While they are even on their way to the Garden of Paradise, the Dark Fiddler is already sitting there with his disreputable associates, relating to them, without malice but with a certain amount of sardonic humour, the peculiar story of Manz and Marti and their children. The lovers have no sooner reached the garden then they are recognized and greeted by the Dark Fiddler with a kindly invitation that they should join him and his company in their vaga- bond life in the mountains. We are w^anderers, they say — the Fiddler and the Slim girl, the Wild girl, the poor horn- player and the hump-backed bass-viol player — vagabonds : we own nothing, live nowhere, roaming always from place to place, free, merry, and careless, with a song ever on our lips, journeying onwards towards the setting sun. The proposal sounds attractive. Are we not also vaga- bonds and outcasts, say the lovers, and wandering through the world? Life with these people might be kinder than it was with those we knew — and so long as we are together, what matter where we go ? ' Ay,' says the Slim girl, leering at Sali, *and when you tire of each other, there will be others waiting for you.' The vagabonds are making a night of it and the drink is flowing freely. They are inclined to laugh at the luckless lovers for being so innocent and un- wordly-wise, but they are none the less ready to welcome them among themselves if they care to take to the moun- tains and the open roads. But Sali and Vrenchen know 86 FREDERICK DELIUS instinctively that such a life can never be for them. Some intuition tells them that the clamorous and drunken vaga- bonds, well-intentioned though they may be within their limitations, would break in upon their innocence and their illusions and rob them of their dearest dreams. These chil- dren, unwitting in their wisdom, have come into the world with foreknowledge of evil, forewarned against the forces that accomplish the soul's corruption and disintegration. Death were a thousand times to be preferred to the tar- nishing of the faith that is in them, to the slow fading of that dream which had been their best ideal, their great illusion. They seal their compact with a kiss and even as they do so, the rising moon floods the garden with its soft, mellow light, and all things around them seem of a sudden trans- formed and charged with a strange, unearthly beauty. Out of the mist, from the far distance, there floats along the river the voice of a boatman : ' Heigho, wind, sing long, sing low. Travellers we a-passing by ! ' But it seems like a voice from Eternity calling mournfully across the sands of Time, the voice of a sentinel on the frontiers of life and death, who, Janus-like, sur\^eys the dominions of Time and the timeless country beyond the grave. ' Shall we too,' says Sali, 'drift down the river?' And Vrenchen, adds in echo of his thoughts, ' and drift away for ever.' The lovers are on the brink of an ecstasy which life has no more power to annihilate. ' See,' they cry, ' the moon- beams kiss the woods, the fields, and all their flowers : and the river softly singing seems to beckon us. And listen ! far- off sounds of music startle trembling echoes that rise and fall again and die where the sunset's glow yet lingers. Ah, where the echoes dare to wander, shall we two not dare to go?' At this point ribald laughter and a wild sound of fiddling bursts from the inn where the vagabonds are now consider- ably more than half-seas-over. The clash of esctasies is HISOPERAS 87 admirable : we see the world of the lovers and the world of the vagabonds and the gulf that is fixed between them. There is a barge filled with hay moored to the river-bank. ' Look, our marriage-bed await us/ cries Sali, and when they have drifted a little way down the river he pulls the plug from the bottom of the boat and casts it into the river. From the far distance the voice of the boatman comes fainter and fainter : ' Heigho, travellers we a-passing by ! ' The work is described on the title page as a ' lyrical drama in six pictures.' It is virtually in three acts with a prologue; the second and third pictures are merged music- ally into one, while between the fifth and sixth occurs the miraculously lovely orchestral interlude which is in itself an epitome of the whole drama. In the prologue Sail and Vrenchen are yet children, so that their parts — both soprani — have to be taken by different singers from those who play them in the succeeding scenes. The prologue shows the two farmers ploughing their respective fields on a fine spring morning, the children playing in the wild land, and the Dark Fiddler appearing like a visitant from the Unknown, bringing Beauty and Sorrow ever together in his company. The Fiddler is a compassionate rather than a sinister figure, as some have imagined him. He seems to be throughout a rather shadowy figure of fatality; a bastard denuded alike of his spiritual as of his material birthright, he is immune from sorrow and incapable of simple joy. He stands a little aloof from life, appearing mysteriously from his wild land which is a half-forgotten, half-desolate fairy-land whose very weeds have beauty. The prologue ends with the far- mers' quarrel. The second picture shows us Marti's house six years later, in a sorry state of neglect. It is here that the young lovers meet again : and the third picture takes us back to the wild land where they hold their secret trysts. The fourth picture shows Vrenchen alone by her ruined hearth, and in a transformation we see the dream-wedding. 88 FREDERICKDELIUS In the fifth picture we have the fair and in the last the Garden of Paradise. Each scene is a gHmpse taken directly from the continuity of the unhappy lovers' existence. There is no quickening the action for melodramatic purposes, no rearrangement of circumstances for the sake of a situation. It is but natural that the figures in the play seem unsubstan- tial and the action dream-like. The whole work is charged with an atmosphere of mystery : through it all there blows a wind as from a far country. There was a wonderful moment in the 1920 production when the curtain rose on the last scene, after that almost unbearably tragic entr'acte, and revealed the gaunt figure of the Dark Fiddler, out- cast of mankind and brother of the winds of heaven, with arms outstretched towards the distant mountains. The sense of spiritual exile conveyed by this one gesture, which paralleled to perfection the strange and haunting music of distant horns which it accompanied, was extraordinarily moving; and in a really sensitive production the work would be full of such moments of intensity. The keynote of the work lies in those words of the boatman : ' Heigho, travels lers we a-passing by.' What lies beyond is shrouded in mys- tery, but there is no staying the journey onwards, ever on- wards towards the setting sun. And this theme runs like an undercurrent all through the works of Delius. To praise the music of this opera and cavil at the drama, as so many critics have done, is simply to expose the fact that the meaning of the music itself has not been grasped; for the drama is literally but the overflowing of the music from the region of the audible into that of the visible. If opera be defined as perfect co-relation between music and action, then A Village Romeo and Juliet is one of the most flawless masterpieces that have ever been given to the world. There is never any disparity between the music and the action ; if the drama of the work is ' undramatic ' (accord- ing to the Italian-opera scale of values), then the music is HISOPERAS 89 too. But this is an unessential adjective/ What really matters is that the work is vitally ex/pressive and that it illuminates things which matter in the lives of us all : and if this is not covered by the word dramatic, so much the worse for the word. A Village Romeo and Juliet has all the poignant beauty of a fairy-stoiy cut short by disillusion and robbed of its happy ending. It is an elegy on the pitiful fate of trusting innocence at the hands of relentless chance. But even chance — which is to some extent symbolized through- out by the Dark Fiddler — is subject to a higher law and fulfils its purpose in the world in obedience not to the mali- cious caprice of its own tyrannical will, but to a compelling necessity. The executioner may pity his victim and doubt the justice of his sentence, but he is powerless to save him. The specific reasons why Manz and Marti quarrel and why in the end the lovers find life impossible together and in- tolerable apart would be unimportant even if they were not obvious. The inevitable facts remain, and the triviality or apparent unreason of the causes of a tragedy only intensify the pathos of the situation when it has actually arisen. You ^ Mr. W. J. Turner has written very sensibly on this point in con- nection with the work [Music and Life). He says : ' The lovers are strangely passive. They pass through the scenes of the opera like the children of a dream. It is the love of mediaeval times rather than love as operatic composers know it — that love which, like a malady of the flesh, took hold of the patient so that he forgot all the duties of this life and went his way with eyes that saw nothing of the world around him. How ridiculous it is to complain that this story is not dramatic ! One might as well complain of Burgundy for not sparkling ! The fact is, our operatic public has got so used to fat tenors brandishing cardboard swords, and to daggers, poison, and revolvers, and to abductions, seductions, and desertions, that they do not know what to make of such a strange, inert, flowerless passion as that of Sali and Vrenchen,' But if one may judge by the enthusiastic appreciation displayed by the three very large audiences that heard the work at Covent Garden in 1920, the public knew far better than the professional critics what to make of it. And it should be remembered that opera is dealt with in our newspapers by the so-called musical, not by the dramatic, critics. Mr. Turner is an exception to the rule, a dramatic as well as a musical critic — and a poet into the bargain. 90 FREDERICKDELIUS and I might have been quite content to go and get drunk with the Wild girl and the Slim girl and the hump-backed bass-viol player, but Sali and Vrenchen thirsted for the Infinite : and we should not forget that many of the speci- fic causes for which the martyrs and heroes of history have willingly laid down their lives will always appear incom- prehensibly trivial to people of other times, other manners, and other temperaments. The tragedy of A Village Romeo and Juliet is the tragedy of unreasonable children crying for an impossible moon that they would not suffer reason to eclipse. Who shall say that they sold their lives too cheaply ? Who indeed can deny them their victory ? Such a work, naturally, presents extraordinary difficulties to the producer. I have already quoted Delius' dictum that the singers must act from the music and not from the stage, and it is clear that action in opera — whether modem or ancient — ^should differ as essentially from action in drama as speech differs from song, that it should be suggestive and symbolic rather than realistic and representative. Intimacy is a further essential in the staging of a work of this kind, but economic conditions and the necessity of accommoda- ting a large orchestra generally make its realization in a small and intimate theatre impossible. The orchestral prob- lem has already led one or two composers to turn their thoughts to a form of ' chamber opera,' which in the matter of resources needed for its production should bear the same relation to the so-called ' grand ' opera, as the orchestral symphony bears to the string quartet. This form of opera would impose severe limitations upon the composer, but the prospect of engaging and accommodating (to say nothing of paying) an orchestra of a hundred performers for the production of an opera with a cast of one^ like Schonberg's Erwartung, is even more formidable in these days. It is possible that the orchestra in the opera-house may one day be supplanted by the gramophone, but before HISOPERAS 91 this can happen the existing machine will have to be im- proved beyond all recognition. Apart from this one great difficulty, what we may call the chamber-ideal in the pro- duction of opera is admirable. ' Grand ' opera and the conditions attendant upon its production are incompatible with any high degree of psychological subtlety. Moreover, the complex and multifarious nature of the paraphernalia required for grand spectacular productions involves a de- centralization of control which is fatal to the unity of the performance. Chamber opera demands only a small cur- tained stage on which variety and subtlety of lighting will for the most part take the place of realistic scenery, and external artifice will only be employed for the purpose of lighting up that interior theatre of the soul wherein the real drama is enacted for each individual spectator. The whole production should be controlled by one man — pre- ferably the composer himself — who must be versed in the symbology not of music alone but of gesture and light and colour also. Every movement and expression of the players, every gradation of light as well as every note of the music, must be under his direct control : for thus and only thus shall we obtain a whole and unitary work of art in that form which has hitherto given us little but confused tauto- logies. In A Village Romeo and Juliet , although there is an os- tensible story, it is impossible to regard the characters as the mere individuals of Gottfried Keller's novel. They have been transformed into symbolical types which move and have their being in a vision of human life aloof and mys- terious. In Fennimore and Gerda (composed eight years later than A Village Romeo and Juliet) the characters are not in the least mysterious. The libretto is derived from Jens Peter Jacobsen's Niels Lyhne,^ a novel of compara- ^ For some reason or other the only English translation of the book is called Siren Voices. 92 FREDERIGKDELIUS tively modern life, and in many passages Jacobsen's actual dialogue has been retained verbatim in the translation set to music. Yet the form of the work has been wholly pres- cribed by musical considerations and the libretto is every- where subordinate to the requirements of the music. It is described as ' two episodes in the life of Niels Lyhne.' Like A Village Romeo and Juliet it is divided into ' pictures ' instead of acts and scenes, but these are briefer and more concise than those of the earlier opera, and the whole work is slighter and more concentrated in form than its prede- cessor. Every ' picture ' is musically self-subsistent and self- contained, generally built about an initial theme or rhythmic figure. The logical development and flow of the music are never interrupted for the sake of thrusting words into prominence and the commonplaces of ordinary con- versation are not underlined by any musical commentary, but each picture is dominated by a mood. The whole work plays but an hour and a half. After the second picture and after the ninth picture pauses are designed to mark the lapse of an interval of time in the action; and after the fourth picture there is a full close but no pause. Except for these breaks the music is continuous, the pictures being connected by orchestral interludes which are so short as, happily, to preclude the possibility of an elaborately realis- tic mounting of the opera. The longest picture — which is the last — occupies but fourteen pages of the vocal score, and the shortest four, there being eighty-one pages in all. Without any prelude the curtain rises upon a room, in the house of Consul Claudi — the action takes place in Den- mark. Fennimore, his daughter, is working at her embroi- dery while her cousin, Niels Lyhne, sits at her feet. They are talking over their childhood. Fennimore is impatient at the monotony of her home life and longs to go out into the world in quest of new experiences. Niels, on the other hand, is a dreamer who is well content where he is. ' I want no HISOPERAS 93 wider world than this,' he exclaims. ' Out in the world one feels a longing for home — and perhaps one's true home is a kindred spirit whom one loves.' He is on the point of declaring his love to his cousin when they are interrupted by the appearance of Erik Refstrup, Niels' best friend, in whom Fennimore is obviously more interested than in the dreamy Niels. It begins to rain. Erik calls for a song and Fennimore unlocks her heart with a romantic ballad : . Young Svanhild sat alone and sighed Of freedom and joy despairing. ' Over yonder's the land of my dreams/ she said ' And it's thither I would be faring ' . . . The curtain descends and, after an entr'acte of twenty- nine bars, rises to reveal the lower end of the Claudi's gar- den, which stretches down to the edge of the fjord. There is a little landing-stage overshadowed by trees, and here Erik and Fennimore are discovered together in a boat. It is late evening, and the sound of singing is heard from over the water — a long-sustained melody without words for a tenor voice behind the scene. Hearing the approach of a second boat, Erik and Fennimore disappear into the garden. The other boat arrives rowed by Niels and containing Consul Claudi, his wife, and a friend. They disembark and make for the house, while Niels remains behind to moor the boat. But Erik and Fennimore reappear and Niels quickly con- ceals himself in the shadow of the trees. A swift love-scene ensues (twenty-eight bars in all) and Niels is left alone in despair. Three years pass. Erik and Fennimore, now married, are living in a house on the Mariagerf jord. Disappointment has come to both of them. Fennimore is disillusioned about her husband, who has taken to drink, Erik about his talent as a painter. He stares moodily at the sea. Fennimore re- proaches him for not working any longer at his art. He replies that he needs new impression, new influences, to 94 FREDERICKDELIUS stimulate him. Niels Lyhne has been invited for a visit and presently arrives. While Erik is helping the porter to carry in his luggage, Fennimore implores Niels to do all he can to pull Erik out of the slough of despond into which he has fallen. ' Day after day he broods his time away, and when the day is done his dreadful friends take him off and keep him drinking all night long.' Erik returns, followed by a maid bearing bottles and glasses. Fennimore leaves the two men to themselves and there is some semblance of joviality as they light their cigars and drink each other's health. The curtain falls, and there is an entfacte of four bars. The next picture shows the same scene, but late in the evening. The two friends have been talking over old times. Erik speaks of the gradual falling away of all his bright hopes and illusions. ' At times a sense of despair comes over me. I sit and work and nothing come^ of it — and time is gliding by with relentless haste. Oh, with relentless haste ! Whenever I paint a picture I feel that the time it has taken me is mine for ever although it's past and gone. But think of all the years I've lived and created nothing ! ' Niels ad- vises him to travel, but this seems only to increase his anxiety. He regards travel as a last resource on which he is afraid to embark for fear of finding that that, too, is useless, and so proving to himself once and for all that his career as an artist is at an end. This is the most powerful and subtly wrought scene in the whole work. The next picture shows Erik seated at his easel, morose and listless, unable to achieve anything. Five of his boon companions, on their way to the fair at Aalborg, invite him to join them. At first he declines. Then one of them — a broken-down schoolmaster — taunts him : ' I see you are much too busy with your immortal paintings.' Wearily he consents to go with them. Fennimore begs him to stay at home, but it is useless. ' I must have company.' ' But you have Niels : a better friend you'll never find.' ' Niels ! He HISOPERAS 95 no longer understands me.' Fennimore watches him go, then bursts into tears. Niels comes in and she composes herself. She asks him what Erik was like as a boy, and he speaks of his friend with loyalty and enthusiasm : ' He was all that a boy should be : brave and handsome, a lad of impulse, alert and active, always given to wild pranks and madcap adventures.' ' How strange then,' says Fennimore, ' that he should have wanted to become an artist ! ' Niels bids her think of him as he was when she first fell in love with him. She replies that she has too often brooded over that time. With a sudden impulse she stretches out her hands to Niels and begs him to stand by her in her trouble. ' You'll be my friend, Niels, always ....?' The curtain is lowered for a few bars, and the next pic- ture shows us the same room in the cold grey twilight of morning. Fennimore has been waiting for the return of Erik, who presendy staggers in, completely drunk, and col- lapses on a sofa. A brief interlude (very much akin to the slow middle section of Brigg Fair) ushers in the seventh picture : the birch forest in autumn. In this scene the pas- sion that has been smouldering between Niels and Fenni- more, despite their vain struggles to suppress it, bursts into flame. It is a scene of swift movement and a despairing sort of intensity, with a sinister sense of autumn for a back- ground, to remind the lovers of the years that are gone and of the brevity and uncertainty of their stolen hours of happiness. The two concluding pictures of the Fennimore episode take place in the depth of winter. The fjord is frozen and the ground is covered with snow. Niels is now living on the other side of the fjord. Erik has gone to Aalborg for the day with his friends, and Fennimore is impatiently awaiting a promised visit from Niels. There is a feeling of tense, almost hysterical expectancy in the air. Suddenly the maid brings in a telegram. Erik is dead. He has met with an accident 96 FREDERICKDELIUS and they are bringing him home. Fennimore, in a frenzy of remorse, rushes out to meet Niels, curses him for having betrayed his friend and her, and bids him be gone for ever. Four dark figures approach, bearing the body of Erik, and Fennimore falls insensible to the ground . . . Three years elapse. We see Niels on his farm at Lonborggard in harvest- time. The labourers are singing in the fields. Niels, resigned and middle-aged, reflects upon the past and consoles him- self in his present devotion to the ' old All-Mother of us all,' an idyllic and tranquil scene. The last picture gives us the second ' episode ' in his life — his courtship of Gerda, a sentimental little girl not yet out of her teens, with whom, we are led to believe, he settled down on his farm and lived happily ever after. The addition of this second episode is a mistake from several points of view. It is artistically wrong in that it does not bear any essential relation to what has preceded it, in the sense of having evolved naturally from the rest of the drama. It is like a happy ending arbi- trarily tacked on to a very finished tragedy. Jacobsen's novel does not by any means end happily. The short respite in Niels' melancholy existence pictured in the second episode is abruptly terminated by the death of Gerda and the book concludes with a particuarly hor- rible desription of the death of Niels himself in a military hospital after he has been wounded in action. There is, of course, no reason why Delius — who is only selecting from Jacobsen such passages as suit his musical purpose — should follow him to the bitter end, any more than that he should begin at the beginning of the novel and trace Niels' career from childhood onwards. It is the disproportion and psy- chological falsity of the ^ last section that jar. It is like a sugar-plum designed to take away the taste of the pre- ceding tragedy, and one resents this, for the tragedy is con- vincingly complete in itself, and though it deals with but one episode, epitomizes the whole life of Niels Lyhne as HISOPERAS 97 Jacobsen conceived it. There is also a purely practical reason for the omission of the last two pictures. The Gerda episode occupies but one-fifth of the whole work; but that fifth is just long enough to make a programme containing Fennimore and Gerda as well as another opera too long, while Fennimore and Gerda alone does not constitute what the Germans call an abendjullendes Werk, This fact alone has undoubtedly hindered the performance of the work at several German opera-houses which would otherwise have been glad to take it into their repertory. It must not be supposed from the somewhat detailed ex- position given above of the scape of opera as exemplified in the works of Delius that Delius started his musical career with a theory and set out to write a series of works in which it might be embodied. Far from it. The processes by which he has attained the remarkable skill which has enabled him to achieve in A Village Romeo and Juliet a very perfect form of symbolical music-drama and in Fennimore and Gerda a very beautiful example of realistic opera as dis- tinct from a realistic play set to music, must be sought for in his musical development alone. In addition to the two works that have been discussed, there are four others of which the libretti are very far from fulfilling the conditions he would at present demand. The earliest, Irmelin, is a fairy-tale of quite ordinary kind, and its form is dramatic- ally rather below the level of the conventional operatic text. Though the music was much praised by Grieg and Mes- sager at the time of its composition, its performance w^as never seriously contemplated by the composer. The Magic Fountain and Koanga which followed it are musically on a far higher level, though their texts and construction are decidedly ' operatrical.' Margot-la-Rouge, a one-act opera written for a competi- tion, is sheer medodrama. There is hardly a trace of the fami- liar Delius from beginning to end and it seems as if he had 4 98 FREDERICKDELIUS deliberately ' written down ' to the well-known competition level in this opera. The story deals with a French soldier's discovery of his long-lost sweetheart plying for hire in a disreputable Paris cafe. Knives are drawn and the curtain descends upon a pile of corpses. It is all as ' dramatic ' as you please — and quite pointless. None of these works has been published and, of the four, only Koanga has been performed. This work and The Magic Fountain — early products of Delius' Florida impressions — contain many characteristic pages which, viewed in the light of the later works, look like sketches for certain passages in Appalachia, Sea-Drift, and A Mass of Life. Had they been published at the time when they were written, they would have appeared sufficiently remarkable and original ; and even now Koanga and The Magic Fountain might well be revived with a very fair measure of success, though it is doubtful whether they would add anything to the reputation of the comjxDser of A Village Romeo and Juliet. This consummate masterpiece, with which none of the earlier operas can be compared, is still too little known — it has not had more than six or seven performances in all — and its frequent repetition would serve a better purpose than the production of any of the other operas.^ * During the last few years Delius has talked of Wuthering Heights and Deirdre of the Sorrows as subjects which appealed to him for musical treatment, but so far nothing has come of either project. The task of arranging a series of ' pictures ' from Emily's Bronte's great novel in the form of a libretto would seem to be almost impossible. Deirdre is a more obvious theme, by which several composers — notably Fritz Hart — have already been attracted. in HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS IT is but natural, when we turn .from the ostensibly dramatic works of Delius to. his choral and orchestral compositions which are based upon or allied with a poetic text, that we should find far less divergence of style between his activities in the two forms than we are accustomed to meet with in other composers. Such differences as are apparent are conditioned entirely by the exigencies of theatrical representation; in both kinds the form and struc- ture of the music are equally plastic, always determined by musical rather than by textual considerations. Sea-Drift is essentially a dramatic work, but there is no such definite cast as even the most elastic form of opera would demand. The sea-setting is suggested at the outset by the orchestra, and, in colours which change and vary with the changing emotions of the poem as the lights must vary in the theatre, is continually brought before the mind throughout the work. Whitman's poem tells in simple and poignant words the story of two birds, who built their nest in a lonely place by the seashore, and of a boy who watched them at mating time, ' every day, cautiously peering, absorbing, translating.' Until one day the she-bird disappeared and was seen no more. ' And thenceforward all summer in the sound of the sea, and at night under the full of the moon ... I saw, I heard at intervals the remaining one, the solitary 99 100 FREDERICK DELIUS guest from Alabama.' Sometimes the boy narrates, at others the chorus takes up his reading of the story — for the tragedy is enacted in the soul of the lonely boy — and personifies the he-bird calling upon the ¥/inds and the stars in accents alternating between elation and despair to bring back the loved one he has lost. It is impossible without quoting the whole poem to give an adequate impression of the wide range of its emotion, and of the way in w^hich the passion of the w^ords and music rises and falls with a perfection of poise and cadence that seems to echo the very sound of the sea itself, uniting the story and its setting in a single vision that grips the imagination with an almost uncanny tenacity. In this music we seem to hear the very quintessence of all the sorrow and unrest that man can feel because of love. It is the veritable drama of love and death, an image of the mystery of separation. The soul, distracted by doubt, rises in impassioned protest against the unheeding stars; but confronted at every turn by darkness and silence, it sinks down into a sort of numbness of endurance, and, when all that it has loved and hoped for seems to have fallen away, it rises again to re-create the past, to clothe it in a vesture of imperishable reality. The unity and formal perfection of this work embody the realization that all was fore-ordained, the future implicit in the past. Fate is accepted from the beginning : only for a moment does rebellion stir; and in the tragic annihilation of all that life has seemed to offer is found in the end a deeper truth and a more lasting beauty. Sea-Drift is a lyrical utterance : A Mass of Life is a work of epic grandeur. It would last perhaps an hour and a half in performance, exclusive of intervals. But, although it is made up of eleven separate movements, it is no less all-of-a-piece than Sea-Drift, which plays without a break from beginning to end, so carefully are the different sections proportioned and balanced one against another, and so HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 101 magnificently is the final climax approached. After what has already been said of the relation between music and its text, one need not emphasize the fact that this work is not an ' attempt to set philosophy to music/ as it has been foolishly described. It is Nietzsche, the poet — an incom- parably greater man than Nietzsche, the philosopher — who has been drawn upon for the text; one might almost say Nietzsche, the musician, for when his creative imagina- tion soars highest his very words ' aspire towards the condi- tion of music,' seeking to express a wider significance than words alone can ever convey. Nietzsche, the philosopher, is often at variance with himself as well as with the world, but Nietzsche, the poet-musician, is at one with the great mystics of all the ages. And Delius is, indeed, a pantheistic mystic whose vision has been attained by an all-embracing acceptation, a ' yea-saying ' to life. Such a mind has become so profoundly conscious of the life of all nature that it has begun to perceive the great rhythms of life itself : so that all things seem to live and have their being in itself, filling it with a sense of such deep peace and beauty that the conditions of separate existence in the self become intolerable to it. A Mass of Life, from its first triumphant choral invocation of the will of man to the stupendous closing hymn to Eternity wherein the heart would break for very excess of joy, is an epic of initiation, of the bringing to birth of God in man. The message of Zarathustra is the same as the message of Hermes Trisme- gistos and of Blake : Thou art a man — God is no more; Thine own humanity learn to adore. And — ' Jesus Christ is the only God, and so are you and so am L' It is the great ' yea-saying ' to life, the realization that change and death are only apparent, that joy is in the end deeper than sorrow, though weeping may endure for the night of time, and that all seeming discords are but the 102 FREDERICK DELIUS components of a greater harmony. In a series of symbolical pictures there is laid before us Man's progress from time to eternity. Here Delius has essayed the most tremendous subject that can provide poet or musician with a theme, for it is an epitome of all subjects. He has succeeded trium- phantly in his task, and has produced a work which in its grandeur and breadth of vision and overwhelming beauty is the equal of the most monumental achievements of the great masters of music. The double chorus bursts in at the second bar of the work with a magisterial invocation : ' Oh thou my will, thou that canst shatter my misfortune, preserve me from all trivial victories ! Oh thou predestined guardian of my soul, whom I call Fate ! Thou who art in me and above me ! Preserve me for one great and final triumph ; that at the great noontide I may be ready to answer the call of myself and of my most secret will' {^arathustra LVI. 30). Then Zarathustra speaks : ' Lift up your hearts, my brothers ! And lift up your legs as well, and dance : or better still stand right up on your heads ! This rosy crown of laughter which I have set upon my head, I throw to you, my brothers. Laughter I pronounce holy. Ye higher mortals, learn of me — to laugh' {Zarathustra LXXHI. 17- 20). There follows the song of Man the lover in pursuit of Life his beloved {^arathustra LIX. i). The movement, beginning quietly with a duet for the soprano and tenor soli, gradually becomes more animated until the chorus enters with an exciting double-fugue — the first ' dance- song.' The tumult dies away, the dance-song is heard but faintly from a distance, and Life, in another aspect, turns to Zarathustra and addresses him : ' Oh Zarathustra, far away from good and evil we found our island and our green meadows — we two alone ! So needs it must be that we love one another. Oh Zarathustra, thou art not faithful enough to me. There is an old deep bell tolling. Hark to HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 103 this bell tolling at midnight and meditate upon its tolling. Oh Zarathustra, I know that thou wilt soon be leaving me.' And softly in the background the male chorus enters with the words that accompany the tolling of the midnight bell which sounds from the orchestra : ' Oh Man, give ear ! What saith deep Midnight? I was asleep and from the depths of my dreams I awoke. The world is deep, yea deeper far than day believed. Deep is its woe : but joy is deeper yet than grief of heart. Woe saith : Be gone ! But all joy craves for the Infinite, joy yearns after eternity.' Zarathustra echoes the words of the tolling bell, and the movement closes with Zarathustra and Life gazing upon each other in the green meadow in the cool of the evening, and weeping quietly together. The transition from the breathless exhilaration of the love-chase to the contemplative mood which is its reaction is beautifully achieved in the music which dies away in twilight and tranquillity. But this deep peace is quickly broken in upon by a mood full of misgivings verging on madness : ' Woe is me : Whither is time fled ? Have I not descended into deep wells? The world sleeps. Ah, the hound bays and the moon shines ! Rather will I die than tell you what my heart at midnight ponders. Now am I dead already. All is over. Spider that spinn'st around me, cravest thou blood? Ah, the dew is falling and the hour approaching, that hour which asks and asks again insist- ently : Who hath the heart to face it ? Who shall be lord of the world?' But night falls ever again, and the world's unrest is soothed with the ripple of waters through the silence of the night. ' 'Tis night,' says Zarathustra, ' now all the love-songs of the world awake. My soul, too, is a love- song. Something instilled that naught can ever still stirs in my heart and longs to find a voice. A longing for love is in me, and that speaketh the speech of love. Light am I : ah, would that I were darkness ! This is my solitude, that 104 FREDERICKDELIUS I am girt about with light. Oh solitude of the creative ones ! From what lonely silences gleam out the Hghts of the world ! ' The music is wrapped round in the mantle of night, the darkness and the silence are broken only by the murmur of waters and the distant sighing of the song of love. So ends the first part of the Mass. In the second part we find Zarathustra in the midst of his meditations among the mountains. After a quiet orchestral prelude the spirit of energetic activity once more asserts itself in an exulting chorus : ' Arise, now, up, thou glorious noontide ! The sea rages. Onward, away, old sea- farers ! . . . Gone is the lingering sadness of my spring. Now am I become all summer and a summer noontide — a summer on the heights with cool springs of water and thrice-blessed stillness. Oh come, my companions, that our stillness maybe yet more blessed. For these are our heights, our homeland, and we are neighbours of the eagles, neigh- bours of the snow, neighbours to the very sun itself ! ' Then Zarathustra speaks to his lyre, his muse : ' From long ago and far away thy voice sings to me, it wells up out of the still pools of love the pain of all ages hath torn at thine heart. Thy voice is ripe as the golden autumn, akin to this lonely heart of mine ; and thou sayest : The grapes wax golden and fain would die — of joy would they die. Ye higher mortals, do ye not scent a secret perfume rising up, the scent of Eternity, perfume of perfect joy. golden and mellow as old wine, perfume of midnights' old ecstatic death which cries : the world is deep, yea, deeper far than day believed.' In the next movement we have the second dance-song {^arathustra XXXII. i). Zarathustra is wandering through a forest at eventide and suddenly he comes upon a clearing where young girls are dancing together on the greensward. (The music is for four-part female choir, without words, and orchestra.) As soon as they become aware of the philo- HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 105 sopher's presence they scatter in alarm. But he reassures them and begs them not to interrupt their dancing. ' No spoil-sport am I, but intercessor 'twixt God and the Devil, who surely is naught but the spirit of heaviness. I am a forest, a night of darkling branches. Whoso fears not my darkness will find fair banks of roses beneath its cypress shade.' The dance is resumed — now wilder and more vigorous than before. But after a while the maidens weary of their pleasure and troop away into the wood. The twi- light' deepens and Zarathustra is left alone with his thoughts. Here as elsewhere throughout the work the voice of evening seems to breathe secrets of hidden things into his ear. His mood is one of exalted, almost ecstatic melan- choly. ' The sun has long gone down. The meadows are dewy and the woods breathe coolness. The Unknown steals upon me and gazes through my eyes reflectively. What, liv'st thou still, Zarathustra? Why? For what purpose? By what means? And whither farest thou? Is it not folly to be still alive ?' From the far distance, very faintly, the voices of the dancing maidens re-echo through the wood. ' Ah, my friends, it is the evening that questions me thus. Forgive me my sadness, forgive me that evening has fallen upon me.' And as the distant voices die away, the movement comes to an almost imperceptible close . . . Zarathustra has fallen asleep beneath a tree in the meadows in the heat of noontide. The shepherds' pipes are heard in the distance — a lovely colloquy of oboe, English horn, and bass oboe against a background of strings. The world dreams in the sunshine and silence and solitude. ' Hush, disturb me not,' cries Zarathustra ; ' the earth is now made perfect. Oh golden rondure of the world ! Who art thou then, my soul? How little suffices for thy perfect bliss ! ' The chorus murmurs in a mood of deep and quiet and passionate contentment : ' Oh joy. Oh joy. Oh joy ! ' and the music fades into silence. But Zarathustra's heart 4* 106 FREDERICK DELIUS is Still full of unearthly longing. As midnight draws near, he calls his friends about him — for midnight is the solemn hour of initiation, when the soul may take wings and soar into the higher regions which are its home. The music grows richer and more sombre. ' Come forth, come forth ! The hour is ripe : let us wander forth into the night ! ' And softly at first, but gradually swelling to a greater volume of sound, we hear the ancient bell of midnight tolling, and the secret voices of night bidding man take heed of what the solemn tolling speaks to him. The hymn of joy that overspans the gulf of time is heard again, no longer in a distant undertone, but with the full strength of the chorus — joy that would over-reach itself in an in- articulate paean of exultation. And the last great shout of triumph fades away into a lingering echo wherein all the voices of creation seem to utter the word : Eternity ! . . . This colossal work, without a doubt the greatest musical achievement since Wagner, a Mass worthy to rank beside the great Mass of Sebastian Bach^ is as yet almost entirely unknown, even to musicians and those who profess to be in touch with the most recent developments of the art. It may be that, in this age of superficiality in art, its very profundity militates against it. But such music is proof against the neglect of the age which gave it birth. It is, in the fullest sense of the word, a deeply religious work, and one can imagine a more spiritually enlightened genera- tion performing it as a solemn ritual in some gigantic open- air theatre, year after year at the coming-in of summer. From A Mass of Life to the Requiem is indeed a far cry : it is a transition from the truly sublime to something very near the ridiculous. The text of the Requiem is purely nega- tive and strikes one at first sight as being a direct denial of the spirit which all Delius' music asserts and proclaims, the living spirit which has found such noble utterance parti- cularly in A Mass of Life. With as much dogmatic self- HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 107 assurance as the most bigoted Christian ever mustered to proclaim the terrors of a material Hell, the anonymous librettist denies the imimortality of the soul and survival of human consciousness as though there were something immoral and offensive in the very possibility. One sees clearly enough that he has only aimed at denying the eschatology of the Christian Churches — an occupation which many people would compare to the flogging of a dead horse. But the result is a sadly unphilosophical and in- consistent medley of conflicting ideas; and like so much ' rationalist ' propaganda it is largely, composed of quota- tion from the Bible. It is the creed of the atheist as opposed to the open-mindedness of the agnostic. It may be that we have no evidence of immortality of the kind that would be acceptable to the average police-court magistrate. But the testimony of religious experience and intuition throughout the ages cannot be lightly set aside; and on the purely intellectual plane metaphysical speculation can carry us to the point where time itself is no more, and past and future have no longer any meaning. Nature, it is admitted in the philosophastry of this Requiem, is eternal, but man is mortal and transitory. But is not man integrally a part of Nature — or is not Nature, perhaps, an aspect of man? And are not both Eternal in the sense of not pertaining at all to the illusory dominion of time ? For time is man's creation, a glass through which, darkly enough, his senses glimpse reality. Is he, then, sub- ject to his own creature ? We think of the past as now non- existent — dead; and of the future as non-existent now — unborn. But the present, NOW Himself, who has always just popped round the corner before we can put salt on his tail, becomes in that case nothing more than a perpetual passing over from one state of non-existence to another : and motion in time becomes a mere illusion. And how can we attach any absolute meaning to the term futurity when 108 FREDERICKDELIUS Sirius is even now gazing down upon our distant past? These are but a few of the speculations which the author of this Requiem so ghbly dismisses, shouting down all argu- ment with his ' trumpet-tongued voice of Truth ' so typical of the worst type of German professor, who might well take lessons in humility from Pontius Pilate. Such facile nega- tion only narrows the scope of the artist. How can he enlarge upon a theme that is in itself an attempt to set limits to the imagination, a blind faith — for that is what it amounts to — ^which is as much of a superstition and an anachronism at the present day as the testimony of our eyes that the sun moves round the earth? It is almost unnecessary to add that the musical interest of the Requiem centres in those sections where the living imagination is least impeded by the cere-cloths of material- ism and least reminded of the stench of the charnel-house. Yet, when all that can be said in its favour has been said, it remains the weakest of all Delius' mature works. In writing it his constructive instinct seems to have tempora- rily deserted him, with the result that for once his music seems to have been conditioned by the form of the text rather than the text by the music. The music lacks coherence and organic unity as well as the text. It is vacillating, un- certain — and contains more than one of Delius' very rare lapses into sheer banality. The work opens with an impres- sive and majestic movement for double chorus and orches- tra. ' One day is like another, and all our days are rounded with a sleep. They pass and never return again.' The mood recalls the first of the Ernst e Gesdnge of Brahms : ' All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.' After considerable development of this theme, the solo voice enters with a denunciation of the ' weaklings filled with woe and fear ' who ' drugged themselves with dreams and golden visions, and built tliemselves a house of lies to live in.' But ' then rose a storm with mighty winds HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 109 and laid it low. And out of the storm the voice of Truth resounded in trumpet tones : Man thou art mortal and needs must thou die.' The opening chorus is repeated and gradually swells into a funeral march of great breadth and nobility. But this is interrupted by ' the crowd,' repre- sented by a divided chorus of which the Christian section reiterates Hallelujah ' with vigour and fervour ' for twenty- one bai^ in frenzied competition with the La li Allah of the Mohammedan section. Gradually the shouting dies away and the philosopher is left musing upon the vanity of the world and its ways — and we are left in sorrowful contemplation of the four most dismally uninspired pages Delius has ever given to the world. The chorus takes up the burden : ' All who are living know that death is coming, but at the touch of death lose knowledge of all things, nor have they remembrance more of the ways and doings of men on the earth where they were.' ' Therefore,' saith the Preacher (Eccles. ix. 7), ' eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart . . . Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of thy vanity . . . Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest.' And the chorus murmurs over again : ' The living know that they shall die, but the dead know not anything.' The second part of the Requiem begins with a song, for the baritone solo, in praise of his beloved who was * like a flower among whose fragrant petals love made his dwell- ing.' * I praise her,' he continues, ' above all other women who are poor in their being and so are poor in giving too. Were not the world the abode of dissemblers and were not men's hearts so impure, then all mankind would join me in praising my beloved. She gave herself to many and yet remained chaste and pure as a flower.' This section which is headed ' A la grande amoureuse ' has been thought 110 FREDERICK DELIUS by some to refer to Death in the guise of a lover. But in the absence of any authority for such a charitable supposi- tion, one can only regard it as a symptom of revolt against the Christian ideal of chastity. A soprano solo follows : ' I honour the man who can love life and yet without base fear can die. He has attained the heights and won the crown of life . . . The sun goes down and evening spreads her hands in blessing o'er the world, bestowing peace. Night comes and binds our eyes with cloths of darkness in a long dreamless sleep. The soul of man sings but this only : Fare- well, I loved ye all ! and the voices of Nature sing in answer : Thou art our brother ! And so the star of his life sinks back into the darkness whence it arose.' The concluding section is a rhapsody of spring, in which is portrayed the awakening of Nature from its winter sleep. Finally, the chorus breaks into a chant of the eternal recur- rence of all things in Nature and, after a very strange passage of wistful looking back in an overwhelming moment of regret and doubt, the work ends peacefully to the sound of distant bells and cuckoo calls. The funeral march at the beginning and the beautiful elegy for the soprano alone represent Delius at his best. But two good passages can by no means make a master- piece of a work that is otherwise mediocre. But in qualifi- cation of this harsh judgment one should add that Delius has in A Mass of Life, in Sea-Drift, A Village Romeo and Juliet, and many other great works, given us the standard by which we must judge his later output. Did we not know and love those other works, we might hear in the opening of the last section of the Requiem something more than a mere echo of a lovely passage in A Song of the High Hills, and the final rhapsody of Spring might appear less weak had we not the glorious March of Spring from North Country Sketches and the matchless First Cuckoo in Spring with which to compare it, to its great advantage. HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 111 Before embarking upon this curiously unsatisfactory work, Delius had already embodied his reflections upon the transitoriness of mortal life in a far more beautiful composi- tion — Song of Sunset, originally called Songs of Twilight and Sadness — a cycle of intimate little lyrics by Ernest Dowson, a lover's requiem over lost illusions. The whole work is elegiac and retrospective : the sense of the past pervades it with a mournful glamour. Its mood is one of weariness, of passion that has burnt itself out and cries only for peace, of autumn that creeps unawares upon the soul when spring has passed over it unheeded. Moritura is the title of the first poem and- the keynote of the work. The chorus enters quietly in the very first bar with : A song of the setting sun ! The sky in the west is red, And the day is all but done : While yonder up overhead, All too soon. There rises, so cold, the cynic moon. There follows, to music that is more fevered than impas- sioned, a love-song, paraphrased from Propertius : Dum nos fata sinunt oculos satiemus amore : Nox tibi longa venit, nee reditura dies And the chorus sings of the tv/ilight of the year, where shadow and the darkness meet. As the work proceeds, through the lovely setting of ' Exceeding sorrow ' and the * Song of the waters of separation ' to the little choral spring- song whose faint flicker of hope is extinguished by the thought that ' the spring of the soul cometh no more for you or for me,' it seems to grow greyer and more misty like an autumn evening falling to dusk, until there comes a song of utter numbness of spirit : I was not sorrowful, but only tired Of everything that ever I desired. 112 FREDERICK DELIUS And then like an afterglow that shines through the mist with sombre radiance follows the final chorus, the envoi to life: They are not long, the days of wine and roses : Out of a misty dream Our path emerges for a while, then closes Within a dream. This song-cycle affords a fine example of the way in which Delius imparts to his works a feeling of unity and cohesion fully as satisfying as the most elaborate devices of formal structure by means which totally elude a formal theoretical analysis. Except for one forlorn little theme that wanders through the score like a pale ghost, there is no thematic connection between the various songs; the structure of the work, the interrelation of the different movements, and the significance of their sequence are wholly spiritual. From the fevered agitation that follows on the quiet choral prelude, the work is a prolonged cadence, a gradual slackening of the pulse, a waning and a decres- cence until the sunset radiance streams like a dye through the clouds, lighting them up for a moment, then fading out from behind them, leaving them vague, obscure, and colour- less.^ Never have evening and autumn found more perfect utterance. ' Forgive me my sadness,' said Zarathustra; ' for- give me that evening has fallen upon me.' But the melan- choly brooding of eventide is no less integrally a part of us than the full-blooded assurance of noon and the mystical, half-drunken ecstasy of midnight. In Time these seasons are apart and opposed, but in Eternity they are but aspects one of another. * Thfe setting of ' Cynara,' Dovvson's most perfect poem, which was to have formed the cHmax of the work, was wisely omitted, as tending to disturb the proportions and interrupt the mood-sequence of the whole. HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 113 Between the choral and the purely orchestral works of Delius we can draw no rigid distinction. Chorus and orchestra are not two separate bodies in his mind but organically related members of the great body of musical sound. The chorus is never pitted antiphonally against the orchestra after the practice of the older choral writers. Delius aims always at the coalescence of constrasting factors. At the first performance of Songs of Sunset he desired the chorus to remain seated while singing, to lend colour to the illusion of impersonal unity. The idea was not carried into practice, but it serves to illustrate his view of the function of the chorus in his works and is fully in keep- ing with the spirit of his choral style. In Appalachia and A Song of the High Hills the chorus is used sparingly, with the effect that its entries are thrill- ing in their unexpectedness and its climaxes a crowning glory of sound. Appalachia, we read in a note prefixed to the score, ' is the old Indian name for Northern America. The composition mirrors the moods of tropical nature in the great swamps bordering on the Mississippi River which is so intimately associated with the life of the old negro slave population. Longing melancholy, an intense love for Nature, childlike humour, and an innate delight in dancing and singing are still the most characteristic qualities of this race.' Here the deep impression made on Delius by his life in Florida, which colours many of his early works, finds its mature utterance. The work consists of a lengthy intro- duction, fifteen variations on an old negro folk-song (curi- ously reminiscent of the first theme of the quartet in the last act of Rigoletto)^ and a choral epilogue which ends with an echo of the introduction. Dehus has thought of rewriting the choral epilogue so that the work may be performed at orchestral concerts where no chorus is available. In these days of economic stress promoters of concerts like to get their money's worth 114 FREDERICK DELIUS out of their chorus when they employ one, and are inclined to fight shy of a long work which calls for a chorus chiefly to provide little exclamatory tailpieces to its different sec- tions and never gives the singers a chance to get going until the very end. But these little choral doxologies that round off the variations are so full of mysterious and haunting suggestiveness that the work would lose much of its unique charm by their omission. The voices enter pianissimo and the effect is almost as though the spirits of the forces of Nature invoked by the music became suddenly articulate to acknowledge the master who had called them forth. No words are sung in these passages ; but the epilogue employs a pathetic little snatch of negro verse relating to the separa- tion of husband from wife and parent from child, when one might be sold for a slave to a distant plantation and the other left behind. The verse is doggerel but in the music it is transfigured into poetry. The opening words : ' Oh Honey, I am going down the river in the morning,' recall the song of the boatman in A Village Romeo and Juliet and seem to ring out the same strange call as of a voice from a far-off country. If the form of Songs of Sunset seems like the very curve and cadence of a grey evening imprinted in a film of music, the structure oi A Song of the High Hills is like the rugged outline of a great range of mountains whose heights are hidden from the eyes in cloud. The music is full of a sense of spacious solitudes and far horizons. The elation of the ascent is succeeded by a mood of ecstatic contemplation, and the soul rises through the pure still air to the very heights of rapture, losing all consciousness of itself as the mountain-tops are lost from the ken of man, among the wandering mists and the eternal snows. Certain commen- tators on the work have thought fit to see, in the relation between the chorus and the orchestra in this work, some such opposed relation as is supposed to exist between the HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 115 mountaineer and the peak which baffles his attempts to scale it. But the relation is more spiritual than that. It is only a false materialistic duality that can regard Man and Nature as separate entities pitted against each other in opposition ; for the aspects of Nature are only the manifesta- tions in terms of matter of diverse aspects of the soul of Man that ebbs with autumn and flows with the tide of spring, aspires to heaven with the mountains, sings in the .winds, and runs with the rivers along the waters of time (see also p. i8o). In Brigg Fair we are on the plains in a pastoral country. The tune that gives its name to the work was sung by an old man in Lincolnshire to Percy Grainger and by him given to Delius. It is a Dorian tune and to ears unused to modal melodies may sound somewhat melancholy; but the old verses with which it is associated tell a happy tale of true love which for once in a way did run smoothly and bade fair to last until the green leaves withered in their summer prime. The work is not intended as a mere illustra- tion of the poem. Delius calls it 'an English Rhapsody' and the music is redolent of the English countryside. The felicity with which the old tune yields to Delius' quite modem and individual treatment of it is marvellous, but not indeed surprising when one reflects that Delius would never have been moved to write a work round this tune but by a real spiritual aflSnity existing between it and his own music. And it is interesting to observe that he has, quite unconsciously, harked back to the very form in which the old English compo^-ers of the time of Queen Elizabeth were in the habit of adumbrating the popular melodies of their day — that is to say, the cumulative variation form which afterwards grew formal in the passacaglia, in which the theme is repeated, intact or with very slight rhythmical modifications, in each variation, always surrounded with a new harmonic, contrapuntal, or rhythmic embroidery. In 116 FREDERICK DELIUS Delius' work there is a brief and lovely interlude in the middle — a kind of happy love-song, which is not derived from the main theme : otherwise the form is identical with that employed by John Bull, William Byrd, Giles Farnaby, and many another more than three hundred years ago. But at the time of writing Delius was probably un- acquainted with their very names. This work seems to pre- sent peculiar difficulties to conductors; it has to my know- ledge suffered greatly from the misunderstanding of more than one of them, so that a word or two of warning may not be amiss. I once saw a professor of music in a Univer- sity town beat out the poor, lilting little tune with three heavy beats in a bar. This gentleman's subsequent oracle — piously repeated by his disciples — that the more instruments you took away from a score of Delius, the better it sounded (leading to the natural corollary that if you took all the instruments away, it would be best of all) might cause one to imagine his stupidity unique; but I have observed the same error elsewhere, as regards the theme. And on page 27 of the full score where the time signature changes from 3/4 to 4/4, the average conductor takes the varia- tion twice too fast, for which he may perhaps be excused since Delius intends the beat to be doubled — he has directed the passage to be played ' slow, with solemnity ' — and should have written 4/2 for 4/4. The right tempo is quaver = 80, beating eight quavers to the bar. The first Dance Rhapsody which dates from the same period as Brigg Fair is almost exactly similar in form. After a quiet prelude, the chief dance theme is announced by the oboe, and save for a middle section, which is yet pervaded by echoes of the main theme, the whole work consists of repetitions of this one melody with harmonic variations that are kaleidoscopic in their ever-changing tones and colours. The listener's grasp of the unity and for- mal flow of the work depends very largely on the con- HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 117 ductor's skill in dovetailing one variation into another by means of a rallentando so slight that it does not break in upon the rhythm of the whole. Here again, though the out- ward form of the work is of the crudest and simplest char- acter, its spiritual curve, so to speak, is wholly satisfactory. The climax of the work is not dynamic, but comes at the music's ebb, a metamorphosis of the dance theme played by a solo violin against a background of divided strings, an indescribable passage, ' wonderful, causing tears,' perhaps the most intense and exalted moment in all Delius' work. It has a wounding beauty which is. all the more poignant for its evanescence — and which blinds one to the fact that the tumultuous coda, though completely satisfying in con- ception, does not and cannot ever quite come off in performance. In a Summer Garden — the third orchestral poem of the period — ^is another open-air work with the sights and sounds of Nature for a setting. The score is prefaced by a quotation from Rossetti by way of dedication : All are my blooms and all sweet blooms of love To thee I gave while Spring and Summer sang. But the title might mislead those who look for objective impressionism in Delius' music. The summer garden is no more than the background, the setting of his mood; one feels indeed that this work has a more intimate and per- sonal programme than most of its kind. Yet, to the external eye, it appears to be built up of thematic scrappets that might well have been suggested by whispers of wind and the colloquy of birds. Certain passages suggest a kind of musical pointillisme as though the luminous effect of the whole were attained by a thousand little points of light and colour. Paris: the Song of a Great City — a nocturne — dates from ten years earlier. Less typically Delius than Brigg Fair or 118 FREDERICK DE LIU S A Dance Rhapsody, it is more akin in style to the old type of symphonic poem. The programme annotator would be delighted to discover seven or eight distinct themes in as many pages at the beginning of the work, and dismayed to find that none of these are developed in the conventional manner. Furthermore, he would expect from the title Straussian ' programme-music,' but there is no programme to the work, nor is there any portrayal, scarcely indeed more than a suggestion, of external things. For Delius, Paris is not so much the capital city of France as a corner of his own soul, a chapter of his own memoirs. The superficiali- ties of La Vie Parisienne have been dealt with by Offen- bach, the trifler, and Charpentier, the vulgarian, with whom Delius would disdain competition. There remain Delius' orchestral impressions of the seasons, in North Country Sketches and the two pieces for small orchestra. On hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring and Summer Night on the River. These are certainly his finest achievements in purely orchestral music. To anyone quite unacquainted with his music the First Cuckoo might be presented as an epitome of his whole life's work. It is based upon a twofold melody; the first part is Delius' own, a sequence of phrases that echo each other like distant cuckoo calls, the second is derived from a Norwegian folk-song / Ola dalom (' In Ola Valley ') which is to be found harmo- nized by Grieg in his Opus 66. Associated with the song is a legend of an old woman who, thinking her son had been kidnapped by the bogles and bugaboos of the hills, rang the bells of the neighbouring church in the hope of releas- ing him from their power. But Delius chose the theme for its musical beauty, without any thought of its traditional associations, and using it as a motif has painted in unfor- gettable tones the emotions of one for whom spring is not so much a season of riot and exuberance, fresh hopes and renewed vitality, as a vision of such sweet and tender love- HIS CHORAL AND ORCHESTRAL WORKS 119 liness that the heart stands still in contemplation of it and the old unrest of the soul is put to sleep. In North Country Sketches we have mood pictures of autumn, when the 'wind soughs in the trees,' a Winter Landscape, and — significantly placed after the melancholy of autumn and the gloom of winter — the March of Spring over woodlands, meadows, and silent moors, portraying the gradual awaken- ing of Nature from its winter sleep, the rising of the sap in the trees, the opening of the green leaves, and the blossom- ing of the flowers, until all Nature bursts into a psean of delight and joy. Linked with these Nature impressions is a Dance, with no specific programme, though its uncertain, tentative beginning and abrupt conclusion lead one to picture it as a spell of fireside musing over the past, a tale within a dream — and one of the loveliest short pieces Delius has ever written. IV HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE (a) THE LETTER TN these days when the possession of a little money can, -••and does, procure for the merest mediocrity not only widespread publicity but performance at important con- certs and musical festivals, it may seem remarkable to some that Delius who could at all times have afforded to blow his own trumpet should never have cared to do so. He was forty-three when his first big work was published, but he had been writing music for the past twenty years — music of such a character that, had he cared to use it for pub- licity's sake after the manner of the young composer of today, it would no doubt have hastened Europe's acknow- ledgment of his genius. But he preferred to give nothing to the world that he felt to be immature or below the level of the best of which he was capable.^ A composer who carries modesty and self-criticism to such a pitch is something of an enigma to our musical public. Here, they say, is a man sixty years old, who holds no official position in the musical life of his country, who does not teach in any of the academies, who is not even an honorary doctor of music; who, moreover, gives no con- ^ There is one solitary exception — the unworthy Legend for vioHn and orchestra which is far below the average level of his earliest works. It is difficult to see why this piece should have been included in the 1899 concert where it must have sounded peculiarly out of place, or why Delius should have unearthed it for publication twenty- four years after its composition. 120 HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS AWHOLE 121 certs, makes no propaganda for his music, plays no instru- ment, nor even conducts an orchestra. Small wonder that he is neglected in favour of what one may with a certain degree of accuracy describe as the press-gang of British m.usic. He lacks the talent, and indeed the desire, to keep himself continually in the public eye. But this is a tempera- mental matter, and it seldom happens that a talent for publicity is united in the same person with a creative mind of the first order. In looking through the manuscripts of Delius' early works one is particularly struck by the fact that they display a virtuosity of technique, in the academic sense of the word, which gradually disappears as his own personal technique develops into an unmistakable style. The ready- made forms of the schools, with their artificial devices which seem to have been designed only to eke out an exiguous inspiration, are merely trammelling to the subtle imagina- tion for which form and content are one and indivisible. But the realization, by experience and not in theory alone, that the forai of a well-made work must necessarily be latent in its initial conception, even as the form of a flower is latent in its seed, is a slow and arduous process; and in the meanwhile the young artist must learn to build with the aid of such scaffolding as he can dispose of. Thus through formality he attains to form. For it must not be forgotten that the great masters who employed those forms that are now termed classical created them anew with each succeeding work, the so-called forms of the text-books being in reality no more than barren formulae deduced by pedants from the masters' multifarious achievements. Delius is not seen at his best in those works whose form is dependent upon the development of contrasted themes in a certain relation pre-ordained by tradition. Occasionally, as in the Violin Sonata (a Vv^ork laid aside for a number of years and completed long after its conception), there are redundancies 122 FREDERICK DELIUS that seem due rather to anxiety to fill up the form than to any necessity of musical logic. But in the Concertos there are passages where the flow of expression is abruptly arrested in order to introduce a contrasted theme, and the natural development of the music in its own style seems somewhat cramped. The comparatively early Piano Con- certo, originally designed in three separate movements, re- appeared, some years after its initial performance, as a one-movement work. In the process of condensation the last movement (based on material afterwards employed in the Violin Concerto) was removed altogether, but the recapitulation of subject-matter from the beginning of the work that takes its place gives it but an artificial coherence which is by no means convincing. Virtually the work comes to an end at the close of the slow movement. Delius appears to have realized this shortcoming, for his later concertos are all cast in the single three-in-one-movement form — familiar in English chamber-music circles under the name of Phantasy, which consists of a short introduction, a brief first movement with two subjects but little development, a slow movement followed by an abbreviated return to the first movement, and an independent finale. Of the three later concertos, the first, for violin and cello, is by far the least satisfactory. To write a double concerto at all is something of a tour de force. It is not the kind of work that comes to one and clamours to be written. It will cer- tainly contain a good many passages which would sound as well or better in a symphonic poem without the solo instruments, from which it follows that these, if they are to be kept continuously busy, will have to do a good deal of quite superfluous embroidery on the orchestral tissue. In Delius' work this is exemplified at a very early stage in the cello's laborious and pointless counterpoint to the prinicipal subject on its first presentation by the solo violin. The second theme is a purely orchestral conception to which the HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS AWHOLE 123 soloists add nothing vital. The indubitable beauty of the melody of the slow movement is not enhanced by its strong family likeness to a lovely theme in North Country Sketches — of which it is far from being the equal — and the last section, which is little more than a peroration, is rhetorical where it should be eloquent. The stuff of which the work is made is characteristically, unmistakably Dalian; but this concerto as a whole could only satisfy those for whom the hearing of any work of Dehus provides a novel experience. To those acquainted with his masterpieces, it stands as an interesting but unsuccessful experiment. All three concertos open with an introductory passage that is not connected thematically with the rest of the work. The Double Concerto starts off with one of those themes which, insignificant in themselves, seem to hold all sorts of surprises in store for their development. But in this instance the theme is not developed at all; it is merely repeated, somewhat perfunctorily, at the end of the work, where it sounds even less significant that it did at the beginning. Of very different character are the two preludial bars of the Violin Concerto. They arrest the attention with com- pelling power. Then the solo violin sweeps in with a noble and heroic phrase which is rounded off, so to speak, with a smiling parenthesis, so that in the one sentence we have virtually two distinct themes. The second subject is no more than a passionate exclamation for the brass to which the violin assents in swift up-rushing arpeggios. The slow move- ment — a perfect miracle of wistful haunting loveliness — is evolved from two alternating but not contrasted themes, of which the second is characterized by a lilting, syncopated figure of a kind associated in most people's minds with Scottish folk-song. (It reappears, by the way, in two of the North Country Sketches, and in A Poem of Life and Love, having made its first appearance in the setting of Fiona Macleod's Hy Brasil, with the atmosphere and emotion of 124 FREDERICK DELIUS which it is obviously associated.) A rhapsodical interlude in the form of an accompanied cadenza leads to a brief re- capitulation, followed by a naive and charming dance- theme, which, interwoven with reminiscences of the adagio, brings the Concerto to a quiet and beautiful conclusion. From beginning to end the work is one long impassioned monologue for the solo violin against an orchestral back- ground. The protagonist is never for a moment relegated to a secondary position and this unbroken golden thread of melody binds the whole work together into a wonderful cohesion and unity. The 'Cello Concerto suffers from a rather lengthy introduction which has all the incongruity of a string of platitudinous and apologetic remarks prefixed to a very brilliant speech of a most accomplished orator. Otherwise it is as concise in form as its predecessor, with a slow movement of 'linked sweetness long drawn out,' which for sheer beauty of orchestral sound must surely be unexcelled in the whole range of modem music. In spite of the restrictions imposed by even so free an interpretation of traditional form as Delius has allowed himself, the two latest concertos exhibit to the full the chief characteristics of his mature style. To define these characteristics is far more difficult than it would be to illustrate them by examples. Anyone who has ever heard a work of Delius will know that his chief power lies in his extraordinary harmonic resources. One might almost say that the chord is to him what the note was to the polyphonic composers, and that the melodic line is always seen in a higher dimensional aspect, so to speak, of changing chords. Yet Delius has no harmonic system which can be defined and analysed as readily as those of Debussy or Scriabin. His range of expression is infinitely wider than theirs and his limitations far less apparent. Harmony with Delius has always been more of an instinct than an accom- plishment, and although his chromaticism is not radically HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE 125 of a different order from that of Wagiier and Chopin, it would not be altogether true or just to say that it was derived and developed from the study of these two masters. DeUus' harmony lies just within the boundaries of tonality; but it never crosses them — in the sense in which we regard the later works of Schonberg as lying definitely beyond them. The principle of modulation, though not discarded, is pushed to the farthest extremity of chromatic licence, and it is the continual shifting of the tonal centres that gives his music its elusiveness and that peculiar quality of reticence which imparts to every phrase a suggestiveness and a hidden meaning that is never actually uttered. Poly- phony with Delius is not the cause of the harmony as it is in true contrapuntal writing, but its apparent effect. Har- monic variation takes the place of what one may call the usual linear thematic development; counterpoints appear as decorative comments upon, rather than as integral factors of, the harmonic structure — and the very melody of a passage is often obviously dependent upon and condi- tioned by its harmonic background. Sometimes, as in the case of the opening theme of A Village Romeo and Juliet and the tune of the first Dance Rhapsody, a diatonic melody is taken as a text for a series of most enchantingly varied discoursings of chromatic har- mony; but there are examples of a contrary process, where a line of vocal melody which is neither organically essential nor intrinsically beautiful has been simply superimposed upon a harmonic texture which is already complete in itself. One does not need the fictitious support of any stereotyped and reactionary definition of what is or is not vocal to be able to see the aesthetic defects of certain lines of melody; those defects would be the same if the melody, instead of being sung, were played upon an instrument. One can offer no reasonable objection to any angularities of interval, or sudden leaps and falls, so long as they are 126 FREDERICK DELIUS aesthetically justifiable in their context and expressive in proportion to their difficulty of execution. But they must carry with them a conviction of their perfect appropriate- ness and inevitability : on intimate acquaintance they must make us feel, as we feel about all good melodies^ that not a note could be changed without changing and spoiling the melody. There are occasional passages for the voice in Delius' works — notably in the Requiem — which do not satisfy this condition; and in some of the songs for voice and piano — where the nature of the combination precludes the coalescence that can be obtained when the voice is treated as one instrument among the many others of the orchestra — the melodic curve of the accompaniment is far more significant than that of the voice, whose notes seem at times almost inconsequent, as though any note that tallied with the accompanying chord would have done equally well had it been selected at random. But, if the method of threading a woof of melody through a given warp of harmony has its disadvantages, it has, to outweigh them, very admirable virtues which differ conspicuously enough from those of the self-subsistent tune to render them a definite addition to the treasure-store of melody. And it is this division of the harmonic web into these com- ponent strands of melody which are never parallel but subtly interwoven with one another, one rising where another falls, that gives Delius' harmony so much inner vitality. This, I think, is the secret of his fascinating and very personal treatment of solo wind instruments in the orchestra; and if we are to look for a clue to the magic of his scoring in any external devices (which is a mistake, see- ing that for Delius there is no such thing as scoring, the stuff of the music and its orchestral embodiment being con- ceived simultaneously and notated, even in the first sketches, in full score), we must concentrate our attention upon his extraordinary instinct for the right disposition and HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE 127 registration of the notes compounding a chord. The composer who first of all writes a work in the abstract, and then proceeds to score it, no doubt also begins by conceiving a kind of abstract of its harmonic basis which is afterwards elaborated in a corresponding manner. The truth of this conjecture is attested by the existence of such barbarities as the figured bass. But with Delius the relative importance of the different tones composing a chord is as important as the chord itself. For example, here is the common chord of G major : m and here, according to the ridiculously inadequate nomen- clature musicians must perforce make use of for lack of a better, is the same chord : 1SZ ^ m 22: in a disposition so different as to impart to it a completely different colour and aspect. The significance of a chord, its sonority and its colour, depend chiefly upon its range of pitch and upon its regis- tration — that is to say, upon the distance between the highest notes and lowest notes and upon the choice of the octave in which certain notes, which its context will render more important than others, are doubled, the relation of these notes to the bass, and the resultant overtones which will contribute to the general effect. These considerations are I 128 FREDERICK DELIUS intrinsic to the chord itself and are not connected with the medium of sound — vocal or instrumental — by which the chord is conveyed to the ear. It is clear, for instance, that there will always be more essential difference between the two dispositions of the common chord instanced above than there could ever be between the different presentations of the first example that could be given by, say, three female voices, three trumpets, and a harmonium, or between the second example as played on the pianoforte with the aid of a sustaining pedal and as it would be sustained by a body of divided strings. And so we find but Httle difference of style when we turn to Delius' choral works and those in which the pianoforte plays a part. In writing for the piano- forte Delius has never been particularly happy. The limita- tions of the keyboard seem to have hampered him; his figuration is often somewhat perfunctory and the long sequences of chords, lacking the glow which the individua- tion of the varied voices of the orchestra would impart to them, tend to become a trifle square-faced and monotonous. It is but natural also that so essentially polyphonic a medium as the string quartet should prove too slender to support the weight of his harmonic mass-formations; but their employment in music for unaccompanied voices has been as successful as it is novel and original — to modem ears, although the Prince of Venosa was using them in his madrigals three hundred years ago with surprisingly similar effects. The chorus is used homophonically, impersonally, as though it were a multitudinous voice of winds or waters, and the effect in an 'impression of nature' like On Craig Dhu is overwhelming. Save for an over-frequent cadence of descending sevenths which seems to be derived from Grieg, Delius has practic- ally no tricks of style that could be stigmatized as manner- isms. He has, however, a most interesting and prodigiously effective method of achieving a sense of climax after every HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE 129 conceivable variety of complexity of harmony would seem to have been exhausted, by suddenly presenting a mere harmonic skeleton clothed in the full panoply of orchestral magnificence. Examples may be seen towards the end of Brigg Fair, Lifers Dance, the Pianoforte Concerto, and, in a certain measure, in the conclusion of A Mms of Life. And then there are those curious personal Leitmotiven which recur in one work after another, from the earliest to the latest, as the result of what Wordsworth called * those arbitrary connections of feelings and ideas with particular words and phrases from which no man can altogether pro- tect himself.' And it is well for those of us who would fain see music develop into an even more precise and accurate medium of communication between man and man, that he cannot so protect himself, for such personal confessions, peeping out from the texture of a great work, bring us very near to the heart of the composer, and afford us valuable glimpses into the mysterious creative processes of the musical faculty. It would be idle to enumerate these Leitmotiven, attaching to each one an arbitrary and perhaps quite un- warranted label binding down its 'meaning' to this, that, or the other thing which can be expressed in words; for the association of idea and motif is not deliberate and part of a constructive plan, as it was with Wagner, but instinctive and to a certain extent unconscious, intuitive, and musical, not verbal and intellectual. But to illustrate my point I quote three of them, assuring the student of musical psy- ^m #-<s^ s ^ &-!- 130 FREDERICK DELIUS chology that if he will thoroughly acquaint himself with the works of Delius (and for that matter, many another composer) he will find many other examples of this pheno- menon. In addition to these recurrent phrases, there are certain instances of similarity between passages associated with similar ideas or emotions in different works of different periods. This is entirely unconscious reminiscence, but it is an interesting sidelight on the working of the musical mind. For example, the theme associated with la grande amour- euse in the Requiem is identical with a phrase in the love- duet in Margot-la-Rouge; the melody heard on the fjord at night in Fennimore and Gerda reappears in A Song of the High Hills', the germ of the lovely passage in A Mass of Life where the spirit of life sings to Zarathrustra of the island they discovered far away beyond good and evil, is to be found in The Magic Fountain significantly allied with the words ' Far away in the western isles lies the fountain of eternal youth ' ; and the cadence of the theme of Appala- chian a work in which the great river stands as a symbol of the poignancy of parting, is heard again in Songs of Sunset at the point where the poet speaks of 'the sound of the waters of separation surpassing roses and melody.' (b) THE SPIRIT As Beethoven is the morning and Wagner the high noon, so Delius is the sunset of that great period of music which is called Romantic. And there is a spiritual image in this historical superscription. The art of Delius belongs to the evening of a great period. It has its roots upon the descend- ing arc of life; it is cadent but not decadent. Its image is rather to be seen in the rich colours of the sunset fires HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE 131 than in the cool dim greys of twilight from which all fire and brightness has faded away. But it is neighbour to night : it looks before and after, seeing the day that is past mirrored upon the darkness that is approaching. The predominance of the purple patch is a sure signal of incipient decadence in art. The part grows greater than the whole and the whole lapses from lack of coherent design. Language itself becomes disintegrated in its over- ripeness — faisandee, to use the expressive term of Gautier — but the luxuriant fungus of decomposition hides for a while the traces of decay in the body in which it has taken root. But there is a brief period immediately preceding the setting-in of decadence and decay in art when the body can yet bear, and bear nobly, the weight of all the magni- ficence and splendour that the soul would put forth ; and it is this golden hour that Delius has realized more fully than any musician that ever lived. Purple indeed there is in his works — not confined to patches but infused like a dye through whole compositions. His greatest passages occur, not haphazard in the midst of mediocre pages, or in isola- tion, bodiless as ghosts, as in the works of decadence, but in their inevitable and proper place, as spiritual climaxes conditioned by the span of that far-sighted logic which, in all the arts, is architecture. Of such transcendent passages the entr'acte from A Village Romeo and Juliet and the almost unbearably beautiful penultimate variation in the first Dance Rhapsody may be cited as examples. It is only on the very crest of a great epoch that an artist appears whose creative or consciously constructive genius is equal to the direction of so rich and luxuriant an inspiration as Delius has been endowed with. But his constructive power is not to be thought of as dissociated from his musical imagination ; it is rather a quahty of that imagination itself which ensures that all the imagination begets shall be incar- nate in a body that is organically sound and whole. And 132 FREDERICK DELIUS SO we find the same wealth of imagination determined by the same sense of structure, balance, and proportion dis- played within the limits of a little song as in the majestical architecture of A Mass of Life. Wordsworth, a poet with whom Delius has more than a superficial affinity, set out, when embarking upon his Lyrical Ballads, ' to make incidents and situations interest- ing by tracing in them, truly though not ostentatiously, the primary laws of our nature : chiefly as far as regards the manner in which we associate ideas in a state of excite- ment . . . the feeling developed (in these poems and, as one may add, in the music-dramas of Delius) gives importance to the action and situation and not the action and situation to the feeling.' And he proceeds to a definition of poetry as 'the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings,' taking its origin from ''emotion recollected in tranquillity/ This last phrase may be found exemplified, word for word, in the works of Delius. Emotion — the overflow of powerful feel- ings — is always the primal impulse and inspiration. Objec- tivity in music belongs to the phases of its decadence; particularization is no part of music's province. The genera- lizations of musical emotion must necessarily seem crude when translated into the cold formulae of words : but the subtleties into which music can divide them are infinitely beyond the descriptive capabilities of language. We need music not because it is a substitute for but because it is an infinite extension of the powers of spoken language. Life's Dance, one of the earliest of Delius' orchestral poems, was originally associated with a preposterous programme derived from some Danish drama. But in the revised version of the work the programme was dropped, its under- lying emotions being abstracted and re-presented to us in music suh specie ceternitatis. And, when we speak of the natural beauties of his surroundings as having provided Delius with a musical impulse, we mean that he has cap- HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE 133 tured and reproduced in his music not the merely sensuous elements of a landscape, with which impressionistic com- posers too often content themselves, but the correlative emotion it awakens in the sensitive soul, the state of mind which, in a metaphysical sense, it exists solely to express. But the emotion which gives rise to the music is not directly notated : for moments plucked in a fine frenzy wither before their secret essences can be distilled. The emotion must be recollected: and the process of recollec- tion, in this sense of the word, is creative rather than reminiscent. For the initial emotion will have called into activity an impulse that had long lain dormant in the soul's recesses, awaiting the word of secret correspondence which alone could waken it into action, and it is from the union of these two principles, the initial emotion and that unknown correlative which it finds in the creative mind, that the work of art comes into being.^ Its conception may be unconscious and the period of gestation may extend over years : as with Wordsworth when he gazed upon the daffodils — . . . but little thought What wealth the show to me had brought. One feels that all Delius' music is evolved out of the emotions of a past that was never fully realized when it was present, emotions which only became real after they had ceased to be experienced. ' The golden moments of our life fly past us and we see nothing but sand; the angels come to visit us and we only know them after they are gone.' Here, perhaps, we have the explanation of the sadness that is intermingled with the serenity and sweetness of the con- ^ ' The explanation of delight in sensible beauty, so far as it can be explained, is that when the soul perceives something akin to its own nature it feels joy in it ; and this it does when indeterminate matter is brought under a form proceeding from the real being of things' (Thomas Whittaker — The Neo-Plato7mts). 134 FREDERICK DELIUS ception of spring revealed in The First Cuckoo; for it is a spring of the soul which cannot blossom until the autumn has come, that has so little time to stay. And so we are again confronted with the paradox of past and present. The very desire to recapture and embalm the past is a longing that strives to overleap time's limitations; for time is the great enemy of the soul that longs for the Infinite. The apparent victories of time over the soul, in separation and in going apart, are Delius' predominant theme : but in his music there is always a smile of assurance which seems to tell us that time itself is no more than the great illusion of the world. It brings to the mind an echo of an imminent beauty greater than the ear can hear, that whispers to us of an unchanging garden from which we have been ban- ished for a season : and we feel that all the sorrow of the world springs from this sense of exile, and that all beauty is but a partial unveiling of something ever-present and not other than that which we know — for when we speak of this world and a world beyond that lies in the future we confuse the issue by a verbal duality which has no real meaning. ' Into another world,' as John Donne says in one. of his sermons, 'no man is gone, for that heaven which God created and this world, is all one world.' Yet it is curious that Donne, for all his faith in the resurrection, is obsessed by the horror of the worm in the grave, and Delius, the unbeliever, proclaiming in his Requiem the soul's extinction, yet gives us intimations of immortality on every fine page of his music : and nowhere does he speak to the spiritual ear with more definite assurance than in his perfect setting of that poem of Fiona Macleod called Hy Brasil, with its alluring, haunting cadence : ' Come away, come away ! ' Now Hy Brasil is the name given in the old Celtic mythology to the Hesperides that lay where the last stars touch the sea. But in the Celtic legends it was not through the gates of death that these islands of the HIS MUSIC VIEWED AS A WHOLE 135 blessed were attained. Rather did they stand as a symbol of that mystical victory of the soul over the circumstances of mortality, when the consciousness transcends the very conception of death and cries in laughing triumph, ' Where is thy sting?' All the old legends of the adventurers who assayed * to sail beyond the sunset and the baths of all the western stars' are veiled records of adventures wholly spiritual. For those who attained, there was indeed no death : for they were translated like Enoch, and thence- forward they walked with God. For Delius, as for Traheme and Blake and many another mystic. Heaven is but the world transfigured and interpreted by spiritual vision. There is no ' world ' that is common to all mankind. Every man lives in a world of his own creating, which is small or great, hideous or beautiful, according to the stature and disposi- tion of his soul. And those who see, in all the manifestations of Nature, a fullness, a richness and loveliness that would for very excess break through the barriers of time and change and overflow into the Infinite may well deride the materialist's heaven of harps and glass which those have feigned who never saw the world aright. Whoever has known true ecstasy has already encompassed past and future, and having once attained is initiate, immune from disillusion. He is at one with Nature and strides fearlessly into the darkness, knowing that he will not fall, certain that the great river of separation comes in the end to the sea where all things are united. So he achieves within him- self an inner harmony and peace — tranquillity; which is not so much the ' central peace subsisting at the heart of endless agitation' as an enfolding calm that is wrapped about a troubled and unresting heart. The modern spirit in music is impatient, unreflective, restless, and impetuous, for it is the spirit of an age of dis- integration. There is very little tranquillity in the music of our time, and such emotion as it contains is rather the 136 FREDERICK DELIUS instantaneous record of sensation than a quintessence dis- tilled by long processes of meditation. Serenity seems to have forsaken music for a while; it is, at any rate, almost impossible to name any living composer, save Bernard van Dieren, in whose work this quality is conspicuous or even dimly apparent. But it is one of the essential qualities of the great art of all ages, and its presence in every work of Delius is one of the surest tokens of his immortality. The message of his music is one of ultimate assurance and peace. It is full of a great kindliness which makes us feel akin to all things living and gives us an almost conscious sense of our part in the great rhythm of the universe. And as the lonely soul turns to the starry host for comfort and companionship, so may we turn to this music and hear reverberated in the tones of a lonely singer 'the voices of the innumerable multitudes of Eternity.' ADDITIONS ANNOTATIONS AND COMMENTS by Hubert Foss (Page numbers in parentheses in the following comments refer to Warlock-Heseltine's text, as reprinted in this volume.) THE only authority for the statement (p. 29) that the Delius family is of Dutch origin would appear to be Frederick's own to Heseltine ; though Beecham repeats it in his memoirs, Clare Delius, his sister, stoutly denies it in her book; she also adds a denial of Jewish ancestry, but it might here be added that Jelka Delius came from partly Jewish stock, for she was of the Moscheles family. Ethno- graphical deductions should not be based upon musical internal evidence ; yet a student of this music may be excused if he finds no trace of Dutch racial or geographical charac- teristics in Delius' works. There is much of the German ' mist sculptor ' therein, but the cultural background would appear to be partly French, partly Nordic, with the hills of Yorkshire and Scandinavia as a landscape behind the mind's window overlooking the Loing, with the Forest of Fontainebleau around the scene, and with all the master- pieces of the Barbizon painters who loved this landscape informing his mind. From that river and its banks, so absorbing in their beauty, sprang his music. A middle-aged man's reminiscences of his early family life and upbringing are notoriously untrustworthy, coloured 137 5* 128 FREDERICK DELIUS as they must be by childish hopes and vanities only half recalled, by prejudices acquired early and hardened later, by other prejudices acquired from experience about methods of proper nursery training, by the sentimentality of lost beliefs and rose-coloured childish affections. And the point is especially true of one member of a large household, even of a less individual person than the composer. The Delius family consisted of fourteen children — ten girls and four boys, one girl and one boy dying in infancy. Like many other large families, this one was not united. Clare Delius tells us : ' our numbers precluded such a desirable state of affairs.' Marriages divided them as well (one sus- pects) as other factors, and she writes ' I was the only one in the family who after my father's death kept in touch with Fred. The others had hardly any associations with him. He once visited my mother, when she was living in Windsor in 191 2, but that I believe was the last occasion on which he saw her. He was present at my father's funeral, but that visit of ceremony was almost the last contact he made with the family, except through myself and my daughters.' Frederick's own account, presumably as given to Hesel- tine (pp. 30-2), needs a good amount of supplementing, and this Clare Delius amply provides in her book. Her recalling of ' Claremont,' the house at Bradford, is worth reading entire for its own sake; it gives a clear and vivid picture of both the home and the town. To pick out a few details is to blow away the atmosphere she had breathed into her memories; only a few significant additions and comments can be made here. There was plenty of love for music, but it was coupled with the belief — a very English sentiment that persisted strongly until recent years, nor has even yet died out — that music comes from elsewhere, and is certainly not a fit profession for members of a respectable gentleman's ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 139 menage. Heseltine (pp. 32-3) tells of the lasting reaction on the composer's musical likes and dislikes that ' this surfeit of good things had'; Fenby goes much farther, and shows that there was very little music that he could tolerate attend- ing to except his own. ' You needn't ask me to listen to the music of the Immortals. I can't abide 'em. I finished with them long ago.' So Fenby reports him saying, and describes his library as consisting of only 10 full scores, four by Strauss, and one each by Liszt, Wagner, Chabrier, Debussy, Ravel, and Busoni, along with Beethoven's symphonies ' many of the pages still uncut ! ' As for English music, he is recorded as saying, ' I've never heard of any ! ' The regime at Glaremont was a rigid one of disciphne, with paterfamilias as the pivotal tyrant. Was it more rigid or more strict than that of thousands of family households of the period? Because home discipline has slackened du- ring the intervening years, exactly as family numbers have dwindled from fourteen to five, and even two, we are inclined today to look back upon this or that particular household as if it were indeed particular and not general. The idea of Prussian discipline was not abhorrent in the 1850's and i86o's, nor was the hausfrau the kind of joking symbol of down- trodden woman that she became after the Kaiser's war started. Clare DeHus' sketch of her father does not minimise the rigours of that home-life. ' He was a remote being, an iron disciplinarian,' she writes, ' masking the affection I am convinced he bore towards us with an air of severity which never varied. His lightest word was law.' And, she makes it clear, his prejudices about behaviour, dress, health, and the habits of daily life and commerce were as tough as steel and as inflexible as granite. When the distinguished musician who was for so long critic for the Yorkshire Post praised the 1899 Delius concert played in London (p. 56 ff.), Delius pere ignored the event save for the one break- 140 FREDERICK DELIUS fast-table remark : ' I see Fritz has given a concert ' ; her account of the scene has the chill of ice. ' Even after we had grown up, my father tried to exercise a discipline over us which entered into the minutest details of our lives' (on another page) ; ' among his prejudices was a hatred of the pipe,' and there follows a family anecdote. Despite this outwardly harsh figure that she presents, the sister is much more convincing in her sympathy with the father than her brother was. The latter could write (1913) revilingly of his upbringing and previous foundations as ' thoroughly rotten ' (he meant spiritually), and in the same year (both letters to Heseltine) : ' I do not see why you should sacrifice the most important thing in your life to your mother. You will certainly regret it if you do, later on. Children always exaggerate the duty they have to their parents. Parents very seldom sacrifice anything at all for their children ... I was in exactly the same position when I was your age and had a considerably harder fight to get what I wanted.' That seems to be a very biassed pronouncement, even if we allow for its arguing from the particular to the general ; and certainly it is one that throws less light on father than on son himself. No doubt Julius Delius was a Victorian martinet ; but I wonder if that derided figure is any funnier in the long galleries of time than the ' children-must-not- be-thwarted ' parents of today, than the rustic craftsmen and labourers, than the Elizabethans with their teen-age university students, than Goldsmith's schoolmaster, or even than the Spartans. I find the lordly outlook of the young on their fogey parents no less trying now than I did the normal discipline of up-springing youth 35 years ago. Eighty years make often a gap of humour for a later generation, while 800 become history. Julius Delius, as presented by his daughter Clare, is a character, but he is not a caricature. She makes it clear ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 141 that he was an abnormally strict but wholly fair man. His domestic accounts, she tells us, show that 'he spent the enormous sum of thirty-seven thousand pounds on the education of his children ... I question whether there was any adequate return for the expenditure . . . but it does show what I am concerned to prove, that my father, according to his lights, desired to do his very best for us . . -. beneath his mask of remoteness and severity.' That he was incapable of foreseeing the genius of his son before it had blossomed, and failed to accept his musical offering from a member of his own family, may seem insensitive and obtuse to us who have the whole of Frederick's outpouring before us to study; but we can hardly call it reprehensible. ' My father had a ledger mind — at any rate as far as artistic pursuits were concerned. He liked to see the credit total and the debit total. And the entries on Fred's debit account were glaring.' Bradford and other cities' business men have been known to subsidise artists and composers in their early days; but few, one recalls, have so treated their own sons — too near home to be observable or palatable, such genius ! ' It is all very well to say,' writes Clare ' in the light of after events that my father should have recognized genius, and have used his wealth to enable that genius to develop in the atmosphere it needed. The fact remains that my father did not recognize Fred's genius ' — nor, to be honest, did a thousand other people of subtler musical understanding and greater penetration into the ways of the creative mind. ' He supported Fred handsomely all through his youth, and except for those months that he was lost in America, through most of his adolescence he continued to pay him an allowance until he was 36 or 37. And if in his will he deducted, with meticulous care, all the expenses he had been put to from Fred's share of his estate, this, many will agree, I think, was an act of impartiality and justice.' 142 FREDERICK DELIUS Pretty but idle are the speculations that may be aroused by the relationship between this father and this son. Even had one known both characters in personal intimacy (an almost impossible feat), any deductions from the interplay of their oddly strong but differing minds would be purely imaginative — of the nature of ' Oh, that it were so ! ' The ordinary reaction of younger against older seems to have been suitably violent. But the curiosity is, surely, rather how many of his father's traits Frederick developed as he grew older — the rigidity, the Northern hardness of purpose, the exclusiveness (on quite slender grounds of taste) of personal likes and dislikes, the fastidiousness, and so on. We may even include the fatherliness, for, as I have men- tioned, Frederick liked to father younger people, but always with a view to their improvement according to his lights. Those lights were not Julius' ; but the instinct of rearing a family by precept was inherited. Clare Delius paints a picture of the young Fred as a * gallant, handsome, mischievous boy, always seeking adventures, always in trouble,' and adorns it with amusing anecdotes of his running away, of his practising circus- tricks, and of his re-enacting last night's pantomine at home. He was anything but a dreamer; for all his love of music, he was an active and vigorous lad. He excelled at cricket, a game in which he had a life-long interest; Eric Fenby tells how almost as soon as he arrived at Grez, Delius was talking about the cricket festivals at Scarborough and how he used himself to play in matches in the nearby villages. He was a born horseman. And underlying many of Heseltine's early pages, we can feel Delius' desire to be ' over the hills and far away.' This Wanderlust appears to have been ingrained in the composer's character from birth, and showed itself in early as well at later years. Clare Delius writes that 'he was always talking, like children talk, of the remote countries he ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 143 intended to explore when he was a man.' The Florida epi- sode and his later return visit are but a single example; before the orange-grove was taken, Delius (pp. 36-7) ' sj>ent whole days in the library, poring over maps and books of travel . . . .' At first the physical confines were the York- shire Moors, where his sister and he often took long walks, during which (she recounts) he was peculiarly sensitive to the notes of bird-song. That first love for the moors around his birthplace stayed with him all his life, as we know from his visits to his sister, from his North Country Sketches of 1 91 3-14, from Fenby's reports, and from his unfulfilled thought of making an opera out of Emily Bronte's Wuther- ing Heights. The so-called commercial travelling journeys for the family woollen business gave this instinct some out- let. Beecham tells, in his chapter called 'A Happy Year (1908-9)', how he 'went to Norway to meet Delius,' with whom he ' had planned a long walking tour in parts little frequented by the average tourist. It was lucky for me' (Beecham continues) 'that I was in pretty good physical condition at that time . . . for Delius proved to be a first- class mountaineer and a pedestrian of untiring energy; in the lower land of the dales, Delius would procure a rod and sit peacefully fishing for hours.' In the letters to Hesel- tine we find sentences such as this of 1 9 1 2 — ' I should love to wander about the Welsh hills with you and hope to come to see you next September ' ; or this (of Cecil Gray's house in Cornwall in 191 7) — 'You must be living in a lovely spot, I should love to come over and stay with you — but how to get across the channel dry ! Your description of the country in Cornwall tempts me mightily. I should delight in such scenery. I have always loved the far, wide distance.' It would seem paradoxical that one so strongly moved by the Reiselust should decide to bury himself in a small French village near Fontainebleau, and cruelly ironical that such an one should be so long pinioned by an 144 FREDERICK DELIUS insidiously creeping paralysis. Perhaps the paradox is made smoother by Delius' letter to Heseltine in Ireland of May 19, 1918, in which he writes: 'So you have been in the wilderness — a wonderful place and the only place to find oneself after a prolonged sojourn in towns ; one gathers such a lot of dross that ultimately it smothers one's real self. I was also in the wilderness in Florida, and have since never been able to live long in a crowd.' Here we find but one more example of the duality of Frederick's nature — his musical character and his personal character in parallel variance with each other. For though he was not the dreaming, mooning type of boy, there is no question that he dreamed. Glare Delius goes so far as to explain this odd division thus — ^that ' his desire was the natural reaction of a healthy boy — to imitate those adventures and to taste the joy of those experiences . . . But being baulked of any chance of doing this ... he would rush back . . . straight to the schoolroom. There he would seat himself at the Erard and begin to improvise, turning all those adventures he had just heard of into music' Cecil Gray (in Musical Chairs) reinforces this view of the boy by saying of the adult that once he had heard the negroes singing in Florida, it was ' the rapture of this moment that Delius is perpetually seek- ing to communicate in all his most characteristic work'; which statement one may fairly modify by altering 'this moment' to 'some moment of great beauty or emotion which he had experienced.' There can be little doubt that his improvising was nostalgic, harmonic, and immediately emotional (p. 39). Fenby tells how Jelka Delius, of musical upbringing, had heard no improvisation in her youth ' that bore the slightest resemblance to that of Delius, either in mood or manner. Whereas everyone else improvised on easily recognizable themes, with Delius there were no themes, just chords. When the mood to extemporize was on him^ he always ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 145 followed the same procedure. He would start very quietly and dreamily, moving along slowly and, for the most part, chromatically in a rhapsodic procession of chords from one leisurely climax to another, until the music culminated in a tremendous outburst; then, with many tender dallyings by the way, it would end as peacefully as it had begun.' Though he always used the piano when writing his music, the composer was no expert pianist. But again we meet here his forcefulness. He could build a dream world positively. When he was dreaming on the Florida plantation and finally (if there was finality then) decided to forsake all for music, he seems to have attacked his newly-hired piano with great energy and persistence. The most complete pic- ture of this manifestation of the man's duality is that given by Fenby in his description of life at Grez-sur-Loing in 1928. ' There was nothing of the sickly, morbid, blind com- poser as known by popular fiction here, but a man with a heart like a lion, and a spirit that was as untamable as it was stem . . . once you had crossed the threshold of that great door to the street you found yourself in another world — a world, peaceful and self-sufficient, which centred round the figure of Delius. It was a world with its own laws, its own standards of right and wrong, in all things, its own particular sense of beauty and its own music. It had been created for music-making.' This vigorously constructed, remote world of dreams was Delius' heritage to us; from that created entity of civilization, the beauty of his music dripped as honey does from the cells of the beehive. Donald Tovey has written of * the almost oriental depth of medita- tion ' of the Violin and Double Concertos. And Fenby reports a conversation during which Delius told him how in Florida he gradually learnt the way, but ' it was not until years after I had settled at Grez that I really found myself. Contemplation, like composition, cannot be taught.' In the history of modern English music, the Solano 146 FREDERICK DELIUS orange grove has attained a mythological place comparable to that of the vale of Tempe or the Nemisian grove in ancient cultures. As with most romantic and quasi-legend- ary places, we know in fact very Httle about it, save the vivid pictures given by Heseltine (pp. 37 et seq.)\ other sources of information at present extant do not greatly add to our knowledge; Clare Delius' chapter about it should be read for itself, but one or two points may per- haps be adduced here about this period. Thus (p. 39) Heseltine mentions ' one or two little pieces ' already composed ; Delius' sister recalls his first song, written towards the end of his schooldays at Isleworth, and it can hardly be imagined that he had not put down on paper during those five or so years some of his improvisatory dreams; the song, a duet setting of *When other lips,' appears to exist amxong the sister's files, and though no doubt rightly kept away from universal public gaze, would be of great interest to a student of the later music. That Frederick was no orange-planter, and set his mind against being one after his first weeks, is palpable. It would however appear that the grove itself was in part responsible for the financial and agricultural failure of the episode, for Solano (we are told) *was too near the frost line for it ever to have become a successful orange planta- tion.' Reports of visitors quoted by Clare Delius show that her brother was indifferent to the need to control or com- bat natural conditions. Of the father's emissary, Mr. Tattersfield, we know little but that Fred divided his time between ' furious energy ' at music or * on the river in his boat,' his old nigger servant singing to him. Brother Ernest tried to grow tomatoes there for a short period, but soon moved away. After that, the manager seems to have carried on the labours of cultivation with scanty success, and (writes Clare) 'in 1924 Fred told me that he had practically given the place to a relative of Dr. Haym's, the musical ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 147 director at Elberfeld, and my brother added that he believed the present occupants of the grove had turned it into a tobacco plantation.' Further enquiries made on the sister's behalf ' drew a complete blank. There was no trace of the house where my brother had lived, and all recollec- tion of him had faded from the neighbourhood.' This extinction was foreseen by Delius — at least, envisaged as a forewarning — in a letter written by Delius to Heseltine on Nov. 24, 1915, the latter having thought of Solano as a refuge for the poor and consumptive novelist, D. H. Law- rence. Delius wrote : ' California is a far better climate than Florida; my orange grove has been left to itself for twenty years and is no doubt only a wilderness of gigantic weeds and plants. The house itself will also have tumbled down. Even if the house had been inhabitable I should not have advised Lawrence to live in it. The place is five miles from any house or store. Life is frightfully expensive on account of the isolated situation. One lives off tinned foods, and a servant costs one dollar fifty cents a day . . . To let him go to Florida would be sending him to disaster.' Of the subsequent period spent at Jacksonville and Dan- ville (pp. 43 et seq.), Glare Delius gives some interesting supplementary information obtained from enquiries made on her behalf. It is too long to quote here, but ought to be read by anyone interested in Delius, for it shows both the man's charm and his persistence. He was certainly not for- gotten, in those places where he taught music, almost half a century after he had left the neighbourhood; and the personal memories of the ladies she quotes are both touch- ing and illuminating. About the fruitful Parisian years httle information is at present available that adds appreciably to Heseltine's and Delius' own words (pp. 47 et seq.). Picture as our imagina- tions may la vie de Bo heme, the facts remain in the list of composition that the final, almost monastic devotion to 148 FREDERICK DELIUS work had come upon him, and show that these, if not his greatest years of achievement, were preparatory to the fuller period to follow. Clare Delius gives a picture of his appearance at this time 'culled from various family sources.' Delius, she tells us, 'was tall and retained his slim, graceful figure through middle age till the end of his hfe . . . He curiously enough impressed some people as belonging to the Latin type while others maintained that he was purely Teuton. He had very beautiful hands . . . He was quite without self-consciousness of any sort or kind, and there are few great artists, I imagine, who were ever so perfectly simple and natural as Fred was. Though he inherited from my father a distinct fastidiousness, he was extremely affable and engaging.' Norman O'Neill, says his biographer Derek Hudson, referred to ' the charm and gaiety of his prime.' Other points made by Clare Delius are his sense of humour — ' his laugh was infectious ' ; his freedom from mannerisms ; the fact that ' he never tadked about himself; and his incurable optimism — he was ' always believing that everything would come right. Worries had a knack of falling from his shoulders like dis- carded garments. Though he was always in hot water at home, I never once remember him losing his temper.' Important as was the formative and developing influence of the Parisian years, Delius' greatest gain from them was his wife, Jelka Rosen, both spiritually and materially. Hesel- tine's tribute to her (p. 48) is as prophetic as it is true. Throwing up her career as a painter, she devoted her entire life to Frederick, for all the many years before his illness began to cripple him. No separate memoir of such a woman, however richly deserved, could ever be written, for she immersed herself utterly in her husband's music, in the making and the management of it, in providing the bodily and spiritual needs of the remote thinker, and in continual literary assistance in his operas and vocal works. Fenby's ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 149 book contains a large number of passages about her life at Grez from 1928 onwards, which add up into a splendid monument to her. One passage runs : ' One thing was ever uppermost in my mind at Grez, and that was that only there, and with such constant care as his wife lavished on him, could he go on living. Her name deserves a very prominent place on the scroll of those who have given themselves unstintingly for others.' A fuller account of and tribute to Jelka Delius may be read in the sympathetic study of Jier by the late Dr. Heinrich Simon printed in the Monthly Musical Record of December, 1935. He leaves us in no doubt that it was the young painter Jelka (he describes her as a pointilliste in style) and her friends who first discovered the village of Grez-sur-Loing and the house there, and asserts that her mother bought it. It seems, according to Simon, that she w^as but one of a number of girls attracted by the young Delius, and to have been surprised that she was the chosen one. After their marriage, Simon says of Grez and Delius, ' Jelka was the guardian of this garden.' ' She was a splendid story-teller,' he writes, comparing her tales with those of de Maupassant. Then he adds : ' Her sacrifice was great . . . Through Jelka [Delius] fulfilled his mission, and because of her he was able to fulfil it . . . Strength through devotion has become a rare quality in our time. It is good to know that it still exists.' Not till towards the end of his chapter on ' Delius' Life ' (pp. 71-2) does Heseltine describe the house at Grez-sur- Loing, v/here all the most important works were written. That description is short but vivid. A much fuller descrip- tion appears in Clare Delius' book, while the whole of Fenby's is permeated with its atmosphere; both should be read in extenso for proper understanding of the composer's self- created circumstances of life. One may note, however, one curious omission from Heseltine's picture : there is no men- 150 FREDERICK DELIUS tion of the pet jackdaw named Koanga after the composer's opera. It is curious because black pets, especially cats, were favourites with Heseltine, in whose biography Gray gives an account of ' his gigantic neuter black cat which shared with its master a veritable passion for the music of Delius to which it would listen for hours, sitting on the lid of the piano in a state of beatific ecstasy. All other music, how- ever, it hated.' To the full account of the 1899 concert (pp. 56 et seq) three small points may be subjoined. The conductor of it, Alfred Hertz, became conductor of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in 191 5, having held the same posi- tion with the Metropolitan Opera House, New York City, since 1902. He retired in 1929, and died in San Francisco in 1942. Glare Delius supplements the press notices quoted by Heseltine by a favourable one from the Yorkshire Post, which is obviously informed by a projective judgment and not only by local news-interest. Thirdly, Fenby, reminding us that Frederick had to wait till he was 37 before he had the expeiience of hearing his own orchestral music, recalls the composer's telling him that ' after that concert he was so conscious of the faults of his music that he could not rest, but left London for Grez early the next morning, so eager was he to take up his sketches of Paris and apply the techincal knowledge that he had just acquired.' Chapter VIH of Clare's 'memories of my brother' is important for two reasons — ^in that it quotes at some length the press notices of the concert of 1907, and in that it records her and our gratitude for Sir Thomas Beecham's ' ungrudging championship ' which the music played there- in won from him. ' How much,' she writes, in a simple moving sentence, ' Fred owed to Beecham it is impossible to calculate.' Nor is it necessary for me to implement Hesel- tine's tribute (pp. 63 et seq). Prolong this 10 years' record, in imagination and by knowledge of facts and perform- ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 151 ances, until this present day, add to it the three outstanding events of the DeHus Festivals of 1929 and 1946 and the recordings of the Delius Society as more spectacular and immediate to the public attention, add also to it a sympathy and a knowledge in performing the music that have matured and increased during the years. Heseltine's testi- mony remains true and only not sufficient in that it perforce omits Beecham's continuing belief in and support of the music for more than a subsequent quarter of a century. To attempt to express here further praise and gratitude would be otiose, and indeed verging on the impertinent. Those first fourteen peaceful years of the twentieth cen- tury were a wonderful creative period in Delius' life — a priod of almost incredible imaginative fertility. With all his Umitations of idiom, his range of subject and thought was extremely wide. Though Heseltine devotes more than half his book to a study of the works up to 1923 (pp. 74-119) and to 'His music viewed as a whole' (pp. 11 6-1 38), a glance at the titles and dates of composition of 1900-14 may be timely here. The principal works are: 1 900-1 A Village Romeo and Juliet, 1902 Appalachia, 1903 Sea- Drift, 1904-5 A Mass of Life, 1906-7 Songs of Sunset, 1907 Brigg Fair, 1908 In a Summer Garden, 1908 A Dance Rhapsody (No. i), 1908-10 Fennimore and Gerda, 1 911 Life's Dance, 1911-2 A Song of the High Hills, 191 3-14 North Country Sketches. Apart from the creative energy outpoured here, the mere physical labour of com- position (for none but large-scale work is here catalogued) must have been prodigious, even for one who solely occupied his time with composition. Small wonder that neither in Heseltine nor elsewhere do we find more than glimpses into that withdrawn but active life in Grez. There is, no doubt, correspondence preserved, about performances, with publishers, with friends, but so far little of it is open to the public eye. From the various 152 FREDERICK DELIUS accounts and stories scattered among the biographies and reminiscences the reader, if he consults the books and uses their index pages properly, can gain for himself supple- mentary pictures of Delius — of the man as well as the composer, and of the atmosphere that by an almost chemi- cal process of the mind he created around himself. The most one can do is to refer the reader to these sources, picking out here and there one or two points of relevant interest. Among Frederick's personal friends and most sym- pathetic admirers was the composer, Norman O'Neill (i 875-1 934). A London-cultured Irishman, O'Neill was one of the most delightful people it has been my lot to know; Fenby records that 'Delius had already spoken of him with the greatest affection, and when they were together I could see that O'Neill was one of the very few people whom he loved.' His tragic death at the age of 59 through an unnecessary road-accident was a loss to us all and to English music; one cannot help, at this moment of writing, wondering how his full memories of Delius would have read, for he was not blind in his love. Fortunately his biographer, Derek Hudson, has left us a considerable amount of illuminating matter which should be eagerly consulted by enquirers after Delius' life and personality. There is much recording of good talk and a revealing letter, the last our composer ever wrote to his friend in 1929. Delius was from 1907 onwards, we learn, a frequent visitor to O'NeiU's house in Pembroke Villas, Bayswater, London. He actually became ' vice-president ' of ' The Musi- cal League' — surely the only example recorded of his undertaking public duties? O'Neill calls him 'a main- spring' in the movement, but one may perhaps attribute this to the Irishman's modesty and to the other's projective wisdom in talk and correspondence. O'Neill also recounts with what pleasure Delius accepted his cheque from the Royal Philharmonic Society for conducting In a Summer ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 153 Garden (p. 70). It should be noted that, according to O'Neill, the first signs of his oncoming illness showed them- selves first in 1 9 11 . It was in 1 9 1 o, as I have written, that the friendship with Heseltine began; this early beginning of disability may perhaps throw some light on the Hesel- tine correspondence. An interesting but minor point referred to by O'Neill is Delius' interest in and particularity about food; further allusions are made to this fastidiousness of diet by Beecham, Fenby, and others, and there is no doubt that even the paralytic clutch did not weaken Delius' liking for good things to eat and drink. Supplementary information about the relations between Delius and Busoni (pp. 46, 69) is given by Professor Edward Dent in his biography of the second-named. Grieg introduced Busoni to Delius in Leipzig in 1 886, as ' a most remarkable pianist — and perhaps something more.' This first friendship, Dent says, 'was renewed with deeper cordiality in later hfe'; Delius was by three years the senior of the two. Dent relates {sub anno 1888) an anecdote about Busoni and Sinding (p. 46). ' Many years afterwards,' he writes, ' Sinding, Delius, and Busoni met in Paris ; they were then all three married and accompanied by their wives. Busoni, who was in a cheerful mood, burst out suddenly with one of his characteristic observations : " Here we are, three composers and their wives; and everyone of the ladies is thinking that her husband is the greatest of all!" Delius was a little uncomfortable; it was "the sort of thing one didn't say," he felt.' Delius is recorded by Dent as saying ' that what struck him most about Busoni in their Leipzig days was his passionately intense ambition' — an ambition which in the worldly sense Delius wholly lacked. In 1902, in Berlin, Busoni gave a series of orchestral concerts of contemporary music with programmes of positively pro- 154 FREDERICK DELIUS phetic insight. The full lists of works performed can be read in Dent's biography; they included the first perform- ance in Berlin of Delius' Paris, among such varied company as the German premieres of Debussy's UApres-Midi (Fun Faune and Sibelius' En Saga conducted by the composer. The press of Berlin was very unsympathetic and critical of the enterprise, Dent writes, and adds that Delius did not like Busoni's salon of adorers, since he had to wait to gain audience with the great man; his comment was, ' How good Gerda [Frau Busoni] was to them ! ' What Sir Thomas Beecham may finally tell us about his association with Delius from 1907 onwards is matter for anticipation and future enjoyment. In the meantime there is valuable material in A Mingled Chime, though the first and only published volume stretches towards us no farther in years than Heseltine's (1923). Chapter XIV, dated 1908, is devoted to Delius, and gives a most interesting, in many ways penetrating study of the man. The other refer- ences in the index should be followed up; but attention is here called to two points — Beecham's experiences with A Village Romeo and Juliet (see, in Heseltine's text, pp. 68 and 81 et seq. — indeed, the whole of his section II), and his remarks in Chapter XVI ('A Happy Year') on Delius' ' indifference or ineptitude ' in making clear to his performers what he firmly wanted the music to sound like. Complaints of bad performances of Delius' works are found in Delius' own words and letters, in Heseltine, in Clare Delius, in Fenby, and elsewhere; but it is impossible to doubt that in some large measure this was due to the com- poser's notational carelessness and ineffectual markings — 'it seemed,' writes Beecham, 'that having once got down on paper the mere notes of his creations, he concerned him- self hardly at all with how they could be made clear of ambiguity to his interpreters.' The complete novelty of his idiom made such editorial labours, of a highly skilled order, ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 155 more necessary with this music than with unplayed works by most of his contemporaries. Both this forbidding handi- cap, coupled with the composer's own handwriting (pp. 55-6), and the originaHty of sound with its large choral and orchestral demands put grave difficulties in the way of Delius' obtaining wide recognition in an age without mechanical means of musical diffusion. On all these grounds, one is not surprised, if one is unhappy, that when Sir Henry Wood (another Delius champion) proposed Sea- Drijt for the Sheffield Festival in 1908, he was 'turned down.' In My Life of Music he tells how ' the chorus did not take kindly to the work,' and how Dr. (later Sir) Henry Coward, the chorus-master, 'himself was not really in sympathy with it.' Wood characteristically wrote asking that he ' might meet the committee personally to play and sing the work to them.' I should like to have been present at that indomitably vigorous if somewhat sketchy solo performance. I am fortunate in being permitted to print here some memories by three personal friends of the composer — Roger Quiiter, Charles Kennedy Scott, and Percy Grainger — which have not been published before; their words are given below without any attempt to fit them into their order of date-reference. Roger Quiiter writes : ' I met Delius for the first time with Percy Grainger in London. These two, though so different, seemed to have a strong attraction for each other and a very real admiration of each other's musical gifts. But it was not till later that I got to know Delius personally and to come so completely under the spell of his music. ' Before Delius became ill, I happened to be staying in Frankfurt-on-the-Main for a few weeks. While there I went to hear an orchestral concert at the Opera House directed by the opera conductor, a most fine and sensitive 156 FREDERICK DELIUS artist. Among other things Delius' Brigg Fair was given, which I had never heard. I was so overcome by the beauty both of the composition and of the performance that I could not resist writing enthusiastically to Delius, though I hardly knew him then. Delius at once replied, telling me that his Sea-Drift was shortly to be performed at Frankfurt, and begging me to stay to hear it. He added that he was coming himself and that he would like to see me. ' This was an opportunity not to be missed. Delius arrived and took me to the final rehearsal of his work, which went smoothly and well. He was delighted and fell into a really happy mood ; I became completely charmed and fascinated by him. The performance itself at the concert was a very fine one. The work had been carefully and lovingly pre- pared. The translation into German of Walt Whitman's poem was beautifully done by Jelka Rosen, Delius' gifted and remarkable wife. This whole experience for me was an unforgettable one, especially as I never saw Delius again in this genial, happy mood. The dark clouds had not yet descended upon him. ' Many years later I went to see Delius at his home at Grez-sur-Loing. He was then a complete invalid and quite blind and helpless. But his personality was as strong as ever, and though I am sure it was a great effort for him, he was as charming and thoughtful as possible during my short visit. The devotion and tact of his wife were quite wonderful. Later on, when Sir Thomas Beecham gave those unforgettable concerts of Delius' compositions at Queen's Hall (in 1929), I saw something of the composer and his wdfe, and I sat with them in the circle. It was a terribly moving experience, watching that unseeing, highly sensitive face turned towards the orchestra, following every note, every nuance of Beecham's inspired and exquisite perform- ance of the music. Yet I felt sure that Delius was then supremely happy.' ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 157 Mr. Roger Quilter's charming piece came to me in the form of separate notes with a covering letter. Mr. Charles Kennedy Scott's were written in the form of a letter to me. I have thought it best to suppress the personal opening and ending and to print the remainder of his admirable material about Delius. It should be added, not only in fairness to the three contributors, but as a point of critical interest, that none of them saw my words before he wrote his own, and that therefore any similarity in the critical and appre- ciative outlook of the three pen-holders redounds to Delius' credit and sets him in true and just perspective. ' I came to know Delius fairly well, though others can claim longer and closer intimacy. I first met him in 191 2 or so when Balfour Gardiner gave his wonderful series of concerts. Just previously Norman O'Neill had introduced me to Balfour as being of possible service to him with the Oriana Madrigal Society. It was through these concerts that I (and many others far more deserving) gained a footing which we had never had before. ' Almost without one's being aware of it, a great ferment of musical activity had been taking place in our midst — great in quality as well as extent. We discovered^ almost suddenly, that we had produced a veritable "school" of composers, though its elements were so diverse and indivi- dual : a school already cemented by very close personal friendships (destined to be further extended) which had arisen largely through the instrumentality of Balfour Gardiner himself. ' Balfour's concerts were probably the most important series of concerts that we have ever had, not excepting those of the Delius Festival in 1929. They consolidated English music as never before or since. At that time, though Vaughan Villiams was already a considerable figure. Parry, Stanford, and Elgar were still in the ascendant. But there were younger composers, well past the prentice stage, who 158 FREDERICK DELIUS had by no means had their due — Hoist, Bax, Dale, Delius, Balfour Gardiner himself, and others. Some of their music had been performed, rather by way of encouragement than as an act of faith in its merits. Good intentions of a festival committee (reflecting a sort of bourgeois complacency) or even the public largesse of the " Proms " did not properly meet the situation. A far surer estimate needed to be supplied, an estimate that could only come from a man of the rarest discrimination. Such a man was Balfour Gardiner, who further had both the means and the enthu- siasm to do what was wanted. * The result was the Balfour Gardiner Concerts of 1 9 1 2 and 1 91 3. Short lived though they were (only eight took place), they were sufficient to demonstrate a new note in our native art; an indubitably English approach freed from Continental fetters, by which perfectly sincere emotions could be expressed in an original way; a libera- tion not only of formal processes but, what was of far more importance, of the imagination itself. Of all this Delius' music is a chief example. ' Many of us are aware of Balfour's exceptional gener- osity and judgment (which, with engaging independence, has always refused to be taken in by accepted opinion of any kind). No one will ever know the full extent of his benefactions — the perfect gentleman has always been behind them. The tribute must be paid here. ' The days of these concerts were satisfying, happy days. Balfour had a small town house in Kensington, off Edwardes Square — Norman O'Neill lived opposite. There his friends gathered; there Percy Grainger would play his own compositions, or Bax, with his unrivalled power of score-reading, the compositions of other members of the circle when their own skill was insufficient ; there plans were discussed, programmes settled with eager anticipation. The moving spirit was, of course, Balfour Gardiner; no accred- ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 159 ited institution could have supplied the stimulus that he gave. 'Delius came from France to hear his Sea-Drift and smaller works, which were sung by the Oriana — in the case of Sea-Drift a professionally augmented Oriana. He was in good health then; his physical affliction did not develop till later. He never had much to say about the performance of his music. He seemed content to leave it to others, provided he could trust their competence. A lack of execu- tive ability probably accounted for this. Composition is one thing, performance quite another; and it by no means follows that a composer knows exactly what he wants, though he can quickly sense what he does not want. The most I heard Delius say was " Why will they always take my music too fast?"; for the rest, he hardly offered any comment, and, as far as I was concerned, was indulgently appreciative — I remember his coming to Leighton House one night when we were practising his part-song " On Craig Dhu " ; he appeared to be very affected by what he heard. In consequence he wrote two unaccompanied, wordless songs for us, " To be sung of a summer night on the water," shortly after. I couldn't get him to see that this title was rather queer English, though it would have been perfectly all right in French.^ ' Special sympathy is required in the performance of Delius' work. It will not give up its secret by rough and ready treatment. It is so sensitive and refined that the per- former must have a like attitude, particularly as regards beauty of tone. If he is not a poet at heart, he had better leave Delius alone. ' Delius' music is above all a music of " distance," of back- ground rather than foreground ; and just as there is a disso- lution of form in distance, strongly knit forms are not the characteristic of Delius' work. It is the magic of colour, ^ See letter on page i66. 160 FREDERICK DELIUS the stillness of far-off things, that entrance us ; lively action, which must operate close at hand, scarcely enters. 'Delius' special concern with colour could, perhaps, be inferred by the pictures which he had about him at Grez. Most of them — many were by his wife — were of an impres- sionist kind — ^studies in colour rather than form; their strange, vivid colouring immediately caught the eye. Cer- tainly Delius himself was a superb colourist, one of the greatest in music, whether in terms of voices or instruments. Indeed one might say that he is surpassed by no other composer for sheer beauty of sound. He never uses a crude or harsh note, or displays anything like vulgar opulence; he would have scorned " effect " unrelated to " feeling." His tones are merged and blended with the utmost richness — often the outcome of very full divisi writing for strings and voices; thus he secures a lively sense of "atmosphere," as necessary to the unity of music as of painting — there can hardly be greatness without it ! The choral section of The Song of the High Hills shows these attributes at their best. Such is its rapture that we scarcely breathe as we hear it. Yet Delius constantly disregards the logic of the vocal line, preferring harmonic to linear disposition in order to secure his purpose — a sure sign of his concern with background. The melody is there, but he v/ill often begin it in one voice and end it in another, tossing it about just as it suits him, rather to the discomfort of the singers. The total effect is supremely beautiful, but it is erratic, and (as someone has said) "ruthless" in arrangement. 'And as his music is of such high breeding, so, as far as I knew him, was the man himself. There was nothing of the "hail fellow, well met," nothing effusive about him. Entirely self-possessed, he never raised his voice — his speech was normally as mellow as his music. It had no corrosive quality, even when he made the most biting observations. His look was slightly disdainful, yet it was also kindly and ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 161 serene — the mouth showed that ; the eyes were not piercing, they reflected an inward rather than an outward gaze, as though he could not be much bothered with external things. It was the face of a dreamer, softened by a sort of Words- worthian contact with Nature. Cynicism is the salt of life — Delius had plenty of it ; but it was expressed in such a way, with such gentleness of tone and temper, that it never really, hurt, or hardened into an unwelcome aspect. ' Fenby talks of Delius' " sternness " during the closing years. I never saw anything of this, - and am inclined to think than any forbidding traits of character came more from ill-health than ill-nature. But there is no doubt that he had a mind of unusual independence and an adamantine will, however much it was camouflaged by charm of manner. He was certainly not pliant. He had his own views and they seldom coincided with those of the multitude. Once, at Grez, when we were returning from a walk to Fontaine- bleau, we passed a cellar in which a very old cobbler was at work. I had been advocating "hygiene," upon which such store is laid in modem life. Delius was sarcastic; he would have none of it. "Look at that cobbler," he said; " he has been working in that cellar for 50 years and the window has never been opened." ' Next door to Delius' house was a sort of shed in which any tramp found wandering about the village at night was locked up by the Garde Champetre (or local policeman); there was straw, for sleeping, on the floor, and the inmate accepted his temporary fate quite naturally. Having wished him goodnight, the Garde Champetre turned the key, and in the morning released his man so that he could continue his daily prowl. This struck me as an amusing custom, and though not immediately concerned with Delius, shows the old-fashioned place in which he lived. 'Delius took nothing for granted. He was the rebel 6 162 FREDERICK DELIUS throughout, refusing to acknowledge anything save the law of his own being; hence his originality, hence too, per- haps, certain artistic weaknesses and exaggerated pro- nouncements. He did not care whether others agreed with him; he was not out to proselytize; he only wished to be let alone; he was the anarchist pur sang, though he would never have formulated a theory about that or anything else. He scorned insincerity and was frank to an almost painful degree : at any rate, with Delius, you knew how you and others stood. It was a measure, as well, of his nobility as an artist. There were no extraneous ' oughts ' in his make-up. If an inner compulsion did not operate, all was dust and ashes in accordance with St. Paul's discourse upon charity, though the two men probably failed to recog- nize each other in Heaven. 'It goes without saying that Delius had no religious beliefs in the conventional sense. He wished to be buried without any of the usual rites; and this was carried out. He was just " laid in earth " without a word of committal or farewell — carted to the cemetery and dumped ; a pathe- tic and to the few onlookers distressingly inadequate con- clusion. * Delius could abide by nothing " common or mean." He was essentially aristocratic in disposition, with a tendency to " dwell apart," though he was by no means a recluse. He liked chosen friends, but I do not think he sought them; rather, they came to him. The pleasures of life appealed to him; he was no ascetic. A bottle of first-rate wine was always forthcoming from his cellar at Grez; he, as well as the rest of us, delighted in savouring its quality. Indeed it was always quality with him — the fastidious appreciation of a few things, not the number of his possessions. 'I went to Grez two or three times; Balfour Gardiner also took me to Cassel when Delius was there for an attempted cure towards the end of his life. Lightly built ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 163 at his best, by that tune he was so emaciated that I used to carry him in my arms from his bedroom to the dining- room of the hotel. Even then he enjoyed his food, and there was plenty of life in his talk — pungent observations were always forthcoming. He seemed able to triumph over his bHndness and other pathetic disabilities as long as it was humanly possible. I never heard him complain. ' It was good to be at Grez : I recall the old stone-built house, with its latticed shutters; the garden at the back leading to the river, beyond which, were to be seen the tall sugar-loaf heaps of white, sand, used for making the finest china; and in a corner — perhaps the most delightful feature of all — ^the fairy grotto (or so it seemed) which supplied water for the house from an ever-running spring. It's damp, rocky walls, lined with moss and fern, were of the deepest brown. Scarcely any light penetrated; the fall- ing water, though but a trickle, made quite a noise, because of the way in which its sound was confined. Yet it was all so quiet, "far from the madding crowd," just where Delius would live. His wife Jelka's laughter and the song of the birds in the garden were all that disturbed the silence. Everyone knows of Jelka's devotion. 'A considerable artist by the time I knew her, she had already almost given up her painting in order to attend to Delius. But it had not soured her, the laughter was always there. Jelka was exuberant, Delius the reverse . . . She was of Danish extraction, usually conversed in French, but spoke English in a quaint way which often hit off a situa- tion to perfection. Once when the publishers had printed the voice parts of The Song of the High Hills in a very unpractical form she said she was going to write a " thunder letter " to them about it. (Delius often suffered from this sort of presentation in print, and it made the performance of his work unnecessarily difficult.) At another time, as we passed a house which was being built, she 164 FREDERICK DELIU S explained that it was to be the home of an "ambitious apothecary." ' Sometimes at Grez we would play Delius' works, though he never forced them upon us. He listened generally with- out making any comment. Once he said that the bass would be better played louder, but I remember no other criticisms either as regards tempo or nuance. Percy Grainger had made a four-handed arrangement of The Song of the High Hills, and we played this to Delius. I also accompanied Delius' sister in many of the songs, including the one I liked best, " Hy-Brazil." 'My favourite choral work is Sea-Drift \ the Requiem never attracted me very much. I have already spoken about The Song of the High Hills, which seems to me to be much more than an impression, evoking rather (as its title sug- gests) the very voice of the hills themselves. It fell to the Philharmonic Choir and the Oriana to perform all Delius' compositions, some of them for the first time. ' I have said how self-possessed in manner Delius was ; as an artist he was also entirely self-contained. By that, I mean that he felt no obligation towards society; he was not in the least inspired by that fruitful cause of artistic deception, the public good. With him it was as nearly as possible " art for art's sake." Of course, art must always be about something, though its subject-matter suffers such a sea-change at the artist's hands that even the most ordi- nary (and even ugly) appearance can be transformed there- by into a pearl of the rarest price. In short Delius had little or no social sense; his gift to the world did not depend upon that. He went direct to the point; the expression, generally, of what he felt in the presence of nature or some emotional situation. What became of the result, what influence it had, was of little importance to him. ' Delius had his own conventions, even if he discarded the conventions of others. A bar of Delius could be none ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 165 Other than himself. But how beautiful his style is; how suited to lyrical utterance! His music always "sings" in ceaseless flow; scarcely a note is separated off from its neighbours, or used merely to give rhythmic emphasis. He compels by a sweet reasonableness that penetrates the very centre of experience, not by his power. There are of course loud passages in Delius; but they are, usually, relatively slow in movement, weak in driving energy. The vigour seems assumed rather than innate as though the composer could not keep it up. The loud choruses of the Mass of Life, for instance, are not really forceful; their muscular system is not designed to support any weight of sound or continued physical strain. But what compensations there are in the softer, slower passages, as in the lovely instru- mental interlude of the same work ! 'There is no need to hail Delius as the one and only saviour of music; there are many saviours in life and art, and we do well, without shame for our eclecticism, to give thanks for them all. Personally I find that my own nature (such as it is) is fulfilled in music regardless of its time and place. And why not ? The spirit of all the past runs through our being; we are of the past infinitely more than of the present or future. Be this as it may, I can take Delius to my heart and find the superb beauty which he revealed an addition to, and not at all to the detriment of, composers of centuries before. ' There is no such thing as a " period piece," except chronologically. A work of art is either satisfying or it is not. "Period pieces" are only purchased, not valued. Though he is of our time we cannot label Delius as belong- ing to it. It is by an eternal quality that his music gains its greatness.' With his personal letter about Delius, Mr. Charles Ken- 166 FREDERICK DELIUS nedy Scott enclosed eight letters from the composer to himself. They add to the picture, for they illuminate the artist's mind and the man's kindliness. I print them, by permission, unedited, save for one added explanation in a footnote ; they have never been printed before. Grez-sur-Loing, Seine-et-Marne, 8th August, 1 91 7. Dear Mr. Scott, Many thanks for your letter enclosing the one from Mr. Rogers.^ What would you propose as the title? 'To be sung on Summer night on the Water'? or what ? Why is ' of ' bad ? I think the first one ought to be sung on ' Ah ! ' or any vowel which will produce the richest tone. No. 2 likewise, but the tenor solo must no doubt sing on * La '. I leave it to you, knowing your great experience in these matters and wonderful results. How can one control the number of copies printed? My experience has show^n me that publishers print more copies than they account for. At least in Ger- many ! I had a law suit for 2 years on this account which I eventually won. Since then I sold my works outright. Of course this is a little matter and of no great importance, but I have a number of new works completed since the war began which I wish to publish in England, and perhaps with Mr. Rogers if we can come to a satisfactory agreement. I have a Requiem (something for you), a Double Concerto for Violin and Violoncello and Orchestra, a Violin Concerto, a new Dance Rhapsody for Orchestra, a 'Cello Sonata, ^ Mr. Winthrop Rogers, an American by birth, who was at this time actively interested in pubHshing the younger English composers in London, especially their songs. ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 167 a String Quartet — you see I have not been idle. I don't believe in Novello's; they are stick-in-the-mud and have old-fashioned methods. I hope to come to London early next year and shall see what can be done. I have written to Mr. Rogers. With kindest regards, I remain, Sincerely yours, pREDERICK DeLIUS. Delius dictates : — Schlosshotel, Wilhelmshohe, Cassel, 30-3-I925 Dear Scott, I have postponed writing to you hoping against hope that I would be able to come to the London per- formance of the Mass of Life. But my condition is so feeble that I simply dare not undertake the journey. How I have been looking forward to the performance with your beautiful choir! It is a terrible disapppointment to me, and if I live through all this perhaps it will be repeated next season and I could hear it — that is, if it pleases. I must hear the Mass of Life with your choir before I die. With affectionate greetings, Yours ever, Frederick Delius. 168 FREDERICK DELIUS Wiesbaden, Villa ' Mon Repos/ Frankfurter Strasse. My Dear Kennedy Scott, I have been here at Wiesbaden for the last month undergoing a very severe treatment. My legs had sud- denly gone very weak and for the present I am for- bidden to use them and am being wheeled about in a bath chair. I shall therefore be unable to come to London for the performance of the Requiem. You will understand how disappointed I am. Please write and let me know how it went off. Thanking you most heartily for all the trouble I am sure you will have had with the work, I remain, Very sincerely yours, Frederick Delius. Delius dictates : — Grez-sur-Loing, 21.5. 1928 My dear Charles, I thank you from my heart for all the love and care you have given to my work. When your beautiful letter written after the first big rehearsal came, I realized so fully with what devotion and what deep under- standing you studied my works and brought their per- formance about in the face of all those great material difficulties too ! Judging from the enthusiastic letters I have received, the performance must have been ex- cellent, or it could not have made such a deep impres- sion. I thank you from the bottom of my heart, dear Charles, and I am grieved indeed that I could not hear it. I do so long once to hear this work again and sung by your wonderful chorus ! Do come and see us soon, perhaps on one of your motoring trips with your wife. ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 169 We shall be delighted to have you both. With much love from Jelka, I am, always yours, affectionately, Frederick Delius. Grez-sur-Loing (S-et-M), 31.5.1928. Dear Charles, I thank you so much for your letter and the criti- cisms. I hope you know what I think of music critics. It is only now they begin to see there is anything in my music at all. The enthusiastic letters I received from England from all different quarters have convinced me that the performance must have been wonderfully good. And I have more faith in the music-lover than in the music critic. Every one of my works has at one time been damned by the London critics — from Sea- Drift to the Mass. I am just longing to hear the Mass again, and if you repeat it next year I will come, even if I end up in an urn at Golders Green. Stick to your conducting. Don't let either friend or foe dishearten you. You will see that one day every one will see what a good conductor you are. For where there is such great and understanding love for a thing, there are also the necessary qualities. Do come and visit us here if you can possibly do it this summer. We should so love it ! With all affectionate messages from Jelka, Ever your friend, Frederick Delius. 6» 170 FREDERICK DELIUS Langham Hotel, Portland Place, London, W.i. My dear Charles, I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed the singing of your splendid Philharmonic Choir. It is a really and truly great achievement to have trained them as you have. I have never heard my works sung so subtly and with such fine nuance. Thank you for all the trouble you have taken ! Yours ever affectionately, Frederick Delius. Langham Hotel, Portland Place, London, W.i. 5.11.1929. Dear Philharmonic Choir, Let me thank you again for your really magnificent singing of the Mass of Life. It was a great joy to me to hear my work so beautifully performed. Yours sincerely, Frederick Delius. Percy Grainger adopted the plan of writing me a short formal memoir; I print it exactly as I received it. ABOUT DELIUS by Percy Aldridge Grainger Although Delius did not have a drop of English blood in him, he epitomized for me the English gentleman-of-leisure, ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 171 his birth and up-growing in Yorkshire having so completely anglicized him. I do not know a note of his music, I do not recall an incident in his life (as it was known to me per- sonally), that is not somehow rooted in a preoccupation with pleasure. His life knew no obligations, no irresistible urges, no onerous devotions. He floated on the top of life, a rich man's son, able to indulge his every whim and with no religious or moral scruples to limit his pursuit of pleasure. In place of the more enslaving feelings and instincts (that bind most men to the wheel of life) Delius responded to a myriad of interests that kept him amused but left him free. A vast range of subjects constantly engaged his mind, each subject tolerantly viewed from his vantage point of utter leisure. His approach to life — to the different continents, races, and cultures — was not only leisured but positively touristic. His absorbing interest in the Negro (as instanced in Florida, Koanga, and Appalachia) was purely that of an onlooker — a highly sympathetic onlooker, but merely an onlooker none the less. The same detachment (that of a rich man able to relish to the full what the world subserviently had to offer him in the way of entertainment) characterized his fondness for Scandinavia, as revealed in his songs to Jens Peter Jacobsen's (Danish) poems and in Eventyr, Fen- nimore and Gerda, The Song of the High Hills, etc. I once asked Delius whether his Song of the High Hills purported to be the high hills ' singing about themselves ' or whether the music tallied the impressions of a man under the spell of Alpine scenery. His reply was expectable : * The impres- sions of a man walking through the hills.' The touristic quality of his Paris is obvious. This Marcus Aurelius of music was indeed the musical aristocrat of his era. He did not so much create new ideas and idioms as respond exquisitely to those brought to him by others. He was a man of taste culling the honey gathered for him by worker-bees, himself no worker-bee. Delius was 172 FREDERICK DE LIU S not the kind of man ever to collect folk songs * in the field ' He would not even appreciate a folk song unless it came to him already harmonized. Thus he fell in love with my setting of Brigg Fair and at once asked my permission to use the tune in a more spun-out form. This was typical. We are told that Jelka would select a text for him that she thought would inspire his muse (such as the text of Songs of Sunset) and leave it on his desk. Delius would find it lying there, would respond exquisitely to it, and without a word passing between him and Jelka would start to com- pose to it. My own experience with Delius follows a similar course. Around 191 o he had complained to me that his orchestral works were neglected in England. I wrote him saying that England was studded with fine amateur orchestras that would rejoice to do Delius works, but lacked the 3rd clari- net, 3rd bassoon, and 5th and 6th horns that his scores so often called for. ' Write some short pieces for small orches- tra,' I urged, ' and English orchestras will devour them.' His next letter told that he had taken my advice, had already finished a short piece for small orchestra (based on a Norwegian melody) entitled On hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring, and was at work on a second one. Summer Night on the River. His receptive, rather than originative, atti- tude was manifest again in his choice of the Norwegian folk song around which On hearing the First Cuckoo was woven. He did not take a folk song that he himself had collected in Jotunheim (Norwegian Alps), but one already bewitchingly harmonized by Grieg in his Norwegian Folk Songs, opus 66 — which volume I had played to Delius when I first met him in 1907. In similar receptive (rather than originative) vein did Delius conceive his transcenden- tal Song of the High Hills; for all his 17 mountaineering trips to Norway it did not occur to him to 'write a work about the hills until he had heard my two Hill-Songs, the ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 173 first written 1 901- 1902, the second 1 901 -1907. The Song of the High Hills was written around 191 2. There is no criticism implied in my calling Delius a receptive and derivative, rather than an originative and creative, composer. Some geniuses (Guillaume de Machaut, William Lawes, Schumann, Grieg, Cesar Franck, Debussy) are born to be innovators, while other, equally great geniuses (Guillaume Dufay, Bach, Wagner, Gabriel Faure, Ravel) are cut out to be perfectors, culminators. (As when Wagner played to Liszt a passage in his Ring that was strongly reminiscent of a theme of Liszt's, and Liszt re- marked, ' I am thankful to see it immortalized.') It is light-shedding to compare with each other these two transcendental feats of emotional harmonization of the same time (' In Ola Valley ') : Grieg's in his opus 66 and Delius' in the First Cuckoo. Both are uneclipsably lovely, resourceful, touching, sensitive. But while Grieg's is con- centrated, pristine, miniature, and drastic, Delius' has the opulent richness of an almost over-ripe fruit and the luxurious long decline of a sunset. Indeed, much of Delius' music has the quality of sunsets and sunrises. When asked why so many of his compositions 'faded out,' rather than closing with some more definite ending, Delius would answer, ' Most things in nature hap- pen gradually, not abruptly.' He wanted his musical forms to tally the processes of organic change so prevalent in nature as we see it. And the larger part of Delius' music has the wistfulness of a sunset. This, again, was part of his aristocratic detach- ment, his touristically coloured emotionalism, his nostalgia of a rich man's leisured son. For Delius, like all hedonists, was lonely in his pursuit of pleasure. Meaning was not lent to his life by kin or children, or by allegiance to 'isms, beliefs, movements, or causes. He saw the infinite sadness of life without the slightest participation in those intoxicating 174 FREDERICK DELIU S enthusiasms that lead to life's catastrophes. When in his Pagan Requiem he mourned all the young men killed in the wars, he did so without sensing, behind the wars, any pardonable necessity. At the same time his freedom from religious beUef, moral convictions, and nationalistic frenzies left him singularly un-tragic, even in his laments. His sad- ness — even at the deaths of the young men lost in the wars — was always mild. ' Sad, but not crushed by sadness.' With such aristocratic detachment as was his, it is not surprising that Delius was somewhat mischievous in his non-creative, non-nostalgic moments. Of Sir Hubert Parry he is reported to have said to Elgar : ' It is a good thing Parry died when he did; otherwise he might have set the whole Bible to music' To me DeHus told of seeing, at Havre, during the first German war, an under-sized Cock- ney soldier chatting with a gigantic Sikh. Turning to Delius, the Cockney said : ' I tell you, them chaps is proud to talk to the likes of us.' Hearing that a certain musician who was visiting him at Grez was an ardent Christian Scientist (a fact that the musician had not mentioned to him, however), Delius regaled his guest with ' Of all the stupid things in the world. Christian Science is the stupidest.' And he went on by the hour teasing the man. But had the man admitted his belief and stuck up for it, Delius would have listened to him quite tolerantly, and a jolly and graceful discussion might have ensued. For Delius was never afraid of argu- ment, nor impatient in it. Nor was he thin-skinned. In my own case, knowing I was a vegetarian and a teetotaller, he would ask me at meal-times what I was eating and drink- ing. When I replied, ' Bread and milk and a glass of water ' (or the like), he would lay into me with ' Why be such a kill-joy? Why don't you enjoy a nice big steak and a mug of beer?' If I retorted, 'Yes, and be blind and paralyzed like you at the age of 70,' he would merely chuckle. ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 175 On the occasion of his 6oth birthday, a dinner in his honour was given in Frankfurt-on-Maine, where he and Jelka were then (1923) Hving for a while, and among the speeches made was one by a German poet that cruised around the thought ' Into our midst has come one of the rich ones of this world — rich in feelings, rich in genius, rich in experience, and a member of a rich nation.' In replying Delius did not waste much time in politeness and euphe- misms, but passed quickly into a dissertation on the witless- ness of the various European countries. First he enlarged on the mistakes of the Allies, bringing smiles of satisfaction to the faces of his German listeners, who were beginning to comfort themselves with the thought * At last a foreigner who sympathizes with us.' But these smiles vanished when Delius added, ' But the Germans have been the stupidest of them all.' x\ side of Delius that seems to me to be too seldom men- tioned was his touching devotion to his childhood memories of Yorkshire. He was never tired of praising the kindliness of the mill-hands in his father's mills in Bradford, and his unwaning love for the scenery of the Yorkshire moors is nobly witnessed in his North-Country Sketches — a master- work still too rarely heard. Delius' innate tolerance and passiveness were shown in countless little ways. During the earlier years of his para- lysis and blindness he was nursed by a succession of Ger- man male nurses who came to tend him as part of their duties as members of a religious brotherhood. A ministra- tion by one of these * Brothers ' that Delius especially appre- ciated was the reading aloud of stories by Edgar Wallace. In these reading-aloud sessions the author's name was in- variably pronounced ' Vall-lah-kay,' and the names of the characters in the stories were equally translated into the unrecognizable. But it never occurred to Delius to correct the Brother's pronunciation. 176 FREDERICK DE LIU S Delius' unruffled courage was evidenced not only in the stoical (one might almost say ' unfeeling ') way he accepted the collapse of his own health — so robust in earlier years — but also in many small and unforeseeable incidents of his daily life. One day, during his complete blindness and help- lessness, a group of us had him seated in a chair in the middle of his boat while we rowed him about on the river Loing. The oar of a passing sculler grazed his chest. In the mildest, most unmoved voice Delius asked ' What was that?' Delius' typically English irresponsibility was shown in a thousand ways, but never more amusingly than when inter- rogated about details in his scores by his unfailing bene- factor and friend, H. Balfour Gardiner, when the latter was correcting proofs of reprints of Delius' orchestral works. Gardiner kept asking about a kettle-drum passage in The Song of the High Hills in which the kettle- drummer, with only 4 drums, was required to play 5 different notes and with no time to tune between them. Gardiner insisted that the passage, as printed, could not be played. But all he could get out of Delius was : ' I don't know how he plays them; I only know he does play them.' Gardiner was dis- consolate : ' The trouble is that the drummer does not play the 5th note, but Fred never notices it.' I have dwelt at some length upon the more negative side of Delius' nature — upon his indifference, detachment, irres- ponsibility, and mischievousness. But I must not fail to mention his positive and humane qualities. In some ways he was the kindest and most protective man I have ever met. When in 1923, after a great tragedy in my life, I confided to Delius that I was not sure that I would have the courage to return to my life in America, Delius said, quick as a shot : ' My dear lad, you can always find employment here with me. You can be my amanuensis, or my gardener, or my chauffeur, or anything you like.' ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COxMMENTS 111 No colleague ever did so much for my music as Delius did. When he and I first met first met in 1907, I had never heard a work of mine performed except some small choruses at the most rural of Competition Festivals — in spite of the fact that my chief works had long been composed (my main compositional activity lying between the ages of 16 and 20). This condition of being unperformed was of my own choosing. Both my parents were invalids and my first interest in life was to be able to provide for them and their comfort. This I was doing by means of my pianistic career, which I feared would be upset if my compositions (with their irregular rhythms, endless chains of unresolved dis- chords, and monotonous form-lengths — things then un- heard of) were performed and aroused great opposition. This argument left Delius unmoved. After seeing my Hill- songs I and II, English Dance, ' Marching Song of Demo- cracy, ' Green Bushes,' Father and Daughter, etc., he in- sisted that my first duty was to put my innovations to the acid test of performance. 'You are the only one who can judge whether they sound as you want them to or not. And you can only tell after you have them performed.' So when Elgar, in 1908 or 1909, asked Delius to join him in forming a 'League of British Music' Delius' only stipulation was that representative works of mine should be given at the first Festival of the League. That is how my ' Irish Tune from County Derry ' and ' Brigg Fair ' came to be sung at the Liverpool Festival of 1909. In 1923 — although his health was then fast failing — Delius arranged to have two of my most important and least saleable works published in Vienna. And in the same year he attended all the 6 orchestral rehearsals of Hill-Song I, ' Marching Song of Democracy,' and The Warriors that I held in Frankfurt-on-Maine, although he had to be taken from his house to the rehearsal hall in a wheeled chair and carried up and down stairs at the latter place. Composer 178 FREDERICK DE LIU S never had truer colleague than I had in Frederick Delius, and when he died I felt that my music had lost its best friend. Our artistic comradeship was based not merely upon the great similarity of certain elements in our music (when I first saw Appalachia in 1907, I thought Dehus' and my harmonic idiom well-nigh identical), but equally upon like- mindedness in other fields. Our outlook on life was very similar, our artistic tastes met at many points. Both of us considered the Icelandic sagas the pinnacle of narrative prose. Both of us knew the Scandinavian languages and admired the culture of Scandinavia as the flower of Euro- peanism. Both of us worshipped Walt Whitman, Wagner, Grieg, and Jens Peter Jacobsen. Both of us detested the music of the Haydn-Mozart-Beethoven period. ' If a man tells me he likes Mozart, I know in advance that he is a bad musician,' Delius was fond of saying. During the years 1 923-1 927 — when Delius' health was failing so rapidly and before he enjoyed the boon of Eric Fenby's saintly presence at Grez-sur-Loing — Balfour Gar- diner and I used to travel yearly to Grez in order to play to Delius on two pianos. Our offerings consisted mainly of arrangements of Delius' works : the first Dance Rhapsody, The Song of the High Hills, On hearing the first cuckoo in Spring, Summer Night on the River, Brigg Fair, the 'Cello Sonata, the 'Cello Concerto, etc. Outside his own music Delius was not easy to cater to musically, for he indulged himself in a good deal of enfant- terrible-ism in his artistic attitudes and excelled in altering his taste from one year to another. One year he would ask for Bach ; the next year he would say, ' You know. Bach always bores me.' But Chopin and Grieg he never turned against. He preferred Ravel to Debussy. He had no patience with Richard Strauss, Mahler, or Hindemith. He scoffed at ' the wrong-note craze.' He cared everything for ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 179 the final artistic product and nothing for those efforts that aim at building new tonal media for the future. Thus he took no interest in my ' large chamber music,' in which I endeavoured to achieve with larger groups of single instru- ments a tonal balance more delicate than that natural to the symphony orchestra, with its top-heavy and ill-balanced sonorities. ' Why do you bother with experimental forms of orchestration ?' he would say to me, ' I find the conventional orchestra does everything I want it to.' And so it did, in his case. To my ears it seems that in Delius' music the most tender and subtle feelings of modern life are voiced in the most poignant and soul-reaching tonal speech. As Bach and Wagner did in their time, so Delius in his time seems to have succeeded in gathering together all that is of celestial beauty in the tonal idiom of his generation, and to have succeeded equally in divesting his muse of all that is pedan- tic, ugly, dry, and mechanical. And I feel that the loftiness and spirituality of his music rise directly out of the beauty of his inner being — out of his freedom from ambition, ignoble eagerness, and other forms of worldliness; out of his passiveness, tolerance, compassionateness, and tender- ness ; out of the inborn gaiety and gracefulness of his aristo- cratic nature. As a result of Delius' being widely seen in public and memorably photographed in the last years of his life, when he was such a frail invalid, and as a result of Delius-wor- shippers' in their writings having emphasized the last and painful phases of his illness, it seems that a needlessly mourn- ful and gloomy Delius-legend has been allowed to grow up, a legend not necessarily false to his condition at the close of his life perhaps, but certainly very misleading as an inter- pretation of his complete personality during the main part of his life, including the period in which he produced his greatest masterpieces — from 1890 to 1922. 180 FREDERICK DELIUS I did not see Delius during the last year-and-a-half of his Hfe, being in Australia at that time. But from 1907 to 1932 I was continually in touch with him, both by means of per- sonal contact and by letters. And in all that time I noticed nothing of the grimness and sternness that some saw in him. Delius, as I knew him, was remarkable for his gracious and graceful companionship, for the gaiety and lightness of his moods, for his good-humoured dehght in fair and open- minded argument, for his unfailingly humane outlook on world affairs and his flair for foreseeing future events and conditions, for his complete cosmopolitanism (' I am a good European,' was his frequent quotation), for his light-shed- ding anecdotes, for his perfect at-one-ness with Jelka (to see them sitting together, listening to his music, was to be present at a sort of sacrament), for his wish to see all people free and happy ('do what you want' was his constant advice to one and all), for his helpfulness to those he ad- mired, and (as already dwelt upon) for his frank pursuit of pleasure. To be with Delius was to feel oneself participating in a constant ritual celebrating enjoyment. In spite of this, one had a feeling that the depths of his nature — the nostal- gic and compassionate sides — were being hidden away, in ordinary daily intercourse. For the central core of his soul — his perception of the infinite sadness of life — one had to turn to his music. Percy Aldridge Grainger, At sea, June 23-25, 1950. ' The war,' writes Clare Delius, ' came to Fred, as to most artists, as a profound shock. While appreciating the spirit of personal self-sacrifice that it engendered, he refused to regard it as otherwise than a form of madness which had swept over the civilized world, destroying everything that was beautiful.' From a loving sister's point of view, those sentences give a fair notion of Grez and Delius in 19 14; ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 181 but from the later historian's angle, that point of view may seem a little distorted towards the favourable side, like experimental lenses at the oculist's which make one instantly see clearer with one eye but will not balance, in true pro- portion, with the other incorrect stereoscopic vision. Fifteen years of personal domination within his walls had made Delius oblivious of outside movements of possessive magni- tude. The kingdom of the mind — doubtless that is an admirable policy for an introvert who seeks no more than a personal retreat for contemplation. This other mind im- posed itself extrovertly upon those around him, upon the house itself; the kingdom was there, unassailable (so its creator thought), but it was filled with adjuncts to the mind, with the body and accessories thereto. The German inva- sion of France — no doubt a distressing international disas- ter — affected him as an attempt to dominate his own king- dom. His philosophy was a self-centred Nietzchism; it did not extend Nietzche's doctrines to world affairs. Histori- cally, even civically, his mind was obscured within its own confines. War was a nuisance that he must escape from. Amidst a cosmic madness, he thought himself the prime upholder of sanity. He fled with his precious Gauguin picture (52);^ he buried and covered over his precious wine-cellar and silver beyond the prying eyes of enemy invaders (should they come) and even occupying French officers. The enemy did not come near his house ; the French officers made rack and ruin of its contents. Yet Norman O'Neill tells us that by 19 1 6 it was 'so peaceful and jolly here at Grez.' Clare Delius relates a picturesque story of this early war period. Heseltine does not appear to have preserved more than a few of Delius' letters during this war period, if we may judge by Cecil Gray's biography. Henry Wood tells in his memoirs how ' early in 1 9 1 5 Delius came to see me in the ^ Now, I understand, in the Courtauld Institute. 182 FREDERICK DELIUS depths of depression. He told me he was very unhappy in France, and intended coming to England — at least for a time.' Wood offered him, we read, ' the loan of my London house.' He came and stayed one month. Beecham records how he lent the refugee Jelka and Frederick ' a house a few miles out of Watford,' where (it was thought) ' a hunted composer could repair his ravaged nervous system and con- tinue his work in peace.' Even here, it was needful for peace of mind to bring over their own French cook from Grez. To enable us to appreciate her view of Frederick's atti- tude towards war in general, and the Kaiser's war in par- ticular, Clare Delius quotes the ' Explanation ' that stands before her brother's Pagan Requiem (107- no). I will not quote it again here. The facts of the later years can be told in all too short a space; the inner history, the implications, can be read elsewhere. From Norman O'Neill we learn that it was in 1922 that the gripping illness 'seriously declared itself; thence onward 'the endless search for health continued.' Clare DeHus reports a visit to Grez in 1924; 'I noticed a very great change in my brother. The dread malady, which was to rob him of so many of his physical powers, was already creeping upon him like a shadow.' She writes of physical ' listlessness and inertia,' and notes her amazement at his wife's taking down his music from dictation. In 1926, on another visit, she found with great shock to herself that ' he was completely changed from the man I had seen two years before. Except for the dreadful paralysis ... his mind was just as alert, his interest and sympathies just as strong, and he showed all the old satisfaction in making himself as charming to me as only Fred could be when he wanted.' But externally ^he had become very like James Gunn's picture of him.' It was during this visit that 'Fred com- plained of a faint mistiness before his eyes, which made it difficult for him to see clearly objects even close at hand. ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 183 That was the first time we knew that he was fated to go blind.' In the summer of 1928;, the young and then un- known Yorkshire musician, Eric Fenby, offered his services to DeHus as musical amanuensis, arriving at Grez in Octo- ber of that year. His detailed record of his five years there is unsurpassable. It can be quoted (and has been here) on particular points : only in its completeness is its inestimable value to be appreciated. Fenby paints a wonderful picture of the man and the composer, of the surroundings of his mind that his mind itself had created, of Jelka, of the ill- ness, of the patient's unbreakable spirit, of all these things, indeed, that are integral to our understanding of Delius. But even more important, in Fenby's pages, as in Hesel- tine's, is treasured a rich mine of the great man's own words, his wisdom, his limitations, that show his personality more clearly than Fenby's most revealing descriptions. As a source- book no less than as an authentic record of the last years, Fenby's pages can never be supplanted; their continual reference to personal detail is at once fascinating and true. During these years of physical enchainment, Delius had many things to occupy his mind. To begin with, a number of friends visited him — we may at random mention the names of Beatrice and May Harrison, Lionel Tertis, Evlyn Howard- Jones, Balfour Gardiner, apart from those whose visits have been recorded here or elsewhere, like Thomas Beecham, Philip Heseltine, Roger Quilter, Norman O'Neill, and Charles Kennedy Scott. Edward Elgar's visit is vigor- ously described by Fenby, and so is that of Percy Grainger, who is reported by Clare Delius as saying to a friend and correspondent of hers, in the course of a voyage to Aus- tralia, 'You need never feel the least bit sorry for him (Delius). He is so full of fun and possesses such a happy nature that sympathy on him would be really wasted. He is always joking with the people around him.' It was the superlatively vital and optimistic Grainger who framed 184 FREDERICK DELIUS those words; they add convincing testimony to another important facet of the sick man's nature — that of the con- versationalist with an avid love of discussion, however one- sided. Delius must always have been a fascinating talker. Then, he dictated no less than seven works to Fenby (apart from the reconstitution of Idylls A Song of Summer, Fantastic Dance, the Irmelin prelude. Caprice and Elegy for 'cello and orchestra, the Third Violin and Piano Sonata, Songs of Farewell, and Cynara). The system of notating these works from dictation is minutely des- cribed by Fenby in a separate chapter; there is an addi- tional interest in it for those others who have acted as ' writers ' for other blind men, of less eminence but equal persistence. Professor Hutchings rightly praises the speed at which this intricate and laborious work \v^as carried out. DeUus would also listen to music, mostly that reproduced on the wireless or on gramophone records; in this pastime Delius' enjoyment was restricted by his own increasingly limited tastes in music — of Grainger it is recorded by Clare Delius that ' when he proposed to play (Bach) to Fred, my brother turned on him, exclaiming, " No, don't play Bach. You know I don't like him at all." As a corollary to this anecdote,' continues his sister, ' I remember him giving me a great lecture, declaring I had no musical appreciation when I stated rashly that I did not like Bach.' What Delius particularly enjoyed was listening to gramophone and other performances of his own music. In literature, he seems to have been equally whimsical in the choice of the books read aloud to him in his blindness. Three major happenings came from the world outside to illumine this last phase. The first was the awarding by the Crown of the Companionship of Honour in January, 1929. Even to Delius, who had spurned public recognition and ' meetings in the market-place ' all his life, with cynical — dare one think, slightly jealous? — ^superiority, this rare ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 185 distinction gave great pleasure. The second was the DeKus Festival, planned by Sir Thomas Beecham in the same year (October 12 to November i, 1929); six concerts designed to give a wide and representative survey of Delius' music.^ There was grave doubt whether the composer could travel to London to be present in person. But the almost insuper- able difficulties were swept away by the persistence and dihgence of Beecham and Jelka and other helping friends. One can but faintly imagine what the emotional effect on s--uch a nature — so remote, so long neglected as a composer — must have been. In his touching speech in public (quoted in full by Clare Delius) he said' This Festival has been the time of my life ' ; apart from all else, one may here remem- ber that for years the composer had been unable to go to hear an orchestra playing, in the flesh, sounds conceived not for reproduction by a machine but for ears actively present in a concert hall. At this time the University of Oxford offered the composer an Honorary Doctorate of Music; it is however a statute of the University that such degrees must be conferred in person, and owing to his health, Delius was unable to undertake the journey and so was obliged to refuse the honour. The third event was the suitable but belated action of the City of Bradford in con- ferring on their fellow-citizen the distinction of Honorary Freedom of the city. 'Up to 1932,' writes Clare Delius, who gives a full and vital account of the whole incident, ' only ten men had been so honoured, and of those ten only three were then alive' — one an octogenarian, another a nonagenarian, and not one of them a musician. Delius seems to have enjoyed this honour with greater relish than any he ever received; his early love for the countryside of Yorkshire had not abated in his imagination, and we may imagine with what excitement and anticipation he thought ^ See H. C. Colles' Essays and Lectures (Oxford), for a reprint of his article in The Times of November 2, 1929. 186 FREDERICK DELIUS of the visit to Grez of the Lord Mayor and Town Clerk in person to bestow the award and receive the recipient's sig- nature on the nominal roll of honour. Delius died on June lo, 1934; his wife had been ill, but had returned from hospital before the end. He was buried without religious ceremony, but his body was later trans- ferred to England and was buried in Limpsfield Church- yard, Surrey, on June 10, 1935. A few days after this event, Jelka also died, and was buried in the same country grave. We may without irreverence think it fitting that so long and close and devoted a companionship should come to an end without any prolonging of loneliness. * Philip Heseltine's critical conspectus (pp. 72-136) is frankly selective. He sought one aim, those many years ago — the aim of expounding Delius and his music; and, these many years after, we can accept his exposition as keen- sighted, almost superhumanly sensitive, and projective. For (I permit myself the remark) in 1922-3 Heseltine already had the important creations of Delius visible to his eyes if not audible to his ears. Not one work of the ensuing eleven years can, in this writer's view, assume the importance in musical history that he, with the young Heseltine, considers that the great works of the florescent period assume by natural right of spontaneous generation. To alter, at this date, Heseltine's words of critical assess- ment would be unthinkable. An occasional factual com- ment may be allowed. And there are odd omissions or neglects, some deliberate but most of them caused by the incidence of time. These little rifts I have tried to repair in my few ensuing words. But it would be unbecoming and unworthy of the author were I to attempt to deal critically, ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 187 and in the expository manner that he so skilfully adopted as his medium for his study of Delius' mind, with the other pieces. My desire is to ring round, not obscure, the clear bull-mark on the target at which he aimed. At once, let me add to Heseltine from Heseltine's own words. About Brigg Fair (pp. 1 1 5-1 1 7) there is an extremely interesting and practical letter to Delius (printed in Cecil Gray's Peter Warlock and dated Nov. 25, 191 1) in which the young man of seventeen years of age analyses a per- formance of the work. In the same letter he offers to make a two-piano arrangement of In a Summer Garden (p. 1 1 7). Of Paris Beecham in A Mingled Chime tells a curious story of its reception at a performance — interrupted beyond hope of reaching the end — in Rome in 191 6. Against this we may balance Henry Wood's statement in My Life of Music that 'Delius is definitely appreciated abroad.' The music of Paris has been made the basis of the ballet Nocturfie by the Sadler's Wells Ballet Company. The omission of a detailed analysis of Koanga (pp. i o i - 102) is odd, for the work, with its Negro-Spanish back- ground and its haunting passages, is worthy of study by anyone who wishes to observe the growing development of Delius' mind. Koanga was given by Beecham at Covent Garden in 1935, and afterwards toured by his com- pany. The previous history of Koanga is curious. It was this work which first led Delius to visit Grez-sur-Loing and so was the instrument of introducing him to his and Jelka's future home. The opera was produced in 1904 at the Stadttheater, Elberfeld; in 19 14 the score and parts were brought to London and seem to have been lost to view for years. Heseltine unearthed the parts in 1929 and later Professor Patrick Hadley found the score in a publisher's cellar. For the London production of 1935 the work was revised by Sir Thomas Beecham and Mr. Edward Agate. 188 FREDERICKDELIUS On the Mountains (p. 53 and footnote) would appear to be, apart from Florida, the composer's earliest orchestral work that is really characteristic. It dates from 1892 and bears the polyglot title on the first page ' Paa Viddene, Sur les Cimes. Auf dem Hochgebirg, On the Mountains.' It was first given in London at Beecham's second Delius Festival of 1946. At the same festival certain even earlier works were given — the Three Symphonic Poems (' Summer Even- ing' (1890), ' Winter Night' (1889), and ' Spring Morning' (1890)) and line Marc he Caprice (also from 1890). No mention occurs of the Arahesk, of which Prof. Hutchings expresses a high opinion, nor of the second Dance Rhapsody, written in 191 6 and first given at the last night of Sir Henry Wood's Manchester Concerts in 1923, it is seldom played but in Hutchings's book rated higher as a piece of construction than No. I. To Event yr we find references, under its older title of ' Once upon a time,' in Heseltine's letters reprinted in Gray's Peter Warlock. There is much to be read about this work in Sir Henry Wood's My Life of Music. The most curious neglect of Heseltine's, in view of the fact that he was destined to be, and already was at the time of his book, an important song-writer, is that of Delius' songs. He draws attention to the exquisite and fundamental ' Hy Brasil,' but passes the other songs by the wayside. It may well be argued that Delius' songs are an important part of his musical output, in the sense that they not only contain beauty in themselves, but through their elemental qualities lead the mind towards the under- standing of more spacious and more complicated beauties in the extended works. A close study of all Delius' songs was made by Mr. A. K. Holland, and was published serially in Musical Opinion.'^ At the time of writing, ^ 1936 October and November, 1937 January, February, April, May, June. ADDITIONS, ANNOTATIONS, COMMENTS 189 an announcement has been made that these essays have been collected and are to be issued in book form by the Oxford University Press. There are 50 songs, in various languages. Holland wisely writes that Delius ' did not make a business of song-writing, nor did he dabble in it in an idle hour. He was not a one-string fiddler or a specialist in miniature forms. He wrote songs when he felt the impulse to do so.' ' Songs,' says Holland, ' were not to hini either a " relaxation " or a " workshop." ' Let me commend, first the songs and then Holland's penetrating study of them, to the reader of Heseltine's book. Heseltine also leaves out reference to the extant String Quartet, and to A Song before Sunrise for small orchestra (19 1 8). The Violoncello Sonata (19 17), so beautifully flov/- ing in its melody (as Hutchings agrees), is another odd hiatus. The works written after Heseltine's closing date can be shortly summarised. They are dealt with fully in Fenby and Hutchings, by either or both. The Third Violin Sonata 'the composer dictated . . . with astonishing rapidity'; some sketches for it survived from the early years of the war. A Poem of Life and Love was an older piece which became, in the incident of rewriting, Fenby's first secre- tarial task (and more than that, it appears!). A Song of Summer made use of previously conceived material, but was an entirely new work. The Irmelin Prelude ' arose ' (writes Fenby) ' out of a few musical ideas that particularly appealed to the composer in his very early unpublished and unperformed opera Irmelin'; he refers to it as an 'en- chanting lyric for small orchestra ' and expresses the regret that 'Delius did not live to hear the sound of it on the orchestra.' Idyll, for soprano and baritone with orchestra, is a love duet to some of Whitman's poems, the music being reconstructed from the early opera, Margot-la- Rouge. Cynara, a setting for voice and orchestra of 190 FREDERICK DELIUS Dowson's famous poem, also began as an unfinished sketch, and was rewritten by dictation. By far the most important, in most people's judgment, of the late works is Songs of Farewell, written to some of Walt Whitman's verses, chosen by Jelka, for chorus and orchestra. The giving of such a title to a last work is a courageous but not a difficult action ; to write music that is worthy of the title's full meaning is a task for genius. Fenby says of the work that ' apart from its intrinsic musical merit, [it] is a monument of what can be done when, the body broken, there still remains in the man the will to create.' POSTSCRIPT by Hubert Foss MORE than a generation has passed since Heseltine published his book; even more years since the last important composition of Delius' sighted years was written; over 20 years since the first culminating ' Festival ' and nearly the same since the composer's death. No great span of time, it is agreed; but under its arch the waters of change have flowed more rapidly than perhaps at any other period in history. The change has been physical and scien- tific, social and aesthetic, of class and culture, of religion and philosophy. The face of the earth itself seems to have altered, not only the expression on it. Delius' music remains unchanged. His sounds, cut in note-heads upon pewter, are present for our eyes to read and study; many of his envisagings are cut, in a more complicated way, upon wax for our ears to hear. In the passage of the years, there is no difference in Delius' music. The facts of art in history do not change in 30, or in 300, or in 3000 years. The dates 1899 and 1949 have no artistic meaning. History as we write it, however, is annalistic, because it is written by human beings, who measure their duration of the process of living each by his own expe- rience and presaged endurance of continued breath. Delius, dead, remains a prophet, a speaker in music. If he does not, the fault is ours, not his; for he devised music as he knew and believed, and if we too love it we must listen to 191 192 FREDERICKDELIUS it. The question of Delius' reception by a hearing audience in 1950, and thenceonwards, depends, I propose, more upon the hearing audience than upon Delius. It can be observed from the academic treatises that DeUus is quoted in the mid-twentieth century as an expo- nent of harmony and even of orchestration. The Church is (rightly) the institution in our lives most tied to the past. The English teaching institutions in music, with less excuse (for they deal with living writers), are even more rigid, for the past to which they cling so limpet-like is of moder- ately short duration. Delius has, then, unconsciously yet inescapably, entered a world he never sought to enter, simply because he was an inescapable composer of music. Yet one cannot help observing that historians of our English music feel called upon, presumably by the shadows of Brahms and Wagner, to apologise for the separate niche which, academically, Delius occupies. There is no need to apologise. Delius created the niche for himself. A beautiful musical saint he appears in it; and I for one bow before him. Any attempt to relate Delius annalistically to his times is, I suggest, bound to be a failure in the judgment of art in relation to life. The composer, as far as I can judge, did not relate his music to the movements of civilization at that time surrounding him. He lived his life in the world that was around him; and arranged his life's circumstances so that as little as possible of that outside, ephemeral life should touch his vital circle even as a tangent. Bernard von Dieren wrote : ^ ' The popular conception of the musical classic is of conscious demi-gods enjoying in advance on earth the veneration which centuries were going to bestow — premature Olympians sniffing in imagination the odour of burnt offerings not as yet alight but piled up for their expectant nostrils.' Delius, like most other great composers ^ ' Music and Wit ' : Down among the Dead Men (Oxford). POSTSCRIPT 193 (much of whose music he could not endure to hear), did not think at all in that way. He clearly thought that he was a good composer : his persistence shows that. He also thought he was a different composer. In both these views he was correct. The future of Delius' music, its longevity, no one could sensibly try to assess. A point or two occurs for thought, however; for the music is extant, and only the appreciation of it by us is the variable factor. The first point is that musical criticism of the accepted class in our day is, apart from one or two renegades, incred- ibly out-of-date. The ideals of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven still appear to be the touch-stones of taste. The icons of Brahms and Wagner are still revered as those of gigantic masters. Is not all this a hundred years too far back? Even more, I suggest, for in our musical criticism there is still more than a sediment of Ruskin. Morals and art do not agree in practice except in certain definable philosophies. The second point is that our criticism of music is too deeply coloured by our literary heritage. It is not essential, or even right, to apply the standards of judgment to con- temporary composers that are applied commonly to Milton and Spenser. Not every maker of music who delights our ears is of epic stature; if he falls short of that grand size, he is not needfully a bone for critics to quarrel over, with growls. In English poetry, we have gratefully read Tenny- son and Shelley, Keats and Wordsworth, Hardy and Hous- man, Rupert Brooke and Ralph Hodgson, to name no later figures. May not, in the critical light of true exploration, Delius stand among the masters of English lyric verse, with- out the eternal blarney about his 'lack of form' and his 'inability to construct'? If we adopt today this elderly, text-book point of view, we shall be in danger; we shall rear a critic-Samson who will (poor blind and intentional 194 FREDERICK DELIUS man ! ) pull down the pillars of the temple about himself as well as upon the Philistines. In a dictionary a year or two back, a famous English writer decried the music of Delius as 'hedonistic' I am unaware that the adjective is derogatory. Music is the art of delight; Delius wrote for our deUght; and I am more than content with his offering. ' O yet we trust that somehow good will be the final goal of ill ' ; very pretty, no doubt, but a Victorian, not an eternal or universal philosophy. I shall revere and enjoy the hedonistic sound of Delius' works of imagination as long as I have hearing ears. In the same way, I shall enjoy Greco and Goya, Durer and Vermeer, Corot, Constable, Richard Wilson, and Sargent, each in his own way. I shall not refer them back to Raphael or any other. Cellini's morals are not my concern, nor is his philosophy. His craftsmanship remains important. No word shall be added here about Delius' ' philosophy ' ! It has made too many holes in critical leaky pipes already. Do we question the musical genius, or even abilities, of philosophers — of statesmen or generals or business men? It may be, as Schweitzer the theologian has said, that Bach expounded the doctrine of the Trinity with a new clarity. Doubt may be suggested whether without the words prece- dent and subsequent to Bach's music any man could have deduced the Christian religion from his written notes and the ensuing sounds. Frederick Delius' music exists, as I have said, patently to us all. As music it will not die; as music, however, it depends upon aural reception, and that physical matter is one which is commanded by the people living today and tomorrow. To some extent, the hearing of this isolated music depends upon the whims and fancies, the likes and dislikes, of our conductors and ' programme planners.' It may not be thought amiss if I venture here a personal opinion. Delius' music, it seems to me, is of the eternal POSTSCRIPT 195 kind that appeals to the young. At the hopeful age, the sounds sweep beautifully over one's soul; and the secret which Delius himself had and kept and gave to us is the saving, the preservation in beauty, of those early memories. Let us, in a final paragraph, forget the rules of the colleges and academies and text-books. Let us thank God for the possession of Delius' music — for its sheer beauty, for its sound, for its dreams, for its emotion, for its intensity, for its power to continue in its purposes. Let us not by mere theories detract from his gift to us. APPENDIX A List of Frederick Delius" Compositions The list printed overleaf and on the ensuing pages is substantially that which Philip Heseltine — Peter Warlock — compiled for his book first published in 1923: a list he himself modestly labelled ' not altogether complete but in- cluding every work of any importance.' It is unhappily necessary to record that even some thirty years later, the time has not arrived when it is possible for an independent student of Delius' music to make a full and definite biblio- graphy of the composer's published and unpublished works. The documents are not available to public scrutiny. But those passing years have brought changes, especially in res- pect of the issuing publishers. Alterations have therefore been made in the old list to show the present and not the past publisher of each item. It has been thought unneces- sary today to indicate what arrangements other than the fuU score have been issued of the orchestral works. Works written after 1922 have been added, and one or two minor corrections made. There is still no pretension to complete- ness or even accuracy in what must remain a guide until the Delius Trust opens its coffers. The editor warmly thanks Mr. Felix Aprahamian for his generous help in bringing the list up to date. H.F. 197 Joseph Williams Augener ig 198 APPENDIX Approximatfe Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1885. Song: ' Zwei braune Augen' (Hans MS. Andersen) 1886-7. Suite for orchestra : 'Florida' „ 1888. Tone-poem for orchestra: 'Hia- watha ' „ „ Melodrama (recitation with orches- „ tra) : ' Paa Vidderne ' (Ibsen) „ „ Pastorale, for violin and orchestra „ Rhapsodic Variations for orchestra (unfinished) 5, Five Songs from the Norwegian : — ' Slumber Song ' (Bjornsen) ' The Nightingale ' (Welhaven) ' Summer Eve ' (J. Paulsen) „ ' Longing ' (Th. Kjerulf) „ ' Sunset ' (A. Munck) „ 1889. 'Sakuntala' (Holger Drachmann) : tenor solo and orchestra MS. „ Petit Suite d'orchestre (March — Berceuse — Scherzo — Theme and Variations „ 1889-90. Two pianoforte pieces ,, „ Seven Songs from the Norwegian : — Oxford ' Cradle Song ' (Ibsen) University ' The Homeward Journey ' Press (A. O. Vinje) " Evening Voices (Bjornsen) ' Venevil ' (Bjornsen) ' Minstrels ' (Ibsen) ' Secret Love ' (Bjornsen) ' The Bird's Story ' (Ibsen) 1890. ' Legend es ' (Sagen) : pianoforte and orchestra (unfinished) 1 890. ' Summer Evening ' for orchestra MS. Joseph Williams APPENDIX 199 First Performance. 1888. Leipzig. Private performance. 200 APPENDIX Approximatte Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1888. Two pieces for orchestra : — 1890. ' Marche Caprice ' Joseph ^Villiams * Schlittenf ahrt ' jj 1891. Song-cycle, with orchestra : — ' Maud ' (Tennyson) ' Com?e into the garden ' MS. ' Go not, happy day ' ' I was walking a mile ' ' Birds in the high-hall garden ' 5J * Rivulet crossing my ground ' )J >i Three English Songs (Shelley) :— ' Indian Love Song ' Oxford University Press ' Love's Philosophy ' MS. ' To the Queen of my Heart ' „ 1890-2. ' Irmelin.'^ Opera in 3 acts (text by the composer) MS. 1892. Tone-poem for orchestra : ' Sur les cimes ' (after Ibsen) MS. „ Sonata for violin and piano (No. i) „ 1893. String Quartet (No. i) „ „ Legend for violin and orchestra (C) Forsyth „ ' The Magic Fountain.' Opera in 3 acts (text by the composer) MS. 1895. Tone-poem for orchestra: 'Over the hills and far away ' „ ^ Delius wrote an opera before Irmeliii, entitled Der Wunderborn ; thfe manuscript of the full score is in the possession of the Delius Trust and has not been disclosed to public. This brings the total of Delius' operas to seven, not six, as hitherto stated. APPENDIX 201 First Performance. 1893. Monte Carlo concerts. 1899. Delius concert, St. James' Hall, London. (Soloist John Dunn.) 1899. Delius concert, St. James' Hall, London. ^u^ APPENDIX Approximate Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1895. Two Songs (Verlaine) : — Oxford University Press ' 11 pleure dans mon cceur ' ' Le ciel est par dessus la toit ' „ 5> 1896. Song : ' Plus vite, mon cheval ' ' Appalachia ' : variations orchestra (first version) (withdrawn from circulation) for MS. 53 Romance for 'cello and piano (for Joseph Hollmann) j> 3> Romance for violin and piano a 1895-7. 'Koanga.' Opera in 3 acts with a prologue and epilogue (text by C. F. Keary, after G. W. Cable's novel The Grandissimes) Boosey & Hawkes 1897. Concerto for pianoforte and orchestra (first version, in 3 movements) MS. „ Norwegian Suite, for orchestra (in cidental music to Gunnar Heiberg's drama Folkeraadet) „ „ Seven Danish Songs, with orches- tra : — ' On the seashore Drachmann) (Holger years ' Through long, long (J. P. Jacobsen) ' Wine Roses ' (J. P. Jacobsen) ' Let Springtime come ' (Jacobsen) * Irmelin Rose ' (Jacobsen) Oxford University Press APPENDIX 203 First Performance. [First performance of orchestral version, 1915, Grafton Galleries, London. The Music Club. Singer : Jean Waterston. Conductor : Thomas Beecham.] 904. March. Elberfeld. [Stadttheater.] 1904. Elberfeld. (Pianist: Julius Buths. Conductor Hans Haym.) 1897. Christiania. 1899. Delius concert, London. (Singer : Christianne Andray.) )i » >J 3> J» >» If J> » fi i> >1 204 APPENDIX Approximatfe Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1897. * In the Seraglio Garden' (Jacob- Oxford sen) University ' Silken shoes ' ( Jacobsen) Press 1898. Tone-poem for orchestra : ' The Dance goes on ' (first version of ' Life's Dance ') MS. „ Nachtlied Zarathustras (Nietzsche) : baritone and orchestra (after- wards incorporated in ' A Mass of Life ') Boosey & Hawkes „ Five songs : — ' Der Wanderer und sein Schat- ten' (Neitzsche) „ ' Der Einsame ' (Nietzsche) „ ' Der Wanderer ' (Nietzsche) „ ' Nach neuen Meeren ' (Nietzsche) „ * Im Gliick wir lachend gingen ' (Holger Drachmann) „ 1899. 'Paris: the Song of a Great City' Nocturne for orchestra Universal 1900. Two songs : — ' The Violet ' (Ludwig Holstein) Oxford 'Autumn ' (J. P. Jacobsen) University Press 1 90 1. Song: 'Black Roses' (J. P. Jacobsen) Oxford University Press 1 900- 1. ' A Village Romeo and Juliet.' Opera^ after Gottfried Keller's novel Boosey & Hawkes APPENDIX 205 First Performance. [go I. Paris. [Societe Nationale de Musique.] Singer: Ghristianne Andray. Conductor : Vincent d'Indy.) 1899. Delius concert, London. jj jj 1 90 1. Elberfeld. (Conductor: Hans Haym.) 1907. (February). Berlin. [Komisches Oper.] (Conductor Fritz Cassirer.) 206 APPENDIX Approximate Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1902. ' Margot-la-Rouge.' Opera in one act (text by Mme Rosenval) (lithographed but not published) „ ' Appalachia ' : variations for orchestra Boosey & and chorus Hawkes 1903. 'Sea-Drift' (Walt Whitman): bari- tone solo, chorus and orchestra „ 1 904-5. ' A Mass of Life ' (Nietzsche) : soli, chorus and orchestra 1906. Concerto for pianoforte and orchestra (revised version in one move- Boosey & ment) Hawkes 1906-7. 'Songs of Sunset' (Ernest Dowson) : soli, chorus and orchestra Universal „ ' Cynara ' (Ernest Dowson) : baritone and orchestra Boosey & Hawkes 1907. ' Brigg Fair': an English Rhapsody, for orchestra Universal 5, * On Craig Dhu ' (Arthur Symons). Unaccompanied chorus Boosey & Hawkes 1908. ' In a Summer Garden ' : Fantasy for orchestra Universal APPENDIX 207 First Performance. 1904. Elberfeld. (Conductor: Hans Haym.) 1906. Essen. [Tonkiinsderfest] (Conductor: George Witte. Singer : Josef Loritz.) 1909. London. (Conductor: Thomas Beecham.) [The second part only was given in 1908 at Munich Ton- kunstlerfest.l 1907. London. [Promenade Concert.] (Conductor: Henry J. Wood. Pianist : Theodor Szanto.) 191 1 (June). London. [Thomas Beecham's Delius Concert, Queen's Hall] 1907. Basle. [Tonkiinstlerfest.] (Conductor: Hermann Suter.) 191 o. Blackpool. [Competition Festival.] 1909 (December). London. [Philharmonic Concert.] (Con- ducted by the composer.) [Revised version, 191 3. Edinburgh. (Conductor: Emil Mlynar- ski.)] 208 APPENDIX Approximate Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1908. 'A Dance Rhapsody' (No. i), for or- chestra Universal „ ' Midsummer Song ' (Unaccompanied chorus „ „ ' Wanderer's Song ' (Arthur Symons). Unaccompanied male - voice chorus Boosey & Hawkes „ Song : * The Nightingale has a lyre of gold' (W. E. Henley) Oxford University Press 1908-10. ' Fennimore and Gerda.' Opera, after J. P. Jacobsen's Niels Lyhne Boosey & Hawkes 1 910. Song: ' La lune blanche ' (Verlaine) Oxford University Press 191 1. 'Arabesk' (J. P. Jacobsen) : baritone solo, chorus and orchestra Boosey & Hawkes „ * Summer night on the river ' : for small orchestra Oxford University Press „ ' Life's Dance ' : tone-poem for orches- tra „ 191 1-2. *A Song of the High Hills': chorus and orchestra Universal APPENDIX 209 First Performance. 1909 (September). Hereford [Three Choirs Festival.] (Con- ducted by the composer.) 1 910 (December). Whitley Bay and District Choral Society. (Conductor: W. G. Whittaker.) 191 9 (October). Frankfurt-am-Main. [First performance for orchestral version, 1915- Grafton Galleries, London. The Music Club. Singer : Jean Waterston. Conductor : Thomas Beecham. ] 1920. Newport, Wales. 1 914 (January). London. [Philharmonic Concert.] (Conduc- tor : Mengelberg.) 1 91 2. Berlin. (Conductor: Oskar Fried.) 1920 (February). London. [Philharmonic Concert.] (Conduc- tor : Albert Coates.) 8 210 APPENDIX Approximate Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 191 2. 'On hearing the first cuckoo in spring ' for small orchestra Oxford University- Press 1 91 3. Song: ' Hy-Brasil ' (Fiona Macleod) „ „ Two songs for a children's album „ 1 91 3-4 'North-Country Sketches': for or- chestra : — ' Autumn : the wind soughs in the trees ' Augener * Winter Landscape ' „ ' Dance ' „ ' The March of Spring : — wood- lands, meadows, and silent moors ' „ 1 915. Sonata for violin and piano^ [begun in 1905] Forsyth „ Short piece for string orchestra MS. 1 91 5. Three Songs : — ' Spring, the sweet spring ' (Thomas Nashe) Boosey & Hawkes 'Daffodils' (Herrick) ' So sweet is shee ' (Ben Jonson) „ 1 9 14-6. ' Requiem ' : soli, chorus and orchestra „ 1 91 5-6. Concerto for violin and 'cello with or- chestra Augener ^ Actually No. 2, but published as No. i ; so Violin Sonatas Nos. 2 and 3 (as published) are really Nos. 3 and 4. APPENDIX 211 First Performance. 1 9 14 (January). London. [Philharmonic Concert.] (Conduc- tor : Mengelberg.) 1915 (May). London. [London .Symphony Orchestra's Con- cert.] (Conductor : Thomas Beecham.) 1 91 5. Manchester. (VioHn : Arthur Gatterall. Piano: R. J. Forbes.) 1 915. Performed at a private concert at the house of Lady Cunard. (Conductor : Thomas Beecham.) 1 91 5. London. [The Music Club. Grafton Galleries.] 1922 (March). London. [Philharmonic Concert.] (Conduc- tor : Albert Coates.) 1920 (January). London. [Queen's Hall Symphony Concert.] (Soloists : May and Beatrice Harrison. Conduc- tor : Sir Henry J. Wood.) 212 APPENDIX Approximate Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 191 6. Concerto for violin and orchestra „ „ ' A Dance Rhapsody ' (No. 2) for or- chestra „ 5, Song. ' It was a lover and his lass ' (Shakespeare) Boosey & Hawkes 1 91 6-7. String Quartet (No. 2) Augener 191 7. ' Eventyr ' (Once upon a time) : Ballad for orchestra, after Asbjornsen's fairy tales Augener „ Sonata for 'cello and piano (in one movement) Boosey & Hawkes 191 7. Two unaccompanied choruses: ' To be sung of a summer night Boosey & on the water '^ Hawkes 1 918. 'A Song before Sunrise/ for small orchestra Augener 1 91 8-9. 'A Poem of Life and Love/ for or- chestra MS. (lost) 1 91 9. A Dance for the Harpsichord (for Mrs. Gordon Woodhouse) Universal „ Song : ' Avant que tu ne t'en ailles ' (Verlaine) Boosey & Hawkes 1920. Incidental music for James Elroy Flecker's play, ' Hassan : or the the Golden Journey to Samar- cand ' Universal 1 92 1. Concerto for 'cello and orchestra „ APPENDIX 213 First Performance. 191 9 (January). London. [Philharmonic Concert.] Soloist; Albert Sammons. Conductor : Adrian Boult.) 191 9. London. London String Quartet. 1 919. London. [Queen's Hall Symphony Concert.] (Con- ductor : Sir Henry J. Wood.) 1 918 (November). London. [Wigmore Hall] (Beatrice Har- rison.) 1920. London. [Oriana Madrigal Society] (Conductor: Charles Kennedy Scott.) [First played in public (as a pianoforte piece) by Evlyn Howard -Jones.] 1 92 1. Vienna. (Alexandre Barjansky.) 214 APPENDIX Approximate Date of Composition. Title. Publisher. 1925. ' A Late Lark ' for tenor and orchestra Boosey & (Henley) Hawkes 1 930. ' Songs of Farewell ' (Whitman) Boosey & Hawkes 1 930. * A Song of Summer ' for orchestra Boosey & Hawkes 1 930. ' Irmelin ' Prelude Boosey & Hawkes 1932. * Idyll,' for soprano, baritone and or- Boosey & chestra (Whitman) Hawkes Sonata for violin and piano. No. 2 Boosey & Hawkes Sonata for violin and piano, No. 3 Boosey & Hawkes ' Caprice ' and ' Elegy ' for violon- Boosey & cello and orchestra Hawkes Air and Dance for string orchestra Boosey & Hawkes ' Fantastic Dance ' for orchestra Boosey & Hawkes ' Also available as Two Aquarelles, arranged for string orchestra by Eric Fenby (Boosey & Hawkes). APPENDIX 215 First Performance. 1932. Courtauld-Sargent Concert, Queen's Hall, London. Conductor : Sir Malcolm Sargent. 1933. Promenade Concert, Queen's Hall, London. (Conduc- tor : Sir Henry Wood.) INDEX Note : In this index the abbreviation D., or (D.), is used for F. Delius Action, in Opera and in Drama, 68, 91 Agate, Edward, 187 Albert Hall Sunday Concert, D.'s Life's Dance given at. Alchemy, Strindberg's studies in, 50 Alion, Erskine, 58 Also sprach Z^^rathustra by Nietzsche, D.'s music to, 57, 58 & n., criticisms on, in Eng- lish Press, 58 & n. sqq. " Anatomic at physiologic de I'orchestre," Pamphlet by " Papus " and D. 49 & n. Andray, Christianne, 57, 69 Aniestad, 53 Appalachia (D.), 14, 151, 171, 178; chorus in, 113; con- ducted by D., 71 ; performed in Germany and in Paris, 69- 70 ; German approval of, 69 ; theme from, used in Songs of Sunset, 130 Arahesk (D.), 188 Arbos, Sefior, 63 Arras, Rue d', Strindberg's rooms in, 51 Austin, Frederic, 70 Bach, 173; D.'s attitude to, 32, 178, 184; Ward's perform- ance of, 42 Bantock, Sir Granville, 58 ; D.'s music performed by, 63 65 Bartok Bela, Bluebeard, 83 Basle, D.'s work at, 69 Bauerkeller, Mr., D.'s first violin teacher, 32 Baughan, E. A., on D.'s first London Concert, 61 & n. Bax, Sir Arnold, 21, 158 Beecham, Sir Thomas, cham- pion of D.'s music, 63 sqq., 63 ; genius of, 66, 67 ; ver- satility of, 67 ; — A Mingled 216 Chime, 12, 21, 143, 150, 154-5, 187; 13, 14, 21-2, 156, 182, 183, 185, 187, 188 Beethoven, D.'s attitude to, 32, 139, 178; later Quartets of, 46 ; Romantic Music, 1 30 Belloc, Hilaire, 18 Bergen, 34 Berlin, 34; D.'s works per- formed at, 63, 69, 70 Berlioz' Treatise on the Orches- tra, 42 Birkholz, Max, 69 Birmingham Daily Post, 65 Bispham, David, 45 Bjornsen, Bergliot, 53 Bjornsen, Bjornesterne, D.'s visit to, in Norway, 53 Black, Andrew, 57 Black, Mrs. Clare Delius, 12, 13, 19, 22, 138, 139, 140, 142, 143, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150, 154, 180, 181, 183-5 Bleyle, Karl, 70 Bluebeard, opera (Bartok), 83 Borodin, 1 9 Bradford, home of Delius, 29-31 Bradford Grammar School, 33 Brahms, 46 Brecher, Gustav, 71 Breslau Opera-house, 56 Brigg Fair (D.) 17, 151, 156, 172, 178, 187; climax in, 129,' difficulties of, for con- ductors, 1 1 6; first English performance, 63 ; first con- tinental performance and success in Germany, 71 ; folk- song basis of, 115; form re- verted to, in, 115; interlude ill 116; tempo at p. 116 British Composers, Concert given by, in 1896, 57 Brodsky Quartet, the, 46 Busoni, 46, 69, 139, 153 Buths, and D.'s works, 55, 69 Byrd, John Bull, and others, form employed by, 116 217 Caprice and Elegy (D.)^ 184 Cassel, 162, 167 Cassirer, Fritz, D.'s works pro- duced by, 63, 69, 70 'Cello Concerto (D.), 124 Chabrier, Emmanuel, 139 Chamber Concerts, Leipzig, 46 Chamber music, D.'s attitude to, 32 Chamber opera, 90-1 Charpentier, and La Vie Parisienne, 118 Chaumiere, Grande Rue de, Cremerie in, frequented by artists, 49 Chemnitz, D.'s life at, 33 Chippewa Indians, musical art of, 74 Chop, Max, monograph by, on D., 70 Chopin, 19, 178; chromaticism of, 124; influence on D., 32 Choral and orchestral works of D., 99, sqq. Chord, the, in D.'s works, 124- 130 Chords, concept of, 41 Chorus and orchestra, D.'s handling of, 1 13-4 Christiania, 53 ; D.'s music at, for Folkeraadet, 54 Claremont, home of D., 31 ; Chamber music at, 30, 32 Classical music, evolution of, 121 Colles, H. C, 185 n. Cologne, 7 1 Combarieu, Jules, definition by, of Music, 76 Composer as librettist, 81-2 Concert promoters and choruses, 113 Concertos by D., 122-4 Conrad, Joseph, 29 Conservatorium, Leipzig, D.'s studies in, 45-46 Counterpoint, 40-1 ; in D.'s music, 124-25 Courier Musical, 70 Covent Garden Theatre, D.'s works performed at, 66-7, 89 Crcissy, D. at, 47 Cynara (D.), 184, 189 INDEX Dale, Benjamin, 158 Dance, The, goes on (D.) {see also Life's Dance), 57, 59 Dance Rhapsody, No. /. (D.), 151, 178 ; No. II, 166; the first, climax in, 131 ; first performance of, 70 ; form of, 116; tune of, 125 Danish Songs, with Orchestra accompaniment (D.), sung in London, 57; and in Paris, 69 Danville, U.S.A., D.'s "profes- sorship " at, 44, 147 Debussy and D., 19, 139, 154, 173, 178 — comparison be- tween, 9, 70 ; harmonic system of, 124-5 Decadence in art, 131 Deichmann, D.'s tutor, 33 Deirdre of the Sorrows, 98 n. Delius, Carl Ludwig, 30 Clare, see Black, Glare Delius Daniel Conrad, 30 Ernest, 35, 43 Ernst, 30 Ernst Frederich, 30 Frederick Life, 29 sqq., birth and birthplace, 29, 138; ances- try, origin and parentage, 30, 137; early memories, musical and other, 30-2 ; coinposers influencing, 32, 46 ; education, 33 ; confir- mation, 33 ; early musical tutors, 32, 33 ; early busi- ness days, 33 sqq. ; deci- sion to abandon the wool business, 36-7 ; as orange- planter, 37 sqq.; rattle- snake adventure, 39 ; deci- sion to devote himself to music, 38 ; move to Jack- sonville, and on to Dan- ville, 43-4 ; as Violinist and Pianist, in 1885, 44-5; at Leipzig, 45 ; life, friends, studies, and musical activi- ties, 45-6 ; in Norway, 46 ; his generous uncle, 4? : in Paris, hard work and friends, memories of Strindberg, 48, 147 ; visit to Bjornsen, 53 ; early Grer- INDEX Frederick {contd.) man recognition of his genius, 55 ; the first Lon- don concert, 56 ; sqq. ; 68, 120 n., later performance of his works, 63 ; his debt to Beecham, 63 sqq. ; Con- tinental performances of his works, and reintroduc- tion to England, 69-70 ; home of, in France, 71 ; personality and character- istics of, 9-10, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 26, 142-3, 148, 152-3, 162, 159-166, 170- 181, 183-4; views, and letters, 11, 23-4, 142-4, 147, 167-81, 174-6, 179; interest in young people, 18; technique of. Ward's influence on, 40-1 ; and its development, 120 sqq.', self-criticism of, 48, 53, 56, 120, 129; contrasted with Debussy, 70 ; Max Chop's monograph on, 70 ; as conductor, 71 ; views works, discrepancies in, 72- 3 ; musical development of, as shown in his operas, 97 sqq. ; pantheistic mysticism of {see also A Mass of Life), loi ; standard by which to be judged, no; musical conceptions of, unity of, 127; and the Sunset of Romantic Music, 1 30, sqq. 182; constructive or creative genius of, equal to his inspiration, 131 ; views of, on the acting of opera singers, 68, 90; on the demands of opera, 68 ; on Harmony, 40 ; on Heaven, 136; Compositions by {see also Appendix, & under Names), comments on, by Kapellmeisters, 55-6 ; sel- ected for first London con- cert, 57-58, 120 n. ; Press criticisms on, 58 sqq. ; debt of, to Beecham, 63 sqq. ; German appreciation of, 62-3, n., 64, 69 sqq.; performed but twice in Paris, 69-70 ; English pub- lic, 63 sqq., 70 Choral and orchestral works, 99 sqq- Operas, 74 sqq., with faulty librettos, 81-2; unpub- lished and unperformed, 98 Pianoforte works, 128 Music of, viewed as a whole, 120 sqq.; climax in, 128; chromaticism of, 1 24 ; counterpoint in, 1 25 ; dis- cords in, 58, 61 ; harmony in, 124, sqq.; chords in, 127-8; "Intimations" in, "of Immortality," 134; Leitmotiven in, 129; the sole mannerism in, 128; mature style, characteristics of, 1 24, sqq. ; melody in, 125; message of, 136; polyphony in, 125; theme in, 88, 134-5 Gualter, 29 Jelka, see Rosen Johannes, 30 Julius, father of F.D., 30, 139-42, 143 ; attitude of, to music, 30, 32, 37-9; 35; and D.'s career, 37 ; molli- fied by Grieg, 47 Mrs. Julius, 30 Max, 30-1 Theodor, generosity of, to D., 47-9, n.\, 52 Delius Festivals — 1929, 16, 150, 155, 157, 185; —1946, 22, 151, 188 Delius Society Recordings, 22 Delius Trust, 13, 14, 197 Dent, Prof. Edward, 153 Discords in D.'s music, 58, 61 Donne, on the Unity of the Worlds, 134 Double Concerto (D), 122 Dowson, Ernest, Lyrics of, set to music by D., 11, 190 sqq. Dream of Gerontius (Elgar), Strauss's praise, 69 Dresden, 34 Ducouedic, Rue, D.'s Paris flat in, 48 219 Dufay, Guillaume, 173 Dunn, John, 57 Diisseldorf, D.'s music per- formed, 62, 69 Edinburgh, D.'s In a Summer Garden performed at, 70 Elberfeld, D.'s works produced at, 55, 69 Elgar, SirE., 19, 157, I74, 183; Dream of Gerontius by, Ger- man admiration of, 69 Emerson, 23 Encausse, Dr (" Papus "), pam- phlett written, with D. 49 & n. 2 EngHsh attitude to D.'s music, 58 sqq., 63 sq., 64 n. English Review, The, 64 n. Eriksen Ida, Madame Mollard, 49 Erwartung, Schonberg, 90 Evans, Edwin, on " Musician's love of Music," and on D.'s Royal Academy of Music Concerts, 64 n. Eventyr (D.), 171, 188 Fantastic Dance (D.), 184 Faure, Gabriel, 173 Fenby, Eric, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24, 139, 143, 144, 148, 150, 152, 161, 178, 183, 184, 189, 190 ' Fennimore and Gerda, opera (D.), 151, 171 ; form of, 91 ; libretto, 83; origin of, 91, 95-7 J produced in Germany, 71; reminiscence in, 130; story of, 92 sqq. " Fiona Macleod's " poem Hy Brasil, D.'s setting of, 134 Five Orchestral Pieces, by Schonberg, 61, n. 1 Flagellantenzug (Bleyle), 70 Florida, D.'s life in, 36 sqq. ; impressions of, in D.'s operas, 98 ; see also 143-7 Florida (D.), 171, 188; Orches- tral suite (D.), first work by D. performed, 47 Folk of Seldwyla, D.'s opera based on, 83 INDEX Folkeraadet, orchestral suite (D.), 57 ; reception of, 54 Forster, Georg, 69 France, D. unknown to, though living in, 69, 71-2 Franck, Cesar, 57 n., symphony by, criticism on, 79 Frankfurt-am-Main, D.'s Fenni- more and Gerda produced at, 71, 155, 175 Fried, Oscar, 69 Fuller-Maitland, J. A,, 12 Gardiner, Balfour, 65, 157-9, 162, 176, 178, 183 Gauguin, Paul, 49-50, 181 ; ex- hibition of, 52 German attitude to D.'s music, 55, 63, 64 n., 69-71 Gewandhaus, Leipzig Orches- tral Concerts at, 45 Gilson, Paul, 49 n. Glazounow, M., 59 Goethe, 19 Gorillas, Strindberg on, 50 Gothenburg, D.'s visit to, 34 Gounod, 56 Grainger, Percy, ii5,.i55, 158, 160, 183, 184 ; reminiscences, 1 71 -180; Hiil Songs and other works, 172, 177 Grand Opera, 91 Graves, C. L., 12 Gray, Cecil, — Warlock, Peter, 10, 12, 14, 16, 22, 25, 181, 187, 188 — Musical Chairs, 12, 13-14, 15, 19, 20, 22, 144 Survey of Contemporary Music, 19 Greek Drama, component parts of, 83 Grew, Sydney, on the attitude of Germany and England to- wards D.'s music, 64 n. Grez-sur-Loing, 13, 19, 137, 142, 145, 148, 149, 150, 151, 156, 160, 161, 162, 164, 174, 180, 182, 187; D.'s home since 1899, 71-2 Grieg, Edvard, 172, 178; Humoresken by, 32, 46; in- fluence of, on D.'s father, 47 ; D.'s Irmelin praised by, 97 INDEX Haddock, Mr, D.'s violin teacher, 32 Hadley, Professor Patrick, 187 Halle, Sir Charles, 32 Halvorsen, 46 Hamsun, Knut, 53 Hanley, D.'s compositions per- formed at, 66, 71 Harcourtstrasse, D.'s Leipzig room in, 45 Harmony, 41 ; D.'s views on 40; in D.'s music, 124 sqq. Harrison, the Misses, 183 Hart, Fritz, 98 n. Hawley, Stanley, 58 Haydn, Josef, and the English Horn, 79, 178 Haym, Dr Hans, D.'s works performed by, 55, 69, 146 Heiberg, Gunnar, play by, D.'s music for, 53 Hereford, D.'s Dance Rhapsody performed at, 70 Herz, Alfred, and D., 56, 63, 150; D.'s first London con- cert conducted by, 56 & n. Heseltine, Joseph, 17 Heseltine, Philip, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26, 137, 138, 140, 142, 144, 146, 147, 148, 149, 151, 153, 154, 181, 193, 186, 187, 188 Hindemith, Paul, 178 Hinton, Arthur, 58 Hoist, Gustav, 158 Holland, A. K., 19, 188-9 Howard- Jones, Evlyn, 183 Humoresken (Grieg), 32 Hutcheson, Ernest, 45 Hutchings, Prof. Arthur, 12, 14, 184, 188, 189 Hy-Brasil, (D.), 164 Iberia (Debussy), 55 n. Ibsen, Hendrik, and D,, 54 ; poem by, D.'s work based on, 53 Icelandic Sagas, 178 Ilkley, 31 In a Summer Garden (D.), 151, 152, 187; described, 117; first performance when re- - written, 70-1 220 Indy, Vincent d', 69 Irmelin Prelude (D.), 184, 189 International College, Isle- worth, D. at, 33 Irmelin, opera (D.), 48 & n. i, 189; libretto of, 81 ; praised by Grieg and Messager, 48 n. I, 97 Jacobsen Jens Peter, 171, 178; Niels Lyhne by, basis of D.'s libretto for Fennimore and Gerda, 91, 92, 96 Jacksonville, D.'s meeting at, with Ward, 40 ; D.'s musical efforts at, 42, 147; the Chief Rabbi's generosity, 44 & n. Jadassohn, 45 Jebe, Halfdan, 53, 56 Joachim, 32 Kaiser, Rose, 69 Kammermusiksaal, Leipzig, Concerts at, 46 Keats, 19 Keller, Gottfried, tale by, basis of D.'s Village Romeo and Juliet, 83, 91 Keyboard Instruments, in- fluence of, on developing concept of Harmony, 42 n. Koanga, opera (D.), 171, 187; epilogue from sole English performance of, 63 Koenen, Tilly, 57 Konigin von Saba (Goldmark), 34 Kritik der Kritik, 70 Kronig, Fraulein (Mrs. Julius Delius), 30 Lady, The, on D.'s first London concert, 60 Lassen, Eduard, D.'s Opera, The Magic Fountain, accepted by, 53 Lawes, William, 173 Lawrence, D. H., 147 Leclerc, 50, 51 Legend (D.), 120 n. Legge, Robin, 46 Leipzig, D.'s studies at, 40-1 Lengenberg, Charlotte, 69 221 Libretto, the 76-9 ; in relation to the Opera, 80 sqq. Life's Dance (D.), 63, 69, 132, 151 Liszt, Franz, 139, 173 Liverpool, D.'s Brigg Fair per- formed at, 63 Llewellyn, William, 57 Lohengrin (Wagner), 32 London, D.'s first concert in, conductor, programme, per- formers, criticisms, 56 sqq. ; other performances in, of D.'s music, 63-5, 70 London Symphony Orchestra's Concerts, D.'s music produced at, by Beecham, 64 Lugdunum, Ritter's contrast in, between D. and Debussy, 70 Machaut, Guillaume de, 173 Mackenzie, Sir Alexander, 12, 20 Madrigalists and their art, 78, 128 Magic Fountain, The, opera (D.), 48; libretto of, 8i ; reminiscence in, 130 Mahler, 178 Manchester, D.'s business days at, 36 March, The, of Spring (D.), no, 119 Marchesi, Mme., 53 Marcus Aurelius, 171 Margot-la-Rouge, one-act opera (D.), 48, 97-8 Mass, A, of Life (D.), 56, 63, 64, 71, 98, no, 127, 151, 165, 167 ; characterized, 100 sqq.; climax in, 128-9; reminiscence in 130; second part, produced at Munich, 70 Meistersinger, Die (Wagner), 34 Melody in D.'s music, 125 sqq. Mere Charlotte, cremerie of, habitues of, 49 Meredy and Payne, Jackson- ville, 40 Messager, Andre, on D.'s opera Irmelin, 48 n. i, 97 Metropolitan Opera House, INDEX New York, Hertz at, 56 n. ; 150 Mitternachtslied, from ^ara- thustra (D,), first London per- formance and Press com- ments. 56, 58-60 ; performed in Berlin, 69 Mlynarski. Emil, 71 Mollard, William and his wife, 49 ; Strindberg's quarrel with, 52 Monte Carlo, D.'s luck at, 35 Monthly Musical Record, 149 Montrouge, D.'s Paris abode, 49 Moritura, Dowson's poem, set to music by D., in Morning Advertiser on D.'s first London Concert, 59 Morning Post, on D.'s first London concert, 59 Moussorgsky, 1 9 Mozart, D.'s attitude to, 32, 178 Munch, Edvard, and Strind- berg, 51-2 Munich, D.'s work produced at, 70 Music, Definitions of, 74-5, 76 ; D.'s earliest remembrances on, 30, 32 ; and drama in opera, relation between, 83 ; emotions inspiring, 77 ; fun- damentals of, 74 ; programme underlying, 76, sqq., two kinds, 80, sqq.; the "some- thing-more " in, 77 ; untran- slatable into any other medium, 74, 78 Classical evolution of, 121 Modern, 135 Romantic, D. the Sunset of, 131 sqq. Music and Life, passivity of D., Turner on, 89 n. Musical Criticism, dissertation on, 74 sqq. ; and Opera, 88 'Musical League,' The, 152, Musical Opinion, 189 Musical Standard, on D.'s first London concert, fir Musical Times, on D.'s Z.o^ra- thustra, 58 n. INDEX Nachtlied Z^^^thustras (D.), 56 National Sunday League's Con- certs, D.'s music produced at, by Beecham, 64 Negroes, musical gifts of, 42 " Nevermore," painting by Gauguin, D.'s purchase of, 52 Newman, Ernest, D.'s import- ance appreciated by, 65 Nieder-Rheinisches Musikfest, Diisseldorf, D.'s Appalachia performed at, and praised, 62 Niels Lyhne, by Jacobsen, D.'s Fennimore and Gerda derived from, 91 & n. sqq. Nietzsche, and A Mass of Life (D.), loi Nikisch, 45 Norrkoping, D.'s business suc- cess at, 34 North Country Sketches (D.), 63, no, 123, 134, 143, 151, 175; mood picture of the seasons, 1 19 Norway, D.'s tours in, 34-5, 46, 53-4 Offenbach and La Vie Paris- ienne, 118 Ola dalom, I, basis of On Hear- ing the First Cuckoo (D.), 118, 172 On Craig Dhu (D.), 17, 159; chorus in, 128 On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring (D.), 172-3 178; per- formed under Beecham, 63 ; bases and beauty of, 118; sadness in, explained, 133-4 O'Neill, Norman, 9, 12, 18, 22, 148, 152, 157, 158, 181, 183 Opera and concert, difference between, 80 ; definition of, 88 ; demands of, 67 ; D. on, 68 ; and Libretto, relation be- tween, 80, sqq. ; as a Musical form, 79 ; as parable or sym- bolism, 82 ; scope of, as exemplified in D.'s works, 82- 83, 190 sqq. Chamber, 90-1 Grand, 91 Operatic acting, D.'s dictum on, 67-8, 90 222 Operas by D., 74 sqq. Oriana Madrigal Society, 157, 159 Over the Hills and Far Away, Fantasy-Overture (D.), 55, 57 Paa vidderne (Ibsen) 53 & n. Palestrina, chord-passages by, true nature of, 41 Pall Mall Gazette on D.'s first London concert, 60-1 " Papus," see Encausse, Dr Paris, D.'s compositions per- formed at, 69 ; D.'s life at, and hard work during, 48 sqq. Paris, the Song of a Great City, Nocturne (D.), 55, 154, 187; described, 117; produced at Elberfeld, 69 Parry, Sir Hubert, 12, 20, 157, 174 Part-singing, instinctive, 41 Perosi, 61 Phantasy, the form of, 122 Philharmonic Choir, 164, 168, 170 Piano Concerto (D.), 54 ; climax in, 129; conducted by Haym, 69; revision of, 122; first London performance of revised, 62-3 Piatti, 32 Pitt, Percy, 45 Poem of Life and Love, A, (D.), 189 Poetry, Wordsworth's definition of, 132 Polyphonic period, 41 Polyphony in D.'s music, 125 Posthumous Valse (Chopin), in- fluence of, on D., 32 Powell, Douglas, 57 Przbechevsky, and his wife, and Strindberg, 52 Queen's Hall, 156 Quilter, Roger, 183, reminis- cences, 155-6 Ravel, 19, 48, 139, 173, 178 Reinecke, 45 Reminiscence in D.'s music, 130 Requiem (D.), 126, 134, 166, 168, 174, 182; characterized. 223 Requiem (D.) (contd.) 111-112; musical interest of, 108; reminiscence in, 130; text of, 106 sqg, Ritter, William, on D.'s Mass of Life, part II, 9, 70 Riviera, D.'s excursion to, 35 Rogers, Winthrop, 166 & n. Romantic music, D. the Sunset of, 130 sqq. Rontgen rays, 5 1 Rosen, Jelka (Mme. F. Delius), 13-14, 21, 48, 137, 144, 148- 9, 153, 156, 160, 163, 169, 172, 182, 185, 186, 190 Royal Academy of Music, 1 2 ; D.'s works performed at, 64 Royal College of Music, 12 Royal Philharmonic Society's Concerts, D.'s music per- formed at, by Beecham, 63-4, 152-3 Ruckert, Professor, 43 Runciman, John F., on the con- temporary criticisms of D.'s first London concert, 61-2 Sadler's Wells Ballet, 187 St. James's Hall, first Delius concert at, 57 Saint-Etienne, 35 St. Paul, 162 St. John's River, Florida, 37 ; alligators of, 39 San Francisco Symphony Con- certs, Herz conductor of, 56 n., 150 Scandinavia, D.'s visits to, 34, 46, 54 ; musical friends in, 48 Scarborough, 142 Schilsky, Edouard, 45 Schlittenfahrt, for Orchestra (D.), 46 Schmitt, Florent, 48 Schonberg, Arnold, 61 n. ; Erwartung by, 90 ; harmonics of, 125 Schumann, 173 Scott, Charles Kennedy, 155, 183; reminiscences, 157-170 Scriabin, harmonic system of, 124 Sea Drift (D.), 14, 63, 68, 98, no, 151, 155, 156, 159, 164, INDEX 169 ; German appreciation of, 69 ; Newman's prograiimie, analysis of, 65 ; Beecham's scoreless conducting of, 66 ; first English performance, 70 ; described, 99-100 Sheffield Musical Festival, D.'s Sea Drift performed at, 70 Sibelius, Jean, 154 Simon, Heinrich, 149 Sinding, Christian, 46, 153 Siren Voices (see Niels Lyhne) Sitt, Hans, D.'s violin tutor, 33, Slivinsky, 49 Societe Nationale de Musique, concert of, D.'s Danish Songs given at, 69 Solano orange grove, D.'s life on, 36 sqq., and later visit to, 53 Song before Sunrise, A, (D.), 189 Song of the High Hills, A, (D.), no, 130, 151, 160, 163, 164, 171, 172-3, 176, 178; chorus in, 113; form of, 114 Song of Summer, (D.), 184, 189 Songs of Farewell (D.), 184 Songs by D., 164 Songs of Sunset (D.), 63, 151, 172; form of, 114; mood of, 1 1 1-2; reminiscence in, 130 Spiritualism of Strindberg, 51 Spring Grove {see International College) Stanford, Sir Charles, 12, 20, 157 Steggall, Reginald, 58 Stevenson, R, L., on the village of Grez, 71-2 Stockholm, D.'s visit to, 34 Strauss, Richard, 55, 59, 61, Strindberg, August, and D., 49 ; D, on, 49 sqq. String Quartet (D.), 167, 189 Summer Night on the River (D.), 63, 172, 178 Sunday Sun, on D.'s Zarathus- tra, 58-9 Sur les Cimes, Orchestral work (D.), 188; performed 1893, 53 & n. INDEX Sylva Sylvarum (Strindberg), Szanto, Theodor, 62 Tahiti, Gauguin's paintings of, Tattersfield, Mr., 146 Taylor, Colin, 17 Tchaikovsky, 46 Tertis, Lionel, 183 Time and the Idea in music, 74 Times, The attitude of, to D.'s music, 59, 185 n. To be Sung of a Summer Night on the Water (D.), 159, 166 Tones composing a chord, D.'s disposition of, 126-7 Tonkiinstlerfest des Allege- meinen Deutschen Musik- vereins, D.'s music performer by, at different places, 62, 69, 70, 71 Tovey, Sir Donald, 145 Treatise on the Orchestra, by Berlioz, 42 Tristan und Isolde (Wagner), 81 ; at Leipzig, 45 Turner, W. J., on Music and Life (D.), 89 n. "Tutti, Le orchestrale" (Gil- son), 49 n. 2 Universal, the, in Music, 76, 78, 79, 83 Vanderbeek, G. A., 57 Van Dieren, Bernard, 24-5 ; music of. Serenity of, 136 Vercingetorix, Rue, Gauguin's studio in, 52 Verlaine, and Strindberg, 51 Village Romeo and Juliet, A, Opera (D.), 14, 110, 151, 154; D.'s masterpiece, 98; produced in Berlin, 63, 70 ; Beecham's production of, 63, 68 ; criticism on, 79 ; climax in, 131 ; diatonic melody in, 125; libretto of, 82, 91; nature of, 87 ; story, 83 sqq. 224 Ville d'Avray, D. at, 47 Violin Concerto (D.), 145, 166; Motif in, 123-4 Violin Sonata (D.), 121-2 Violin Sonata, No. 3 (D.), 184, 189 Violoncello Sonata (D.), 166, 178, 189 Vogel, Wilhelm, 33 Wagner, 9, 19, 55, 139, 173, 178; chromaticism of, 125; discords of, 61 ; influence of, on D., 32 ; librettos of, 81 ; use by, of Leitmotiven, 129; and romantic music, 130; performances at Leipzig, 45 Wallace, Edgar, 175 Wallace, WilHam, 58 Ward, T. F., instruction given by, to D., 40, 42-3 Warlock, Peter {see Philip Heseltine) Weber, 9 Weimar, 53 Westminster Gazette, on D.'s first London programme, 60 Whistling in thirds by a negro, 42 Whitehill, Clarence, 69 Whitman, Walt, 156, 178, 190 Wiesbaden, 168 Winter Landscape, A (D.), 119 Wood, Sir Henry, 17, 65, 70, 155, 181-2, 187, 188 Wordsworth, definition by, of poetry, 19, 161, on his aims in Lyrical Ballads, 132 Wuthering Heights, 98 n., 143 Yorkshire Post, 150 Zarathustra, message of, as given in A Mass of Life (D.), 1 00-101 sqq. Zurich, D.'s Brigg Fair per- formed at, 71 DATE DUE GAYLORD PRINTED IN U.S.A WELLESLEY COLLEGE LIBRARY 3 5002 03272 4507 Music ML 410 . D35 H36 1952 Warlock, Peter, 1894-1930. Frederick Deliue-
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A Village Romeo and Juliet
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What kind of animal is a Langur?
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Welcome from the President Welcome from the Chairman Wexford Festival Trust Sponsors and Funders Koanga Guglielmo Ratcliff Le Pré aux clercs Portraits de Manon Hansel and Gretel Tosca Concerts, Recitals, Lectures Lunchtime Recitals Dr Tom Walsh Lecture Gala Concert Tara Erraught Recital Jack Sullivan – Hitchcock’s Music Nathalia Milstein Piano Recital Artist Biographies Wexford Festival Orchestra Wexford Festival Chorus Wexford Festival Opera Tours Joyce Kennedy – For the Love of Wexford Kevin Lewis – From the Doge’s Throne to the Festival Archive Fionnuala Hunt – The Orchestra of WFO: the first ten years Supporting Wexford Festival Opera Cast and Artistic Sponsorship The President’s Circle & The 1951 Society The American Friends of Wexford Opera The National Development Council Wexford Festival Foundation Sponsor Initiatives Community & Education Initiatives Friends of Wexford Festival Opera Thank You Repertoire by Year 1951–2015 Repertoire by Composer 1951–2015 Personnel Volunteers Festival Calendar Index of Advertisers
The 2015 Wexford Opera Festival is dedicated to the memory of Liam Healy, Chairman and inspirational leader of the Wexford Festival Foundation (2004–2011), whose selfless commitment and support ensured the realisation of the dream to build the National Opera House.
Contents
From the President
I
t is my very great pleasure, as President of Wexford Festival Opera, to welcome you to the 64th Festival Season.
I attended my first Festival in 1989 with what I now regard as a typical Wexford programme of Marschner, Mozart and Prokofiev. I was so enchanted by the variety and quality of the operas and the charm of the town and its friendly community that I have returned every year. During this time I have had the additional pleasure of introducing many of my dearest friends to the delights of Wexford. Having served as Chairman of the Wexford Festival UK Trust since 1997 I gladly accepted the role of President of Wexford Festival Opera last year. I was greatly honoured to have been asked by the Festival Trust to follow such eminent predecessors as Sir Compton Mackenzie, Sir Alfred Beit and Sir Anthony O’Reilly. I have been greatly impressed by the progress which the Festival has made in so many areas; in particular in its artistic achievements and financial stability. With generous support from the Government and a considerable contribution from the private sector, Wexford has built one of the finest small opera houses in the world. At the same time it has come through the economic challenges of the last few years, all the while preserving its artistic integrity.
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From the President
To continue to survive and thrive, Wexford must continue to evolve while remaining true to its founding ethos. In this day and age to stand still is to go backwards. We have some exciting plans ahead of us. I look forward to working closely with the Wexford Board and its Chairman, Chief Executive, Artistic Director and all my colleagues in the National Development Council and UK Trust, and to provide guidance and support as the Festival builds upon its much-admired international reputation. In addition I wish to extend my gratitude to the Arts Council of Ireland and to all our generous sponsors who are vital to our work. IÂ send my affectionate good wishes to the artists and creative teams who have travelled to Wexford from around the world. Finally, may I also warmly thank you, the loyal patrons of Wexford Festival Opera, for your enduring support of our beloved Festival. I know we have a magical twelve days ahead of us. Sir David Davies President Wexford Festival Opera
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From the Chairman
I
t is my very great honour to welcome you to Wexford as we embark on our annual operatic journey. Once more, David Agler has put together an exciting and diverse programme for the Festival, the unique blend of operatic excellence, musical discovery, friendship and hospitality which is our trademark. Since we last gathered, the sign over our front door has changed to ‘National Opera House’, recognition by the Irish Government of the international status of Wexford Festival Opera. We are exploring future opportunities for the Festival and the Opera House, and in this regard we are delighted to announce our partnership with the Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition. In Wexford we have always looked to the past for guidance, to the present for support, and to the future for hope. It is hard to believe that ten years have passed since we gathered for the last time in the Theatre Royal; we have many fond memories of that old building and of all who served and performed in it. As I write, we have just laid to rest one of our longest-serving Trustees, Mairéad Furlong. Since joining the Festival Council in 1968, Mairéad subsequently served as Vice Chairman, Board Member, as a Trustee of Wexford Festival Trust and as an impressive fund raiser. With her husband Nicky she presided over the annual Antiques Fair at the Talbot Hotel, scene of so many memorable Wexford post-opera evenings where business was transacted, friendships established and the odd glass of good cheer
enjoyed. Hers was the spirit of Wexford, giving generously of her time and expertise, as many others have done and continue to do. Mairéad’s integrity, passion, diligence, wealth of experience and knowledge, were given freely until the week before her death. She was a former member of the Arts Council and The Ireland Funds, and will be sadly missed in Wexford and beyond. It is unlikely that we will see such a lifetime of unbroken service again. May she rest in peace. To the present: we thank the ongoing work of our National Development Council, under Terry Neill’s inspiring leadership, and of course, the Arts Council of Ireland, which continues to invest in our work, enabling Wexford to present its artists on a world stage each year. You will read of our many sponsors and donors in the programme book, and they deserve our thanks and support. David Agler and David McLoughlin, along with the Board of Directors, the staff, the artists and the volunteers, continue to work with vigour and enthusiasm for the ongoing success of our many endeavours. To old friends, we say ‘welcome back’ and to our many new friends, whether from Ireland, Europe, or further afield, we offer you best wishes from everyone in our Festival family. As you immerse yourself in the ‘Wexford experience’ may our 2015 operas move, inspire and remain with you. Ger Lawlor
From the Chairman
Wexford Festival Trust Contact Details
Patron
Wexford Festival Opera, The National Opera House, High Street, Wexford, Y35 FEP3, Ireland Tel: +353 53 912 2400 Fax: +353 53 912 4289 Email: [email protected]
His Excellency, Michael D. Higgins Uachtarán na hÉireann
Box Office: +353 53 912 2144 Callsave: 1850 4 OPERA Email: [email protected] www.wexfordopera.com
Artistic Director
National Development Council
Chairmen
Terry Neill (Chairman), Michael M Collins SC, Jim Donnelly, Mary Finan, Eithne Healy, John Healy, Trevor Jacobs, David Lane, Judith Lawless, Declan Lynch, Oran McGrath PhD, John Reynolds, Dr Sarah Rogers
1951 – 1955 1956 – 1961 1962 – 1966 1967 – 1970 1971 – 1976 1977 – 1979 1980 – 1985 1986 – 1991 1992 – 1997 1998 – 2003 2004 – 2009 2010 – 2012 2013 –
Wexford Festival Trust (UK) Ltd Sir David Davies (Chairman), Paul Hennessy, Ger Lawlor, The Lord Magan of Castletown, Mary V Mullin, Max Ulfane, Keith Hatchick (Secretary)
Presidents 1951 – 1972 1974 – 1976 1977 – 1992 1993 – 2014 2014 –
Sir Compton Mackenzie Lauder Greenway Sir Alfred Beit Sir Anthony O’Reilly Sir David Davies
Dr Tom Walsh Fr MJ O’Neill Sir Alfred Beit Dr JD Ffrench Seán Scallan Brig Richard Jefferies Jim Golden Barbara Wallace-McConnell John O’Connor Ted Howlin Paul Hennessy Peter Scallan Ger Lawlor
Artistic Directors 1951 – 1966 1967 – 1973 1974 – 1978 1979 – 1981 1982 – 1994 1995 – 2004 2005 –
Dr Tom Walsh Brian Dickie Thomson Smillie Adrian Slack Elaine Padmore Luigi Ferrari David Agler
Wexford Festival Trust
Frederick Delius (1862–1934)
Koanga 21, 24, 27, 30 October 8 p.m.
Lyric drama in a prologue, three acts and an epilogue Libretto by Frederick Delius and Charles F Keary after the novel The Grandissimes: A Story of Creole Life by George W Cable Revised libretto, 1972, by Douglas Craig and Andrew Page First performance (in German translation by Jelka Delius) in the Stadttheater, Elberfeld, Germany on 30 March 1904 Sung in English The performance will last approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes. There will be a 30-minute interval after Act 2 A short introductory talk will take place in the Jerome Hynes Theatre one hour before the performance. Speaker: Dafydd Hall Williams By permission of Boosey & Hawkes 21 October Performance Sponsor
Koanga Norman Garrett Palmyra Nozuko Teto Simon Perez Jeff Gwaltney Uncle Joe Aubrey Allicock Don José Martinez Christopher Robertson Rangwan Aubrey Allicock Clotilda Kate Allen Renée Rachel Croash Hélène Eleanor Garside Jeanne Frances Israel Marie Maria Hughes Aurore Emma Watkinson Hortense Vivien Conacher Olive Laura Murphy Paulette Jennifer Parker Dancers Sifiso Selby Khumalo, Sifiso Thamsanqa Majola, Magcino Pamella Shange, Mzamo Jabu Siphika, Kayla Smith Conductor Director Set Designer Projection Designer Costume Designer Lighting Designer Choreographer Stage Manager Assistant Director Répétiteurs Surtitles
Stephen Barlow Michael Gieleta James Macnamara Seán O’ Riordan Sarah Roberts Ian Sommerville Boyzie Cekwana Colin Murphy Dafydd Hall Williams Andrea Grant, Janet Haney Elizabeth Drwal
CHORUS OF WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA Errol Girdlestone, Chorus Master ORCHESTRA OF WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA Fionnuala Hunt, Concertmaster Production built by TPS, Dublin
Koanga
Costume Designs by Sarah Roberts
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Koanga – Costume Designs
Koanga – Synopsis
Prologue Uncle Joe tells the next generation of plantation owners the story of the African prince-slave Koanga and Palmyra, his wife-not-to-be.
Act 1 Palmyra, born of an African mother and a white American father, is a maid to Clotilda, the wife of the plantation estate owner José Martinez in early nineteenth-century Louisiana. Simon Perez, the estate manager, makes unwelcome sexual advances to Palmyra. The estate is under a great financial strain and Martinez urges Perez to increase the productivity levels. Perez puts his hopes in the imminent arrival of a new group of slaves from Africa, including the famously strong Prince Koanga. Upon Koanga’s arrival it becomes clear that physical threats will not force him into submission. Martinez comes up with the plot to
make the resilient slave emotionally dependent on the beautiful Palmyra. The stratagem works and Palmyra, in return, recognises in Koanga the spiritual leader of the Dahomean nation that her maternal ancestors came from. Palmyra’s beauty and affection do the intended trick: Koanga sees that the only way he can be with Palmyra is to become a submissive slave on the estate. In order to maintain the status quo, Martinez suggests that the two marry, but Perez realises that the marriage would mean the end to his hopes to possess Palmyra. He consults Martinez’ wife, Clotilda, who pledges that the marriage will not take place.
Act 2 The wedding preparations are underway. Perez’ determination to stop the wedding becomes more insistent. In cahoots with Clotilda, he learns that Palmyra is in fact Clotilda’s half-sister. Koanga publicly renounces his people and lands for the sake of Palmyra’s love. The wedding is
about to take place when Perez abducts Palmyra. A fight breaks out between Koanga and Martinez, resulting in Koanga’s escape. As a fugitive, Koanga realises that the loss of Palmyra is his punishment for the betrayal of his duties as a royal prince and a priest.
Act 3 Koanga and the other escapees meet to pray in the marshes. Rangwan has assembled all the items needed for the ritual of placing the curse on Martinez’ estate. In a vision Koanga sees the effects of the terrible curse he placed on his oppressors. Concerned with Palmyra’s fate, he decides to return to the estate. The plantation is in the final stages of collapse. Unsuccessfully, Martinez tries to coerce the ailing
slaves back to work. Perez renews his offer to save the weakened Palmyra from an inevitable death. Martinez’ men capture Koanga. There is a fight during which Koanga kills Perez, then Martinez’ men capture Koanga and lay into him with whips. As he is dying, Koanga says his farewell to Palmyra. Upon his death, Palmyra renounces her Christian faith and stabs herself. She dies true to her mother’s African religion, which she shared with her beloved Koanga.
Epilogue Joe finishes the tale as the sun rises on a new day. Koanga – Synopsis
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Koanga: Delius on the Bayou by Jack Sullivan
K
oanga is Frederick Delius’s most provocative opera, and one of his most beautiful. A story of interracial love, Louisiana Voodoo and a slave who calls down a pagan curse on his plantation, it is suffused with black spirituals and jazz chords. Written in 1895–7, it demolishes standard music history, sometimes in jaw-dropping ways: ‘He will meet her when the sun goes down’, for example, is a slave chorus sung over distant banjos, one of Delius’s most intoxicating effects, years before the operas of Joplin or Gershwin.
important as the revelation itself, and far more compelling than the shabby present: the lovers in A Village Romeo and Juliet ‘once more relive all those days upon the wildland’; the hero of The Magic Fountain goes on a ‘phantom quest’ in the Everglades for his lost childhood; the enslaved Prince Koanga invokes pagan magic in the twilight to recapture his lost heritage and reclaim his identity. The Proustian moment requires a rare, complicated confluence of internal and external factors, but the Delian epiphany needs only a scene from nature: a sunset over a river, a few birds singing in the twilight, a fleeting glimpse of will-o’-the-wisps. Hypnotic harmonies, mysterious pedal notes and offstage vocals take over from there. Delius’s libretti are often dismissed as ‘stilted’ and ‘grotesque’, but they are not the point. Characters say things like, ‘I feel a strange foreboding in my heart; this Voodoo will bring me to my grave’. Such lines look terrible on the page, but it is merely a kind of shorthand; Delius’s operas are not about texts and narratives but about desires, atmospheres and states of nature.
Koanga is the second of Delius’s American operas, part of a remarkable stream of pieces based on black and Native American sources that he wrote as a young man during his sojourn in Florida, where he came from England to grow oranges for his businessman father. According to music historian Cecil Grey, normally a wry and ironic observer, Delius’s music is an example of ‘that which is known to the mystics as “the state of illumination” … a kind of ecstatic revelation which may only last a split second of time, but which he who has Delius is often labelled ‘worldknown it spends the rest of his weary’ and preoccupied with life trying to recapture’. Delius Frederick Delius (1862–1934) ‘transience’, the principle told Grey that his epiphany of nature, but nature is about renewal as well as occurred ‘when he was sitting out on the veranda mortality. Delius’s shimmering harmonies, singing of his house on his orange grove in Florida, and woodwinds, flowering strings and glistening the sound came to him from the distance of the harps all convey a constant freshness and vitality. voices of negroes in the plantation, singing in His narratives do this as well: Fennimore dies, chorus’. It is the rapture of that moment that but Gerda lives; the female lovebird in Sea Drift Delius is perpetually seeking to communicate in vanishes, but her song echoes ‘in the air, in the all his characteristic work. woods, over fields’; Vrenchen and Sali sink in the One of the most direct translations of that rapture water, but the river keeps flowing over a long is Koanga, which is structured on an old plantation pedal note as the life cycle continues; Koanga tune and filled with distant slave choruses and Palmyra perish in the Louisiana bayou (a floating over the water. For Delius, as with Proust, marshy, sluggish body of water), but the planters’ the attempt to recapture a great moment is as
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Koanga: Delius on the Bayou
work suited his ideological purposes. A white progressive from New Orleans, Cable presented slavery as a decadent, destructive institution: the mutilated hero is Mioko Koanga (in French, ‘BrasDelius was an admirer of Louis Moreau Coupe’ or ‘Arm Cut Off’) who, in Cable’s words, Gottschalk, the New Orleans Creole composer ‘made himself into the type of all slavery, turning whose experiments in African-American music into flesh and blood the truth that all slavery is preceded his by half a century. Gottschalk’s maiming’. Unlike the original story, the opera best work, like Delius’s, was based on euphoric begins by depicting plantation life in a nostalgic memories of jungles and swamps. The distant haze, a typical Delian atmosphere that suggests cornet soaring over strings in Gottschalk’s A Night the Old South myth of happy slaves presenting in the Tropics anticipates Delius’s far-away brass their masters’ meals in bucolic sunlight, but the and choruses in Koanga; the tangy rhumba in piece builds towards a polemic against slavery and Gottschalk’s finale is an Afro-Caribbean dance racism, one that ends by being more fierce and similar to ‘La Calinda’, which Delius used in both uncompromising than Cable’s, the Florida Suite and Koanga. with a ringing affirmation of paganism over slaveryIn his fascinating memoir, condoning Christianity. Notes of a Pianist, Gottschalk Koanga, an African prince describes the tropics as having of ‘great dignity’, refuses to ‘a voluptuous languor which work for his treacherous and is contagious… a poison sadistic white masters, Don which gradually infiltrates José Martinez and Simon all the senses’. It is easy to Perez. Martinez tries to imagine Delius writing these bribe Koanga into working lines, and in his own libretto by offering him Palmyra, a to The Magic Fountain, the young mulatto with whom opera preceding Koanga, the prince has fallen in love, he came close, evoking the but just before the wedding, ‘great swamp’ with its ‘rank Perez, who has repeatedly and luxurious vegetation’ stalked and harassed Palmyra, and fireflies glimmering ‘by George Washington Cable (1844–1925) kidnaps her. Led on by his hundreds in the heavy fragrant wife Clotilda, Palmyra’s halfair’. The Magic Fountain sister, Don José refuses to intervene. In rage and was never mounted in Delius’s lifetime, but he despair, Koanga calls down a spectacular and resurrected some of its sultriest music for the peculiarly non-selective Voodoo curse that wipes orchestral introduction to Koanga’s third act. out the plantation: ‘We shall be free, never more Delius’s source for Koanga was the brutal ‘Brasto slave!’ he shouts, as he rains down a ‘triple Coupe’ chapter (initially rejected by Scribner’s curse on land, and air, on flood’. In the violent as ‘unmitigatedly distressful’) from George finale, Koanga, incited by Palmyra (‘Kill him like Washington Cable’s novel, The Grandissimes. a dog’), runs Perez through with his spear. His Delius loved the vividness and wildness of white masters then whip him to death, bringing American literature, especially in Twain and his mutilated body out on a stretcher. Palmyra Whitman (the latter the source for some of his commits suicide after renouncing Christianity and greatest works, including Sea Drift), and Cable’s embracing Voodoo, gloating that her lover’s ‘curse daughters who hear their story late at night stay up to ‘await the sunrise’ and greet the ‘sun-kissed earth’.
Koanga: Delius on the Bayou
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will stay with you! Hated whites who dared to kill a Voodoo Prince!’ In Cable’s softer ending, Koanga lifts the curse just before he dies, and Palmyra does not kill herself. Koanga is rarely performed, and it had such a tortuous history that we are lucky it survived at all. Charles Keary, a friend of Delius’s wife-to-be Jelka, offered a treatment of Cable’s story that was embellished by Frederick and Jelka, translated into German by Jelka for a 1904 Elberfield premiere after the English version Andrew Black, failed to get produced, the first Koanga translated back into English for the 1933 London premiere, and finally ‘reconstructed’ by Douglas Craig and Andrew Page for a production in 1972. It attained a brief visibility in the early twentieth century (the Daily Telegraph called it ‘an embodiment of the modern spirit’) and garnered a wonderful review from composer-critic Constant Lambert, who compared Delius to Conrad: both, he wrote, are artists of ‘retrospect’ rather than immediacy, who view wild nature as intrinsic to the action rather than a picturesque backdrop: ‘Their works are neither portraits nor landscapes, but “landscapes with figures”’. Like Conrad’s Belgian Congo, Delius’s jungles and seascapes are inseparable from his restless heroes. Nothing can really happen without those birds, will-o’-the-wisps and summer nights on the river: ‘The introduction to Act 3, though apparently static, is in essence as dramatic as any murder or suicide in an Italian opera.’ Delius’s mature works have a mysterious, static serenity conveyed by a dense, chromatic language; harmonies droop down or reach up but rarely resolve. Koanga, an early work, certainly has moments like this: ‘I Hear Palmyra’s voice’, for example, sung by Koanga against a slave chorus as
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Koanga: Delius on the Bayou
Palmyra’s distant vocalise drifts over the bayou; or the haunting orchestral introduction and ‘Onyame’ chant in Act 3. But the music has many other moods and textures, indeed, more variety than any Delius opera, from the scampering children’s choruses in the opening through the soaring fanfares in ‘All hail Koanga, mighty prince’ and the fierce furioso dance (‘Voodoo must hear him’) to the spectacular sunrise in the epilogue, one of Delius’s few fortissimo endings (who says that Delius is always ‘ephemeral’?). The orchestral interlude Ella Russell, after Palmyra’s death the first Palmyra sums up the opera’s motifs in vivid technicolour (it’s hard not to think of Max Steiner’s Hollywood scores); it ends with a hypnotic string rendition of the central spiritual, which finally plays through from beginning to end after being presented through most of the opera in teasing fragments (the same strategy Delius used later in Appalachia). In Koanga, Delius began dismantling the standard distinctions between aria and ensemble, a process he carried further three years later in A Village Romeo and Juliet. Vocal lines ascend and intermingle, melting in and out of the orchestra, a method Delius called ‘flow’, where one idea meanders into another, where a melody is a birdcall or glinting reflection imperceptibly swelling into something bigger before drifting away. This is not really Wagnerian continuity, though Delius admired Wagner more than most composers. Delius is too concise and understated to be a true Wagnerian, but there are occasional bows, such as Palmyra’s voluptuous aria, ‘The hour is near when to him my soul surrender’, and Koanga’s ‘Gods of the upper air and the depths below, reveal your mighty power’, invoking a Voodoo Valhalla.
Louisiana Bayou
Koanga, Act I: Set design by Nicholas de Molas. PHOTO ROYAL OPERA HOUSE ARCHIVES
Koanga allowed Delius to directly express his empathy with African-Americans, to whom he owed the soul of his aesthetic. As Christopher Palmer points out in Delius: Portrait of a Cosmopolitan (1976), Delius connected with the sorrow and isolation of African-Americans, for they reflected his own. But there may be a more specific connection as well. All seven of Delius’s operas involve unconventional love affairs, and it’s hard not to wonder whether his alleged secret amour with a young black woman in Florida – Chloe Baker, with whom he supposedly fathered a child – is a subtext. The Magic Fountain and Koanga both involve interracial couples in America, and Koanga was written during the period Delius is believed to have revisited Florida to find Chloe and his son, only to discover, in a typically Delian narrative, that they had vanished. Whether the story is true or not, the sheer sexiness of Delius’s music is one of its most striking aspects. According to Delius’s disciple, Eric Fenby, Koanga meant something special; it seemed to ‘hold some secret bond that bound him to his youth in
Florida. It was the one work he deplored in old age he was never likely to hear again.’ In Idyll, his final opera, he returned again to a long-ago love affair, enacting the essential Delian drama, the memory of a lost passion (‘Again we wander, we love, we separate’). The concluding cadence, ‘All is over and long gone, but love is not over’, echoes the ending of Koanga, where Uncle Joe and the planters’ daughters bring alive once more the lost love of Palmyra and her African prince. Jack Sullivan is Professor of English and Director of American Studies at Rider University and Westminster Choir College. His books include Elegant Nightmares: the English Ghost Story from LeFanu to Blackwood; New World Symphonies: How American Culture Changed European Music, and Hitchcock’s Music. He is currently writing a book on New Orleans jazz. Jack Sullivan’s Wexford lecture, Hitchcock’s Music, is at 11 a.m. on 30 October in the Jerome Hynes Theatre.
Koanga: Delius on the Bayou
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Koanga – Seascape
Detail, My Sea, My Sister, My Tears. SMITHSONIAN
Wexford Festival Opera thanks Ubuhle – Beautiful Beads in South Africa for giving permission to use their photographic image of ‘My Sea, My Sister, My Tears’ created by Ntombephi ‘Induna’ Ntobela. Ntombephi learned to bead from her grandmother. Her sense of beading and of the significance of colour and pattern is grounded in the traditional Mpondo framework. Ntombephi is now a master beader, and she has taught many other women to bead. Her skill as a beader was the initial impetus which led her
to co-found Ubuhle with Bev Gibson in 1999. Ntombephi is known as ‘Induna’ which means ‘leader’, a term of great respect in South Africa. The title also indicates the responsibility she feels for the community, viewing herself as the guardian of its future. Ntombephi hopes to establish the Ubuhle guild so that children, including the orphans of her sisters Bongiswa and Thembani, and other orphans cared for by the community, will one day learn to bead. A number of the artworks currently produced thus function as memorials to Ubuhle artists who have lost their lives. www.ubuhlebeads.co.za
born in africa but breastfed another mother tongue put to sleep on foreign lullabies praying for a jesus-heaven when i die (Malika Ndlovu, born in africa but)
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Set designs by James Macnamara for Wexford Festival Opera’s 2015 production of Koanga.
O
ne of the joys of directing non-canonical operas is the absence of the immanent pressure to make one’s mark by a ‘novel’ approach to well-known material. In Wexford a director becomes the conduit between an arcane opera and an unbiased audience. Delius’s opera and Cable’s forgotten novel are uniquely progressive in validating the cultural, spiritual and social identity brought to the nascent American nation by enslaved Western Africans, with an insight associated with contemporary postcolonial thought. Because western understanding of Africa is continually reductive, moulded by a few noted films set in the ‘dark continent’ and perfunctory television reports of droughts, wars and epidemics, Delius’s opera emerges as one of the most avant-garde works of its time. Koanga (1895–7) portrays the eponymous Jaloff prince – our production uses the revised libretto by Craig and Page, which makes Koanga Dahomean (Beninese) – with the gravitas usually reserved for European royalty, and discusses the complex subject of mixed ethnic identity with a foresight that predates late twentieth-century writing. Having lived on the borderline of several cultural, linguistic and religious identities, I found Delius’s ultra-progressive stance on the subject revelatory. At the height of the Victorian colonial era, Delius,
who was himself of mixed German and Dutch ancestry, devised an opera about individuals tragically trapped between two mutually exclusive cultures. His interest in reflecting African musical idioms in the score must have been radical, as was the very idea of writing an opera for black voices, three decades before Show Boat and Porgy and Bess. Equally daring is Delius’s stance on colonial capitalist greed: the enslaved African aristocrat and an illegitimate daughter of a master and a slave are exploited, emotionally and sexually, solely in order to raise the productivity levels on the estate. Typically, alcohol is used to weaken the will power. Koanga is reduced to a malleable workhorse and Palmyra used as sexual bait in order to compel obedience from the latest arrival of slaves. Extraordinarily, Delius upholds the existence of Koanga’s Voodoo gods whose spell obliterates the local population, as if the opera was a warning sign to all those who belittle the legitimacy of non-Abrahamic religions. It is an enormous honour for me and my predominantly African creative team to accept the invitation of the Festival to produce this trailblazing opera in Ireland, whose own struggle against religious, cultural and economic oppression became one of the universal points of reference. Michael Gieleta, Director Koanga – Director’s Notes
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SUPPORTED BY
Pietro Mascagni (1863–1945)
Guglielmo Ratcliff 22, 28, 31 October 8 p.m. 25 October 5 p.m. Tragedia in four acts Libretto based on Andrea Maffei’s Italian translation of the play Wilhelm Ratcliff by Heinrich Heine First performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan on 16 February 1895 Sung in Italian The performance will last approximately 2 hours. There will be a 30-minute interval after Act 2 A short introductory talk will take place in the Jerome Hynes Theatre one hour before the performance. Speaker: Elizabeth Drwal By arrangement with Casa Musicale Sonzogno The performance on 22 October is generously sponsored by Stephen Vernon The performance on 25 October is generously sponsored by Terry and Marjorie Neill 31 October Performance Sponsor
In association with Italian Institute of Culture – Dublin
Guglielmo Ratcliff Angelo Villari Maria Mariangela Sicilia Count Douglas David Stout Margherita Annunziata Vestri MacGregor Gianluca Buratto Lesley Alexandros Tsilogiannis Tom Quentin Hayes Willie Sarah Richmond Robin Henry Grant Kerswell Dick Stephen Anthony Brown Bell Matthew Wright John Rory Musgrave Taddie Raffaele D’Ascanio A Servant Simon Chalford Gilkes Dancers Mattia Agatiello, Noemi Bresciani, Alexander McCabe, Riccardo Olivier Dancers supplied by Fattoria Vittadini Supernumeraries Susan Anderson, Ryan Blanch, Zsuzsa Forgeteg, Catherine Gaul, Eoin O’Connor Conductor Director Set Designer Costume Designer Lighting Designer Choreographer Assistant Choreographer Stage Manager Répétiteur Surtitles
Francesco Cilluffo Fabio Ceresa Tiziano Santi Giuseppe Palella Ian Sommerville Riccardo Olivier Alexander McCabe Theresa Tsang Carmen Santoro Ian Julier
CHORUS OF WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA Errol Girdlestone, Chorus Master ORCHESTRA OF WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA Fionnuala Hunt, Concertmaster Production built by Laboratori Leonardo, Parma
Guglielmo Ratcliff
Guglielmo Ratcliff – Costume Designs
Guglielmo Ratcliff
Costume Designs by Giuseppe Palella
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Guglielmo Ratcliff – Costume Designs
Count Douglas
Tom and Willie
Guglielmo Ratcliff – Synopsis
Act 1 In the nineteenth century, in a castle in northern Scotland, lives MacGregor, a Scottish lord, with his daughter Maria. She is engaged to Count Douglas, who arrives at the castle having survived a murderous attack by three bandits who were driven off by an unknown horseman. Maria faints and is comforted by Margherita, a mysterious old woman in the castle who repeatedly sings part of a sad ballad. Maria’s father explains that Guglielmo Ratcliff had been in love with Maria, but she rejected him and after he left Scotland
she became engaged to someone else. However, the night before their wedding her fiancé was found murdered, and later, the same fate befell another suitor. Ratcliff had sworn to take his revenge by fighting any other man Maria decided to marry and giving her as a present the fiancé’s severed hand, complete with wedding ring. He had killed two men in this way and now Ratcliff’s friend Lesley arrives with a note from Ratcliff challenging Douglas to a duel.
Act 2 At an inn, a rendezvous for thieves and bad characters, the innkeeper, Tom, asks his son Willie to recite the Lord’s Prayer. The child repeatedly stumbles over ‘And lead us not into temptation’, and his father sends him from the room, saying that he will end up like Guglielmo Ratcliff and the other customers. Ratcliff claims he is not a murderer; he had fought Maria’s suitors in lawful
duels. He tells Lesley that Maria’s rejection of him led to his compulsion to kill any other man she falls in love with. He also says that since his childhood he has had a disturbing vision of a man and woman trying, but failing, to embrace each other. He does not realise that they are the ghosts of his father and Maria’s mother.
Act 3 It is a dark, stormy night. Douglas arrives to fight the duel and recognises Ratcliff as the man who saved him from the bandits. He tries to thank him but his gratitude is scorned and Ratcliff challenges him to fight. Douglas calls on the spirits of Maria’s
two slain suitors and Ratcliff stumbles and falls. Douglas spares his life but Ratcliff sees in a dream the disturbing ghostly vision of the couple unable to reach each other. Waking up, he decides to go to the castle and see Maria again.
Act 4 Maria is preparing for her marriage to Douglas, but remembers Ratcliff and the almost hypnotic way he looked at her. Margherita suggests she might still be in love with him. She tells Maria the story of her mother, Elisa, who was in love with Edvardo Ratcliff, Guglielmo’s father. Edvardo’s violent moods frightened Elisa, so she broke off their engagement and married MacGregor. Later, Edvardo and Elisa realised that they still loved each other. When MacGregor found out, he killed Edvardo and Elisa died of grief. From this unhappy tale we learn the full story told in Margherita’s interrupted ballad. Guglielmo Ratcliff enters Maria’s room covered in blood from his duel with
Douglas, and begs Maria to run away with him. Confusing Guglielmo and herself with the ghosts of his father and her mother, Maria is almost persuaded and tends his wounds before realising they are Maria and Guglielmo, not Elisa and Edvardo. She asks him to leave; he flies into a rage and kills her and then kills her father, who rushes in on hearing her cries for help. Finally, Ratcliff kills himself. Douglas arrives, horror-struck at the bloody scene, while Margherita comments that Ratcliff and Maria’s corpses resemble the deceased Edvardo and Elisa. Both generations of star-crossed lovers can now know eternal peace.
Guglielmo Ratcliff – Synopsis
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Guglielmo Ratcliff – A journey in the regions of the ideal and of the fantasy by Fulvio Venturi
Genesis
P
ietro Mascagni (1863–1945) took his first steps as a musician in the Istituto Cherubini in Livorno around 1875 and his first compositions were written between 1878 and 1882 (the romance Duolo Eterno!, dedicated to his father and written in memory of his mother, who had died prematurely). In 1881 Mascagni composed his first large-scale secular work, the idyll In Filanda, which was performed with great success in 1881 in the ridotto of the Teatro Carlo Lodovico in San Marco (Livorno). In 1882 he composed a cantata for soloists, chorus and orchestra, Alla Gioia, which was performed in the Teatro degli Avvalorati, also in Livorno.
fashionable life of Milan, asking his family to send him a dress suit and patent leather shoes. In a later interview Mascagni said it was during his years at the Conservatory that he read an edition of Heine’s Wilhelm Ratcliff in the Italian translation by Andrea Maffei. It was love at first sight and for a long time he dreamed of nothing else but the ‘osteria di Tom’ (the scene in the second act) and Guglielmo’s fantastic, all-consuming passion. The verses appealed so much to Mascagni that he recited them at night, walking up and down in his room.
During that period Mascagni’s state of mind was affected by a particular event in his life. He had left a girl in Livorno, Giuseppina Acconci, who came from a The idea for In Filanda had family of musicians. Mascagni come from Alfredo Soffredini, had met and talked to her director and founder of the several times and everything Istituto Cherubini, who was seemed to suggest that an Mascagni’s teacher and author official engagement would of the text. But for his next work soon follow. But when the the young student chose the news got back to Livorno of text himself, the famous ode An his brilliant and sophisticated die Freude by Friedrich Schiller, life in Milan, the girl did which, in the Italian translation not want to hear from him by Andrea Maffei (1798–1885), anymore. It was in the midst became Alla Gioia. This was of his disappointment over an audacious choice because Giuseppina that Mascagni of Beethoven’s own setting Pietro Mascagni (1863–1945) came across Heine’s tragedy of Schiller’s Ode to Joy in the about unrequited love and Finale of his Ninth Symphony, became infatuated with the subject. but his confidence was rewarded and, with the support of a sponsor, Mascagni was able to study at the Milan Conservatory under the direction of Amilcare Ponchielli. Once in Milan Mascagni became friends with other students, including Giacomo Puccini with whom he briefly shared an apartment, and an engineering student, Vittorio Gianfranceschi, who remained his friend for the rest of his life. He also began to attend performances at the major theatres in the city and to take part in the
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Heine’s tragedy, simple in its plot, but complex in the psychological interpretation of the characters, absorbed the young Mascagni more than he expected. He started writing passionately to his closest friends, particularly to Vittorio Gianfranceschi, who was to be the dedicatee of the opera, telling them about the progress of the composition, with all the impetuosity of an early romantic writer, as if the character of Heine’s hero had overlapped his own. From these letters
Guglielmo Ratcliff – A journey in the regions of the ideal and of the fantasy
we know that in the attempt to give a shape to the work, Mascagni stood in front of the mirror and recited the verses with great enthusiasm. He changed intonations, cried out loud, and implored, as if he was Guglielmo Ratcliff imagining he was embracing Maria. At the same time, he was thinking of leaving the Conservatory to earn his living and to write music as he wished, and so he accepted the role of orchestra conductor with an operetta company. The news was not received well in the Conservatory and after an argument with Prof. Antonio Bazzini (1818–1897), the famous violinist and composition teacher, he was requested to leave the Conservatory. Mascagni thus started travelling through Italy with various operetta companies and the draft material for Guglielmo Ratcliff in his luggage.
Edoardo Sonzogno, as artistic director of the Teatro alla Scala, who offered him a contract for a new opera. Discussions continued during the following months and eventually, on 16 February 1895, the composer’s hopes were realised and he conducted Guglielmo Ratcliff, the ‘great’ opera of his dreams, from the podium of La Scala.
Production and reception
In Guglielmo Ratcliff Mascagni completely understood the emotional tempest and romantically aggressive feelings, mixed with melancholia, of the Caricature from Guerrin Meschino, Milanese text, which he was able satirical magazine, on the occasion of the to translate with his own world premiere of Guglielmo Ratcliff in 1895. musical language into The verses, in the Milanese dialect, state that in order to prevent La Scala from being a simple and effective empty, an altar with an Annunciation to the synthesis. The division into Milanese people has been placed in front of the four acts has a clear sense theatre to announce the coming of the Scottish of unity. If the first act does Ratcliff. On hearing this announcement, all the people of La Scala should kneel down and pray, not take off very easily, it is, thanking Sonzogno (the opera’s publisher) In 1887 during his artistic nevertheless, necessary for for having been merciful towards their journeys, Mascagni arrived a full understanding of the misfortunes. It is hoped that people will attend, at Cerignola in the Apulia plot. When the protagonist, and exhorts, ‘Mascagni, everybody is calling region in the south of Italy. Guglielmo Ratcliff, comes on you, so go on stage, and amen. There he was offered the COURTESY CASA MUSICALE SONZOGNO stage the opera captures all possibility of a permanent the elements of the literary job with a reasonable remuneration: the text with a pathos perhaps even stronger than that directorship of the local orchestra. Mascagni, of the original tragedy. Mascagni’s creativity shows whose girlfriend, Lina Carbognani (1862–1947), its strength in the naturalistic additions in the third was pregnant, accepted the offer. act (O come il vento/Fischia!) where the Scottish landscape interacts with Guglielmo Ratcliff’s The ‘Ratcliff project’ remained dormant until emotions, uniting them with the visionary moments 1893, by which time Mascagni had become famous (Non mi schernite; su lurido capo/Vo’ le rupi for Cavalleria rusticana and the comedies L’Amico scagliarvi i pini io voglio/Svellere della Scozia...), and Fritz and I Rantzau. The right opportunity thus driving the action and influencing the outcome. came with the appointment of his publisher,
Guglielmo Ratcliff – A journey in the regions of the ideal and of the fantasy
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Following Heine’s dramatic structure, Mascagni’s attention focuses on four monologues, one in each act. The first presents the background (Già corre il sesto anno, sung by MacGregor); the two central monologues, both sung by Ratcliff, contribute to the progress of the drama (Quando fanciullo ancora in the second act and Ombra esecrata in the third); the last one anticipates the final tragedy (E bella, bella era tua madre, sung by Margherita). The orchestration is steered mostly by the strings and gives to the brass and woodwind sections the task of highlighting and colouring the events and settings, as in the delicate Pastorale which closes the thieves’ and rogues’ scene. String tremolos create cathartic moments, as in the epilogues of Guglielmo’s central narration (Ah! Maledetta serpe! Con occhi impauriti e strani) and in the ramblings of the final duet. The melodic line of the score is given mainly to the voice. ... returning to the romance of Guglielmo in the second act, I do not know, I am not able to describe it to you: I do not know it yet; I know that it is all heart, all passion, all pain; I do not judge it, I do not examine it cool-headed; I would be scared; maybe I would destroy everything; I know that there are 120 blank verses; maybe it cannot be performed; I do not want to know anything; I did it in this way; when I hear it I am moved; I am transported in the regions of the ideal and of the fantasy; it is enough for me! (...) This extract from a letter by Mascagni to Vittorio Gianfranceschi, written on 4 April 1886 from
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Drawing of the third act (Teatro alla Scala, 1895). COURTESY CASA MUSICALE SONZOGNO
Ancona whilst composing Guglielmo Ratcliff, could explain the reasons for the opera’s short life on stage: roughly forty performances in Italy and a few more around the world in one hundred and twenty years. Very few indeed for a popular composer’s favourite opera, an opera which was received with acclaim when it first appeared and in subsequent productions. After a production of Guglielmo Ratcliff at the Teatro dal Verme in Milan, Adriano Lualdi (1885–1971) wrote in the Corriere della Sera on 14 September 1924: (…) if many consider Ratcliff as the most significant opera of the Livornese master, it seems to me that they are not wrong; and it would be right if fortune, greater than it has done until now, smiled on this score in our theatres (…) Amongst the possible causes of the limited theatrical fortunes of this opera are the complicated staging, which makes it difficult to realise, and the vocal parts, for the technical and interpretative aspects of the roles are very difficult. The very detailed development of Heine’s plot results in parts for the singers where monologues, ensemble sections and short, arresting sentences
Guglielmo Ratcliff – A journey in the regions of the ideal and of the fantasy
follow one another relentlessly. Something of the ‘Sturm und Drang’ character is present in the score. Furthermore, in line with Heine’s tragedy, the protagonist in Mascagni’s opera is a tenor who must sustain a challenging vocal texture throughout very long sections; challenging not only for the numerous top notes, but also for the consistently high tessitura. The role of Guglielmo Ratcliff has sometimes been compared with the roles of the Wagnerian Heldentenor. However, Wagner did not distribute so many A naturals and A flats throughout his Ring cycle. On the contrary, the role of Guglielmo Ratcliff should be compared with other latenineteenth-century Italian roles, such as the part of the protagonist of Asrael by Franchetti, and with several tenor roles in Ponchielli’s operas, including Azaele in Figliuol prodigo, and Didier in Marion Delorme. The other roles in Guglielmo Ratcliff have simpler parts, even though Count Douglas, a typical ‘grand seigneur’ baritone role, has a difficult first act with È sempre il vecchio andazzo and an incisive third act. Margherita, the keystone of the plot, has a very complex part, and not only from the interpretative point of view: in the rambling monologue of the fourth act, which is vocally very demanding, she must convey the evocative qualities necessary for the drama to be fully understood. The vocal quality of Maria’s role is comparable to that required for Suzel in Amico Fritz, along the lines of a soprano role such as Micaëla in Bizet’s Carmen. The parts of MacGregor and Tom are very interesting too: almost a reinterpretation of the nineteenth-century ‘basso cantante’, both buffo and serious. But the absolute protagonist of the opera is Guglielmo Ratcliff; his part is what it is: difficult, as the composer himself was well aware. The difficulties in staging the opera, as Mascagni feared, were soon evident during the preparations for the premiere at La Scala in 1895. Francesco Tamagno refused to sing the part of Guglielmo Ratcliff because of its excessive
length. After considering other singers, including the French Emmanuel Lafarge, the role was given to Giovan Battista De Negri (1851–1924), the most famous interpreter of Verdi’s Otello after Tamagno. Mascagni must have been grateful to him. After the premiere the critic G. B. Nappi wrote in the Perseveranza: It would prove difficult for Mascagni to find another protagonist equal to De Negri, who, with an intense full voice, a clear diction, an effective declamation, and full of lyric and dramatic expressive nuances, was able to make the role his own, to the admiration of all. On the occasion of the premiere there was greater difficulty with the role of Margherita, which had been given to an excellent French singer, Renée Vidal (1861–1911). But she fell ill and could not sing on the opening night. It was impossible to find an effective replacement, so Mascagni decided to give the role to a secondary singer, Della Rogers, but he was forced to eliminate Margherita’s great scene in the fourth act. Although severely cut, Guglielmo Ratcliff was a great success on the opening night and the success became even greater and more vibrant when Renée Vidal was eventually able to sing her role and the opera was performed in its entirety. Dr Fulvio Venturi is a prolific essayist in the area of musicology and has collaborated with several European opera companies. He is particularly interested in verismo theatre and in Mascagni: he is Consulente del Comitato Promotore Pietro Mascagni and Presidente del Centro Internazionale di Ricerca Pietro Mascagni (CIRM). Translated by Dr Antonio Cascelli, Maynooth University.
Guglielmo Ratcliff – A journey in the regions of the ideal and of the fantasy
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‘Se non è vero, è ben trovato’ Reflections on Verismo in Opera by Francesco Cilluffo
A
ny talk about verismo in music should start with Amilcare Ponchielli, the composer who wrote La Gioconda, and, more importantly, the man who taught Mascagni and Puccini. Quite a lot for a nearly-forgotten moustached man from Cremona. Ponchielli and Arrigo Boito (composer of Mefistofele, librettist of La Gioconda and for late-period Verdi) were both exponents of the Scapigliatura, an aesthetic movement originating in Northern Italy around the 1860s. Scapigliati were interested in depicting situations in a largerthan-life fashion, looking up to French naturalism as the model for the new aesthetic tendencies of fin de siècle Europe, with a mixture of rebellion, anti-provincialism, messy hairstyles and a strong love of all things German.
clay, the composer has the power to transform into myth and abstraction what, in the plot, could be simply an ordinary everyday life gesture. To put it bluntly, as a Verga novella, Cavalleria rusticana is a crude story of Sicilian vendetta, but as a Mascagni opera, Cavalleria becomes a fresco of some of the elemental forces that shape human relationships: sex, religion, poverty and the frustrated hope of redemption. In verismo operas, music transforms the everyday ‘real’ (‘vero’, hence ‘verismo’) into archetypal situations. So the text actually becomes the pre‑text.
The real aim of verismo in music is not to focus on stories that portray ordinary life, but rather to tell stories using realistic timing and reactions. So if in the bel canto era, anger and frustration were abstracted into long, repeated lines of singing that turned events into Therefore, when in metaphors of a character’s Ponchielli’s La Gioconda the inner world, with verismo the villain Barnaba crawls around timings and the expressive Venetian canals indulging range on stage are well within in evildoing and strangling our own real-life perception. blind old women, we realise Arias get shorter, ensembles that some part of the way the are less important (unless they Verdian operatic vocabulary become part of a cinematicdepicts rebellion and evil like sequence like Tosca’s has been expanded and ‘Te Deum’ or the Easter exaggerated into something Procession in Cavalleria Amilcare Ponchielli (1834–1886) modern and disturbing. The rusticana), so repetitions of deformed expressions of entire sections of music or variations per se are Barnaba are the key to entering into the world of unlikely to be found. verismo and expressionism: Puccini, Mascagni This tightening of narrative pace and register is and Leoncavallo learned from Ponchielli a certain the link that connects Italian verismo to European way of vocal ‘exaggeration’ and how to transform expressionism. In fact, I strongly believe the two the realistic into the deformed and almost absurd. should be seen (and performed!) as two sides of Clearly though, naturalism in literature could never the same coin. It is no mystery that Cavalleria and be translated successfully onto the operatic stage, Pagliacci have always been and still are among the because of the very essence of opera: a genre which most-performed Italian operas in the Germanis unreality par excellence, bringing about as it speaking world, cradle of psychoanalysis and does the transfiguration of a story or a situation by expressionism. One has only to recall the famous musical means. In fact, using music as modelling Blue Angel movie with Marlene Dietrich (based
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‘Se non è vero, è ben trovato’ Reflections on Verismo in Opera
La Gioconda, Amilcare Ponchielli, Wexford Festival Opera 1963. wexford festival opera archive
on a 1905 book by Heinrich Mann) to understand how much the narration of the story and its development owe to Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci. Alberto Savinio, brother of the famous surrealist painter Giorgio de Chirico, used to call Berg’s Wozzeck the Cavalleria rusticana of Northern Europe; he had a good point. Verismo operatic writing has been described far too many times as just screaming (‘gridare’). But this only proves its closeness to expressionism, if we remember that The Scream is the title of that most iconic of expressionist paintings by Edvard Munch. The archetypal use of screaming, which is such a strong theatrical gesture, shows the Italian and German musical world in constant dialogue: consider the ‘Hanno ammazzato compare Turiddu’ scream at the end of Cavalleria rusticana, or the screams connected with the deaths of Klytämnestra (Strauss’ Elektra), Maria (Berg’s Wozzeck) and Lulu (Berg’s Lulu, finale of the three-act version). Even late Mahler symphonies seem to use the ‘scream-sound’ to represent unbearable sorrow and defeat (Das Lied von der Erde and the Ninth Symphony). Furthermore, if we look back in time, in Il Trovatore (1843)
/ denis o’connor
Verdi made a verismo-like use of high notes to represent Azucena’s psychological trauma, long before Freud put pen to paper or Proust started reminiscing over French cakes and tea. In a way, verismo is a continuation of this inner psychological way of thinking about music that started with Verdi, developed with Ponchielli and Boito, and reached maturity with the Giovane Scuola (Mascagni, Puccini, Cilèa, Leoncavallo and Giordano, among others), only to migrate towards the anxieties so well depicted by expressionism and the Viennese School. Listen to Franz Schreker’s Der Ferne Klang (1903–1910) and you will see the dots connecting. But how does all this translate into verismo performance practice? When performing this repertoire, one should be aware that real verismo operas are always about psychological rather than superficial drama, no matter what story is being told. While not a thoroughly verismo opera, Guglielmo Ratcliff is exemplary in this: the hero is actually an antihero, and it is the closest we ever get in an Italian opera to Verdi’s Otello after Otello. We are dealing with the psychological portrait of a man who has
‘Se non è vero, è ben trovato’ Reflections on Verismo in Opera
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Sakùntala, Franco Alfano, Wexford Festival Opera 1982. wexford festival opera archive
lost his centre of gravity and is haunted by inner fears and demons.
conduct Wozzeck more as a verismo opera (listen to Böhm’s and Mitropoulos’ recordings).
Since Ratcliff was written partly before and partly after Cavalleria, it is an extraordinary opportunity to see the composer in his workshop, searching for a fine balance between heritage and modernism. This is the struggle that brought most verismo composers to migrate towards symbolism and exoticism; as Mascagni himself did with Iris and Isabeau, Puccini with Turandot, and Alfano with Sakùntala.
To conclude on a lighter note: at the time of writing, verismo is also a very successful Starbucks brand of coffee beans in America. I guess the marketing department associated the term verismo with something Italian with an exotic twist: bold, dark and yet completely refined and unmistakably southern. Most of the time, at least in opera, it is.
So, the extremes of verismo should be put into perspective and redirected towards a more psychological approach. If we listen to Mascagni’s own recordings – he was, like Mahler, a famous conductor and composer – we realise that singing always prevails over screaming, just as psychological study prevails over mere vocal exhibitionism. Conductors should conduct Cavalleria rusticana more as a dark twentiethcentury masterpiece (listen to the recordings by Sinopoli, Bernstein and Karajan!), and should
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/ john ironside
Francesco Cilluffo was born in Turin in 1979. After graduating in composition and conducting from his hometown conservatoire he moved to London, where he earned a MMus at Guildhall School of Music and Drama and a PhD at King’s College London. He has a busy schedule as a conductor all over the world and his compositions have been performed throughout the USA and Europe.
‘Se non è vero, è ben trovato’ Reflections on Verismo in Opera
Guglielmo Ratcliff – Director’s Notes
Set designs by Tiziano Santi for Wexford Festival Opera’s 2015 production of Guglielmo Ratcliff.
Through the looking glass
T
he characteristics of the soul of a people may be revealed through their belief in the power of oral tales and their awareness of their ancestors and their fables. So it was to the fable that I turned in order to find those elements that could be used to translate the complex plot of Guglielmo Ratcliff into theatrical language. It is an opera that encompasses two opposite worlds: Heine’s Scottish misty landscape on the one hand and the Mediterranean flavour of Mascagni on the other. To find a unifying element one must search deeper and look further back to find a feature that is common to the fables of both cultures: that feature is the intrusive presence of the supernatural in everyday life. The inhabitants of the parallel worlds, like the four ghosts in the story of Ratcliff, are the pivot of the dramatist’s concept of the text. Although these figures make their presence felt in a variety of ways, in the Scottish tradition the spirits are present in a single form: that of an animal. For this reason, two ghosts, Maria’s fiancés, who were both killed and mutilated by Guglielmo, are present from the beginning of the opera as two limping dogs in the manner of famuli, spirits of the domestic fire, ready to defend both the home and the owner. They are contrasted with the ghosts of the beautiful Elisa and Edvardo, two romantic figures, who long to embrace each other
once more, but who are prevented from doing so. In this production the ghosts of Elisa and Edvardo are portrayed in the form of two deer, with the majestic, beautiful presence of those who run through the woods in solitary silence, like messengers from another world. The two protagonists of the opera, Guglielmo and Maria, are aware of the supernatural but do not have any direct connection with it; they accept the fact of a hidden world, which determines their choices and actions. A third character, Margherita, is the lady of the two worlds: she is allowed to cross the threshold that divides the physical from the metaphysical and moves freely between them. As a sort of medium, or guide, Margherita weaves the thread of the drama: the spectral dogs obey her and with her old songs she evokes the spirits of the deer, thus unleashing their vengeance. The line, the threshold that separates the two worlds, is the mirror referred to in the libretto, conveyed through Guglielmo. As a sort of dimensional door, it becomes a passage between two parallel universes. When it is crossed two generations of human beings are united, and the living and the dead are thus finally enabled to find peace. Fabio Ceresa, Director Translated by Dr Antonio Cascelli, Maynooth University.
Guglielmo Ratcliff – Director’s Notes
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SUPPORTED BY
Ferdinand Hérold (1791–1833)
Le Pré aux clercs 23, 26, 29 October 8 p.m. 1 November 5 p.m. Opéra comique in three acts Libretto by FrançoisAntoine-Eugène de Planard after Chronique du règne de Charles IX by Prosper Mérimée First performed at the Opéra-Comique (Salle de la Bourse), Paris on 15 December 1832 Sung in French The performance will last approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes. There will be a 30-minute interval after Act 1, and a 20-minute interval after Act 2 A short introductory talk will take place in the Jerome Hynes Theatre one hour before the performance. Speaker: Elizabeth Drwal By permission of Alexandre Grus A co-production between Opéra-Comique, Wexford Festival Opera and Palazzetto Bru Zane (Centre de musique romantique française), in partnership with Fondation Calouste Gulbenkian Presented with the support of the Bravura Friends of Wexford Festival Opera
Marguerite de Valois Marie Lenormand Isabelle de Montal Marie-Ève Munger Nicette Magali Simard-Galdès Baron de Mergy Nico Darmanin Comte de Comminges Dominique Côté Cantarelli Eric Huchet Girot Tomislav Lavoie Le Brigadier Felix Kemp L’exempt du guet Jan Capinski ´ Archer 1 David Howes Archer 2 Sheldon Baxter Dancers Alexandre Bado, Camille Brulais, Ghislain Grellier, Costantino Imperatore, Anna Konopska Conductor Jean-Luc Tingaud Director Éric Ruf Revival Director Laurent Delvert Set Designer Éric Ruf Costume Designer Renato Bianchi Lighting Designer Ian Sommerville Choreographer Glyslein Lefever Stage Manager Erin Shepherd Assistant Director Rob Kearley Assistant Costume Designer Vera Boussicot Répétiteurs Greg Ritchey, Marie-Ève Scarfone Surtitles Jonathan Burton CHORUS OF WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA Errol Girdlestone, Chorus Master ORCHESTRA OF WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA Fionnuala Hunt, Concertmaster Production built by Technoscena, Rome Presented with the support of the French Embassy in Ireland
Le Pré aux clercs
Le Pré aux clercs – Costume Designs
Cantarelli
Costume Designs by Renato Bianchi
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Le Pré aux clercs – Costume Designs
Le Pré aux clercs – Synopsis
Act 1 It is 1582 in France during the Wars of Religion, ten years after the St Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. At a country inn near Étampes the innkeeper Nicette, and Girot, a hotelier at the Pré aux clercs in Paris (famous for duels and lovers’ trysts), celebrate their engagement. Nicette’s godmother is Marguerite de Valois, sister of Henri III, king of France, and the wife of Henry, king of Navarre. A Roman Catholic, she was forced to marry the Protestant king of Navarre in order to pacify the religious wars. Marguerite has returned to Paris from Navarre and is detained at the Louvre Palace as a hostage of peace between her husband, anxious to strengthen his claim to the throne of France, and her brother. She is accompanied by her lady-in-waiting, Isabelle de Montal, a young countess in love with Baron de Mergy, who is also from Navarre. The king of Navarre has sent Mergy to France to bring Marguerite and Isabelle back.
The engagement celebrations are disturbed by the king’s knights who attack Mergy at the inn where he is breaking his journey, but he is aided by Cantarelli who recognises Mergy as the man who saved him during the Siege of Bergerac. Cantarelli is the director of the court festivities at the Louvre and he tells Mergy that Isabelle is resisting the advances of Comte de Comminges, a royal favourite and formidable swordsman. Mergy leaves to watch the royal hunt and Comminges arrives at the inn, angry at having been delayed by fighting a duel. He tells Cantarelli that he killed his challenger. They join the royal hunting party and Marguerite and Isabelle leave the hunt and visit Nicette. The queen is concerned at Isabelle’s unhappiness, but has to tell her that it has been decided she should marry Comminges. Appalled by this news, Isabelle’s distress attracts Mergy and they embrace. Comminges is suspicious of Mergy, who is protected by his ambassadorial status; the hunt leaves for Paris, and Marguerite invites Nicette to the palace to receive her dowry.
Act 2 In the Louvre Marguerite concocts a plan for Isabelle and Mergy, who are both Protestants, to marry secretly and escape to Navarre. Nicette and Girot will also get married at the chapel of the Pré aux clercs on the same day. Cantarelli is persuaded – blackmailed – into helping them. However, Comminges confronts Cantarelli with his suspicions that there is a conspiracy to rob him of Isabelle, and threatens him. Cantarelli misleads him, saying
that Mergy’s secret love affair is with Marguerite, not Isabelle. Then the order comes through: Mergy must return to Navarre but Marguerite and Isabelle will not be permitted to leave France. Isabelle, a Protestant, must marry Comminges, a Roman Catholic, for political reasons, as Marguerite had to marry Henry. In despair, Mergy challenges Comminges to a duel. The queen is determined that both weddings should still go ahead.
Act 3 At the Pré aux clercs, across the Seine from the Louvre, Nicette and Girot are celebrating their marriage. Mergy and Isabelle are married in secret and Cantarelli arrives with their safe-conduct passes so they can escape. But there is danger, for Comminges is going to fight a stranger in a duel. He and Mergy fight and Comminges learns that it
is Isabelle whom his opponent not only loves but has married. Comminges is killed and his body put on a boat. Isabelle faints as she sees the boat passing by, but her husband reappears, alive after all, and he and Isabelle escape to Navarre with Cantarelli as their guide.
Le Pré aux clercs – Synopsis
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How Hérold Saved the Opéra-Comique by Sylvia L’Écuyer
C
ritic Joseph d’Ortigue, writing in La Quotidienne on 2 February 1833, observed that ‘when you see the size of the crowds gathering in front of the doors of the Opéra-Comique for a performance of Le Pré aux clercs, you would think you were back in the glory days of Elleviou, Martin and Ponchard.’ These three charismatic singers had acquired a devoted following at the Opéra-Comique in the 1810s and early 1820s singing Méhul, Grétry, Auber and Boieldieu. This was the golden age of a theatre celebrated for being quintessentially French, a theatre well attuned to the taste of its Parisian public. By the early 1830s, however, its glory days were only a nostalgic memory. Constantly teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, the Opéra-Comique had been forced to close for almost eighty days in 1832. First, there was the fierce cholera epidemic that hit the city in March, and then in June civil unrest brought riots to the streets of the capital. In the midst of such turmoil, Hérold’s music brought a welcome measure of solace to a dispirited public. Writing a mere two weeks after the death of the composer, and only seven weeks after the premiere of Le Pré aux clercs, d’Ortigue’s analysis suggested that the main attraction at the Opéra-Comique had now become its music, rather than its singers. Indeed, as the final curtain went down at the work’s premiere on 15 December 1832, the audience jumped to their feet, calling for the composer to take a bow, but he had already left the theatre after suffering a violent bout of tubercular bleeding. The work was an instant success, despite the misgivings of some critics. Jules Janin, for one, concluded his less than enthusiastic review in the Journal des débats with the admission: ‘Whatever I might say about Le Pré aux clercs does not matter, people loved it and it is here to stay.’ So why did the public embrace this work with such enthusiasm? And why is it worth revisiting Le Pré aux clercs today? First of all, timing was an important factor in the work’s initial success. While the public had always enjoyed dramas with a sentimental love story and happy ending, the current vogue for historical subject matter had made this tale of religious strife
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How Hérold Saved the Opéra-Comique
between Catholics and Huguenots in sixteenthcentury France particularly appealing. Prosper Mérimée’s novel Chronique du règne de Charles IX (1829) on which the libretto is based, deals with one of the darkest events in French history, the St Bartholomew’s Day massacre of 1572. The twenty-five year-old Merimée had published his novel as an indictment of religious intolerance but made no claims to historical accuracy. ‘What I like about history’, Merimée wrote in the preface to his novel, ‘is the anecdotes, and the anecdotes I prefer are the ones where I can imagine a vivid portrayal of the mores and characters at a given period in time.’ The protagonists of Merimée’s Chronique, fictitious or real, gave librettist Eugène de Planard a wonderful opportunity to create a strong dramatic cast of operatic characters. In addition, the historical background of the story had considerable resonance for the Parisian public of 1832. Only two years earlier, the regime of Charles X had been brought down by a popular uprising and his cousin Louis-Philippe had replaced him as Roi des Français. The abrupt end of the Bourbon monarchy was still sorely resented by the légitimiste faction of public opinion responsible for the June riots which had convulsed the city. Renewed interest in historical study had a wide-ranging impact on cultural life in France during this period. In 1827 François-Joseph Fétis initiated a concert series featuring music ranging from medieval polyphony to Johann Sebastian Bach. In 1831 Victor Hugo fed the growing appetite for period drama and Gothic architecture with his novel Notre-Dame de Paris. Meanwhile, in the fine arts, Ingres and AlexandreÉvariste Fragonard served up idealised historical scenes in the so-called ‘troubadour style’, the St Bartholomew’s Day massacre being a favourite subject. An entire myth developed around the figure of Marguerite de Valois, Reine de Navarre, one of the main characters of Hérold’s opera, when Alexandre Dumas published his serialised novel La Reine Margot in 1844–5, giving her the bad press from which she still suffers to this day.
Scène de massacre de la Saint-Barthélemy, dans l’appartement de la reine de Navarre, Alexandre-Évariste Fragonard (1836).
How Hérold Saved the Opéra-Comique
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The financial hardship experienced by the OpéraComique in 1832 could be traced to a recent string of uninspiring productions, pointing to the need for a revival of the genre itself. Among the handful of original works staged in recent years none had achieved a permanent place in the repertoire, so the theatre resorted to commissioning pastiches, or patchwork operas concocted by a team of composers. A case in point was the historical drama La Marquise de Brinvilliers (1831), written by a team of nine composers including Hérold, with a hastily assembled libretto by Eugène Scribe and Castil-Blaze. With Le Pré aux clercs, however, a new era seemed to have arrived. Here was a fresh and original work with vivid, intensely dramatic scenes and tender yet elegant melodies, all buoyed up by a lively and brilliant orchestral score. The impact of this work was so great as to prompt Arthur Pougin, in his hagiographic 1906 biography of the composer, to declare that the third act of Le Pré aux clercs was ‘a masterpiece inside a masterpiece’ and Hérold ‘beyond a doubt, the greatest French musician of the first half of the nineteenth century.’ We could forgive Pougin for disregarding Berlioz, among others. After all, the composer of the Symphonie fantastique had never achieved wide public acceptance in France. Indeed, Pougin quotes at length the ferocious review that Berlioz had penned in 1835 in the Journal des débats on the occasion of the revival of another extremely successful work by Hérold, Zampa. Berlioz, bitter at the delay in mounting his own opera, Benvenuto Cellini, dismissed Hérold’s swashbuckling opéra comique with the quip: ‘C’est de la musique parisienne!’ And Berlioz had a point. Hérold’s music suited perfectly the tastes of his Parisian audience, and particularly that of the OpéraComique, where the French middle class expected to find family-oriented fare, not sublime artistic achievement, and simply wanted to be entertained. A fairer assessment would grant Hérold’s music more credit than Berlioz’s condescending remark would allow. All his life, Hérold dreamt of writing serious operas for the prestigious stage of the Académie Royale de Musique but circumstances
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How Hérold Saved the Opéra-Comique
prevented him from realising his dream. In his formative years, he had certainly acquired everything he needed to succeed as a serious composer. At the Paris Conservatoire, where he was admitted at the age of fifteen, he counted among his teachers the highly esteemed pianistcomposer Jean-Louis Adam, the celebrated violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer, and the composer Louis-Étienne Méhul whose innovative works displayed a masterful command of operatic orchestration. Their lessons were not lost on Hérold who won the Prix de Rome in 1811. After a brief obligatory stay at the Villa Medici in Rome, the young musician went to Naples where, on the recommendation of J-L Adam, he was appointed music teacher to the daughters of Joachim Murat, recently installed by Napoleon as King of Naples. Hérold was also invited to write an opera on a libretto of his own choosing and La Gioventù di Enrico Quinto was premiered at the Teatro del Fondo in January 1815. In preparation for writing his first important work for Paris he decided to further his education in Vienna, where in a twomonth stay he absorbed the operas of Mozart and Gluck, also meeting Salieri, for whom he had the greatest admiration. Keeping a careful record of his thoughts in a small notebook, Hérold indicated why he resisted the idea of writing an opera for the Austrian capital: ‘It is not in my interest to write an opera for Vienna. If it succeeds, it will not likely be performed in Paris, whereas if I make a good one for Paris, it will likely be performed here.’ And the future proved him right. Returning home in August 1815, Hérold was hired as a rehearsal pianist at the Théâtre-Italien, a post he held until 1826. As his knowledge of the lyrical repertoire grew, his ambitions still remained focused on the Opéra. But circumstances always brought him back to the Opéra-Comique. In 1816, Boieldieu, the most celebrated composer in France at the time, asked him to write the second act of his opéra comique, Charles de France, a work that received high praise. The next year Hérold’s Les Rosières and La Clochette earned him further acclaim at the same theatre. A lean period
ensued, and then in 1821, Hérold travelled to Italy and returned with two superb acquisitions: the soprano Giuditta Pasta, and the score of Rossini’s Mosè in Egitto which was immediately accepted at the Théâtre-Italien. In 1826 Hérold seems to have found his own voice. His gently melancholic and touching Marie triumphed at the Opéra-Comique, with one hundred performances during its first year alone, but his hopes of writing a serious opera were dashed again when the Opéra, hiring him as a chef de chant in 1826, asked him for … ballets! La Somnambule, La Fille mal gardée and La Belle au bois dormant were all successful. Meanwhile the Opéra-Comique, after closing for renovations, reopened in May 1831 with Zampa ou la Fiancée de marbre. Italianate in its vocal treatment, with a plot vaguely reminiscent of Don Giovanni, Zampa received both the highest praise and the most disparaging reviews. Its success was compromised by the financial difficulties of the theatre and by the defection of Chollet, the singer for whom Hérold had specifically written the demanding role of Zampa, which required a high baritone voice, exceptional range, and dramatic stage presence. No one dared to tackle the role after his departure. Hérold’s music was more sophisticated than the usual fare at the Opéra-Comique. The composer had set himself high standards, as we can see from the little notebook entitled ‘Venise 1815 – Cahier rempli de sottises plus ou moins grandes, rassemblées en forme de principes par moi’ which Pougin quotes at length in his biography. This ‘notebook full of nonsense’ establishes principles which were to be Hérold’s mantras for the rest of his life. Here are a few of them: Why not use different styles in a largescale work? Songs have to come from the soul to reach the soul of the listeners.
If I ever write for the stage again, I have to give each character, for a tragic work, a distinctive voice, guided by the text. Citing as his models Salieri, Mozart, Gluck and Piccinni, he reminds himself to re-read Grétry’s Memoirs, and … to remain true to himself. These principles are all found in the score of Le Pré aux clercs. Many styles are readily found in the overture, including a fugato passage and an accelerando à la Rossini. Then follows a joyful, animated opening scene with Nicette, Girot and the choir, featuring the duo ‘Les rendez-vous de noble compagnie’, which became wildly popular. The entrance of the tenor, Mergy, brings a new tenderness, his light voice blooming into an expressive coloratura at the words ‘la crainte et l’espérance font palpiter mon cœur’. Isabelle’s tender romance ‘Souvenirs du jeune âge’ touched the soul of its first listeners and continued to do so for a century afterwards. The same tinge of sadness colours the opening of the second act in Isabelle’s aria ‘Jours de mon enfance’ with its heart-wrenching violin obbligato. Nicette’s song in the third act is a gem in classic opéra comique style, as is the playful trio that follows. And Hérold’s mastery in building a great scene is on full display in the opera’s finale, a perfect example of the pleasures in store for modern audiences of today! Sylvia L’Écuyer is a musicologist and broadcaster. Music producer for Radio Canada since 1985, she is the host and producer of the network’s weekly opera programme, Place à l’Opéra. She is also Associate Professor at Université de Montréal. Her writings on music have been published in many languages. She was awarded the title of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government.
Consider carefully the character of the scene and determine if languor, or vigour, tenderness or melancholy, joy or sadness should dominate.
How Hérold Saved the Opéra-Comique
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From the fairground to the heights of French art: opéra comique and Le Pré aux clercs by Clair Rowden
I
n 2015 the Opéra-Comique in Paris celebrates its three hundredth anniversary. This historic institution, and its associated genre (opéra comique), represents an eminent tradition born of very lowly origins in seasonal fairground shows in Paris in the late seventeenth century: the Foire Saint-Germain took place on the left bank of the Seine during Lent, and the Foire Saint-Laurent ran through the summer months on the right bank.
plots. Over the next thirty years, and following the 1762 merger, the genre was reified and nobilised. The luxurious first Salle Favart was opened in 1783 (the current theatre is the third Salle Favart), inaugurated in the presence of Queen Marie-Antoinette. Thus, by the end of the eighteenth century, under the direction of Charles-Simon Favart (1710–1792) after whom the Opéra-Comique theatre is named, opéra comique had reached an apogee with two differing strands of spectacle: the one witty, amusing, naïve, sentimental and gay, the other more tragic and dramatic, displaying vibrant and pathetic humanity. Indeed, the adjective ‘comique’ in the title of the genre was more synonymous with ‘theatrical’ rather than anything funny, and during the Revolutionary period and years of the First Republic, French opéras comiques were capable of supporting more serious plots, even ending tragically, such as Cherubini’s Médée (1797), which prefigured the darker and more dramatic opéras comiques of the second half of the nineteenth century.
In 1714 a royal privilege was granted for the performance of a new genre with alternating spoken and sung passages, against strict competition from the Académie royale de musique (today the Opéra de Paris) which reserved the right to perform completely sung new works in French, and the ComédieFrançaise which retained exclusivity for spoken drama. Indeed, the directors of the Comédie-Française, jealous of the success of the OpéraComique troupes, managed several times in the 1720s to obtain legal rulings banning all fairground spectacles except puppet shows and tightrope Ferdinand Hérold In July 1807, the Opéra-Comique acts. It was only really in 1762, (1791–1833) is cited as one of the four Parisian with the merger of the Opéra‘grands théâtres’ by official Comique with the ComédieImperial decree, which also Italienne (which had been defined the genre as ‘any comedy or drama formerly associated with the Comédie-Française comprising songs, short airs and ensemble pieces against the Opéra-Comique), that put paid to this … the dialogue of these works must alternate long rivalry. Thereafter one united company was with singing’. But the fortunes of the Opéraallowed to flourish and develop. Comique during the Restoration period, under Thus, at its origins opéra comique was largely an increasingly old-regime-type monarchy, were text-based, with very little original or newly highly unstable. From 1828–1832, the Opéracomposed music. Arias from the Opéra repertoire, Comique was in financial crisis, with bankruptcies popular and folksong tunes were adapted to fit and directors and/or associates falling like the new texts. However, the first opéra comique dominoes. The troupe, then resident at the Salle with original music dates from 1753, and from Ventadour, was forced to move to a smaller this point onwards the comical stories typical cheaper house, the Salle de la Bourse, where they of the fairground troupes tended to be replaced remained until 1840. with more dramatic, entertaining and emotional
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From the fairground to the heights of French art: opéra comique and Le Pré aux clercs
Ferdinand Hérold (1791–1833), a respected composer whose works included ballets for the Paris Opéra where he had been a repetiteur since October 1826, had his first opera, La Gioventù di Enrico Quinto, performed in Naples in 1815 whilst working as a pianist at the court
in Paris, from Méhul and Rossini, to Weber and Meyerbeer. Indeed, this sentimental love story with a happy ending is set against the historic backdrop of the French wars of religion in the sixteenth century, as was the near-contemporary opera, Meyerbeer’s Les Huguenots.
The Waverley novels by Sir Walter Scott first appeared in French translation in 1816, and their popularity soon swept across Europe. In 1827, Victor Hugo in 7 the famous preface to his historical drama Cromwell, incited artists 4 5 to resuscitate history by leafing through and interrogating its pages, to reproduce the reality of historical facts and social mores, to drink in historical colour. At the same 6 time, his contemporaries Alfred de Vigny and Prosper Mérimée were reinventing the French historical novel, Mérimée publishing his Chronique du règne de Charles IX in 1829. The fashion for Romanticised Theatres of the Opéra-Comique (engraving for the centenary of the first Salle Favart on neo-Gothic and Renaissance 28 April 1883): 1. Salle de la Foire St Laurent; 2. Hôtel de Bourgogne; 3. Salle Favart (1st); subjects incited both Eugène Scribe 4. Salle Feydeau; 5. Salle Ventadour; 6. Salle de la Bourse; 7. Salle Favart (2nd). (for Meyerbeer) and Eugène de Planard (for Hérold) to draw libretti from Mérimée’s Chronique, with Meyerbeer’s of Queen Caroline. Hérold, born into a family ‘grand opera’ foregrounding the bloody Saint of distinguished musicians and having followed Bartholomew’s Day Massacre (1572) and the a prestigious apprenticeship and career path impossible love of a Catholic and Huguenot, while which took him via the Paris Conservatoire and de Planard for the Opéra-Comique concentrated the Prix de Rome, the Paris Opéra and Théâtre on the calmer period ten years later, during the des Italiens, began composing for the Opérareign of Henri III, with a story of an harmonious Comique in 1816. His greatest successes there idyll, threatened only by the absurd ritual of were Zampa (1831) (Wexford, 1993) and Le Pré the duel. De Planard sets his story in the stretch aux clercs (1832), the latter premiered just five of grasslands (‘le pré aux clercs’) on the left weeks before the forty-one year-old composer bank opposite the Louvre used by bourgeois succumbed to tuberculosis. Le Pré aux clercs was promenaders, relaxing students and querulous considered his masterpiece in opéra comique, men out for revenge. While certain critics of steering a careful path between the lighter and Mérimée’s novel were eager to read a critical more tragic veins of the genre, and representing allusion to the contemporary political regime in a successful synthesis of the traditions and France (the increasingly despotic, yet soon to fall, influences on his own writing that were present 1
2
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From the fairground to the heights of French art: opéra comique and Le Pré aux clercs
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De Planard’s and Hérold’s opéra comique was first performed to great acclaim in December 1832 at the Salle de la Bourse. The staging of the opera received careful attention: costumes and scenery were lavish and the John Daniecki as Zampa and Mary Mills as Camille, Zampa, Wexford Festival Opera 1993. theatre’s best singers were employed in the principal roles. However, the Opéra-Comique and Wexford Festival Opera to capricious Madame Casimir defected from the resuscitate and breathe life into this work. Le Pré role of Isabelle after only the first performance. aux clercs is the epitome of Restoration Parisian The role was filled by the Flemish singer Julie charm and gaiety set against a grand historical Dorus (the future Dorus-Gras), who was backdrop, and is typical of the highflown drama of graciously loaned to the Opéra-Comique by Louis the Romantic era. Véron, director of the Paris Opéra where Dorus was a member of the troupe. Already seriously ill Clair Rowden is Senior and incapable of taking a bow at the premiere, Lecturer and Deputy Head Hérold spent five days rehearsing with the of School in the School of virtuosic Dorus, but she remained ill at ease in the Music, Cardiff University. spoken dialogue and acting style of the OpéraShe has published widely on Comique. From 1832 onwards, Le Pré aux clercs Massenet’s operas, as well as never left the Opéra-Comique stage. It was on the press reception and iconography of opera performed to inaugurate the second Salle Favart in and dance in France during the long nineteenth 1840, attaining its one thousandth performance in century. She is the editor of an interdisciplinary 1871. A revival was staged in 1891 to mark the collection of essays entitled Performing Salome, centenary of Hérold’s birth, and by 1949, 1,608 Revealing Stories (Ashgate, 2013) and is currently performances of the work had been given at the preparing a book on opera and parody. Opéra-Comique. Indeed, it was a staple of Parisian operatic life for more than one hundred years, and it falls to the inspired programming of today’s
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From the fairground to the heights of French art: opéra comique and Le Pré aux clercs
PHOTO BY AMELIA STEIN
Charles X standing in for Charles IX), it is merely used as a starting point for the opera, despite retaining the novel’s historical framework and certain characters such as the queen, Marguerite de Valois, to stimulate the imagination of the librettist and composer. In traditional fashion, de Planard places two couples of lovers at the centre and surrounds them with a spurned fiancé, an eccentric Italian (a Scapin/Scappino figure common to French comedies and to Italian commedia dell’arte), and a queen pulling everyone’s strings.
Defending the integrity of romantic opéra comique – Interview with Director Éric Ruf
Set designs by Éric Ruf for Wexford Festival Opera’s 2015 production of Le Pré aux clercs.
Do opéra comique and romantic drama display similar characteristics? There is an obvious parallel with the dramatic repertoire. Le Pré aux clercs is contemporaneous with the composition of Lucrèce Borgia, only two months apart: December 1832 for the opéra comique and February 1833 for the drama. Each reveals the writer’s desire to abandon impressive historical figures and to portray instead crude humanity and life’s vagaries and vicissitudes. It’s a form of theatre that should be taken seriously; that truly asserts its desire for beauty. One should be true to it: adopt the suspense, the ambush, the misunderstandings. Always subservient to the stage, Hérold’s score reveals the fantastic nature of this opéra comique, which was a popular complete spectacle, with its mixture of genres, tones and Shakespearean ambition. I want to exploit everything in the text: the great story, the chorus, the palace, the secondary roles, the sword fight … Which period does the staging represent, the action of the opera or the music? Modernising the space didn’t interest me. We preserved its historical reality and natural beauty so as not to blur the duplicity and the very ‘comic opera’ nature of certain situations and characters. Renaissance costumes are true to the characters and define them well.
What about your design? I looked for something neutral, which would place the focus on the characters. Hence the desire for a set design of trees, prompted by the places where the action takes place: the first act in the forest of Étampes, the last on the Pré aux clercs, the treelined Parisian promenade. How did you approach the spoken-sung convention of opéra comique? I really love this convention, and I accept it in the same way I accept in tragedy either the use of alexandrines or Shakespearean iambic pentameter. In addition to the quality of the music, its use within the opera is always relevant to the drama. It is necessary to help others to understand why we alternate between spoken and sung speech. Song at one point provides the opportunity for reflection. Elsewhere, when violence and the need for reaction are imminent, music serves as an outlet. Understanding each of these transitions allows us to appreciate the complementary nature of these two modes of expression in opéra comique. Interview by Agnès Terrier Translated by Tim Hicks
Defending the integrity of romantic opéra comique – Interview with Director Éric Ruf
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PHOTO © PAULA MALONE CARTY
ShortWork – Portraits de Manon Jules Massenet (1842–1912)
Portraits de Manon 22, 28 October, 3.30 p.m. 25 October, 11 a.m. WHITES HOTEL Sung in French Libretto by Georges Boyer Le Portrait de Manon was first performed on 8 May 1894 at the Opéra-Comique, Paris This production is made possible by the generous support of The Lord Magan of Castletown
Manon Lescaut, a young woman with an ardent and loving nature, as well as extravagant and luxurious tastes, who came to the moralist’s ‘bad end’, was the heroine of a short novel by l’Abbé Prévost, the seventh and final volume of Memoirs and Adventures of a Man of Quality, which was banned in France when it was published in 1731. Nevertheless, the story became extremely popular and was the subject of operas by Massenet, Puccini, Auber and Hans Werner Henze, and of several films. The character of Manon was also mentioned in literary works by Dumas, Oscar Wilde, Stendahl, Foucault, James Joyce, Dorothy L. Sayers and many others, attesting to her hold on the public imagination.
in love with Aurore but she is neither wealthy nor of noble birth and Des Grieux forbids their marriage. Possibly he does not want Jean to be hurt in love as he was hurt by Manon. However, it turns out that Aurore is the niece of Des Grieux’s beloved Manon and so all ends happily. After the tragedy of Manon, Le Portrait de Manon is a charming and exhilarating sequel.
Massenet wrote Le Portrait de Manon in 1894 as a oneact opéra comique sequel or epilogue ten years after his superlatively successful 1884 opera Manon, which established him as the leading French opera composer of his generation.
Le Portrait de Manon
This ShortWorks production, Portraits de Manon, begins with Act Two Scene 3 of Manon, a pivotal scene in which the two lovers are forced to face the fragility of their situation. This scene is followed by Massenet’s own oneact opera sequel, Le Portrait de Manon. In Le Portrait de Manon, to a libretto by Georges Boyer, Massenet returned to the character of the Chevalier des Grieux, who is now an old man obsessed with memories of Manon, his lost love. Des Grieux’s nephew Jean is
Scene from Manon Chevalier des Grieux Stephen Anthony Brown Manon
Eunhee Kim
Ian Beadle Stephen Anthony Brown
Jean de Moncerf Aurore
Frances White
Properties Design Coordinator Patricia Bonham Corcoran
Additional information on our ShortWork operas, including artists’ biographies and director’s notes, can be found in our ShortWorks Daytime Programme Book, available for purchase at each ShortWork venue and our Box Office. ShortWork – Portraits de Manon
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ShortWork – Hansel and Gretel Engelbert Humperdinck (1854–1921)
Hansel and Gretel 23, 26, 29, 31 October, 3.30 p.m. WHITES HOTEL Sung in English Libretto by Adelheid Wette, based on the Grimm brothers' fairy tale Hansel and Gretel First performed on 23 December 1893 at the Hoftheater, Weimar This production is made possible by the generous support of The Lord Magan of Castletown
Humperdinck, whose music shows the influence of Wagner, for whom he worked from 1880 until shortly before Wagner’s death in 1884, wrote much vocal music, but his best-known and most popular work is Hänsel und Gretel, which grew out of four songs he composed in 1890 to words by his sister Adelheid Wette, who re-told (and modified) one of the tales collected and published in 1812 by the Grimm brothers. This was the story of a young brother and sister in the forest and their escape from the witch who intended to eat them. The story probably originated in the Great Famine (1315–1317) in Northern Europe, when desperation, caused by starvation and disease, led to child abandonment and cannibalism. Humperdinck developed Adelheid’s songs into a Singspiel, sixteen songs with piano accompaniment, and gave it to Hedwig Taxer at Christmas 1890 as an engagement present. He followed it up a year later with a draft of the full three-act opera as a Christmas present for her and completed the opera in September 1893, family and working life having restricted his time for composition. His friend Richard Strauss directed the first performance in Weimar on 23 December 1893. It was an immediate and outstanding success and spread throughout Europe: Mahler gave the first performance in Hamburg in September 1894 and Weingartner conducted it in Berlin in October in the presence of the Kaiser; Cosima Wagner directed it in Dessau in November and Vienna in December, attended by
Humperdinck, Brahms and Wolf. Performances in London and New York soon followed, in English as well as German versions, and in 1923 a performance at Covent Garden was the first complete opera to be broadcast from an opera house in Europe.
Hansel and Gretel Father Mother
Sheldon Baxter Kate Allen
Frances White
Properties Design Coordinator Patricia Bonham Corcoran
Additional information on our ShortWork operas, including artists’ biographies and director’s notes, can be found in our ShortWorks Daytime Programme Book, available for purchase at each ShortWork venue and our Box Office.
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ShortWork – Hansel and Gretel
ShortWork – Tosca Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924)
Tosca 24, 27, 30 October, 3.30 p.m. 1 November, 11 a.m. WHITES HOTEL Sung in Italian Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa First performed on 14 January 1900 at the Teatro Costanzi, Rome This production is made possible by the generous support of The Lord Magan of Castletown
Puccini’s fifth opera, Tosca, was an immediate success with the public at its premiere in 1900 and has remained one of the most enduringly popular of all operas. Written four years after La Bohème and four years before Madama Butterfly, its tremendous vitality is a tribute to Puccini’s technical skill. He succeeded so well that the tragedy of the singer Floria Tosca, her republican lover, the painter Mario Cavaradossi, and the scheming, sadistic chief of the Rome police, Baron Scarpia, has remained vividly present in the collective imagination ever since. Victorien Sardou’s 1887 melodrama La Tosca, written for Sarah Bernhardt, was immensely popular and Puccini made great efforts to obtain the rights to make it into an opera libretto. His librettists, Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, eventually succeeded in creating a libretto that satisfied Puccini.
attention of Scarpia, who lusts after Tosca and will do anything to make her his own, including destroying Cavaradossi. Puccini’s intention was to represent reality by putting music at the service of the drama. He did this so well, with such expressive economy and tension, that the dramatic finale is inevitable.
Three opening chords, which represent the vindictive character of Scarpia, are heard at the beginning, so the opening scenes in the church are underpinned by an atmosphere of political instability. Menace and fear are frighteningly normal and reflect the historical reality of the political background of Rome in June, 1800, when the Kingdom of Naples’ control of Rome was threatened by Napoleon’s invasion of Italy. This instability is increased by the contrasting lyrical beauty of the arias and duets of Tosca and Cavaradossi. But their happiness is doomed. Cavaradossi helps Angelotti, an escaped political prisoner, to hide, which brings him to the
Sciarrone
Recitals, Lectures 46 PHOTO BY Concerts, SEAN O’ RIORDAN
PHOTO: SEAN O’ RIORDAN
Lunchtime Recitals
Thursday 22 October Friday 23 Saturday 24 Tuesday 27 Wednesday 28 Thursday 29 Friday 30 Saturday 31
Jeff Gwaltney Annunziata Vestri Marie-Ève Munger Aubrey Allicock Magali Simard-Galdès/Dominique Côté Nozuko Teto Mariangela Sicilia Nico Darmanin
ST IBERIUS CHURCH 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 October 1.05 p.m. Tickets ¤15
The Lunchtime Recitals (approximately fifty minutes’ duration) are part of a long-established Wexford tradition. They offer a unique opportunity to hear some of the Festival’s principal artists perform in solo recitals in the beautiful and acoustically excellent eighteenth-century church of St Iberius in the centre of Wexford. Performers subject to change – please see notices at the Opera House Box Office and St Iberius Church during the Festival for the latest schedule and at Wexfordopera.com.
Lunchtime Recitals
Dr Tom Walsh Lecture
JEROME HYNES THEATRE THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE Saturday 24 October 11 a.m. Tickets ¤10
OPERA: thriving hybrid of artistic collaboration, or constant battle of aspiration over experience? The 2015 Dr Tom Walsh Lecture will be given by Stephen Barlow, conductor of Koanga and Artistic Director of Buxton Festival. Opera is the fusion or, more loosely, the collision of music, lights, scenery and narrative drama and surely doesn’t deserve to be taken seriously as artistic activity by anyone interested in music or theatre. ‘Music expresses nothing’, wrote Stravinsky, pure in itself but bereft of meaning. So why and how did composers wrangle their art into operatic shape? Does music become the servant of the word? Can conductor and director be interested in the same thing? Stephen Barlow’s conducting career developed in the UK, where his long association with Glyndebourne began in 1977, and he made his international debut as an opera conductor in 1989 with Vancouver Opera. He is also a pianist and composer. He has recorded the complete songs of Delius with baritone Mark Stone, and his compositions include a Clarinet Concerto for Emma Johnson, Rainbow Bear for orchestra and narrator, which he recorded with his wife Joanna Lumley, and an opera, King, about Thomas Becket and King Henry II. Tea and coffee will be served from 10 a.m. before the Lecture. The Dr Tom Walsh Lectures were instituted to celebrate the memory of the Wexford GP, Dr Tom Walsh (1911-1988), who founded the Wexford Festival of Music and the Arts in 1951 and was its first Artistic Director (1951–1966). Kindly supported by Victoria Walsh-Hamer
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PHOTO: GER LAWLOR
Gala Concert
The Gala Concert is one of the highlights of the Wexford Festival Opera calendar. Featuring party pieces from members of the Festival Company, it is a very special opportunity to see and hear the stars of the opera stage display some of their many – sometimes surprising – talents. The annual Gala Concert is in the grand tradition of Wexford Festival Opera. Singers donate their services for the occasion and all proceeds go towards supporting the programmes of the Festival.
O’REILLY THEATRE THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE Sunday 25 October 9 p.m. Tickets from ¤50 Hosted by Name To Come
Presented with the support of
Gala Concert
PHOTO: KRISTIN SPEED
Tara Erraught in Recital
O’REILLY THEATRE THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE Monday 26 October 11 a.m. Tickets ¤25
Tara Erraught (mezzo-soprano) and Henning Ruhe (piano) Tara Erraught, who was born in Dundalk, garners critical praise and enthusiastic audience acclaim wherever her increasingly busy international opera career takes her. A graduate of the Royal Irish Academy of Music, she studies with Veronica Dunne and with Brigitte Fassbaender in Munich, where she makes her home. She has been a member of the opera studio at the Bavarian State Opera since 2008. Henning Ruhe, a native of Hamburg, received his advanced piano performance training under Arne Torger at the Franz Liszt University of Music in Weimar. The winner of several national and international competitions, he has performed internationally in piano recitals, chamber music concerts and song recitals. In 2008 Ruhe was appointed Director of the Opernstudio, the young artist programme of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. Programme to include songs by Liszt, Richard Strauss, Delius and Quilter, plus operatic arias. Detailed information is available in the programme book for the recital. Generously sponsored by Beverly Sperry in memory of her husband Martin Meehan
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Tara Erraught in Recital
Jack Sullivan – Hitchcock’s Music
‘It may seem far-fetched to compare a dramatic talkie with opera, but there is something in common’, Hitchcock wrote in the 1930s. ‘It is through music’, he said, that we ‘express the unspoken’.
JEROME HYNES THEATRE THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE
In his highly acclaimed book, Hitchcock’s Music, hailed as a milestone in Hitchcock criticism, Jack Sullivan explored the essential role and power of music in Hitchcock’s films. Hitchcock used music to convey suspense, but he also knew that music can hint at more than it says and can suggest a state of mind at odds with a character’s appearance. He changed the way we think about film music.
Friday 30 October 11 a.m. Tickets ¤10
In Saboteur the blind pianist expresses a philosophy of music that comes close to Hitchcock’s. Welcoming Barry, the wrongman hero, into his house, the pianist plays Delius’s Summer Night on the River. Against languid arpeggios he talks about the ability of musical sound to create connectedness in a disconnected world, and like the blind Delius he sees with a vision deeper than sight. Music enables him to ‘see intangible things’ and to understand that Barry is innocent of the charges against him. Jack Sullivan is Professor of English and Director of American Studies at Rider University and Westminster Choir College. His books include Elegant Nightmares: the English Ghost Story from LeFanu to Blackwood; New World Symphonies: How American Culture Changed European Music, and Hitchcock’s Music. He has written for Opera, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and Carnegie Hall’s Stagebill. He is currently writing a book on New Orleans jazz. Jack Sullivan – Hitchcock’s Music
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PHOTO: FOPPE SCHUT
Nathalia Milstein – Piano Recital
Born in 1995 to a musical family, Nathalia Milstein began playing the piano at the age of four with her father, Sergei Milstein. She entered the Geneva Conservatory of Music in 2009, obtaining her diploma with honours in 2012, and is currently studying for her Master’s degree at the Geneva High School of Music with Nelson Goerner.
O’REILLY THEATRE THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE
In May 2015 Nathalia Milstein launched her international career by winning First Prize at the Dublin International Piano Competition. One of the Competition’s youngest winners and the first female winner, her prize includes prestigious recital and concerto engagements in Ireland, Europe and North America.
Tickets ¤25
Programme to include works by Mozart, Brahms, Bartók and Ravel. Detailed information is available in the programme book for the recital.
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Saturday 31 October 11 a.m.
Artist Biographies
Koanga
previously at wfo:
Madeleine Audebert (Silent Night, Puts, 2014); Angelina [Cenerentola] (La Cenerentola, Rossini, 2014). previous engagements: Suzuki (Madama Butterfly, Puccini, Castleton Festival); Concepcion (L’Heure Espagnole, Ravel, Castleton Festival); Maddalena (Rigoletto, Verdi, Opera Theatre Company). forthcoming engagements: Recital (National Concert
Hall, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra).
previously at wfo: Oompa Loompa (The Golden Ticket, Ash & Sturrock, 2010). previous engagements: Argante (Rinaldo, Handel, Glyndebourne); Mamoud (The Death of Klinghoffer, Adams, The Metropolitan Opera); Angelotti (Tosca, Puccini, Seattle Opera). forthcoming engagements: Soloist (Requiem, Mozart,
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra); Escamillo (Carmen, Bizet, Komische Oper Berlin); Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro, Mozart, Seattle Opera).
Awarded Wexford Festival Opera Emerging Artist, 2014.
Raffaele D’Ascanio
Guglielmo Ratcliff
Le Pré aux clercs Tosca
previously at wfo: Marco (Virginia, Mercadante, 2010); Colline (La Bohème, Puccini, 2010). previous engagements: Sir Giorgio (I Puritani, Bellini, Opera di Firenze, Florence); Basso (Mysterium, Rota, Pomeriggi Musicali, Milan); Caronte & Plutone (L’Orfeo, Monteverdi, Monteverdi Choir & Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, New York).
previous engagements: Armando (L’Assedio di Calais, Donizetti, English Touring Opera); Moralès (Carmen, Bizet, Mid Wales Opera); Father (Hansel and Gretel, Humperdinck, Garsington Opera at West Green House). forthcoming engagements: (Dust Child, James
Garner, English Touring Opera).
forthcoming engagements: Sarastro (Die Zauberflöte,
Mozart, Opéra Royal de Wallonie, Liège); Timur (Turandot, Puccini, Opéra de Montpellier); Jacopo Loredano (I due Foscari, Verdi, Hilversum).
Boyzie Cekwana*
Le Pré aux clercs
Koanga Hansel and Gretel
previous engagements: Lt Robert (The Daughter of the Regiment, Donizetti, Societé d’Art Lyrique du Royaume); Dr Falke (Die Fledermaus, J Strauss II, Grand Théâtre, Geneva); Frederic (Lakmé, Delibes, Opéra de Montréal). forthcoming engagements: Pausanius (Une Éducation
manquée, Chabrier, Opera Lafayette).
previously at wfo: Bridesmaid 1 (Trial
by Jury, Sullivan, 2014); Annina (La Traviata, Verdi, 2014). previous engagements: Valencienne (The Merry Widow, Lehár, Lyric Opera Productions); Lunchtime Concert (RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, NCH, Dublin); Frasquita (Carmen, Bizet, RTÉ Concert Orchestra, NCH, Dublin). forthcoming engagements: Susanna (Susanna’s
Secret, Wolf-Ferrari, Opera Theatre Company); Recital (Con Brio Sligo Music Series); Recital (Music for Galway Lunchtime Series).
Nico Darmanin*
Koanga
Koanga
previous engagements: Jake (Porgy and Bess, Gershwin, Lyric Opera of Chicago); Papageno (The Magic Flute, Mozart, Washington National Opera); Riolobo (Florencia en el Amazonas, Daniel Catán, Washington National Opera). forthcoming engagements: Mandarin (Turandot,
Puccini, Cincinnati Opera); Escamillo (Carmen, Bizet, Lubbock Symphony); Marchese d’Obigny (La Traviata), Verdi, Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra).
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previous engagements: Assistant Director (Les Mousquetaires aux Couvents raconté aux enfants, Opéra-Comique); Asst Director/ Revival Director (La Clemenza di Tito, Mozart, Paris & Saint-Étienne); Asst Director (Lucrèce Borgia, Hugo, La Compagnie Jean-Louis Benoît).
Artist Biographies
previous engagements: First Niece [cover] (Peter Grimes, Britten, Grange Park Opera); Chorus (Fortunio, Dialogues des Carmélites, Queen of Spades, La Bohème, Samson et Dalila, Grange Park Opera); Soprano Soloist (Messiah, Handel, Salford Choral Society).
Michael Gieleta
Head of Music Staff, Répétiteur, Music Director, Canada
Koanga Guglielmo Ratcliff Le Pré aux clercs previously at wfo: Chorus Master/
Conductor, 2014 and 2013. previous engagements:
Conductor (R. Strauss, Menuhin Festival, Gstaad); Singer (Roger Marsh, Hilliard Ensemble); Composer/Conductor (In Paradisum, Errol Girdlestone, Ristretto Summer Academy, France). forthcoming engagements:
Conductor (Handel, Monaco); (Bach, Châteauneuf de Grasse); (Schnittke, Ristretto Summer Academy).
Koanga previously at wfo: (Silent Night, Puts; Il Tabarro, Puccini, 2014); (A Village Romeo and Juliet, Delius; The Magic Flute, Mozart, 2013). previous engagements: (Emmeline, Picker, O. T. St Louis); (Postcard from Morocco, Argento, Univ. Toronto); (The Vinedressers, Stokes, Highlands Opera Studio). forthcoming engagements:
(The Medium/ The Telephone, Menotti, Univ. Toronto); (Paul Bunyan, Britten, Univ. Toronto); (Shalimar the Clown, Perla, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis).
Jeff Gwaltney*
Répétiteur, Music Director, Great Britain
Koanga previous engagements: Erik (Der
Fliegende Holländer, Wagner, Scottish Opera); Dick Johnson (La Fanciulla del West, Puccini, Opera Holland Park); Lieutenant Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly, Puccini, Raymond Gubbay Organisation/ Royal Albert Hall). forthcoming engagements: Canio (I Pagliacci,
Leoncavallo, Opera Carolina); Don José (Carmen, Bizet, Edmonton Opera).
Koanga Hansel and Gretel previously at wfo:
(Salomé, Mariotte; Trial by Jury, Sullivan, 2014); (Thérèse/La Navarraise, Massenet; The Sleeping Queen, Balfe, 2013). previous engagements: (Albert Herring, Britten,
RCM); (Un Ballo in maschera, Verdi, Dorset Opera); (L’Assedio di Calais, Donizetti, English Touring Opera). forthcoming engagements:
(Opera scenes, Söngskolinn in Reykavik); (Hänsel und Gretel, Humperdinck, RCM).
*Wexford Festival Opera debut
Guglielmo Ratcliff Tosca
Le Pré aux clercs Tosca
previously at wfo: Manz (A Village Romeo and Juliet, Delius, 2012); Metifio (L’Arlesiana, Cilèa, 2012); Father Palmer (Silent Night, Puts, 2014); Michele (Il Tabarro, Puccini, 2014). previous engagements: Ford (Falstaff, Verdi, English
National Opera); Ping (Turandot, Puccini, Royal Opera House); Rigoletto (Rigoletto, Verdi, Luxembourg Festival).
previously at wfo: French Soldier 1 (Silent Night, Puts, 2014); Gentleman of the Jury (Trial by Jury, Sullivan, 2014). previous engagements: Ceprano (Rigoletto, Verdi, Opera Theatre Company); Peintre (Louise, Charpentier, Buxton Festival Opera).
forthcoming engagements: Soloist (The Dream
of Gerontius, Elgar, Winchester and Gloucester Cathedrals); Lieder Recital (Wrocław, Poland).
Eric Huchet*
Assistant Director, Director, United Kingdom
Koanga Hansel and Gretel previous engagements:
Martha Sowerby (The Secret Garden, Stephen McNeff, Banff Arts Centre, Canada); Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte (Workshops), Mozart, British Youth Opera); Marina (The Last King of Scotland, Stephen McNeff, The Linbury Studio, Royal Opera House).
Le Pré aux clercs Portraits de Manon previous engagements: Director (Faust, Gounod, Opera North & Birgitta Festival, Tallinn); Associate Director (The Passenger, Weinberg, Chicago Lyric Opera); Director/ Asst Dir. (Die Zauberflöte, Mozart, Bregenz Festival). forthcoming engagements: Revival Dir. (The
Passenger, Weinberg, Michigan Opera & Florida Grand Opera); Assoc. Dir. (Madame Butterfly, Puccini, Göteborg Opera); Assoc. Dir. (The Ring Cycle, Wagner, Lyric Opera of Chicago).
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Le Pré aux clercs
Le Pré aux clercs
previous engagements: Wagner (Faust, Gounod, Dutch National Opera); Herald/Apollo (Alceste, Gluck, Opéra National de Paris); Leporello (Don Giovanni, Mozart, Opéra de Tours). forthcoming engagements: Orest’s Tutor (Elektra, R.
Strauss, Opéra de Montréal); Ubalde (Armide, Lully, Potsdam Festival, Germany); Père St-Michel (Les Feluettes, Kevin March, Pacific Opera Victoria).
previous engagements:
Choreographer (Les Mousquetaires au Couvent, Louis Varney, Opéra-Comique); Choreographer (Peer Gynt, Ibsen, ComédieFrançaise); Choreographer (La Double Inconstance, Marivaux, Comédie-Française). forthcoming engagements: Choreographer (Roméo
et Juliette, Shakespeare, Comédie-Française); Choreographer (Gospel sur la Colline, Benjamin Falieras, Folies Bergère); Choreographer (Les Mousquetaires aux Couvent, Louis Varney, Opéra de Toulon).
Marie Lenormand*
Le Pré aux clercs
Koanga
previous engagements: Mignon (Mignon, Thomas, Opéra Comique, Paris); La Périchole (La Périchole, Offenbach, New York City Opera); The Fox (The Cunning Little Vixen, Janácek, � New York Philharmonic). forthcoming engagements: Hansel (Hansel and
Gretel, Humperdinck, Angers Nantes Opera, France); (Pierrot Lunaire, Schoenberg, Tour with Musica Nigella Ensemble, France); Phèdre (La belle-mère amoureuse, parody of Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie, Auditorium Opéra Bastille).
*Wexford Festival Opera debut
previously at wfo: Set Designer (Maria, Statkowski, 2011); Set Designer (Hubicka, � Smetana, 2010). previous engagements: Set Designer (The Kiss, Smetana, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis); Set Designer (Maria, Statkowski, Opera Bałtyca); Set Designer (The Impresario, Mozart & Le Rossignol, Stravinsky, Santa Fe Opera).
Artist Biographies
Koanga
previously at wfo: Rosa (Don Bucefalo, Cagnoni, 2014). previous engagements: Fire/
Nightingale/Princess (L’Enfant et les sortilèges, Ravel, Chicago Symphony Orchestra); Vierte Magd (Elektra, R. Strauss, Teatro alla Scala/Aixen-Provence); Lakmé (Lakmé, Delibes, Opéra-Théâtre de Saint Étienne). forthcoming engagements: Juliette (Roméo et
Juliette, Gounod, Virginia Opera/Opera Carolina/ Toledo Opera); Naga (Madame White Snake, Zhou Long, Beth Morrison Projects).
previous engagements: Third Lady (The Magic Flute, Mozart, NI Opera); Jenny’s Girl (The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, Weill, Opera Theatre Company/Rough Magic); Nancy (Albert Herring, Britten, Royal Irish Academy of Music). forthcoming engagements: Nicklausse (Les Contes
d’Hoffmann, Offenbach, Hans Eisler Hochschule für Musik).
Rory Musgrave
Koanga
Le Pré aux clercs
previously at wfo: Baldassarre (L’Arlesiana, Cilèa, 2012). previous engagements: Mr Redburn (Billy Budd, Britten, Teatro Carlo Felice, Genoa); Kurwenal (Tristan und Isolde, Wagner, Greek National Opera, Athens); Hubbard (Doctor Atomic, Adams, Teatro de la Maestranza, Seville). forthcoming engagements: Concierto (Excerpts
from Die Meistersinger, Wagner; Falstaff, Verdi; Così fan tutte, Mozart, Teatro Arriaga, Bilbao); Recital (Winterreise, Schubert, Madrid).
*Wexford Festival Opera debut
previous engagements: Director & Set Designer (Peer Gynt, Ibsen, Comédie-Française); Set Designer (La Source, Ballet de Jean-Guillaume Bart, Opéra de Paris); Set Designer (Fortunio, Messager, Opéra-Comique). forthcoming engagements:
Director & Set Designer (Roméo et Juliette, Shakespeare, Comédie-Française); Set Designer (Mitridate, Mozart, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées); Director & Set Designer (Pelléas et Mélisande, Debussy, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées).
Artist Biographies
Guglielmo Ratcliff
Guglielmo Ratcliff
previously at wfo: Set Designer (Salomé, Mariotte, 2014); Set Designer (Gianni di Parigi, Donizetti, 2011). previous engagements: Set Designer (La Gioconda, Ponchielli, Theater St Gallen); Set Designer (Il Campiello, Wolf-Ferrari, Opera di Firenze); Set Designer (Nabucco, Verdi, Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino). forthcoming engagements:
Set Designer (Madama Butterfly, Puccini, Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino ); Set Designer (Salome, R. Strauss, Teatro Carlo Felice Genova); Set Designer (L’Elisir d’amore, Donizetti, Teatro Comunale di Bologna).
previous engagements: Répétiteur (Capuleti e Montecchi, Bellini, Opernhaus Zurich); Répétiteur (Don Carlo, Verdi, Bolshoi Theatre); Répétiteur (Medea in Corinto, Simone Mayr, Festival della Valle d’Itria). forthcoming engagements:
Répétiteur (Il Viaggio a Reims, Rossini, Opernhaus Zurich); Guest Professor (Vocal Coach for Italian repertoire, Royal College of Music, London).
Marie-Ève Scarfone*
Soprano, Italy
Le Pré aux clercs Portraits de Manon previous engagements: Musical
Director (L’Enfant et les Sortilèges, Ravel, Opéra de Québec); Official Pianist (Montreal International Music Competition); Répétiteur (Various, Opéra de Montréal). forthcoming engagements: Vocal Coach (McGill
University); Répétiteur (Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal); Répétiteur (Opéra de Montréal).
Guglielmo Ratcliff previously at wfo: Vivetta (L’Arlesiana, Cilèa, 2012). previous engagements: Térésa (Benvenuto Cellini, Berlioz, Dutch National Opera and Ballet, Amsterdam); Jemmy (Guillaume Tell, Rossini, Teatro Communale di Bologna); Isabella (L’Inganno Felice, Rossini, Rossini Opera Festival, Pesaro). forthcoming engagements: Liù (Turandot, Puccini,
Opéra de Montpellier); Giulia (La Scala di Seta, Rossini, Opéra Royal de Wallonie); Micaëla (Carmen, Bizet, Teatro Regio, Turin).
Magali Simard-Galdès*
Le Pré aux Clercs previous engagements: Le Feu/
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previously at wfo: Répétiteur (Don Bucefalo, Cagnoni 2014); Répétiteur (L’Arlesiana, Cilèa, 2012); Répétiteur (Gianni di Parigi, Donizetti, 2011).
Koanga Guglielmo Ratcliff Le Pré aux clercs
Le Rossignol (L’Enfant et les sortilèges, Ravel, Opera on the Avalon); Young Artist (Atelier lyrique de l’Opéra de Montréal); Young Emerging Artist (Chamber Music Festival ‘Concerts aux Îles du Bic’).
previous engagements: Head of Lighting (Opera North); Technical Director/Lighting Designer (The Walt Disney Company, Hong Kong); Freelance Scenographer/Lighting Designer.
forthcoming engagements: Young Artist (Atelier
forthcoming engagements: Technical Director/
lyrique de l’Opéra de Montréal); Soloist (Concert arias, Mozart, Orchestre symphonique de l’Estuaire).
Lighting Designer (The Walt Disney Company, Hong Kong); Designer/Producer (Private opera and social events).
Artist Biographies
Guglielmo Ratcliff
Koanga
previously at wfo: Axel Oxenstjerna (Cristina, regina di Svezia, Foroni, 2013); The Dark Fiddler (A Village Romeo and Juliet, Delius, 2012). previous engagements: Don Pasquale (Don Pasquale, Donizetti, Longborough Festival Opera); Selby de Selby (The Virtues of Things, Matt Rogers, ROH Linbury); Fritz Kothner (Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Wagner, ENO). forthcoming engagements: Figaro (The Marriage of
Figaro, Mozart, WNO); Rodrigo (Don Carlos, Verdi, Grange Park Opera); Gratiano (The Merchant of Venice, André Tchaikowsky, WNO).
previous engagements: Contessa d’Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro, Mozart, Fondazione Arturo Toscanini, Italy); Mimì (La Bohème, Puccini, ‘Toti dal Monte’ 2013, Italy); Suor Angelica (Suor Angelica, Puccini, Cape Town Opera). forthcoming engagements: Corporate performances,
workshops, masterclasses and concerts in South Africa, sharing her experience and empowering the youth; ‘ploughing back’ to her country after three years in Italy and before she returns to Europe.
Jean-Luc Tingaud
Le Pré aux clercs
Guglielmo Ratcliff Tosca
previously at wfo: Conductor (Le Roi malgré lui, Chabrier, 2012); Conductor (Pénélope, Fauré, 2005); Conductor (Manon Lescaut,
Auber, 2002). previous engagements: Conductor (The Pearl Fishers,
Bizet, English National Opera); Conductor (Roméo et Juliette, Gounod, Arena di Verona); Conductor (two CDs for Naxos: Dukas and Bizet, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra). forthcoming engagements: Conductor (CD for Naxos, d’Indy, Royal Scottish National Orchestra); Conductor (UK concerts, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra).
previously at wfo: Luigi (Il Tabarro, Puccini, 2014); Kronprinz (Silent Night, Puts, 2014). previous engagements: Il Duca (Rigoletto, Verdi, Opera Nomade); Gastone (La Traviata, Verdi, Greek National Opera). forthcoming engagements: Ferrando (Così fan tutte,
Mozart, Opera Nomade); Remendado (Carmen, Bizet, Greek National Opera). Awarded Wexford Festival Opera Emerging Artist, 2014.
Annunziata Vestri
Guglielmo Ratcliff
Guglielmo Ratcliff
previously at wfo: Rosa Mamai (L’Arlesiana, Cilèa, 2012). previous engagements: Carmen (Carmen, Bizet, Teatro Carlo Felice, Genoa); Amneris (Aida, Verdi, Opernfestspiele in St Margarethen); Madelon (Andrea Chénier, Giordano, Teatro San Carlo, Naples). forthcoming engagements: Tisbe (La Cenerentola,
Rossini, Teatro dell’Opera, Rome); Meg (Falstaff, Verdi, Teatro San Carlo, Naples); La Badessa (Suor Angelica, Rossini, Teatro San Carlo, Naples).
*Wexford Festival Opera debut
previous engagements: Altidòr (La Donna Serpente, Casella, Festival della Valle d’Itria, Martina Franca); Maurizio, Conte di Sassonia (Adriana Lecouvreur, Cilèa, As.Li.Co Circuit, Italy – Como, Pavia, Cremona); Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly, Puccini, Teatro Regio, Parma). forthcoming engagements: Pinkerton (Madama
Butterfly, Puccini, Teatro Massimo, Palermo).
Artist Biographies
Koanga Portraits de Manon
Koanga Tosca
previously at wfo: Herodias’ Page (Salomé, Mariotte, 2014); Mezzo Ensemble (L’Elisir d’amore, Donizetti, 2013). previous engagements: Marcella (Il Furioso all’isola di San Domingo, Donizetti, English Touring Opera); Poppet (Paul Bunyan, Britten, English Touring Opera); Dido (Dido and Aeneas, Purcell, Westminster Opera). forthcoming engagements: Siebel (Faust, Gounod,
Winterbourne Opera); Annio (La Clemenza di Tito, Mozart, Chilmark Opera).
previously at wfo: Director (Il Tabarro, Puccini, 2014); Assistant Director (Don Bucefalo, Cagnoni, 2014). previous engagements: Staff Director (La Bohème & The Siege of Calais/The Wild Man of the West Indies, Puccini/Donizetti, English Touring Opera); Director (The Hidden Valley, Richard Barnard, Tête à Tête Festival); Assistant Director (La Finta Giardiniera, Mozart, Buxton Festival Opera). forthcoming engagements: Director (Opera Scenes,
Guildhall School of Music and Drama).
Matthew Wright Baritone, United Kingdom
Guglielmo Ratcliff previously at wfo: French Sentry (Silent Night, Puts, 2014); Juryman (Trial by Jury, Sullivan, 2014). previous engagements: Betto (Gianni Schicchi, Puccini, Opera Bohemia); Benoît/ Alcindoro [cover] (La Bohème, Puccini, Glyndebourne Festival Opera); Notary (Don Pasquale, Donizetti, Glyndebourne Touring Opera).
Salomé, Antoine Mariotte, Wexford Festival Opera 2014. photo
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Chorus of Wexford Festival Opera
Wexford Festival Opera Tours
W
exford Festival Opera Tours, in association with the National Opera House, are organised by Nicholas Furlong on behalf of the Wexford Historical Society. Led by expert guides to interesting and intriguing sites, they are open to everyone. There is no charge, but we ask all drivers to help by offering seats to visitors. The tours leave the Talbot Hotel car park at 10.30 a.m. sharp and are scheduled to return to Wexford at 1 p.m. Thursday 22 October The ancient parish of Kilmore and its unique custom of placing funeral crosses at sites of historical significance, Grange churchyard and the early Christian site at Kilcowan. Led by Brian Matthews, President of the Wexford Historical Society. Friday 23 October Great Island and its mediaeval strategic importance, Kilmokea House and the smallest High Cross in Ireland. With author and local historian, Bernard Browne. Saturday 24 October The Society of Friends – the Quakers’ benign presence in South Wexford. Forest, Taghmon, Rathanuisce, Killurin and Bregorteen, of the Holmes and Penn families. With Gregory Walsh, Editor of the Bannow Historical Journal. Monday 26 October Ardcavan’s early promontory site, Wexford’s reclaimed land ten feet below high water level, the mystery of Bergerin Island and the National Bird Sanctuary. With former history teacher, John McCormack. Tuesday 27 October Johnstown Castle, its awardwinning Folk and Agricultural Museum and the castle environs. With Peter Miller, Chairman of the Irish Agricultural Museum. Wednesday 28 October A walking tour along the beach and shoreline in the fishing village of Kilmore Quay, including a 600 million-year-old rocky outcrop unique in Ireland, a raised beach and St Patrick’s Bridge. With naturalist Jim Hurley. Thursday 29 October Monksgrange House on the eastern slope of the Blackstairs Mountains, home of the Richards family since the mideighteenth century and associated with the rebel leader John Kelly of Killanne. Hosted by the
present owners, Jeremy and Rosie Hill, and led by librarian and local historian, Jarlath Glynn, Chairman of Wexford Historical Society. Friday 30 October The amazing story of Rathangan parish church, the Devereux fortress of Ballymagir, the direct lineage of the Devereux family, and the village of Tomhaggard. With Nicholas Furlong. Saturday 31 October The coaching inns and characterful taverns in the historic port of Wexford. With historian and editor of the Wexford Historical Society Journal, Celestine Murphy. A walking tour.
Wexford Historical Society presents the Dr George Hadden Memorial Lecture Social conditions in Wexford before the 1916 Rising presented by Catriona Crowe, RIA. Thursday 29 October at 8 p.m. in St Michael’s Centre, Green Street, Wexford. Catriona Crowe, a member of the Royal Irish Academy, is Head of Special Projects at the National Archives of Ireland, Manager of the Irish Census Online Project and Chairperson of the Irish Theatre Institute.
National Opera House Tours Friday 23, Monday 26, Wednesday 28, Friday 30 October – 9.30 a.m. Tickets ¤5 / ¤4 for groups of 10+ During the 2015 Festival there will be guided tours of the National Opera House on four mornings. Find out more about the award-winning architecture of the National Opera House and sample the exceptional acoustics of its two diverse performance spaces, the O’Reilly Theatre and the Jerome Hynes Theatre. Tours commence at 9.30 a.m. from the Box Office, National Opera House. Booking closes fifteen minutes before the tour start time. No admission without a valid ticket. Children under sixteen years of age must be accompanied by an adult.
To book tours, contact the Box Office on +353 53 912 2144 Wexford Festival Opera Tours
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For the Love of Wexford by Joyce Kennedy
M
usic critics are very privileged people: they are paid to travel the world to hear operas in a variety of theatres in different countries. They meet many of the artists, some of whom become lifelong friends. There are opera houses in most of the major cities in Europe and the USA, but as so-called country-house opera festivals have established themselves at a high standard, opera-lovers can choose to stay in the UK during the summer, going from one festival to another. When I first started going to operas with my music critic husband, Michael Kennedy, the choice was not as wide: London had two major opera companies; Scottish Opera and Welsh National Opera had very limited seasons and Opera North had not yet been formed. The only major opera festival in England was Glyndebourne, but it was expensive and it was not easy to get tickets. However, in October, in the south-east corner of Ireland, there was the Wexford Festival, from which there was always a BBC live broadcast – cut off mid-aria if it overran its allotted time. It was listening to Puccini’s thus-guillotined Edgar, and the publication of Bernard Levin’s Conducted Tours, with its hilarious description of the 1979 Wexford La Vestale, that made Michael and me decide it was time we visited Wexford. I had a ‘professional’ curiosity about this festival for I was an anaesthetist and GP, as was Dr Tom Walsh who had founded the festival in 1951. So in 1980 we crossed the Irish Sea for our introduction to Wexford. The first surprise was the theatre itself. Called, paradoxically, the Theatre Royal, it was in a narrow cobbled street (optimistically named High Street), wedged in the middle of a row of terraced houses, the residents of which rarely bothered to lock their doors, and keys could be seen hanging out of letter boxes on pieces of string. We collected our tickets from the box office, manned by the then festival chairman, Jim Golden, who greeted us warmly and continued to do so until his death in 2013. We went to look at the auditorium, and collapsed hysterically into our seats – it was minute. The theatre seated about four hundred people and the stage was the size of
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For the Love of Wexford
I Gioielli della Madonna, Wolf-Ferrari, Wexford Festival Opera 1981. wexford festival opera archive
/ john ironside
a pocket handkerchief. The opening night opera was Wolf-Ferrari’s I gioielli della Madonna and at one point I counted over one hundred people on that stage! The chorus consisted mainly of local people but the leading roles were sung by rising artists: Marie Slorach, Nuala Willis and Carlo Desideri were in the cast, directed by the young Graham Vick, and the RTÉ Symphony Orchestra was conducted by Colman Pearce. The next night Lesley Garrett sang the title role in Mozart’s Zaide (conductor Nicholas Cleobury) and the third opera was Verdi’s early comedy Un Giorno di Regno, with a star cast headed by Sesto Bruscantini (also the producer), Ugo Benelli and Donald Maxwell, conducted by James Judd. But Wexford is more than three unknown operas. The audience was the most elegant and glamorously dressed that we had ever encountered. There were more boutiques and shoe shops than I’d ever seen in one high street. The shops were decorated with musical themes, the pubs held singing competitions, and trying to buy anything in a store was an experience: first, you were quizzed about your family history; then you had to look at photographs “taken by my mother at rehearsal”; next, you were firmly advised which opera not to see and only after that would you get served. There were two major hotels in Wexford, the Talbot and Whites; visitors were loyal to one or the other and were welcomed back each year as old friends. The taxi driver
Zaide, Mozart, Wexford Festival Opera 1981. wexford festival opera archive
/ john ironside
we used that first year, father of a Talbot Hotel receptionist, still drives us on our annual visit. On one journey, one of our friends asked, “Wasn’t that a red light you just went through?” to which came the reply, “It was only a little bit red, sir”. Until his death in 1988, on Sunday mornings senior critics were invited to take a drink at the home of Dr Tom (he was the only person I ever heard actually use the expression, “at all, at all”). We were looked after by his daughter, Victoria, and have, over the years, watched her daughter grow into a lovely young lady. In those days critics saw the three operas on consecutive opening nights and then rushed back to England ready for the next trip, maybe to Europe or the States. After Michael retired as a full-time critic, we and our friends decided to make a holiday of our visit to Wexford. We moved our base from the Talbot to Kelly’s in Rosslare, a family-run hotel situated on the beach, and we loved it from the start. It has an art collection to be coveted, and a staff who have worked there for years – each year, as we arrive, it’s like coming home. Many traditions have grown up at Wexford Festival. A much-loved, now deceased, press officer, Sue Graham-Dickson, always invited critics to lunch at the Lobster Pot, a pub in nearby Carne run by Anne and Ciaran Hearne, with food to die for. Michael and I inherited this tradition and have hosted a lunch party there every year. Maybe the greatest achievement is the new
Un Giorno di Regno, Verdi, Wexford Festival Opera 1981. wexford festival opera archive
/ john ironside
theatre: a beautiful building, custom-built and opened in 2008, the interior in walnut and pale blue leather, with all-modern facilities for the artists and the audience. It was built on the site of the old Theatre Royal (where else?), still in the narrow cobbled High Street, and it still looks as if it is in the middle of a row of terraced houses. For me, the most valued thing that has come out of our annual visits is the growth of enduring friendships. I was touched when, at my husband’s funeral early this year, I was greeted and hugged by the press officer, and two ex-chairmen of Wexford Festival – they had flown into Manchester that morning and were returning to Ireland that afternoon. This, I found myself thinking, this is why we love the Wexford Festival. Joyce Kennedy (Joyce Bourne) has written and edited a number of books on opera, including Opera: The Great Artists, Composers and their Masterworks; Who Married Figaro? A Book of Opera Characters and A Dictionary of Opera Characters. Her husband was the distinguished author and music critic, Michael Kennedy, CBE (19 February, 1926 - 31 December, 2014). Joyce and Michael worked together when he edited the Oxford Dictionary of Music and when she edited Who’s Who in Opera.
For the Love of Wexford
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From the Doge’s Throne to the Festival Archive by Kevin Lewis
L
ong-time Festival Volunteer Kevin Lewis traces the history of his involvement with the Festival, from childhood fascination with the romantic elegance of the opera-goers, to chorus member, usher and author of two authoritative books on Wexford Festival Opera, Memories of Wexford Festival Opera (1984) and What the Doctor Ordered (2008). He has also been responsible, as Archive Assistant, for organising and maintaining the invaluable records of the Festival.
‘Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m sixty-four?’ So enquires the famous song by the Beatles. Well, 2015 sees Wexford Festival Opera celebrate its own sixty-fourth birthday, and the answer from patrons and benefactors continues to be a resounding ‘Yes’ to both questions. Sixty-four years of operatic history began when a casual remark made by Sir Compton Mackenzie fell on the very receptive ears of the Festival founder, Dr Tom Walsh. On entering the National Opera House in Wexford’s High Street, visitors to the Upper Circle will notice a plaque on the wall at the top of the stairwell commemorating the Wexford Gramophone Society and its connection with the origins of this renowned festival. The Society today continues the tradition of its predecessor, the Wexford Opera Study Circle, which was formed in 1950 by Dr Walsh to foster the enjoyment of opera. In the spring of 1951 the Opera Study Circle was addressed by a friend of Dr Walsh, the English-born Scottish author, lecturer and editor of Gramophone magazine, Sir Compton Mackenzie. He suggested to the group that rather than listen to recordings of opera it should devote its energies to the staging of live opera performances. Dr Tom, excited by the possibility, became preoccupied with the development of the Wexford Festival of Music and the Arts, which was to involve the whole town. As a result, he was unable to give time to the Opera Study Circle and suggested the members should continue with their own Gramophone Society. Thus the Wexford Gramophone Society was born in 1951 and it continues to meet regularly in the
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From the Doge’s Throne to the Festival Archive
The Kiss, Smetana, Wexford Festival Opera 1984. Kevin Lewis, a chorister (centre), with Roger Howell as Tomes ( foreground). wexford festival opera archive / john ironside
Talbot Hotel. My own association with ‘the opera’ began in childhood. I lived in High Street, two doors from the Theatre Royal. As a youngster I pressed my nose to the window during those October nights, mesmerised by the romance and elegance of the opera-goers filing past our house. In 1967 I made my Wexford Festival stage debut as an eleven-year-old page-boy in Rossini’s Otello. My involvement has continued over the intervening forty-eight years in a number of ways, initially as a volunteer backstage worker as ‘assistant’ to the stage manager. Before the advent of a tannoy system my task was to physically run around the various dressing rooms calling, ‘Five minutes to curtain!’ or ‘Beginners on stage please!’ and such like. I also helped out in the wardrobe department under the direction of Wardrobe Mistress, Dorrie Pettit. For a number of years I was a member of the local volunteer chorus and performed in over twenty operas. I continue to serve as a frontof-house usher welcoming our patrons annually to Wexford and showing them to their seats. It was my great pleasure in 2013 to be appointed Archive Assistant at Wexford County Archive, looking after and maintaining the archive of Wexford Festival Opera. This has been the culmination of a long association with the Festival. Never did I imagine back in 1967, when along with my three fellow pageboys I helped push the Doge’s throne onto the stage, that forty-odd years later I would be sifting through the biographies, photos and contracts of these artistes and filing them away for posterity.
photo: sean o’ riordan
Otello, Rossini, Wexford Festival Opera 1967. Baritone Terence Sharpe as the Doge of Venice with Kevin Lewis, pageboy ( front left). photo: denis o’connor collection
Perhaps not many visitors or indeed locals are aware of the existence of this jewel of operatic history housed in the Wexford County Archive at its premises in Ardcavan. This unique collection of files includes a multitude of material ranging from artists’ biographies and contracts, to programme books, music scores, libretti, scrapbooks, opera recordings, publicity posters, press cuttings, minutes of meetings and a superb collection of photographs, together with some very fine private deposits by many Festival admirers. The archive was established in 1991 with the collaboration of Wexford Festival Opera, Wexford County Library and Fás. It was officially opened by President Mary Robinson on 24 October 1991. It can be accessed and viewed with permission from the CEO of Wexford Festival and by appointment with the County Archivist, Gráinne Doran. The archive is a detailed record into the history and development of Wexford Festival Opera from its inception in 1951 to the present time.
I think the following quote by Scottish author Sara Sheridan, a strong supporter of libraries and archives, describes it well: ‘Our archives are treasure-troves – a testament to many lives lived and the complexity of the way we move forward. They contain clues to the real concerns of day-to-day life that brings the past alive.’ I am proud and honoured to have been a part of it all. Wexford-born Kevin Lewis has been a voluntary worker at WFO for over forty years and has published two books related to the Festival. He has been a member of Wexford Gramophone Society for over twenty years and has given many recitals to the group. As a watercolour artist he has exhibited during Wexford Festivals.
From the Doge’s Throne to the Festival Archive
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The Orchestra of Wexford Festival Opera – Reflections on the First Ten Years by Fionnuala Hunt
photo
This Orchestra is such a gift for Irish musicians, having this opportunity to work at a high level with top-class conductors and singers. Over the last decade Wexford has enabled the Orchestra to develop and grow together, pushing the boundaries towards higher standards and helping the Orchestra to flourish. The Festival is more than the three main stage operas; players from the orchestra have performed an important role in orchestral and chamber music concerts, as well as educational outreach projects during the Festival period.
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The National Opera House is a gem, an architectural triumph, with a wonderful acoustic, making the musicians’ lives much easier than it was in the fondly remembered, though cramped, Theatre Royal. Each time we return, there is an appreciation for the building itself, the space we play in; a real sense of place and belonging. There’s no place, no festival, like Wexford. Fionnuala Hunt, one of Ireland’s most distinguished violinists, has a busy career as a performer and teacher and has been Concertmaster of the Orchestra of WFO since its formation in 2006. Her recordings include Bach’s double Violin Concerto with Nigel Kennedy and a CD of her own arrangements and performances of tango music, Tangos and Dances.
The Orchestra of Wexford Festival Opera – Reflections on the First Ten Years
photo: amelia stein
I
f I had to select one outstanding memory from my time as Concertmaster at Wexford, it would be last year’s European premiere of Kevin Puts’ Silent Night. From the first rehearsal I knew there was something very special about this opera and I was not disappointed; every performance was an absolute joy to perform.
© ger lawlor
THE DELIUS TRUST We are very pleased to support this new production of Koanga which follows Wexford’s award-winning 2012 staging of A Village Romeo and Juliet. The Delius Trust’s substantial sponsorship this year is made in memory of Robert Threlfall (1918-2014).
Recent sponsorship by the Trust has included performances of major works by Delius in Germany, France, Italy, USA, Russia and Japan as well as throughout the British Isles. The Trust funded the editing and publication of The Collected Edition of the Works of Frederick Delius edited by Sir Thomas Beecham, Dr Eric Fenby, Robert Threlfall and Norman Del Mar For availability see website Other publications include: A Catalogue of the Compositions of Frederick Delius and A Supplementary Catalogue by Robert Threlfall Delius: a Life in Letters by Lionel Carley Volume 1, 1862–1908/Volume 2, 1909–1934
Trustees: David Lloyd-Jones Hon. DMus Martin William FSA Help Musicians UK (Representative: John Axon) Secretary: Helen Faulkner 7-11 Britannia Street, London WC1X 9JS Telephone: 020 7239 9143 Email: [email protected] Website: www.delius.org.uk Registered Charity: 207324
Newgrange, Co. Meath
Let YOUR JOURNEY begin in Ireland’s Ancient East Come and explore the dramatic history of Ireland’s Ancient East as you uncover 5,000 years of history. And the magic is, it’s right here on your doorstep.
Delivering the Succeed in Ireland initiative
Use your contacts to create
jobs for Wexford
And earn a reward of up to €150,000
Do you know someone working abroad in a company that is considering expansion?
Put them in touch with ConnectIreland. Gerry Grady (inset) introduced an American business acquaintance to ConnectIreland. Now UCT are creating 17 jobs in Ardcavan Business Park. It was only by chance that Gerry learnt of their plans to expand.
“I heard UCT might be planning something for Europe and I knew some people in the US organisation so I rang them up.”
Gerry (second left) is congratulated by Minister of State, Paul Kehoe, TD (centre); Joanna Murphy, ConnectIreland; and Tony Larkin, Wexford County Council for helping to create jobs in Wexford
“United Chemical Technologies is looking forward to expanding our European business segment. Wexford is the perfect location for this development due to its innovative workforce and committed business environment.” UCT president Bethany Magrann
Log on to www.connectwexford.com to become a connector The Community Action Plan, delivered in association with Wexford County Council, is supported by the Government through the Local Diaspora Engagement Fund
Elavon are proud to sponsor the Wexford Festival Opera.
Elavon is a card payments specialist owned by U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest bank in the United States. We provide card payment services to more than a million customers globally and more than 32,000 in Ireland for almost 15 years. We are delighted to continue our support of this wonderful event and wish everyone an enjoyable time. For more information visit www.elavon.ie. Elavon Financial Services Limited | Registered in Ireland – Number 418442. Registered Office: Block E, 1st Floor, Cherrywood Business Park, Loughlinstown, Co. Dublin, Ireland. Elavon Financial Services Limited, trading as Elavon Merchant Services, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
www.monart.ie
Supporting Wexford Festival Opera
P
hilanthropy lies at the heart of Wexford Festival Opera. Founded by a group of dedicated volunteers who gave freely of their time and talents, the Festival has grown to be a leader in national and international opera. Today a new generation of philanthropists continues to support the Festival, thus enabling forgotten and undeservedly neglected works to be brought to life. The Festival supports emerging national and international operatic talent and enriches Ireland’s cultural life.
How to Support Us There are many ways in which you can support Wexford Festival Opera: • Become a Friend: — Prelude Friends – ¤80 — Ensemble Friends – ¤185 — Aria Friends – ¤500 — Teatro Friends – ¤1,000 — Bravura Friends – ¤2,000 • Endow a Seat – ¤850 • Become an Orchestra Chair Sponsor – ¤1,500 • Become a Cast Sponsor – ¤5,000 • Become an Artistic Sponsor – from ¤5,000 to ¤10,000 • Become a ShortWork Producer – ¤10,000 • Join us at the American Friends’ New York Dinner Gala: — Seats for $500 — Tables from $10,000 to $35,000 • Join the President’s Circle – gifts of ¤25,000, ¤50,000, ¤100,000 and beyond, which can transform a production, a season and the future of Wexford Festival Opera
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Supporting Wexford Festival Opera
To support Wexford Festival Opera as a Friend or as a Cast or Artistic Sponsor, please contact Anna Bates, Membership Development Executive: [email protected], or visit Wexfordopera.com/friends To learn more about major gifts and to take advantage of the numerous corporate giving opportunities, please contact David McLoughlin, Chief Executive: [email protected] For further information on all the ways you can support your opera festival, please visit Wexfordopera.com/support
Tax relief on international and Irish donations Donors can avail of tax relief on their gifts via our UK Trust and through our charitable arms in the USA and Canada. Wexford Festival Opera can claim a tax refund on gifts made to our Irish Trust, thus increasing the value of your gift.
Support Wexford through Shares Launched in 2014, this initiative enables donors to support the Festival by gifting shares. Our partnership with Davy Stockbrokers enables shares of any value to be donated and converted to support the Festival in accordance with the donor’s wishes. For more information on this tax-efficient way to support Wexford Festival Opera, please contact Chief Executive David McLoughlin (+353 53 916 3521 or email [email protected]), who will discuss with you in confidence all share donation options.
Cast and Artistic Sponsorship
S
ponsoring a singer or member of our artistic team through our Cast and Artistic Sponsorship Programme is a significant way of supporting Wexford Festival Opera. It is an excellent opportunity to become involved in the budding career of a young performer, to meet them and take a personal interest in their careers. This sponsorship provides vital support at a critical juncture of a performer’s career and has led to many lasting friendships between artist and sponsor. It allows Wexford Festival Opera to maintain its artistic integrity by enabling the Artistic Director to engage gifted opera singers, designers, directors and conductors, and it is an opportunity for opera lovers to appreciate the world of opera from a performer’s perspective. If you are interested in sponsoring a Festival artist the Artistic Director will be pleased to discuss with you an artist with whom you can enjoy a rewarding relationship. You will receive accreditation in the Festival Programme, complimentary Festival tickets, an official photograph with the artist and a lunch or dinner engagement. For further information about Cast or Artistic Sponsorship at the 2016 Festival please contact Anna Bates: +353 53 916 3525 or email [email protected].
2015 Cast and Artistic Sponsorship Frank and Ursula Keane (Sponsoring Nozuko Teto) This year Frank and Ursula sponsor South African soprano Nozuko Teto, who will perform the role of Palmyra in Delius’s Koanga. As long-standing supporters of the Festival, Frank and Ursula have attended almost every year since 1972. They sponsored two singers last year and look forward to following their future careers.
Judith Lawless and Kevin Egan (Sponsoring Aubrey Allicock) Judith and Kevin sponsor Aubrey Allicock, US bassbaritone, who will perform the roles of Uncle Joe and Rangwan in Koanga. Judith is a member of the Wexford Festival Opera National Development Council; a keen supporter of the Festival and a Bravura Friend. Judith and Kevin are sponsoring their first singer.
Anonymous Donor (Sponsoring Alexandros Tsilogiannis) Alexandros will perform the role of Lesley in Guglielmo Ratcliff.
Anonymous Donor (Sponsoring Dafydd Hall Williams) Dafydd Hall Williams is the Director of this year’s ShortWorks production of Tosca and Assistant Director of Koanga.
Cast and Artistic Sponsorship
Mark Villamar and Esther Milsted
(Sponsoring Francesco Cilluffo)
(Sponsoring Jeff Gwaltney)
Peter and Nancy sponsor Francesco Cilluffo, Conductor of Guglielmo Ratcliff. Peter and Nancy live in Hong Kong and have been coming to Wexford for the last eighteen years. During the last few years they have supported the Cast Sponsorship Programme at the Festival and have generously supported our Emerging Artists' Fund. Peter and Nancy wish to make their gift to the Festival this year in honour of their great friend, the late Jerome Hynes, Chief Executive of Wexford Festival Opera from 1988 to 2005, on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of his untimely death.
Michael and Giancarla Alen-Buckley (Sponsoring Magali Simard-Galdès) Michael and Giancarla sponsor Canadian soprano Magali Simard-Galdès, who will perform the role of Nicette in Le Pré aux clercs.
Brian and Susan Dickie
Anonymous Donor (Sponsoring Nico Darmanin) Nico Darmanin, tenor, will perform the role of Baron de Mergy in Le Pré aux clercs.
Malcolm Herring (Sponsoring Norman Garrett) Malcolm, a long-time Festival attender, sponsors baritone Norman Garrett in the title role in Koanga.
Vickie Love
(Sponsoring Mariangela Sicilia)
(Sponsoring Annunziata Vestri)
Brian and Susan sponsor Italian soprano Mariangela Sicilia, who will perform the role of Maria in Guglielmo Ratcliff.
Vickie sponsors the Italian mezzo-soprano Annunziata Vestri in her return to Wexford to perform the role of Margherita in Guglielmo Ratcliff.
Mike and Kathy Gallagher (Sponsoring Marie-Ève Munger) Mike and Kathy sponsor Canadian soprano Marie-Ève Munger who will perform the role of Isabelle de Montal in Le Pré aux clercs, following her highly acclaimed performance as Rosa in last year’s production of Don Bucefalo.
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Mark and Esther, who travel from the United States each year to attend the Festival, are sponsoring American tenor Jeff Gwaltney, who will perform the role of Simon Perez in Koanga.
Cast and Artistic Sponsorship
Noreen Doyle (Sponsoring Kate Allen) Noreen sponsors the up-andcoming Irish mezzo-soprano Kate Allen, who returns to Wexford this year to perform the role of Clotilda in Delius’s Koanga. Kate received the Aria Friends’ Bursary in 2014.
PHOTO © CLIVE BARDA/ARENAPAL
Supporting Wexford Festival Opera The President’s Circle & The 1951 Society
The President’s Circle Leadership gifts to The President’s Circle help fund the Festival’s ambitious artistic programme. Gifts may be directed towards specific performances and activities central to our artistic mission, including: • • • • •
Main Stage Opera Productions Festival ShortWorks Productions The Orchestra of Wexford Festival Opera The Chorus of Wexford Festival Opera Festival Education and Community Access Projects • Any other donor-advised performance, project or activity The Lord Magan of Castletown, a long-time supporter of the Festival, is leading the campaign and working in conjunction with Wexford Opera’s development team and the National Development Council. For further information on The President’s Circle, please contact David McLoughlin (+353 53 916 3521, or email [email protected])
The 1951 Society Giving through legacies Supporting Wexford Festival Opera through a legacy gift is an ideal way to support in a transformative way something close to your heart, which your generosity will help to sustain for many years to come. We were honoured to receive a number of legacy gifts in the past year and would like to extend our most sincere thanks to the individuals involved and their families. If you are interested in legacy-giving we will work with you discreetly to ensure your bequest is directed to benefit a project of your choice and that it is recognised in the manner you request. We can also arrange for you to speak to a solicitor who specialises in wills and estates if you require independent advice. To discuss your legacy plan for Wexford Festival Opera, please contact David McLoughlin in confidence at +353 53 912 3521 or email [email protected].
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Central Park, New York City.
Wexford Festival Opera’s Development Structure The American Friends of Wexford Opera: involving key international stakeholders in a proactive fundraising and advisory board in North America. The National Development Council: an Irishbased committee advising, assisting and guiding Wexford Festival Opera in implementing its development strategy and achieving its voluntary income targets. The Wexford Festival UK Trust: leading the development of Wexford’s philanthropic leadership amongst current and potential UK-based donors, corporations, trusts and foundations.
The American Friends of Wexford Opera Following the successful Second Annual Wexford Opera New York Dinner Gala in September 2014, the Third Annual Wexford Opera New York Dinner Gala will take place in early 2016,
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presented by the American Friends of Wexford Opera and its honorary patron Loretta Brennan Glucksman. This initiative has created a new and sustainable source of annual funding for the Festival, which will enable it to continue making its unique contribution to the international opera world and to Ireland’s cultural, economic and community life. The proceeds from the 2014 Gala went directly to support last year’s European premiere of Silent Night. The many performers, creative personnel and technicians from North America and around the world who participated in last year’s season gratefully acknowledged the American Friends’ support for the production of this opera. We are also immensely grateful to all the members of our American Friends’ Committee and to The American Ireland Fund for their steadfast commitment. For further information on the American Friends of Wexford Opera, or to support its next New York Dinner Gala, please contact David McLoughlin, Chief Executive: [email protected].
The National Development Council Formed in 2014, this select group, under the Chairmanship of Terry Neill, acts in an advisory and ambassadorial capacity. It provides advice, contacts, introductions and support through members’ own individual and corporate giving. Such philanthropic leadership in Ireland, in all voluntary income areas, is key in ensuring that Wexford Festival Opera continues to thrive.
Terry Neill (Chairman) Formerly: worldwide Managing Partner with Accenture/ Andersen Consulting, director of Bank of Ireland Group, CRH plc, Governor of the London Business School, chairman of Co-operation Ireland (GB) and Camarata Ireland. Currently: Board member of the Trinity Foundation and UBM plc. Terry and his wife Marjorie are Bravura Friends of Wexford Festival Opera and are also major gift donors, sponsoring one of the Festival’s main stage performances again in 2015.
Michael M Collins SC Formerly: Chairman of the Bar Council of Ireland. Currently: Fellow of the International Society of Barristers; Adjunct Professor of Law at UCD; director of the Dublin Theatre Festival and the Irish Film Institute, Ensemble Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
Jim Donnelly Currently: Chairman of leading advertising agency DDFH&B Group, an owner-managed Irish agency part of WPP, one of the world’s foremost agency networks.
Mary Finan Formerly: Chair of WHPR (and co-founder), the RTÉ Authority, and the ESRI; President of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, board member of the DDDA and Opera Ireland. Currently: board member of the Gate Theatre, Ensemble Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
Eithne Healy Formerly: Chair of Opera Theatre Company, the Dublin Theatre Festival and the Abbey Theatre; Board member of the Arts Council, the National Museum, COTHÚ, Temple Bar Cultural Trust, the Millennium Committee and the Centenary Celebration of James Joyce Committee. Currently: Life Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
John Healy Formerly: CEO and President of The Atlantic Philanthropies. Currently: Adjunct Professor in the Centre for Non-profit Management at Trinity College Dublin, Trustee of the Trinity Foundation, board member of the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, Chair of Alliance Publishing Trust, Aria Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
Trevor Jacobs Formerly: Director of Arks Advertising Agency, lecturer in DIT (MSc in Advertising) and President of Trinity Business Alumni. Currently: Bravura Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
David Lane Formerly: Managing Director (Western Europe) of Genworth Financial, General Manager Ireland of Transamerica Insurance Finance Company. Currently: Managing Director, Ireland of Ecclesiastical Insurance, one of Wexford Festival Opera’s leading corporate sponsors.
Declan Lynch Formerly: senior director with J.M. Huber, GE Capital, IBM and Novell. Currently: Chief Executive of Elavon Financial Services, a leading corporate production sponsor of Wexford Festival Opera.
Dr Oran McGrath Formerly: Chief Executive of Medentech, Chairman of the Fondomonte Group of Companies and Wexford Creamery. Currently: Executive and Founding Chairman of the investment management company, Incapt, Co‑founding Director of Dilosk.
John Reynolds Formerly: Chief Executive of KBC Bank Ireland, President of the Irish Banking Federation. Currently: independent non-executive director, chair of the audit committee of Computershare Investor Services Ireland, non-executive director of Business in the Community, Ensemble Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
Prof Sarah Rogers Formerly: leading consultant dermatologist. Currently: Associate Professor of Medicine in UCD, BA degree student in Latin and Classical Civilisation in Trinity College, Ensemble Friend of Wexford Festival Opera.
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photo
Wexford Festival Foundation As the Wexford Festival Foundation has completed its task of raising the private funding for the redevelopment of the Opera House, the Board and Executive wish to record their deep gratitude to all Foundation members and to the following donors for their commitment, generosity, support and dedication, and in particular to the late Liam Healy for his astute and unswerving leadership: Liam and Eithne Healy Michael & Giancarla Alen-Buckley Lewis & Loretta Brennan Glucksman Sir David Davies The Desmond Family Independent News & Media plc Frank A & Ursula Keane Carmel Naughton Tony & Chryss O’Reilly Peter D Sutherland SC Wexford County & Borough Councils Dame Vivien Duffield DBE The Clore Duffield Foundation Bill Kelly John & Patricia Mellon Danone Nutricia BNY Mellon PwC
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© ger lawlor
Philip & Paula Stafford The American Ireland Fund Dr Michael & Ruth West Wexford Creamery Wexford Festival Trust UK Ltd Tony & Breda Wright Wexford Festival Foundation also acknowledges additional individual and corporate donations vital to its capital fundraising endeavours. For a full list of donors please visit Wexfordopera.com/foundation
New Sponsors We extend a warm welcome to our new corporate sponsors for 2015: Visa, PwC, Gas Networks Ireland, Waterford Airport, Volvo and Eset Reflex. The commitment of these leading corporations to support our work provides an outstanding example of the myriad possibilities which arise through corporate investment in the arts. We would also like to express our sincere thanks to all our funders, sponsors and partners for their continued confidence in, and endorsement of, our Festival. To discuss the many corporate sponsorship and philanthropic opportunities and initiatives offered by Wexford Festival Opera, please contact David McLoughlin, Chief Executive: [email protected].
2014 PwC Emerging Young Artist Award: Rory Musgrave (back) and Rachel Croash ( front), with Jean Delaney (Partner, PwC), and David McLoughlin (CEO, WFO). photo: patrick browne
PwC Emerging Young Artist Award PwC and Wexford Festival Opera have created the Emerging Young Artist Award to provide opportunities for two outstanding young opera singers at Wexford to develop their talent and further their careers with a bursary. The first two recipients of the Award are Dublin soprano Rachel Croash and Connemara baritone Rory Musgrave, who were selected on their past performances at the Festival and their development as artists. They gained Masters degrees in Music Performance from the Royal Irish Academy of Music, where Rachel studied with Mary Brennan and Dearbhla Collins, and Rory with Philip O’Reilly. In 2014 both were members of the WFO Chorus; Rory received the Gerard Arnhold Bursary and Rachel also had roles in the Trial by Jury and La Traviata ShortWorks. This year Rachel appears in Koanga and Hansel and Gretel, and Rory is in Guglielmo Ratcliff.
Aria Friends’ Bursary Throughout the Festival the Aria Friends of Wexford Festival Opera have the opportunity to nominate the artist they wish to see awarded the 2015 Aria Friends of Wexford Festival Opera Bursary. The winner of the Bursary will be announced by the Artistic Director on the closing night of the 2015 Festival.
2014 recipients of the Gerard Arnhold Award, Johane Ansell (left) and Rory Musgrave (right), with Keith Hatchick (centre), Secretary of the Wexford Festival UK Trust. photo: patrick browne
Gerard Arnhold Award (donated by Anthony Arnhold in memory of his father) This award, generously donated by Anthony Arnhold in memory of his father, will be announced by the Artistic Director on the closing night of the 2015 Festival. Gerard Arnhold, a long-time patron and supporter of Wexford Festival Opera, died in 2010 after a long and fulfilling life. Wexford Festival Opera is most grateful to Anthony, his wife Mayca and the Arnhold family for providing this award. The 2014 recipients of the Gerard Arnhold Award were Johane Ansell and Rory Musgrave.
European Friends Since the formation of the European Friends of Wexford Opera in Brussels in 2013, members have enjoyed visits to Paris (2014) and to Berlin in 2015. Soprano Jennifer Davis, accompanied by Jamison Livsey, gave a recital for the European Friends at the Embassy of Ireland in Berlin, kindly hosted by the Ambassador of Ireland to Germany, Michael Collins. The European Friends’ initiative is aimed at increasing our Friends’ membership base and developing our audience and profile in continental Europe. For further information please contact Anna Bates: +353 53 916 3525 or email [email protected].
The 2014 Aria Friends’ Bursary was awarded to Kate Allen.
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photo: ros kavanagh
Education and Community Initiatives We are very grateful to Freddie and Michael Linnett and to The Ireland Funds, through their Promising Ireland Campaign, for their continued very generous support of Wexford Festival Opera’s community partnership and education projects: • Based on the Festival’s commitment to make a distinctive contribution to arts education, Wexford Festival Opera will once again this year make available over 1,200 free tickets for dress rehearsal performances of the Festival ShortWorks to secondary school students in the Wexford region • Principal players of the Orchestra of Wexford Festival Opera will again this year engage in a programme of playing in care homes and giving education workshops in schools in Wexford town and county These initiatives form part of our commitment to making the Festival easily accessible to students and younger people, with a distinct focus on the promotion of cultural awareness and understanding. Bringing the Festival and its work to this group will assist in the development of the next generation of leaders in the Festival community.
Friends’ Membership For more than sixty years Wexford Festival Opera has flourished, and this is due in large measure to the generous support of our Friends. The commitment of our Friends to the development of Wexford Festival Opera’s repertoire is vital to its success. Your energy and enthusiasm inspire us to continue to deliver excellence on the global opera
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stage. By becoming a Friend of Wexford Festival Opera you can play a vital part in the development of opera in Ireland and safeguard the future of Wexford as an international opera festival. Membership opportunities include: • Prelude Friends – ¤80 Under-35s and full-time students • Ensemble Friends – ¤185 Festival supporter • Aria Friends – ¤500 Supporting young singers • Teatro Friends – ¤1,000 Festival supporter and seat endower • Bravura Friends – ¤2,000 Production supporter Visit our website Wexfordopera.com/friends or see our Friends’ Membership Brochure for more information about the different benefits on offer. To become a Friend, or to renew your Friends’ subscription, please do so online or contact Anna Bates, Membership Development Executive: +353 53 916 3525 or email [email protected].
Seat Endowments Endow a seat in the O’Reilly Theatre, the main auditorium of the National Opera House, with a plaque in your own name or that of a loved one. Typically, seats are endowed in memory of a life well lived or as the perfect, enduring gift. If you would like to endow a seat please contact Anna Bates: +353 53 9163525 or email [email protected]. To view a full record of dedications to the Seat Endowment Programme at the National Opera House, visit Wexfordopera.com/support/endow‑a-seat
Friends of the Festival
W
e would like to thank all of our Friends for the extraordinary support they have shown towards Wexford Festival Opera
in 2015.
Life Friends Eithne Healy, in recognition of her exceptional support and friendship, and that of her late husband, Liam.
Bravura Friends Apex Associates City Limited, Mrs Jackie Bolger, Mrs Ann Corcoran, Mr Brian Dickie, Mrs Kate Dugdale, Mike & Kathy Gallagher, Mr John Haines, Mr Malcolm Herring, Mr Harry Hyman, Mr Trevor Jacobs, Mrs Geraldine Karlsson, Mr & Mrs Frank A & Ursula Keane, Ms Judith Lawless & Mr Kevin Egan, Mrs Patricia Mellon, Mr & Mrs Terence & Marjorie Neill, Mr & Mrs James & Sylvia O’Connor, Mr Patrick HP O’Sullivan, Miss Eileen Partington, John Schlesinger & Margaret Rowe, Mr & Mrs Max & Joy Ulfane, Mr Mark Villamar & Ms Esther Milstead, Mr & Mrs Michael & Ruth West, Christopher C. Wright. This year’s production of Le Pré aux clercs has been made possible with the generous support of the Bravura Friends of Wexford Festival Opera
Teatro Friends Mr & Mrs Ate & Jannie Atema, Mr & Mrs Des & Aine Dunne, Mr & Mrs Patrick & Sara Kickham, Mr James McCormick.
Aria Friends Mr David Agler, Mr & Mrs Thomas & Monica Agler, Mr & Mrs Ate & Jannie Atema, Mr James & Lady Emma Barnard, Mr John Berns, Mr Anthony Boswood, Mr Roger Bramble, Mr Flannan Browne, Mr & Mrs David & Dorothy Byers, Ms Breda Cashe, Mrs Heather Clarke, Mr Paul Cleary, Mr & Mrs Pearse & Mary Colbert, Mr Eoin Colfer, Mr & Mrs Michael & Jane Collins, Mr & Mrs Eamonn Conlon, Mr & Mrs Thomas & Margaret Crotty, Ms Jean Delaney, Prof Patrick & Dr Grace Dowling, Mr Roger Epsztajn, Ms Barbara FitzGerald, Mr & Mrs Maurice & Maire Foley, Mr Peter Gerrard, Mr & Mrs Alan & Caroline Gillespie, Dr James A Glazier, Mr Gareth Hadley, Mr & Mrs Martin
& Angela Hanrahan, Mr Keith Hatchick, Mr & Mrs John & Yvonne Healy, Mr Dennis Hearn, Mr & Mrs Paul & Angela Hennessy, Mrs Hilary Henry, Dr Heinz Hockmann & Ms Marcia MacHarg, Mr & Mrs Stephen & Leila Hodge, Sir Derek Johns, Mr & Mrs Brian & Peggy Joyce, Mr & Mrs Paul & Joyce Kelly, Mr Timothy King, Mr Lyndon MacCann, Ms Helen McGovern, Dr Oran McGrath, Ms Maeve Mahony, Mrs Jean M Marsden, Mr & Mrs David & Kathy Mere, Ms Claudine Murphy, Mr & Mrs Con & Eimear Murphy, Mrs Julie Neuberger, Mr Eddie O’Connor, Ms Emer O’Kelly, Mr & Mrs Finbarr & Mary O’Neill, Mr Alan Sainer, Rev John‑Paul Sheridan, Mr Philip Smyth, Mrs Beverly Sperry‑Meehan, Ms Vina Spiehler, Mr Michael Steen, Mr Billy Sweetman, Mr & Mrs Peter & Nancy Thompson, Mr Bradley Vernatter, Countess (Ulrike) Walderdorff – Artramon Farm, Kevin G Walsh PC, Mrs Rachelle Wilmott, Dr Ernest Zillekins. The Aria Friends generously support the Aria Friends of Wexford Festival Opera Bursary and the Chorus of Wexford Festival Opera.
Ensemble Friends A Dr Ken Abraham, The Ahern Family, Dr John & Mrs Pamela Aldrich, Mr Rodger Alexander, Mr Patrick Allen, Mr Patrick Annesley, Mrs Patricia Archer, Mr Gabriel Armin, Ms Majella Asple, Mr & Mrs Leslie & Marie Auchincloss. B Ms Catherine Bainbridge, Ms Karen Banks, Mrs Isla Baring Tait Trust, Mr Donal Barrington, Mr Desmond Barry, Prof Terry Barry, Drs Joseph & Siobháin Barry, Mr & Mrs Paul & Janet Batchelor, Prof Ray Bates, Mr & Mrs Dick & Leonie Bates, Mrs Valerie Beatty, Mr Michael Bennett, Mr & Mrs William & Ann Bennett, Ms Paula Best, Mr David Bewers, Dr Thomas & Dame Beulah Bewley, Mr Jean‑Jacques Beyer‑Weiss, Mr Alan Bigley, Mses Caroline & Jane Blunden, Mr Matthew Boggan, Mr E John Bourke, Mr Martin P Bourke, Mrs Mary Bowe, Ms Diane Boylan, Dr Margaret Brady, Jane & Derek Brauders, Mr Malcolm Bremner, Mrs Mary Breslin, Mr Stephen Brier, Mrs Maria Broderick,
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Misses Caroline Brodie, Mr & Mrs Bernard & Elizabeth Browne, Mrs Maureen Browne, Mr John Browne, Mr Mark Edward Browne, Mr David Buchler, Ms Jane Buckley, Mr Noel Buckley, Mrs Rosemary Buckley, Mrs Aileen Bunyan, Dr Anita Bunyan, Ms Mary Bunyan, Mr Derek Burke, Mr David Burn, Mrs Noreen Butler, Mr Daniel Byrne, Dr Joan Byrne, Ms Joyce Byrne, Dr Michael & Patricia Byrne, Ms Louise Byrne, Mrs Valerie F Byrne‑Cook. C Mr & Mrs Dermot & Fionnuala Cahillane, Ms Jennifer Caldwell, Dr Una Callaghan, Prof Bruce Campbell, Ms Margaret Cannon, Dr Sylvia Carlisle, Mr Peter Carpenter, Ms Deirdre Carroll, Dr Jim Carson, Mrs Mary Casey, Mr François Casier, Mr & Ms Renato & Lanna Castellano, Mrs Mary Caulfield, Mr Patrick Caulfield, Mr & Mrs Ann & David Charles, Mr Mark Charnock, Mr Paul Cheeseright, Mrs Frances M Chisholm, Mr & Mrs Sean & Eileen Clancy, Ms Elizabeth Clancy, Mr Tom Clancy, Mrs Noreen Clarke, J D Clarkson & P R Morris, Mr & Mrs P Clifton Brown, Ellen & Mary Cody, Mr John Coleman, Mr & Mrs Michael & Jane Collins, Mr Trevor Collins, Mr & Mrs Louis & Cara Collum, Right Rev Dr Paul Colton, Mr Seamus Concannon, Mr Phil Coney, Ms Marian Conneely, Ms Anne Cooke, Marianne Jackman, Mr Andrew R Cooper, Ms Sybil Cope, Ms Yvonne Copeland, Mr Bernard Corbally, Ms Sally Corcoran, Prof Christopher Cordess, Ms Antoinette Corrigan, Mr Massimo Corsini, Ms Pat Cosgrave, Finola Costello, Ms Barbara Costigan, Mr Jerome Cotter, Dr Paule Cotter McGrath, Mr Antony Cotton, Ms Suzanne Creagh, Ms Marion Creely, Mr Jeremy Crouch, Mr & Mrs Richard & Una Crowe, Mr Ciaran Culleton, Mrs Joy Cunningham, Angela & Helen Cunningham, Dr & Mrs David & Ann Marie Curtis, Ms Mary Rose Curtis, Dr Tom Curtis, Mr Andy Cusack. D Emer Daly, Mrs Ursula Daly, Mrs Caroline Daszewska, Ms Deirdre D’Auria, Ms Elizabeth Davies, Mrs Sally Davis, Mr Colin Davis, Alan Davis & Kevin Jenkins, Ms Françoise Davison, Mr Bruce Dawson, Comtess Henri de Crouy‑Chanel, Mrs Mary H De Garmo, Mr Michael de Navarro, Lord Marcus Decies,
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Mr Anthony Delamothe, Mrs Cathleen Delaney, Mr Kingsley Dempsey, Mrs Amanda Dixon, Ms Ann Dixon, Ms Aileen Donnelly, Mr & Mrs Tom & Diana Donnelly, Ms Veronica Donoghue, Mr & Mrs James & Patricia Doolan, Mr & Mrs Frank & Terry Dowling, Mrs Dorothy Dowling, Ms Eileen Doyle, Mr & Mrs John & Geraldine Doyle, Ms Helen Doyle, Dr Kevin Doyle, Mrs Nancy Doyle, Mr Peter Druee, Ms Marlyn Duff, Fr Iain Duggan OFM, Joseph Dundon & Mary Hawkes Greene, Ms Robyn Durie. E Mr & Mrs William & Catherine Earley, Mr & Mrs Frank & Marie Egan, Ms Mary Egan, Dr Julia Ellis, Dr Gary Ellison, Sheena Eustace, Mr & Mrs Brian & Christine Evans. F Mr Damian Fannin, Mr Robin Farquharson, Mr Ronald Farrants, Mr Matt Farrelly, Ms Helen Faulkner, Mr & Mrs Arnold & Eleanor Fear, Frances Feeney, Dr G S Feggetter, Mr Michael Fenlon, Mr & Mrs Nial & Maedhbháine Fennelly, Dr Judy Fielding, Mrs Mary Finan, Mr Andrew Fishman, Sir Adrian Fitzgerald, Mr John Fitzgerald, Mr Louis Fitzgerald, Mr Giles Fitzherbert, Mr Simon Fitzmaurice, Mr Gerard Flannery, Mr Aubrey Flegg, Ms Noeleen Foley, Ms Barbara Forde, Mr Dominic Forde, Mr & Mrs Joe & Brenda Fox, Mr & Mrs Peter & Noreen Fox, Prof J & Dr C Fraher, Mrs Deirdre M Frame, Mrs Valerie Freeman, Mr Kieran Furlong, Mr Philip Furlong. G Mr Armin Gabriel, Ms Delia Gaffney, Mr & Mrs Robert & Sue Gaisford, Mr & Mrs John & Maeve Gallagher, Ms Louise Gallagher, Ms Mary Gallagher, Miss Ann Gallagher, Mr & Mrs François & Brigitte Gardeil, Mr & Mrs David & Chantal Gardiner, Mrs Tricia Gardom, Mr & Mrs Raymond & Judith Gay, Mr & Mrs Hugh & Mary Geoghegan, Mrs Mary P Geoghegan, Mr & Mrs Peter & Anne Gilleran, Ms Jo Golden, Mrs Janet Gooberman, Mr & Mrs Paul & Eileen Good, Miss Christine Gooder, Phyllis Gordon, The Gowan Family, Mrs Catherine A Gough, Rev Ron & Mrs Valerie Graham, Mrs Margaret Grant, Dr Carolyn Greenwood & John McVittie, Mr & Mrs John & Jane Griffiths, Mr Patrick Groarke, Mrs Jennifer Guinness.
H Ms Dympna Hackett, Ms Mary Jo Hanlon & Mr Malachy McDaniel‑Stone, The Hanton/ Mulcahy Family, Mr James Harpur, Mr Stewart Harrington, Mr Charles Harriss, Mr & Mrs Robert & Avril Harvey, Mrs Margaret Hassett, Ms Moira Hayes, Mr & Mrs Ciaran & Anne Hearne, Mrs Miriam Hederman‑O’Brien, Ms Maura Hegarty, Mr John Hegarty, Ms Louise Hennen, Declan & Joan Hickey, Ms Pamela Jean Hickey, Mr Aidan Hicks, Mr Alan Hoaksey, Mr David HS Hobbs, Mr John A Hockin, Mr Robin Hodgson, Mr Noel Horgan, Mr Michael Horgan, Mr & Mrs Michael & Joan Houlihan, Ms Jennifer Howard, Mrs Jacqueline Howe, Mr Brendan Howlin, Mr &owlin, Mr & Mrs Bob & Soo Kyoung Huddie, Dr M P Hughes, Ms Sheila Hunt, Mr Gerard Hurl, Dr Mary Hurley, Mr & Mrs Derry & Gemma Hussey, Mr & Mrs James & Dympna Hutchinson, Mrs Alma Hynes. I Dr Peter & Mrs J M Iredale. J Mr Gerald H Jarvis, Mrs Irene Patricia Jeffares, Ms Marilyn Jeffcoat, Mrs Mary Jennings, Ms Jenny Josselyn. K Mr Kyran W S Kane, Ms Rosario Kealy, Pauline Keena & Susan Windholz, Ms Ada Kelly, Ms Avril P Kelly, Prof Deirdre Kelly, Ms Máire Kelly, Mary Kelly, Mr Eamon Kennedy, Mr Courtney Kenny, Mr & Mrs John & Mary Kenny, Mr & Mrs David & Lynda Kenny, Mr John Keogan, Mr Ramon W P Kerrigan, Dr Lisbet Kickham, Dr Edward King, Mr Nicholas H King, Mr Brian Kingham, Ms Morette Kinsella, Mr Peter Knowles, Mrs Catherine Kullmann, Dr Iain M Kyles. L Mr Eamonn Lacey, Andrea & Benno Laggner, Mr & Mrs Eamon & Heather Lalor, Michael Lambarth, Ms Vivian Lambert, Ms Daphne Lane, Mr Robert Laporte, Ms Carole Lavelle, Ms Barbara Law, Mrs & Mr Laura & Ger Lawlor, Cyril & Philomena Leach, Mrs Róisín Leahy, Ms Maura Leavy, Ms Miriam Leech & Mr Paul D Walsh, Ms Genevieve Leloup, Mr & Mrs Colm & Marroussia Lennon, Ms Clare Leonard (Lett),
Mr & Mrs Geoffrey Lewis, Mrs Sarah Lewis, Thomas A Linehan, Mr Miles M Linklater, Mr Barry Lock, Ms Maria Loomes, Mr & Mrs Don & Liz Love, Ms Vickie Love, Richard & Roz Lovell, Ms Bernice Lynch, Mr Robert Lyness, Mr & Mrs David & Gillian Lyons. M Mr & Mrs Ann & James MacDonald, Mr John MacDonald, Ms Caitriona MacKernan, Mr Brian MacManus, Ms Bernadette Madden, Dr Paul Magnier, Mr James J Maguire, Mr & Mrs Martin & Celia Maguire, Mr & Mrs Alexis Maitland Hudson, Ms Anne Makower, Prof Anthony & Dr Joan Manning, Mr & Mrs Martin & Elizabeth Mansergh, Dr Noel Marshall, Ms Sandra Mathews, Mrs Eleonore Mathier, Mr R John McBratney, Ms Elizabeth McBratney, Mrs Breda McCabe, Mr Roderick McCaffrey, Geraldine McCarter, Ms Annette McCarthy, Mr Eamonn McCarthy, Elizabeth Anne McCarthy & Philomena Byrne, Ms Mary McCormack, Mr & Mrs Aidan & Lynette McCullough, Mr Niall McCutcheon, Mr Denis McDonald, Ms Mary McDonald, Ms Petria McDonnell, Mr & Mrs G R McDowell, Mr Ciarán McGahon, Ms Mary McGarry, Trudie McGee, Mr John McGerty, Mr & Mrs Charles & Rita McGoey, Mr Paul McGowan, Mr & Mrs Neil & Ann McGuinness, Mr Peter D McGuire, Mr & Mrs Michael & Margaret McIntyre, Mr & Mrs Paul & Patricia McKee, Ms Glenna McKenna, McKeon & Quinn, Mrs Elizabeth McKiernan, Dr & Mrs Paddy & Eileen McKiernan, Mr & Mrs David & Miriam McLoughlin, Mr James McLoughlin, Ms Anne McManus, Mrs Brigid McManus, Mr Joseph McNamara, Mr & Mrs Raymond & Máire McSherry, Dr Carolyn Greenwood & John McVittie, Mr Kenneth Mealy, Dr John Patrick Meehan, Margaret Mellor, Mr & Mrs Stephen & Barbara Mennell, Ms Kathleen Mernagh, Mr David M Mitchell, Mr & Mrs Peter & Lois Moderate, Mr & Mrs Michael & Valerie Moloney, Mr & Mrs John & Helen Molony, Mr Bart Mooney, Ms Catherine Moore, Mr & Mrs David & Lynda Moore, Ms Sarah Moorhead, Ms Margaret Moran, Mr & Mrs John Morgan, Dr & Mrs Ivan F & Mary C T Moseley, Ms Mary Ellen Mulcahy, Lisa Mulcahy, Ms Mary V Mullin, Mr Manuel Munoz‑Moya, Dial M for Music – Cyril Murphy, Mr Eiven C Murphy, Ms Fiona
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Murphy, Mr Gareth Murphy, Mr & Mrs James & Gladys Murphy, Mr & Mrs Joe & Louise Murphy, Rev John Murphy, Mr & Mrs Brian & Caitriona Murphy, Mr & Mrs John & Theresa Murphy, Mr Liam Murphy, Miss Marie Murphy, Mr & Mrs Oliver & Joanna Murphy, Mr & Mrs Anthony C Myer.
Ms Melanie Pine, Mr & Mrs Randall & Carol Plunkett, Mr Christian Poilvet, Ms Louise Pomeroy, Mr Donnie Potter, Mr Brendan Power, Mrs Maureen Power, Mr Donald Pratt, Mr & Mrs Peter & Madeleine Prendergast, Mr Tony Prendergast, Mr & Mrs Patrick & Susan Prenter, Mr Seamus Puirseil.
N Mr & Mrs Robert & Mary Neill, Mary P Neylon‑Cody, Dr Mealla Ní Ghiobúin, Mr Tommy Nielsen, Mr Robert Niven Baird, Ms Marie Nolan, Mr Jeremiah Nolan, Dr Patricia Norman.
Q Mr & Mrs Colm & Mary Quigley, Ms Margaret Quigley, Dr Kevin & Marian Quinn.
O Ms Siobhan O’Beirne, Ms Betty O’Brien, Mr & Mrs Conall & Maura O’Brien, Mr & Mrs FX & Pat O’Brien, Ms Theresa O’Brien, Dr Tony O’Brien, Patrick DL O’Byrne, Mrs Helen O’Cearbhaill, Ms Anne O’Connor, Ms Catherine O’Connor & Mr Senan O’Reilly, Mr & Mrs John & Gemma O’Connor, Mrs Malak O’Connor, Mr & Mrs Matt & Pipa O’Connor, Mr Brian O’Connor, Mr & Mrs John & Dympna O’Donnell, Dr John Rory O’Donnell, Ms Margaret O’Donnell, Dr Deirdre O’Donovan, Ms Maureen O’Donovan, Dr Frances O’Donovan, Ms Anne O’Driscoll, Mr Seamus O’Flaherty, Mr Michael O’Gorman, Professor Deirdre O’Grady, Mr & Mrs Alan & Kathleen O’Grady, An t’Athair Deasún Ó Grógáin, Mr Brian O’Hagan, Mr John O’Hagan, Mr Michael O’Halloran, Dr Patricia O’Hara, Ms Susan O’Herlihy, Mr & Mrs Francis & Deirdre O’Keeffe, Ms Ann O’Kelly, Mr & Mrs John & Amelia O’Leary, Mr Denis O’Leary, Mr James O’Mahony, Mrs Patricia O’Mahony, Mrs Terry O’Rahilly, Mr & Mrs Brian O’Riordan, G & M O’Rourke, Dr Hilda O’Shea, Mr & Mrs Stephen & Oonagh O’Shea, Dr Catriona O’Sullivan, Ms Deirdre O’Sullivan, Ms Liosa O’Sullivan, Mrs Siobhán O’Sullivan, Mr Jonathan Oliver, Dr Brian Otridge, Dr Eileen M Ouellette MD. P Mr & Mrs Michael & Eileen Paget, Dr Richard Parish, Mr Richard Parry, Mrs Joyce Parsons, Mr & Mrs Frank & Maire Pearson, Mr John C Pearson, Michael & Angela Pearson, Mrs Olga Petrochenkova, Ms Caroline Phelan, Mr & Mrs Bill & Cel Phelan, Ms Catherine Pike,
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Friends of the Festival
R Mr P J Radcliff, Ms Philomena Rafferty, Dr Eleanor Rashleigh‑Belcher, Mr Peter Raven, Rea Group, Dr & Prof Barry & Bairbre Redmond, Mr Philip Regan, Mr Michael Francis Reid, Mrs Gillian Reynolds, Mr & Mrs John & Sinead Reynolds, Ms Trish Robinson, Prof Sarah Rogers, Diane Roscoe, Mr Lionel Rosenblatt, Mrs Barbara Ross, The Earl of Rosse, Mr David Rowe, Mr & Mrs Jim & Frances Ruane, Mrs Jean Ruddock, Mrs M J Rumney, Dr Angela Ryan,Mr Jim Ryan, Mr Noel Ryan, Mr & Mrs Richie & Mairead Ryan, Simon Ryan & Anne Leech, Mr Timothy RG Ryland. S Mr & Mrs Jurgen & Helga Sassmannshausen, Ms Linda Scales & Michael Durack, Mrs Noeline Scales, Mrs Eithne Scallan, Mr Wolfgang Schmid, Mr Aubrey Schrader, Mr & Mrs Joe & Selina Scott, Mr & Mrs James & Angela Sellick, Mr & Mrs John & Helen Shackleton, Mr & Mrs David & Virginia Shankland, Ms Ricky Shannon, LJ Shaughnessy, Dr Sheila Sheerin, Mary Sherry Archer, Mr & Mrs John & Nancy Sherwood, Mr Nigel Silby, Mr & Mrs David & Mairead Sinnott, Ms Geraldine Skinner, Ms Anna Skrine, Mr & Mrs Martin & Shirley Slocock, Mr John MA Sly, Mrs Helen Smith, Mr Jim Smith, Mr Michael D Smith, Dr Anthony Smoker, Dr Beatrice Sofaer‑Bennett, Mr Richard Southwell QC, Mr & Mrs Trevor & Sheila Spalding, Ms Barbara Spark, Mr John Hamilton Sparks, Dr Reggie Spelman, Mr Stephan Spurr, Mr Derek Stabbins, Mr & Mrs Jonathan & Gillian Staunton, Ms Carol Ann Stearns, Ms Dianne Steele, Mr Philip Stopford, Ms Gillian Stormonth‑Darling, Mr & Mrs Brendan & Siobhan Supple, Ms Joyce Byrne & Mr Edward Sweeney, Mr John Dean Symon.
T Ms Peta Taaffe, Pru Tatham, Mrs Barbara Taylor, Mr Simon Taylor, Mrs Alison Thorman, Mr & Mrs Eamon & Niamh Tierney, Ms Mary Tierney, Mr Peter Steward Tilley, Ms Margaret Tinsley, Ms Anne Tobin & Mr Tom Schnittger, Mr Kieran Tobin, Mr Colm Tóibín, Mr Henry Toner QC, Mr Volka Tosta, Dr Carol L Tsuyuke, Mrs Mary J Tubridy, Ms Mary Tucker, Mr John D Turley KC*HS, Mr Jonathan Turner, Mrs Curzon Tussaud, Mr & Mrs Brendan & Patricia Twomey, Mr James Tyrrell, Ms Sheila Tyrrell. U Mr Michael Udal, Mrs Eileen Underwood. V Mr & Mrs Francis & Janet Valentine, Mr Michael Veale, Prof Graham Venables, Mr Emilio Venturi. W Ms Anne Wallace, Mrs Anne M Walsh, Mr Anthony J Walsh, Mr Graham Walsh, Dr Martin Walsh, Ms Maureen Walsh, Ms Winnefride Walsh, Victoria Walsh‑Hamer, Mrs Caroline Ward, Mr Stanley Warren, Ken Watters & Robin Wilkinson, Mr Michael Waugh, Mrs Diana Warwick, Ms Brenda Weir, Mrs Anne Wetzel, Mr William Wilks, Mr John Whelan, Mr & Mrs Conor & Jean Whelan, Mr & Mrs Enda & Maura Whelan, Mr & Mrs Pat & Jacqui Whelan, Mr Paul White, Ms Eithne White, Ms Eleanor White, Dr Mark Whitty, Mr & Mrs Simon & Pearl Willbourn, Mrs Marie Williams, Mrs Valerie Willoughby, Dr Paul D Wilson, Ms Louise Wilson & Mr Paul Kennan, Mr & Mrs Leslie & Alma Wolfson, Ms Anne Marie Woods, Mr & Mrs J & E Woods, Mr & Mrs Nicholas & Fiona Woolf, Mr Laurence JF Wrenne, Mrs Bernie Wright, Dr Peter Wykes, Mr Gordon Wyllie.
Prelude Friends Mr Andrew Aldrich, Louise Beegan, Mr Garrett Browne, Ms Daisy Butterworth, Ms Lorraine Cahill, Mr Eoghan Carrick, Mrs Anne Carroll, Ms Emer Collins, Ms Emily Collins, Ms Anne Connolly, Ms Sybil Cope, Mr & Mrs Harry & Angelique Corry, Mr James Crockett, Ms Meabh Croft, Mr Ian Cullen, Ms Yvonne Doyle, Mr Matthew Dillon, Mr David Duffin,Mr Mark Furlong, Ms Clara Hamer, Miss Anna Hayes, Mr Ben Hennessy, Mr Bill Hennessy, Ms Anna Hickey, Mr Eanna Horan, Mr Jamie Horan, Mr Ciaran Hore, Mr Kevin Hore, Mr Feargal Hynes, Dr Elizabeth Kappos, Mr Daniel Kavanagh, Ms Emma Kehoe, Ms Elaine Kennedy, Mr James Kolasinski, Mr Tom Lane, Ms Saramai Leech, Ms Rachel MacCann, Ms Rebecca MacCann, Mr Amhlaoibh Mac Giolla, Mr Andy Mahoney, Mr Mark Mahoney, Ms Claire Maloney, Mr Ruben Marcus, Mr Paul McKane, Mr Robert Modler, Ms Lucy Moylan, Mr Gerard M Mulhall, Ms Mary Mullen, Ms Christina Murphy, Ms Jill Murphy, Mr Odhrán Murphy, Ms Noirin Ni Earcain, Ms Emma Nolan, Ms Miriam O’Connor, Mr Robert O’Farrell, Ms Frances O’Hara, Emma O’Leary, Róisín & Sinéad O’Reilly, Mr Seamus Redmond, Miss Lydia Rooney, Mr Conor Ryan, Thomas Ryan, Karma El Shawa, Ms Harriet Smyth, Dr Robert Szymanek, Mr Danny Trappe, Mr James Warren, Ms Amy Watchorn, Mrs Aoife Whelan.
Y Mr Nicholas Yarr, Mr & Mrs Ivor & Ann Young. Z Ms Charlotte Zimmerman, Mrs Sybella Zisman.
Friends of the Festival
Thank You The people of Wexford
Denis Darcy
Tom Enright – Chief Executive, Wexford County Council
Tim Hicks
Catriona Cannon – Collections, Royal Opera House Gillian Carew Garda Peter Cassin HE Dominick Chilcott – Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Ireland HE Michael Collins – Ambassador of Ireland to Germany Domitilla Corsini – Casa Musicale Sonzogno
Helen Faulkner – The Delius Trust Fireworks Subcommittee of Wexford Borough District Council Ian Fox Ann Fuller and Sandra Price – Dublin International Piano Competition Loretta Brennan Glucksman
Mairead Hurley – Head of Vocal, Opera and Drama Studies, DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama Joyce Kennedy Sylvia L’Écuyer David Lemon Kevin Lewis – Wexford County Archive Lowneys Patricia Mellon
PHOTO © PAULA MALONE CARTY
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Thank You
HE Daniel Mulhall – Ambassador of Ireland to the United Kingdom Shane Naughton Feargal Ó Coigligh – Department of Arts, Heritage & the Gaeltacht Seamus O’Flaherty Mark Redmond – American Chamber of Commerce Ireland Dr Clair Rowden
Philip Stafford Léonidas Strapatsakis – Comédie-Française Simon Taylor – National Concert Hall, Dublin Eimear Thomas Dr Fulvio Venturi Victoria Walsh-Hamer Edward Yusko & Conor Killeen, Kay Capital
Royal National Theatre, UK
Repertoire by Year 1951–2015 1951
1966
The Rose of Castile – Balfe
Fra Diavolo – Auber Lucrezia Borgia – Donizetti
Hérodiade – Massenet Orfeo ed Euridice – Gluck Triple Bill: Il maestro di cappella – Cimarosa La serva e l’ussero – Ricci La serva padrona – Pergolesi
1952 L’elisir d’amore – Donizetti
1967
Otello – Rossini Roméo et Juliette – Gounod
Don Pasquale – Donizetti
1955 Der Wildschütz – Lortzing Manon Lescaut – Puccini
1956 La Cenerentola – Rossini Martha – Flotow
La clemenza di Tito – Mozart La Jolie Fille de Perth – Bizet L’equivoco stravagante – Rossini
1969 L’infedeltà delusa – Haydn Luisa Miller – Verdi
1970
La figlia del reggimento – Donizetti L’Italiana in Algeri – Rossini
Albert Herring – Britten Lakmé – Delibes L’inganno felice – Rossini Il giovedì grasso – Donizetti
1958
Anna Bolena – Donizetti I due Foscari – Verdi
Les Pêcheurs de perles – Bizet La rondine – Puccini Il re pastore – Mozart
1957
1959 La gazza ladra – Rossini Aroldo – Verdi
1960 Theatre closed for reconstruction
1961 Ernani – Verdi Mireille – Gounod
1962 L’amico Fritz – Mascagni I puritani – Bellini
1963 Don Pasquale – Donizetti La Gioconda – Ponchielli The Siege of Rochelle – Balfe
1964 Lucia di Lammermoor – Donizetti Il Conte Ory – Rossini Much Ado About Nothing – Stanford
1965 Don Quichotte – Massenet La traviata – Verdi La finta giardiniera – Mozart
98
Repertoire by Year 1951–2015
1972 Oberon – Weber Il pirata – Bellini Kát’a Kabanová – Janá�cek
1973 Ivan Susanin – Glinka The Gambler – Prokofiev L’ajo nell’imbarazzo – Donizetti
1974 Medea in Corinto – Mayr Thaïs – Massenet Der Barbier von Bagdad – Cornelius
1975 Eritrea – Cavalli Le Roi d’Ys – Lalo La pietra del paragone – Rossini
1976 Giovanna d’Arco – Verdi The Merry Wives of Windsor – Nicolai The Turn of the Screw – Britten
1978 Tiefland – d’Albert Il mondo della luna – Haydn The Two Widows – Smetana
1979 L’amore dei tre re – Montemezzi La vestale – Spontini Crispino e la comare – Ricci Brothers
1980 Edgar – Puccini Orlando – Handel Of Mice and Men – Floyd
1981 I gioielli della Madonna – WolfFerrari Zaide – Mozart Un giorno di regno – Verdi
1982 Sakùntala – Alfano L’isola disabitata – Haydn Grisélidis – Massenet
1983 Hans Heiling – Marschner La vedova scaltra – Wolf-Ferrari Linda di Chamounix – Donizetti
1984 Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame – Massenet Le astuzie femminili – Cimarosa The Kiss – Smetana
1985 La Wally – Catalani Ariodante – Handel The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny – Weill
1986 Königskinder – Humperdinck Tancredi – Rossini Mignon – Thomas
1987
La straniera – Bellini La cena delle beffe – Giordano Cendrillon – Massenet
Elena da Feltre – Mercadante Rusalka – Dargomïzhsky La fiamma – Respighi
Snegurochka – Rimsky-Korsakov The Mines of Sulphur – Bennett Tutti in maschera – Pedrotti
1988
1998
2009
The Devil and Kate – Dvo�rák Elisa e Claudio – Mercadante Double Bill: Don Giovanni Tenorio – Gazzaniga Turandot – Busoni
Fosca – Gomes Šarlatán – Haas I cavalieri di Ekebù – Zandonai
The Ghosts of Versailles – Corigliano Double Bill: Une Éducation manquée – Chabrier La Cambiale di matrimonio – Rossini Maria Padilla – Donizetti
1989 Der Templer und die Jüdin – Marschner Mitridate, re di Ponto – Mozart The Duenna – Prokofiev
1990 Zazà – Leoncavallo The Rising of the Moon – Maw La Dame blanche – Boieldieu
1991 L’assedio di Calais – Donizetti La Rencontre imprévue – Gluck Der Widerspenstigen Zähmung – Goetz
1992 Il piccolo Marat – Mascagni Gli equivoci – Storace Der Vampyr – Marschner
1993 Cherevichki – Tchaikovsky Il barbiere di Siviglia – Paisiello Zampa – Hérold
1994 The Demon – Rubinstein La bohème – Leoncavallo Das Liebesverbot – Wagner
1995 Saffo – Pacini Mayskaya noch’ – RimskyKorsakov Iris – Mascagni
1996 Parisina – Donizetti L’Étoile du Nord – Meyerbeer Šárka – Fibich
1999 Die Königin von Saba – Goldmark Straszny dwór – Moniuszko Siberia – Giordano
2000 Orleanskaya deva – Tchaikovsky Si j’étais roi – Adam Conchita – Zandonai
2001 Alessandro Stradella – Flotow Jakobín – Dvo�rák Sapho – Massenet
2002 Il giuramento – Mercadante Mirandolina – Martin�u Manon Lescaut – Auber
2003 Die Drei Pintos – Weber/Mahler María del Carmen – Granados Švanda dudák – Weinberger
2004 La vestale – Mercadante Eva – Foerster Prinzessin Brambilla – Braunfels
2005 Maria di Rohan – Donizetti Pénélope – Fauré Susannah – Floyd
2006 Don Gregorio – Donizetti Transformations – Susa
2007 Der Silbersee – Weill Double Bill: Pulcinella – Stravinsky Arlecchino – Busoni Rusalka – Dvo�rák
2010 Virginia – Mercadante The Golden Ticket – Ash & Sturrock Hubi�cka – Smetana
2011 La Cour de Célimène – Thomas Maria – Statkowski Gianni di Parigi – Donizetti
2012 L’Arlesiana – Cilèa Le Roi malgré lui – Chabrier A Village Romeo and Juliet – Delius
2013 Il Cappello di paglia di Firenze – Rota Double Bill: Thérèse – Massenet La Navarraise – Massenet Cristina, regina di Svezia – Foroni
2014 Salomé – Mariotte Don Bucefalo – Cagnoni Silent Night – Puts
2015 Koanga – Delius Guglielmo Ratcliff – Mascagni Le Pré aux clercs – Hérold
Repertoire by Year 1951–2015
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Repertoire by Composer 1951–2015 Adam
Cimarosa
Si j’étais roi – 2000
Il maestro di cappella – 1977 Le astuzie femminili – 1984
Don Giovanni Tenorio – 1988
Die Königin von Saba – 1999
La sonnambula – 1954 I puritani – 1962 Il pirata – 1972 La straniera – 1987
Gomes
Prinzessin Brambilla – 2004
L’elisir d’amore – 1952 Don Pasquale – 1953 & 1963 La figlia del reggimento – 1957 Anna Bolena – 1958 Lucia di Lammermoor – 1964 Lucrezia Borgia – 1966 Il giovedì grasso – 1970 L’ajo nell’imbarazzo – 1973 Linda di Chamounix – 1983 L’assedio di Calais – 1991 Parisina – 1996 Maria di Rohan – 2005 Don Gregorio – 2006 Maria Padilla – 2009 Gianni di Parigi – 2011
Britten
L’infedeltà delusa – 1969 Il mondo della luna – 1978 L’isola disabitata – 1982
d’Albert
Bennett The Mines of Sulphur – 2008
Bizet La Jolie Fille de Perth – 1968 Les Pêcheurs de perles – 1971
Boieldieu La Dame blanche – 1990
Braunfels
Albert Herring – 1970 The Turn of the Screw – 1976
Busoni
The Devil and Kate – 1988 Jakobín – 2001 Rusalka – 2007
Goldmark
Gounod Mireille – 1961 Roméo et Juliette – 1967
Granados María del Carmen – 2003
Haas Šarlatán – 1998
Handel Orlando – 1980 Ariodante – 1985
Haydn
Manon Lescaut – 1955 La rondine – 1971 Edgar – 1980
Tchaikovsky
Martin�u Mirandolina – 2002
Mascagni Il piccolo Marat – 1992 Iris – 1995 Guglielmo Ratcliff – 2015
Massenet Don Quichotte – 1965 Thaïs – 1974 Hérodiade – 1977 Grisélidis – 1982 Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame – 1984 Cendrillon – 1987 Sapho – 2001 Thérèse – 2013 La Navarraise – 2013
Maw The Rising of the Moon – 1990
Mayr Medea in Corinto – 1974
Mercadante Elisa e Claudio – 1988 Elena da Feltre – 1997 Il giuramento – 2002 La vestale – 2004 Virginia – 2010
Meyerbeer L’Étoile du Nord – 1996
Moniuszko Straszny dwór – 1999
Montemezzi L’amore dei tre re – 1979
Mozart La finta giardiniera – 1965 La clemenza di Tito – 1968 Il re pastore – 1971 Zaide – 1981 Mitridate, re di Ponto – 1989
Nicolai The Merry Wives of Windsor – 1976
Pacini
Cherevichki – 1993 Orleanskaya deva – 2000
Thomas Mignon – 1986 La Cour de Célimène – 2011
La fiamma – 1997
Verdi
Ricci
I due Foscari – 1958 Aroldo – 1959 Ernani – 1961 La traviata – 1965 Luisa Miller – 1969 Giovanna d’Arco – 1976 Un giorno di regno – 1981
La serva e l’ussero – 1977
Ricci Brothers Crispino e la comare – 1979
Rimsky-Korsakov Mayskaya noch’ – 1995 Snegurochka – 2008
Rossini La Cenerentola – 1956 L’Italiana in Algeri – 1957 La gazza ladra – 1959 Il Conte Ory – 1964 Otello – 1967 L’equivoco stravagante – 1968 L’inganno felice – 1970 La pietra del paragone – 1975 Tancredi – 1986 La Cambiale di matrimonio – 2009
Rota Il Cappello di paglia di Firenze – 2013
Rubinstein The Demon – 1994
Smetana The Two Widows – 1978 The Kiss – 1984 Hubi�cka– 2010
Wagner Das Liebesverbot – 1994
Weber/Mahler Die Drei Pintos – 2003
Weill The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny – 1985 Der Silbersee – 2007
Weinberger Švanda dudák – 2003
Wolf-Ferrari I gioielli della Madonna – 1981 La vedova scaltra – 1983
Zandonai I cavalieri di Ekebù – 1998 Conchita – 2000
Saffo – 1995 Repertoire by Composer 1951–2015
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Rosetta Cucchi Associate to the Artistic Director
Fiona Grant Phyllis McCarthy Terry White Stage Door
Nora Cosgrave Director of Artistic Administration
development
Giuliano Guernieri Company Manager
Anna Bates Membership Development Executive
Nicky Kehoe Assistant Company Manager Anne Thomas Accommodation Coordinator Andrea Grant Head of Music Staff Joe Csibi Orchestra Manager Elenor Bowers-Jolley Chorus Manager Sheldon Baxter Chorus Supervisor operations & finance
Aisling White Head of Operations Denise Kavanagh Financial Controller Caroline Whelan Accounting Administrator Nicky Pender Facilities Assistant Cathy Hogan Box Office Manager Geraldine O'Rourke Anne Wilde Box Office Michael Lonergan Duty Manager
Christina Cahill Membership Assistant
Personnel
Errol Girdlestone Chorus Master Andrea Grant Janet Haney Greg Ritchey Carmen Santoro Marie-Ève Scarfone Répétiteurs production
Anne-Marie O’Brien Development Assistant
David Stuttard Technical Director
Ray Bingle Production Administrator
marketing & communications
Tracy Ryan Marketing Manager Elizabeth Rose-Browne Media Relations Manager Gerry Lundberg Public Relations ROI Media Consultants
Ian Smith Production Assistant stage management
Colin Murphy Erin Shepherd Theresa Tsang Stage Managers
Claudine Murphy Press Office Liaison
Alison Best Tommy Keatley David Putman Chris Tuffin Clive Welsh Assistant Stage Managers
Sarah Burn Publications Editor
Evie McGuinness* Intern
Joanna Townsend London Press Officer
Miles Linklater (24pt Helvetica) Graphic Designer Clive Barda Festival Photographer Highwind Films Video Production Sarah Codd Cecilia Molumby Marketing and PR Interns
* in partnership with The Lir (National Academy of Dramatic Art, Trinity College, Dublin)
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Managers: Liz D’Arcy, Anne Fitzharris
Lorraine Byrne, Anne Cunningham, John Kirwan, Dave Martin, Frank Reck, Terry White bar
Manager: Steve Kelly Assisted by: Susan Eustace, Marie Hayes Philip Broaders, Marian Campbell, Caitriona Collins, Grainne Cooney, Maria Corcoran, Anne Marie Curtis, Rita Cussen, Breda Devoy, Margaret Donnelly, Carmel Dowdall, Mary Doyle, Dara Fitzpatrick, Frank Foley, Lorraine Foley, Colette Gilligan, Carol Goodison, Graham Grant, Judi Grey, Margaret Gurhy, Sandra Harris, Bernadette Honohan, Michael Kavanagh, Lorna Kearney, Jason Kehoe, Cian Kelly, Orlaith Kelly, Sheila Kissane, Conor Larkin, Catriona Lawlor, Fintan Lawlor, Lolo Lazaro, Frances Madders, Gertrude Madders, Jordan McGrath, Liz McGuinness, Elaine McMahon, Bobby Modler, Carmel Monahan, Marianne Moran, Tom Murphy, Vivian Murphy, Zarha Murphy, Fergal O’Brien, Kathleen O’Callaghan, Ciaran O’Flaherty, Gerry O’Neill, Mary O’Neill, Susan O’Neill, Philomena Payne, Celine Pons, Edna Rothwell, Helen Scahill, Selina Scott, Angie Thompson, Amanda Usher, Floriane Valdayron, Eileen Wickham
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Volunteers
Eimear Bell, Patricia Bent, Crona Carew, Antonette Carley, Bea Claydon, Susan Crosbie, Ruth Deignan, Sandra Dempsey, Yvonne Doris, Desmond Fegan, Eithne Fitzpatrick, Sindy Jones, Kathy Kane, Caoimhe Kenneally, Jane Kenneally, Mary Kerr, Odile le Bolloch, Fiona McCoole, Antoinette Mitchell, Eileen Murphy, Kay O’Reardon, Helen O’Riordan, Colin Polden, Grainne Ryan, Ann Sills, Clare Storan, Niamh Tierney, Marie Tobin, Mary Tynan, Siobhan Tynan, Helen White drivers
Manager: David Lynch Nick Bowie, Michael Connolly, Thomas Conway, Brian Dempsey, Colm Dunne, Denise Fanning, Martin Flynn, Ray Heffernan, Simon Hussey, Ger Keeling, Mary Kuhn, Terry McCabe, Michael McGinley, Pat Morrin, Joe Murphy, John Rackard, David Sherwood, Eamon Tierney, Mary Waddell, KC Whelan, Joe Ryan front of house
Manager: Albert Lacey Assisted by: Paul Cleary, Edel Fitzmaurice, Padraic Larkin, Kevin Lewis, John McCormack, John Mullins, Tony O’Brien, David Sinnott Tom Banville, Ann Barrett, Vincent Brady, Antoinette Broaders, Joe Campbell, Pat Carberry, Robbie Connolly, Margo Coombe, Brian Coulter,
David Curtis, Françoise Davison, Philippe D’Helft, Kieran Donohoe, Eamonn Dundon, Seamus Flood, Paddy Foley, John Furlong, Leah Furlong, Mary Furlong, John Galvin, Lorraine Galvin, Oliver Gargan, Patricia Gilhooley, Gordon Gray, Gerard Hartigan, Olga Hussey, Peter Hussey, Simon Hussey, Fergal Hynes, Tony Hynes, Denise Kehoe, Sylvia Kehoe, Uwe Kuhn, Philip Lacey, Frank Lally, Claire Larkin, Bernie Lloyd, Phil Lynch, David Maguire, Luke Maguire, Colette Mahon, James Maloney, Brian Matthews, Brian McGonagle, Eamonn Murphy, Mary Murphy, Conall O’Brien, Frank O’Brien, Cathal O’Gara (Jnr), Senan O’Reilly, Eileen Paget, Colin Polden, Judy Pomeray, Philip Quigley, Jack Quinn, Pat Reck, Michael Redmond, Jim Reidy, Liam Riordan, Joe Ryan, Joe Scott, Dom Stafford, Billy Sweetman, Derek Thomas, Michael Ward, Ian Wardlaw, Michelle Winters green room
Manager: Liz Foley Kate Bolger, Brenda Byrne, Irene Carty, Moria Coffey, Angela Cunningham, Helen Cunningham, Joan Doyle, Eamonn Foley, Mary Fox, Ann Garthland, Margot Gaul, Sandra Harris, Marion Hillis, Lorraine Hynes, Verona McEvoy, Mary McGillick, Mary Morris, Susan O’Neill, Helen Redmond, Christine Roche, Kitty Roche, May Sadler, Liza Seavers, Kathy Shortle, Catherine Watchorn, Catherine Whelan
Programmes Volunteer Nuala Byrne and Press Office Liaison Claudine Murphy were named as the recipients of the annual Wexford Festival Opera/Ecclesiastical Volunteers Award in 2014. photo: patrick browne
friends’ hospitality
Manager: Elizabeth Murphy
Manager: Rosemary Hayes
Ann Barrett, Pauline Breen, Caroline Carson, Brian Coulter, Eithne Coulter, Anne Marie Curtis, Eileen Doyle, Mary Doyle, Eithne Fitzpatrick, Colette Furlong, Anne Gubbins, Mary Horan, Sarah Howlin, Ted Howlin, Marie Hussey, Peter Hussey, Bernie Lloyd, Phil Lynch, Catherine Malone, Sandra Mathews, Pat Moore, Clare Murphy, Louise Murphy, Betty O’Brien, Annie Ó Lionáin, Eileen Paget, Selina Scott, Dairine Sheridan, David Sinnott, Mairead Sinnott, Kate Whitty, Marie Williams
Assisted by: Phil Lynch
Françoise Davison, Helen Doyle, Mary Grant, Peter Hussey, Phil Lynch, Brian Matthews, Sibylle Schmidt, Billy Sweetman,
programmes
Manager: Laura Nolan Mags Bolger, Nuala Byrne, Catherine Carmody, Ruth Chapman, Joanne Crofton, Christiane Deller, Breda Devoy, Una Doherty, Mary Doyle, Mary G Doyle, Olivia Dunne, Belle Fitzgerald, Statia Fortune, Irene Furlong, Robert Gerrard, Eilis Hayes, Cora Kavanagh, Ann Logan, Mary Lynch, Barbara Mantripp, Tom Molloy, Kay Nixon, Clare Nolan, Helena O’Brien, Anne Roche, Gabrielle Roche, Ethna Ryan, Eleanor Ryan, Hilda Stafford, Eleanor White
Ann Barrett, Nora Byrne, Joe Campbell, Marian Campbell, Finola Costello, Mary Cotter, Susan Crampton, Françoise Davison, Eamonn Dundon, Mary Furlong, Helen Gaynor, Anne Gubbins, Lynda Harmon, Brigid Ann Hayes, Bernadette Honohan, Evelyn Howell, Michael Kavanagh, Bernie Lloyd, Ann Logan, Bernadette Lovett, Karen Lynott, Moira Martin, Mary McGuigan, Niall McGuigan, Ann McMorris, Marjorie Mulligan, Mary Nolan, Pauline Norrison, Betty O’Brien, Helena O’Brien, Ann O’Neill, Susan O’Neill, Michael O’Reilly, Anne O’Sullivan, Elizabeth O’Sullivan, Eileen Paget, Colin Polden, Madeline Prendergast, Michelle Roche, Patty Roche, Ethna Ryan, Sibylle Schmidt, Daniela Simmons, Kate Whitty, Marie Williams, Ann Young
wardrobe
Manager: Marie Brady Helena Baker, Manon Cooke, Caron Creed, Lisa Gallagher, Grace Hall, Dolores Kavanagh, Michelle O’Kennedy, Anne Reck, Sinead Reck, Jacinta Roche, Bride Tynan, Frances White, Erin Wilson
Proud sponsors of the Volunteer Awards
Volunteers
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Proudly supports the 2015 Wexford Festival Opera. We applaud the Wexford Festival Opera team who have succeeded in delivering one of the most remarkable cultural events in the world. This accomplishment is a tribute to the vision and efforts of the people of Wexford. The tradition of opera in Wexford started back in 1951 & has gone on to become an institution of excellence on the world stage. At Wexford Creamery, we depend on the passion of our team to produce the very best from our local dairy suppliers. Knowing that our award-winning products are enjoyed both at home and abroad brings us great satisfaction and sharpens our determination to grow and share our successes. Our very best to all involved in this year’s productions – you have all earned a standing ovation.
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Nathalia Milstein Piano Recital Winner of First Prize at the Dublin International Piano Competition held in May, 2015. Don’t miss her début recital at the National Opera House
O’REILLY THEATRE THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE Saturday 31 October, 2015 –11 a.m. Tickets ¤25 –Wexfordopera.com +353 912 2144/1850 4 OPERA
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WIdE OpEn OpErA In AssOcIAtIOn WIth BOrd GáIs EnErGy thEAtrE And nAtIOnAl OpErA hOusE prEsEnts
The
BarBer Seville
of
A new production, sung in Italian with English surtitles national Opera house Wexford 16th April 2016
Bord Gáis Energy theatre dublin 20th, 22nd, 23rd April 2016
www.nationaloperahouse.ie 053 912 2144
www.bordgaisenergytheatre.ie 0818 719 377
rossini’s comic masterpiece featuring star Irish mezzo-soprano tara Erraught in her eagerly awaited Irish opera debut. Cast also featuring: Gavan Ring Graeme Danby John Molloy Mary O’Sullivan Brendan Collins Director: Michael Barker-Caven Set and Costume Design: Jamie Vartan Lighting Design: Sinéad Wallace Chorus of Wide Open Opera, Orchestra of Wexford Festival Opera Conducted by Fergus Sheil
Award winning Irish Opera Company Wide Open Opera, fresh from triumphant world premiere tour of The Last Hotel at Edinburgh International Festival, Dublin Theatre Festival and Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, brings this new production of The Barber of Seville to Ireland’s two premiere opera venues, the first opera production to be seen in both places. Previous WOO productions at BGET include Wagner: Tristan und Isolde (2012) and John Adams: Nixon in China (2014)
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Join the Friends of the National Concert Hall Make yourself at home, at the home of music in Ireland. Our doors are open to new members, and we look forward to welcoming you in. Join us today! Friends of the National Concert Hall enjoy exclusive benefits, such as: • Ticket discounts and advance notice of events • Priority booking and dedicated Friends booking line • Receptions, special events and music appreciation courses • Bespoke cultural tours at home and abroad • A vibrant community of like-minded individuals with a shared love of music and culture. Membership starts at just ¤115 annually. Gift memberships are available – give the gift of music and friendship. Join now by calling the Friends Booking Line on 01 408 6777 or see www.nch.ie.
International Orchestral Series 15/16
Friday 28 August 2015 Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra Andrew Litton, conductor Alina Ibragimova, violin
Wed 25 November 2015 Nikolaj Znaider, violin Robert Kulek, piano
Thurs 29 Oct 2015 Leif Ove Andsnes, piano
Tuesday 29 September 2015 Basel Symphony Orchestra Dennis Russell Davies, conductor Alice Sara Ott, piano Thursday 5 November 2015 Swedish Chamber Orchestra Thomas Dausgaard, conductor Christian Ihle Hadland, piano Saturday 12 December 2015 Helsinki Philharmonic John Storgårds, conductor Guest violinist Winner of the Sibelius Violin Competition 2015 Tuesday 31 May 2016 Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra Hervé Niquet, conductor Barry Douglas, piano
Monday 29 February 2016 Christian Gerhaher, baritone Freiburg Baroque Orchestra Lorenzo Coppola, clarinet d’amour Gottfried von der Goltz, director
Thursday 4 February 2016 Jeremy Denk, piano Thursday 21 April 2016 Yundi, piano International Choral Series 15/16
Saturday 12 March 2016 Gala Concert with Angela Gheorghiu, soprano RTÉ Concert Orchestra
Saturday 10 October 2015 The Sixteen Harry Christophers, conductor
Wednesday 4 May 2016 Maxim Vengerov, violin Roustem Saitkoulov, piano
Saturday 23 January 2016 Chamber Choir Ireland Irish Baroque Orchestra Matthew Halls, conductor Tuesday 12 April 2016 Bach Collegium Japan Masaaki Suzuki, conductor
Tickets from ¤22.50 www.nch.ie 01 417 0000
8–24 July 2016 buxtonfestival.co.uk A summertime celebration of opera, music & books in the hills of the beautiful Peak District
LEONORE
Beethoven 8, 12, 15, 19 & 22 July
I CAPULETI E I MONTECCHI Bellini
9, 13, 16, 20 (matinee) & 23 July
TAMERLANO Handel
10, 14, 17 (matinee) & 21 July
We provide products tailored to support the nutritional needs of older babies and toddlers through our Aptamil Follow On and Growing Up milk, manufactured in Ireland (Rocklands, Wexford and Macroom, Cork) We are proud to support the Wexford Festival Opera and to be a part of the Wexford community. IMPORTANT NOTICE Breastfeeding is best for your baby. Use Aptamil Follow On milk as part of a mixed diet from 6 months. It is not a breastmilk substitute. Use on the advice of your healthcare professional.
2 0 16 S E A S O N 3 J U N E – 17 J U LY
EUGENE ONEGIN
Conductor Douglas Boyd Director Michael Boyd Designer Tom Piper
Conductor David Parry Director William Tuckett Designer George Souglides
IDOMENEO
RICHARD STRAUSS | 1916
WORLD PREMIERE JACK PERLA & RAJIV JOSEPH | 2016
SUBSCRIPTIONS NOW ON SALE! Call (314) 961-0644 or visit ExperienceOpera.org Pictured: Denyce Graves as Emelda Griffith, Jordan Jones as Little Emile Griffith, and Arthur Woodley as Emile Griffith in the World Premiere of Champion. Photo © Ken Howard
Mount Juliet Estate ...a Classical Masterpiece
Awards and Accolades Jack Nicklaus designed parkland golf course Michelin Star Lady Helen Restaurant Voted in the top 15 hotels and resorts in Ireland, as chosen by CondĂŠ Nast Traveler
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2016 New Ross
Piano Festival IRISH & INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS INCLUDING
NICHOLAS ANGELICH FINGHIN COLLINS PIERS LANE NATHALIA MILSTEIN QUATUOR EBÈNE
Thursday 22nd – Sunday 25th September 2016 St. Mary’s Church, New Ross, Co. Wexford
More info: [email protected] • 051 425845 or 051 421383 • www.newrosspianofestival.com
NEW ROSS PIANO FESTIVAL IS SUPPORTED BY NEW ROSS
PIANO WEXFORD COUNTY COUNCIL
Post Opera Dining ~ Pre Opera Dining ~ Artisan Wine List Organic Ingredients ~ Local Produce ~ Modern Irish Food Warren Gillen’s
Cistín Eile
Modern Irish Restaurant 80 South Main Street, Wexford, Ireland Tel. (053) 91 21 616
Best emerging Irish Cuisine 2015 – IRISH RESTAURANT AWARDS
Open Daily for Opera Festival Book a table for Post and Pre Opera Dining Full menu available straight after the opera until late! BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL (053) 9121616
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21st October – 1st November
• • • • •
Luxurious Guestrooms Pre-Opera Dining in our Oyster Lane Restaurant Post-Opera Gallery Menu Extensive Bar Food Menu in our Ballast Bank Bar & Grill with Live Music Wexford’s Renowned Art Exhibitions, Antiques & Book Fairs
Discover Opera in France After an extensive refurbishment, the Théâtre national de l’Opéra Comique will reopen its doors in Paris for a New Season in 2017! Until the first season of the new project is revealed in 2016, Opéra Comique schedules 18 months of touring along with novel and original events in the Salle Favart and everywhere in Paris, such as an installation of the famous artist Christian Boltanski that will reveal the construction site, a commission of an opera produced for Internet only, a giant outdoor lyrical karaoke…
The Opéra Comique on Tour Les Mousquetaires au couvent Opéra de Toulon Provence Méditerranée 27, 29, 31 December 2015
Les Fêtes vénitiennes
Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse 23, 25, 26, 28 February 2016
Lakmé
Opéra Grand Avignon 20, 22 March 2016
Stay connected to be informed of all upcoming events.
Pelléas et Mélisande
www.opera-comique.com
Limoges Opéra 11, 13 November 2016
Celebrating our presentation of Le Pré aux clercs, a co-production of Opéra-Comique, Wexford Festival Opera and Palazzetto Bru Zane (Centre de musique romantique française), in partnership with Fondation Calouste Gulbenkian
Traditional Pub | Stylish Bistro | Piano Bar | Rooftop Restaurant | Outdoor Terrace
Discover the ďŹ nest Selection of local seasonal Produce in the Bistro, Rooftop Restaurant and Bar * LU N CH FRO M NO O N * PRE-OPERA FROM 5PM * Ultimate destination for food and live entertainment in Wexford Thomas Moore Tavern is conveniently located 2mins from the Wexford Opera House Thomas Moore Tavern, Cornmarket, Wexford. Tel. +353 (0)53 9174 688 Email. [email protected] www.thomasmooretavern.ie /ThomasMooreTavern @ThomasMooreTave Thomas Moore Tavern is proud to be an oďŹƒcial sponsor of the 64th Wexford Festival Opera.
Wexford Festival Opera and Hubangel partner to deliver great offers from local merchants during festival 2015
Follow these easy steps: 1. Download the app and Register 2. Under “my Hubs”, search for “Wexford Festival Opera” 3. Browse offers, shop and redeem in store
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savings for you during Festival 2015
THE KELLY’S EXPERIENCE... ...is made of moments that rely on a time, a place or a person, but guaranteed to make you wish to return again and again. A choice of fine dining, championship golf or beautiful Spa, everything you would expect from a luxury resort. Regular visitors to Kelly’s Resort Hotel have long known that they can count on enjoying the very finest foods beautifully prepared by experienced chefs at two of the top restaurants in Wexford - La Marine Bistro and Beaches.
THE SEA OF SENSES AWAITS YOU... SeaSpa is the perfect way to unwind from the hassles and strains of everyday life. Here, healing seawaters, heat and steam experiences blend with a therapeutic lighting and textured surrounds will help service the body and mind. Full & Half day packages. Special Midweek offers available.
VOUCHER FOR ALL OCCASIONS. For further information visit www.kellys.ie | Rosslare, Co Wexford. T: (053) 9132114 E: [email protected]
THE VERONICA DUNNE INTERNATIONAL SINGING COMPETITION is delighted with its new partnership with WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA and wishes them every success for this exciting season! THE 8TH VERONICA DUNNE INTERNATIONAL SINGING COMPETITION Dublin, Ireland • January 22 - 28 2016 Preliminary Rounds, Exam Hall,Trinity College Dublin Friday 22, Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 January
Semi-Finals, National Concert Hall, Dublin Monday 25 and Tuesday 26 January
Final, National Concert Hall, Dublin Thursday 28 January at 8.00pm Previous prizewinners of the prestigious Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition include Pumeza Matshikiza, Sarah-Jane Brandon, Tara Erraught and Nadine Sierra. Its mission is to find and nurture operatic talent and help young singers climb the ladder to an international career.
For further information go to: www.vdiscompetition.com
Italian Institute of Culture - Dublin
Located in a prestigious Georgian building in Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin’s Istituto Italiano di Cultura has been promoting Italian language and culture in Ireland for over 50 years......
Experience Italian Culture! O pera Fashion Art Dance Photography
Theatre Music Cinema Literature Design Publishing & Italian
Language Courses
Italian Institute of Culture - Dublin 11 Fitzwilliam Square East, D2 Tel. (01) 662 0509 / 662 1507 contact us: [email protected]
www.iicdublino.esteri.it
Your box at the Wexford Festival Opera
R
ound off your opera experience at Artramon. autumn game hunting on Artramon Estate. We offer the Countess Walderdorff’s grade I listed manor house with ideal opportunity for your individual holiday. its three suites, two double rooms, and a single room is To find out more, please contact our booking office in only 6 km from the Wexford Opera House. Germany: We will make your ticket arrangements for you and even ARTRAMON FARM provide you with a free shuttle service to the Opera and Castlebridge, Co. Wexford, Rep. of Ireland back for evening performances. Phone: +49 (0)4532 21500 Ireland and Artramon-Farm, Castlebridge, are worth a www.artramon.com, E-mail: [email protected] visit in any season. Enjoy the unique Curracloe Beach, the exquisite Golf courses, the sea bass fishing and the We look forward to your visit.
Let the environment
sing
Ireland’s biodiversity is under threat from habitat loss, pollution and the laying of poisons. You can make a difference by not laying poisons which are harmful to our wildlife and the environment. To find out more about Ireland's Biodiversity and how you can help our environment sing, check out the EPA Biodiversity Action Plan, accessible at www.epa.ie/downloads/pubs
AT THE NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE, WE’RE HOME TO THE WORLD-FAMOUS WEXFORD OPERA FESTIVAL DATAPAC AMPLIFIES OUR SUCCESS WITH STATE-OF-THE-ART TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS.
Serving the ICT needs of successful organisations, Datapac is proud to be Festival’s exclusive IT and Communications Partner.
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AIB is proud to back the Opera Festival.
We would like to acknowledge and thank the local businesses and volunteers who work so hard to make the festival a great success. #backedbyAIB
A Sensational New Musical/Drama
Starring Multi Award Winning International Singer
Tommy Flemi ng
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64th WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA
21 October - 1 November 2015
The National Opera House, High Street, Wexford, Ireland Tel: +353 53 912 2144 | Nationaloperahouse.ie
Wining and Dining
Pre-Opera Suppers at The National Opera House Relax and enjoy a meal in the MacKenzie Room on the third floor of the National Opera House before the performance. The popular Pre-Opera Suppers are served on each performance evening during the Festival, at 6 p.m.
Champagne and Canapés Treat yourself to a little luxury! We offer a Champagne and Canapés interval reception in the Mackenzie Room at the National Opera House every night during the Festival. Tickets cost ¤25
On Sunday 25 October the suppers will be served after the 5 p.m. performance, and on Sunday 1 November they will be served at 2 p.m. before the performance. Supper is ¤40 To make a booking contact Michael O’Keeffe, Conference and Banqueting Manager, Ferrycarrig Hotel, Wexford: [email protected] or phone +353 53 915 3664
Book now by calling the box office on 1850 4 OPERA (+353 53 912 2144)
65th Festival
26 October – 6 November 2016
Herculanum Félicien David (1810–1876)
26, 29 October / 1, 4 November
Vanessa
27, 30 October / 2, 5 November
Maria de Rudenz Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848)
28, 31 October / 3, 6 November
More Information at WexfordOpera.com
Festival Calendar 64th Wexford Festival Opera Wednesday, 21 October – Sunday, 1 November 2015
Wednesday 21 October
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i don't know
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In November 1943 Winston Churchill met the other allied leaders for a conference in which capital city?
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BBC ON THIS DAY | 1 | 1943: Allies united after Tehran conference
About This Site | Text Only
1943: Allies united after Tehran conference
Allied leaders of Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union have ended a landmark conference held in Tehran, the capital of Iran.
It was the first time Winston Churchill, President Franklin D Roosevelt and Marshal Joseph Stalin had met together.
In a joint statement issued after the four-day conference, they expressed a determination to work together to win the war in Europe and in Asia and establish an "enduring peace".
The three allies said they had reached agreement on a second front although actual details were not given - only that operations would take place in the east, west and south.
We came here with hope and determination. We leave here, friends in fact, in spirit and in purpose
Joint statement by Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin
They stated: "We expressed our determination that our nations shall work together in war and in the peace that will follow."
And they pledged to form a United Nations and "banish the scourge and terror of war for many generations".
The declaration ended: "We came here with hope and determination. We leave here, friends in fact, in spirit and in purpose."
The foundations for this agreement were laid at a conference held in Moscow a month ago between foreign ministers of the allied countries.
Days before the Moscow conference a meeting between Mr Churchill, President Roosevelt and General Chiang Kai-shek of China held in Cairo [codenamed Sextant], resolved to restore to China all land taken over by Japan and "in due course" secure the independence of Korea.
During the Tehran conference Mr Churchill took the opportunity to award the Soviet leader the Sword of Stalingrad.
The British prime minister handed over the sword as a tribute from King George VI and the British people for forcing the German Sixth Army to surrender at Stalingrad on 2 February this year.
There was another occasion to celebrate in Tehran - it was Mr Churchill's 69th birthday on 30 November and a special dinner was held at the British Legation in his honour.
His daughter, Section Officer Sarah Oliver, greeted the guests which included the US President and the Soviet leader.
Marshal Stalin proposed a toast, "To my fighting friend, Winston Churchill," and a similar toast to President Roosevelt.
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Tehran
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Former West Bromwich Albion footballer Nicholas Anelka made an apparently anti-Semitic gesture after scoring a goal against which Premier League club?
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02/27/2004 Adam Young
On February 4th, President Bush eulogized the life of Winston Churchill. The president described Winston Churchill as a "great man" and quickly zeroed in on the mistress that both Bush and Churchill share: war. "He was a prisoner in the Boer War, a controversial strategist in the Great War. He was the rallying voice of the Second World War, and a prophet of the Cold War." Indeed, there doesn't seem to have been a war—or an opportunity for war—that Churchill wasn't associated with during his long career.
Bush also recited Churchill's famous retort that "History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it" adding that "history has been kind to Winston Churchill, as it usually is to those who help save the world," surely hoping that history will be kind to George W. Bush.
Except this history is a myth. The truth about the real Churchill—the Churchill that few know—is that he was "a man of the state: of the welfare state and of the warfare state" in Professor Ralph Raico's turn-of-phrase. The truth about Winston Churchill is that he was a menace to liberty, and a disaster for Britain, for Europe, for the United States of America, and for Western Civilization itself.
Not since fictional personages like Hercules and Zeus, have so many myths been attached to one man. As we will see, the Winston Churchill we're told about is not the Churchill known to honest history, but rather a fictional version of the man and his actions. And these words and actions have produced our mainstream "patriotic political myths" as John Denson calls them, which are merely the victor's wartime lies and propaganda scripted into the 'Official History.' The Churchill mythology is challenged by honest history, and the reality about Churchill involves hard, but necessary truths.
Churchill the Opportunist
Of course, central to the neocon mythology built up around their almost deified idealization of Churchill is that he fought for (in Bush's words comparing Tony Blair to Churchill), "the right thing, and not the easy thing," right over popularity, principle over opportunism.
Except that isn't true. Churchill was above all a man who craved power, and a man who craves power, craves opportunity to advance himself no matter what the cost.
When Churchill entered politics, many took note of his unique rhetorical talents, which gave him power over men, but it also came with a powerful failing of its own. During WWII, Robert Menzies, the Prime Minister of Australia, noted of Churchill "His real tyrant is the glittering phrase so attractive to his mind that awkward facts have to give way."
However, Churchill had other failings as well. The Spectator newspaper said of Churchill upon his appointment as First Lord of the Admiralty in 1911: "We cannot detect in his career any principles or even any constant outlook upon public affairs; his ear is always to the ground; he is the true demagogue. . . ."
The great English classical liberal John Morley, after working with Churchill, passed a succinct appraisal of him, "Winston," he said, "has no principles."
Entering politics in 1900, Churchill (the grandson of a Duke and son of a prominent Tory) naturally joined the governing Conservative party. Then in 1904, he left the Conservatives and joined the Liberal party, and when they were in decline Churchill dumped them and rejoined the Conservatives, uttering his famous quote "It's one thing to rat, it's another to re-rat." Churchill allegedly made his move to the Liberals on the issue of free trade. However, Robert Rhodes James, a Churchill admirer, wrote: "It was believed [at the time], probably rightly, that if Arthur Balfour had given him office in 1902, Churchill would not have developed such a burning interest in free trade and joined the Liberals." Clive Ponting also notes that ". . .he had already admitted to Rosebery, he was looking for an excuse to defect from a party that seemed reluctant to recognize his talents." Since the Liberals would not accept a protectionist, Churchill had to change his tune.
It's not a surprise that this neoconservative administration and its apologists in the tamed media laud and venerate Churchill, for he was as President Bush described him; a man who was synonymous with war. Churchill loved war. In 1925, he wrote, "The story of the human race is war." This is untrue, but Churchill lacked any grasp of the fundamentals of true, classical liberalism. The story of the human race is increasing peaceful cooperation and the efforts by some to stop it through war. However, for Churchill, periods without war offered nothing but "the bland skies of peace and platitude."
Without principles or scruples, Churchill as a prominent member of the Liberal party government naturally played a role in the hijacking of liberalism from its roots in individualism, laissez-faire, free trade and bourgeois morality, to its transformation into the "New Liberalism" as a proxy for socialism and the omnipotent state in Britain and in America.
Churchill was also a famous opponent of Communism and of Bolshevism in particular. One of the reasons why Churchill admired Italian Fascism was Churchill believed that Mussolini had found a formula that would neutralize the appeal of communism, namely super-nationalism with a social welfarist appeal. This is a domestic formula for power that still appeals today, if the Bush Administration is any indication. Churchill went so far as to say that Fascism "proved the necessary antidote to the Communist poison."
Then came 1941. Churchill made his peace with Communism. Temporarily, of course. Churchill gave unconditional support to Stalin, welcoming him as an ally, even embracing him as a friend, and calling the Breaker of Nations, "Uncle Joe." In his single-minded obsession with destroying German National Socialism (while establishing his own British national socialism) and carrying on his pre-World War I British Imperialist vendetta to destroy Germany, Churchill completely failed to consider the danger of inviting Soviet power and communism into the heart of Europe.
Of course, his self-created mythology--chiefly through his own books--states that he sensed the danger and tried to warn Roosevelt about Stalin, but the records of the time do not prove this out. In fact, Churchill's infatuation with Stalin reached the point where at the Tehran conference in November 1943, Churchill presented Stalin with a Crusader's sword; Stalin, who had murdered millions of Christians, was now presented by Churchill as a defender of the Christian West.
But if one was to sum up Churchill's passion, his overall reason for entering politics, it was the empire. The British Empire was Churchill's abiding love. He fought to expand it, he defended it, and he created his decades-long hatred of Germany because of it. The Empire was at the center of his view of the world. Even as late as 1947, Churchill opposed Indian independence. When Lord Irwin urged him to bring his views on India up-to-date by talking to some Indians Churchill replied "I am quite satisfied with my views on India, and I don't want them disturbed by any bloody Indians." So much for democracy.
Churchill the Socialist
Churchill made a name for himself as an opponent of socialism both before and after the First World War, except during the war when he was a staunch promoter of war socialism, declaring in a speech: "Our whole nation must be organized, must be socialized if you like the word." Of course, such rank hypocrisy was by now Churchill's stock-in-trade, and not surprisingly, during the 1945 election, Churchill described his partners in the national unity government, the Labour Party, as totalitarians, when it was Churchill himself who had accepted the infamous Beveridge Report that laid the foundations for the post-war welfare state and Keynesian (mis)management of the economy.
As Mises wrote in 1950, "It is noteworthy to remember that British socialism was not an achievement of Mr. Attlee's Labor Government, but of the war cabinet of Mr. Winston Churchill."
Churchill was converted to the Bismarckian model of social insurance following a visit to Germany. As Churchill told his constituents: "My heart was filled with admiration of the patient genius which had added these social bulwarks to the many glories of the German race." He set out, in his words, to "thrust a big slice of Bismarckianism over the whole underside of our industrial system." In 1908, Churchill announced in a speech in Dundee: "I am on the side of those who think that a greater collective sentiment should be introduced into the State and the municipalities. I should like to see the State undertaking new functions." Churchill even said: "I go farther; I should like to see the State embark on various novel and adventurous experiments."
Churchill claimed that "the cause of the Liberal Party is the cause of the left-out millions," and attacked the Conservatives as "the Party of the rich against the poor, the classes and their dependents against the masses, of the lucky, the wealthy, the happy, and the strong, against the left-out and the shut-out millions of the weak and poor." Churchill berated the Conservatives for lacking even a "single plan of social reform or reconstruction," while boasting that his "New Liberalism" offered "a wide, comprehensive, interdependent scheme of social organisation," incorporating "a massive series of legislative proposals and administrative acts."
Churchill had fallen under the spell of the Fabian Society, and its leaders Beatrice and Sidney Webb, who more than any other group, are responsible for the decline of British society. Here he was introduced to William, later Lord Beveridge, who Churchill brought into the Board of Trade as his advisor on social questions. Besides pushing for a variety of social insurance schemes, Churchill created the system of national labor exchanges, stating the need to "spread . . . a sort of Germanized network of state intervention and regulation" over the British labor market. Churchill even entertained a more ambitious goal for the Board of Trade. He proposed a plan whereby the Board of Trade would act as the economic "intelligence department" of the Government, forecasting trade and employment in Britain so that the Government could spend money in the most deserving areas. Controlling this pork would be a Committee of National Organisation to plan the economy.
Churchill was well aware of the electoral potential of organized labor, so naturally Churchill became a champion of the labor unions. He was a leading supporter of the Trades Disputes Act of 1906 which reversed the judicial decisions which had held unions responsible for property damage and injuries committed by their agents on the unions behalf, in effect granting unions a privileged position exempting them from the ordinary law of the land. It is ironic that the immense power of the British labor unions that made Britain the "Sick Man of Europe" for two generations and became the foil of Margaret Thatcher, originated with the enthusiastic help of her hero, Winston Churchill.
We can only conclude by Churchill's actions that personal freedom was the furthest thing from his mind.
Churchill and the First World War
The Great War destroyed European culture and the commitment to truths. In their place, generations embraced relativism, nihilism and socialism, and from the ashes arose Lenin, Stalin and Hitler and their evil doctrines that infect contemporary culture. In the words of the British historian, Niall Ferguson, the First World War "was nothing less than the greatest error in modern history."
In 1911, Churchill became First Lord of the Admiralty, and, during the crises that followed, used every opportunity to fan the flames of war. When the final crisis came, in 1914, Churchill was all smiles and was the only cabinet member who backed war from the start. Asquith, his own Prime Minister, wrote: "Winston very bellicose and demanding immediate mobilization . . . has got all his war paint on."
Churchill was instrumental in establishing the illegal starvation blockade of Germany. The blockade depended on scattering mines, and classified as contraband food for civilians. But, throughout his career, international law and the conventions created to limit the horrors of war meant nothing to Churchill. One of the consequences of the hunger blockade was that, while it killed 750,000 German civilians by hunger and malnutrition, the youth who survived went on to become the most fanatical Nazis.
The Lusitania
Whether Churchill actually arranged for the sinking of the Lusitania on May 7, 1915, is still unclear, but it is clear that he did everything possible to ensure that innocent Americans would be killed by German attempts to break the hunger blockade.
A week before the disaster, Churchill wrote to Walter Runciman, President of the Board of Trade that it was "most important to attract neutral shipping to our shores, in the hopes especially of embroiling the United States with Germany."
The Lusitania was a civilian passenger liner loaded with munitions. Earlier, Churchill had ordered the captains of merchant ships, including liners, to ram German submarines, and the Germans were aware of this. The German government even took out newspaper ads in New York warning Americans not to board the ship.
Churchill, by helping engineer the entry of the United States into the Great War, set in motion the transformation of the war into a Democratic Jihad. Wilsonianism lead to the eventual destruction of the Austrian Empire, and the creation of a vast power vacuum on Germany's southeastern border that would provide fruitful opportunities and allies for Hitler's effort to overturn the Versailles Treaty.
But Churchill was not a strategist. All he cared for, as he told a visitor after his Gallipoli disaster, was "the waging of war, the defeat of the Germans."
Churchill Between the Wars
Churchill, who had been appointed Colonial Secretary, invented two client kingdoms, Transjordan and Iraq, both artificial and unstable states. Churchill's aim of course was not liberty for oppressed peoples, as his admirers like to claim for him, but for Britain to dominate the Middle East to ensure that the oil wells of Iraq and the Persian Gulf were securely in British hands.
The Crash of 1929
In 1924, Churchill rejoined the Conservative party and was made Chancellor of the Exchequer, where he returned Britain to the gold standard but didn't account for the British governments wartime inflation, which consequently severely damaged exports and ruined the good name of gold. But, of course, Churchill cared nothing for economic ideas. What interested him was only that the pound would be as strong as in the days of Queen Victoria, that once more the pound would "look the dollar in the face." The consequences of this decision had a far-reaching and disastrous impact on western civilization and the consequent appeal of socialism, Nazism and communism: the Crash of 1929.
It was Churchill's unrealistic exchange ratio that caused the Bank of England and the U.S. Federal Reserve to collude to prop up the pound by inflating the U.S. dollar, which in turn fueled the speculative boom during the 1920's that collapsed when the inflating slowed.
Churchill's fame—and his mythology—originates during the period of the 30's, especially for neoconservatives, for whom it is always 1938. However, Churchill's hard line against Hitler was little different from his usual warnings about pre-war Imperial Germany, and his hard line against inter-war Weimar Germany. For Churchill saw Germany at all times and in all ways as a threat to the British Empire. A threat that had to be destroyed and forever kept under heel. For instance, Churchill denounced all calls for Allied disarmament even before Hitler came to power. Churchill, like Clemenceau, Wilson and other Allied leaders, held the unrealistic belief that a defeated Germany would submit forever to the shackles of Versailles.
And what the neocons forget, or don't know, is that Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin acknowledged in the House of Commons that, had they told the people the truth, the Conservatives could never have won the 1936 election. "Supposing that I had gone to the country and said that Germany was rearming and that we must be armed, does anyone think that our pacific democracy would have rallied to that cry?" It was Neville Chamberlain who began the rearmament of Britain after the Munich Crisis, the arms which Churchill would not have had during the Battle of Britain, including the first deployment of radar, which Churchill mocked while in opposition in the 1930s.
Moreover, Churchill's Cassandra-like role during the '30s emerged largely because Churchill moved from one impending threat to the next: Bolshevik Russia, the General Strike of 1926, the dangers of Indian independence, the abdication crisis in 1936. During the '30s Churchill was the proverbial Boy Who Cried Wolf. Maybe his neocon admirers could have learned that lesson about Iraq.
But as in all things, even with this Churchill reversed himself. In the fall of 1937, he stated:
"Three or four years ago I was myself a loud alarmist. . . . In spite of the risks which wait on prophecy, I declare my belief that a major war is not imminent, and I still believe that there is a good chance of no major war taking place in our lifetime. . . . I will not pretend that, if I had to choose between Communism and Nazism, I would choose Communism."
And in his book Step By Step written in 1937, Churchill had this to say about the Mortal Enemy: ". . .one may dislike Hitler's system and yet admire his patriotic achievement. If our country were defeated, I hope we should find a champion as indomitable to restore our courage and lead us back to our place among the nations." One has to wonder if Churchill was referring to himself in his hypothetical example.
The common mythology is so far from historical truth that even an ardent Churchill sympathizer, Gordon Craig, felt obliged to write:
It is reasonably well-known today that Churchill was often ill-informed, that his claims about German strength were exaggerated and his prescriptions impractical, that his emphasis on air power was misplaced.
Moreover, as a British historian noted: "For the record, it is worth recalling that in the 1930s Churchill did not oppose the appeasement of either Italy or Japan."
Churchill and the Second World War
After Munich, Chamberlain was determined that Hitler would have no more easy victories, and when Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, Britain declared war on Germany, and Churchill was recalled to his old place as First Lord of the Admiralty. An astonishing thing then happened: the President of the United States by-passed all the ordinary diplomatic channels and initiated a personal correspondence, not with the Prime Minister, but with Churchill. These messages were surrounded by a frantic secrecy, and culminated in the imprisonment of Tyler Kent, the American cipher clerk at the U.S. embassy in London. Some of these messages contained allusions to FDR's agreement prior to the war to an alliance with Britain, contrary to his public statements and American law.
Three months prior to the war, Roosevelt told King George VI that he intended to set up a zone in the Atlantic to be patrolled by the U.S. Navy, and, according to the King's notes, the President stated that "if he saw a U boat he would sink her at once & wait for the consequences." The biographer of George VI, John W. Wheeler-Bennett, considered that these conversations "contained the germ of the future Bases-for-Destroyers deal, and also of the Lend-Lease Agreement itself."
In 1940, Churchill at last became Prime Minister, ironically enough when the Chamberlain government resigned over Churchill's aborted plan to pre-emptively invade Norway. After France's armed forces were destroyed by the Blitzkrieg, and the British army fled towards the Channel, Churchill the conservative, the "anti-socialist," defiled the common law by passing totalitarian legislation placing "all persons, their services and their property at the disposal of the Crown," i.e., into the hands of Churchill himself.
During the Battle of Britain, Churchill gave perhaps his most famous speech, in which he plagiarized the French Premier Georges Clemenceau, and where he uttered his famous phrase "If the British Empire and its Commonwealth lasts for a thousand years, men will say, "This was their finest hour!" This calls to mind another man's boast about a thousand year Reich. Churchill also hinted at his plot to drag America into the war: ". . .we shall never surrender, and even if . . . this island . . . were subjugated . . . then our empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God's good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the Old." But like Marxist Revolutionaries, Christian Millennialists and other assorted cranks, Churchill was not at all interested in "God's good time" or any other presumed unearthly schedule, and he worked night and day to collude with Roosevelt to get America into the war.
As PM, Churchill continued his policy to refuse any negotiated peace. Even after the Fall of France, Churchill rejected Hitler's renewed peace overtures. This, however, more than anything else, is supposed to be the foundation of his greatness. Yet what opportunities were lost to a free France and Britain and the Low Countries before 1940 to re-arm and negotiate military defense strategies? What of the time lost that could have been used to study the Blitzkrieg method of warfare before it crashed through France? The British historian John Charmley made the crucial point that Churchill's adamant refusal even to listen to peace proposals in 1940 doomed what he claimed was most dear to him: the Empire and a Britain that was nonsocialist and independent in world affairs. One could add that by allowing Germany to overrun its weaker neighbors when peace was possible it probably also doomed European Jewry as well. How many more millions of Jews and other Europeans were murdered because of Churchill's stupidity? But it is politically incorrect, and even possibly a hate crime to suggest that better alternatives were available during World War II than those made by the Allies. Just because something turned out one way does not mean that was the only way it could have turned out or was the best result. Somehow, it is controversial to say this.
The peace camp realized something that escaped Churchill the empire romanticist: even the British Empire and her vast resources alone could not defeat the concentrated power that Germany possessed in Europe. And even more after the Fall of France, Churchill's war aim of total victory could be realized only by embroiling the United States in another world war.
As an aside to the French-haters, what they forget is that, if the U.S. army had met the Wehrmacht in 1940, it would have fared considerably worse than the French Army. National chauvinists, however, prefer their petty hatreds.
Involving America was Churchill's policy in World War II, just as it was Churchill's policy in World War I, and would be his policy again in the Cold War. Churchill put his heart and soul into ensuring Roosevelt came through.
In 1940, Churchill sent British agent "Intrepid" to the United States, where he set up shop in Rockefeller Center, where, with the full knowledge and cooperation of Roosevelt and the collaboration of federal agencies, "Intrepid" and his 300 agents "intercepted mail, tapped wires, cracked safes, kidnapped, . . . rumor mongered" and incessantly smeared their favorite targets, the "isolationists" (i.e., Jeffersonians) as nazis and fascists.
In June 1941, Churchill, looking for a chance to bring America into the war, wrote regarding the German warship, Prinz Eugen: "It would be better for instance that she should be located by a U.S. ship as this might tempt her to fire on that ship, thus providing the incident for which the U.S. government would be so grateful."
Churchill also instructed the British ambassador to Tokyo, Sir Robert Craigie, "the entry of the United States into war either with Germany and Italy or with Japan, is fully conformable with British interests. Nothing in the munitions sphere can compare with the importance of the British Empire and the United States being co-belligerent."
In August 1941, Roosevelt and Churchill met at the Atlantic conference. Churchill told his Cabinet "The President had said he would wage war but not declare it and that he would become more and more provocative. If the Germans did not like it, they could attack American forces. . . . Everything was to be done to force an incident."
After the U.S. had officially entered the war, on February 15, 1942, in the House of Commons, Churchill declared, of America's entry into the war: "This is what I have dreamed of, aimed at, worked for, and now it has come to pass."
This deceptive alliance illustrates another of Churchill's faults. His subordination of political aims to military planning. Churchill made war for the sake of making war, with little regard for the political results that follow. He once even told Asquith that his life's ambition was "to command great victorious armies in battle." And World War II was his opportunity. Churchill and Roosevelt were both willing to do anything to destroy the menace of Nazi Germany, at a time when Hitler had killed perhaps several hundred thousand, and to do so they would ally with Hitler's former ally in the invasion of Poland, Joseph Stalin (the Soviet Union had even been invited to join the Axis in 1940), who had already murdered tens of millions. But why is it conventional wisdom that compromise with one dictator at a vital period would have been immoral while collaboration with an even greater dictator with genuine global ambitions was the mark of greatness?
The truth is Churchill cared for nothing but Britain. The lives, homes and cultures of non-Britons he took and destroyed without a care or second thought. What sort of 'conservatism' requires the murder of millions of defenseless innocents? Winston Churchill was a man who along with Roosevelt, Hitler and Stalin, probed just how far Western Civilization could fall in just six short years of time.
Churchill threw British support to the Communist Partisan leader Tito. What a victory for Tito would mean was no secret to Churchill. When an aide pointed out that Tito intended to transform Yugoslavia into a Communist dictatorship on the Stalinist model, Churchill retorted: "Do you intend to live there?" What a humanitarian.
Of course, in Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt were confronted with a man who had an overall political aim for the war. Stalin knew what he wanted to achieve from the destruction of Germany. For Churchill, his only aim was to beat Hitler, and then he would start thinking of the future of Britain and Europe. Churchill said it in so many words: "It was to be the defeat, ruin, and slaughter of Hitler, to the exclusion of all other purposes, loyalties and aims."
Churchill's aim was in his words, the "indefinite prevention of their [the Germans'] rising again as an Armed Power." Not surprisingly, instead of making every effort to encourage and assist the anti-Nazi resistance groups in Germany, Churchill responded to the feelers sent out by the German resistance with silence, thus helping to prolong the war and the killing. Even more shockingly, Churchill had nothing but scorn for the heroic officers after their failed assassination attempt on Hitler in July 1944, even as Hitler was enjoying their filmed executions.
In the place of help, Churchill only offered Germans the slogan of unconditional surrender, which only prolonged the war further. And instead of promoting the overthrow of Hitler by anti-Nazi Germans, Churchill's policy was all-out support of Stalin. Returning from Yalta, Churchill told the House of Commons on February 27, 1945 that he did not know any government that kept its obligations as faithfully as did the Soviet Union, even to its disadvantage.
The War Crimes
That Churchill committed war crimes—planned them, aided and abetted them, and defended them—is beyond doubt. Churchill was the prime subverter through two world wars of the rules of warfare that had evolved in the West over centuries.
At the Quebec conference, Roosevelt and Churchill adopted the Morgenthau Plan, which if implemented would have killed tens of millions of Germans, giving the Germans a terrifying picture of what "unconditional surrender" would mean in practice. Churchill was convinced of the plans benefits, as it "would save Britain from bankruptcy by eliminating a dangerous competitor." That the Morgenthau Plan was analogous to Hitler's post-conquest plans for western Russia and the Ukraine was lost on Churchill, who according to Morgenthau, drafted the wording of the scheme.
Churchill even brainstormed dropping tens of thousands of anthrax "super bombs" on the civilian population of Germany, and ordered detailed planning for a chemical attack on six major cities, estimating that millions would die immediately "by inhalation," with millions more succumbing later.
But Churchill's greatest war crimes involved the terror bombing of German cities that killed 600,000 civilians and left some 800,000 injured. Arthur Harris ("Bomber Harris"), the head of Bomber Command, stated "In Bomber Command we have always worked on the assumption that bombing anything in Germany is better than bombing nothing."
Churchill brazenly lied to the House of Commons and the public, claiming that only military and industrial installations were targeted. In fact, the aim was to kill as many civilians as possible. Hence the application of "carpet" bombing in an attempt to terrorize the Germans into surrendering.
Professor Raico described the effect of Churchillian statesmanship: "The campaign of murder from the air leveled Germany. A thousand-year-old urban culture was annihilated, as great cities, famed in the annals of science and art, were reduced to heaps of smoldering ruins. . . ." No wonder that, learning of this, a civilized European man like Joseph Schumpeter, at Harvard, was driven to telling "anyone who would listen" "that Churchill and Roosevelt were destroying more than Genghis Khan."
According to the official history of the Royal Air Force: "The destruction of Germany was by then on a scale which might have appalled Attila or Genghis Khan." Dresden was filled with masses of helpless refugees running for their lives ahead of the advancing Red Army. The war was practically over, but for three days and nights, from February 13 to 15, 1945, British bombs pounded Dresden, killing as many as 135,000 people or more in three days. After the massacre, Churchill attempted to disclaim responsibility; even casually saying "I thought the Americans did it."
The terror bombing of Germany and the killing of civilians continued as late as the middle of April, 1945. It only stopped, as Bomber Harris noted, because there were essentially no more targets left to be bombed in Germany.
In order to kill a maximum number of Germans, Winston Churchill dismissed politics or policy as a 'secondary consideration,' and on at least two occasions said that there were "no lengths of violence to which we would not go" in order to achieve his objective. In fact he said this publicly in a speech given on September 31, 1943, and again in the House of Commons, on February 27, 1945, when unbelievable lengths of violence had already taken place. If Hitler had uttered this phrase, we would all cite it as more evidence of his barbarism. Yet, when Churchill utters it, his apologists palm it off as the resoluteness required of a great statesman, rather than describing it as an urge for mass, indiscriminate murder.
Of course, Churchill supported the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which resulted in the deaths of another 200,000 civilians. When Truman fabricated the myth of the "500,000 American lives saved" to justify his mass murder, Churchill felt the need to top his lie: the atomic bombings had saved 1,200,000 lives, including 1,000,000 Americans. It was all just another of Churchill's fantasies.
Yet, after all this slaughter, Churchill would write: "The goal of World War II [was] to revive the status of man."
Churchill and the Cold War
Among Churchill's many war crimes, there are also those crimes and atrocities for which he is culpable that occurred following the war.
These include the forced repatriation of some two million old people, men, women, and children to the Soviet Union to their deaths. Then there were the massacres carried out by Churchill's protégé, Tito: tens of thousands of Croats, Slovenes and other "class-enemies" and anti-Communists were killed.
In the wake of the armies of Churchill's friend and ally, the mass deportations began. But Churchill was unmoved. In January 1945 he said: "Why are we making a fuss about the Russian deportations in Rumania of Saxons [Germans] and others? . . . I cannot see the Russians are wrong in making 100 or 150 thousand of these people work their passage. . . . I cannot myself consider that it is wrong of the Russians to take Rumanians of any origin they like to work in the Russian coal-fields." Here Churchill, the great friend of liberty as Bush described him, approves of slavery. About 500,000 German civilians were enslaved to work in Soviet Russia, in accordance with the Yalta agreement where Churchill and Roosevelt agreed that slave labor constituted a proper form of "reparations."
Then there was the great atrocity of the expulsion of 15 million Germans from their ancestral homelands in East and West Prussia, Silesia, Pomerania, and the Sudetenland, pursuant to Churchill's mad plan to violently uproot the entire polish population and move Poland westward, which he demonstrated with a set of matchsticks, and to Churchill's acceptance of the Czech leader Eduard Benes's plan for the ethnic cleansing of Bohemia and Moravia. Around two million German civilians died in this process. An entire ancient culture was obliterated. This sort of cultural jihad used to be something conservatives opposed. Today's neoconservatives instead, who evidently embrace the Marxist doctrine of sweeping away the past, would surely argue that in order to create, one must first destroy, or in that old Stalinist phrase, to make an omelet, you must first break a few eggs.
A large factor in the litany of Churchill's war crimes was his racism. Churchill was an English chauvinist, a British racist, and like Wilson, loathed the so-called "dirty whites," the French, Italians and other Latin’s, and Slavs like the Serbs, Poles, Russians, etc.... Churchill professed Darwinism, and particularly disliked the Catholic Church and Christian missions. He became, in his own words, "a materialist to the tips of my fingers," and fervently upheld the worldview that human life is a struggle for existence, with the outcome the survival of the fittest.
In 1919, as Colonial Secretary Churchill advocated the use of chemical weapons on the "uncooperative Arabs" in the puppet state of Iraq. "I do not understand the squeamishness about the use of gas," he declared. "I am strongly in favor of using poison gas against uncivilized tribes." Some year’s later, gassing human beings to death would make other men infamous.
An example of Churchill's racial views are his comments made in 1937: "I do not admit that a great wrong has been done to the Red Indians of America or the black people of Australia. I do not admit that a wrong has been done to these people by the fact that a stronger race, a higher-grade race, a more worldly wise race, has come in and taken their place."
In Churchill's single-minded decades-long obsession with preventing a single hegemonic power from arising on the European continent that would pose a threat to the British Empire, he failed to see that his alliance with Stalin produced exactly that. "As the blinkers of war were removed," John Charmley writes, "Churchill began to perceive the magnitude of the mistake which had been made." Churchill is alleged to have blurted out after finally realizing the scale of his blunder: "We have slaughtered the wrong pig!"
But it was too late. For decades Churchill worked for the destruction of Germany. Yet only after Stalin had devoured half of Europe did this "great statesman" realize that destroying the ability of Germany to act as a counterbalance to Russia left Europe ripe for invasion and conquest by a resurgent Russia.
By 1946 Churchill was complaining in a voice of outrage about the Iron Curtain of tyranny that descended on Eastern Europe. But Churchill helped to weave the fabric.
With the balance of power in Europe wrecked by his own hand, Churchill saw only one recourse: to bind America to Europe permanently. Thus Churchill returned to his tried-and-true strategy, embroiling the United States in another war. This time a "Cold War" that would entrench the military-industrial complex and change America forever.
Conclusion
With his lack of principles and scruples, Churchill was involved in one way or another in nearly every disaster that befell the 20th century. He helped destroy laissez-faire liberalism, he played a role in the Crash of 1929, he helped start WWI, and by bringing in America to help, prolonged the war and created the conditions for the rise of Nazism, prolonged WWII, laid the groundwork for Soviet domination, helped involve America in a cold war with Russia, and pioneered in the development of total war and undermining western civilized standards.
Chris Matthews described Churchill as the "man who save[d] the honor of the 20th century." Rather than this great accolade, Winston Churchill must be ranked with Karl Marx, Woodrow Wilson, Vladimir Lenin, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt as one of the destroyers of the values and greatness of Western civilization.
And it is fitting that the Library of Congress exhibition is entitled "Churchill and the Great Republic" because few men have done more to overthrow the American Republic(s) and institute the great centralized global war machine that has taken its place.
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i don't know
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Which cricketer’s autobiography is called “Sunny Days”?
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Book review of 'Sunny Days: An Autobiography' by Sunil Gavaskar : Books - India Today 15011977
Price: Rs. 30
Pages: 280
Sunil Gavaskar, who made a spectacular entry into the arena of Test Cricket, has made his debut as an "author" with the same flourish. In the first instance, he took the world of cricket by storm and earned the admiration of all lovers of the game. I wish one could say the same thing about his maiden venture as an author.
The shy and modest 21-year-old Bombay university cricketer won the hearts of the West Indians and his own countrymen, not only by his prodigious feats with the bat, but his innate sense of sportsmanship and all that it implies. We see a different Gavaskar in the author of Sunny Days, which is his autobiography.
The pity of it all is that Gavaskar himself recognizes that it is "always hazardous for an active cricketer to venture into the realm of authorship". And yet, he has not only chosen to open his mouth, but has put his foot into it!
In the early chapters of the book one meets the Gavaskar, as before fame overtook him after his historic deeds in the West Indies in 1971. He takes his remarkable successes with the bat as a schoolboy and university cricketer in his stride, without being spoilt by his outstanding performances.
He accepts his failure to get into the Bombay Ranji Trophy team with a sense of fatalism, but there is no bitterness to unsettle his poise. There is, in his mental approach to his uneven cricketing career, a balance that one would hardly expect from a young player anxious to make the grade.
When fortune finally smiles upon him and he is selected for the West Indies tour, his first thought is for his friend, Saeed Ahmed Hattea, who is left out. On his way to the Caribbean, he is the young cricketer, as yet unspoilt by success, finding everything and everybody wonderful - a kind word for "friend" and "foe" alike, and the capacity to see the funny side of things.
Even his phenomenal successes in the West Indies left him unaffected, except that he was happy that he didn't "disappoint" the members of the Cricket Control Board's Selection Committee, which had placed confidence in him, and the vast legion of cricket lovers at home.
The metamorphosis of Gavaskar begins, if one may see, when he is selected to tour England in the summer of 1971, soon after the team's triumphant return from the West Indies. A typical example of his penchant for unnecessary, often foolish, criticism of men and things is his comment about Lord's, which has always been regarded as the "Mecca of Cricket".
He says, "Quite frankly, I don't understand why cricketers are overawed by Lord's. The members are the stuffiest know-alls you can come across, and the ground is most uninspiring. It slopes from one end to the other. I shuddered to think of it as the Headquarters of Cricket!"
In every sport, the decisions of the umpire or referee are not always palatable to the players concerned; but, very few sportsmen dispute the decisions, and more especially, come out with open criticism of the men assigned the difficult and unenviable task of supervising matches.
Gavaskar, when he found the going difficult in England, particularly after his spectacular showing in the West Indies, started cribbing about umpiring decisions. He is particularly critical of England's umpire David Constant, about whom he says, "Umpire Constant was 'constant' in his support for England that year."
The English Press has also come in for rough treatment at his hands, perhaps with some justification. However, the somewhat biased comments on the "London-based Indian journalists" during the unfortunate tour of 1974, are quite unnecessary. Even allowing for the fact that the Indian team had taken terrible punishment in the Tests, despite Gavaskar scoring a century in the Old Trafford match, it is difficult to understand why a cricketer of the stature of Gavaskar should have indulged in harsh criticism of anyone who dared to find fault with the team.
It is when Gavaskar talks about his visit to New Zealand and the West Indies early this year that he pulls no punches in giving expression to his views about people. For instance, he found the umpiring in New Zealand "was so partial that we thought we must have really played well to win the first Test".
He adds, "but for the umpiring decisions we would have won the first Test by an innings. Also, we were denied victory in the second Test because of the bias shown by the umpires for the home team." Gavaskar's views on the New Zealand Press are equally unflattering.
Perhaps, things were really bad on the New Zealand tour, which was made miserable because of the terribly cold weather. But, I wonder whether it is, at all, advisable for one actually in the game to indulge in this kind of criticism, and create enemies all over. What is particularly regrettable is that, in this present trend of umpire-baiting, Gavaskar's complaints may not find ready acceptance.
The most unfortunate part of Gavaskar's anxiety to find fault with all manner of things, is the criticism levelled against the spectators who came to watch the Test at Kingston (Jamaica). The provocation for this was the "way they shrieked and howled every time Holding bowled" Gavaskar makes this astounding statement: "All this proved beyond a shadow of doubt that these people still belonged to the jungles and forests, instead of a civilized country." Apart from being in bad taste, such sentiments cannot create friendliness among peoples, and cannot possibly be forgiven in a sportsman.
Sunil Gavaskar has, with considerable justification, pointed out the peculiar behaviour of the then Cricket Control Board's President, K. M. Rungta, who asked for Gavaskar's explanation for his slow batting in the first World Cup match against England.
The unkindest cut of all was the accusation that Gavaskar's batting "had a demoralizing effect on the younger players, and was also against the country's interest," as alleged by Manager G.S. Ramchand. One can sympathize with Gavaskar for the patiently foolish action of the Board President. The revelation also goes to show the hazards that Indian sportsmen face and the indignities to which they are subjected by over-zealous officials.
Having pointed out the more undesirable aspects of Sunny Days, let me say that the book is a commendable effort on the part of one who has no pretensions to being a "writer". Gavaskar's story is told in simple language, and is a sincere and honest effort to record his personal experiences as a cricketer and as a man. It is a reflection of the inherent honesty, however misguided at times, of Sunil Gavaskar.
It is a book which everyone who loves the game will enjoy reading. The Publishers, who have "fathered" more books on Cricket in India than any other film, have reason to be proud of their "catch". The printing and get-up of the book are of good standard, and the large number of illustrations printed on art paper are an added attraction. Sunny Days is a book which will be read, whatever one may think about the tendency of Gavaskar to hit everyone and everything for a six, with interest.
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Sunil Gavaskar
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The highly successful 2014 film “Frozen” is based on a story by which author?
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New book on Sunil Gavaskar | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis
New book on Sunil Gavaskar
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Taus Rizvi | Sun, 22 Feb 2009-03:17am , Mumbai , DNA
Sunil Gavaskar's exploits inspired Dravid. The legend’s autobiography — Sunny Days — was like a Bible to the Karnataka player.
Young cricketers look up to Rahul Dravid for inspiration. Who was Dravid’s inspiration? The answer is Sunil Gavaskar.
Former India opener’s exploits inspired Dravid. The legend’s autobiography — Sunny Days — was like a Bible to the Karnataka player.
“For our generation Gavaskar was like an inspiration. We would always look up to him. And his Sunny Days was like a Bible for us and it was the first book that I read. My dad gifted it to me on probably my ninth or tenth birthday. The book really inspired me and I knew everything that is there in that book,” Dravid said.
It seemed to be in fitness of things when Dravid released a biography — SMG, a biography of Sunil Manohar Gavaskar, by Devendra Prabhudesai — here on Saturday.
“Gavaskar had set a benchmark for Indian cricket and everybody wanted to be him or play like him,” Dravid said.
Speaking on the occasion, Gavaskar said he grew up as a cricketer and as a person reading many biographies and autobiographies of cricketers. “I would read a lot of books that would not only inspire me but also provide me with an insight into a cricketer’s life. Such books have helped me a lot.”
Gavaskar also praised the author of his latest biography. “Devendra is a sincere and dedicated person. He has worked hard on this book. There must be a lot of things in this book that I would not know.”
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i don't know
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Mount Narodnaya is the highest point in which dividing range?
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The Ural Mountains
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The Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains are probably the richest mountain range of their size in the world. These mountains are remarkable in the variety and amount of mineral wealth which they contain. Salt, silver and gold have been mined here since the 1500s. By the 1800s, the Ural region was famous for its gems and semiprecioius stones, which include emerald, beryl, amethyst, topaz and sapphire. Today, mining activities produce coal, iron, copper, gold, platinum, silver, nickel, aluminum, manganese, lead, zinc, magnesium, chromium, potash, salt, building stone, talc, diamonds, and soapstone. Oil is found west of the Ural area.
The Ural Mountains extend for 1,500 miles in a north-south direction, from the Arctic Ocean to near the Aral Sea. Old map makers used this range to mark the continental boundary between Europe and Asia. Many maps continue to show the Urals as the natural division of the two continents, although not all geographers accept the mountains as the boundary mark.
These mountains are geologically old and have been worn down to rounded hills which are from 1,000 feet (305 m.) to 6,000 feet (1,829 m.) above sea level. The highest peak of the Ural Range is Mount Narodnaya at 6,214 feet (1,894 m.) in the northern part of the range.
The Ural River rises on the eastern slopes of the southern Ural Mountains in Russia. The Ural flows generally south for about 1,570 miles and enters the Caspian Sea.
The Urals are inhabited by animals typical of Siberia, such as elk, brown bear, wolf, wolverine and lynx. Some of the tree species to be found here are Siberian fir, Siberian pine, Scots pine, Siberian spruce, Norway spruce and Siberian larch, as well as Silver and Downy birches.
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Ural Mountains
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What first started appearing in hotel rooms in 1908?
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NASA Visible Earth: The Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains
Credit:
NASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen, using data from NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. Caption by Kathryn Hansen.
The Urals rise like a long and narrow spine across western Russia, forming a natural divide between Europe and Asia. The mountain range spans 2,500 kilometers (1,550 miles) passing through Arctic tundra to the north and through forested and semi-desert landscapes to the south.
Continental collisions gave rise to the Urals between 250 and 300 million years ago, making them among the oldest mountains on Earth. (For comparison, the very old Appalachians started to form about 480 million years ago, while the younger Himalayas started to form about 40 to 50 million years ago). For such an ancient range, it reaches some relatively high elevations.
The highest elevations are found in the Nether-Polar Urals, the second-northernmost section of the range’s five segments. On July 13, 2011, the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this view of the northern part of the Nether-Polar Urals. The scene extends from the northern boundary and ends just short of Mount Narodnaya—1,895 meters (6,217 feet)—the highest point in the entire range.
The Nether-Polar Urals are an alpine environment. At the higher elevations, glaciers sit amid the rocky ridges. At elevations below 500 meters, snow and ice give way to green forests. The forests become denser heading south toward the Northern Urals. Yugyd Va National Park, for example, contains the Virgin Komi Forests, one of the most extensive areas of virgin boreal forest remaining in Europe.
As a whole, the Urals are extremely rich in minerals. More than 1,000 types of minerals can be found here, and many of them are commercially useful.
References
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i don't know
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Who wrote “Tree and Leaf” and “Farmer Giles of Ham”?
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Farmer Giles of Ham by J.R.R. Tolkien
Books by J.R.R.Tolkien - Farmer Giles of Ham
Short Description:
Farmer Giles of Ham did not look like a hero. He was fat and red bearded and enjoyed a slow, comfortable life. Then one day a rather deaf and short-sighted giant blundered on to his land. More by luck than skill, Farmer Giles managed to scare him away. The people of the village cheered: Farmer Giles was a hero! His reputation spread far and wide across the kingdom. So it was natural that when the dragon Chrysophylax visited the area it was Farmer Giles who was expected to do battle with it!
Editions:
Originally published by Allen and Unwin in 1949 (2nd ed. 1976, 3rd ed. 1983) and by Houghton Mifflin in 1950 (2nd Amer. ed 1978);
Many editions are currently available, including the special 50th anniversary editions;
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J. R. R. Tolkien
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Which item of athletics equipment weighs 7.26 kilograms for men?
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Storyformed | Tree and Leaf
Tree and Leaf
Mature Content: Discussion of euthanasia, suffering, ethics, and war.
Excellent for Discussion
By J.R.R. Tolkien
OPD: 1964
For any Tolkien lovers, this slim book will be a gem. In this collection of essays and stories, readers will recognize Tolkien’s winsome style in tales like Leaf by Niggle or Farmer Giles of Ham, and also get treated to his famous defense of the fantasy genre in his essay, “On Fairie Stories.” Also included is the poem Mythopoeia, written for C.S. Lewis after a discussion of the truth-bearing power of myth.
Related
“To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark.” - Victor Hugo
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i don't know
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Who wrote the recent historical novel The King’s Curse?
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The King's Curse - Philippa Gregory
Philippa Gregory
Established historian & writer. International No 1 best seller.
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The King's Curse
The Cousins’ War Series
This is the story of deposed royal Margaret Pole, and her unique view of King Henry VIII’s stratospheric rise to power in Tudor England.
Margaret Pole spends her young life struggling to free her brother, arrested as a child, from the Tower of London. The Tower – symbol of the Tudor usurpation of her family’s throne – haunts Margaret’s dreams until the day that her brother is executed on the orders of Henry VII.
Regarded as yet another threat to the volatile King Henry VII’s claim to the throne, Margaret is buried in marriage to a steady and kind Tudor supporter – Sir Richard Pole, governor of Wales. But Margaret’s quiet, hidden life is changed forever by the arrival of Arthur, the young Prince of Wales, and his beautiful bride, Katherine of Aragon, as Margaret soon becomes a trusted advisor and friend to the honeymooning couple.
Margaret’s destiny, as an heiress to the Plantagenets, is not for a life in the shadows. Tragedy throws her into poverty and rebellion against the new royal family, luck restores her to her place at court where she becomes the chief lady-in-waiting to Queen Katherine and watches the dominance of the Spanish queen over her husband, and her fall. As the young king becomes increasingly paranoid of rivals he turns his fearful attention to Margaret and her royal family.
Amid the rapid deterioration of the Tudor court, Margaret must choose whether her allegiance is to the increasingly tyrannical king, Henry VIII, or to her beloved queen and princess. Caught between the old world and the new, Margaret has to find her own way and hide her knowledge of an old curse on all the Tudors, which is slowly coming true . . .
Philippa Gregory
Behind the Book
Released in 2014
This is a novel which changed its nature, content and significance from when I started research until publication. Right up until the last stage of copy editing I was revising and adding material and characters to this dark story. I started it, thinking that it would be a relatively simple telling of the tragic story of Margaret Pole – daughter of George Duke of Clarence and Isabel Neville. George was the brother of Edward IV, probably drowned in a vat of Malmsey wine for treason against Edward and Queen Elizabeth. As the book progressed I discovered that Margaret was a central figure in the Tudor court, and probably actively involved in the endless conspiracies against Henry VIII and his advisors. This hidden rebellion reached its peak in the uprising of the North called the Pilgrimage of Grace. The pilgrims won their aims of defending the Roman Catholic traditions and the return of the traditional advisors, but Henry reneged on his promises and sent his troops for a terrible persecution to men who held a royal pardon. Margaret, and her entire family, came under suspicion too and this novel moved far from the template of a persecuted heroine and became the story of a merciless murder of a family. Margaret's betrayer, and her defenders all come under the gaze of a king who was increasingly frightened and, I believe delusional. It's been a chilling and powerful book to write and the image of Henry VIII, composer of 'Greensleeves' beloved of primary school history, will never be the same again for me. He was a serial killer and this book traces his steps towards psychosis.
The book opens in 1499
England is under a Tudor king. Henry VII has two sons with Elizabeth of York which should have secured his line, yet his court is still filled with fear and suspicion. Plantagenet is a dangerous name to carry and the heiress Margaret Pole is swiftly married off to a staunch Tudor supporter, but her brother Edward's claim cannot be ignored. Henry executes him on Tower Hill, leaving Margaret to face a lifetime of uncertainty.
Visit the Family Tree
The King's Curse – Chapter One
Reviews
“The queen of historical fiction is on fine form with the tale of Margaret Plantaganet and her shocking fate at the hands of Henry VIII....Margaret’s story is shocking, deeply moving and offers an alternative view on a much-told tale. Gregory is on form here; her depiction of Henry VIII’s transformation from indulged golden boy to sinister tyrant is perfectly pitched and seems more horrific still when we are made intimate witnesses to the devastation of Margaret’s family....I defy anyone to remain dry-eyed as the story reaches its tragic denouement.” full review
Elizabeth Fremantle, Sunday Express
“Gregory manages to keep us in suspense as to what will befall her characters.... Under [her] spell, we keep hoping history won't repeat itself.” full review
Kirkus Reviews
“[A] gripping and detailed chronicle, with plenty of court intrigue and politics to spice up the action....Highly recommended.”
Library Journal (starred review)
“Infuses vitality into an oft-forgotten player in the aftermath of the War of the Roses – Margaret Pole, heiress to the defeated Plantagenet clan.”
Closer
“Without a doubt, Gregory has made another powerful addition to the genre.... This historian’s extensive knowledge of the English monarchy truly brings this famous story to life.”
The Sun News (Myrtle Beach)
“This one has a glimpse of young Henry's early pathological anxiety, and a charismatic main character — Margaret Pole is tenacious and intelligent. ” full review
NPR Books
“Gregory’s already covered the cataclysm, and now she ends her long series by dissecting the bitter aftermath, and she makes the marvelous dramatic decision to do that in the person of Margaret Pole....reads with unflagging energy” full review
Open Letters Monthly
“Gregory has given us another fabulous heroine; a likeable, clever character who becomes one of the wealthiest women in the country. The reader is drawn into her passion for life” full review
Irish Examiner
“She has created a wholly believable narrative voice in Margaret Pole” full review
Daily Mail
“A gripping story: Gregory's style is lively and accessible”
Kate Saunders, The Times
“It is wonderful stuff....a fantastic read. However much there may already have been written about the Tudors, this is well worth adding to your collection. ” full review
Lovereading
“Gregory vividly recreates the heart-breaking choices Margaret had to make between the king and her beloved queen. This is popular historical fiction at its finest.”
Good Housekeeping
“an excellent addition to the Tudor royalty genre, not only for its unique perspective, but also the easy flow of the narrative and the intriguing complexities of characters’ personalities.” full review
Historical Novel Society (Editors' Choice)
“an illuminating portrait.... Gregory moves confidently through a tangle of intrigue, revenge, and tyranny toward a shocking betrayal.” full review
Publishers Weekly
“Gregory takes us beyond the seductive trappings of historical detail and makes us feel the terror of what living through that turbulent period might have been like.” full review
Miami Herald
“Gregory has built a reputation as a historical novelist of the first rank, and this latest work has historical accuracy and vivid storytelling.” full review
The Irish Times
“The novel is one of her best....Gregory does an excellent job of showing the impact of the Dissolution of the Monasteries on the people of England” full review
The History Lady
“Nobody does dynastic history like Gregory” full review
Booklist
“With her trademark vivid imagination and powerful sense of the communion of women, Gregory portrays Margaret’s harrowing life and times against the backdrop of the second Tudor king Henry VIII’s descent from golden prince to irrational tyrant. And it is this electrifying depiction of the king’s terrifying paranoia and his uncertain grip on the throne that steals the show, adding palpable tension to the plight of a woman caught between the past and the present....Once again, Gregory throws new light on a medieval woman of substance” full review
Blackpool Gazette
“The book I'd like to give: The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory. She's just so good and every woman I know loves her books”
Marian Keyes, Woman & Home
“Philippa Gregory is a writer supremely at home in a period of English history she has made her own. She has brought her sequence of novels about women of the Plantagenet dynasty to a fine conclusion”
BBC History
The Women of the Cousins' War
Released 2011
“ My first published history book. It was extraordinary to use the material that I had researched for a novel and write it as a "straight" history. I also wrote the foreword to this collection of three historical essays about the women that have come to fascinate me: Jacquetta the Duchess of Bedford, Elizabeth Woodville, the Queen, and Margaret Beaufort, the King's Mother. ”
1416
When this book opens in 1416, with the birth of Jacquetta of Luxembourg, Henry V is on the throne and England is at war with France in a series of conflicts that would later become known as The Hundred Years' War. Henry VI takes the throne in 1422 and begins his long reign of England through some of its most turbulent times including Joan of Arc's mission and beginning of The Wars of the Roses - though at the time it was known as The Cousins' War as the feuding families of York and Lancaster fought for power and position.
The Lady of the Rivers
Released 2011
“ When I started research on Jacquetta Duchess of Bedford I found pretty much nothing. There was a chapter in a PhD thesis, and one essay. And yet this is the mother and grandmother of queens of England, and a major player at both royal courts of Lancaster and York. There was more magic in this story than any I have written since the more fictional novel The Wise Woman and this was because Jacquetta was descended from a family who claimed to have a water spirit in their family tree, and she was associated for all her life with the practise of witchcraft. I found her to be utterly fascinating, and I hope that historians go on to research her life in detail. ”
1430
Henry VI is a child king, only nine years old, crowned before his first birthday after the death of his father Henry V on campaign. England is in the midst of the Hundred Years' War in France, however life in England is peaceful for most. Sensing an opportunity to overthrow the weakened House of Lancaster, the House of York led by Richard Duke of York claim a stronger link to the throne. This rivalry brings about a series of devastating battles which would come to be known as The Wars of The Roses and would turn neighbour against neighbour, cousin against cousin.
The Red Queen
Released 2010
“ As soon as I had completed my research on The White Queen I realised that I wanted to write a companion novel about the other side, the Tudors and Margaret Beaufort the matriarch of their house. ”
1453
Now a grown man, Henry VI has maintained his hold on the English throne, despite decades of political and military challenges by the House of York. The Hundred Years' War comes to an end in France and England is defeated, losing all of her territory except for Calais. News of defeat drives King Henry into an unresponsive stupor. His wife, the despised Margaret of Anjou, cannot keep control and their great rival Richard Duke of York becomes Protector of the Realm. England is in limbo: a king crippled by insanity, a disliked and mistrusted queen, and two great families vying for control of the kingdom. Meanwhile a third potential line of succession is emerging from the agreed marriage of the newly ennobled Edmund Tudor Earl of Richmond to the child heiress Margaret Beaufort.
Changeling
Released 2012
“ My first book in the Order of Darkness series which proved to be a really liberating experience. It is set in 1453 and the circumstances of the novel are authentic history but the characters are completely invented and their adventures are imaginary. This gives me a chance to be more novelist than historian and I have loved this series and the way that the completely fictional characters are free to develop. ”
1453
In Italy, the renaissance is gaining momentum and Italians are becoming increasingly interested in learning and understanding classical thinking and philosophy. Despite this growing focus on intellectual curiosity, there remains a strong loyalty to the Catholic Church and belief in magic, mysticism and superstition is rife. In order to retain its control, the Church must identify which phenomena can be rationally explained and which may really be magic.
Stormbringers
Released 2013
“ The second book of the Order of Darkness series takes our travelling inquiry to a small imaginary town (very near Rimini, actually!) as a Children's Crusade arrives and hopes that the seas will part. This is where the characters of Isolde and Ishraq really start to differ as the young women encounter danger and opportunity faced with a raging sea and then the challenge of another exotic world. ”
1453
During a time of religious fervour and superstition, the enormously powerful Catholic Church is facing its greatest threat to date. Its longstanding religious enemy, the Ottoman Empire has captured and taken control of Constantinople, overthrowing the Byzantine Empire and becoming one of the most powerful states in the world - and now a very real threat to Western Europe. Christian men and women are kidnapped by the Ottoman slaving galleys and sold as slaves, the seas are no longer safe from Ottoman raiding ships and the Ottoman armies of Sultan Mehmed II are moving ever further into central Europe.
Fools' Gold
Released 2014
“ The third book in the Order of Darkness series is set in the thriving city of Venice. I had the pleasure of travelling to Venice to research the book which was an immensely interesting trip. There really was no other city in Europe like Venice at the time, especially during the carnival celebrations. ”
1454
The Venetian empire was one of the most powerful and wealthy empires in Europe. Its influence was ever increasing, as its borders expanded in all directions. At the heart of the empire is Venice, the shimmering, sparkling city of canals and fine buildings. Its inhabitants are from all over Europe and the East, and jewels, spices, gold and silver are traded daily. Everything and anything can be bought in Venice - for a price. There were rumours that scholars who studied the science of alchemy were able to make gold or silver by heating base metals over a very high heat, and that they could even create the elixir of life, which could grant immortality to the person who possessed the elixir.
The White Queen
Released 2009
“ This was my first step back in time from the Tudors. I had read that Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII had been Richard III's lover, and this was such an extraordinary claim that I started to read about her, and from her to her mother, the almost-unknown Elizabeth Woodville. When I started to look at her there was only one reliable biography, by historian David Baldwin, and it was on his biography and my own research that I based this first book in the series that has gone on to be a major BBC TV series. ”
1464
The country has been torn apart by the Wars of the Roses between the royal houses of York and Lancaster. The old king Henry VI and his wife Margaret of Anjou have escaped to Scotland and the Lancastrian armies have been decimated by the York forces at the Battle of Towton - the bloodiest ever fought on English soil. England has a new king on the throne: Edward IV of the House of York - young, handsome and daring.
The Kingmaker's Daughter
Released 2012
“ Nearly named the Kingmaker's Daughters, this is the story of Isabel and Anne Neville, daughters to the Earl of Warwick who fought for both York and Lancaster, but always for himself. Anne is married to Prince Edward and could easily have been a Lancastrian Queen of England but for the fortunes of war which meant that she married Richard III and became a York Queen of England. It's a story about ambition and the price that has to be paid. ”
1465
King Edward IV's secret marriage Elizabeth Woodville fractured his relationship with his cousin and supporter Richard Neville Earl of Warwick, who was known as 'The Kingmaker'. Warwick believed that he would be in a position to rule England through Edward; when he could not, he began to look elsewhere for power and used his daughters Isabel and Anne to create new alliances.
The White Princess
Released 2013
“ Oh! I love this book so much. This is the story of Elizabeth of York who is forced to marry Henry VII as part of the peace settlement to bring about the end of the Cousins' War. To her horror she finds her throne is threatened by a young man who is claiming to be her brother Richard, missing from the Tower of London. Half of England sides with the young man against the usurping Tudor, what should Elizabeth do? I think this is probably one of the most complex historical novels I have ever written - the merging of the personal and the political is very intense, and the blending of the historical research and the imagined psychologies has been a great joy. ”
1485
Henry Tudor is king, snatching the crown from Richard III in a surprise victory at the Battle of Bosworth. Raised in exile in Brittany and having taken the throne with a French and Scottish force, Henry had neither the easy popularity nor the longstanding political allegiances of the House of York. As a result, he had to face repeated rebellions and threats to his throne. In an attempt to unify the warring Houses of Lancaster and York, Henry marries the York Princess Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville.
The Constant Princess
Released 2005
“ The story of Katherine of Aragon who is very neglected by historians, but who was the longest-serving wife of Henry VIII, and who helped him to take the throne and learn the trade of kingship. I was fascinated by her background, I travelled to Granada to see for myself her childhood home, the beautiful Alhambra palace, and I became certain that the young woman that she became was far more interesting and active than the picture we have of her of the 'old woman' that would be replaced by the 'young mistress'. Deliberately I ended the novel at the moment of her greatest triumph when she was a successful queen militant as her mother Isabella of Spain had been. ”
1491
Henry Tudor and Elizabeth of York's son Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales is betrothed to the Spanish Princess Katherine of Aragon. But Arthur's sudden death, followed by his mother's, leaves Henry Tudor with a difficult to decision, to marry his son's wife himself or to arrange her marriage to his younger son.
The King's Curse
Released 2014
“ This is a novel which changed its nature, content and significance from when I started research until publication. Right up until the last stage of copy editing I was revising and adding material and characters to this dark story. I started it, thinking that it would be a relatively simple telling of the tragic story of Margaret Pole – daughter of George Duke of Clarence and Isabel Neville. George was the brother of Edward IV, probably drowned in a vat of Malmsey wine for treason against Edward and Queen Elizabeth. As the book progressed I discovered that Margaret was a central figure in the Tudor court, and probably actively involved in the endless conspiracies against Henry VIII and his advisors. This hidden rebellion reached its peak in the uprising of the North called the Pilgrimage of Grace. The pilgrims won their aims of defending the Roman Catholic traditions and the return of the traditional advisors, but Henry reneged on his promises and sent his troops for a terrible persecution to men who held a royal pardon. Margaret, and her entire family, came under suspicion too and this novel moved far from the template of a persecuted heroine and became the story of a merciless murder of a family. Margaret's betrayer, and her defenders all come under the gaze of a king who was increasingly frightened and, I believe delusional. It's been a chilling and powerful book to write and the image of Henry VIII, composer of 'Greensleeves' beloved of primary school history, will never be the same again for me. He was a serial killer and this book traces his steps towards psychosis. ”
1499
England is under a Tudor king. Henry VII has two sons with Elizabeth of York which should have secured his line, yet his court is still filled with fear and suspicion. Plantagenet is a dangerous name to carry and the heiress Margaret Pole is swiftly married off to a staunch Tudor supporter, but her brother Edward's claim cannot be ignored. Henry executes him on Tower Hill, leaving Margaret to face a lifetime of uncertainty.
Three Sisters, Three Queens
Released 2016
“ 'Three Sisters, Three Queens': the title of my new book featuring Margaret Tudor, Henry VIII's older sister, only came to me when I realised that the book was not just about this extraordinary woman who married three times, twice against the wishes of her family for love, ruled Scotland and raised a king; but also about her equally formidable sister-in-law, Katherine of Aragon, and her sister Mary Tudor. It was extraordinary to see how the fortunes of one woman rose coincidentally with the failure of another, and how the issues of arranged marriage, widowhood, divorce and re-marriage dominated the lives of all three. I was also writing very much to the idea of sisterhood – the rivalry, love, pride and jealousy that sisters often bring to each other. I wanted this book to go to the very heart of being a sister, a queen, and sister to a great queen. ”
1501
Katherine of Aragon, Infanta of Spain, has arrived in England to marry Arthur Prince of Wales. King Henry VII’s hugely expensive celebrations are attended by ambassadors negotiating his next diplomatic success – the marriage of Princess Margaret and James IV of Scotland. With her brother on the throne of England and herself on the throne of Scotland Margaret is to ensure a Perpetual Peace between the two endlessly warring countries – a strategy far more easily planned than enacted.
The Other Boleyn Girl
Released 2001
“ This has to be one of my favourite books of all time for it is the one that made my name, was adapted by the BBC and Hollywood, and established the style that has come to be my 'signature' style: the first person view of history from a lesser known, or perhaps unknown, historical character. Mary Boleyn was a great find and this novel has given rise to three biographies about her, and established her as a historical character instead of being the sister that nobody knew about. ”
1521
King Henry VIII is married to his brother's widow, Katherine of Aragon, who has given him a daughter, Princess Mary. An attractive and charismatic king, Henry quickly created a grand and fashionable court, full of celebration and pleasure. When Katherine cannot give him the son that he needs and his lover's sister Anne Boleyn arrives at court, he decides to take action that will change England and its religion forever.
The Boleyn Inheritance
Released 2006
“ I remember writing this novel very vividly for a bad fall from my horse had confined me to bed for six weeks in a lot of pain, and I dived into this novel so that I could take myself somewhere else. What a world I stepped into! My Anne of Cleves, unlike the cliche of the fat Flanders mare, is a pretty courageous energetic survivor, and my Katherine Howard is not a 'slut' (as a modern historian has called her) but a young girl foolish and vain as young girls sometimes are, but dangerously ill advised and married more or less against her best interests to the most dangerous man in England. I tackle the enigma of Jane Rochford in this novel too. Nobody knows for sure why she would be complicit in the execution of two queens of England - I suggest madness, but readers must make up their own minds. ”
1539
Just eleven days after King Henry VIII had his second wife Anne beheaded for treason, he married Jane Seymour who gave him a son, Prince Edward, but died soon after his birth. King Henry needed more sons to secure his line and safeguard the House of Tudor, he looked overseas for this next bride and picked Anne of Cleves but would soon be side-tracked by the young, vivacious Katherine Howard.
The Wise Woman
Released 1992
“ A book in which I released some of my thoughts and fears about magic and superstition, this remains a powerful book for me. It was set in County Durham and Moragh's cottage was my home for three years. I frightened myself in the writing of it so much that I could only write during daylight hours. But I think it is more than a scary book - I think it is also a consideration of how a woman is to be, and who should be her mentors. ”
1540
Henry VIII has reformed the Church of England, breaking away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. Keen to reinforce his position as the new head of the church and to take advantage of the wealth of the Catholic Church, Henry began the Dissolution - the raiding and wrecking of all of the Catholic convents and monasteries in England. In this time of religious tensions and instability, belief in witchcraft and the supernatural began to spread throughout the country, causing increasing concern. As a result, King Henry decides to introduce an act of Parliament making witchcraft punishable by death - and making England a much more dangerous place for a young woman without wealth or family.
The Taming of the Queen
Released 2015
“ All of my titles are a bit of a labour of love, because I see them as a sort of cryptic message to the reader which sometimes says what the book is simply about, and sometimes says what it means. The title for this book had to reflect my real admiration for the heroine, and also the challenge she faced – not just to survive, but also to retain her courage and her power and her vision. The heroine/narrator is Kateryn Parr, Henry VIII's last and little-known queen, a woman who came to her own individual understanding of her husband, an increasingly sick and tyrannical king, and the world that she lived in. She was a leader of reform and (to me the most important) the first woman to publish her own work in print under her own name in England in English. This is so extraordinary I don't know why we aren't all taught her in schools. But what to call her fictionalised biography? Of course, I knew that she had to silence her voice and keep her writing secret during the months that Henry suspected her, and so I wanted something that would acknowledge his power over her. This is not trivial or romantic – this is tyranny to a murderous degree. And I wanted something which put her in the bitter context of all the other women who are silenced. In this way, Kateryn speaks for all who have not been allowed an education, or to speak, or to write.Then I learned that Nicholas Udall, the playwright, had possibly premiered a play before her called 'Ralph Roister Doister' – a play about a household of women with a woman head and their spirited and violent defence against an aggressive bullying man. Borrowed by Shakespeare and skewed towards male power this became 'The Taming of the Shrew' – the story of a powerful furious woman who submits to an aggressive bullying man. I had my title: ‘The Taming of the Queen’ – a novel about a woman who is silenced by male power and terrorised by male threat, but who survives to write, to make her own life, and even to love. ”
1543
Only months after the king sentenced his fifth wife to death, he was looking for his sixth, and chose the recently-widowed, thirty-year-old Kateryn Parr, who was planning to marry the handsome bachelor Thomas Seymour. As soon as the king showed his interest in the beautiful widow she had to serve the interests of her family and agree to marry him, become Queen of England and stepmother to his children, and rule England in his absence. But the king, old, angry and in pain, was hard to please; and very soon Kateryn’s outspoken support of the Reformation put her in grave danger from the courtiers, conspiring for power.
The Queen's Fool
Released 2003
“ Whenever people tell me their favourite of all my books, this is the one that is most often mentioned. I think people love the character of Hannah, who is invented but inspired by the existence of a real female 'Fool' who served Mary I. If you have a hardback edition you can see the royal picture which is thought to show her in a doorway in the endpapers. It is one of my favourite books and led on to The Virgin's Lover. ”
1548
Henry VIII is dead, succeeded by his only legitimate son, nine year old Edward VI. Too young to rule, the realm is governed by a Regency Council, led by his uncle, Edward Seymour. Edward has continued his father's reformation of the church and Protestantism is becoming established, however England is still unsettled with rioting and rebellions common. Edward was close to and well loved by both of his half-sisters: the Catholic Princess Mary, daughter of Katherine of Aragon and the Protestant Princess Elizabeth, daughter of the executed Anne Boleyn. However, he and his advisors were concerned that should he die without issue, his sister Princess Mary would return the country to Catholicism.
The Virgin's Lover
Released 2004
“ This is an interesting book for me since the logic of the narrative and the characters involved in the story made me look at the real life evidence for the accidental death of Amy Dudley. When I was writing the novel it was widely accepted that she had broken her neck as a result of a fall. It seemed to me that murder was a far more likely cause, and you can read the novel to see who I suspect. It was very exciting when, long after publication, the original documents of her inquest were found showing that she died from blows to the head made by a weapon. Amy Dudley was indeed murdered, but we still don't know who was the murderer. ”
1558
Upon his unexpected early death in 1553, King Edward VI nominated his cousin, a committed Protestant, Lady Jane Grey as his successor. Just nine days after she was crowned, Edward's sister Princess Mary had raised supporters and persuaded the Privy Council to switch their allegiance - declaring her the rightful queen and imprisoning Jane. Queen Mary began to reverse the Protestant reformation of her father, restoring Roman Catholic bishops and persecuting Protestants. Despite several reported pregnancies, Mary's marriage to Philip of Spain produced no children. So on her death, her sister the Protestant Princess Elizabeth succeeded her to the throne.
The Other Queen
Released 2008
“ It is a challenge to write a novel about Mary Queen of Scots – so much has been written about her already – a play and an opera as well as dozens of histories. In this novel I looked at her long years of imprisonment and the extraordinary triangle that developed between her, her gaoler the Earl of Shrewsbury and his wonderful wife Bess of Hardwick. The dynamic between these three makes this novel not just a historical novel about the times but a psychological study of three people trapped together. ”
1568
Elizabeth I has been Queen of England for ten years. She is still unmarried, despite considering several suitors and having conducted a love affair with the married Robert Dudley Earl of Leicester – whose wife had then died under suspicious circumstances. With no heir, Elizabeth refused to name a successor – leading to the dissolution of parliament and putting England in a potentially dangerous position. One possible successor to Elizabeth was her first cousin once removed – the Catholic Mary Queen of Scots, whom many English Catholics believed to be the true English heir to the throne. However Mary is under imprisonment in Loch Leven Castle after marrying her third husband James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell – the man widely believed to have earlier murdered Mary's second husband Lord Darnley – and she appeals to her cousin Elizabeth for support.
Earthly Joys
Released 1998
“ My editor had suggested that I write a biography – they were hugely fashionable in this year – and I wanted to write about someone who worked with his hands. While I was puzzling about who would be the subject of a fictional biography I was given a book on plant collectors and gardeners and read of John Tradescant. It happened that I visited a garden centre, and tripped and literally fell into a tray of Tradescantia. It was enough of a hint! I started research on John Tradescant and found enough material for two books, and developed an entirely new style of writing: the fictionalised biography. ”
1603
In 1603, at the age of 69, Queen Elizabeth died and was succeeded by her cousin King James VI of Scotland – finally uniting the crowns of Scotland and England and beginning the Stuart reign of England.
Virgin Earth
Released 1999
“ This was one of my favourite books to write, I researched it on a visit to Jamestown and went on to a reservation for the Pamunky (Powhatan) people. I was honoured with an invitation into a private home and had a long talk about the history of the people. This book is divided between the two terrible conflicts: colonists against indigenous peoples in America, and royalists against roundheads in England. I met the great historian of the period Christopher Hill and asked him did he think it possible that a man like John Tradescant might leave England to escape the conflict and he laughed and said that any sensible man would leave England in the middle of a civil war - so I felt very justified in my development of John's character and the two locations of this novel of a man divided between two loves. ”
1638
Charles I is on the throne. He has dissolved parliament for the third time and resolved to rule alone. In order to manage the debts generated during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I and fund his overseas wars with Spain and France, Charles repeatedly invented new and re-established obsolete forms of taxation. This during a time when harvests were failing caused widespread poverty and social unrest. Charles had become increasingly unpopular with the English people – his friendship with the assassinated George Villiers Duke of Buckingham had alienated the noble families whilst his failure to successfully support Protestant forces during the Thirty Years' War and marriage to a Roman Catholic French Princess caused suspicion and mistrust amongst his people. As the country descended into civil war, many chose to emigrate to the recently settled American colonies in search of freedom – despite Charles's attempts to stem the flow.
Wideacre
Released 1987
“ This is my first novel, which I wrote as I completed my PhD in 18th century history and literature, when – without planning to do so – I served an apprenticeship in the 18th century novels which were being invented at that time. The oppression of women, the rebellion of the poor all came from the history of the time, the love of landscape from my own childhood and the fevered sexuality all my own imagination. I wrote Wideacre in an old ruled notebook by hand, and put on the front, 'Philippa Gregory – Best Selling Novel'. Unbelievably it was. It sold world-wide in a bidding war and I decided to become a writer. ”
1772
The novel is set in the second part of the eighteenth century, during the time of the enclosure acts, a series of UK Acts of Parliament which enclosed open fields and common land in the country. The 'Tragedy of the Commons' removed previously existing rights of local people to carry out activities. Private ownership of land is a modern idea, and was outside the comprehension of most people. The king, or the Lord of the Manor, usually owned an estate, but the people enjoyed all sorts of rights which enabled him, or her, to graze stock, cut wood or peat, draw water or grow crops, on various plots of land at specified times of year.
A Respectable Trade
Released 1995
“ A profoundly important book for me to write, this book tells the story of the English slave trade, the import of black people as slaves into England, an almost totally forgotten history when I started research. The great source book for me was Peter Fryer's Staying Power, in which he writes of the presence of black people in Britain from the Roman Empire onwards. It was a moment of great gladness when he wrote a generous review praising the novel. I travelled to the Gambia to research the African part of the story and while I was there met the schoolmaster who founded, with me, our charity, Gardens for the Gambia. The novel scandalised my home town of Bristol which has tried to forget the terrible legacy of slavery, and inspired many black readers to study the history of 18th century slavery in England. I wrote the screenplay for the BBC TV drama based on the book and was proud to win the Committee for Racial Equality award for best TV drama, and be runner up for a BAFTA. ”
1787
As the 18th century draws to a close, Great Britain has become a major international power through victory over France in the Americas and the colonisation of large parts of India. In England, the Industrial Revolution is taking hold and radically changing both the environment and society. Alongside the spread of the Empire across the globe, the transatlantic trade in slaves also increased dramatically, becoming a very lucrative business for ports such as Bristol and Liverpool. The majority of the enslaved people, stolen from Africa by the British, were sold to the plantations of the European colonies, however, a number were also brought back to Britain to be kept or sold as domestic slaves. By the 1770s, some Christians were beginning to question the morality of the trade. However, the slavers would prove unwilling to give up such a profitable business without a fight.
The Favoured Child
Released 1989
“ This is that difficult beast: the second novel. I rewrote it through more drafts than anything since. I poured into it my thoughts about the gentrification of women, and their use as symbols of status. I still think of it as a novel which has more complexity than one might expect. I loved the heroine and especially the sequences in Bath. I went to stay in Bath to research the history of the town and uncovered a darker side to the spa which I think serves the story well, as it is so much about the shadows of regency England. ”
1790
England is in the grip of the Industrial Revolution. The impact of the Enclosures Act and rapid growth of industry led to an increasing movement of people away from living and working in the countryside and into towns and cities. The earlier influence and status of the rich landowners was under threat from the intellectuals of the enlightenment and as a result, the rigid social hierarchies were beginning to change. Despite such changes however, women were still no closer to gaining access to legal rights or equal academic or professional opportunities. Property and money were held only by men and women were generally under the control of a man - her father and then subsequently her husband. Most women - especially those from wealthy families had few rights and fewer life choices.
Meridon
Released 1990
“ This was the book that I was longing to write from the moment that I finished Wideacre as it was the conclusion of the story and the happy ending. I had a wonderful summer of research when I stayed with a circus for the summer season and travelled with them and worked as a circus hand so that I could understand the life. The Wiltshire sequences are set in a well-loved house near Warminster where I used to stay as a child, and the return to Wideacre took me back to my beloved Sussex. The London sequences I traced out walking around London with a valuable 18th century map as my A to Z, seeing where Meridon might live and how she would ride in the park. It was a hugely joyful book to write and I foresaw in it a happy time for myself, and the horse that I bought after writing about Meridon's beloved grey horse: my own grey horse, Comet. ”
1805
As the nineteenth century opens, the Industrial Revolution is gaining momentum and driving significant economic and social change throughout Great Britain. This combined with the ongoing expansion of the British Empire has led to the United Kingdom becoming the richest and most powerful country in the world. As a result, it is facing threats from its old enemies - Napoleon's France and Spain. Within England, the Industrial Revolution is transforming the economy and leading to a widening gap between the rich and poor. Social dissatisfaction and unrest is increasing.
Fallen Skies
Released 1993
“ One of the books where the fiction foretells the fact. I wrote this novel while I was trying for my second baby and in the novel the heroine gives birth to a blond 7lb boy - so did I. ”
1920
Great Britain is recovering from World War I and the lifting of restrictions created new sorts of night-life in London. Clubs, restaurants and dance halls catered for the new craze of jazz dancing. Wireless radio was to be the technological marvel of the decade. But is was also a period of depression, unemployment was high and mass production techniques started to replace traditional industry.
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Philippa Gregory
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Who designed the cover of the album The Velvet Underground & Nico?
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The White Queen - Philippa Gregory
Philippa Gregory
Established historian & writer. International No 1 best seller.
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The White Queen
The Cousins’ War Series
The first in a stunning new series, The Cousins’ War, is set amid the tumult and intrigue of the Wars of the Roses. Internationally bestselling author Philippa Gregory brings this extraordinary family drama to vivid life through its women – beginning with Elizabeth Woodville, the White Queen.
Elizabeth Woodville, of the House of Lancaster, is widowed when her husband is killed in battle. Aided and abetted by the raw ambition and witchcraft skills of her mother Jacquetta, Elizabeth seduces and marries, in secret, reigning king Edward IV, of the family of the white rose, the House of York. As long as there are other claimants to Edward’s throne, the profound rivalries between the two families will never be laid to rest. Violent conflict, shocking betrayal and murder dominate Elizabeth’s life as Queen of England, passionate wife of Edward and devoted mother of their children.
In The White Queen Philippa Gregory brilliantly evokes the life of a common woman who ascends to royalty by virtue of her beauty, a woman who rises to the demands of her position and fights tenaciously for the survival of her family, a woman whose two sons become the central figures in a mystery that has confounded historians for centuries: the Princes in the Tower, whose fate remains unknown to this day.
From her uniquely qualified perspective, she explores this most famous unsolved mystery, informed by impeccable research and framed by her inimitable storytelling skills.
Philippa Gregory
Behind the Book
Released in 2009
This was my first step back in time from the Tudors. I had read that Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII had been Richard III's lover, and this was such an extraordinary claim that I started to read about her, and from her to her mother, the almost-unknown Elizabeth Woodville. When I started to look at her there was only one reliable biography, by historian David Baldwin, and it was on his biography and my own research that I based this first book in the series that has gone on to be a major BBC TV series.
The book opens in 1464
The country has been torn apart by the Wars of the Roses between the royal houses of York and Lancaster. The old king Henry VI and his wife Margaret of Anjou have escaped to Scotland and the Lancastrian armies have been decimated by the York forces at the Battle of Towton - the bloodiest ever fought on English soil. England has a new king on the throne: Edward IV of the House of York - young, handsome and daring.
You can read the history behind this book in The Women of the Cousins' War , a series of non-fiction essays on the lives of Jacquetta Duchess of Bedford, her daughter Elizabeth Woodville and Elizabeth's great rival, Margaret Beaufort.
This book has been adapted for television in the BBC and Starz drama The White Queen (2013); Elizabeth is played by Rebecca Ferguson and Edward by Max Irons.
Visit the Family Tree
Read Chapter One
Reviews
“Gregory's exhaustive research, lush detail and deft storytelling are all in top form here, making The White Queen both mesmerizing and historically rich”
People Magazine
“As always Gregory fills out all the dark corners of history and creates a thrilling read, and again creates a portrait of female society that has more power (diamond-hard women who will see their sons and husbands rule at any cost) than is generally acknowledged”
Kirkus Reviews
“She is particularly good at recreating the hushed tension of a battlefield before the bloodshed begins, while the scenes at court have a real sense of immediacy. Yet it's the quieter domestic scenes where Gregory really convinces in bringing this troubled time in history to life” full review
The Daily Mail
“Gregory's clever blend of fact and fiction is a lot racier than the average historical biography.... her tale of Elizabeth Woodville's tenacious fight for her family's position during the Wars of the Roses oozes sex appeal and suspense”
Glamour
“Wonderful”
The Times
“Gregory also keeps her reader glued with well-researched accounts of courtly intrigue and the sense that in this period, suspicion and brutal death were everywhere.” full review
Metro
“a tightly-organized and well-researched dramatization of the tempestuous life of Elizabeth Woodville....Gregory manages to thoroughly sympathize with her characters, even while she’s presenting them warts and all....highly enjoyable” full review
Open Letters Monthly
“Gregory brings this period of history and another strong female character to life with the same colour and intrigue that she applies to all of her novels. It is an informative and riveting read from start to finish.” full review
Edinburgh Evening News
“Gregory sets her players up like chess pieces, moving them around skilfully and swiftly, with wonderful results....This is as close to a trip in a time machine as it gets” full review
The Globe and Mail
“Philippa Gregory is the current leading light of the genre. ” full review
The Big Issue
“Philippa Gregory turns real-life historical royalty into royally entertaining novels” full review
Time
“The queen of British historical fiction kicks off a new series....she captures vividly the terrible inertia of war. ” full review
Publishers Weekly
“It is a well-told story....richly detailed and fast-moving. Gregory’s legion of fans will be delighted.”
Booklist
“Gregory, a very talented writer, deftly develops Elizabeth into a sympathetic character from a history that is not always kind to her. ” full review
Historical Novels Review
“you should definitely read The White Queen....Passionate, mysterious and with a hint of magic, [it] will delight any Game of Thrones fan who wants the women to win it all.” full review
B&N Reads – '5 Fantasy Romances Game of Thrones Fans Will Love'
“Engrossing…Gregory has a deft hand with historical imagination” full review
Diana Gabaldon, The Washington Post
“Philippa Gregory takes us back to the Wars of the Roses in this entrancing novel. In Elizabeth she has alighted on an intriguing subject. ” full review
The Telegraph
“Of Woodville herself, Gregory makes a fascinating heroine; strong, ambitious, vengeful, beautiful and tinged with more than a hint of witchcraft. Popular history at its best.” full review
The Daily Mail
“History comes gloriously alive as widowed Elizabeth Woodville of the House of Lancaster seduces and marries Yorkist King Edward IV. From then on conflict, betrayal and murder stalk her life as the Queen of England”
Daily Mirror
“The contemporary mistress of historical crime. Her novels are filled with strong, determined women who take their fate into their own hands”
Kate Mosse, Financial Times
“a rollercoaster of a read, clearsighted about human nature, and utterly unputdownable.” full review
The Irish Times
“Whips along with lashings of historical intrigue”
Company
“Philippa Gregory is widely known as the benchmark against which all historical authors are measured and rightly so.... A gripping read from start to finish” full review
Novelicious.com
“all the people in this important and fascinating time in British history come marvelously alive in The White Queen” full review
BookPage
“Incredibly rich in historical fact and with characters so convincingly imagined you will be totally drawn in to this story of politics, power, murder and scandal. This is Philippa Gregory at the top of her game and we thoroughly recommend it.” full review
Lovereading
“a rattling good yarn, extremely well told....Gregory navigates herself faultlessly through the period with a fine sense of what was distinctive about it.” full review
The Wall Street Journal
“Gregory shows a sure touch from beginning to end, weaving a compelling story with vivid characters.”
Library Journal
“[Gregory] delivers another riveting tale of a strong woman, making her life leap from the pages. History becomes an adventure, a mystery, a love story and a powerful drama in her capable hands as she reimagines the plight of the little princes and presents an intriguing portrait of Richard III. This is what we read for.” full review
Romantic Times (Top Pick; RT Historical Biography Award Nominee 2009)
“Gregory has become something of a master of plausible deniability when it comes to incorporating magic into an otherwise straight-up historical fiction....it adds a nice layer of spice to an well-crafted story.” full review
B&N Sci-fi & Fantasy Blog – '6 Historical Fiction Novels That Are Almost Fantasy'
Translated Versions
漢語/汉语 (hànyǔ); 中文 (zhōngwén) SHANGHAI LITERATURE AND ART PUBLISHING HOUSE
Buy this Book
The Women of the Cousins' War
Released 2011
“ My first published history book. It was extraordinary to use the material that I had researched for a novel and write it as a "straight" history. I also wrote the foreword to this collection of three historical essays about the women that have come to fascinate me: Jacquetta the Duchess of Bedford, Elizabeth Woodville, the Queen, and Margaret Beaufort, the King's Mother. ”
1416
When this book opens in 1416, with the birth of Jacquetta of Luxembourg, Henry V is on the throne and England is at war with France in a series of conflicts that would later become known as The Hundred Years' War. Henry VI takes the throne in 1422 and begins his long reign of England through some of its most turbulent times including Joan of Arc's mission and beginning of The Wars of the Roses - though at the time it was known as The Cousins' War as the feuding families of York and Lancaster fought for power and position.
The Lady of the Rivers
Released 2011
“ When I started research on Jacquetta Duchess of Bedford I found pretty much nothing. There was a chapter in a PhD thesis, and one essay. And yet this is the mother and grandmother of queens of England, and a major player at both royal courts of Lancaster and York. There was more magic in this story than any I have written since the more fictional novel The Wise Woman and this was because Jacquetta was descended from a family who claimed to have a water spirit in their family tree, and she was associated for all her life with the practise of witchcraft. I found her to be utterly fascinating, and I hope that historians go on to research her life in detail. ”
1430
Henry VI is a child king, only nine years old, crowned before his first birthday after the death of his father Henry V on campaign. England is in the midst of the Hundred Years' War in France, however life in England is peaceful for most. Sensing an opportunity to overthrow the weakened House of Lancaster, the House of York led by Richard Duke of York claim a stronger link to the throne. This rivalry brings about a series of devastating battles which would come to be known as The Wars of The Roses and would turn neighbour against neighbour, cousin against cousin.
The Red Queen
Released 2010
“ As soon as I had completed my research on The White Queen I realised that I wanted to write a companion novel about the other side, the Tudors and Margaret Beaufort the matriarch of their house. ”
1453
Now a grown man, Henry VI has maintained his hold on the English throne, despite decades of political and military challenges by the House of York. The Hundred Years' War comes to an end in France and England is defeated, losing all of her territory except for Calais. News of defeat drives King Henry into an unresponsive stupor. His wife, the despised Margaret of Anjou, cannot keep control and their great rival Richard Duke of York becomes Protector of the Realm. England is in limbo: a king crippled by insanity, a disliked and mistrusted queen, and two great families vying for control of the kingdom. Meanwhile a third potential line of succession is emerging from the agreed marriage of the newly ennobled Edmund Tudor Earl of Richmond to the child heiress Margaret Beaufort.
Changeling
Released 2012
“ My first book in the Order of Darkness series which proved to be a really liberating experience. It is set in 1453 and the circumstances of the novel are authentic history but the characters are completely invented and their adventures are imaginary. This gives me a chance to be more novelist than historian and I have loved this series and the way that the completely fictional characters are free to develop. ”
1453
In Italy, the renaissance is gaining momentum and Italians are becoming increasingly interested in learning and understanding classical thinking and philosophy. Despite this growing focus on intellectual curiosity, there remains a strong loyalty to the Catholic Church and belief in magic, mysticism and superstition is rife. In order to retain its control, the Church must identify which phenomena can be rationally explained and which may really be magic.
Stormbringers
Released 2013
“ The second book of the Order of Darkness series takes our travelling inquiry to a small imaginary town (very near Rimini, actually!) as a Children's Crusade arrives and hopes that the seas will part. This is where the characters of Isolde and Ishraq really start to differ as the young women encounter danger and opportunity faced with a raging sea and then the challenge of another exotic world. ”
1453
During a time of religious fervour and superstition, the enormously powerful Catholic Church is facing its greatest threat to date. Its longstanding religious enemy, the Ottoman Empire has captured and taken control of Constantinople, overthrowing the Byzantine Empire and becoming one of the most powerful states in the world - and now a very real threat to Western Europe. Christian men and women are kidnapped by the Ottoman slaving galleys and sold as slaves, the seas are no longer safe from Ottoman raiding ships and the Ottoman armies of Sultan Mehmed II are moving ever further into central Europe.
Fools' Gold
Released 2014
“ The third book in the Order of Darkness series is set in the thriving city of Venice. I had the pleasure of travelling to Venice to research the book which was an immensely interesting trip. There really was no other city in Europe like Venice at the time, especially during the carnival celebrations. ”
1454
The Venetian empire was one of the most powerful and wealthy empires in Europe. Its influence was ever increasing, as its borders expanded in all directions. At the heart of the empire is Venice, the shimmering, sparkling city of canals and fine buildings. Its inhabitants are from all over Europe and the East, and jewels, spices, gold and silver are traded daily. Everything and anything can be bought in Venice - for a price. There were rumours that scholars who studied the science of alchemy were able to make gold or silver by heating base metals over a very high heat, and that they could even create the elixir of life, which could grant immortality to the person who possessed the elixir.
The White Queen
Released 2009
“ This was my first step back in time from the Tudors. I had read that Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII had been Richard III's lover, and this was such an extraordinary claim that I started to read about her, and from her to her mother, the almost-unknown Elizabeth Woodville. When I started to look at her there was only one reliable biography, by historian David Baldwin, and it was on his biography and my own research that I based this first book in the series that has gone on to be a major BBC TV series. ”
1464
The country has been torn apart by the Wars of the Roses between the royal houses of York and Lancaster. The old king Henry VI and his wife Margaret of Anjou have escaped to Scotland and the Lancastrian armies have been decimated by the York forces at the Battle of Towton - the bloodiest ever fought on English soil. England has a new king on the throne: Edward IV of the House of York - young, handsome and daring.
The Kingmaker's Daughter
Released 2012
“ Nearly named the Kingmaker's Daughters, this is the story of Isabel and Anne Neville, daughters to the Earl of Warwick who fought for both York and Lancaster, but always for himself. Anne is married to Prince Edward and could easily have been a Lancastrian Queen of England but for the fortunes of war which meant that she married Richard III and became a York Queen of England. It's a story about ambition and the price that has to be paid. ”
1465
King Edward IV's secret marriage Elizabeth Woodville fractured his relationship with his cousin and supporter Richard Neville Earl of Warwick, who was known as 'The Kingmaker'. Warwick believed that he would be in a position to rule England through Edward; when he could not, he began to look elsewhere for power and used his daughters Isabel and Anne to create new alliances.
The White Princess
Released 2013
“ Oh! I love this book so much. This is the story of Elizabeth of York who is forced to marry Henry VII as part of the peace settlement to bring about the end of the Cousins' War. To her horror she finds her throne is threatened by a young man who is claiming to be her brother Richard, missing from the Tower of London. Half of England sides with the young man against the usurping Tudor, what should Elizabeth do? I think this is probably one of the most complex historical novels I have ever written - the merging of the personal and the political is very intense, and the blending of the historical research and the imagined psychologies has been a great joy. ”
1485
Henry Tudor is king, snatching the crown from Richard III in a surprise victory at the Battle of Bosworth. Raised in exile in Brittany and having taken the throne with a French and Scottish force, Henry had neither the easy popularity nor the longstanding political allegiances of the House of York. As a result, he had to face repeated rebellions and threats to his throne. In an attempt to unify the warring Houses of Lancaster and York, Henry marries the York Princess Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville.
The Constant Princess
Released 2005
“ The story of Katherine of Aragon who is very neglected by historians, but who was the longest-serving wife of Henry VIII, and who helped him to take the throne and learn the trade of kingship. I was fascinated by her background, I travelled to Granada to see for myself her childhood home, the beautiful Alhambra palace, and I became certain that the young woman that she became was far more interesting and active than the picture we have of her of the 'old woman' that would be replaced by the 'young mistress'. Deliberately I ended the novel at the moment of her greatest triumph when she was a successful queen militant as her mother Isabella of Spain had been. ”
1491
Henry Tudor and Elizabeth of York's son Arthur Tudor, Prince of Wales is betrothed to the Spanish Princess Katherine of Aragon. But Arthur's sudden death, followed by his mother's, leaves Henry Tudor with a difficult to decision, to marry his son's wife himself or to arrange her marriage to his younger son.
The King's Curse
Released 2014
“ This is a novel which changed its nature, content and significance from when I started research until publication. Right up until the last stage of copy editing I was revising and adding material and characters to this dark story. I started it, thinking that it would be a relatively simple telling of the tragic story of Margaret Pole – daughter of George Duke of Clarence and Isabel Neville. George was the brother of Edward IV, probably drowned in a vat of Malmsey wine for treason against Edward and Queen Elizabeth. As the book progressed I discovered that Margaret was a central figure in the Tudor court, and probably actively involved in the endless conspiracies against Henry VIII and his advisors. This hidden rebellion reached its peak in the uprising of the North called the Pilgrimage of Grace. The pilgrims won their aims of defending the Roman Catholic traditions and the return of the traditional advisors, but Henry reneged on his promises and sent his troops for a terrible persecution to men who held a royal pardon. Margaret, and her entire family, came under suspicion too and this novel moved far from the template of a persecuted heroine and became the story of a merciless murder of a family. Margaret's betrayer, and her defenders all come under the gaze of a king who was increasingly frightened and, I believe delusional. It's been a chilling and powerful book to write and the image of Henry VIII, composer of 'Greensleeves' beloved of primary school history, will never be the same again for me. He was a serial killer and this book traces his steps towards psychosis. ”
1499
England is under a Tudor king. Henry VII has two sons with Elizabeth of York which should have secured his line, yet his court is still filled with fear and suspicion. Plantagenet is a dangerous name to carry and the heiress Margaret Pole is swiftly married off to a staunch Tudor supporter, but her brother Edward's claim cannot be ignored. Henry executes him on Tower Hill, leaving Margaret to face a lifetime of uncertainty.
Three Sisters, Three Queens
Released 2016
“ 'Three Sisters, Three Queens': the title of my new book featuring Margaret Tudor, Henry VIII's older sister, only came to me when I realised that the book was not just about this extraordinary woman who married three times, twice against the wishes of her family for love, ruled Scotland and raised a king; but also about her equally formidable sister-in-law, Katherine of Aragon, and her sister Mary Tudor. It was extraordinary to see how the fortunes of one woman rose coincidentally with the failure of another, and how the issues of arranged marriage, widowhood, divorce and re-marriage dominated the lives of all three. I was also writing very much to the idea of sisterhood – the rivalry, love, pride and jealousy that sisters often bring to each other. I wanted this book to go to the very heart of being a sister, a queen, and sister to a great queen. ”
1501
Katherine of Aragon, Infanta of Spain, has arrived in England to marry Arthur Prince of Wales. King Henry VII’s hugely expensive celebrations are attended by ambassadors negotiating his next diplomatic success – the marriage of Princess Margaret and James IV of Scotland. With her brother on the throne of England and herself on the throne of Scotland Margaret is to ensure a Perpetual Peace between the two endlessly warring countries – a strategy far more easily planned than enacted.
The Other Boleyn Girl
Released 2001
“ This has to be one of my favourite books of all time for it is the one that made my name, was adapted by the BBC and Hollywood, and established the style that has come to be my 'signature' style: the first person view of history from a lesser known, or perhaps unknown, historical character. Mary Boleyn was a great find and this novel has given rise to three biographies about her, and established her as a historical character instead of being the sister that nobody knew about. ”
1521
King Henry VIII is married to his brother's widow, Katherine of Aragon, who has given him a daughter, Princess Mary. An attractive and charismatic king, Henry quickly created a grand and fashionable court, full of celebration and pleasure. When Katherine cannot give him the son that he needs and his lover's sister Anne Boleyn arrives at court, he decides to take action that will change England and its religion forever.
The Boleyn Inheritance
Released 2006
“ I remember writing this novel very vividly for a bad fall from my horse had confined me to bed for six weeks in a lot of pain, and I dived into this novel so that I could take myself somewhere else. What a world I stepped into! My Anne of Cleves, unlike the cliche of the fat Flanders mare, is a pretty courageous energetic survivor, and my Katherine Howard is not a 'slut' (as a modern historian has called her) but a young girl foolish and vain as young girls sometimes are, but dangerously ill advised and married more or less against her best interests to the most dangerous man in England. I tackle the enigma of Jane Rochford in this novel too. Nobody knows for sure why she would be complicit in the execution of two queens of England - I suggest madness, but readers must make up their own minds. ”
1539
Just eleven days after King Henry VIII had his second wife Anne beheaded for treason, he married Jane Seymour who gave him a son, Prince Edward, but died soon after his birth. King Henry needed more sons to secure his line and safeguard the House of Tudor, he looked overseas for this next bride and picked Anne of Cleves but would soon be side-tracked by the young, vivacious Katherine Howard.
The Wise Woman
Released 1992
“ A book in which I released some of my thoughts and fears about magic and superstition, this remains a powerful book for me. It was set in County Durham and Moragh's cottage was my home for three years. I frightened myself in the writing of it so much that I could only write during daylight hours. But I think it is more than a scary book - I think it is also a consideration of how a woman is to be, and who should be her mentors. ”
1540
Henry VIII has reformed the Church of England, breaking away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. Keen to reinforce his position as the new head of the church and to take advantage of the wealth of the Catholic Church, Henry began the Dissolution - the raiding and wrecking of all of the Catholic convents and monasteries in England. In this time of religious tensions and instability, belief in witchcraft and the supernatural began to spread throughout the country, causing increasing concern. As a result, King Henry decides to introduce an act of Parliament making witchcraft punishable by death - and making England a much more dangerous place for a young woman without wealth or family.
The Taming of the Queen
Released 2015
“ All of my titles are a bit of a labour of love, because I see them as a sort of cryptic message to the reader which sometimes says what the book is simply about, and sometimes says what it means. The title for this book had to reflect my real admiration for the heroine, and also the challenge she faced – not just to survive, but also to retain her courage and her power and her vision. The heroine/narrator is Kateryn Parr, Henry VIII's last and little-known queen, a woman who came to her own individual understanding of her husband, an increasingly sick and tyrannical king, and the world that she lived in. She was a leader of reform and (to me the most important) the first woman to publish her own work in print under her own name in England in English. This is so extraordinary I don't know why we aren't all taught her in schools. But what to call her fictionalised biography? Of course, I knew that she had to silence her voice and keep her writing secret during the months that Henry suspected her, and so I wanted something that would acknowledge his power over her. This is not trivial or romantic – this is tyranny to a murderous degree. And I wanted something which put her in the bitter context of all the other women who are silenced. In this way, Kateryn speaks for all who have not been allowed an education, or to speak, or to write.Then I learned that Nicholas Udall, the playwright, had possibly premiered a play before her called 'Ralph Roister Doister' – a play about a household of women with a woman head and their spirited and violent defence against an aggressive bullying man. Borrowed by Shakespeare and skewed towards male power this became 'The Taming of the Shrew' – the story of a powerful furious woman who submits to an aggressive bullying man. I had my title: ‘The Taming of the Queen’ – a novel about a woman who is silenced by male power and terrorised by male threat, but who survives to write, to make her own life, and even to love. ”
1543
Only months after the king sentenced his fifth wife to death, he was looking for his sixth, and chose the recently-widowed, thirty-year-old Kateryn Parr, who was planning to marry the handsome bachelor Thomas Seymour. As soon as the king showed his interest in the beautiful widow she had to serve the interests of her family and agree to marry him, become Queen of England and stepmother to his children, and rule England in his absence. But the king, old, angry and in pain, was hard to please; and very soon Kateryn’s outspoken support of the Reformation put her in grave danger from the courtiers, conspiring for power.
The Queen's Fool
Released 2003
“ Whenever people tell me their favourite of all my books, this is the one that is most often mentioned. I think people love the character of Hannah, who is invented but inspired by the existence of a real female 'Fool' who served Mary I. If you have a hardback edition you can see the royal picture which is thought to show her in a doorway in the endpapers. It is one of my favourite books and led on to The Virgin's Lover. ”
1548
Henry VIII is dead, succeeded by his only legitimate son, nine year old Edward VI. Too young to rule, the realm is governed by a Regency Council, led by his uncle, Edward Seymour. Edward has continued his father's reformation of the church and Protestantism is becoming established, however England is still unsettled with rioting and rebellions common. Edward was close to and well loved by both of his half-sisters: the Catholic Princess Mary, daughter of Katherine of Aragon and the Protestant Princess Elizabeth, daughter of the executed Anne Boleyn. However, he and his advisors were concerned that should he die without issue, his sister Princess Mary would return the country to Catholicism.
The Virgin's Lover
Released 2004
“ This is an interesting book for me since the logic of the narrative and the characters involved in the story made me look at the real life evidence for the accidental death of Amy Dudley. When I was writing the novel it was widely accepted that she had broken her neck as a result of a fall. It seemed to me that murder was a far more likely cause, and you can read the novel to see who I suspect. It was very exciting when, long after publication, the original documents of her inquest were found showing that she died from blows to the head made by a weapon. Amy Dudley was indeed murdered, but we still don't know who was the murderer. ”
1558
Upon his unexpected early death in 1553, King Edward VI nominated his cousin, a committed Protestant, Lady Jane Grey as his successor. Just nine days after she was crowned, Edward's sister Princess Mary had raised supporters and persuaded the Privy Council to switch their allegiance - declaring her the rightful queen and imprisoning Jane. Queen Mary began to reverse the Protestant reformation of her father, restoring Roman Catholic bishops and persecuting Protestants. Despite several reported pregnancies, Mary's marriage to Philip of Spain produced no children. So on her death, her sister the Protestant Princess Elizabeth succeeded her to the throne.
The Other Queen
Released 2008
“ It is a challenge to write a novel about Mary Queen of Scots – so much has been written about her already – a play and an opera as well as dozens of histories. In this novel I looked at her long years of imprisonment and the extraordinary triangle that developed between her, her gaoler the Earl of Shrewsbury and his wonderful wife Bess of Hardwick. The dynamic between these three makes this novel not just a historical novel about the times but a psychological study of three people trapped together. ”
1568
Elizabeth I has been Queen of England for ten years. She is still unmarried, despite considering several suitors and having conducted a love affair with the married Robert Dudley Earl of Leicester – whose wife had then died under suspicious circumstances. With no heir, Elizabeth refused to name a successor – leading to the dissolution of parliament and putting England in a potentially dangerous position. One possible successor to Elizabeth was her first cousin once removed – the Catholic Mary Queen of Scots, whom many English Catholics believed to be the true English heir to the throne. However Mary is under imprisonment in Loch Leven Castle after marrying her third husband James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell – the man widely believed to have earlier murdered Mary's second husband Lord Darnley – and she appeals to her cousin Elizabeth for support.
Earthly Joys
Released 1998
“ My editor had suggested that I write a biography – they were hugely fashionable in this year – and I wanted to write about someone who worked with his hands. While I was puzzling about who would be the subject of a fictional biography I was given a book on plant collectors and gardeners and read of John Tradescant. It happened that I visited a garden centre, and tripped and literally fell into a tray of Tradescantia. It was enough of a hint! I started research on John Tradescant and found enough material for two books, and developed an entirely new style of writing: the fictionalised biography. ”
1603
In 1603, at the age of 69, Queen Elizabeth died and was succeeded by her cousin King James VI of Scotland – finally uniting the crowns of Scotland and England and beginning the Stuart reign of England.
Virgin Earth
Released 1999
“ This was one of my favourite books to write, I researched it on a visit to Jamestown and went on to a reservation for the Pamunky (Powhatan) people. I was honoured with an invitation into a private home and had a long talk about the history of the people. This book is divided between the two terrible conflicts: colonists against indigenous peoples in America, and royalists against roundheads in England. I met the great historian of the period Christopher Hill and asked him did he think it possible that a man like John Tradescant might leave England to escape the conflict and he laughed and said that any sensible man would leave England in the middle of a civil war - so I felt very justified in my development of John's character and the two locations of this novel of a man divided between two loves. ”
1638
Charles I is on the throne. He has dissolved parliament for the third time and resolved to rule alone. In order to manage the debts generated during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I and fund his overseas wars with Spain and France, Charles repeatedly invented new and re-established obsolete forms of taxation. This during a time when harvests were failing caused widespread poverty and social unrest. Charles had become increasingly unpopular with the English people – his friendship with the assassinated George Villiers Duke of Buckingham had alienated the noble families whilst his failure to successfully support Protestant forces during the Thirty Years' War and marriage to a Roman Catholic French Princess caused suspicion and mistrust amongst his people. As the country descended into civil war, many chose to emigrate to the recently settled American colonies in search of freedom – despite Charles's attempts to stem the flow.
Wideacre
Released 1987
“ This is my first novel, which I wrote as I completed my PhD in 18th century history and literature, when – without planning to do so – I served an apprenticeship in the 18th century novels which were being invented at that time. The oppression of women, the rebellion of the poor all came from the history of the time, the love of landscape from my own childhood and the fevered sexuality all my own imagination. I wrote Wideacre in an old ruled notebook by hand, and put on the front, 'Philippa Gregory – Best Selling Novel'. Unbelievably it was. It sold world-wide in a bidding war and I decided to become a writer. ”
1772
The novel is set in the second part of the eighteenth century, during the time of the enclosure acts, a series of UK Acts of Parliament which enclosed open fields and common land in the country. The 'Tragedy of the Commons' removed previously existing rights of local people to carry out activities. Private ownership of land is a modern idea, and was outside the comprehension of most people. The king, or the Lord of the Manor, usually owned an estate, but the people enjoyed all sorts of rights which enabled him, or her, to graze stock, cut wood or peat, draw water or grow crops, on various plots of land at specified times of year.
A Respectable Trade
Released 1995
“ A profoundly important book for me to write, this book tells the story of the English slave trade, the import of black people as slaves into England, an almost totally forgotten history when I started research. The great source book for me was Peter Fryer's Staying Power, in which he writes of the presence of black people in Britain from the Roman Empire onwards. It was a moment of great gladness when he wrote a generous review praising the novel. I travelled to the Gambia to research the African part of the story and while I was there met the schoolmaster who founded, with me, our charity, Gardens for the Gambia. The novel scandalised my home town of Bristol which has tried to forget the terrible legacy of slavery, and inspired many black readers to study the history of 18th century slavery in England. I wrote the screenplay for the BBC TV drama based on the book and was proud to win the Committee for Racial Equality award for best TV drama, and be runner up for a BAFTA. ”
1787
As the 18th century draws to a close, Great Britain has become a major international power through victory over France in the Americas and the colonisation of large parts of India. In England, the Industrial Revolution is taking hold and radically changing both the environment and society. Alongside the spread of the Empire across the globe, the transatlantic trade in slaves also increased dramatically, becoming a very lucrative business for ports such as Bristol and Liverpool. The majority of the enslaved people, stolen from Africa by the British, were sold to the plantations of the European colonies, however, a number were also brought back to Britain to be kept or sold as domestic slaves. By the 1770s, some Christians were beginning to question the morality of the trade. However, the slavers would prove unwilling to give up such a profitable business without a fight.
The Favoured Child
Released 1989
“ This is that difficult beast: the second novel. I rewrote it through more drafts than anything since. I poured into it my thoughts about the gentrification of women, and their use as symbols of status. I still think of it as a novel which has more complexity than one might expect. I loved the heroine and especially the sequences in Bath. I went to stay in Bath to research the history of the town and uncovered a darker side to the spa which I think serves the story well, as it is so much about the shadows of regency England. ”
1790
England is in the grip of the Industrial Revolution. The impact of the Enclosures Act and rapid growth of industry led to an increasing movement of people away from living and working in the countryside and into towns and cities. The earlier influence and status of the rich landowners was under threat from the intellectuals of the enlightenment and as a result, the rigid social hierarchies were beginning to change. Despite such changes however, women were still no closer to gaining access to legal rights or equal academic or professional opportunities. Property and money were held only by men and women were generally under the control of a man - her father and then subsequently her husband. Most women - especially those from wealthy families had few rights and fewer life choices.
Meridon
Released 1990
“ This was the book that I was longing to write from the moment that I finished Wideacre as it was the conclusion of the story and the happy ending. I had a wonderful summer of research when I stayed with a circus for the summer season and travelled with them and worked as a circus hand so that I could understand the life. The Wiltshire sequences are set in a well-loved house near Warminster where I used to stay as a child, and the return to Wideacre took me back to my beloved Sussex. The London sequences I traced out walking around London with a valuable 18th century map as my A to Z, seeing where Meridon might live and how she would ride in the park. It was a hugely joyful book to write and I foresaw in it a happy time for myself, and the horse that I bought after writing about Meridon's beloved grey horse: my own grey horse, Comet. ”
1805
As the nineteenth century opens, the Industrial Revolution is gaining momentum and driving significant economic and social change throughout Great Britain. This combined with the ongoing expansion of the British Empire has led to the United Kingdom becoming the richest and most powerful country in the world. As a result, it is facing threats from its old enemies - Napoleon's France and Spain. Within England, the Industrial Revolution is transforming the economy and leading to a widening gap between the rich and poor. Social dissatisfaction and unrest is increasing.
Fallen Skies
Released 1993
“ One of the books where the fiction foretells the fact. I wrote this novel while I was trying for my second baby and in the novel the heroine gives birth to a blond 7lb boy - so did I. ”
1920
Great Britain is recovering from World War I and the lifting of restrictions created new sorts of night-life in London. Clubs, restaurants and dance halls catered for the new craze of jazz dancing. Wireless radio was to be the technological marvel of the decade. But is was also a period of depression, unemployment was high and mass production techniques started to replace traditional industry.
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i don't know
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In which city was Christopher Columbus born?
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Christopher Columbus - born Genoa, Italy?
Christopher Columbus - born Genoa, Italy?
Christopher Columbus, if indeed he was born in Genoa, would have been called at birth "Cristoforo Colombo". His birth is postulated at between August and October of 1451. Today Genoa is part of Italy, but in 1451 it was an independent city-state, and the richest city in the western Mediterranean.
The native language of Genoa at that time was Ligurian. Columbus spoke several languages by the time he was an adult, including Latin, Portuguese, Spanish, and perhaps Catalan. So it is difficult to tie down his nationality from the languages he spoke in later life.
The Columbus documents available today include more than 2,500 notes penned in the margins of books he owned; some 80 letters, notes and memorials; copies of the log from his first New World voyage; volumes he compiled; and his will. Most of the books and manuscripts are in Spain, but there are important Columbus materials in Italy, France, and the United States.
The Provincial archive in Genoa has a Sala Colombiana, a small room that holds many original Columbus family documents. They have survived the events of five centuries, including Louis XIV's 1684 naval bombardment of Genoa. More than 60 documents recount the story of the Columbus family, beginning with the youth of Domenico Colombo. He was apprenticed to a Flemish weaver at the age of 11 and become a master weaver. Domenico Colombo married Susanna Fontanarossa. Their first child was Cristoforo, in 1451; later came Giovanni Pellegrino, Bartolomeo, Giacomo, and daughter Bianchinetta.
Christopher worked with his father. He first appears in the notarial record of September 1470; later that year, at "greater than nineteen years of age". By 1472 Columbus had learned his father's trade, for in that year he is called LANAIOLO, a worker in wool. It is not clear when he became a sailor, or why. "From a very early age," he states in a 1501 letter, "I entered sailing upon the sea and have continued it until today."
The Assereto document, named for the man who in 1904 recognized its importance, involves a 1479 lawsuit over a sugar transaction on the Atlantic island of Madeira. In it young Christopher swore that he was a 27-year-old Genoese citizen resident in Portugal and had been hired to represent the Genoese merchants in that transaction. This showed that he was living in Portugal in 1479
Historian Samuel Eliot Morison, in his book "Admiral of the Ocean Sea", notes that existing legal documents demonstrate the Genoese origin of Columbus. On page 14, Morison writes:
Domenico had a brother Antonio, like him a respectable member of the lower middle class in Genoa. Antonio had three sons: Matteo, Amigeto and Giovanni, who was generally known as Giannetto, the Genoese equivalent of "Johnny." Johnny like Christopher gave up a humdrum occupation to follow the sea. In 1496 the three brothers met in a notary's office at Genoa and agreed that Johnny should go to Spain and seek out his first cousin "Don Cristoforo de Colombo, Admiral of the King of Spain," each contributing one third of the traveling expenses. This quest for a job was highly successful. The Admiral gave Johnny command of a caravel on the Third Voyage to America, and entrusted him with confidential matters as well.
Columbus himself alludes to his birthplace. In 1502 he wrote from Spain to directors of Genoa's Bank of San Giorgio, offering an endowment to relieve the city's poor of the tax on food and wine. "Even though my body walks here," he wrote poignantly, "my heart is always there." Christopher Columbus appears to have donated one-tenth of his income from his discovery of the Americas to the Bank of San Giorgio in Genoa for the relief of taxation on foods.
Christopher Columbus, son Ferdinand says of his father: "He learned his letters at a tender age and studied . . . at the University of Pavia. The University of Pavia has no record that Christopher Columbus ever studied there. But it has been suggested that he may have attended a monestary school in a district of Genoa called Paverano, thus giving rise to the word "Pavia". Fernando wrote in his biography of his father Columbus, that he was Genoese; and his Genoese origin was also asserted by a family friend Bartolomé de Las Casas.
Other evidence of Columbus's Genoese origin include his will of February 22, 1498, in which Columbus wrote "yo nacio en Genoba" (I was born in Genoa). This will mentions a Genoese merchant who is also mentioned in the 1479 lawsuit mentioned above
However we can note:
The Genoese ambassadors present in Barcelona in 1493 on Columbus' return don't refer to him as a fellow citizen;
In the 16th century, there were no claimants from Genoa for Columbus' fortune (although there was one from Cuccaro, north of Genoa).
Columbus' royal patrons never referred to his nationality, as was done with other foreigners (such as Amerigo Vespucci);
Columbus' first biographer, his son Hernando, indicated that Columbus wanted to leave his origins in obscurity (although the original Spanish version of the biography has been lost, and some historians think the early chapters were written by someone else).
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Genoa
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What colour are the star and crescent on the flag of Pakistan?
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Columbus reaches the New World - Oct 12, 1492 - HISTORY.com
This Day in History: 10/12/1492 - Columbus Set Sail
On this day in 1942, after sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sights a Bahamian island, believing he has reached East Asia. His expedition went ashore the same day and claimed the land for Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain, who sponsored his attempt to find a western ocean route to China, India, and the fabled gold and spice islands of Asia. Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, in 1451. Little is known of his early life, but he worked as a seaman and then a maritime entrepreneur. He became obsessed with the possibility of pioneering a western sea route to Cathay (China), India, and the gold and spice islands of Asia. At the time, Europeans knew no direct sea route to southern Asia, and the route via Egypt and the Red Sea was closed to Europeans by the Ottoman Empire, as were many land routes. Contrary to popular legend, educated Europeans of Columbus' day did believe that the world was round, as argued by St. Isidore in the seventh century. However, Columbus, and most others, underestimated the world's size, calculating that East Asia must lie approximately where North America sits on the globe (they did not yet know that the Pacific Ocean existed).
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Columbus reaches the New World
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After sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sights a Bahamian island, believing he has reached East Asia. His expedition went ashore the same day and claimed the land for Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain, who sponsored his attempt to find a western ocean route to China, India, and the fabled gold and spice islands of Asia.
Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, in 1451. Little is known of his early life, but he worked as a seaman and then a maritime entrepreneur. He became obsessed with the possibility of pioneering a western sea route to Cathay (China), India, and the gold and spice islands of Asia. At the time, Europeans knew no direct sea route to southern Asia, and the route via Egypt and the Red Sea was closed to Europeans by the Ottoman Empire, as were many land routes. Contrary to popular legend, educated Europeans of Columbus’ day did believe that the world was round, as argued by St. Isidore in the seventh century. However, Columbus, and most others, underestimated the world’s size, calculating that East Asia must lie approximately where North America sits on the globe (they did not yet know that the Pacific Ocean existed).
With only the Atlantic Ocean, he thought, lying between Europe and the riches of the East Indies, Columbus met with King John II of Portugal and tried to persuade him to back his “Enterprise of the Indies,” as he called his plan. He was rebuffed and went to Spain, where he was also rejected at least twice by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. However, after the Spanish conquest of the Moorish kingdom of Granada in January 1492, the Spanish monarchs, flush with victory, agreed to support his voyage.
On August 3, 1492, Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, with three small ships, the Santa Maria, the Pinta, and the Nina. On October 12, the expedition reached land, probably Watling Island in the Bahamas. Later that month, Columbus sighted Cuba, which he thought was mainland China, and in December the expedition landed on Hispaniola, which Columbus thought might be Japan. He established a small colony there with 39 of his men. The explorer returned to Spain with gold, spices, and “Indian” captives in March 1493 and was received with the highest honors by the Spanish court. He was the first European to explore the Americas since the Vikings set up colonies in Greenland and Newfoundland in the 10th century.
During his lifetime, Columbus led a total of four expeditions to the New World, discovering various Caribbean islands, the Gulf of Mexico, and the South and Central American mainlands, but he never accomplished his original goal—a western ocean route to the great cities of Asia. Columbus died in Spain in 1506 without realizing the great scope of what he did achieve: He had discovered for Europe the New World, whose riches over the next century would help make Spain the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth.
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The last holder of which post, abolished in 1964 was the second Earl Jellicoe – previous holders include Winston Churchill (from 1911 to 1915 and 1939 to 1940)?
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Winston Churchill - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Winston Churchill
For other uses, see Winston Churchill (disambiguation) .
"Churchill" redirects here. For other uses, see Churchill (disambiguation) .
26 October 1951 – 7 April 1955
Monarch
10 May 1940 – 27 July 1945
Monarch
6 November 1924 – 4 June 1929
Prime Minister
19 February 1910 – 24 October 1911
Prime Minister
Member of Parliament , statesman , soldier , journalist , historian , author , painter
Signature
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG , OM , CH , TD , FRS , PC , PC (Can) (30 November 1874 - 24 January 1965) was a British politician known chiefly for his leadership of the United Kingdom during World War II . He served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A noted statesman and orator , Churchill was also an officer in the British Army , a historian , a Nobel Prize -winning writer, and an artist .
During his army career, Churchill saw action in India , in the Sudan and the Second Boer War . He gained fame and notoriety as a war correspondent and through contemporary books he wrote describing the campaigns. He also served briefly in the British Army on the Western Front in World War I , commanding the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers .
At the forefront of the political scene for almost fifty years, he held many political and cabinet positions. Before the First World War, he served as President of the Board of Trade , Home Secretary and First Lord of the Admiralty as part of the Asquith Liberal government . During the war he continued as First Lord of the Admiralty until the disastrous Battle of Gallipoli caused his departure from government. He returned as Minister of Munitions , Secretary of State for War and Secretary of State for Air . In the interwar years , he served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Conservative government.
After the outbreak of the Second World War , Churchill was again appointed First Lord of the Admiralty. Following the resignation of Neville Chamberlain on 10 May 1940, he became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and led Britain to victory against the Axis powers . [1] Churchill was always noted for his speeches, which became a great inspiration to the British people and embattled Allied forces .
After losing the 1945 election , he became Leader of the Opposition . In 1951, he again became Prime Minister before finally retiring in 1955. Upon his death the Queen granted him the honour of a state funeral , which saw one of the largest assemblies of statesmen in the world.
Contents
Family and early life
Blenheim Palace, Churchill's ancestral home
A descendant of the famous Spencer family , [2] Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, like his father, used the surname Churchill in public life. [3] His ancestor George Spencer had changed his surname to Spencer-Churchill in 1817 when he became Duke of Marlborough , to highlight his descent from John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough . Winston's father, Lord Randolph Churchill , the third son of John Spencer-Churchill, 7th Duke of Marlborough , was a politician, while his mother, Lady Randolph Churchill ( née Jennie Jerome) was the daughter of American millionaire Leonard Jerome . Born on 30 November 1874 in a bedroom in Blenheim Palace , Woodstock , Oxfordshire ; [4] he arrived eight months after his parents' hasty marriage. [5] Churchill had one brother, John Strange Spencer-Churchill .
Independent and rebellious by nature, Churchill generally did poorly in school, for which he was punished. He was educated at three independent schools: St. George's School in Ascot , Berkshire , followed by Brunswick School in Hove , near Brighton (the school has since been renamed Stoke Brunswick School and relocated to Ashurst Wood in West Sussex ), and then at Harrow School on 17 April 1888, where his military career began. Within weeks of his arrival, he had joined the Harrow Rifle Corps . [6] He earned high marks in English and history and was also the school's fencing champion.
Winston Churchill's father - Lord Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill
He was rarely visited by his mother (then known as Lady Randolph), and wrote letters begging her to either come to the school or to allow him to come home. His relationship with his father was a distant one, he once remarked that they barely spoke to each other. [7] Due to this lack of parental contact he became very close to his nanny, Elizabeth Anne Everest, who he used to call "Woomany". [8] [9] His father died on 24 January 1895, aged just 45, leaving Churchill with the conviction that he too would die young, so should be quick about making his mark on the world.
Speech impediment
See also: List of stutterers
Churchill described himself as having a "speech impediment" which he consistently worked to overcome. After many years, he finally stated, "My impediment is no hindrance." Trainee speech therapists are often shown videotapes of Churchill's mannerisms while making speeches and the Stuttering Foundation of America uses Churchill, pictured on its home page, as one of its role models of successful stutterers. This diagnosis is supported by contemporaries writing in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. [10] The Churchill Centre, however, flatly refutes the claim that Churchill stuttered while confirming that he did have difficulty pronouncing the letter 'S' and spoke with a lisp . [11] His father also spoke with a lisp. [12] The National Cluttering Association however maintains that Churchill had not a stutter but a clutter .
Marriage and children
Churchill met his future wife, Clementine Hozier , in 1904 at a ball in Crewe House, home of the Earl of Crewe and his wife Margaret Primrose (daughter of Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery ). [13] In 1908, they met again at a dinner party hosted by Lady St Helier . Churchill found himself seated beside Clementine, and they soon began a lifelong romance. [14] He proposed to Clementine during a house party at Blenheim Palace on 10 August 1908, in a small Temple of Diana . [15] On 12 September 1908, they were married in St. Margaret's, Westminster . The church was packed; the Bishop of St Asaph conducted the service. [16] In March 1909, the couple moved to a house at 33 Eccleston Square.
Winston's mother, Lady Randolph Churchill
Their first child, Diana , was born in London on 11 July 1909. After the pregnancy, Clementine moved to Sussex to recover, while Diana stayed in London with her nanny. [17] On 28 May 1911, their second child, Randolph , was born at 33 Eccleston Square. [18] Their third child, Sarah , was born on 7 October 1914 at Admiralty House . The birth was marked with anxiety for Clementine, as Winston had been sent to Antwerp by the Cabinet to "stiffen the resistance of the beleaguered city" after news that the Belgians intended to surrender the town. [19]
Clementine gave birth to her fourth child, Marigold Frances Churchill, on 15 November 1918, four days after the official end of World War I. [20] In the early months of August, the Churchills' children were entrusted to a French nursery governess in Kent named Mlle Rose. Clementine, meanwhile, travelled to Eaton Hall to play tennis with Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster and his family. While still under the care of Mlle Rose, Marigold had a cold, but was reported to have recovered from the illness. As the illness progressed with hardly any notice, it turned into septicaemia . Following advice from a landlady, Rose sent for Clementine. However the illness turned fatal on 23 August 1921, and Marigold was buried in the Kensal Green Cemetery three days later. [21] On 15 September 1922, the Churchills' last child was born, Mary . Later that month, the Churchills bought Chartwell , which would be Winston's home until his death in 1965. [22] [23]
Service in the Army
After Churchill left Harrow in 1893, he applied to attend the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst . It took three attempts before he passed the entrance exam; he applied for cavalry rather than infantry because the grade requirement was lower and did not require him to learn mathematics, which he disliked. He graduated eighth out of a class of 150 in December 1894, [24] and although he could now have transferred to an infantry regiment as his father had wished, chose to remain with the cavalry and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 4th Queen's Own Hussars on 20 February 1895. [25] In 1941, he received the honour of Colonel of the Hussars .
Churchill's pay as a second lieutenant in the 4th Hussars was £300. However, he believed that he needed at least a further £500 (equivalent to £25,000 in 2001 terms) to support a style of life equal to other officers of the regiment . His mother provided an allowance of £400 per year, but this was repeatedly overspent. According to biographer Roy Jenkins , this is one reason he took an interest in war correspondence. [26] He did not intend to follow a conventional career of promotion through army ranks, but to seek out all possible chances of military action and used his mother's and family influence in high society to arrange postings to active campaigns. His writings both brought him to the attention of the public, and earned him significant additional income. He acted as a war correspondent for several London newspapers [27] and wrote his own books about the campaigns.
Churchill in military uniform in 1895
Cuba
In 1895, Churchill travelled to Cuba to observe the Spanish fight the Cuban guerrillas; he had obtained a commission to write about the conflict from the Daily Graphic. To his delight, he came under fire for the first time on his twenty-first birthday. [25] He had fond memories of Cuba as a "...large, rich, beautiful island..." [28] While there, he soon acquired a taste for Havana cigars, which he would smoke for the rest of his life. While in New York, he stayed at the home of Bourke Cockran , an admirer of his mother's. Bourke was an established American politician, member of the House of Representatives and potential presidential candidate. He greatly influenced Churchill, both in his approach to oratory and politics, and encouraging a love of America. [29]
He soon received word that his nanny, Mrs Everest, was dying; he then returned to England and stayed with her for a week until she died. He wrote in his journal "She was my favourite friend." In My Early Life he wrote: "She had been my dearest and most intimate friend during the whole of the twenty years I had lived." [30]
India
In early October 1896, he was transferred to Bombay , British India . He was considered one of the best polo players in his regiment and led his team to many prestigious tournament victories. [31]
A young Winston Churchill on a lecture tour of the United States in 1900
Malakand
In 1897, Churchill attempted to travel to both report and, if necessary, fight in the Greco-Turkish War , but this conflict effectively ended before he could arrive. Later, while preparing for a leave in England, he heard that three brigades of the British Army were going to fight against a Pashtun tribe and he asked his superior officer if he could join the fight. [32] He fought under the command of General Jeffery, who was the commander of the second brigade operating in Malakand , in what is now Pakistan . Jeffery sent him with fifteen scouts to explore the Mamund Valley; while on reconnaissance, they encountered an enemy tribe, dismounted from their horses and opened fire. After an hour of shooting, their reinforcements, the 35th Sikhs arrived, and the fire gradually ceased and the brigade and the Sikhs marched on. Hundreds of tribesmen then ambushed them and opened fire, forcing them to retreat. As they were retreating four men were carrying an injured officer but the fierceness of the fight forced them to leave him behind. The man who was left behind was slashed to death before Churchill’s eyes; afterwards he wrote of the killer, "I forgot everything else at this moment except a desire to kill this man". [33] However the Sikhs' numbers were being depleted so the next commanding officer told Churchill to get the rest of the men and boys to safety.
Before he left he asked for a note so he would not be charged with desertion. [34] He received the note, quickly signed, and headed up the hill and alerted the other brigade, whereupon they then engaged the army. The fighting in the region dragged on for another two weeks before the dead could be recovered. He wrote in his journal: "Whether it was worth it I cannot tell." [33] [35] An account of the Siege of Malakand was published in December 1900 as The Story of the Malakand Field Force . He received £600 for his account. During the campaign, he also wrote articles for the newspapers The Pioneer and The Daily Telegraph . [36] His account of the battle was one of his first published stories, for which he received £ 5 per column from The Daily Telegraph . [37]
Sudan and Oldham
The River War was published in 1899
Churchill was transferred to Egypt in 1898 where he visited Luxor before joining an attachment of the 21st Lancers serving in the Sudan under the command of General Herbert Kitchener . During his time he encountered two future military officers, with whom he would later work, during the First World War : Douglas Haig , then a captain and John Jellicoe , then a gunboat lieutenant. [38] While in the Sudan, he participated in what has been described as the last meaningful British cavalry charge at the Battle of Omdurman in September 1898. He also worked as a war correspondent for the Morning Post . By October 1898, he had returned to Britain and begun his two-volume work; The River War , an account of the reconquest of the Sudan published the following year. Churchill resigned from the British Army effective from 5 May 1899.
Main article: Oldham by-election, 1899
He soon had his first opportunity to begin a Parliamentary career, when he was invited by Robert Ascroft to be the second Conservative Party candidate in Ascroft's Oldham constituency. In the event Ascroft's sudden death caused a double by-election and Churchill was one of the candidates. In the midst of a national trend against the Conservatives, both seats were lost; however Churchill was impressed by his vigorous campaigning.
South Africa
Having failed at Oldham, Churchill looked about for some other opportunity to advance his career. On 12 October 1899, the Second Boer War between Britain and the Boer Republics broke out and he obtained a commission to act as war correspondent for the Morning Post with a salary of £250 per month. He rushed to sail on the same ship as the newly appointed British commander, Sir Redvers Buller . After some weeks in exposed areas he accompanied a scouting expedition in an armoured train, leading to his capture and imprisonment in a POW camp in Pretoria . His actions during the ambush of the train led to speculation that he would be awarded the Victoria Cross , Britain's highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy, but this did not occur. [25] Writing in London to Ladysmith via Pretoria , a collected version of his war reports, he described the experience:
I have had, in the last four years, the advantage, if it be an advantage, of many strange and varied experiences, from which the student of realities might draw profit and instruction. But nothing was so thrilling as this: to wait and struggle among these clanging, rending iron boxes, with the repeated explosions of the shells and the artillery, the noise of the projectiles striking the cars, the hiss as they passed in the air, the grunting and puffing of the engine--poor, tortured thing, hammered by at least a dozen shells, any one of which, by penetrating the boiler, might have made an end of all--the expectation of destruction as a matter of course, the realization of powerlessness, and the alternations of hope and despair--all this for seventy minutes by the clock with only four inches of twisted iron work to make the difference between danger, captivity, and shame on the one hand--safety, freedom, and triumph on the other. [39]
He escaped from the prison camp and travelled almost 300 miles (480 km) to Portuguese Lourenço Marques in Delagoa Bay , with the assistance of an English mine manager. [40] His escape made him a minor national hero for a time in Britain, though instead of returning home, he rejoined General Buller's army on its march to relieve the British at the Siege of Ladysmith and take Pretoria. [41] This time, although continuing as a war correspondent, he gained a commission in the South African Light Horse . He was among the first British troops into Ladysmith and Pretoria. He and his cousin, the Duke of Marlborough , were able to get ahead of the rest of the troops in Pretoria, where they demanded and received the surrender of 52 Boer prison camp guards. [42]
In 1900, Churchill returned to England on the RMS Dunottar Castle , the same ship on which he set sail for South Africa eight months earlier. [43] He there published London to Ladysmith and a second volume of Boer war experiences, Ian Hamilton's March . Churchill stood again for parliament in Oldham in the general election of 1900 and won (his Conservative colleague, Crisp, was defeated) in the contest for two seats. [44] [45] After the 1900 general election he embarked on a speaking tour of Britain, followed by tours of the United States and Canada, earning in excess of £5,000. [46]
Territorial service
In 1900, he retired from regular army and in 1902 joined the Imperial Yeomanry where he was commissioned as a Captain in the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars on 4 January 1902. [47] In April 1905, he was promoted to Major and appointed to command of the Henley Squadron of the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars. [48] In September 1916, he transferred to the territorial reserves of officers where he remained till retiring in 1924. [48]
Western front
Churchill was First Lord of the Admiralty at the start of World War I, but was obliged to leave the war cabinet after the disastrous Battle of Gallipoli . He attempted to obtain a commission as a brigade commander, but settled for command of a battalion. After spending some time with the Grenadier Guards he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel , commanding the 6th Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers , on 1 January 1916. Correspondence with his wife shows that his intent in taking up active service was to rehabilitate his reputation, but this was balanced by the serious risk of being killed. As a commander he continued to exhibit the reckless daring which had been a hallmark of all his military actions, although he disapproved strongly of the mass slaughter involved in many western front actions. [49]
Lord Deedes explained to a gathering of the Royal Historical Society in 2001 why Churchill went to the front line: "He was with Grenadier Guards , who were dry [without alcohol] at battalion headquarters. They very much liked tea and condensed milk, which had no great appeal to Winston, but alcohol was permitted in the front line, in the trenches. So he suggested to the colonel that he really ought to see more of the war and get into the front line. This was highly commended by the colonel, who thought it was a very good thing to do." [50]
Political career to World War II
Early years in Parliament
Churchill's election poster for the 1899 by-election in Oldham, which he lost.
Churchill stood again for the seat of Oldham at the 1900 general election . After winning the seat, he went on a speaking tour throughout Britain and the United States, raising £10,000 for himself. In Parliament, he became associated with a faction of the Conservative Party led by Lord Hugh Cecil ; the Hughligans . During his first parliamentary session , he opposed the government's military expenditure [51] and Joseph Chamberlain 's proposal of extensive tariffs, which were intended to protect Britain's economic dominance. His own constituency effectively deselected him, although he continued to sit for Oldham until the next general election. After the Whitsun recess in 1904 he crossed the floor to sit as a member of the Liberal Party . As a Liberal, he continued to campaign for free trade . When the Liberals took office with Henry Campbell-Bannerman as Prime Minister, in December 1905, Churchill became Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies dealing mainly with South Africa after the Boer War. From 1903 until 1905, Churchill was also engaged in writing Lord Randolph Churchill , a two-volume biography of his father which was published in 1906 and received much critical acclaim. [52]
Following his deselection in the seat of Oldham, Churchill was invited to stand for Manchester North West . He won the seat at the 1906 general election with a majority of 1,214 and represented the seat for two years, until 1908. [53] When Campbell-Bannerman was succeeded by Herbert Henry Asquith in 1908, Churchill was promoted to the Cabinet as President of the Board of Trade . [45] Under the law at the time, a newly appointed Cabinet Minister was obliged to seek re-election at a by-election ; Churchill lost his seat but was soon back as a member for Dundee constituency . As President of the Board of Trade he joined newly appointed Chancellor Lloyd George in opposing First Lord of the Admiralty , Reginald McKenna 's proposed huge expenditure for the construction of Navy dreadnought warships, and in supporting the Liberal reforms . [54] In 1908, he introduced the Trade Boards Bill setting up the first minimum wages in Britain, [55] In 1909, he set up Labour Exchanges to help unemployed people find work. [56] He helped draft the first unemployment pension legislation, the National Insurance Act of 1911 . [57]
Churchill in 1904.
Churchill also assisted in passing the People's Budget [58] becoming President of the Budget League, an organisation set up in response to the opposition's "Budget Protest League". [59] The budget included the introduction of new taxes on the wealthy to allow for the creation of new social welfare programmes. After the budget bill was sent to the Commons in 1909 and passed, it went to the House of Lords , where it was vetoed. The Liberals then fought and won two general elections in January and December 1910 to gain a mandate for their reforms. The budget was then passed following the Parliament Act 1911 for which he also campaigned. In 1910, he was promoted to Home Secretary . His term was controversial, after his responses to the Siege of Sidney Street and the dispute at the Cambrian Colliery and the suffragettes .
In 1910, a number of coal miners in the Rhondda Valley began what has come to be known as the Tonypandy Riot . [54] The Chief Constable of Glamorgan requested troops be sent in to help police quell the rioting. Churchill, learning that the troops were already travelling, allowed them to go as far as Swindon and Cardiff but blocked their deployment. On 9 November, the Times criticized this decision. In spite of this, the rumour persists that Churchill had ordered troops to attack, and his reputation in Wales and in Labour circles never recovered. [60]
Winston Churchill (highlighted) at Sidney Street, 3 January 1911
In early January 1911, Churchill made a controversial visit to the Siege of Sidney Street in London. There is some uncertainty as to whether he attempted to give operational commands, and his presence attracted much criticism. After an inquest, Arthur Balfour remarked, "he [Churchill] and a photographer were both risking valuable lives. I understand what the photographer was doing, but what was the right honourable gentleman doing?" [61] A biographer, Roy Jenkins, suggests that he went simply because "he could not resist going to see the fun himself" and that he did not issue commands. [62]
Churchill's proposed solution to the suffragette issue was a referendum on the issue, but this found no favour with Herbert Henry Asquith and women's suffrage remained unresolved until after the First World War . [63]
In 1911, Churchill was transferred to the office of the First Lord of the Admiralty , a post he held into World War I . He gave impetus to several reform efforts, including development of naval aviation (he undertook flying lessons himself), [64] the construction of new and larger warships, the development of tanks, and the switch from coal to oil in the Royal Navy . [65]
World War I and the Post War Coalition
On 5 October 1914, Churchill went to Antwerp which the Belgian government proposed to evacuate. The Royal Marine Brigade was there and at Churchill’s urgings the 1st and 2nd Naval Brigades were also committed. Antwerp fell on 10 October with the loss of 2500 men. At the time he was attacked for squandering resources. [66] It is more likely that his actions prolonged the resistance by a week (Belgium had proposed surrendering Antwerp on 3 October) and that this time saved Calais and Dunkirk. [67]
Churchill was involved with the development of the tank , which was financed from naval research funds. [68] He then headed the Landships Committee which was responsible for creating the first tank corps and, although a decade later development of the battle tank would be seen as a tactical victory, at the time it was seen as misappropriation of funds. [68] In 1915, he was one of the political and military engineers of the disastrous Gallipoli landings on the Dardanelles during World War I. [69] He took much of the blame for the fiasco, and when Prime Minister Asquith formed an all-party coalition government , the Conservatives demanded his demotion as the price for entry. [70]
For several months Churchill served in the sinecure of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster . However on 15 November 1915 he resigned from the government, feeling his energies were not being used. [71] and, though remaining an MP, served for several months on the Western Front commanding the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers , under the rank of Colonel. [72] In March 1916, Churchill returned to England after he had become restless in France and wished to speak again in the House of Commons. [73] In July 1917, Churchill was appointed Minister of Munitions , and in January 1919, Secretary of State for War and Secretary of State for Air . He was the main architect of the Ten Year Rule , a principle that allows the Treasury to dominate and control strategic, foreign and financial policies under the assumption that "there would be no great European war for the next five or ten years". [74]
A major preoccupation of his tenure in the War Office was the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War . Churchill was a staunch advocate of foreign intervention, declaring that Bolshevism must be "strangled in its cradle". [75] He secured, from a divided and loosely organised Cabinet, intensification and prolongation of the British involvement beyond the wishes of any major group in Parliament or the nation—and in the face of the bitter hostility of Labour. In 1920, after the last British forces had been withdrawn, Churchill was instrumental in having arms sent to the Poles when they invaded Ukraine . He became Secretary of State for the Colonies in 1921 and was a signatory of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, which established the Irish Free State . Churchill was involved in the lengthy negotiations of the treaty and to protect British maritime interests, he engineered part of the Irish Free State agreement to include three Treaty Ports —Queenstown ( Cobh ), Berehaven and Lough Swilly —which could be used as Atlantic bases by the Royal Navy . [76] Under the terms of the Anglo-Irish Trade Agreement the bases were returned to the newly renamed " Ireland " in 1938.
It is sometimes claimed that Churchill advocated the use of poison gas on Kurdish tribesmen in Mesopotamia [77] , a claim based on a War Office minute of 12 May 1919 in which Churchill argued for the use of tear gases:
I do not understand this squeamishness about the use of gas. We have definitely adopted the position at the Peace Conference of arguing in favour of the retention of gas as a permanent method of warfare. It is sheer affectation to lacerate a man with the poisonous fragment of a bursting shell and to boggle at making his eyes water by means of lachrymatory gas. I am strongly in favour of using poisoned [78] gas against uncivilised tribes. The moral effect should be so good that the loss of life should be reduced to a minimum. It is not necessary to use only the most deadly gasses: gasses can be used which cause great inconvenience and would spread a lively terror and yet would leave no serious permanent effects on most of those affected. [79]
If British forces did consider the use of poison gas in putting down Kurdish rebellions, there is no evidence that it was ever used.[ citation needed ]
Rejoining the Conservative Party – Chancellor of the Exchequer
In September, the Conservative Party withdrew from the Coalition government following a meeting of backbenchers dissatisfied with the handling of the Chanak Crisis , a move that precipitated the looming October 1922 General Election . Churchill fell ill during the campaign, and had to have an appendicectomy . This made it difficult for him to campaign, and a further setback was the internal division that continued to beset the Liberal Party. He came only fourth in the poll for Dundee , losing to the prohibitionist Edwin Scrymgeour . Churchill later quipped that he left Dundee "without an office, without a seat, without a party and without an appendix". [53] He stood for the Liberals again in the 1923 general election , losing in Leicester , and then as an independent, first without success in a by-election in the Westminster Abbey constituency , and then successfully in the general election of 1924 for Epping . The following year, he formally rejoined the Conservative Party, commenting wryly that "anyone can rat, but it takes a certain ingenuity to re-rat." [53] [80]
Churchill was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1924 under Stanley Baldwin and oversaw Britain's disastrous return to the Gold Standard , which resulted in deflation, unemployment, and the miners' strike that led to the General Strike of 1926 . [81] His decision, announced in the 1924 Budget, came after long consultation with various economists including John Maynard Keynes , the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury, Sir Otto Niemeyer and the board of the Bank of England . This decision prompted Keynes to write The Economic Consequences of Mr. Churchill, arguing that the return to the gold standard at the pre-war parity in 1925 (£1=$4.86) would lead to a world depression . However, the decision was generally popular and seen as 'sound economics' although it was opposed by Lord Beaverbrook and the Federation of British Industries. [82]
Churchill as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1927
Churchill later regarded this as the greatest mistake of his life. However in discussions at the time with former Chancellor McKenna , Churchill acknowledged that the return to the gold standard and the resulting 'dear money' policy was economically bad. In those discussions he maintained the policy as fundamentally political - a return to the pre-war conditions in which he believed. [83] In his speech on the Bill he said "I will tell you what it [the return to the Gold Standard] will shackle us to. It will shackle us to reality." [84]
The return to the pre-war exchange rate and to the Gold Standard depressed industries. The most affected was the coal industry. Already suffering from declining output as shipping switched to oil, as basic British industries like cotton came under more competition in export markets, the return to the pre-war exchange was estimated to add up to 10% in costs to the industry. In July 1925, a Commission of Inquiry reported generally favouring the miners , rather than the mine owners' position. [85] Baldwin, with Churchill's support proposed a subsidy to the industry while a Royal Commission prepared a further report.
That Commission solved nothing and the miners dispute led to the General Strike of 1926 , Churchill was reported to have suggested that machine guns be used on the striking miners. Churchill edited the Government's newspaper, the British Gazette , and, during the dispute, he argued that "either the country will break the General Strike, or the General Strike will break the country" and claimed that the fascism of Benito Mussolini had "rendered a service to the whole world," showing, as it had, "a way to combat subversive forces"—that is, he considered the regime to be a bulwark against the perceived threat of Communist revolution . At one point, Churchill went as far as to call Mussolini the "Roman genius… the greatest lawgiver among men." [86]
Later economists, as well as people at the time, also criticised Churchill's budget measures. These were seen as assisting the generally prosperous rentier banking and salaried classes (to which Churchill and his associates generally belonged) at the expense of manufacturers and exporters which were known then to be suffering from imports and from competition in traditional export markets, [87] and as paring the Armed Forces too heavily. [88]
Political isolation
Churchill wrote a biography of his ancestor John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough in the mid 1930s
The Conservative government was defeated in the 1929 General Election . Churchill did not seek election to the Conservative Business Committee, the official leadership of the Conservative MPs. Over the next two years, Churchill became estranged from the Conservative leadership over the issues of protective tariffs and Indian Home Rule and by his political views and by his friendships with press barons, financiers and people whose characters were seen as dubious. When Ramsay MacDonald formed the National Government in 1931, Churchill was not invited to join the Cabinet . He was at the low point in his career, in a period known as "the wilderness years". [89]
He spent much of the next few years concentrating on his writing, including Marlborough: His Life and Times —a biography of his ancestor John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough —and A History of the English Speaking Peoples (though the latter was not published until well after World War II), [89] Great Contemporaries and many newspaper articles and collections of speeches. He was one of the best paid writers of his time. [89] His political views, set forth in his 1930 Romanes Election and published as Parliamentary Government and the Economic Problem (republished in 1932 in his collection of essays "Thoughts and Adventures") involved abandoning universal suffrage , a return to a property franchise, proportional representation for the major cities and an economic 'sub parliament'. [90]
Indian Independence
See also: Simon Commission and Government of India Act 1935
During the first half of the 1930s, Churchill was outspoken in his opposition to granting Dominion status to India. He was one of the founders of the India Defence League, a group dedicated to the preservation of British power in India. In speeches and press articles in this period he forecast widespread British unemployment and civil strife in India should independence be granted. [91] The Viceroy Lord Irwin who had been appointed by the prior Conservative Government engaged in the Round Table Conference in early 1931 and then announced the Government's policy that India should be granted Dominion Status. In this the Government was supported by the Liberal Party and, officially at least, by the Conservative Party. Churchill denounced the Round Table Conference.
At a meeting of the West Essex Conservative Association specially convened so Churchill could explain his position he said, "It is alarming and also nauseating to see Mr Gandhi, a seditious Middle-Temple lawyer, now posing as a fakir of a type well-known in the East, striding half-naked up the steps of the Vice-regal palace...to parley on equal terms with the representative of the King-Emperor." [92] He called the Indian Congress leaders "Brahmins who mouth and patter principles of Western Liberalism." [93]
There were two incidents which damaged Churchill's reputation greatly within the Conservative Party in the period. Both were taken as attacks on the Conservative front bench. The first was his speech on the eve of the St George by-election in April 1931. In a secure Conservative seat, the official Conservative candidate Duff Cooper was opposed by an independent Conservative. The independent was supported by Lord Rothermere , Lord Beaverbrook and their respective newspapers. Although arranged before the by election was set, [94] Churchill's speech was seen as supporting the independent candidate and as a part of the Press Baron's campaign against Baldwin. Baldwin's position was strengthened when Duff Cooper won and when the civil disobedience campaign in India ceased with the Gandhi-Irwin Pact . The second issue was a claim that Sir Samuel Hoare and Lord Derby had pressured the Manchester Chamber of Commerce to change evidence it had given to the Joint Select Committee considering the Government of India Bill and in doing so had breached Parliamentary privilege. He had the matter referred to the House of Commons Privilege Committee which after investigations, in which Churchill gave evidence reported to the House that there had been no breach. [95] The report was debated on 13 June. Churchill was unable to find a single supporter in the House and the debate ended without a division.
Churchill permanently broke with Stanley Baldwin over Indian independence and never held any office while Baldwin was Prime Minister. Some historians see his basic attitude to India as being set out in his book My Early Life (1930). [96] Historians also dispute his motives in maintaining his opposition. Some see him as trying to destabilise the National Government. Some also draw a parallel between Churchill's attitudes to India and those towards the Nazis . [97]
Another source of controversy about Churchill's attitude towards Indian affairs arises over what some historians term the Indian 'nationalist approach' to the Bengal famine of 1943 , which has sought to place significant blame on Churchill's wartime government for the excess mortality of up to 3 million people. [98] While some commentators point to the disruption of the traditional marketing system and maladministration at the provincial level, [99] Arthur Herman, author of Churchill and Gandhi, contends, 'The real cause was the fall of Burma to the Japanese, which cut off India’s main supply of rice imports when domestic sources fell short...it is true that Churchill opposed diverting food supplies and transports from other theatres to India to cover the shortfall: this was wartime.' [100]
German rearmament
Beginning in 1932, when he opposed those who advocated giving Germany the right to military parity with France, Churchill spoke often of the dangers of Germany's rearmament. [101] He later, particularly in The Gathering Storm, portrayed himself as being for a time, a lone voice calling on Britain to strengthen itself to counter the belligerence of Germany. [102] However Lord Lloyd was the first to so agitate. [103] Churchill's attitude toward the fascist dictators was ambiguous. In 1931, he warned against the League of Nations opposing the Japanese in Manchuria "I hope we shall try in England to understand the position of Japan, an ancient state.... On the one side they have the dark menace of Soviet Russia. On the other the chaos of China, four or five provinces of which are being tortured under Communist rule". [104] In contemporary newspaper articles he referred to the Spanish Republican government as a Communist front, and Franco's army as the "Anti-red movement". [105] He supported the Hoare-Laval Pact and continued up until 1937 to praise Benito Mussolini . [106]
Speaking in the House of Commons in 1937, Churchill said "I will not pretend that, if I had to choose between communism and Nazism, I would choose communism".[ citation needed ] In a 1935 essay, entitled "Hitler and his Choice" as republished in Churchill's 1937 book Great Contemporaries, Churchill expressed a hope that Hitler, if he so chose, and despite his rise to power through dictatorial action, hatred, and cruelty, he might yet "go down in history as the man who restored honour and peace of mind to the great Germanic nation and brought it back serene, helpful and strong, to the forefront of the European family circle." [107] Churchill's first major speech on defence on 7 February 1934 stressed the need to rebuild the Royal Air Force and to create a Ministry of Defence; his second, on 13 July urged a renewed role for the League of Nations. These three topics remained his themes until early 1936. In 1935, he was one of the founding members of Focus which brought together people of differing political backgrounds and occupations who were united in seeking 'the defence of freedom and peace'. [108] Focus led to the formation of the much wider Arms and the Covenant Movement in 1936.
Churchill was holidaying in Spain when the Germans reoccupied the Rhineland in February 1936, and returned to a divided Britain—Labour opposition was adamant in opposing sanctions and the National Government was divided between advocates of economic sanctions and those who said that even these would lead to a humiliating backdown by Britain as France would not support any intervention. [109] Churchill's speech on 9 March was measured and praised by Neville Chamberlain as constructive. But within weeks Churchill was passed over for the post of Minister for Co-ordination of Defence in favour of the Attorney General Sir Thomas Inskip . [110] Alan Taylor called this; 'An appointment rightly described as the most extraordinary since Caligula made his horse a consul.' [111] In June 1936, Churchill organised a deputation of senior Conservatives who shared his concern to see Baldwin, Chamberlain and Halifax. He had tried to have delegates from the other two parties and later wrote "If the leaders of the Labour and Liberal oppositions had come with us there might have been a political situation so intense as to enforce remedial action". [112] As it was the meeting achieved little, Baldwin arguing that the Government was doing all it could given the anti-war feeling of the electorate.
On 12 November Churchill returned to the topic. Speaking in the Address in Reply debate after giving some specific instances of Germany’s war preparedness he said ‘’'The Government simply cannot make up their mind or they cannot get the Prime Minister to make up his mind. So they go on in strange paradox, decided only to be undecided, resolved to be irresolute, adamant for drift, solid for fluidity, all powerful for impotency. And so we go on preparing more months more years precious perhaps vital for the greatness of Britain for the locusts to eat.'’’
R.R. James called this one of Churchill’s most brilliant speeches in this period, Baldwin's reply sounding weak and disturbing the House. The exchange gave new encouragement to the Arms and the Covenant Movement. [113]
Abdication Crisis
Main article: Abdication Crisis of Edward VIII
In June 1936, Walter Monckton told Churchill that the rumours that King Edward VIII intended to marry Mrs Wallis Simpson were true. Churchill then advised against the marriage and said he regarded Mrs Simpson's existing marriage as a 'safeguard'. [114] In November, he declined Lord Salisbury 's invitation to be part of a delegation of senior Conservative backbenchers who met with Baldwin to discuss the matter. On 25 November he, Attlee and Liberal leader Archibald Sinclair met with Baldwin, were told officially of the King's intention, and asked whether they would form an administration if Baldwin and the National Government resigned should the King not take the Ministry's advice. Both Attlee and Sinclair said they would not take office if invited to do so. Churchill's reply was that his attitude was a little different but he would support the government. [115]
The Abdication crisis became public, coming to head in the first fortnight of December 1936. At this time Churchill publicly gave his support to the King. The first public meeting of the Arms and the Covenant Movement was on 3 December. Churchill was a major speaker and later wrote that in replying to the Vote of Thanks he made a declaration 'on the spur of the moment' asking for delay before any decision was made by either the King or his Cabinet. [116] Later that night Churchill saw the draft of the King's proposed wireless broadcast and spoke with Beaverbrook and the King's solicitor about it. On 4 December, he met with the King and again urged delay in any decision about abdication. On 5 December, he issued a lengthy statement implying that the Ministry was applying unconstitutional pressure on the King to force him to make a hasty decision. [117] On 7 December he tried to address the Commons to plead for delay. He was shouted down. Seemingly staggered by the unanimous hostility of all Members he left. [118]
Churchill's reputation in Parliament and England as a whole was badly damaged. Some such as Alistair Cooke saw him as trying to build a King's Party. [119] Others like Harold Macmillan were dismayed by the damage Churchill's support for the King had done to the Arms and the Covenant Movement. [120] Churchill himself later wrote "I was myself smitten in public opinion that it was the almost universal view that my political life was ended." [121] Historians are divided about Churchill's motives in his support for Edward VIII. Some such as A J P Taylor see it as being an attempt to 'overthrow the government of feeble men'. [122] Others such as Rhode James see Churchill's motives as entirely honourable and disinterested, that he felt deeply for the King. [123]
Return from exile
Churchill later sought to portray himself as an isolated voice warning of the need to rearm against Germany. While it is true that he had little following in the House of Commons during much of the 1930s he was given considerable privileges by the Government. The “Churchill group” in the later half of the decade consisted only of himself, Duncan Sandys and Brendan Bracken . It was isolated from the other main factions within the Conservative Party pressing for faster rearmament and a stronger foreign policy. [124] In some senses the ‘exile’ was more apparent than real. Churchill continued to be consulted on many matters by the Government or seen as an alternative leader. [125]
Winston Churchill giving his famous 'V' sign standing for "Victory".
Even during the time Churchill was campaigning against Indian independence, he received official and otherwise secret information. From 1932, Churchill’s neighbour, Major Desmond Morton with Ramsay MacDonald's approval, gave Churchill information on German air power. [126] From 1930 onwards Morton headed a department of the Committee of Imperial Defence charged with researching the defence preparedness of other nations. Lord Swinton as Secretary of State for Air, and with Baldwin’s approval, in 1934 gave Churchill access to official and otherwise secret information.
Swinton did so, knowing Churchill would remain a critic of the government but believing that an informed critic was better than one relying on rumour and hearsay. [127] Churchill was a fierce critic of Neville Chamberlain's appeasement of Adolf Hitler [128] and in a speech to the House of Commons, he bluntly and prophetically stated, "You were given the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, and you will have war." [129]
Role as wartime Prime Minister
"Winston is back"
After the outbreak of World War II , on 3 September 1939 the day Britain declared war on Germany, Churchill was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty and a member of the War Cabinet, just as he had been during the first part of World War I . When they were informed, the Board of the Admiralty sent a signal to the Fleet: "Winston is back". [130] [131] In this job, he proved to be one of the highest-profile ministers during the so-called " Phony War ", when the only noticeable action was at sea. Churchill advocated the pre-emptive occupation of the neutral Norwegian iron-ore port of Narvik and the iron mines in Kiruna , Sweden, early in the war. However, Chamberlain and the rest of the War Cabinet disagreed, and the operation was delayed until the successful German invasion of Norway .
Bitter beginnings of the war
See also: Attack on Mers-el-Kébir
Churchill wears a helmet during an air raid warning in the Battle of Britain in 1940
Churchill fires a Sten submachine gun in June 1941. The man in the pin-striped suit and trilby on Churchill's left is his bodyguard, Walter H. Thompson
On 10 May 1940, hours before the German invasion of France by a lightning advance through the Low Countries , it became clear that, following failure in Norway, the country had no confidence in Chamberlain's prosecution of the war and so Chamberlain resigned. The commonly accepted version of events states that Lord Halifax turned down the post of Prime Minister because he believed he could not govern effectively as a member of the House of Lords instead of the House of Commons . Although the Prime Minister does not traditionally advise the King on the former's successor, Chamberlain wanted someone who would command the support of all three major parties in the House of Commons. A meeting between Chamberlain, Halifax, Churchill and David Margesson , the government Chief Whip , led to the recommendation of Churchill, and, as a constitutional monarch, George VI asked Churchill to be Prime Minister and to form an all-party government. Churchill's first act was to write to Chamberlain to thank him for his support. [132]
Winston Churchill walks through the ruins of Coventry Cathedral , 1941
Churchill had been among the first to recognize the growing threat of Hitler long before the outset of the Second World War, and his warnings had gone largely unheeded. Although there was an element of British public and political sentiment favouring negotiated peace with a clearly ascendant Germany, among them the Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax , Churchill nonetheless refused to consider an armistice with Hitler's Germany. [133] His use of rhetoric hardened public opinion against a peaceful resolution and prepared the British for a long war. [134] Coining the general term for the upcoming battle, Churchill stated in his "finest hour" speech to the House of Commons on 18 June 1940, "I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin." [135] By refusing an armistice with Germany, Churchill kept resistance alive in the British Empire and created the basis for the later Allied counter-attacks of 1942-45, with Britain serving as a platform for the supply of Soviet Union and the liberation of Western Europe .
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Winston Churchill
In response to previous criticisms that there had been no clear single minister in charge of the prosecution of the war, Churchill created and took the additional position of Minister of Defence . He immediately put his friend and confidant, the industrialist and newspaper baron Lord Beaverbrook , in charge of aircraft production. It was Beaverbrook's business acumen that allowed Britain to quickly gear up aircraft production and engineering that eventually made the difference in the war. [136]
Churchill's speeches were a great inspiration to the embattled British. His first speech as Prime Minister was the famous "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat ". He followed that closely with two other equally famous ones, given just before the Battle of Britain . One included the words:
"... we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches , we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender." [137]
The other:
Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves, that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ' This was their finest hour '. [138]
Churchill with Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery and Field Marshal Alan Brooke , 1944
At the height of the Battle of Britain, his bracing survey of the situation included the memorable line " Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few ", which engendered the enduring nickname " The Few " for the Allied fighter pilots who won it. [139] One of his most memorable war speeches came on 10 November 1942 at the Lord Mayor's Luncheon at Mansion House in London, in response to the Allied victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein . Churchill stated:
This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. [140]
Without having much in the way of sustenance or good news to offer the British people , he took a political risk in deliberately choosing to emphasise the dangers instead.
"Rhetorical power," wrote Churchill, "is neither wholly bestowed, nor wholly acquired, but cultivated." Not all were impressed by his oratory. Robert Menzies, who was the Prime Minister of Australia, said during World War II of Churchill: "His real tyrant is the glittering phrase so attractive to his mind that awkward facts have to give way." [141] Another associate wrote: "He is . . . the slave of the words which his mind forms about ideas. . . . And he can convince himself of almost every truth if it is once allowed thus to start on its wild career through his rhetorical machinery." [142]
Relations with the United States
Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek , Franklin D. Roosevelt , and Churchill at the Cairo Conference in 1943
Churchill's good relationship with Franklin D. Roosevelt secured vital food, oil and munitions via the North Atlantic shipping routes. It was for this reason that Churchill was relieved when Roosevelt was re-elected in 1940 . Upon re-election, Roosevelt immediately set about implementing a new method of providing military hardware and shipping to Britain without the need for monetary payment. Put simply, Roosevelt persuaded Congress that repayment for this immensely costly service would take the form of defending the US; and so Lend-lease was born. Churchill had 12 strategic conferences with Roosevelt which covered the Atlantic Charter , Europe first strategy, the Declaration by the United Nations and other war policies. After Pearl Harbor was attacked , Churchill's first thought in anticipation of US help was, "We have won the war!" [143] On 26 December 1941, Churchill addressed a joint meeting of the US Congress , asking of Germany and Japan, "What kind of people do they think we are?" [144] Churchill initiated the Special Operations Executive (SOE) under Hugh Dalton's Ministry of Economic Warfare , which established, conducted and fostered covert, subversive and partisan operations in occupied territories with notable success; and also the Commandos which established the pattern for most of the world's current Special Forces . The Russians referred to him as the "British Bulldog".
Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference in 1944.
Churchill's health was fragile, as shown by a mild heart attack he suffered in December 1941 at the White House and also in December 1943 when he contracted pneumonia. Despite this, he travelled over 100,000 miles (160,000 km) throughout the war to meet other national leaders. For security, he usually travelled using the alias Colonel Warden. [145] Churchill was party to treaties that would redraw post-World War II European and Asian boundaries. These were discussed as early as 1943. Proposals for European boundaries and settlements were officially agreed to by Harry S Truman , Churchill, and Stalin at Potsdam . At the Second Quebec Conference in 1944 he drafted and, together with US President Franklin D. Roosevelt , signed a toned-down version of the original Morgenthau Plan , in which they pledged to convert Germany after its unconditional surrender "into a country primarily agricultural and pastoral in its character." [146] Churchill's strong relationship with Harry Truman was also of great significance to both countries. While he clearly regretted the loss of his close friend and counterpart Roosevelt, Churchill was enormously supportive of Truman in his first days in office, calling him, "the type of leader the world needs when it needs him most." [147]
Relations with the Soviet Union
When Hitler invaded the Soviet Union , Winston Churchill, a vehement anti-Communist, famously stated "If Hitler invaded Hell, I would at least make a favourable reference to the Devil in the House of Commons," regarding his policy toward Stalin [148] . Soon, British supplies and tanks were flowing to help the Soviet Union. [149]
Churchill secretly meets with President Ismet Inönü at the Yenice Station 15 miles (24 km) outside of Adana in south-east Turkey , on 30 January 1943
The settlement concerning the borders of Poland, that is, the boundary between Poland and the Soviet Union and between Germany and Poland , was viewed as a betrayal in Poland during the post-war years, as it was established against the views of the Polish government in exile . It was Winston Churchill, who tried to motivate Mikołajczyk , who was Prime Minister of the Polish government in exile, to accept Stalin's wishes, but Mikołajczyk refused. Churchill was convinced that the only way to alleviate tensions between the two populations was the transfer of people, to match the national borders.
As he expounded in the House of Commons on 15 December 1944, "Expulsion is the method which, insofar as we have been able to see, will be the most satisfactory and lasting. There will be no mixture of populations to cause endless trouble... A clean sweep will be made. I am not alarmed by these transferences, which are more possible in modern conditions." [150] [151] However the resulting expulsions of Germans were carried out in a way which resulted in much hardship and, according to a 1966 report by the West German Ministry of Refugees and Displaced Persons , the death of over 2.1 million. Churchill opposed the effective annexation of Poland by the Soviet Union and wrote bitterly about it in his books, but he was unable to prevent it at the conferences. [152]
Winston Churchill at the Yalta Conference , with Roosevelt and Stalin beside him.
During October 1944, he and Eden were in Moscow to meet with the Russian leadership. At this point, Russian forces were beginning to advance into various eastern European countries. Churchill held the view that until everything was formally and properly worked out at the Yalta conference , there had to be a temporary, war-time, working agreement with regard to who would run what. [153] The most significant of these meetings were held on 9 October 1944 in the Kremlin between Churchill and Stalin. During the meeting, Poland and the Balkan problems were discussed. [154] Churchill recounted his speech to Stalin on the day:
Let us settle about our affairs in the Balkans. Your armies are in Rumania and Bulgaria. We have interests, missions, and agents there. Don't let us get at cross-purposes in small ways. So far as Britain and Russia are concerned, how would it do for you to have ninety per cent predominance in Rumania, for us to have ninety per cent of the say in Greece, and go fifty-fifty about Yugoslavia? [153]
Stalin agreed to this Percentages Agreement , ticking a piece of paper as he heard the translation. In 1958, five years after the recount of this meeting was published (in The Second World War ), authorities of the Soviet denied that Stalin accepted the "imperialist proposal". [154]
One of the conclusions of the Yalta Conference was that the Allies would return all Soviet citizens that found themselves in the Allied zone to the Soviet Union. This immediately affected the Soviet prisoners of war liberated by the Allies, but was also extended to all Eastern European refugees . [155]
Dresden bombings controversy
Main article: Bombing of Dresden in World War II
Between 13 February and 15 February 1945, British and the US bombers attacked the German city of Dresden , which was crowded with German wounded and refugees. [156] Because of the cultural importance of the city, and of the number of civilian casualties close to the end of the war, this remains one of the most controversial Western Allied actions of the war. Following the bombing Churchill stated in a top secret telegram:
It seems to me that the moment has come when the question of bombing of German cities simply for the sake of increasing the terror, though under other pretexts, should be reviewed ... I feel the need for more precise concentration upon military objectives such as oil and communications behind the immediate battle-zone, rather than on mere acts of terror and wanton destruction, however impressive. [157]
On reflection, under pressure from the Chiefs of Staff and in response to the views expressed by Sir Charles Portal ( Chief of the Air Staff ,) and Arthur Harris ( AOC-in-C of Bomber Command ,) among others, Churchill withdrew his memo and issued a new one. [158] [159] This final version of the memo completed on 1 April 1945, stated:
It seems to me that the moment has come when the question of the so called 'area-bombing' of German cities should be reviewed from the point of view of our own interests. If we come into control of an entirely ruined land, there will be a great shortage of accommodation for ourselves and our allies ... We must see to it that our attacks do no more harm to ourselves in the long run than they do to the enemy's war effort. [158] [159]
Ultimately, responsibility for the British part of the attack lay with Churchill, which is why he has been criticised for allowing the bombings to happen. The German historian Jörg Friedrich , claims that "Winston Churchill's decision to [area] bomb a shattered Germany between January and May 1945 was a war crime" [160] and writing in 2006 the philosopher A. C. Grayling questioned the whole strategic bombing campaign by the RAF presenting the argument that although it was not a war crime it was a moral crime and undermines the Allies contention that they fought a just war . [161]
Churchill waves to crowds in Whitehall on the day he broadcast to the nation that the war with Germany had been won, 8 May 1945.
On the other hand, it has also been asserted that Churchill's involvement in the bombing of Dresden was based on the strategic and tactical aspects of winning the war. The destruction of Dresden, while immense, was designed to expedite the defeat of Germany. As the historian Max Hastings said in an article subtitled, "the Allied Bombing of Dresden": "I believe it is wrong to describe strategic bombing as a war crime, for this might be held to suggest some moral equivalence with the deeds of the Nazis. Bombing represented a sincere, albeit mistaken, attempt to bring about Germany's military defeat." Furthermore British historian, Frederick Taylor asserts that "All sides bombed each other's cities during the war. Half a million Soviet citizens, for example, died from German bombing during the invasion and occupation of Russia. That's roughly equivalent to the number of German citizens who died from Allied raids. But the Allied bombing campaign was attached to military operations and ceased as soon as military operations ceased." [162]
The Second World War ends
Potsdam Conference : Josef Stalin , Harry S. Truman and Winston Churchill, July 1945
In June 1944, the Allied Forces invaded Normandy and pushed the Nazi forces back into Germany on a broad front over the coming year. After being attacked on three fronts by the Allies, and in spite of Allied failures, such as Operation Market Garden , and German counter-attacks, including the Battle of the Bulge , Germany was eventually defeated. On 7 May 1945 at the SHAEF headquarters in Rheims the Allies accepted Germany's surrender . On the same day in a BBC news flash John Snagge announced that 8 May would be Victory in Europe Day . [163] On Victory in Europe Day, Churchill broadcast to the nation that Germany had surrendered and that a final cease fire on all fronts in Europe would come into effect at one minute past midnight that night. [164] [165] Afterwards Churchill told a huge crowd in Whitehall: "This is your victory." The people shouted: "No, it is yours", and Churchill then conducted them in the singing of Land of Hope and Glory . In the evening he made another broadcast to the nation asserting the defeat of Japan in the coming months. [45] The Japanese later surrendered on 15 August 1945.
Churchill at Potsdam, July 1945
See also: Operation Unthinkable
As Europe celebrated peace at the end of six years of war, Churchill was concerning on the possibility that the celebrations would soon be brutally interrupted. [166] He concluded that the UK and the US must prepare for the Red Army ignoring previously-agreed frontiers and agreements in Europe "to impose upon Russia the will of the United States and the British Empire." [167] According to the Operation Unthinkable plan ordered by Churchill and developed by the British Armed Forces, the Third World War could have started on 1 July 1945 with a sudden attack against the allied Soviet troops. The plan was rejected by the British Chiefs of Staff Committee as militarily unfeasible. However this decision didn't stop the further development of the war plans: with the beginning Arms race the militarily unfeasible Third World War was developed into the Cold War doctrine.
Leader of the opposition
Main article: Later life of Winston Churchill
Although Churchill's role in World War II had generated him much support from the British population, he was defeated in the 1945 election . [168] Many reasons for this have been given, key among them being that a desire for post-war reform was widespread amongst the population and that the man who had led Britain in war was not seen as the man to lead the nation in peace. [169]
For six years he was to serve as the Leader of the Opposition . During these years Churchill continued to have an impact on world affairs. During his March 1946 trip to the United States, Churchill, famously lost a lot of money in a poker game with Harry Truman and his advisors. [170] (He also liked to play Bezique , which he learned while serving in the Boer War.)
During this trip he gave his Iron Curtain speech about the USSR and the creation of the Eastern Bloc . Speaking on March 5, 1946 at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri , he declared:
Churchill with American General Dwight D. Eisenhower and Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery at a meeting of NATO in October 1951, shortly before Churchill was to become Prime Minister for a second time.
From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an Iron Curtain has descended across the continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere. [171]
Churchill also argued strongly for British independence from the European Coal and Steel Community , which he saw as a Franco-German project. He saw Britain's place as separate from the continent, much more in-line with the countries of the Commonwealth and the Empire and with the United States, the so-called Anglosphere . [172] [173]
Second term as Prime Minister
Main articles: Mau Mau Uprising , Malayan Emergency , and 1953 Iranian coup d'état
Return to Government and the Decline of the British Empire
After the General Election of 1951 , Churchill again became Prime Minister. His third government—after the wartime national government and the brief caretaker government of 1945—lasted until his resignation in 1955. His domestic priorities in his last government were overshadowed by a series of foreign policy crises, which were partly the result of the continued decline of British military and imperial prestige and power. Being a strong proponent of Britain as an international power , Churchill would often meet such moments with direct action . One example was his dispatch of British troops to Kenya to deal with the Mau Mau rebellion . [174] Trying to retain what he could of the Empire, he once stated that, "I will not preside over a dismemberment." [174]
War in Malaya
This was followed by events which became known as the Malayan Emergency . In Malaya , a rebellion against British rule had been in progress since 1948. [175] Once again, Churchill's government inherited a crisis, and Churchill chose to use direct military action against those in rebellion while attempting to build an alliance with those who were not. [45] [176] While the rebellion was slowly being defeated, it was equally clear that colonial rule from Britain was no longer sustainable. [175] [177]
Relations with the United States
Churchill also devoted much of his time in office to Anglo-American relations and although Churchill did not get on well with President Dwight D. Eisenhower [ citation needed ], Churchill attempted to maintain the special relationship with the United States. He made four official transatlantic visits to America during his second term as Prime Minister. [178]
The series of strokes
In June 1953, when he was 78, Churchill suffered a stroke at 10 Downing Street . News of this was kept from the public and from Parliament, who were told that Churchill was suffering from exhaustion. He went to his country home, Chartwell, to recuperate from the effects of the stroke which had affected his speech and ability to walk. [45] He returned to public life in October to make a speech at a Conservative Party conference at Margate . [45] [179] However, aware that he was slowing down both physically and mentally, Churchill retired as Prime Minister in 1955 and was succeeded by Anthony Eden .
Retirement and Death
Churchill spent much of his retirement at his home Chartwell in Kent. He purchased it in 1922 after his daughter Mary was born.
Elizabeth II offered to create Churchill Duke of London , but this was declined due to the objections of his son Randolph, who would have inherited the title on his father's death. [180] After leaving the premiership, Churchill spent less time in parliament until he stood down at the 1964 General Election . As a mere "back-bencher," Churchill spent most of his retirement at Chartwell and at his home in Hyde Park Gate, in London. [45] As his mental and physical faculties decayed, he began to lose the battle he had fought for so long against the "black dog" of depression . [45] In 1963, US President John F. Kennedy , acting under authorisation granted by an Act of Congress , proclaimed him an Honorary Citizen of the United States , [181] but he was unable to attend the White House ceremony. On 15 January 1965, Churchill suffered a severe stroke that left him gravely ill. He died at his home nine days later, at age 90, on the morning of Sunday 24 January 1965, coincidentally 70 years to the day after his father's death. [182]
Funeral
By decree of the Queen, his body lay in state for three days and a state funeral service was held at St Paul's Cathedral . [183] As his coffin passed down the Thames from Tower Pier to Festival Pier on the Havengore , dockers lowered their crane jibs in a salute. [184] The Royal Artillery fired a 19-gun salute (as head of government ), and the RAF staged a fly-by of sixteen English Electric Lightning fighters. The coffin was then taken the short distance to Waterloo Station where it was loaded onto a specially prepared and painted carriage - Southern Railway Van S2464S - as part of the funeral train for its rail journey to Bladon. [185] The funeral also saw one of the largest assemblage of statesmen in the world until the 2005 funeral of Pope John Paul II . [186] The funeral train of Pullman coaches carrying his family mourners was hauled by Bulleid Pacific steam locomotive No. 34051 "Winston Churchill". In the fields along the route, and at the stations through which the train passed, thousands stood in silence to pay their last respects. At Churchill's request, he was buried in the family plot at St Martin's Church , Bladon , near Woodstock, not far from his birthplace at Blenheim Palace . Churchill's funeral van - Southern Railway Van S2464S - is now part of a preservation project with the Swanage Railway having been repatriated to the UK in 2007 from the USA where it was exported in 1965. [187]
Churchill artist, historian, and writer
Statue of Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt in New Bond Street, London
Main articles: Winston Churchill as historian and Winston Churchill as writer
Winston Churchill was also an accomplished artist and took great pleasure in painting, especially after his resignation as First Lord of the Admiralty in 1915. [188] He found a haven in art to overcome the spells of depression —or as he termed it, the "Black Dog"—which he suffered throughout his life. As William Rees-Mogg has stated, "In his own life, he had to suffer the 'black dog' of depression. In his landscapes and still lives there is no sign of depression". [189] He is best known for his impressionist scenes of landscape, many of which were painted while on holiday in the South of France or Morocco. [189] He continued his hobby throughout his life and painted dozens of paintings, many of which are on show in the studio at Chartwell. [190]
Despite his lifelong fame and upper-class origins Churchill always struggled to keep his income at a level that would fund his extravagant lifestyle. MPs before 1946 received only a nominal salary (and in fact did not receive anything at all until the Parliament Act 1911 ) so many had secondary professions from which to earn a living. [191] From his first book in 1898 until his second stint as Prime Minister, Churchill's income was almost entirely made from writing books and opinion pieces for newspapers and magazines. The most famous of his newspaper articles are those that appeared in the Evening Standard from 1936 warning of the rise of Hitler and the danger of the policy of appeasement.
Churchill was also a prolific writer of books, writing a novel, two biographies, three volumes of memoirs , and several histories in addition to his many newspaper articles. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his mastery of historical and biographical description as well as for brilliant oratory in defending exalted human values". [192] Two of his most famous works, published after his first premiereship brought his international fame to new heights, were his six-volume memoir The Second World War and A History of the English-Speaking Peoples ; a four-volume history covering the period from Caesar's invasions of Britain (55 BC) to the beginning of the First World War (1914). [193]
Honours
Main article: Honours of Winston Churchill
Statue in London
Aside from receiving the great honour of a state funeral , Churchill also received numerous awards and honours, including being made the first Honorary Citizen of the United States . [194] Churchill received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953 for his numerous published works, especially his six-edition set The Second World War. In a 2002 BBC poll of the " 100 Greatest Britons ", he was proclaimed "The Greatest of Them All" based on approximately a million votes from BBC viewers. [195] Churchill was also rated as one of the most influential leaders in history by Time magazine . [196] Churchill College , Cambridge was founded in 1958 on his behalf.
Ancestors
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Monument to the Unknown Woman Worker is a sculpture by Louise Walsh on Great Victoria Street near to the Europa Hotel in which British city?
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Winston Churchill - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Winston Churchill
For other uses, see Winston Churchill (disambiguation) .
"Churchill" redirects here. For other uses, see Churchill (disambiguation) .
26 October 1951 – 7 April 1955
Monarch
10 May 1940 – 27 July 1945
Monarch
6 November 1924 – 4 June 1929
Prime Minister
19 February 1910 – 24 October 1911
Prime Minister
Member of Parliament , statesman , soldier , journalist , historian , author , painter
Signature
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG , OM , CH , TD , FRS , PC , PC (Can) (30 November 1874 - 24 January 1965) was a British politician known chiefly for his leadership of the United Kingdom during World War II . He served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A noted statesman and orator , Churchill was also an officer in the British Army , a historian , a Nobel Prize -winning writer, and an artist .
During his army career, Churchill saw action in India , in the Sudan and the Second Boer War . He gained fame and notoriety as a war correspondent and through contemporary books he wrote describing the campaigns. He also served briefly in the British Army on the Western Front in World War I , commanding the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers .
At the forefront of the political scene for almost fifty years, he held many political and cabinet positions. Before the First World War, he served as President of the Board of Trade , Home Secretary and First Lord of the Admiralty as part of the Asquith Liberal government . During the war he continued as First Lord of the Admiralty until the disastrous Battle of Gallipoli caused his departure from government. He returned as Minister of Munitions , Secretary of State for War and Secretary of State for Air . In the interwar years , he served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Conservative government.
After the outbreak of the Second World War , Churchill was again appointed First Lord of the Admiralty. Following the resignation of Neville Chamberlain on 10 May 1940, he became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and led Britain to victory against the Axis powers . [1] Churchill was always noted for his speeches, which became a great inspiration to the British people and embattled Allied forces .
After losing the 1945 election , he became Leader of the Opposition . In 1951, he again became Prime Minister before finally retiring in 1955. Upon his death the Queen granted him the honour of a state funeral , which saw one of the largest assemblies of statesmen in the world.
Contents
Family and early life
Blenheim Palace, Churchill's ancestral home
A descendant of the famous Spencer family , [2] Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, like his father, used the surname Churchill in public life. [3] His ancestor George Spencer had changed his surname to Spencer-Churchill in 1817 when he became Duke of Marlborough , to highlight his descent from John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough . Winston's father, Lord Randolph Churchill , the third son of John Spencer-Churchill, 7th Duke of Marlborough , was a politician, while his mother, Lady Randolph Churchill ( née Jennie Jerome) was the daughter of American millionaire Leonard Jerome . Born on 30 November 1874 in a bedroom in Blenheim Palace , Woodstock , Oxfordshire ; [4] he arrived eight months after his parents' hasty marriage. [5] Churchill had one brother, John Strange Spencer-Churchill .
Independent and rebellious by nature, Churchill generally did poorly in school, for which he was punished. He was educated at three independent schools: St. George's School in Ascot , Berkshire , followed by Brunswick School in Hove , near Brighton (the school has since been renamed Stoke Brunswick School and relocated to Ashurst Wood in West Sussex ), and then at Harrow School on 17 April 1888, where his military career began. Within weeks of his arrival, he had joined the Harrow Rifle Corps . [6] He earned high marks in English and history and was also the school's fencing champion.
Winston Churchill's father - Lord Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill
He was rarely visited by his mother (then known as Lady Randolph), and wrote letters begging her to either come to the school or to allow him to come home. His relationship with his father was a distant one, he once remarked that they barely spoke to each other. [7] Due to this lack of parental contact he became very close to his nanny, Elizabeth Anne Everest, who he used to call "Woomany". [8] [9] His father died on 24 January 1895, aged just 45, leaving Churchill with the conviction that he too would die young, so should be quick about making his mark on the world.
Speech impediment
See also: List of stutterers
Churchill described himself as having a "speech impediment" which he consistently worked to overcome. After many years, he finally stated, "My impediment is no hindrance." Trainee speech therapists are often shown videotapes of Churchill's mannerisms while making speeches and the Stuttering Foundation of America uses Churchill, pictured on its home page, as one of its role models of successful stutterers. This diagnosis is supported by contemporaries writing in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. [10] The Churchill Centre, however, flatly refutes the claim that Churchill stuttered while confirming that he did have difficulty pronouncing the letter 'S' and spoke with a lisp . [11] His father also spoke with a lisp. [12] The National Cluttering Association however maintains that Churchill had not a stutter but a clutter .
Marriage and children
Churchill met his future wife, Clementine Hozier , in 1904 at a ball in Crewe House, home of the Earl of Crewe and his wife Margaret Primrose (daughter of Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery ). [13] In 1908, they met again at a dinner party hosted by Lady St Helier . Churchill found himself seated beside Clementine, and they soon began a lifelong romance. [14] He proposed to Clementine during a house party at Blenheim Palace on 10 August 1908, in a small Temple of Diana . [15] On 12 September 1908, they were married in St. Margaret's, Westminster . The church was packed; the Bishop of St Asaph conducted the service. [16] In March 1909, the couple moved to a house at 33 Eccleston Square.
Winston's mother, Lady Randolph Churchill
Their first child, Diana , was born in London on 11 July 1909. After the pregnancy, Clementine moved to Sussex to recover, while Diana stayed in London with her nanny. [17] On 28 May 1911, their second child, Randolph , was born at 33 Eccleston Square. [18] Their third child, Sarah , was born on 7 October 1914 at Admiralty House . The birth was marked with anxiety for Clementine, as Winston had been sent to Antwerp by the Cabinet to "stiffen the resistance of the beleaguered city" after news that the Belgians intended to surrender the town. [19]
Clementine gave birth to her fourth child, Marigold Frances Churchill, on 15 November 1918, four days after the official end of World War I. [20] In the early months of August, the Churchills' children were entrusted to a French nursery governess in Kent named Mlle Rose. Clementine, meanwhile, travelled to Eaton Hall to play tennis with Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster and his family. While still under the care of Mlle Rose, Marigold had a cold, but was reported to have recovered from the illness. As the illness progressed with hardly any notice, it turned into septicaemia . Following advice from a landlady, Rose sent for Clementine. However the illness turned fatal on 23 August 1921, and Marigold was buried in the Kensal Green Cemetery three days later. [21] On 15 September 1922, the Churchills' last child was born, Mary . Later that month, the Churchills bought Chartwell , which would be Winston's home until his death in 1965. [22] [23]
Service in the Army
After Churchill left Harrow in 1893, he applied to attend the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst . It took three attempts before he passed the entrance exam; he applied for cavalry rather than infantry because the grade requirement was lower and did not require him to learn mathematics, which he disliked. He graduated eighth out of a class of 150 in December 1894, [24] and although he could now have transferred to an infantry regiment as his father had wished, chose to remain with the cavalry and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 4th Queen's Own Hussars on 20 February 1895. [25] In 1941, he received the honour of Colonel of the Hussars .
Churchill's pay as a second lieutenant in the 4th Hussars was £300. However, he believed that he needed at least a further £500 (equivalent to £25,000 in 2001 terms) to support a style of life equal to other officers of the regiment . His mother provided an allowance of £400 per year, but this was repeatedly overspent. According to biographer Roy Jenkins , this is one reason he took an interest in war correspondence. [26] He did not intend to follow a conventional career of promotion through army ranks, but to seek out all possible chances of military action and used his mother's and family influence in high society to arrange postings to active campaigns. His writings both brought him to the attention of the public, and earned him significant additional income. He acted as a war correspondent for several London newspapers [27] and wrote his own books about the campaigns.
Churchill in military uniform in 1895
Cuba
In 1895, Churchill travelled to Cuba to observe the Spanish fight the Cuban guerrillas; he had obtained a commission to write about the conflict from the Daily Graphic. To his delight, he came under fire for the first time on his twenty-first birthday. [25] He had fond memories of Cuba as a "...large, rich, beautiful island..." [28] While there, he soon acquired a taste for Havana cigars, which he would smoke for the rest of his life. While in New York, he stayed at the home of Bourke Cockran , an admirer of his mother's. Bourke was an established American politician, member of the House of Representatives and potential presidential candidate. He greatly influenced Churchill, both in his approach to oratory and politics, and encouraging a love of America. [29]
He soon received word that his nanny, Mrs Everest, was dying; he then returned to England and stayed with her for a week until she died. He wrote in his journal "She was my favourite friend." In My Early Life he wrote: "She had been my dearest and most intimate friend during the whole of the twenty years I had lived." [30]
India
In early October 1896, he was transferred to Bombay , British India . He was considered one of the best polo players in his regiment and led his team to many prestigious tournament victories. [31]
A young Winston Churchill on a lecture tour of the United States in 1900
Malakand
In 1897, Churchill attempted to travel to both report and, if necessary, fight in the Greco-Turkish War , but this conflict effectively ended before he could arrive. Later, while preparing for a leave in England, he heard that three brigades of the British Army were going to fight against a Pashtun tribe and he asked his superior officer if he could join the fight. [32] He fought under the command of General Jeffery, who was the commander of the second brigade operating in Malakand , in what is now Pakistan . Jeffery sent him with fifteen scouts to explore the Mamund Valley; while on reconnaissance, they encountered an enemy tribe, dismounted from their horses and opened fire. After an hour of shooting, their reinforcements, the 35th Sikhs arrived, and the fire gradually ceased and the brigade and the Sikhs marched on. Hundreds of tribesmen then ambushed them and opened fire, forcing them to retreat. As they were retreating four men were carrying an injured officer but the fierceness of the fight forced them to leave him behind. The man who was left behind was slashed to death before Churchill’s eyes; afterwards he wrote of the killer, "I forgot everything else at this moment except a desire to kill this man". [33] However the Sikhs' numbers were being depleted so the next commanding officer told Churchill to get the rest of the men and boys to safety.
Before he left he asked for a note so he would not be charged with desertion. [34] He received the note, quickly signed, and headed up the hill and alerted the other brigade, whereupon they then engaged the army. The fighting in the region dragged on for another two weeks before the dead could be recovered. He wrote in his journal: "Whether it was worth it I cannot tell." [33] [35] An account of the Siege of Malakand was published in December 1900 as The Story of the Malakand Field Force . He received £600 for his account. During the campaign, he also wrote articles for the newspapers The Pioneer and The Daily Telegraph . [36] His account of the battle was one of his first published stories, for which he received £ 5 per column from The Daily Telegraph . [37]
Sudan and Oldham
The River War was published in 1899
Churchill was transferred to Egypt in 1898 where he visited Luxor before joining an attachment of the 21st Lancers serving in the Sudan under the command of General Herbert Kitchener . During his time he encountered two future military officers, with whom he would later work, during the First World War : Douglas Haig , then a captain and John Jellicoe , then a gunboat lieutenant. [38] While in the Sudan, he participated in what has been described as the last meaningful British cavalry charge at the Battle of Omdurman in September 1898. He also worked as a war correspondent for the Morning Post . By October 1898, he had returned to Britain and begun his two-volume work; The River War , an account of the reconquest of the Sudan published the following year. Churchill resigned from the British Army effective from 5 May 1899.
Main article: Oldham by-election, 1899
He soon had his first opportunity to begin a Parliamentary career, when he was invited by Robert Ascroft to be the second Conservative Party candidate in Ascroft's Oldham constituency. In the event Ascroft's sudden death caused a double by-election and Churchill was one of the candidates. In the midst of a national trend against the Conservatives, both seats were lost; however Churchill was impressed by his vigorous campaigning.
South Africa
Having failed at Oldham, Churchill looked about for some other opportunity to advance his career. On 12 October 1899, the Second Boer War between Britain and the Boer Republics broke out and he obtained a commission to act as war correspondent for the Morning Post with a salary of £250 per month. He rushed to sail on the same ship as the newly appointed British commander, Sir Redvers Buller . After some weeks in exposed areas he accompanied a scouting expedition in an armoured train, leading to his capture and imprisonment in a POW camp in Pretoria . His actions during the ambush of the train led to speculation that he would be awarded the Victoria Cross , Britain's highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy, but this did not occur. [25] Writing in London to Ladysmith via Pretoria , a collected version of his war reports, he described the experience:
I have had, in the last four years, the advantage, if it be an advantage, of many strange and varied experiences, from which the student of realities might draw profit and instruction. But nothing was so thrilling as this: to wait and struggle among these clanging, rending iron boxes, with the repeated explosions of the shells and the artillery, the noise of the projectiles striking the cars, the hiss as they passed in the air, the grunting and puffing of the engine--poor, tortured thing, hammered by at least a dozen shells, any one of which, by penetrating the boiler, might have made an end of all--the expectation of destruction as a matter of course, the realization of powerlessness, and the alternations of hope and despair--all this for seventy minutes by the clock with only four inches of twisted iron work to make the difference between danger, captivity, and shame on the one hand--safety, freedom, and triumph on the other. [39]
He escaped from the prison camp and travelled almost 300 miles (480 km) to Portuguese Lourenço Marques in Delagoa Bay , with the assistance of an English mine manager. [40] His escape made him a minor national hero for a time in Britain, though instead of returning home, he rejoined General Buller's army on its march to relieve the British at the Siege of Ladysmith and take Pretoria. [41] This time, although continuing as a war correspondent, he gained a commission in the South African Light Horse . He was among the first British troops into Ladysmith and Pretoria. He and his cousin, the Duke of Marlborough , were able to get ahead of the rest of the troops in Pretoria, where they demanded and received the surrender of 52 Boer prison camp guards. [42]
In 1900, Churchill returned to England on the RMS Dunottar Castle , the same ship on which he set sail for South Africa eight months earlier. [43] He there published London to Ladysmith and a second volume of Boer war experiences, Ian Hamilton's March . Churchill stood again for parliament in Oldham in the general election of 1900 and won (his Conservative colleague, Crisp, was defeated) in the contest for two seats. [44] [45] After the 1900 general election he embarked on a speaking tour of Britain, followed by tours of the United States and Canada, earning in excess of £5,000. [46]
Territorial service
In 1900, he retired from regular army and in 1902 joined the Imperial Yeomanry where he was commissioned as a Captain in the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars on 4 January 1902. [47] In April 1905, he was promoted to Major and appointed to command of the Henley Squadron of the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars. [48] In September 1916, he transferred to the territorial reserves of officers where he remained till retiring in 1924. [48]
Western front
Churchill was First Lord of the Admiralty at the start of World War I, but was obliged to leave the war cabinet after the disastrous Battle of Gallipoli . He attempted to obtain a commission as a brigade commander, but settled for command of a battalion. After spending some time with the Grenadier Guards he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel , commanding the 6th Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers , on 1 January 1916. Correspondence with his wife shows that his intent in taking up active service was to rehabilitate his reputation, but this was balanced by the serious risk of being killed. As a commander he continued to exhibit the reckless daring which had been a hallmark of all his military actions, although he disapproved strongly of the mass slaughter involved in many western front actions. [49]
Lord Deedes explained to a gathering of the Royal Historical Society in 2001 why Churchill went to the front line: "He was with Grenadier Guards , who were dry [without alcohol] at battalion headquarters. They very much liked tea and condensed milk, which had no great appeal to Winston, but alcohol was permitted in the front line, in the trenches. So he suggested to the colonel that he really ought to see more of the war and get into the front line. This was highly commended by the colonel, who thought it was a very good thing to do." [50]
Political career to World War II
Early years in Parliament
Churchill's election poster for the 1899 by-election in Oldham, which he lost.
Churchill stood again for the seat of Oldham at the 1900 general election . After winning the seat, he went on a speaking tour throughout Britain and the United States, raising £10,000 for himself. In Parliament, he became associated with a faction of the Conservative Party led by Lord Hugh Cecil ; the Hughligans . During his first parliamentary session , he opposed the government's military expenditure [51] and Joseph Chamberlain 's proposal of extensive tariffs, which were intended to protect Britain's economic dominance. His own constituency effectively deselected him, although he continued to sit for Oldham until the next general election. After the Whitsun recess in 1904 he crossed the floor to sit as a member of the Liberal Party . As a Liberal, he continued to campaign for free trade . When the Liberals took office with Henry Campbell-Bannerman as Prime Minister, in December 1905, Churchill became Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies dealing mainly with South Africa after the Boer War. From 1903 until 1905, Churchill was also engaged in writing Lord Randolph Churchill , a two-volume biography of his father which was published in 1906 and received much critical acclaim. [52]
Following his deselection in the seat of Oldham, Churchill was invited to stand for Manchester North West . He won the seat at the 1906 general election with a majority of 1,214 and represented the seat for two years, until 1908. [53] When Campbell-Bannerman was succeeded by Herbert Henry Asquith in 1908, Churchill was promoted to the Cabinet as President of the Board of Trade . [45] Under the law at the time, a newly appointed Cabinet Minister was obliged to seek re-election at a by-election ; Churchill lost his seat but was soon back as a member for Dundee constituency . As President of the Board of Trade he joined newly appointed Chancellor Lloyd George in opposing First Lord of the Admiralty , Reginald McKenna 's proposed huge expenditure for the construction of Navy dreadnought warships, and in supporting the Liberal reforms . [54] In 1908, he introduced the Trade Boards Bill setting up the first minimum wages in Britain, [55] In 1909, he set up Labour Exchanges to help unemployed people find work. [56] He helped draft the first unemployment pension legislation, the National Insurance Act of 1911 . [57]
Churchill in 1904.
Churchill also assisted in passing the People's Budget [58] becoming President of the Budget League, an organisation set up in response to the opposition's "Budget Protest League". [59] The budget included the introduction of new taxes on the wealthy to allow for the creation of new social welfare programmes. After the budget bill was sent to the Commons in 1909 and passed, it went to the House of Lords , where it was vetoed. The Liberals then fought and won two general elections in January and December 1910 to gain a mandate for their reforms. The budget was then passed following the Parliament Act 1911 for which he also campaigned. In 1910, he was promoted to Home Secretary . His term was controversial, after his responses to the Siege of Sidney Street and the dispute at the Cambrian Colliery and the suffragettes .
In 1910, a number of coal miners in the Rhondda Valley began what has come to be known as the Tonypandy Riot . [54] The Chief Constable of Glamorgan requested troops be sent in to help police quell the rioting. Churchill, learning that the troops were already travelling, allowed them to go as far as Swindon and Cardiff but blocked their deployment. On 9 November, the Times criticized this decision. In spite of this, the rumour persists that Churchill had ordered troops to attack, and his reputation in Wales and in Labour circles never recovered. [60]
Winston Churchill (highlighted) at Sidney Street, 3 January 1911
In early January 1911, Churchill made a controversial visit to the Siege of Sidney Street in London. There is some uncertainty as to whether he attempted to give operational commands, and his presence attracted much criticism. After an inquest, Arthur Balfour remarked, "he [Churchill] and a photographer were both risking valuable lives. I understand what the photographer was doing, but what was the right honourable gentleman doing?" [61] A biographer, Roy Jenkins, suggests that he went simply because "he could not resist going to see the fun himself" and that he did not issue commands. [62]
Churchill's proposed solution to the suffragette issue was a referendum on the issue, but this found no favour with Herbert Henry Asquith and women's suffrage remained unresolved until after the First World War . [63]
In 1911, Churchill was transferred to the office of the First Lord of the Admiralty , a post he held into World War I . He gave impetus to several reform efforts, including development of naval aviation (he undertook flying lessons himself), [64] the construction of new and larger warships, the development of tanks, and the switch from coal to oil in the Royal Navy . [65]
World War I and the Post War Coalition
On 5 October 1914, Churchill went to Antwerp which the Belgian government proposed to evacuate. The Royal Marine Brigade was there and at Churchill’s urgings the 1st and 2nd Naval Brigades were also committed. Antwerp fell on 10 October with the loss of 2500 men. At the time he was attacked for squandering resources. [66] It is more likely that his actions prolonged the resistance by a week (Belgium had proposed surrendering Antwerp on 3 October) and that this time saved Calais and Dunkirk. [67]
Churchill was involved with the development of the tank , which was financed from naval research funds. [68] He then headed the Landships Committee which was responsible for creating the first tank corps and, although a decade later development of the battle tank would be seen as a tactical victory, at the time it was seen as misappropriation of funds. [68] In 1915, he was one of the political and military engineers of the disastrous Gallipoli landings on the Dardanelles during World War I. [69] He took much of the blame for the fiasco, and when Prime Minister Asquith formed an all-party coalition government , the Conservatives demanded his demotion as the price for entry. [70]
For several months Churchill served in the sinecure of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster . However on 15 November 1915 he resigned from the government, feeling his energies were not being used. [71] and, though remaining an MP, served for several months on the Western Front commanding the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers , under the rank of Colonel. [72] In March 1916, Churchill returned to England after he had become restless in France and wished to speak again in the House of Commons. [73] In July 1917, Churchill was appointed Minister of Munitions , and in January 1919, Secretary of State for War and Secretary of State for Air . He was the main architect of the Ten Year Rule , a principle that allows the Treasury to dominate and control strategic, foreign and financial policies under the assumption that "there would be no great European war for the next five or ten years". [74]
A major preoccupation of his tenure in the War Office was the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War . Churchill was a staunch advocate of foreign intervention, declaring that Bolshevism must be "strangled in its cradle". [75] He secured, from a divided and loosely organised Cabinet, intensification and prolongation of the British involvement beyond the wishes of any major group in Parliament or the nation—and in the face of the bitter hostility of Labour. In 1920, after the last British forces had been withdrawn, Churchill was instrumental in having arms sent to the Poles when they invaded Ukraine . He became Secretary of State for the Colonies in 1921 and was a signatory of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, which established the Irish Free State . Churchill was involved in the lengthy negotiations of the treaty and to protect British maritime interests, he engineered part of the Irish Free State agreement to include three Treaty Ports —Queenstown ( Cobh ), Berehaven and Lough Swilly —which could be used as Atlantic bases by the Royal Navy . [76] Under the terms of the Anglo-Irish Trade Agreement the bases were returned to the newly renamed " Ireland " in 1938.
It is sometimes claimed that Churchill advocated the use of poison gas on Kurdish tribesmen in Mesopotamia [77] , a claim based on a War Office minute of 12 May 1919 in which Churchill argued for the use of tear gases:
I do not understand this squeamishness about the use of gas. We have definitely adopted the position at the Peace Conference of arguing in favour of the retention of gas as a permanent method of warfare. It is sheer affectation to lacerate a man with the poisonous fragment of a bursting shell and to boggle at making his eyes water by means of lachrymatory gas. I am strongly in favour of using poisoned [78] gas against uncivilised tribes. The moral effect should be so good that the loss of life should be reduced to a minimum. It is not necessary to use only the most deadly gasses: gasses can be used which cause great inconvenience and would spread a lively terror and yet would leave no serious permanent effects on most of those affected. [79]
If British forces did consider the use of poison gas in putting down Kurdish rebellions, there is no evidence that it was ever used.[ citation needed ]
Rejoining the Conservative Party – Chancellor of the Exchequer
In September, the Conservative Party withdrew from the Coalition government following a meeting of backbenchers dissatisfied with the handling of the Chanak Crisis , a move that precipitated the looming October 1922 General Election . Churchill fell ill during the campaign, and had to have an appendicectomy . This made it difficult for him to campaign, and a further setback was the internal division that continued to beset the Liberal Party. He came only fourth in the poll for Dundee , losing to the prohibitionist Edwin Scrymgeour . Churchill later quipped that he left Dundee "without an office, without a seat, without a party and without an appendix". [53] He stood for the Liberals again in the 1923 general election , losing in Leicester , and then as an independent, first without success in a by-election in the Westminster Abbey constituency , and then successfully in the general election of 1924 for Epping . The following year, he formally rejoined the Conservative Party, commenting wryly that "anyone can rat, but it takes a certain ingenuity to re-rat." [53] [80]
Churchill was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1924 under Stanley Baldwin and oversaw Britain's disastrous return to the Gold Standard , which resulted in deflation, unemployment, and the miners' strike that led to the General Strike of 1926 . [81] His decision, announced in the 1924 Budget, came after long consultation with various economists including John Maynard Keynes , the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury, Sir Otto Niemeyer and the board of the Bank of England . This decision prompted Keynes to write The Economic Consequences of Mr. Churchill, arguing that the return to the gold standard at the pre-war parity in 1925 (£1=$4.86) would lead to a world depression . However, the decision was generally popular and seen as 'sound economics' although it was opposed by Lord Beaverbrook and the Federation of British Industries. [82]
Churchill as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1927
Churchill later regarded this as the greatest mistake of his life. However in discussions at the time with former Chancellor McKenna , Churchill acknowledged that the return to the gold standard and the resulting 'dear money' policy was economically bad. In those discussions he maintained the policy as fundamentally political - a return to the pre-war conditions in which he believed. [83] In his speech on the Bill he said "I will tell you what it [the return to the Gold Standard] will shackle us to. It will shackle us to reality." [84]
The return to the pre-war exchange rate and to the Gold Standard depressed industries. The most affected was the coal industry. Already suffering from declining output as shipping switched to oil, as basic British industries like cotton came under more competition in export markets, the return to the pre-war exchange was estimated to add up to 10% in costs to the industry. In July 1925, a Commission of Inquiry reported generally favouring the miners , rather than the mine owners' position. [85] Baldwin, with Churchill's support proposed a subsidy to the industry while a Royal Commission prepared a further report.
That Commission solved nothing and the miners dispute led to the General Strike of 1926 , Churchill was reported to have suggested that machine guns be used on the striking miners. Churchill edited the Government's newspaper, the British Gazette , and, during the dispute, he argued that "either the country will break the General Strike, or the General Strike will break the country" and claimed that the fascism of Benito Mussolini had "rendered a service to the whole world," showing, as it had, "a way to combat subversive forces"—that is, he considered the regime to be a bulwark against the perceived threat of Communist revolution . At one point, Churchill went as far as to call Mussolini the "Roman genius… the greatest lawgiver among men." [86]
Later economists, as well as people at the time, also criticised Churchill's budget measures. These were seen as assisting the generally prosperous rentier banking and salaried classes (to which Churchill and his associates generally belonged) at the expense of manufacturers and exporters which were known then to be suffering from imports and from competition in traditional export markets, [87] and as paring the Armed Forces too heavily. [88]
Political isolation
Churchill wrote a biography of his ancestor John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough in the mid 1930s
The Conservative government was defeated in the 1929 General Election . Churchill did not seek election to the Conservative Business Committee, the official leadership of the Conservative MPs. Over the next two years, Churchill became estranged from the Conservative leadership over the issues of protective tariffs and Indian Home Rule and by his political views and by his friendships with press barons, financiers and people whose characters were seen as dubious. When Ramsay MacDonald formed the National Government in 1931, Churchill was not invited to join the Cabinet . He was at the low point in his career, in a period known as "the wilderness years". [89]
He spent much of the next few years concentrating on his writing, including Marlborough: His Life and Times —a biography of his ancestor John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough —and A History of the English Speaking Peoples (though the latter was not published until well after World War II), [89] Great Contemporaries and many newspaper articles and collections of speeches. He was one of the best paid writers of his time. [89] His political views, set forth in his 1930 Romanes Election and published as Parliamentary Government and the Economic Problem (republished in 1932 in his collection of essays "Thoughts and Adventures") involved abandoning universal suffrage , a return to a property franchise, proportional representation for the major cities and an economic 'sub parliament'. [90]
Indian Independence
See also: Simon Commission and Government of India Act 1935
During the first half of the 1930s, Churchill was outspoken in his opposition to granting Dominion status to India. He was one of the founders of the India Defence League, a group dedicated to the preservation of British power in India. In speeches and press articles in this period he forecast widespread British unemployment and civil strife in India should independence be granted. [91] The Viceroy Lord Irwin who had been appointed by the prior Conservative Government engaged in the Round Table Conference in early 1931 and then announced the Government's policy that India should be granted Dominion Status. In this the Government was supported by the Liberal Party and, officially at least, by the Conservative Party. Churchill denounced the Round Table Conference.
At a meeting of the West Essex Conservative Association specially convened so Churchill could explain his position he said, "It is alarming and also nauseating to see Mr Gandhi, a seditious Middle-Temple lawyer, now posing as a fakir of a type well-known in the East, striding half-naked up the steps of the Vice-regal palace...to parley on equal terms with the representative of the King-Emperor." [92] He called the Indian Congress leaders "Brahmins who mouth and patter principles of Western Liberalism." [93]
There were two incidents which damaged Churchill's reputation greatly within the Conservative Party in the period. Both were taken as attacks on the Conservative front bench. The first was his speech on the eve of the St George by-election in April 1931. In a secure Conservative seat, the official Conservative candidate Duff Cooper was opposed by an independent Conservative. The independent was supported by Lord Rothermere , Lord Beaverbrook and their respective newspapers. Although arranged before the by election was set, [94] Churchill's speech was seen as supporting the independent candidate and as a part of the Press Baron's campaign against Baldwin. Baldwin's position was strengthened when Duff Cooper won and when the civil disobedience campaign in India ceased with the Gandhi-Irwin Pact . The second issue was a claim that Sir Samuel Hoare and Lord Derby had pressured the Manchester Chamber of Commerce to change evidence it had given to the Joint Select Committee considering the Government of India Bill and in doing so had breached Parliamentary privilege. He had the matter referred to the House of Commons Privilege Committee which after investigations, in which Churchill gave evidence reported to the House that there had been no breach. [95] The report was debated on 13 June. Churchill was unable to find a single supporter in the House and the debate ended without a division.
Churchill permanently broke with Stanley Baldwin over Indian independence and never held any office while Baldwin was Prime Minister. Some historians see his basic attitude to India as being set out in his book My Early Life (1930). [96] Historians also dispute his motives in maintaining his opposition. Some see him as trying to destabilise the National Government. Some also draw a parallel between Churchill's attitudes to India and those towards the Nazis . [97]
Another source of controversy about Churchill's attitude towards Indian affairs arises over what some historians term the Indian 'nationalist approach' to the Bengal famine of 1943 , which has sought to place significant blame on Churchill's wartime government for the excess mortality of up to 3 million people. [98] While some commentators point to the disruption of the traditional marketing system and maladministration at the provincial level, [99] Arthur Herman, author of Churchill and Gandhi, contends, 'The real cause was the fall of Burma to the Japanese, which cut off India’s main supply of rice imports when domestic sources fell short...it is true that Churchill opposed diverting food supplies and transports from other theatres to India to cover the shortfall: this was wartime.' [100]
German rearmament
Beginning in 1932, when he opposed those who advocated giving Germany the right to military parity with France, Churchill spoke often of the dangers of Germany's rearmament. [101] He later, particularly in The Gathering Storm, portrayed himself as being for a time, a lone voice calling on Britain to strengthen itself to counter the belligerence of Germany. [102] However Lord Lloyd was the first to so agitate. [103] Churchill's attitude toward the fascist dictators was ambiguous. In 1931, he warned against the League of Nations opposing the Japanese in Manchuria "I hope we shall try in England to understand the position of Japan, an ancient state.... On the one side they have the dark menace of Soviet Russia. On the other the chaos of China, four or five provinces of which are being tortured under Communist rule". [104] In contemporary newspaper articles he referred to the Spanish Republican government as a Communist front, and Franco's army as the "Anti-red movement". [105] He supported the Hoare-Laval Pact and continued up until 1937 to praise Benito Mussolini . [106]
Speaking in the House of Commons in 1937, Churchill said "I will not pretend that, if I had to choose between communism and Nazism, I would choose communism".[ citation needed ] In a 1935 essay, entitled "Hitler and his Choice" as republished in Churchill's 1937 book Great Contemporaries, Churchill expressed a hope that Hitler, if he so chose, and despite his rise to power through dictatorial action, hatred, and cruelty, he might yet "go down in history as the man who restored honour and peace of mind to the great Germanic nation and brought it back serene, helpful and strong, to the forefront of the European family circle." [107] Churchill's first major speech on defence on 7 February 1934 stressed the need to rebuild the Royal Air Force and to create a Ministry of Defence; his second, on 13 July urged a renewed role for the League of Nations. These three topics remained his themes until early 1936. In 1935, he was one of the founding members of Focus which brought together people of differing political backgrounds and occupations who were united in seeking 'the defence of freedom and peace'. [108] Focus led to the formation of the much wider Arms and the Covenant Movement in 1936.
Churchill was holidaying in Spain when the Germans reoccupied the Rhineland in February 1936, and returned to a divided Britain—Labour opposition was adamant in opposing sanctions and the National Government was divided between advocates of economic sanctions and those who said that even these would lead to a humiliating backdown by Britain as France would not support any intervention. [109] Churchill's speech on 9 March was measured and praised by Neville Chamberlain as constructive. But within weeks Churchill was passed over for the post of Minister for Co-ordination of Defence in favour of the Attorney General Sir Thomas Inskip . [110] Alan Taylor called this; 'An appointment rightly described as the most extraordinary since Caligula made his horse a consul.' [111] In June 1936, Churchill organised a deputation of senior Conservatives who shared his concern to see Baldwin, Chamberlain and Halifax. He had tried to have delegates from the other two parties and later wrote "If the leaders of the Labour and Liberal oppositions had come with us there might have been a political situation so intense as to enforce remedial action". [112] As it was the meeting achieved little, Baldwin arguing that the Government was doing all it could given the anti-war feeling of the electorate.
On 12 November Churchill returned to the topic. Speaking in the Address in Reply debate after giving some specific instances of Germany’s war preparedness he said ‘’'The Government simply cannot make up their mind or they cannot get the Prime Minister to make up his mind. So they go on in strange paradox, decided only to be undecided, resolved to be irresolute, adamant for drift, solid for fluidity, all powerful for impotency. And so we go on preparing more months more years precious perhaps vital for the greatness of Britain for the locusts to eat.'’’
R.R. James called this one of Churchill’s most brilliant speeches in this period, Baldwin's reply sounding weak and disturbing the House. The exchange gave new encouragement to the Arms and the Covenant Movement. [113]
Abdication Crisis
Main article: Abdication Crisis of Edward VIII
In June 1936, Walter Monckton told Churchill that the rumours that King Edward VIII intended to marry Mrs Wallis Simpson were true. Churchill then advised against the marriage and said he regarded Mrs Simpson's existing marriage as a 'safeguard'. [114] In November, he declined Lord Salisbury 's invitation to be part of a delegation of senior Conservative backbenchers who met with Baldwin to discuss the matter. On 25 November he, Attlee and Liberal leader Archibald Sinclair met with Baldwin, were told officially of the King's intention, and asked whether they would form an administration if Baldwin and the National Government resigned should the King not take the Ministry's advice. Both Attlee and Sinclair said they would not take office if invited to do so. Churchill's reply was that his attitude was a little different but he would support the government. [115]
The Abdication crisis became public, coming to head in the first fortnight of December 1936. At this time Churchill publicly gave his support to the King. The first public meeting of the Arms and the Covenant Movement was on 3 December. Churchill was a major speaker and later wrote that in replying to the Vote of Thanks he made a declaration 'on the spur of the moment' asking for delay before any decision was made by either the King or his Cabinet. [116] Later that night Churchill saw the draft of the King's proposed wireless broadcast and spoke with Beaverbrook and the King's solicitor about it. On 4 December, he met with the King and again urged delay in any decision about abdication. On 5 December, he issued a lengthy statement implying that the Ministry was applying unconstitutional pressure on the King to force him to make a hasty decision. [117] On 7 December he tried to address the Commons to plead for delay. He was shouted down. Seemingly staggered by the unanimous hostility of all Members he left. [118]
Churchill's reputation in Parliament and England as a whole was badly damaged. Some such as Alistair Cooke saw him as trying to build a King's Party. [119] Others like Harold Macmillan were dismayed by the damage Churchill's support for the King had done to the Arms and the Covenant Movement. [120] Churchill himself later wrote "I was myself smitten in public opinion that it was the almost universal view that my political life was ended." [121] Historians are divided about Churchill's motives in his support for Edward VIII. Some such as A J P Taylor see it as being an attempt to 'overthrow the government of feeble men'. [122] Others such as Rhode James see Churchill's motives as entirely honourable and disinterested, that he felt deeply for the King. [123]
Return from exile
Churchill later sought to portray himself as an isolated voice warning of the need to rearm against Germany. While it is true that he had little following in the House of Commons during much of the 1930s he was given considerable privileges by the Government. The “Churchill group” in the later half of the decade consisted only of himself, Duncan Sandys and Brendan Bracken . It was isolated from the other main factions within the Conservative Party pressing for faster rearmament and a stronger foreign policy. [124] In some senses the ‘exile’ was more apparent than real. Churchill continued to be consulted on many matters by the Government or seen as an alternative leader. [125]
Winston Churchill giving his famous 'V' sign standing for "Victory".
Even during the time Churchill was campaigning against Indian independence, he received official and otherwise secret information. From 1932, Churchill’s neighbour, Major Desmond Morton with Ramsay MacDonald's approval, gave Churchill information on German air power. [126] From 1930 onwards Morton headed a department of the Committee of Imperial Defence charged with researching the defence preparedness of other nations. Lord Swinton as Secretary of State for Air, and with Baldwin’s approval, in 1934 gave Churchill access to official and otherwise secret information.
Swinton did so, knowing Churchill would remain a critic of the government but believing that an informed critic was better than one relying on rumour and hearsay. [127] Churchill was a fierce critic of Neville Chamberlain's appeasement of Adolf Hitler [128] and in a speech to the House of Commons, he bluntly and prophetically stated, "You were given the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, and you will have war." [129]
Role as wartime Prime Minister
"Winston is back"
After the outbreak of World War II , on 3 September 1939 the day Britain declared war on Germany, Churchill was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty and a member of the War Cabinet, just as he had been during the first part of World War I . When they were informed, the Board of the Admiralty sent a signal to the Fleet: "Winston is back". [130] [131] In this job, he proved to be one of the highest-profile ministers during the so-called " Phony War ", when the only noticeable action was at sea. Churchill advocated the pre-emptive occupation of the neutral Norwegian iron-ore port of Narvik and the iron mines in Kiruna , Sweden, early in the war. However, Chamberlain and the rest of the War Cabinet disagreed, and the operation was delayed until the successful German invasion of Norway .
Bitter beginnings of the war
See also: Attack on Mers-el-Kébir
Churchill wears a helmet during an air raid warning in the Battle of Britain in 1940
Churchill fires a Sten submachine gun in June 1941. The man in the pin-striped suit and trilby on Churchill's left is his bodyguard, Walter H. Thompson
On 10 May 1940, hours before the German invasion of France by a lightning advance through the Low Countries , it became clear that, following failure in Norway, the country had no confidence in Chamberlain's prosecution of the war and so Chamberlain resigned. The commonly accepted version of events states that Lord Halifax turned down the post of Prime Minister because he believed he could not govern effectively as a member of the House of Lords instead of the House of Commons . Although the Prime Minister does not traditionally advise the King on the former's successor, Chamberlain wanted someone who would command the support of all three major parties in the House of Commons. A meeting between Chamberlain, Halifax, Churchill and David Margesson , the government Chief Whip , led to the recommendation of Churchill, and, as a constitutional monarch, George VI asked Churchill to be Prime Minister and to form an all-party government. Churchill's first act was to write to Chamberlain to thank him for his support. [132]
Winston Churchill walks through the ruins of Coventry Cathedral , 1941
Churchill had been among the first to recognize the growing threat of Hitler long before the outset of the Second World War, and his warnings had gone largely unheeded. Although there was an element of British public and political sentiment favouring negotiated peace with a clearly ascendant Germany, among them the Foreign Secretary Lord Halifax , Churchill nonetheless refused to consider an armistice with Hitler's Germany. [133] His use of rhetoric hardened public opinion against a peaceful resolution and prepared the British for a long war. [134] Coining the general term for the upcoming battle, Churchill stated in his "finest hour" speech to the House of Commons on 18 June 1940, "I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin." [135] By refusing an armistice with Germany, Churchill kept resistance alive in the British Empire and created the basis for the later Allied counter-attacks of 1942-45, with Britain serving as a platform for the supply of Soviet Union and the liberation of Western Europe .
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Winston Churchill
In response to previous criticisms that there had been no clear single minister in charge of the prosecution of the war, Churchill created and took the additional position of Minister of Defence . He immediately put his friend and confidant, the industrialist and newspaper baron Lord Beaverbrook , in charge of aircraft production. It was Beaverbrook's business acumen that allowed Britain to quickly gear up aircraft production and engineering that eventually made the difference in the war. [136]
Churchill's speeches were a great inspiration to the embattled British. His first speech as Prime Minister was the famous "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat ". He followed that closely with two other equally famous ones, given just before the Battle of Britain . One included the words:
"... we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches , we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender." [137]
The other:
Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves, that if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, ' This was their finest hour '. [138]
Churchill with Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery and Field Marshal Alan Brooke , 1944
At the height of the Battle of Britain, his bracing survey of the situation included the memorable line " Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few ", which engendered the enduring nickname " The Few " for the Allied fighter pilots who won it. [139] One of his most memorable war speeches came on 10 November 1942 at the Lord Mayor's Luncheon at Mansion House in London, in response to the Allied victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein . Churchill stated:
This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. [140]
Without having much in the way of sustenance or good news to offer the British people , he took a political risk in deliberately choosing to emphasise the dangers instead.
"Rhetorical power," wrote Churchill, "is neither wholly bestowed, nor wholly acquired, but cultivated." Not all were impressed by his oratory. Robert Menzies, who was the Prime Minister of Australia, said during World War II of Churchill: "His real tyrant is the glittering phrase so attractive to his mind that awkward facts have to give way." [141] Another associate wrote: "He is . . . the slave of the words which his mind forms about ideas. . . . And he can convince himself of almost every truth if it is once allowed thus to start on its wild career through his rhetorical machinery." [142]
Relations with the United States
Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek , Franklin D. Roosevelt , and Churchill at the Cairo Conference in 1943
Churchill's good relationship with Franklin D. Roosevelt secured vital food, oil and munitions via the North Atlantic shipping routes. It was for this reason that Churchill was relieved when Roosevelt was re-elected in 1940 . Upon re-election, Roosevelt immediately set about implementing a new method of providing military hardware and shipping to Britain without the need for monetary payment. Put simply, Roosevelt persuaded Congress that repayment for this immensely costly service would take the form of defending the US; and so Lend-lease was born. Churchill had 12 strategic conferences with Roosevelt which covered the Atlantic Charter , Europe first strategy, the Declaration by the United Nations and other war policies. After Pearl Harbor was attacked , Churchill's first thought in anticipation of US help was, "We have won the war!" [143] On 26 December 1941, Churchill addressed a joint meeting of the US Congress , asking of Germany and Japan, "What kind of people do they think we are?" [144] Churchill initiated the Special Operations Executive (SOE) under Hugh Dalton's Ministry of Economic Warfare , which established, conducted and fostered covert, subversive and partisan operations in occupied territories with notable success; and also the Commandos which established the pattern for most of the world's current Special Forces . The Russians referred to him as the "British Bulldog".
Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference in 1944.
Churchill's health was fragile, as shown by a mild heart attack he suffered in December 1941 at the White House and also in December 1943 when he contracted pneumonia. Despite this, he travelled over 100,000 miles (160,000 km) throughout the war to meet other national leaders. For security, he usually travelled using the alias Colonel Warden. [145] Churchill was party to treaties that would redraw post-World War II European and Asian boundaries. These were discussed as early as 1943. Proposals for European boundaries and settlements were officially agreed to by Harry S Truman , Churchill, and Stalin at Potsdam . At the Second Quebec Conference in 1944 he drafted and, together with US President Franklin D. Roosevelt , signed a toned-down version of the original Morgenthau Plan , in which they pledged to convert Germany after its unconditional surrender "into a country primarily agricultural and pastoral in its character." [146] Churchill's strong relationship with Harry Truman was also of great significance to both countries. While he clearly regretted the loss of his close friend and counterpart Roosevelt, Churchill was enormously supportive of Truman in his first days in office, calling him, "the type of leader the world needs when it needs him most." [147]
Relations with the Soviet Union
When Hitler invaded the Soviet Union , Winston Churchill, a vehement anti-Communist, famously stated "If Hitler invaded Hell, I would at least make a favourable reference to the Devil in the House of Commons," regarding his policy toward Stalin [148] . Soon, British supplies and tanks were flowing to help the Soviet Union. [149]
Churchill secretly meets with President Ismet Inönü at the Yenice Station 15 miles (24 km) outside of Adana in south-east Turkey , on 30 January 1943
The settlement concerning the borders of Poland, that is, the boundary between Poland and the Soviet Union and between Germany and Poland , was viewed as a betrayal in Poland during the post-war years, as it was established against the views of the Polish government in exile . It was Winston Churchill, who tried to motivate Mikołajczyk , who was Prime Minister of the Polish government in exile, to accept Stalin's wishes, but Mikołajczyk refused. Churchill was convinced that the only way to alleviate tensions between the two populations was the transfer of people, to match the national borders.
As he expounded in the House of Commons on 15 December 1944, "Expulsion is the method which, insofar as we have been able to see, will be the most satisfactory and lasting. There will be no mixture of populations to cause endless trouble... A clean sweep will be made. I am not alarmed by these transferences, which are more possible in modern conditions." [150] [151] However the resulting expulsions of Germans were carried out in a way which resulted in much hardship and, according to a 1966 report by the West German Ministry of Refugees and Displaced Persons , the death of over 2.1 million. Churchill opposed the effective annexation of Poland by the Soviet Union and wrote bitterly about it in his books, but he was unable to prevent it at the conferences. [152]
Winston Churchill at the Yalta Conference , with Roosevelt and Stalin beside him.
During October 1944, he and Eden were in Moscow to meet with the Russian leadership. At this point, Russian forces were beginning to advance into various eastern European countries. Churchill held the view that until everything was formally and properly worked out at the Yalta conference , there had to be a temporary, war-time, working agreement with regard to who would run what. [153] The most significant of these meetings were held on 9 October 1944 in the Kremlin between Churchill and Stalin. During the meeting, Poland and the Balkan problems were discussed. [154] Churchill recounted his speech to Stalin on the day:
Let us settle about our affairs in the Balkans. Your armies are in Rumania and Bulgaria. We have interests, missions, and agents there. Don't let us get at cross-purposes in small ways. So far as Britain and Russia are concerned, how would it do for you to have ninety per cent predominance in Rumania, for us to have ninety per cent of the say in Greece, and go fifty-fifty about Yugoslavia? [153]
Stalin agreed to this Percentages Agreement , ticking a piece of paper as he heard the translation. In 1958, five years after the recount of this meeting was published (in The Second World War ), authorities of the Soviet denied that Stalin accepted the "imperialist proposal". [154]
One of the conclusions of the Yalta Conference was that the Allies would return all Soviet citizens that found themselves in the Allied zone to the Soviet Union. This immediately affected the Soviet prisoners of war liberated by the Allies, but was also extended to all Eastern European refugees . [155]
Dresden bombings controversy
Main article: Bombing of Dresden in World War II
Between 13 February and 15 February 1945, British and the US bombers attacked the German city of Dresden , which was crowded with German wounded and refugees. [156] Because of the cultural importance of the city, and of the number of civilian casualties close to the end of the war, this remains one of the most controversial Western Allied actions of the war. Following the bombing Churchill stated in a top secret telegram:
It seems to me that the moment has come when the question of bombing of German cities simply for the sake of increasing the terror, though under other pretexts, should be reviewed ... I feel the need for more precise concentration upon military objectives such as oil and communications behind the immediate battle-zone, rather than on mere acts of terror and wanton destruction, however impressive. [157]
On reflection, under pressure from the Chiefs of Staff and in response to the views expressed by Sir Charles Portal ( Chief of the Air Staff ,) and Arthur Harris ( AOC-in-C of Bomber Command ,) among others, Churchill withdrew his memo and issued a new one. [158] [159] This final version of the memo completed on 1 April 1945, stated:
It seems to me that the moment has come when the question of the so called 'area-bombing' of German cities should be reviewed from the point of view of our own interests. If we come into control of an entirely ruined land, there will be a great shortage of accommodation for ourselves and our allies ... We must see to it that our attacks do no more harm to ourselves in the long run than they do to the enemy's war effort. [158] [159]
Ultimately, responsibility for the British part of the attack lay with Churchill, which is why he has been criticised for allowing the bombings to happen. The German historian Jörg Friedrich , claims that "Winston Churchill's decision to [area] bomb a shattered Germany between January and May 1945 was a war crime" [160] and writing in 2006 the philosopher A. C. Grayling questioned the whole strategic bombing campaign by the RAF presenting the argument that although it was not a war crime it was a moral crime and undermines the Allies contention that they fought a just war . [161]
Churchill waves to crowds in Whitehall on the day he broadcast to the nation that the war with Germany had been won, 8 May 1945.
On the other hand, it has also been asserted that Churchill's involvement in the bombing of Dresden was based on the strategic and tactical aspects of winning the war. The destruction of Dresden, while immense, was designed to expedite the defeat of Germany. As the historian Max Hastings said in an article subtitled, "the Allied Bombing of Dresden": "I believe it is wrong to describe strategic bombing as a war crime, for this might be held to suggest some moral equivalence with the deeds of the Nazis. Bombing represented a sincere, albeit mistaken, attempt to bring about Germany's military defeat." Furthermore British historian, Frederick Taylor asserts that "All sides bombed each other's cities during the war. Half a million Soviet citizens, for example, died from German bombing during the invasion and occupation of Russia. That's roughly equivalent to the number of German citizens who died from Allied raids. But the Allied bombing campaign was attached to military operations and ceased as soon as military operations ceased." [162]
The Second World War ends
Potsdam Conference : Josef Stalin , Harry S. Truman and Winston Churchill, July 1945
In June 1944, the Allied Forces invaded Normandy and pushed the Nazi forces back into Germany on a broad front over the coming year. After being attacked on three fronts by the Allies, and in spite of Allied failures, such as Operation Market Garden , and German counter-attacks, including the Battle of the Bulge , Germany was eventually defeated. On 7 May 1945 at the SHAEF headquarters in Rheims the Allies accepted Germany's surrender . On the same day in a BBC news flash John Snagge announced that 8 May would be Victory in Europe Day . [163] On Victory in Europe Day, Churchill broadcast to the nation that Germany had surrendered and that a final cease fire on all fronts in Europe would come into effect at one minute past midnight that night. [164] [165] Afterwards Churchill told a huge crowd in Whitehall: "This is your victory." The people shouted: "No, it is yours", and Churchill then conducted them in the singing of Land of Hope and Glory . In the evening he made another broadcast to the nation asserting the defeat of Japan in the coming months. [45] The Japanese later surrendered on 15 August 1945.
Churchill at Potsdam, July 1945
See also: Operation Unthinkable
As Europe celebrated peace at the end of six years of war, Churchill was concerning on the possibility that the celebrations would soon be brutally interrupted. [166] He concluded that the UK and the US must prepare for the Red Army ignoring previously-agreed frontiers and agreements in Europe "to impose upon Russia the will of the United States and the British Empire." [167] According to the Operation Unthinkable plan ordered by Churchill and developed by the British Armed Forces, the Third World War could have started on 1 July 1945 with a sudden attack against the allied Soviet troops. The plan was rejected by the British Chiefs of Staff Committee as militarily unfeasible. However this decision didn't stop the further development of the war plans: with the beginning Arms race the militarily unfeasible Third World War was developed into the Cold War doctrine.
Leader of the opposition
Main article: Later life of Winston Churchill
Although Churchill's role in World War II had generated him much support from the British population, he was defeated in the 1945 election . [168] Many reasons for this have been given, key among them being that a desire for post-war reform was widespread amongst the population and that the man who had led Britain in war was not seen as the man to lead the nation in peace. [169]
For six years he was to serve as the Leader of the Opposition . During these years Churchill continued to have an impact on world affairs. During his March 1946 trip to the United States, Churchill, famously lost a lot of money in a poker game with Harry Truman and his advisors. [170] (He also liked to play Bezique , which he learned while serving in the Boer War.)
During this trip he gave his Iron Curtain speech about the USSR and the creation of the Eastern Bloc . Speaking on March 5, 1946 at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri , he declared:
Churchill with American General Dwight D. Eisenhower and Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery at a meeting of NATO in October 1951, shortly before Churchill was to become Prime Minister for a second time.
From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an Iron Curtain has descended across the continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere. [171]
Churchill also argued strongly for British independence from the European Coal and Steel Community , which he saw as a Franco-German project. He saw Britain's place as separate from the continent, much more in-line with the countries of the Commonwealth and the Empire and with the United States, the so-called Anglosphere . [172] [173]
Second term as Prime Minister
Main articles: Mau Mau Uprising , Malayan Emergency , and 1953 Iranian coup d'état
Return to Government and the Decline of the British Empire
After the General Election of 1951 , Churchill again became Prime Minister. His third government—after the wartime national government and the brief caretaker government of 1945—lasted until his resignation in 1955. His domestic priorities in his last government were overshadowed by a series of foreign policy crises, which were partly the result of the continued decline of British military and imperial prestige and power. Being a strong proponent of Britain as an international power , Churchill would often meet such moments with direct action . One example was his dispatch of British troops to Kenya to deal with the Mau Mau rebellion . [174] Trying to retain what he could of the Empire, he once stated that, "I will not preside over a dismemberment." [174]
War in Malaya
This was followed by events which became known as the Malayan Emergency . In Malaya , a rebellion against British rule had been in progress since 1948. [175] Once again, Churchill's government inherited a crisis, and Churchill chose to use direct military action against those in rebellion while attempting to build an alliance with those who were not. [45] [176] While the rebellion was slowly being defeated, it was equally clear that colonial rule from Britain was no longer sustainable. [175] [177]
Relations with the United States
Churchill also devoted much of his time in office to Anglo-American relations and although Churchill did not get on well with President Dwight D. Eisenhower [ citation needed ], Churchill attempted to maintain the special relationship with the United States. He made four official transatlantic visits to America during his second term as Prime Minister. [178]
The series of strokes
In June 1953, when he was 78, Churchill suffered a stroke at 10 Downing Street . News of this was kept from the public and from Parliament, who were told that Churchill was suffering from exhaustion. He went to his country home, Chartwell, to recuperate from the effects of the stroke which had affected his speech and ability to walk. [45] He returned to public life in October to make a speech at a Conservative Party conference at Margate . [45] [179] However, aware that he was slowing down both physically and mentally, Churchill retired as Prime Minister in 1955 and was succeeded by Anthony Eden .
Retirement and Death
Churchill spent much of his retirement at his home Chartwell in Kent. He purchased it in 1922 after his daughter Mary was born.
Elizabeth II offered to create Churchill Duke of London , but this was declined due to the objections of his son Randolph, who would have inherited the title on his father's death. [180] After leaving the premiership, Churchill spent less time in parliament until he stood down at the 1964 General Election . As a mere "back-bencher," Churchill spent most of his retirement at Chartwell and at his home in Hyde Park Gate, in London. [45] As his mental and physical faculties decayed, he began to lose the battle he had fought for so long against the "black dog" of depression . [45] In 1963, US President John F. Kennedy , acting under authorisation granted by an Act of Congress , proclaimed him an Honorary Citizen of the United States , [181] but he was unable to attend the White House ceremony. On 15 January 1965, Churchill suffered a severe stroke that left him gravely ill. He died at his home nine days later, at age 90, on the morning of Sunday 24 January 1965, coincidentally 70 years to the day after his father's death. [182]
Funeral
By decree of the Queen, his body lay in state for three days and a state funeral service was held at St Paul's Cathedral . [183] As his coffin passed down the Thames from Tower Pier to Festival Pier on the Havengore , dockers lowered their crane jibs in a salute. [184] The Royal Artillery fired a 19-gun salute (as head of government ), and the RAF staged a fly-by of sixteen English Electric Lightning fighters. The coffin was then taken the short distance to Waterloo Station where it was loaded onto a specially prepared and painted carriage - Southern Railway Van S2464S - as part of the funeral train for its rail journey to Bladon. [185] The funeral also saw one of the largest assemblage of statesmen in the world until the 2005 funeral of Pope John Paul II . [186] The funeral train of Pullman coaches carrying his family mourners was hauled by Bulleid Pacific steam locomotive No. 34051 "Winston Churchill". In the fields along the route, and at the stations through which the train passed, thousands stood in silence to pay their last respects. At Churchill's request, he was buried in the family plot at St Martin's Church , Bladon , near Woodstock, not far from his birthplace at Blenheim Palace . Churchill's funeral van - Southern Railway Van S2464S - is now part of a preservation project with the Swanage Railway having been repatriated to the UK in 2007 from the USA where it was exported in 1965. [187]
Churchill artist, historian, and writer
Statue of Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt in New Bond Street, London
Main articles: Winston Churchill as historian and Winston Churchill as writer
Winston Churchill was also an accomplished artist and took great pleasure in painting, especially after his resignation as First Lord of the Admiralty in 1915. [188] He found a haven in art to overcome the spells of depression —or as he termed it, the "Black Dog"—which he suffered throughout his life. As William Rees-Mogg has stated, "In his own life, he had to suffer the 'black dog' of depression. In his landscapes and still lives there is no sign of depression". [189] He is best known for his impressionist scenes of landscape, many of which were painted while on holiday in the South of France or Morocco. [189] He continued his hobby throughout his life and painted dozens of paintings, many of which are on show in the studio at Chartwell. [190]
Despite his lifelong fame and upper-class origins Churchill always struggled to keep his income at a level that would fund his extravagant lifestyle. MPs before 1946 received only a nominal salary (and in fact did not receive anything at all until the Parliament Act 1911 ) so many had secondary professions from which to earn a living. [191] From his first book in 1898 until his second stint as Prime Minister, Churchill's income was almost entirely made from writing books and opinion pieces for newspapers and magazines. The most famous of his newspaper articles are those that appeared in the Evening Standard from 1936 warning of the rise of Hitler and the danger of the policy of appeasement.
Churchill was also a prolific writer of books, writing a novel, two biographies, three volumes of memoirs , and several histories in addition to his many newspaper articles. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his mastery of historical and biographical description as well as for brilliant oratory in defending exalted human values". [192] Two of his most famous works, published after his first premiereship brought his international fame to new heights, were his six-volume memoir The Second World War and A History of the English-Speaking Peoples ; a four-volume history covering the period from Caesar's invasions of Britain (55 BC) to the beginning of the First World War (1914). [193]
Honours
Main article: Honours of Winston Churchill
Statue in London
Aside from receiving the great honour of a state funeral , Churchill also received numerous awards and honours, including being made the first Honorary Citizen of the United States . [194] Churchill received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953 for his numerous published works, especially his six-edition set The Second World War. In a 2002 BBC poll of the " 100 Greatest Britons ", he was proclaimed "The Greatest of Them All" based on approximately a million votes from BBC viewers. [195] Churchill was also rated as one of the most influential leaders in history by Time magazine . [196] Churchill College , Cambridge was founded in 1958 on his behalf.
Ancestors
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i don't know
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The prefix micro- means a factor of ten to what negative power?
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Units: Metric Prefixes
Using the Dictionary
Metric Prefixes
To help the SI units apply to a wide range of phenomena, the 19th General Conference on Weights and Measures in 1991 extended the list of metric prefixes so that it reaches from yotta- at 1024 (one septillion) to yocto- at 10-24 (one septillionth). Here are the metric prefixes, with their numerical equivalents stated in the American system for naming large numbers :
yotta- (Y-)
Notes:
I am often asked about prefixes for other multiples, such as 104, 105, 10-4, and 10-5. The prefix myria- (my-) was formerly used for 104, but it is now considered obsolete and it is not accepted in the SI. To the best of my knowledge, no prefixes were ever accepted generally for 105, 10-4, or 10-5.
There is a widespread misconception that prefixes for positive powers of ten are all capitalized, leading to the use of K- for kilo- and D- for deca-. Although this does seem like a useful idea, it is not correct.
**The SI Brochure spelling of this prefix is deca-, but the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recommends deka-. National variations in spelling of the prefixes are allowed by the SI . In Italian, for example, hecto- is spelled etto- and kilo- is spelled chilo-. The symbols, however, are the same in all languages, so dam (not dkm) is the symbol for the dekameter and km is the symbol for the Italian chilometro.
The prefixes hecto-, deka-, deci-, and centi- are widely used in everyday life but are generally avoided in scientific work. Contrary to the belief of some scientists, however, the SI does allow use of these prefixes.
The last letter of a prefix is often omitted if the first letter of the unit name is a vowel, causing the combination to be hard to pronounce otherwise. Thus 100 ares is a hectare and 1 million ohms is a megohm. However, the last letter of the prefix is not omitted if pronunciation is not a problem, as in the case of the milliampere. The letter "l" is sometimes added to prefixes before the erg, so 1 million ergs is a megalerg (sounds odd, but better than "megerg").
Binary prefixes
In computing, a custom arose of using the metric prefixes to specify powers of 2. For example, a kilobit is usually 210 = 1024 bits instead of 1000 bits. This practice leads to considerable confusion. In an effort to eliminate this confusion, in 1998 the International Electrotechnical Commission approved new prefixes for the powers of 2. These prefixes are as follows:
kibi-
Ei-
260 = 1 152 921 504 606 846 976
The Commission's ruling is that the metric prefixes should be used in computing just as they are used in other fields. Thus, 5 gigabytes (GB) should mean exactly 5 000 000 000 bytes, and 5 gibibytes (GiB) should mean exactly 5 368 709 120 bytes.
The fate of this innovation is uncertain. So far, very few people are using the IEC binary prefixes. Searches for them on the Internet turn up, for the most part, complaints by people who don't want to use them.
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April 16, 2005
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six
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What is the English title of the French police drama Engrenages shown on BBC4?
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Readings on Powers of Ten
Basic Math, Scientific Notation, and Astronomical Dimensions
Dealing with Numbers Great and Small
Peter Wehinger
(with an excerpt from Seeing the Light*)
People find it cumbersome to speak of units of measurement like "one ten thousandth of a billionth" of an inch, or even "ten to the minus thirteenth" (10-13) inches; so they devise different names. No one gives the distance between cities in inches; we use miles. For people's heights we use feet and inches. But there are 12 inches in a foot, 5280 feet in a mile and so on. That gets messy if we want to convert from miles to inches. It is easier to use the metric system where everything goes by powers of 10:
1 meter = 1 m = 1 yard 1 kilometer = 1 km = 103 m ~ 5/8 mile 1 centimeter = 1 cm = 10-2 m ~ 2/5 inch (width of a pen) 1 millimeter = 1 mm = 10-3 m ~ 1/25 inch (width of lead in pencil)
This much is fine for everyday lengths, but for light we have to use even smaller units of length because its wavelength is so small. Unfortunately, many different names are used. The wavelength of yellow light in vacuum may be called 5750 Å or 575 m
or 575 nm or 0.575
m. The units used here are:
1 Å = 1 Ångstrom = 10-10 m
(This unit is often used because a typical atom is a few Ångstroms in size.)
1 nm = 1 nanometer = 10-9 m (formerly written 1 m
) 1
m = 1 micrometer = 1 micron = 10-6 m
(This is a convenient unit for high-power microscopes, with which one can look at objects as small as a few micrometers.
is the Greek letter "mu")
There is a method to the prefixes centi-, milli-, etc. They multiply the unit by some power of 10. For example, milli- always means one thousandth. The important prefixes are:
n = nano- (Greek "dwarf") = 10-9 (thousand millionth)
= micro- (Greek "small") = 10-6 (millionth) m = milli- (Latin "thousand") = 10-3 (thousandth) k = kilo- (Greek "thousand") = 103 (thousand) M = mega- (Greek "big") = 106 (million)
Thus we can now proudly state that 1 nm = 10-3
m.
Scientific Notation:
indentAstronomy is the subject of very large numbers. Microscopy is the subject of very small numbers. Consequently, scientific notation has been introduced to deal with such quantities. For example, the distance from the Earth to the Sun is referred to as the Astronomical Unit (AU) and is:
1 AU = 150,000,000 km = 1.5x l08 km = 9.2 x lO7miles
indent Another dimension to illustrate this kind of notation is the mass of the Sun expressed in units of kilograms (kg):
Mass of the Sun = 1 Solar Mass = 2.0 x 1030 kg
indent Note that 2.0 is the coefficient and 30 is the exponent. Not only can one use scientific notation to express large numbers but also very small numbers. For example, the size of an atom is on the order (or about) a few Ångströms (Å) which is defined as:
1 Ångström = 1 Å = 1.0 x 10-10 m = 0.0000000001 meters
indent aNote that the negative sign in the exponent means the value is less than one.
indent Here are some alternate forms of notation for the same numerical values:
3.2 x 108 = 32 x 107 = 320 x 106 = 320,000,000 = 320 million
0.0002 = 2 x 10-4=20 x 10-5= 200x10-6
indent Using a pocket calculator with an exponent key, usually labeled EX or EE or EX, the number: 4.3 x 105 is entered as 4.3 EX 5.
Examples of Scientific Notation, Metric Prefixes, and Symbols
Word
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i don't know
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How many laps are there in the Indianapolis 500 motor race?
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Indianapolis Motor Speedway
In what year did the first Indianapolis 500 take place?
1911. Ray Harroun won in the Marmon "Wasp."
Why was the distance of 500 miles selected?
Having decided to dispense with multi-race programs and concentrate on one major race for 1911, Speedway leader Carl Fisher and his partners envisioned an event that would appeal to the public by lasting approximately seven hours between mid-morning and late afternoon. A distance of 500 miles was settled upon, and Ray Harroun won the first Indianapolis 500 in 1911 in six hours, 42 minutes and eight seconds.
What is the distance of one lap around the oval?
2.5 miles. The track has four distinct turns and straightaways, a layout unchanged since the facility opened in 1909. The front and back straightaways are 5/8th of a mile each, with the "short chute" straightaways between Turns 1 and 2 and Turns 3 and 4 at 1/8th of a mile each. Each of the four turns is 1/4th of a mile long.
What is the degree of banking in the turns?
Each of the four turns on the oval is banked at exactly 9 degrees, 12 minutes, the same dimensions as when the track opened in 1909.
Which driver has won the Indianapolis 500 the most times?
Three drivers have won the Indianapolis 500 four times each:
A.J. Foyt (1961, 1964, 1967, 1977)
Al Unser (1970, 1971, 1978, 1987)
Rick Mears (1979, 1984, 1988, 1991)
Who is the youngest winner of the Indianapolis 500?
Troy Ruttman was 22 years, 80 days old when he won the 36th Indianapolis 500 on May 30, 1952. Q. Who is the oldest winner of the Indianapolis 500? A. Al Unser was 47 years, 360 days old when he won the 71st Indianapolis 500 on May 24, 1987.
What is the name of the trophy presented to the winner of the race each year?
The Borg-Warner Trophy, which was commissioned in 1935 by the Borg-Warner Automotive Company. In 1936, Indianapolis 500 winner Louis Meyer was the first driver to receive the trophy.
Why does the winner of the Indianapolis 500 drink milk in Victory Lane?
Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Louis Meyer regularly drank buttermilk to refresh himself on a hot day and happened to drink some in Victory Lane as a matter of habit after winning the 1936 race. An executive with what was then the Milk Foundation was so elated when he saw the moment captured in a photograph in the sports section of his newspaper the following morning that he vowed to make sure it would be repeated in coming years. There was a period between 1947-55 when milk was apparently no longer offered, but the practice was revived in 1956 and has been a tradition ever since.
Have women competed in the Indianapolis 500?
Nine women have raced in the Indianapolis 500:
Janet Guthrie (1977-79)
Lyn St. James (1992-97, 2000)
Sarah Fisher (2000-04, 2007-10)
Helio Castroneves (2001)
Have there always been 33 cars in the starting field of the Indianapolis 500?
No. After 40 cars started in the inaugural race in 1911, the Contest Board of the American Automobile Association (AAA), the sanctioning body at the time, mandated a formula for limiting the size of a starting field according to the size of the track. It was determined that the safe distance between each car spread equally around a course would be 400 feet, thereby limiting the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway to 33 cars. Speedway President Carl Fisher, however, placed a limit of only 30 cars for the "500" between 1912 and 1914 and did not adopt AAA's 33 maximum until 1915. Although there had been numerous occasions between 1912 and 1928 when the field was not filled, the allowed number was increased during the Depression years to 40 cars between 1930 and 1932 (only 38 made it in 1930) and further to 42 in 1933. The maximum has been at 33 ever since 1934, although extenuating circumstances expanded the field to 35 starters in 1979 and 1997.
What is the fastest official lap ever turned during the month of May?
237.498 mph by Arie Luyendyk during qualifying May 12, 1996. Luyendyk turned a lap of 239.260 during practice May 10, 1996. It was the fastest unofficial lap ever at the Speedway, as practice laps are not official.
Has any driver ever won the Indianapolis 500 three times in a row or more?
No. Five drivers have won the race two years in a row:
Wilbur Shaw (1939-40)
Al Unser (1970-71)
Helio Castroneves (2001-02).
Who was the first driver and team to earn $1 million in one year for winning the Indianapolis 500?
Emerson Fittipaldi and Patrick Racing, whose winner's share was $1,001,604 in 1989.
Has any driver raced in the Indianapolis 500, Brickyard 400 and United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis during their career?
Yes, Juan Pablo Montoya and Jacques Villeneuve. Montoya won the 2000 Indianapolis 500 in his only start in that event, drove in the United States Grand Prix from 2001-06 and raced in the Brickyard 400 in 2007-12. Villeneuve raced in the Indianapolis 500 in 1994-95, winning in 1995, drove in the United States Grand Prix from 2000-03 and 2006, and raced in the Brickyard 400 in 2010.
Fourteen drivers have raced in the Indianapolis 500 and Brickyard 400: John Andretti, Geoff Brabham, A.J. Foyt, Larry Foyt, Robby Gordon, Sam Hornish Jr., Jason Leffler, Montoya, Max Papis, Scott Pruett, Tony Stewart, Danny Sullivan, Jacques Villeneuve and J.J. Yeley.
Tomas Enge, Justin Wilson, Takuma Sato and Jean Alesi each have raced in the Indianapolis 500 and the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis.
Scott Speed and Jacques Villeneuve have raced in the Brickyard 400 and the United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis.
Who created the term “The Greatest Spectacle In Racing?”
Alice Greene coined the phrase in 1955.
Camping Options Available Now!
Fun Fact #52
At speeds of 220 mph, the front tires of a race car rotate 43 times per second. During a lap at the IMS, front tires experience about 1,955 revolutions and rear tires experience 1,800 revolutions.
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At which school were actors Eddie Redmayne, Damian Lewis and Dominic West educated?
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Indianapolis 500 race updates
Indianapolis 500 race updates
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INDIANAPOLIS – Welcome to "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." I'll be here throughout the race, along with colleague Bob Margolis, to provide you with updates from today's Indianapolis 500.
I know who's going to win, but I don't want to spoil the suspense or keep you from following along. OK, just kidding. But be forewarned, it could be a bumpy ride as I unleash my twisted sense of humor (pray for an exciting race, or I'll be forced to ad-lib some jokes to make it sound exciting).
7:11 p.m. ET: One final update before I head off for postrace interviews: The 11th-33rd positions: 11, Jeff Simmons, 12, Tony Kanaan, 13, Michael Andretti, 14, A.J. Foyt IV, 15, Alex Barron, 16, Kosuke Matsuura, 17, Ed Carpenter, 18, Sarah Fisher, 19, Buddy Lazier, 20, Darren Manning, 21, Roger Yasukawa, 22, Dan Wheldon, 23, Richie Hearn, 24, Marco Andretti, 25, Buddy Rice, 26, Al Unser Jr., 27, Jaques Lazier, 28, Marty Roth, 29, Phil Giebler, 30, John Andretti, 31, Milka Duno, 32, Jon Herb, 33, Roberto Moreno.
Thanks, everyone for reading and sending in questions and comments. It's been a lot of fun.
7 p.m. ET: It's now really official: Dario Franchitti just drank his victory milk.
6:58 p.m. ET: A soaking wet Ashley Judd just greeted her husband, Dario Franchitti, as he drove toward victory lane.
They completed 166 laps before the rain halted the race for a final time. Scott Dixon finished second, followed by Helio Castroneves, Sam Hornish Jr., Ryan Briscoe, Scott Sharp, Tomas Scheckter, Danica Paitrck, Scott Hamilton and Vitor Meira.
6:56 p.m. ET: It was a surreal scene watching the cars cross the finish line in a pouring rain. Franchitti's famous actress wife Ashley Judd was shown on television climbing the pit wall in excitement.
6:54 p.m. ET: It's official, Dario Franchitti has won the Indianapolis 500.
6:53 p.m. ET: It's pouring rain again and Dario Franchitti is about to take the checkered flag under caution.
6:51 p.m. ET: Replays show Marco Andretti drifted out toward the wall to make a move and clipped the front of Dan Wheldon's car.
6:49 p.m. ET: Marco Andretti is climbing out of the car and talking to the safety crew.
6:48 p.m. ET: Back to green, but a spectacular multi-car pileup with Dario Franchitti in the lead. Back to caution. Marco Andretti was involved with Buddy Rice. Marco's car flipped at least twice. He's still in the car, but doesn't appear to be seriously hurt.
6:42 p.m. ET: It now looks as though Tony Kanaan and Jaques Lazier tangled. Dario Franchitti has remained on the track and is in the lead. Scott Dixon is second, followed by Ryan Briscoe and Scott Sharp. Rain is imminent.
6:40 p.m. ET: Tony Kanaan has crashed! Apparently he had a flat tire. Who will win now?
6:38 p.m. ET: Tony Kanaan has pitted, putting Dario Franchitti in the lead. The big question: Did Kanaan have to pit? It could cost him the race.
6:36 p.m. ET: Current top five: Tony Kanaan, Sam Hornish Jr., Dario Franchitti, Danica Patrick, Helio Castroneves. Drivers are trying to decide whether to pit or stay out. If rain is imminent, staying out would seem to be the prudent choice so as not to lose position.
6:30 p.m. ET: Marty Roth just hit the wall on lap 150. The race is under caution. If the rain hits before the caution ends, Tony Kanaan will win. If they go to green before then, he'll have to fend off a bunched-up field behind him to secure the win. Should be interesting.
6:29 p.m. ET: Rain is nearing metro Indianapolis again, and is estimated to be about 15 minutes from the track. It'll be an all-out sprint until then, with Tony Kanaan setting the pace. Sam Hornish Jr. has moved up to second, with Dario Franchitti third. He's followed by Danica Patrick and Helio Castroneves.
6:23 p.m. ET: There have been 23 lead changes. Expect more of that, but Tony Kanaan should eventually work his way back to the front. He's clearly got the strongest car on the track at the moment. But is anyone holding back?
6:19 p.m. ET: The leaders are starting their scheduled pit stops, under green. The top of the charts will be temporarily shuffled.
6:15 p.m. ET: They've completed 130 laps and it's shaping up as a fantastic finish if the rain holds off. Tony Kanaan, Danica Patrick, Marco Andretti, Dan Wheldon, Helio Castroneves, Sam Hornish Jr., Dario Franchitti. Plenty of good storylines and possibilities at the front of the pack.
6:11 p.m. ET: Dan Wheldon is making a move, charging to fourth. Helio Castroneves has nearly recovered from his early pit stop woes to claim fifth place.
6:08 p.m. ET: Tony Kanaan is still running strong, but Danica Patrick has passed Marco Andretti for second place. Kanaan and Patrick are running laps at about 223 mph.
6:05 p.m. ET: They're racin' again, under green. Now the race to see if they can beat the next batch of rain.
6:01 p.m. ET: Well, things just got busy again. The cars are back on the track, running under caution. We're told they'll run under caution for at least a few laps to make sure the track is dry and then go to green.
5:58 p.m. ET: Things are pretty slow right now, so more on the rain tires issue:
From Bob in Albany, N.Y.: The problem with running in the wet is less about traction and more about visibility, although both are an issue. Both Indy cars and F1 cars rely upon aerodynamic downforce for traction, with the Indy cars using much less wing, typically, on an oval. To run in the wet, they would probably have to add or change the wings completely to get enough downforce to run safely. With high levels of downforce, the air (and water) coming off the wings is flung high in the air. Inside the bowl of an oval, it will hang there obscuring the view of the drivers. If you have ever driven in a thick fog, imagine racing in one.
Thanks. There's nothing like a little controversy to spice up a rain delay.
5:49 p.m. ET: Paul from Waxahachie, Texas, asks: Can you give us the full placings when the race was stopped for rain?
Here goes, from top to bottom: 1, Kanaan, 2, Marco Andretti, 3, Patrick, 4, Meira, 5, Franchitti, 6, Castroneves, 7, Simmons, 8, Dixon, 9, Carpenter, 10, Briscoe, 11, Jaques Lazier, 12, Sharp, 13, Wheldon, 14, Matsuura, 15, Hornish, 16, Rice, 17, Manning, 18, Michael Andretti, 19, Scheckter, 20, Hamilton, 21, Yasukawa, 22, Hearn, 23, Buddy Lazier, 24, Barron, 25, Fisher, 26, Foyt IV, 27, Roth, 28, Unser Jr. They are all still running.
Out of the race, in descending order: 29, Giebler, 30, John Andretti, 31, Duno, 32, Herb and 33, Moreno.
5:40 p.m. ET: Jessy from Mandan, N.D., offers this: Just to answer Patrick's concerns, the F1 cars are weighted with more powerful engines which allow them to run in the rain if they were on a road course. Neverless if it were F1 here today and not the IRL, I am sure they would halt their race too because of the concrete barriers. For the record NASCAR has ran a few races in Japan and one of them had the use of rain tires. As for lights, I would pretty much decide to install them on Indy Motor Speedway just so that we can do racing at night in regards to the 500 in order to ensure a finish. Plus how awesome would it be to see the Brickyard 400 run under the lights while the Truck series and Busch Series would also get to use the famed Brickyard?
Thanks for the comment, Jessy. Makes perfect sense to my feeble little brain. I agree that Indy under the lights would be awesome, but I don't see it happening.
5:31 p.m. ET: Ken, from Terre Haute, Ind., reports: I don't mean to be a downer or anything but I'm an hour west of Indy right now and it's raining like a big dog!!
Thanks, Ken, for the bad news. We really appreciate it. Things were getting a little too upbeat around here! For those who aren't well-versed on Indiana geography, Terre Haute is about 70 miles southwest of Indianapolis and the rain has been coming from that direction all day.
5:25 p.m. ET: Adam wants to know: How many times has the 500 been rained out in the past?
According to the IRL media guide, there have been complete postponements (the race could not be started on the scheduled date) in 1915, 1986 and 1997. There have been partial postponements (the race started but couldn't be finished until a subsequent day) in 1967 and 1973.
There were rain-shortened races (they completed the required 101 laps before the rains came) in 1926 (160 laps), 1950 (138 laps), 1973 (133 laps), 1975 (174 laps), 1976 (102 laps) and 2004 (180 laps).
5:12 p.m. ET: Ed from Wauconda, Ill., asks: If they get the race under way at 6:30 p.m. ET, are they going to declare it a timed race or will they attempt to get the last 87 laps in? There's another line of storms heading for Indy, but it won't get there for at least a couple of hours.
You're right, Ed. I just checked the radar and there is, indeed, another line of storms coming this way. If they do manage to restart the race, they'll try to get all 87 laps in. If it rains before then or after the restart, the race will be over.
5:08 p.m. ET: Brian asks: Do you think that Indianapolos Motor Speedway will put lights on its stadium so they can finish under the lights in event of rain in future seasons, and will they start the race at 5:00 and finish under the lights?
No, not a chance on the lights. Sunset today in Indianapolis will be around 9 p.m. local time, so they can probably run until 8 p.m. safely. I guess we're about to find out. I do remember one year rain delayed the Brickyard 400 and it didn't finish until after 7 p.m.
5:03 p.m. ET: Patrick weighs in on the F1 rain tire issue: You may be fielding some not-so-civil responses to your earlier posting regarding racing in the rain, so let me respectfully offer this: there is not a great speed difference in F1 on the straights as compared to Indy Car racing (in general – obviously it depends on the track), and they must shave off ridiculous amounts of speed going into turns (190+ down to 30 at Montreal, as I recall). There is also plenty of concrete to hit, including the possibility of head-ons into barriers (not present to same degree in Indy). I'm a fan of both; I'm just offering the observation that there may be something else keeping Indy from racing in the rain. Clearly NASCAR cannot, given weight and aerodynamics, but these factors are not present in Indy Car racing. Given your connections and experience, it would be wonderful to see you revisit this question – I know I would be very curious read what you found.
Thanks, Patrick. Actually, the responses have been fairly civil. I didn't phrase my response very well, and to be honest I'm showing I'm not an expert on that topic. I'm in no way saying F1 cars are inferior to Indy Cars, or that F1 cars couldn't go as fast on the straights. On on oval, at speeds above 200 mph, the cars just couldn't stay off the walls. I'll defer to anyone else who can better explain it.
4:58 p.m. ET: Paul, from Plainfield, Ind., asks: Why is the Indy 500 not on local TV, in the Indianapolis area? I am sure it is a sellout every year.
The race is blacked out in a 70-mile radius, I believe it is, to minimize its impact on attendance. It always seemed a flimsy excuse back in the day when the race was a sellout far in advance, but with it less than a sellout these days, I can't say that I blame them. But, having lived in Indy, I know the frustration of not being able to watch the race live.
4:40 p.m. ET: Angie wants to know: Is this yet another example of the Andretti curse?
Well, I guess we'll find out. It looks like they're going to finish the race. However, if it is declared official as it stands, I think there will be some – the Andrettis chief among them – who might believe that. My take is that the Andrettis certainly have had their share of bad breaks at the Speedway, but Mario won in 1969 so they haven't been totally shut out.
I feel for Michael, having led more laps than any other driver who has not won this race. So, I guess the perfect finish from his perspective would be to lead no laps and pass for the win on the final lap as Sam Hornish Jr. did to Michael's son Marco last year. That would be ironic.
4:29 p.m. ET: Scott from the Netherlands, asks a good question: Just heard that the cars have gone back to the garage, while they dry the track and pit area. What adjustments or alterations are the teams allowed to do on the cars, while the track is drying?
They can't make any adjustments. The cars are held in a staging area and watched over by track officials.
4:23 p.m. ET: We're being told that track officials are planning to restart the race at 6:30 p.m. ET. Stay tuned.
4:16 p.m. ET: Joe from Gulfport, Miss.: Why does it take 2 hours to dry this track? With the money spent there they could have more equipment to handle this scenario.
That sounds like the same argument I remember hearing every winter when it snowed in Indianapolis. Why aren't there more snow plows! Well, if it makes you feel better, I always wondered the same thing. But instead of fighting it, I moved to California. Now, all I have to worry about is earthquake season.
Anyway, the track has at least four jet dryers and a whole fleet of trucks they drive around the track to dry it out. I honestly don't know if more equipment would dry the track faster. There are other factors, such as the level of humidity and whether the sun is shining.
4:11 p.m. ET: Craig asks: F1 races in the rain with rain tires, why can't the Indy cars do the same? Declare it wet and put on the soft tires!
Great question, Craig. F1 runs on road courses, which means lower speeds and far fewer concrete walls. The IRL runs mostly on ovals and the speeds are just too great to run in the rain. It would be a crash-fest and it would not be safe, or pretty.
4:05 p.m. ET: Steve, from Springfield, Ill.: I just checked the NOAA website and it looks like it might clear up. How long do you think it will take for the track to dry?
You're correct. It has stopped raining and the radar to the west of the track looks clear. It normally takes a little more than 2 hours to dry the track. Then you have to get all the cars back on the track and warmed up for a restart. So, best-case scenario would be a restart around 6:30 p.m. ET, which might be enough time. I sense we're near the point of no return, so we should know something soon. Whatever, the decision, it will probably be controversial.
4 p.m. ET: Eric from Ashburn, Va., asks: How disappointed will you be if we don't get to see the last 89 laps of this race?
Funny you should ask. I was just thinking about that as I watched A.J. Foyt complaining about the "damn rain" on a video feed in the media center. I think I'm in the majority here when I say it would leave me with an empty feeling. I don't think anyone, perhaps except for Tony Kanaan, wants it to end short of the full 200 laps. And I'm sure even Tony would prefer to win a full race.
3:55 p.m. ET: Lonnie wants to know: Who sang "Back Home Again In Indiana" this year since Jim Nabors was ill?
The crowd stood in for Nabors this year. It sure didn't seem the same without Nabors here this year.
3:48 p.m. ET: Joseph, from Bakersfield, Calif., asks: Why on the most important race of the year and one of the biggest races in the world with many millions following the race why can't they run a full race rain or no rain. If the rain persists finish the next day.
Well, Joseph, I guess the easiest answer is tradition. And Indy is big on tradition. Plus, the logistics of bringing everybody back on Monday is so great that it's not worth it unless there's a good reason. And IMS officials have decided that only something less than 101 laps completed is a good enough reason. For what it's worth, NASCAR operates the same way.
3:45 p.m. ET: Kim, from somewhere in cyberland, asks: My daughter Chelsea would like to know where the other women are in the race.
Thanks for the easy question! One I can answer. Danica Patrick is third, Sarah Fisher is 25th and Milka Duno finished 31st after her crash on lap 65. If the current standings hold, Danica's finish will be the best ever for a woman at the Indy 500 (she previously finished fourth).
3:41 p.m. ET: Joe, from Phoenix, asks: What are the odds this thing gets going again?
Well, Joe, I'm not a betting man, but I lived in Indianapolis for 22 years and I would lean toward the odds being not good that the race is restarted. But don't quote me.
3:37 p.m. ET: While we wait for the rain to end and track officials to decide whether to try to resume the race, time to answer some email.
Tenna from Danville, Ill, asks: Wow, now what? How long will they hold a rain delay before they call a winner?
Brian Barnhart, director of competition for the Indy Racing League, says they're monitoring the situation and won't make any decisions until the rain stops. He says they can run until around 7:30 p.m. ET, so if it stops raining they'll decide if there's time to dry the track (which takes a little over 2 hours) and still get the race in. If not, Tony Kanaan is your winner, because the race only needs to complete 101 laps to be considered an official race. They've finished 113 laps.
3:07 p.m. ET: The rain has arrived in bucketfuls, with Tony Kanaan leading the race under caution and 113 laps complete. Marco Andretti is second, Danica Patrick third, Vitor Meira fourth and Dario Franchitti fifth. It's an official race, so if the rain doesn't stop in time for the track to be dried for a restart, Kanaan will be declared the winner.
2:57 p.m. ET: Tony Kanaan quickly passes Marco Andretti for the lead on the restart on lap 107, but Phil Giebler hit the wall shortly after and the race immediately goes back to caution. Officials are saying the rain will arrive within the next 10 minutes. The leaders have completed 109 laps.
2:44 p.m. ET: John Andretti has hit the wall on lap 99 with Tony Kanaan leading. Marco Andretti is second, Jeff Simmons third, Danica Patrick fourth and Helio Castroneves has moved up to fifth as the drivers jockey through their pit stops. The race is nearly halfway finished, and will become official after 101 laps. Thunderstorms are about to move in from the southwest.
2:34 p.m. ET: Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon have ducked into the pits under green and Michael Andretti has taken the lead, with son Marco right behind him.
2:34 p.m. ET: Sam Hornish Jr. has headed into the pits after touching tires with Tomas Scheckter and damaging his front wing. Now, Scheckter is in the pits and two of the top cars are falling out of contention. Dario Franchitti is still in the lead with Michael Andretti surging up to third behind Scott Dixon.
2:29 p.m. ET: Dario Franchitti is your race leader after 80 laps, with Sam Hornish Jr. second and Tomas Scheckter third. Scott Dixon is fourth, followed by Jaques Lazier. Helio Castroneves is 20th.
2:22 p.m. ET: Scott Dixon leads the field on the restart on lap 72, but Sam Hornish Jr. quickly overtakes him and Dario Franchitti moves into second. Tomas Scheckter is fourth and Jaques Lazier fifth. Michael Andretti is seventh.
2:17 p.m. ET: Milka Duno hit the wall on lap 65, the third car out due to a crash. She lost control going into the first turn, spun around and smacked the wall pretty hard. Tony Kanaan is the leader, with Scott Dixon in second and Jeff Simmons third. Thunderstorms are brewing to the southwest of Indianapolis, so the race is on to reach 101 laps before the rain returns.
2:05 p.m. ET: Davey Hamilton gets the Helio Castroneves pit stop award after his crew failed to properly attach his right rear tire. When Hamilton took off, the wheel fell off. After a few anxious moments, the tire was reattached and Hamilton was on his way.
2 p.m. ET: For those of you scoring at home, Jon Herb has become the second driver to hit the wall. He is out of his car and appears to be OK. It's the third caution of the day, with 53 laps completed.
1:56 p.m. ET: They're racing under green again, with Marco Andretti still in the lead. Scott Dixon is second, followed by Dan Wheldon, Sam Hornish Jr., Tony Kanaan, Dario Franchitti, Tomas Scheckter, Ed Carpenter, Danica Patrick and Ryan Briscoe. The other women in the field: Milka Duno is 22nd and Sarah Fisher is 24th. Helio Castroneves fell all the way to 25th after his disastrous pit stop. The field has completed 50 laps.
1:49 p.m. ET: Helio Castroneves just suffered through a terrible pit stop when his crew had trouble dispensing fuel into his car. Marco Andretti came out of the pits in first place. The race is still under caution through 41 laps.
1:45 p.m. ET: Marco Andretti has stormed into second place behind Helio Castroneves. Tony Kanaan has slipped back to fourth, but it's not known if he's having problems with his car or just taking a breather. The first driver out of the race is Roberto Moreno, who just hit the wall in the first turn on lap 38.
1:38 p.m. ET: Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves are waging an epic battle at the front, with Castroneves passing Kanaan on the front straightaway to regain the lead. They've completed 30 laps.
1:35 p.m. ET: Tony Kanaan is back in the lead through 25 laps. Helio Castroneves is second, with defending champion Sam Hornish Jr. in third, followed by Dan Wheldon and Marco Andretti. Kanaan is setting a blistering pace, turning laps in excess of 223 mph. Sarah Fisher had a problem in the pits and has fallen to last place.
1:28 p.m. ET: Back to green, and Helio Castroneves leads the field. They've completed 16 laps.
1:25 p.m. ET: Most drivers take advantage of the caution to make their first pit stop.
1:21 p.m. ET: The first caution comes out for debris on the course … John Andretti apparently lost a mirror. The drivers have completed 11 laps, with Tony Kanaan still in the lead.
1:15 p.m. ET: The start of the race is one of the most exciting moments in sports, and this one was no different. The field was spread out by the start command instead of lined up in 11 rows of three, but truth be told it probably made for a safer run into Turn 1. Tony Kanaan surged into the lead on the second lap and they've made it through the first several laps without incident.
1:08 p.m. ET: The command, "Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!" has just been given and the car of polesitter Helio Castroneves did not respond initially. It finally roared to life and the 33 cars are under way.
12:53 p.m. ET: As Florence Henderson sings "God Bless America," I'm reminded of the traditions of the 500. Florence is one of them, along with Jim Nabors singing "Back Home Again In Indiana" and the winner drinking milk in victory lane. Unfortunately, Nabors was unable to be here this year because of illness. Other celebrities in attendance are Ray Liotta, Tyler Christopher, Alison Sweeney, Peyton Manning, Chris "Lights Out" Lytle, Ludacris, Patrick Dempsey (who will drive the pace car), Eric Dane, Richard Petty and Marcus Allen. Oh, and Melissa Rivers, of course.
12:48 p.m. ET: This just in from the Indy 500 PR folks: Melissa Rivers is happy to be here. "It's unbelievable. It's absolutely mind-boggling to see in person," she is quoted as saying. No mention what she is wearing, or what she thinks about what everyone else is (or is not) wearing. Hmm, I wonder if Billy Crystal is here.
12:44 p.m. ET: The rain that drenched the track this morning has moved out and prerace festivities are under way. Track officials say everything is on schedule, but I get the sense that things are moving along slower than usual. The sooner they start the race (scheduled for 1:11 p.m.), the faster they can get to 101 laps. After that point, if rain moves back in, they can declare a winner and go home. Clearly, everyone wants a full 200-lap race, but not too many want to come back on Monday.
Reblog
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i don't know
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Where in the body is the occipital artery?
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Occipital Artery Anatomy, Function & Diagram | Body Maps
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Occipital artery
A branch of the external carotid, the occipital artery begins in the neck and runs to the back of the head. It transports oxygenated blood to many regions. This includes the scalp on the back of the head, as well as muscles adjacent to the sternomastoid, a muscle on the side of the neck. It also services other muscular tissues in the neck and back.
In the course of its path, the artery crosses the internal carotid and the internal jugular veins. The artery has many branches, including the auricular, mastoid, and descending branches. Two sternocleidomastoid branches occur near the carotid triangle, an area in the upper neck. One branch runs with the accessory nerve and the other arises near the occipital artery's origination point.
The occipital artery should not be mistaken for the occipital vein, which assists in draining oxygen-depleted blood away portions of the head and neck.
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Head (company)
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The city known as Stalingrad from 1925 to 1961 stands on which major river?
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Occipital | Define Occipital at Dictionary.com
occipital
[ok-sip-i-tl] /ɒkˈsɪp ɪ tl/ Anatomy
Spell
of, relating to, or situated near the occiput or the occipital bone .
noun
any of several parts of the occiput , especially the occipital bone .
Origin of occipital
1535-45; < Medieval Latin occipitālis, equivalent to Latin occipit- (stem of occiput) occiput + -ālis -al 1
Related forms
Examples from the Web for occipital
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Historical Examples
Between this skeleton and the pituitary body the important portion of the brain formed by the occipital lobes takes its origin.
Degeneracy Eugene S. Talbot
When the eye is stimulated, the nerve current first reaches a small portion of the occipital lobe, called the visual sensory area.
Psychology Robert S. Woodworth
A Hand-book to the Primates, Volume 2 (of 2) Henry O. Forbes
Facial and occipital plates also each with two pairs of large annular pores; lateral sides with smaller irregular polygonal pores.
Buchanan's Journal of Man, June 1887 Various
occipital lobe very large, helmet-shaped, longer than the thorax and twice as long as the two subspherical frontal lobes.
British Dictionary definitions for occipital
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of or relating to the back of the head or skull
noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for occipital
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adj.
1540s, from Middle French occipital, from Medieval Latin occipitalis, from Latin occiput (genitive occipitis) "back of the skull," from ob "against, behind" (see ob- ) + caput "head" (see capitulum ).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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i don't know
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Complete the full title of the 1776 publication by the economist Adam Smith An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of ______________________.
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An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, Smith, Cannan, Stigler
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations
Edited by Edwin Cannan . With a Preface by George J. Stigler .
1,152 pages | Volume I: liv, 524 p.; Volume II: 568 p. | 5-1/4 x 8 | © 1977
Paper $22.50 ISBN: 9780226763743 Published February 1977
E-book $10.00 to $22.50 About E-books ISBN: 9780226763750 Published July 2008
Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations was recognized as a landmark of human thought upon its publication in 1776. As the first scientific argument for the principles of political economy, it is the point of departure for all subsequent economic thought. Smith's theories of capital accumulation, growth, and secular change, among others, continue to be influential in modern economics.
This reprint of Edwin Cannan's definitive 1904 edition of The Wealth of Nations includes Cannan's famous introduction, notes, and a full index, as well as a new preface written especially for this edition by the distinguished economist George J. Stigler. Mr. Stigler's preface will be of value for anyone wishing to see the contemporary relevance of Adam Smith's thought.
Table of Contents
Preface, 1976, by George J. Stigler
Preface
Introduction and Plan of the work
Book 1
Of the Causes of Improvement in the productive Powers of Labour, and of the Order according to which its Produce is naturally distributed among the different Ranks of the People
1. Of the Division of Labour
2. Of the Principle which gives Occasion to the Division of Labour
3. That the Division of Labour is Limited by the Extent of the Market
4. Of the Origin and Use of Money
5. Of the Real and Nominal Price of Commodities, or of their Price in Labour, and their Price in Money 6. Of the Component Parts of the Price of Commodities
7. Of the Natural and Market Price of Commodities
8. Of the Wages of Labour
9. Of the Profits of Stock
10. Of Wages and Profit in the Different Employments of Labour and Stock
Part I - Inequalities arising from the Nature of the Employments themselves
Part II - Inequalities occasioned by the Policy of Europe
11. Of the Rent of Land
Part I - Of the Produce of Land which always affords Rent
Part II - Of the Produce of Land which sometimes does, and sometimes does not afford Rent
Part III - Of the Variations in the Proportion between the respective Values of that Sort of Produce which always affords Rent, and of that which sometimes does and sometimes does not afford Rent
Digression concerning the Variations in the Value of Silver during the Course of the Four last Centuries: First Period, 1350-1570
Second Period, 1570-1640
Variations in the Proportion between the respective Values of Gold and Silver
Grounds of the Suspicion that the Value of Silver still continues to decrease
Different Effects of the Progress of Improvement upon three different Sorts of rude Produce
First Sort
Conclusion of the Digression concerning the Variations in the Value of Silver
Effects of the Progress of Improvement upon the real Price of Manufactures
Conclusion of the Chapter
Of the Nature, Accumulation, and Employment of Stock
Introduction
1. Of the Division of Stock
2. Of Money Considered as a particular Branch of the General Stock of the Society, or of the Expence of Maintaining the National Capital
3. Of the Accumulation of Capital, or of Productive and Unproductive Labour
4. Of Stock Lent at Interest
5. Of the Different Employment of Capitals
Book III
Of the different Progress of Opulence in different Nations
1. Of the Natural Progress of Opulence
2. Of the Discouragement of Agriculture in the Ancient State of Europe after the Fall of the Roman Empire
3. Of the Rise and Progress of Cities and Towns, after the Fall of the Roman Empire
4. How the Commerce of the Towns Contributed to the Improvement of the Country
Book IV
Of Systems of Political Economy
Introduction
1. Of the Principle of the Commercial or Mercantile System
2. Of Restraints upon the Importation from Foreign Countries of such Goods as can be Produced at Home
3. Of the extraordinary Restraints upon the Importation of Goods of almost all Kinds, from those Countries with which the Balance is supposed to be Disadvantageous
Part I - Of the Unreasonableness of those Restraints even upon the Principles of the Commercial System
Digression concerning Banks of Deposit, particularly concerning that of Amsterdam
Part II - Of the Unreasonableness of those extraordinary Restraints upon other Principles
Volume Two
Digression concerning the Corn Trade and Corn Laws
6. Of Treaties of Commerce
7. Of Colonies
Part I - Of the Motives for establishing new Colonies
Part II - Causes of the Prosperity of new Colonies
Part III - Of the Advantages which Europe has derived from the Discovery of America, and from that of a Passage to the East Indies by the Cape of Good Hope
8. Conclusion of the Mercantile System
9. Of the Agricultural Systems, or of those Systems of Political (Economy, which Represent the Produce of Land as either the Sole or the Principal Source of the Revenue and Wealth of Every Country
Book V
Of the Revenue of the Sovereign or Commonwealth
1. Of the Expences of the Sovreign or Commonwealth
Part I - Of the Expence of Defence
Part II - Of the Expence of Justice
Part III - Of the Expence of public Works and public Institutions
Article 1st - Of the public Works and Institutions for facilitating the Commerce of the Society
1st, For facilitating the general Commerce of the Society
2dly, For facilitating particular Branches of Commerce
Article 2d - Of the Expence of the Institutions for the Education of Youth
Article 3d - Of the Expence of the Institutions for the Instruction of People of All Ages
Part IV - Of the Expence of supporting the Dignity of the Sovereign Conclusion of the Chapter
2. Of the Sources of the General or Public Revenue of the Society
Part I - Of the Funds or Sources of Revenue which may peculiarly belong to the Sovereign or Commonwealth
Part II - Of Taxes
Article 1st - Taxes upon Rent. Taxes upon the Rent of Land
Taxes which are proportioned, not to the Rent, but to the Produce of Land
Taxes upon the Rent of Houses
Article 2d - Taxes upon Profit, or upon the Revenue arising from Stock
Taxes upon the Profit of particular Employments
Appendix to Articles 1st and 2d - Taxes upon the capital Value of Lands, Houses, and Stock
Article 3d - Taxes upon the Wages of Labour
Article 4th - Taxes which, it is intended, should fall indifferently upon every different Species of Revenue
Capitation Taxes
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The Wealth of Nations
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Which club resigned from the Football League in 1962 to be replaced by Oxford United? A new club was formed with the same name and won promotion to the League in 2006. One of the two clubs they replaced was Oxford United.
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Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations | Raptis Rare Books
Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations
Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations
“First and greatest classic of modern economic thought”: First Edition of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations
American economist and historian Robert L. Heilbroner writes about Adam Smith’s influence on capitalism:
Adam Smith’s enormous authority resides, in the end, in the same property that we discover in Marx: not in any ideology, but in an effort to see the bottom of things.
Scottish economist and moral philosopher, Adam Smith, published his five-part publication, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, later referred to as simply, The Wealth of Nations, during the Scottish Enlightenment in 1776. The work was a result of seventeen years of notes and observations taken from conversations among economists about economical and societal conditions during the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. This is outlined in the book of bibliographical reference, Printing and the Mind of Man:
The history of economic theory up to the end of the nineteenth century consists of two parts: the mercantilist phase which was based not so much on a doctrine as on a system of practice which grew out of social conditions; and the second phase which saw the development of the theory that the individual had the right to be unimpeded in the exercise of economic activity. While it cannot be said that Smith invented the latter theory…his work is the first major expression of it.
It took Smith ten years to produce An Inquiry into the Wealth of Nations . His commentary during such an incremental time, the first years of the Industrial Revolution, sought to reform outdated theories of mercantilist and physiocratic economic thought with broader concepts we’re all familiar with today, such as the division of labour, productivity, and free markets.
An Early Edition of Adam Smith’s An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations
He begins with the thought that labour is the source from which a nation derives what is necessary to it. The improvement of the division of labour is the measure of productivity and in it lies the human propensity to barter and exchange…Labour represents the three essential elements-wages, profit and rent-and these three also constitute income. From the working of the economy, Smith passes to its matter-‘stock’-which compasses all that man owns either for his own consumption or for the return which it brings him.
Bound in period style full brown calf, with elaborately gilt-decorated spines, the 1776 publication of An Inquiry into The Wealth of Nations was the first of only five editions that were published in Adam Smith’s lifetime. Said to be the birth of what we now know to be modern economic thought, the book has greatly influenced economists and philosophers of his time and those that followed, including Jean-Baptiste Say, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Malthus, and Ludwig von Misis.
Rare, First Edition of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations
The Wealth of Nations ends with a history of economic development, a definitive onslaught on the mercantile system, and some prophetic speculations on the limits of economic control…The Wealth of Nations is not a system, but as a provisional analysis it is complete convincing. The certainty of its criticism and its grasp of human nature have made it the first and greatest classic of modern economic thought.
Today, An Inquiry into the Wealth of Nations is said to have been as influential in the shift of the field of economics as Isaac Newton’s Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy was to the field of physics or Charles Darwin ’s On the Origin of Species was to the field of biology.
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i don't know
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EY is the name of one of the Big Four professional service companies (tax, audit etc.). What was its full name before a rebranding in 2013?
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Big 4 Accounting Firms | Top CPA Firm Salaries
Home > Careers > Big Four Accounting Firms
The Big 4 Accounting Firms
The big four accounting firms, most commonly referred to as �The Big 4,� are the world�s largest and most prestigious audit, tax, and professional service companies. Combined they perform more than 80 percent of the public company audits in the U.S. and gross more than $100 billion dollars in revenues annually. There�s no wonder why it�s a dream of so many public accountants to land a job with one of them. They basically run the accounting industry. The Big Four don�t limit their services to public companies though. They also work with large privately held companies, non-profit groups, and high wealth individuals.
These accounting firms have earned the trust and respect of our society because of their dedication to integrity. Their work is highly respected and associated with professionalism and quality. In other words, these four accounting firms symbolize the ideals of the public accounting profession and industry as a whole.
It�s no wonder why accountants strive to work for these firms right out of college. They represent the pinnacle of an accounting career, but before we get into landing a job with the big four, let�s talk about who they are.
Who are the Big 4?
Although we typically think of these firms as four individual companies, they are actually four large networks of member firms, usually called a professional services network, located all over the world. Each network is owned and operated independently from one another with a membership agreement in place to share the company name, image, brand, and standards. You can think of it like a professional franchise.
Each firm has about 100 offices in the United States alone. Yup, they are that big. These hundred offices consist of large regional offices like a Chicago office and small to mid-sized offices in city outskirts and suburbs. All of the big four firms rank on the Fortune 100 best companies to work for lists every year.
Let�s take a look at the details of each firm and what makes them such great companies to work for.
Deloitte
Deliotte is the world�s largest big four accounting firm with more than 225,000 professionals employed in 150 countries. They have a higher market share of Fortune 500 audit clients than any of the other three firms. Deloitte also sets itself apart from the other big 4 because they are the only firm with a global headquarters is located in the United States.
In 1845 William Deloitte formed Deloitte out of his London based office. In 1880 he opened his first office in New York and became the first person appointed to audit a public company. After seeing some success in America, Deloitte merged with Haskins and Sells in 1896.
This organization remained unchanged until 1989 when the three partners merged with Touche Ross to form Deloitte and Touche. Later in 1993 the company renamed itself Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu because of yet another merger.
Throughout the 1990s D&T acquired and grew various consulting groups and agencies. In 2002, D&T merged most of the European and South American Arthur Andersen consulting business into their other foreign consulting businesses. Over the last few decades Deloitte�s presence in the industry and total revenues have grown drastically. Deloitte is almost always ranked in the top 100 best companies to work for in Fortune Magazine . They ranked 97 in 2015.
Let�s look at some company data:
Headquarters: United States
FY 14: $34,200
FY 13: $32,400
D&T�s growth of the past three years is steady and consistent. Their tax and assurance service sectors have remained about the same year of year, but their advisory and consulting business keeps growing year after year. Although PwC did beat D&T�s gross revenue number in 2015, D&T does employ more professionals and has generated more revenues two out of the last three years.
Deloitte Recruiting
Deloitte recruiters attend career fairs at most major universities and colleges around the country giving students access to their leadership programs and internship opportunities. They also participate in many conferences and competitions like the Envision Leadership Conference, AERS Advisory Case Competition, and the NextGen Leaders Program. Each of these events are great opportunities to meet recruiters and other team members. Remember, the more interaction you have with the big four CPA firms, the more likely will hire you down the road.
Deloitte University
Deloitte University was formed in 2012 as an educational branch to provide current employees and future hires training in all areas of public accounting including tax, assurance, and advisory.
D&T has also developed college accounting courses and full curriculum for college programs. Currently, there are more than 20 Deloitte accounting colleges and universities utilizing their materials. If you think you want to study accounting, become a CPA , and work in public accounting, you should definitely look into these schools. They offer the best accounting education in the country.
If you�d like more information about Deloitte, feel free to contact a local office near you directly.
New York D&T Contact Information
140 Broadway 49th Floor
www.deloitte.com
PricewaterhouseCooopers
Pricewaterhouse Coopers, or PwC for short, is the world�s second largest accounting firm with over 750 offices in more than 150 countries. Its headquarters is located in the United Kingdom and dates all the way back to 1849 with its founder Samuel Price. Obviously, PwC has expanded quite a bit with a few mergers over its 150+ year existence.
The two most notable mergers happened in 1874 and 1998. In 1874 one of the original partners left the small accounting firm leaving only Price and Waterhouse to resume the business. Thus, starting in 1874 the firm was known as Price, Waterhouse & Co. Over one hundred years later PW merged with Coopers & Lybrand to create the brand we know today as PricewaterhouseCoopers. And yes, in print the �w� is always a lower case letter.
During the 1990s PwC grew rapidly and became one of the industry standards in the United States. They also acquired many of Arthur Andersen�s Chinese client base after their collapse. Today, PwC has been consistently ranked among the top 100 companies to work for by Fortune Magazine for the last 11 years. They ranked number 74 in 2015.
Let�s look at some company data:
Headquarters: United Kingdom
FY 14: $32,166
FY 13: $30,303
As you can see, PwC has maintained steady revenue growth for the past three years. They even outgrew Deloitte in fiscal year 2015. All service sectors seem to be experiencing growth over the past few years, but assurance has grown the most. This typically means there are more job opportunities in this area.
PwC Recruiting
PwC actively recruits college students across the country into their student programs. They have many different tracks like Aspire, Challenge, Explore, Start, Elevate, Advance, and Launch. Each of these programs is designed to give college students opportunities to learn, grow professionally, and gain experience in the professional world. Not to mention, students are about 1000 times more likely to be hired at PwC if they had an internship or a student program experience before.
PwC Open University
PwC Open University is PricewaterhouseCooper�s free online continuing business education platform. Anyone can sign up for their lectures and earn CPE credit hours for free. This is not only a great resource; it�s also a great learning tool for new hires and people interesting in getting a job in public accounting. You can find more information here.
If you�d like more information about PricewaterhouseCoopers, feel free to contact a local PwC office near you.
New York PwC Contact Information
101 Park Avenue 18th Floor
New York, NY 10178
www.pwc.com
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young, also known as EY, is the third largest big 4 CPA firm with over 700 offices located in over 150 countries around the world. Its global headquarters is located in the UK where Harding and Pullein originally found it in 1849. Like all large accounting firms, EY went through a series of mergers over the years.
There were several mergers between firms like Whinney Smith & Whinney, Ernst & Ernst, Arthur Young & Co, and Broads Paterson & Co to form the fourth largest accounting firm in 1979. In 1989, Ernst & Whinney merged with Arthur Young to create the modern EY.
Like the big four firms, EY saw growth and expansion in the 1990s and early 2000s in their consulting and advisory businesses. This drew concerns from the SEC and other regulators at the true independence of the big 4 public accounting firms and their clients. EY took a big step in 2000 when they were the first firm to officially and formally separate their consulting side from their assurance side. Now EY is often viewed as one of the best accounting firms to work for and are typically ranked on the top 100 best companies to work for by Fortune Magazine . They ranked number 79 in 2015.
Now let�s look at some company data:
Headquarters: United Kingdom
FY 14: $27,369
FY 13: $25,829
As typical with the BIG FOUR over the past few years, EY�s total revenue has consistently climbed year over year. Although each sector has grown slightly since 2013, EY�s advisory business has increased the most. This means there will be more job opening and opportunities for new hires in the future. You might want to expand your view from just focusing on audit and tax to advisory if you are still in college. It looks like this field is going to continue to grow in the future.
EY Recruiting
EY makes a concentrated effort to find highly qualified and ambition college students to enroll in their internship programs and leadership conferences. EY focuses on hiring a larger percentage of their interns because it works. Think about it. They can train students and test them out for a trial run during the internship. After they are fully trained and graduate college, they become full time team members. It�s a great model that they take to colleges around the country.
EY Tax Accounting University
EY has developed a highly technical and advanced tax accounting and reporting program for accounting professionals. It consists of three different courses starting with the basics of tax law and ending with advanced income tax compliance. They courses are held at different EY locations around the country. Check here EY TAU for scheduling information.
If you want more information about Ernst & Young, feel free to contact your local EY office.
New York EY Contact Information
5 Times Square
www.ey.com
KPMG
KPMG is the fourth largest big four accounting firm employing 162,000 people. Their global headquarters is located in Amsterdam although it was not originally founded there. William Peat founded the company in London in 1891.
Through a series of mergers starting in 1925, KPMG started to take its modern form. In 1979 Klynveld Kraayenhof & Co. of the Netherlands, McLintock Main Lafrentz of the United Kingdom and United States, and Deutsche Treuhandgesellschaft of Germany merged to form KMG. Later in 1987 Peat Marwick merged with KMG to form the modern KPMG.
In 1997 KPMG attempted to merge with PwC, but it was stalled in the court system and eventually dropped. After the failed merger KPMG went on to divest much of its consulting and legal businesses. Now it focuses on three main services: audit, advisory, and tax. KPMG has seen repeated growth year over here and is viewed as one of the top accounting firms to work for. In fact, Fortune Magazine rated KPMG highest out of all four big accounting firms in 2015. They were ranked number 63.
Now let�s look at some company data:
Headquarters: Netherlands
FY 14: $23,420
FY 13: $23,030
Although revenues have increased over the past three years, KPMG�s growth is the slowest out of the big four accounting firms. Tax and audit service revenue stayed about the same for the past three years with advisory fees increasing slightly. Total revenues are up, but not as much as the big CPA firms.
KPMG Recruiting
KPMG�s recruiting process starts with colleges. They focus on getting to know students early in their college careers with programs designed for each class year. They focus on helping students gain access to their leadership training series, internships, and competitions. You can go to the student section on their site for more information about finding a KPMG recruiting rep for your university.
KPMG University Connection
The KPMG University Connection is an audit, tax, and general business curriculum created by KPMG to help students learn more about public accounting. The video lectures teach everything from business communication to professional critical thinking skills. It�s a free resource that you should check out.
If you want more information about KPMG, feel free to contact your local office.
New York KPMG Contact Information
345 Park Avenue
Touche Ross
Price Waterhouse
As you know, professional businesses like to merge and get bought out by other professional companies. That�s exactly what happened in 1989. Arthur Young merged with Ernst & Whinney and Touche Ross merged with Deloitte, Haskins & Sells reducing the big 8 accounting firms down to the big six.
The big six firms only lasted another 9 years until 1998 when Coopers & Lybrand merged with Price Waterhouse forming PwC. Now the big six accounting firms were reduced down to the big five.
The big five accounting firms only lasted another four years until 2002 when Arthur Andersen became caught in the Enron accounting scandal. AA�s image for integrity was severely damaged due to the negligence and securities fraud committed by Enron. They were sued by banks, investors, and other companies to recoup their losses and eventually had to disband. Many of the Andersen locations and clients were acquired by the remaining big four accounting firms.
Since 2002 there hasn�t been any other merger and the BIG 4 remain intact.
Become a Big Four CPA
It�s expected that you will become a CPA at one of the big 4 firms. Some of them have deadlines on when you have to pass the exam, while others strongly encourage your certification and hold your promotions until you actually get it.
Most firms actually want you to become a CPA within the first year of employment. This is no easy task. Starting a new job, learning the ropes of a big company, working through busy season, and trying to juggle the exam is tough, but it�s totally doable. You just need to find the right CPA review course and plow through it.
Here�s a resource I put together to show you the steps to becoming a CPA and passing the exam on your first try.
Become a Big 4 CPA
How to Land a Job with the Big 4
Getting hired by one of the Big Four firms is no easy task. You need to work hard and prove yourself. This goes for academics, extra circular actives, and professional experience. Remember, these firms know how good they are and know that thousands of people are fighting to work for them. They have earned the right to be picky and choose the best. It�s your job to be the best fit for them.
Notice I didn�t say you have to be the best to get hired by one of them. You just have to be the best fit. They want people who can think, solve problems, and communicate effectively. It�s not unheard of for these firms to turn away perfect 4.0 students for people with 3.2 GPAs. They don�t want to you to be a hermit who just studies all day long. They want you to be able to gain knowledge and experiences to help their clients and grow their practices. The best way to do that is to be well rounded and work on your communication skills.
Obviously, you will have to have an awesome resume and nail the interview, but you also need experiences and skills to back these things up. If you are still in college and want a Big Four Job, you should look at their internship opportunities. This is probably the easiest way to get hired.
Big 4 Accounting Firm Internships
Getting a big four internship is probably the easiest way to get hired by one of big firms. CPA firms don�t offer internships because they want cheap labor. In many cases they actually pay their interns more per hour than their actual first year associates. The entire point of an internship is to find and train qualified people with the intension of hiring them.
Why would a firm want to hire someone they have never worked with before over someone who has worked with them for three or four months? They wouldn�t. Think of an internship as a test out period. The firms hire interns and test them out to see if they will be a good fit to become a full time team member. It only makes sense, right?
It�s no wonder why firms hire more than 80 percent of their interns. Getting an internship is a foot in the door. As long as you work hard and don�t screw up the internship, you�re a shoe in to the big four accounting profession.
Big 4 Accounting Firm Salary
Okay, you are still in college and you�re thinking about getting in public accounting, but you aren�t really sure what it looks like or how much you will make. Getting a job at a big four accounting firm is definitely a good gig. You will get paid well and stay busy. When I say busy, I mean real busy. You�ll definitely be working more than 40 hours a week year round. Expect at least 50 to 60 hours a week during busy seasons.
Now how much can you expect to make? A CPA salary at a big 4 firm varies drastically depending on your location and services. For example, tax professionals and auditors typically have much different compensation than advisory team members. No matter what field you start with, you can expect to make a base salary of $50,000 as a first year associate. Each year you advance higher in the company and get promoted to Senior, Manager, Senior Manager, etc. you can expect to get a 15 to 17 percent raise.
With all of this averaged out, you should be able to make it to a Senior Partner position as soon as 15 years and have a healthy salary of $400,000 - $450,000. Obviously, these are just estimates and your location and position can vary, but needless to say you will be well taken care of if you choose to go into big four public accounting.
Top Accounting Firms to Work for
All of the big four firms are great places to work. They all consistently rank on Fortune�s top 100 best companies to work for every year. They tend to shift around within that list, but they always show up. The 2015 list has them ranked in the following order.
Big 4 Accounting Firms Rankings 2015
KPMG: 63
Ernst & Young: 79
Deloitte: 97
Although all of them made the list, none of them cracked to top 50 places. There are some firms that did actually rank higher on the list than the big four. For example, Plante & Moran is currently ranked number 29. It�s worth checking out all of your options when you are applying for jobs. Starting your career at one of the big four will give you great experience, but so will smaller firms like BDO and Plante & Moran.
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Ernst & Young
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Ernst & Young - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia | Audit
Ernst & Young - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
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Which composer, born on this date in 1928, wrote the music for the songs Magic Moments and Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa?
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Burt Bacharach facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Burt Bacharach
(Burt P. Bacharach, Burt and the Backbeats)
PERSONAL
Born May 12, 1928 (some sources cite 1929), in Kansas City, MO; raised in Forest Hills, Queens, New York, NY; son of Bert (a columnist) and Irma (maiden name, Freeman) Bacharach; married Paula Stewart (a singer and actress), 1953 (divorced, 1958); married Angie Dickinson (an actress), 1965 (some sources cite 1966; divorced, 1980); married Carole Bayer Sager (a songwriter), March 30, 1982 (divorced, 1990); married Jane Hanson, 1993; children: (second marriage) Lea Nikki; (third marriage) Cristopher Elton; (fourth marriage) Oliver, Raleigh. Education: Attended McGill University, New School for Social Research, Berkshire Music Center, Mannes School of Music, and Music Academy of the West; studied with composers Darius Milhaud, Henry Cowell, and Bohuslav Martinu. Religion: Judaism.
Addresses: Agent—William Morris Agency, One William Morris Place, Beverly Hills, CA 90212 and 1325 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10019. Manager—Kraft–Engel Management, 15233 Ventura Blvd., Suite 200, Sherman Oaks, CA 91403.
Career: Composer, conductor, arranger, performer, and producer. Dance band arranger, Germany, 1952; accompanist for Vic Damone, 1952; performer at restaurants, nightclubs, and concert halls, and as an accompanist for various performers, including Polly Bergen, Joel Grey, Georgia Gibbs, Steve Lawrence, Paula Stewart, and the Ames Brothers, beginning 1952; musical director for Marlene Dietrich, European and U.S. cities, c. 1958–61; composer of theme music for the Twenty–Third Olympic Games, Los Angeles, 1984; also performed at resorts and other venues. Frequent collaborator with Hal David, Mack Davis, Bob Hilliard, Carole Bayer Sager, and Jack Wolfe. Appeared in advertisements. Owner of race horses. Military service: U.S. Army, 1950–52.
Member: American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).
Awards, Honors: Academy Award nomination, best song, 1965, and Golden Laurel Award nomination, best song, Producers Guild of America, 1966, both with Hal David, both for "What's New, Pussycat?," from the film of the same name; Academy Award nomination, best song, 1966, Golden Globe Award nomination, best original song in a motion picture, 1967, and Golden Laurel Award nomination, best song, 1967, all with Hal David, all for "Alfie," from the film of the same name; Grammy Award, best arrangement on an instrumental, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, 1967, for "Alfie"; Academy Award nomination (with Hal David), best song, 1967, for "The Look of Love," from Casino Royale; Grammy Award nomination, best original score written for a motion picture or television show, 1968, for Casino Royale; Drama Desk Award, 1968, Antoinette Perry Award (with others), best score for a musical, 1969, and Grammy Award, musical cast show—best album, all for Promises, Promises; Entertainer of the Year (with Hal David), Cue magazine, 1969; Grammy Award, best album or original instrumental score for a motion picture or television, 1969, Academy Award, best original score for a motion picture (not a musical), Golden Globe Award, best original score, 1970, Golden Laurel Award, music man, 1970, and Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music, British Academy of Film and Television Arts, 1971, all for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; Academy Award, best song, 1970, Golden Globe Award nomination, best original song, 1970, and ASCAP Award, most preformed feature film standards, American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, 1988, all with Hal David, all for "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," from the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; Emmy Award, outstanding variety special, 1971, for Singer Presents Burt Bacharach; Academy Award, best original song, 1981, Golden Globe Award, best original song—motion picture, 1982, and ASCAP Award, most performed feature film standards, 1991, all with Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross, and Peter Allen, all for "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," from the film Arthur; Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music nomination, British Academy of Film and Television Arts, 1982, for Arthur; Golden Globe Award nomination (with Carole Bayer Sager and Bruce Roberts), best original song—motion picture, 1983, for Making Love; Grammy Award (with others), song of the year, 1986, for "That's What Friends Are For"; Grammy Award nomination (with others), record of the year, 1986, for That's What Friends Are For; Johnny Mercer Award (with Hal David), Songwriters Hall of Fame, 1996; Golden Satellite Award nomination (with Elvis Costello), outstanding original song, International Press Academy, 1997, for "God Give Me Strength," from Grace of My Heart; Trustees Award (with Hal David), National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, 1997; Grammy Award (with Elvis Costello), pop, 1999, for "I Still Have That Other Girl"; Polar Music Prize, Royal Swedish Academy of Music, 2001; Hank Award, Henry Mancini Institute, 2004.
CREDITS
Film Appearances:
Himself, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, New Line Cinema, 1997.
Himself, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (also known as Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me), New Line Cinema, 1999.
Himself, Listen with Your Eyes, Universal, 2000.
Himself, Jazz Seen: The Life and Times of William Claxton (documentary), EuroArts Entertainment, 2001.
Himself, Austin Powers in Goldmember (also known as Austin Powers: Goldmember), New Line Cinema, 2002.
Himself, The Road, 2004.
After the Fox (also known as Caccia alla volpe), United Artists, 1965.
Casino Royale (also known as Charles K. Feldman's "Casino Royale"), Columbia, 1967.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Twentieth Century–Fox, 1969.
Lost Horizon, Columbia, 1973.
Arthur, Orion, 1981.
Arthur 2: On the Rocks, Warner Bros., 1988.
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (also known as Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me), New Line Cinema, 1999.
Stuart Little, Sony Pictures Releasing, 1999.
Film Work; Other:
Music director, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Twentieth Century–Fox, 1969.
Singer ("I'll Never Fall in Love Again"), Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (also known as Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me), New Line Cinema, 1999.
Television Appearances; Specials:
Host, The Bacharach Sound, Granada Television, 1965.
The Dionne Warwick Special, CBS, 1969.
Movin', CBS, 1970.
Himself, Singer Presents Burt Bacharach, 1971.
Host, The Burt Bacharach Special, CBS, 1971.
Himself, Chevrolet Presents Burt Bacharach, ABC, 1972.
Host, Burt Bacharach!, ABC, 1972.
Host, Burt Bacharach: Close to You, ABC, 1972.
Host, The Magical Music of Burt Bacharach, syndicated, 1972.
Himself, Burt Bacharach in Shangri–La, ABC, 1973.
Himself, Burt Bacharach: Opus No. 3, ABC, 1973.
Himself, Bacharach 74, 1974.
Host, The Burt Bacharach Special, NBC, 1974.
American Bandstand's 33 1/3 Celebration, 1985.
"Just a Regular Kid: An AIDS Story," ABC Afterschool Specials, ABC, 1987.
Evening at Pops, PBS, 1988.
That's What Friends Are For: AIDS Concert '88, Showtime, 1988.
The Songwriters Hall of Fame 20th Anniversary ... The Magic of Music, CBS, 1989.
That's What Friends Are For, CBS, 1990.
Himself, Burt Bacharach ... This Is Now (documentary), PBS, c. 1996.
Close to You: Remembering the Carpenters (documentary), PBS, 1997.
Himself, Bacharach: One Amazing Night, TNT, 1998.
Himself, Definitely Dusty (documentary), PBS, 1999.
The Rhythm of Life (documentary), PBS, 2000.
Hitmakers: The Teens Who Stole Pop Music (documentary), Arts and Entertainment, 2001.
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song (documentary), TCM, 2001.
Words and Music by Lieber & Stoller (documentary), Arts and Entertainment, 2001.
Himself, AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Songs: America's Greatest Music in the Movies, CBS, 2004.
Himself, There We Were ... Now Here We Are: The Making of "Oasis" (documentary), Channel 4 (England), 2004.
Himself, Beautiful Dreamer: Brian Wilson and the Story of Smile (documentary), Showtime, c. 2004.
Television Appearances; Awards Presentations:
Himself, The 42nd Annual Academy Awards, ABC, 1970.
Presenter, The 43rd Annual Academy Awards, NBC, 1971.
Presenter, The 46th Annual Academy Awards, NBC, 1974.
Presenter, The 48th Annual Academy Awards, ABC, 1976.
Himself, The 54th Annual Academy Awards, ABC, 1982.
The 24th Annual Grammy Awards, CBS, 1982.
Himself, The 25th Annual Grammy Awards, 1983.
The 29th Annual Grammy Awards, CBS, 1987.
America's All–Star Tribute to Elizabeth Taylor, ABC, 1989.
Presenter, The 39th Annual Grammy Awards, CBS, 1997.
The 1997 Billboard Music Awards, Fox, 1997.
The 26th Annual American Music Awards, 1999.
The 72nd Annual Academy Awards Presentation, ABC, 2000.
Television Appearances; Episodic:
Himself, Ready, Steady, Go! (also known as Ready Steady Goes Live!), Associated Rediffusion, 1964, 1965.
Himself, The Hollywood Palace, ABC, 1967.
Himself, The Andy Williams Show, NBC, 1968.
Himself, "The Sound of Burt Bacharach," The Kraft Music Hall, NBC, 1969.
Himself, The Kraft Music Hall, NBC, multiple episodes in 1970.
This Is Tom Jones, ABC, 1970.
Himself, "The Cantor Show," The Nanny, CBS, 1995.
Himself, Karen Carpenter: The E! True Hollywood Story, E! Entertainment Television, 1997.
Late Show with David Letterman, CBS, 1997, 1998.
Himself, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, NBC, 1998, 2003.
"Angie Dickinson: Tinseltown's Classiest Broad," Biography, Arts and Entertainment, 1999.
Himself, "Atlantic Crossing," Walk on By: The Story of Popular Song (documentary), 2001.
Himself, "Burt Bacharach," Biography, Arts and Entertainment, 2001.
Himself, "Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over," Biography, Arts and Entertainment, 2001.
Himself, "Producer Pop," Walk on By: The Story of Popular Song (documentary), BBC and ABC, 2001.
Popular Song: Soundtrack of the Century, Bravo, 2001.
Himself, Intimate Portrait: Angie Dickinson (documentary), Lifetime, 2003.
Celebrity guest, American Idol: The Search for a Superstar (also known as American Idol and American Idol 2), Fox, 2003.
Himself, Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show (also known as Ellen and The Ellen DeGeneres Show), syndicated, 2004.
Himself, Intimate Portrait: Dionne Warwick (documentary), Lifetime, 2004.
Also appeared in Soundstage, PBS; and Sessions at West 54th, PBS.
Television Work; Specials:
Conductor and arranger, Magic of Marlene, Seven Network, 1965.
Music arranger, Marlene Dietrich: I Wish You Love, CBS, 1973.
Song performer, music arranger, and executive producer, Bacharach: One Amazing Night, TNT, 1998.
Orchestrator and music director, The 72nd Annual Academy Awards Presentation, ABC, 2000.
Stage Appearances:
Appeared at various venues, including Royal Festival Hall, London, 1996.
Stage Work:
Arranger and conductor, Marlene Dietrich (series of concerts), Lunt–Fontanne Theatre, New York City, 1967, Mark Hellinger Theatre, New York City, 1968.
RECORDINGS
(As Burt and the Backbeats) "Move It on the Backbeat," Big Top, 1963.
"Don't Go Breaking My Heart"/"Trains and Boats and Planes," Kapp, 1965.
"What's New, Pussycat?"/"My Little Red Book," Kapp, 1965.
"Nikki"/"Juanita's Place," Liberty, 1966.
"Alfie"/"Bond Street," A&M, 1967.
"The Bell That Wouldn't Jingle"/"What the World Needs Now Is Love," A&M, 1968.
"Message to Michael"/"Are You There (with Another Girl)," A&M, 1968.
"Come Touch the Sun"/"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," A&M, 1969.
"I'll Never Fall in Love Again"/"Pacific Coast Highway," A&M, 1969.
"Any Day Now"/"A House Is Not a Home," A&M, 1970.
"All Kinds of People"/"She's Gone Away," A&M, 1971.
"Freefall"/"One Less Bell to Answer," A&M, 1971.
(With Barbra Streisand) "(They Long to Be) Close to You," Columbia, 1971.
"Something Big"/"Living Together, Growing Together," A&M, 1973.
"Living Together, Growing Together"/"Reflections," A&M, 1974.
"Futures"/"No One Remembers My Name," A&M, 1977.
"I Took My Strength from You"/"Time and Tenderness," A&M, 1977.
"New York Lady"/"Riverboat," A&M, 1979.
Albums:
Hit Maker, The Man! Burt Bacharach and His Songs (also known as Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits!), Kapp, 1965.
What's New, Pussycat? (soundtrack), Rykodisc, 1965.
After the Fox (soundtrack), United Artists, 1966.
Reach Out, A&M, 1967.
Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid (soundtrack), A&M, 1969.
Make It Easy on Yourself, A&M, 1969.
Burt Bacharach, A&M, 1971.
Living Together, A&M, 1973.
Burt Bacharach's Greatest Hits (also known as Greatest Hits), A&M, 1974.
In Concert, A&M, 1974.
Futures, A&M, 1977.
Classics, Vol. 23, A&M, 1987.
Walk on By, Universal, 1987.
I'll Never Fall in Love Again, Spectrum Music, 1993.
Songbook, Alex, 1995.
The Best of Burt Bacharach, PolyGram, 1996.
Easy Loungin' Collection, Universal, 1996.
The Look of Love: The Classic Songs of Burt Bacharach, A&M, 1996.
The Magic of Burt Bacharach, Charly, 1996.
Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits, MCA, 1997.
I'll Never Fall in Love Again, PolyGram, 1998.
The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection, Rhino, 1998.
A Man & His Music, Spectrum Music, 1998.
One Amazing Night, N2K, 1998.
(With Elvis Costello) Painted from Memory (includes song "I Still Have That Other Girl"), Mercury, 1998.
The Instrumental Side, Varese Sarabande, 1999.
(With Elvis Costello and Bill Frisell) The Sweetest Punch, Decca, 1999.
The Greatest Hits of Burt Bacharach, Metro, 2001.
What the World Needs Now: Burt Bacharach Classics, A&M, 2003.
Album Work:
Orchestra director, What Now My Love, Phonodisc, Ltd., 1962.
Arranger and conductor, Blue on Blue, Epic, 1963.
Producer, Lost Horizon (soundtrack), Bell, 1973.
Conductor, The Best of Bacharach, I.J.E., 1977.
Song Work:
Arranger of horns and strings, "Mexican Divorce," Atlantic, 1962.
Arranger of horns and strings for the song "Please Stay," Atlantic.
Videos:
Himself, Behind the Scenes of "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" (documentary short), New Line Home Video, 1999.
Himself, The Songmakers Collection (documentary), Arts and Entertainment Home Video, 2001.
WRITINGS
Forever My Love, Paramount, 1962.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Paramount, 1962.
Wives and Lovers, Paramount, 1963.
A House Is Not a Home, Embassy Pictures, 1964.
Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?, Paramount, 1964.
Casino Royale (also known as Charles K. Feldman's "Casino Royale"), Columbia, 1967.
The April Fools, National General, 1969.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Twentieth Century–Fox, 1969.
The Making of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Robert L. Crawford Productions, 1970.
Pussycat, Pussycat, I Love You, 1970.
Bang, Bang, 1973.
(American version) Together? (also known as I Love You, I Love You Not and Amo non amo), 1979.
Night Shift, Warner Bros., 1982.
Best Defense, Paramount, 1984.
Baby Boom, Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer/United Artists, 1987.
Arthur 2: On the Rocks, Warner Bros., 1988.
Love Hurts, Vestron Video, 1992.
Isn't She Great? (also known as Ist sie nicht grossartig?), Universal, 2000.
Peluca (short film), 2003.
Film Songs:
"I Cry More," Don't Knock the Rock (also known as Hi Fi and Rhythm and Blues), Columbia, 1956.
Title song, Sad Sack (also known as The Sad Sack), Paramount, 1957.
(As Burt P. Bacharach) "Warm and Tender," Lizzie, Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer, 1957.
(Uncredited) Title song, The Blob (also known as The Glob, The Glob That Girdled the Globe, The Meteorite Monster, The Molten Meteorite, and The Night of the Creeping Dead), Paramount, 1958.
Country Music Holiday, Paramount, 1958.
Title song, Love in a Goldfish Bowl, Paramount, 1961.
"Another Tear Falls," Ring–a–Ding Rhythm, 1962.
Title song, Send Me No Flowers, Universal, 1964.
Title song, What's New, Pussycat? (also known as Quoi de Neuf, Pussycat?), United Artists, 1965.
Title song, After the Fox (also known as Caccia alla Volpe), United Artists, 1966.
Title song, Alfie, Paramount, 1966.
Title song, Made in Paris, Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer, 1966.
Title song, Promise Her Anything, Paramount, 1966.
Title song, Something Big, National General, c. 1967.
Title song, Long Ago Tomorrow (also known as The Raging Moon), 1971.
Title song, Lost Horizon, Columbia, 1973.
(With others) "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur, Orion, 1981.
Theme song, Making Love, Twentieth Century–Fox, 1982.
Title song, Baby It's You, Paramount, 1983.
"They Don't Make Them Like They Used To," Tough Guys, Buena Vista, 1986.
"Everchanging Times," Baby Boom, Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer/United Artists, 1987.
"Love Is My Decision," Arthur 2: On the Rocks, Warner Bros., 1988.
"Windows of the World," 1969, Atlantic Releasing, 1988.
(With Elvis Costello) "God Give Me Strength," Grace of My Heart, Gramercy Pictures, 1996.
Various songs, My Best Friend's Wedding, Columbia/TriStar, 1997.
"2Wicky," Permanent Midnight, Artisan Entertainment, 1998.
(With Tim Rice) "Walking Tall," Stuart Little, Sony Pictures Releasing, 1999.
"Alfie (What's It All About, Austin?)," Austin Powers in Goldmember (also known as Austin Powers: Goldmember), New Line Cinema, 2002.
Bacharach's music and songs have been featured in films, television broadcasts, and videos.
Film Lyrics:
Sad Sack (also known as The Sad Sack), Paramount, 1957.
(With others) "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Arthur, Orion, 1981.
Television Scores; Series:
Mont–Joye, Societe Radio–Canada (Canada), 1970–75.
Any Day Now, Lifetime, 1998–2002.
Television Theme Songs; Series:
Any Day Now, Lifetime, 1998–2002.
Television Scores; Specials:
"On the Flip Side," Stage 67 (also known as ABC Stage 67), ABC, 1967.
Singer Presents Burt Bacharach, 1971.
Burt Bacharach in Shangri–La, ABC, 1973.
Burt Bacharach: Opus No. 3, ABC, 1973.
Bacharach 74, 1974.
Himself, Burt Bacharach ... This Is Now (documentary), PBS, c. 1996.
Bacharach: One Amazing Night, TNT, 1998.
Television Songs; Episodic:
"Rome Will Never Leave You," Dr. Kildare, NBC, 1964.
Stage Composer:
Marlene Dietrich (series of concerts), Lunt–Fontanne Theatre, New York City, 1967, Mark Hellinger Theatre, New York City, 1968.
Promises, Promises, Shubert Theatre (some sources cite Majestic Theatre), New York City, 1968–72, also produced at other venues.
(With others) Harlem Nocturne (revue; also known as Andre DeShield's "Harlem Nocturne"), Latin Quarter, New York City, 1984.
Back to Bacharach and David, Club 53, New York City, 1993.
The Look of Love: The Songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David (revue; also known as What the World Needs Now: The Look of Love), Brooks Atkinson Theatre, New York City, 2003, also produced at other venues.
Additional music, The Boy from Oz (musical), Imperial Theatre, New York City, 2003–2004.
Song Composer:
"Another Time, Another Place," 1956.
"I Cry More," Coral, 1956.
"Sad Sack," Decca, 1957.
"The Story of My Life," Columbia, 1957.
"Warm and Tender," Columbia, 1957.
"The Bell That Wouldn't Jingle," Kapp, 1957, Epic, 1964, A&M, 1980.
"The Blob," Columbia, 1958.
"Sittin' in the Tree House," Columbia, 1958.
"Magic Moments," RCA, 1958, also recorded in 1995.
"Faithfully," Columbia, 1959.
"And This Is Mine," Warner Bros., 1961.
"I Wake Up Cryin'," Wand, 1961.
"Loneliness or Happiness," Atlantic, 1961.
"Love in a Goldfish Bowl," Capitol, 1961.
"One Part Dog, Nine Parts Cat," Jamie, 1961.
"Tower of Strength," Liberty, 1961, Musicor, 1962.
"Baby It's You," Scepter, 1961, Parlophone UK, 1963, Dunhill, 1969, also recorded in 1984.
"Anonymous Phone Call," Liberty, 1962.
"Don't Make Me Over"/"I Smiled Yesterday," Scepter, 1962.
"Don't You Believe It," Columbia, 1962.
"It's Love That Really Counts (in the Long Run)," Scepter, 1962.
"Keep away from Other Girls," Columbia, 1962.
"The Love of a Boy," Liberty, 1962.
"(The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance," Musicor, 1962.
"Mexican Divorce," Atlantic, 1962.
"Make It Easy on Yourself," Veejay, 1962, Smash, 1965.
"Another Tear Falls," Liberty, 1962, Smash, 1966.
"Only Love Can Break a Heart," Musicor, 1962, also recorded in 1967 and 1977.
"I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself," Scepter, 1962, also recorded in 1966 and 1970, Stiff, 1978.
"Any Day Now," Wand, 1962, also recorded in 1966, RCA, 1969, 1982, and 1984.
"Don't Make Me Over," Columbia, 1962, also recorded in 1970, Next Plateau, 1989.
"Be True to Yourself," Liberty, 1963.
"Big Top"/"(They Long to Be) Close to You," Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer, 1963.
"Blue on Blue," Epic, 1963.
"The Breaking Point," Wand, 1963.
"Call off the Wedding (without a Groom There Can't Be a Bride)"/"Keep away from Other Girls," Kapp, 1963.
"If I Never Get to Love You," Big Top, 1963.
"Let the Music Play," Atlantic, 1963.
"Make the Music Play"/"Please Make Him Love Me," Scepter, 1963.
"Move It on the Backbeat"/"A Felicidade," Big Top, 1963.
"Reach out for Me"/"Magic Potion," Big Top, 1963.
"Saturday Sunshine"/"And So Goodbye My Love," Kapp, 1963.
"This Empty Place"/"Wishin' and Hopin'," Scepter, 1963.
"True Love Never Runs Smooth," Wand, 1963.
"Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa," Musicor, 1963.
"Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?," Congress, 1963.
"Wives and Lovers," 1963.
"Look in My Eyes, Maria," United Artists, 1963, Columbia, 1965.
"Anyone Who Had a Heart," Capitol, 1964.
"Anyone Who Had a Heart"/"Love of a Boy," Scepter, 1964.
"Forever Yours I Remain," Epic, 1964.
"From Rocking Horse to Rocking Chair," RCA, 1964.
"Here Comes the Forgotten Man," Musicor and Liberty, 1964.
"A House Is Not a Home," Mercury, 1964.
"I Cry Alone," Wand, 1964, Kapp, 1964.
"Kentucky Bluebird (Send a Message to Martha)"/"The Last One to Be Loved," Big Hill, 1964.
"Long after Tonight Is Over," Imperial, 1964.
"Message to Martha," Veejay and Amy, 1964.
"Reach out for Me"/"How Many Days of Sadness," Scepter, 1964.
"Rome Will Never Leave You," Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer, 1964.
"Send Me No Flowers," Columbia, 1964.
"(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me"/"Magic Potion (Instrumental)," Big Hill, 1964.
"To Wait for Love"/"Accept It," Epic, 1964.
"Walk on By"/"Any Old Time of Day," Scepter, 1964.
"Wishin' and Hopin'," Philips, 1964.
"You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)-"/"A House Is Not a Home," Scepter, 1964.
"To Wait for Love," United Artists, 1964, A&M, 1968.
"Love Was Here before the Stars," Kapp, 1964, Parrot, 1969.
"(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me," Reprise, 1964, also recorded in 1970, EMI America, 1983.
"Me, Japanese Boy I Love You" (also known as "Me, Japanese Boy"), United Artists, 1964, Matador, 1994.
"Are You There (with Another Girl)"/"If I Ever Make You Cry," Scepter, 1965.
"Don't Say I Didn't Tell You So," Scepter, 1965.
"Fool Killer," Musicor, 1965.
"Here I Am," Scepter, 1965.
"A Lifetime of Loneliness," Imperial, 1965.
"Live Again," Imperial, 1965.
"Looking with My Eyes"/"Only the Strong, Only the Brave," Imperial, 1965.
"Trains and Boats and Planes," Imperial, 1965.
"What's New, Pussycat?," Parrot, 1965.
"What's New, Pussycat?"/"My Little Red Book," Kapp, 1965.
"What the World Needs Now Is Love," Imperial, 1965.
"Don't Go Breaking My Heart"/"Trains and Boats and Planes," Kapp, 1965, Scepter, 1966.
"My Little Red Book," Kapp, 1965, Elektra, 1966.
"After the Fox," United Artists, 1966.
"Alfie," Imperial, 1966.
"Another Night"/"Go with Love," Scepter, 1966.
"Come and Get Me," Imperial, 1966.
"Made in Paris," Reprise, 1966.
"Message to Michael"/"Here Where There Is Love," Scepter, 1966.
"Nikki"/"Juanita's Place," Liberty, 1966.
"Promise Her Anything," Parrot, 1966.
"Windows and Doors"/"So Long Johnny," Imperial, 1966.
"Alfie"/"The Beginning of Loneliness," Scepter, 1967.
"Alfie"/"Bond Street," A&M, 1967.
"Casino Royale," A&M, 1967.
"I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself"/"In between the Heartaches," Scepter, 1967.
"Reach out for Me"/"The Look of Love," A&M, 1967.
"The Windows of the World"/"Walk Little Dolly," Scepter, 1967.
"The Look of Love," Philips, 1967, A&M, 1968, also recorded in 1971.
"I Say a Little Prayer," Scepter, 1967, Atlantic, 1968, also recorded in 1977, Rhythm King/Mute, 1988.
"The Bell That Wouldn't Jingle"/"What the World Needs Now Is Love," A&M, 1968.
"Do You Know the Way to San Jose"/"Let Me Be Lonely," Scepter, 1968.
"Message to Michael"/"Are You There (with Another Girl)," A&M, 1968.
"Promises, Promises"/"Whoever You Are, I Love You," Scepter, 1968.
"(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me"/"Who Is Gonna Love Me?," Scepter, 1968.
"This Guy's in Love with You," A&M, 1968.
"The April Fools," Scepter, 1969.
"Come Touch the Sun"/"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," A&M, 1969.
"I'll Never Fall in Love Again"/"Pacific Coast Highway," A&M, 1969.
"I'll Never Fall in Love Again"/"What the World Needs Now is Love," Scepter, 1969.
"I'm a Better Man," Parrot, 1969.
"In the Land of Make Believe," Atlantic, 1969.
"Odds and Ends"/"As Long as There's an Apple Tree," Scepter, 1969.
"This Girl's in Love with You"/"Dream Sweet Dreamer," Scepter, 1969.
"Walk on By," 1969 and 1975, Epic, 1978, Polydor, 1989, Next Plateau, 1990.
"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head," Scepter, 1969, also recorded in 1995.
"Any Day Now"/"A House Is Not a Home," A&M, 1970.
"Everybody's out of Town," Scepter, 1970.
"The Green Grass Starts to Grow"/"They Don't Give Medals (to Yesterday's Heroes)," Scepter, 1970.
"I'll Never Fall in Love Again," Scepter, 1970.
"Let Me Go to Him"/"Loneliness Remembers (What Happiness Forgets)," Scepter, 1970.
"Make It Easy on Yourself"/"Knowing When to Leave," Scepter, 1970.
"One Less Bell to Answer," Bell, 1970.
"Paper Mache"/"The Wine Is Young," Scepter, 1970.
"Send My Picture to Scranton, PA," Scepter, 1970.
"(They Long to Be) Close to You," A&M, 1970, Columbia, 1971, also recorded in 1972, 1976, and 1993, A&M, 1994.
"All Kinds of People"/"She's Gone Away," A&M, 1971.
"Don't Say I Didn't Tell You So," Warner Bros., 1971.
"Freefall"/"One Less Bell to Answer," A&M, 1971.
"Long Ago Tomorrow," Scepter, 1971.
"Something Big," Columbia, 1971.
"I Just Have to Breathe," Warner Bros., 1972.
"All Kinds of People," Bell, 1973.
"Living Together, Growing Together," Bell, 1973.
"Lost Horizon," A&M, 1973.
"Something Big"/"Living Together, Growing Together," A&M, 1973.
"The Windows of the World," 1973.
"You'll Never Get to Heaven (If You Break My Heart)," Avco, 1973.
"Don't Go Breaking My Heart," Atlantic, 1974.
"I Might Frighten Her Away," A&M, 1974.
"Living Together, Growing Together"/"Reflections," A&M, 1974.
"Futures"/"No One Remembers My Name," A&M, 1977.
"I Took My Strength from You"/"Time and Tenderness," A&M, 1977.
"New York Lady"/"Riverboat," A&M, 1979.
"I Don't Need You Anymore," RCA, 1980.
"Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," Warner Bros., 1981.
"Just Friends," Boardwalk, 1981.
"Stronger Than Before," Boardwalk, 1981.
"Heartlight," Columbia, 1982.
"That's What Friends Are For," Warner Bros., 1982, Arista, 1985.
"Maybe," Capitol, 1983.
"Finder of Lost Loves," Arista, 1984.
"Sleep with Me Tonight," Columbia, 1984.
"Love Always," Gordy, 1986.
"They Don't Make Them Like They Used To," RCA, 1986.
"On My Own," MCA, 1986, also recorded in 1995.
"Love Is Fire (Love Is Ice)," MCA, 1987.
"Love Power," Arista, 1987.
"One More Time Around," Columbia, 1988.
"Need a Little Faith," MCA, 1989.
"Take Good Care of You and Me," Arista, 1989.
"Are You There with Another Girl," RCA, 1991.
"Everchanging Times," Arista, 1991.
"Hang Your Teardrops up to Dry," Amherst, 1991.
"A Higher Place," 1991.
"Someone Else's Eyes," Arista, 1991.
"Anyone Who Had a Heart"/"I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself," Elektra, 1993.
"Don't Say Goodbye," Warner Bros., 1993.
"Once before You Go," Solar/Epic, 1993.
"Sing for the Children," Warner Bros., 1993.
"This Doesn't Feel Like Love," Solar/Epic, 1993.
"This Is the Night," Warner Bros., 1993.
"Two Hearts," Reprise, 1993.
"If I Want To," Word Incorporated/Epic, 1994.
"This Girl's in Love with You," Teen Beat, 1994.
"Knowing When to Leave"/"Promises, Promises," Varese Sarabande, 1995.
"Please Stay," Warner Bros., 1995, also appears on an Atlantic recording.
(With Elvis Costello) "God Give Me Strength," 1996.
Composer of other songs, including "Tick Tock Goes the Clock," "Turkey Lurkey Time," and "What am I Doing Here." Bacharach's songs have been recorded numerous times.
Album Composer:
What Now My Love, Phonodisc, Ltd., 1962.
Blue on Blue, Epic, 1963.
Presenting Dionne Warwick, Scepter, 1963.
Anyone Who Had a Heart, Scepter, 1964.
Make Way for Dionne Warwick, Scepter, 1964.
Here I Am, Scepter, 1965.
Hit Maker, The Man! Burt Bacharach and His Songs (also known as Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits!), Kapp, 1965.
The Sensitive Sound of Dionne Warwick, Scepter, 1965.
What's New, Pussycat? (soundtrack), Rykodisc, 1965.
After the Fox (soundtrack), Rykodisc, 1966.
Are You Ready for This?, Imperial, 1966.
Dionne Warwick in Paris, Scepter, 1966.
Here Where There Is Love, Scepter, 1966.
Casino Royale (soundtrack), Colgems, 1967.
Dionne Warwick's Golden Hits, Part One, Scepter, 1967.
On Stage and in the Movies, Scepter, 1967.
On the Flip Side, Decca, 1967.
Reach Out, A&M, 1967.
"The Windows of the World," The Windows of the World, Scepter, 1967.
The Valley of the Dolls, Scepter, 1968.
Promises, Promises, Scepter, 1968, soundtrack released by United Artists, 1969.
The April Fools (soundtrack), 1969.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (soundtrack), A&M, 1969.
Dionne Warwick's Golden Hits, Part Two, Scepter, 1969.
Dionne Warwick's Greatest Motion Picture Hits, Scepter, 1969.
Film Festival, Colgems, 1969.
Make It Easy on Yourself, A&M, 1969.
Very Dionne, Scepter, 1970.
Burt Bacharach, A&M, 1971.
The Dionne Warwick Story, Scepter, 1971.
Dionne, Warner Bros., 1972.
Ellis Larkins Plays the Bacharach and McKuen Songbook, Stanyan Records, 1972.
Living Together, A&M, 1973.
Lost Horizon (soundtrack), Bell, 1973.
Burt Bacharach's Greatest Hits (also known as Greatest Hits), A&M, 1974.
In Concert, A&M, 1974.
Live in Japan, A&M, 1974.
The Best of Bacharach, I.J.E., 1977.
Futures, A&M, 1977.
Night Shift (soundtrack), Warner Bros., 1982.
That's What Friends Are For, 1986.
Reservations for Two, Arista, 1987.
Walk on By, Universal, 1987.
Arthur 2: On the Rocks (soundtrack), A&M, 1988.
Friends Can Be Lovers (includes song "Sunny Weather Love"), Arista, 1989.
The Dionne Warwick Collection, Her All–Time Greatest Hits, Rhino, 1993.
I'll Never Fall in Love Again, Spectrum Music, 1993.
Aquanetta de Brasil, Arista, 1994.
Songbook, Alex, 1995.
Great Jewish Music: Burt Bacharach, 1997.
My Best Friend's Wedding (soundtrack), Work, 1997.
(And author of liner notes) The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection, Rhino, 1998.
A Man & His Music, Spectrum Music, 1998.
One Amazing Night, N2K, 1998.
(With Elvis Costello) Painted from Memory (includes song "I Still Have That Other Girl"), Mercury, 1998.
(With Elvis Costello and Bill Frisell) The Sweetest Punch, Decca, 1999.
The Greatest Hits of Burt Bacharach, Metro, 2001.
What the World Needs Now: Burt Bacharach Classics, A&M, 2003.
Composer of other albums, including Burt Bacharach and Friends and Superpak—The Best of Burt Bacharach, Rhino.
Songbooks:
(With Hal David) What the World Needs Now is Love: The Burt Bacharach–Hal David Songbook, Polydor, 1972.
Poetry:
(With Hal David) What the World Needs Now Is Love: Poetic Selections from the Songs of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, edited by Susan Polis Schutz, Blue Mountain Press, 1979.
OTHER SOURCES
Contemporary Musicians, Volume 49, Gale Group, 2005.
Encyclopedia of World Biography Supplement, Volume 22, Gale Group, 2002.
International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers: Volume 4: Writers and Production Artists, Fourth edition, St. James Press, 2000.
Periodicals:
Boston Phoenix, August, 1997.
Entertainment Weekly, April 16, 1993, p. 31; May 23, 1997, p. 65; August 8, 1997, pp. 42–45; December 26, 1997, p. 65.
Guitar Player, September, 1999, p. 20.
Interview, February, 1996, pp. 84–87.
Newsweek, October 5, 1998, pp. 80–81.
New York Times, July 24, 1997.
NME, October 3, 1998, pp. 23–24.
People Weekly, November 13, 1995, p. 31; May 10, 1999, p. 126; December 15, 2003, p. 41.
Playbill, May 31, 2003, p. 18.
Time, September 9, 1996, p. 75; July 21, 1997, p. 72.
TV Guide, April 11, 1998, pp. 5–6.
Cite this article
What's New Pussycat?, Rykodisc, 1965.
After the Fox, Rydodisc, 1966.
Reach Out, A&M, 1967.
Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid, A&M, 1969.
Make It Easy on Yourself, A&M, 1969.
Burt Bacharach, Polydor, 1971.
Living Together, A&M, 1972.
In Concert, A&M, 1974.
Greatest Hits, A&M, 1974.
Burt Bacharach's Greatest Hits, A&M, 1974.
Futures, MVP Japan, 1977.
Classics, Vol. 23, A&M, 1987.
Walk on By, Universal, 1987.
Songbook, Alex, 1995.
The Magic of Burt Bacharach, Charly, 1996.
Easy Loungin' Collection, Universal, 1996.
The Look of Love: The Classic Songs of Burt Bacharach, A&M, 1996.
The Best of Burt Bacharach, Polygram, 1996.
Burt Bacharach Plays His Hits, MCA, 1997.
I'll Never Fall in Love Again, Polygram, 1998.
The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection, Rhino, 1998.
One Amazing Night, N2K, 1998.
A Man & His Music, Spectrum, 1998.
The Greatest Hits of Burt Bacharach, Metro, 2001.
What the World Needs Now: Burt Bacharach Classics, A&M, 2003.
Sources
Sources
In a career spanning over five decades, songwriter Burt Bacharach has attained a virtual star status usually reserved for those on the other side of the recording process. After firmly establishing himself as a highly original tunesmith by the early 1960s, Bacharach soon became not only a household name, but even a publicly visible persona. As Francis Davis noted in Atlantic Monthly, by the early 1970s, Bacharach had been acknowledged by critics and listeners as “a ’national idol’—a celebrity songwriter who was to his day what Stephen Foster, Irving Berlin , George Gershwin, and Cole Porter had been to theirs.” Crafting a distinct style of melody, notably in collaboration with lyricist Hal David, Bacharach provided vocalists with the music for a vast list of hits, as well as for numerous acclaimed film soundtracks. While Bacharach’s separation with David in the early 1970s was followed by a period of general stagnation, by the 1990s the composer was celebrated anew by a young generation of musicians who found great artistry in Bacharach’s body of easy listening works.
Bacharach was born on May 12, 1929 in Kansas City , Missouri before his parents relocated to New York City. Although he strived to become a football star, the young Bacharach was limited to a steady diet of cello, drum, and piano lessons at his mother’s behest. Taking the study of music to heart, Bacharach exposed himself to jazz and classical performance through formal training, as well as by sneaking into local jazz clubs where he witnessed legends such as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. After serving in the armed forces from 1950 to 1952, Bacharach immersed himself in music theory and composition study at the Mannes School of Music in New York City; McGill University in Montreal , Canada ; the Music Academy of the West, in Santa Barbara, California , where he received a scholarship; and at the New School for Social Research. It was at the New School where Bacharach benefitted from the tutelage of Darius Milhaud, of whom many claim to have sharply influenced Bacharach’s style.
Begins Life of Show Business
Throughout the 1950s, Bacharach cut his teeth as a musician by serving as a piano accompanist and arranger to a number of performers before making his first attempts at songwriting. After meeting crooner Vic Damone in Germany , Bacharach worked alongside the singer for several years, leading to engagements with a virtual pantheon of club circuit celebrities including the Ames Brothers, Joel Grey, Steve Lawrence, and Paula Stewart, who married Bacharach in 1953. While acting as musical director to legendary German actress and chanteuse Marlene Dietrich, Bacharach’s first steps in
For the Record…
Born on May 12, 1929 in Kansas City, MO, son of columnist Bert Bacharach; married Paula Stewart (a singer), 1953 (divorced in 1958); married Angie Dickinson (an actor), 1965 (divorced, 1981); married Carol Bayer Sager (a writer), 1982 (divorced, 1991); married Jane Hanson, 1991; children: Lea Nikki (second marriage), Christopher Elton (third marriage). Served in U.S. Army, 1950–1952. Education: Attended Mannes School of Music in New York , NY; the Berkshire Music Center, in New York; the New School for Social Research; McGill University, in Montreal, Canada; and the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, CA.
Worked as a nightclub conductor and pianist for Vic Damone and other entertainers in early 1950s; became member of ASCAP, 1955; formed partnership with Hal David, 1957; had first million-seller with Perry Como, “Magic Moments,” 1958; began composing for Dionne Warwick with “Don’t Make Me Over,” 1962; scored first film, What’s New Pussycat?, with a hit Tom Jones title song, 1965; released debut album, Reach Out, for A&M, 1967; wrote music for Promises, Promises, 1969; scored the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, 1968; dissolved partnership with David, 1973; started collaboration with Carol Bayer Sager, 1978; scored the film Arthur, 1981; produced AIDS benefit single “That’s What Friends Are For,” 1986; co-wrote “ God Give Me Strength” with Elvis Costello over a fax machine, 1995.
Awards: Tony and Grammy Awards for Promises, Promises, 1969; Academy Awards for Best Score and Best Song (“Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head”), 1970; Academy Award for Best Song, “Arthur’s Theme (The Best That You Can Do),” 1981.
Addresses: Record company —A&M Records, 1416 North La Brea, Los Angeles , CA 90028.
songwriting led him into a collaboration with lyricist Mack David, with whom Bacharach wrote the kitschy theme song to the science fiction film The Blob. Despite the fact that the song was actually a hit record, Bacharach quickly ended his partnership with David, but not before meeting his younger brother Hal David. Bacharach hit the Top Forty for the first time with the lyrical accompaniment of the junior David, providing country performer Marty Robbins with “The Story of My Life” in 1957 and crooner Perry Como with “Magic Moments” in 1958. Although it would take several years before the duo began working with each other exclusively, these first chart hits mark the start of one of the most fertile partnerships in popular music history.
As the 1960s began, so did the salad days of Bacharach’s career, whereupon the composer cemented his most successful partnerships and developed a sophisticated, recognizable style. The onset of the decade found the songwriter supplying tunes for singers such as Gene Pitney and Chuck Jackson, and extensively for the group The Drifters, including “Mexican Divorce” and “Please Stay,” both of which were created with lyricist Bob Hilliard. By 1962, with the release of Bacharach and David’s “Make It Easy On Yourself” by pop/soul singer Jerry Butler, the composer had written, according to Atlantic Monthly writer Francis Davis’s words, “the first Bacharach song to sound vaguely like a Bacharach song … All these years later what’s remarkable about the song is how grown up it sounds—as much a reflection of Bacharach’s elegant melodic line as of the stoicism conveyed by Butler’s vocal and David’s lyrics.” Bacharach and David had finally struck a delicate balance of songwriting, while not a formula. However, it was the discovery of vocalist Dionne Warwick, then a highly trained session vocalist for The Drifters, that rounded out the Bacharach/David team, illustrated by “Don’t Make Me Over,” released in 1962. Warwick’s extreme versatility and range allowed Bacharach to indulge in the untraditional meter shifts and other devices which are his signature. With an ideal vocalist, the composer found a perfect match for melodies that were sophisticated and yet “deceptively simple.” Despite what the ear thinks its hearing,” noted Davis, “they rarely change key; what often accounts for their oddity is Bacharach’s refusal to modulate into an easier key where another songwriter might, in order to give the singer a break.”
The Classic Bacharach Years
From 1962 to 1970, the Bacharach/David/Warwick relationship became an institution in popular music, producing 39 charting singles, including eight which entered the Top Ten. In addition to the many Warwick pieces, among them “Walk On By,” 1964; “Trains and Boats and Planes,” 1966; “I Say A Little Prayer,” 1967; and “Do You Know The Way to San Jose,” 1968, a number of Bacharach’s compositions also found success with other vocalists. To name only a few, Jack Jones’s 1963 version of “Wives and Lovers;” Jackie DeShannon’s classic 1965 recording of Bacharach’s “What the World Needs Now Is Love;” trumpet virtuoso Herb Alpert’s “This Guy’s In Love with You”, 1968; and The Fifth Dimension’s “One Less Bell to Answer,” recorded in 1970, were all chart toppers. As various Bacharach songs were re-recorded by a roster of diverse performers, it grew apparent that while the composer’s work was sometimes captured in a definitive recording, as was the case with many Warwick cuts, the songwriting itself transcended any single version. Bacharach had established an identity, even an image, with popular audiences—he had even appeared in a fittingly romantic television vermouth advertisement with his then wife, actress Angie Dickinson—a feat almost unheard of for the usually invisible role of composer. However, Bacharach did not easily slip into his newly accrued public persona. “I found it a hard transition moving to the center of the stage,” he recalled in a New Musical Express interview in 1996. “A lot of my musical life had been spent in the back or conducting for singers, and suddenly I was doing concerts by myself as the star, as the attraction. I had to talk to the audience but I could hardly get a word out because I was so nervous. It was tough.”
By the early 1970s, Bacharach had achieved not only the appreciation of mass audiences, but also critical appreciation and even scholarly attention. Critics such as Popular Music and Society’s Bruce A. Lohof publicly acknowledged the complexity and innovation in Bacharach’s body of work, and ranked him among other giants of American songwriting. In 1970 the composer was awarded two Academy Awards for his musical contributions to the previous year’s film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, which boasted the song “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head” in addition to Bacharach’s original score. Although this was the first time Bacharach had secured the Oscar, he had been nominated several times for his impressive film scores and songs, including What’s New, Pussycat? in 1965, the theme song from Alfie in 1967, and “The Look of Love,” written for the James Bond spoof Casino Royale, also in 1967. In addition, the Bacharach/David score for the long-running stage musical Promises, Promises, launched in 1969, garnered a Tony Award as well as a Grammy for its cast album.
Career Falls Into Limbo
Given the success of Bacharach and David’s film collaborations, it was surprising that their score for the 1973 remake film Lost Horizon was a resounding failure. Besides being generally condemned by audiences and critics alike for its histrionically romantic overtures, Lost Horizon’s production also resulted in feuding between Bacharach and David. Their differences finally heated into lawsuits, and one of the most celebrated partnerships in popular music dissolved. The bitter breakup cut both David and Bacharach’s careers to the quick, and for the rest of the decade the unhinged duo floundered in vain to find teamings with comparable chemistry. At this point, Bacharach turned to performing his own established material, both live and on record, but it was clear that his music was most successful when vitalized by other vocalists. With the exception of Bacharach’s solo album Reach Out, released in 1967, the composer’s self-recorded output was devoid of the charisma that made his songs popular, and albums such as Living Together (1972) and Woman (1979) are largely forgettable.
The pairing of Bacharach with lyricist Carol Bayer Sager marked the advent of a decidedly adult-oriented turn in the composer’s career. After developing a work relationship with Sager in the early 1980s, resulting in the Academy Award winning tune “Arthur’s Theme (The Best That You Can Do),” recorded by Christopher Cross for the 1981 film Arthur, Bacharach married his new partner in 1982—he had divorced Dickinson the previous year—and continued to compose with his new wife. While Bacharach’s work with Hal David tended to be popular with audiences of all ages, his work throughout the 1980s is characterized by its easy listening, middle-aged appeal that most critics see as falling below his standards of the 1960s. Nonetheless, Bacharach returned to the charts with Sager collaborations such as “On My Own,” an emotive soul duet recorded in 1986 by vocalists Patti LaBelle and Michael McDonald, and “That’s What Friends Are For,” also recorded in 1986 as a fund raiser for AIDS research. The latter song featured vocals by Elton John and Dionne Warwick, and marked the reunion of Bacharach with his most celebrated interpreter. In addition to work with Sager, Bacharach expanded his portfolio with other writers, including R&B singer/songwriter James Ingram. Still, none of his later work recaptured the timeless quality achieved with David in past decades.
A Newfound Hero
Although Bacharach’s own work had entered a period of relative stagnation, by the early 1990s the composer’s career received an unexpected boost. After years of confinement to an adult listening constituency, Bacharach’s classic work of the 1960s became treasured anew by young fans and songwriters, many of whom had ironically come from polarly opposite music traditions such as punk rock and new wave. Some of Bacharach’s newfound exposure is credited to subcultural ironic appreciation, by critics such as Davis, “among fans of what is variously called ’cocktail,” bachelor pad,’ and ’E-Z listening’—those strange young record collectors with an overdeveloped (or underdeveloped?) sense of kitsch, wardrobes of Rat Pack leisurewear…, and too many good albums in their collections already.” Although this kind of keenly postmodern “appreciation” ultimately devalued Bacharach’s talent, many contemporary listeners truly found mastery in records found in parents’ collections. “Why is this happening?” asked critic Lorraine Ali rhetorically in the Los Angeles Times. “It may reflect the maturation of the musically involved. Kids who were bombarded for most of their lives with noise and anti-melody are finding sensory relief in songs that go down smooth and easy.” As a result, many young rock bands began to cite Bacharach as an influence as well as to perform his pieces, including the experimental French/British outfit Stereolab, American folk-rockers REM, and England ’s Oasis, just to name a few.
Accordingly, the Bacharach revival has included a number of tributes and retrospectives. In 1996, Bacharach’s longtime label A&M released a career spanning compilation album, The Look of Love: The Classic Songs of Burt Bacharach, which was to be followed by an exhaustive three CD portrait by Rhino Records a year later. British television made the composer the subject of a documentary/tribute entitled Burt Bacharach: This Is Now, which was subsequently shown on American airwaves. Bacharach launched a European tour with Dionne Warwick to favorable reviews and also performed at New York’s Rainbow Room for a New Year’s Eve television special. In addition, the flattered Bacharach fully endorsed the attention of his new generation of fans, collaborating with British songwriter Elvis Costello on the song “God Give Me Strength” in 1995 and performing his own “This Guy’s In Love with You” alongside Oasis vocalist Noel Gallagher at London’s Royal Festival Hall in June of 1996. The composer even made an amusing cameo appearance in the 1997 spoof film Austin Powers, another example of the blurry line between irony and adoration. Whether ironically motivated or in earnest, and regardless of future compositions, Bacharach has undeniably earned a place in the canon of popular music.
Reach Out, A&M, 1967.
Promises, Promises, Liberty/Capitol, 1968.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (soundtrack), A&M, 1969.
Living Together, A&M, 1972.
Woman, 1979.
Burt Bacharach’s Greatest Hits, A&M, 1987.
Burt Bacharach, A&M, 1988.
(Various artists) The Look of Love: The Classic Songs of Burt Bacharach, A&M, 1996.
Sources
A unique love song may be the hardest project for any contemporary composer, but Burt Bacharach has been able to create over two hundred ballads, tunes, and themes that make contact with the emotions of his stage, screen, and recording audiences. From “Walk On By” to “That’s What Friends Are For,” the Bacharach sound has been on the airwaves for over thirty astoundingly succesful years.
Born in Kansas City , Missouri , in 1929, Bacharach grew up in Queens , New York , where his father served as a fashion industry journalist. He learned to play the piano and spent his adolescence listening to a wide range of musical styles. Bacharach’s formal studies in composition and form were under three experimenters in flexible rhythms and free-flowing melodies who were willing to support his developing personal style—Darius Milhaud, at the New School for Social research in New York; Boleslav Martineau at the Mannes School of Music there; and Henry Cowell at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, California . He later told ASCAP Today that his early influences had also included Maurice Ravel, Dizzy Gillespie, and Charlie Parker. Bacharach’s music, with its shifting rhythms, wide melodic jumps and unusual structures, owe much to all six of these teachers.
Military service in Korea and Germany brought Bacharach experience with performing as a concert pianist and as an accompanist for popular vocalists. After returning to New York, he played for Vic Damone, Polly Bergen, the Ames Brothers, and many others, most memorably Marlene Dietrich, with whom he toured as conductor and arranger from 1958 to 1961. He has since consigned to oblivion his first published song, “The Night Plane to Heaven,” and many others from the early 1950s. But his meeting with lyricist Hal David at the Paramount Music Corporation in 1957 brought their two first succesful songs, “Magic Moments” and “The Story of My Life.” After his three years with Dietrich, he returned to a partnership with David that lasted until 1976.
That long-lasting partnership included over 200 individual songs (most written for Dionne Warwick), title songs for major Hollywood films, and a musical comedy, Promises, Promises, that was a hit on Broadway and in London. Their collaborative works represent a combination of both the American popular love song tradition and the experiments of Bacharach’s mentors. They have been compared to the best of Irving Berlin , Jerome Kern, and Rodgers and Hart’s conversational ballads because the lyrics are set as if they were spoken. Lines are seldom broken in mid-sentence, but instead flow throughout a vast melodic range. Bacharach has always denied that his music is other than normal
For the Record…
Born May 29, 1929, in Kansas City, Mo.; son of Bert (a garment industry journalist) and Irma (a portrait painter; maiden name, Bacharach; married Paula Stewart (a singer); married Angie Dickinson (an actress), 1965 (divorced, 1981); married Carole Bayer Sager (a lyricist), March 30, 1982; children: (second marriage) Lea Nikki; (third marriage) Christopher Elton. Education: Attended McGill University, Montreal , Canada . Religion: Jewish.
Performed as concert pianist and accompanist while serving in U.S. Army in Korea and Germany during 1950s; piano accompanist for popular vocalists, including Vic Damone, Polly Bergen, and The Ames Brothers during mid-1950s; composer, 1957—, with lyricist Hal David, 1957-76, and with lyricist Carole Bayer Sager, 1979—; accompanist, conductor, and arranger for Marlene Dietrich, 1958-61; producer of numerous award-winning and top-selling musical scores and individual popular songs; performed as pianist, singer, and conductor during 1970s; has headlined own musical-variety television specials.
Awards: Winner of numerous awards, including Oscar Awards for best original score for “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and (with Hal David) for best song for “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” both 1970; Grammy Award for best soundtrack album, 1970, for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; Emmy Award for best variety special, 1970, for “The Burt Bacharach Special”; Grammy Award for original soundtrack recording of musical play, “Promises, Promises”; Oscar Award (with Carole Bayer Sager) for best song, 1983, for “The Best That You Can Do.”
Addresses: Office –c/o Ernst Whinney, 1875 Century Park East, Century City, Los Angeles CA 90067.
songwriting, as he did to Newsweek at the height of the collaboration: “I look back at songs and wish I could have simplified them. Its not done to be clever. You’ve got less than two minutes in a song and you want every second to count. Forget rules. Just listen and feel. My trouble is that these so-called abnormalities seem conventional and normal to me.”
Bacharach was able to hear his songs at all because singer Dionne Warwick had become a third member of the partnership with Hal David. He had met Warwick when one of his early songs, “Mexican Divorce,” was recorded by the drifters for Scepter Records in 1960. Warwick was a member of the Gospelaires, the backup group for that recording session. In 1962, she recorded their “Don’t Make Me Over” for Scepter—soon reaching the top ten on the pop charts. Over the next five years, Warwick made hits out of Bacharach and David’s “Anyone Who Had a Heart,” “Walk On By,” “Reach Out for Me,” “The Look of Love,” “This Guy’s in Love With You,” “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?,” and “What the World Needs Now.”
At first, writers questioned Bacharach’s experiments with the popular love song and analyzed their hits as oddities, such as the fourteen time signatures in “Anyone Who Had a Heart.” But Warwick proved the “singability” of the tunes by selling over 12.5 million copies of Bacharach/David songs by 1970. They soon became popular with a wide variety of performers. “What’s New Pussycat,” for example, was recorded by Warwick, Tom Jones, and The Chipmunks. Other artists who included Bacharach/David songs on their albums were rockers Joe Cocker, Stevie Wonder, and Issac Hayes; jazz stylists Bill Evans and Billy Vaughn; vocalists Barbra Streisand and Vic Damone; and Bacharach himself. The uncredited author of a 1965 Newsweek article praised Bacharach’s inventiveness and stated that he was “not afraid of melodies … has the soft touch and sets up his songs for surprising explosions or dramatic fadeouts … a witty composer who kids his own melodies with tinny pianos and punctuates tender tunes with sudden bumps and grinds.”
With Hal David, Bacharach was also becoming known for scores and title songs for Hollywood films, many of them contemporary comedies, including Send Me No Flowers and Promise Her Anything, that required an upto-date theme song as an advertising lure. “The Look of Love” was created for the James Bond thriller “Casino Royale” (1967) and their Oscar-winning “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” was written for the Paul Newman/Robert Redford cowboy film, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” (1970). The former song way outshone its film, but both “Raindrops …” (as performed by B.J. Thomas) and “Butch Cassidy” were enormously popular for years. “Raindrops …” was also recorded by Perry Como, guitarist Buddy Merrill, Andy Williams, and Dionne Warwick. Among their many other film themes that became popular as individual songs were the title songs for What’s New Pussycat and Alfie, for which Bacharach won a Grammy for best instrumental arrangement. Bacharach has also provided complete scores for many films, most notably “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” and “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” For the latter film, he won a Grammy for best original soundtrack recording and an Oscar for best original score.
Bacharach and David next took on the challenge of creating a full score of characterizational solos, duets, and ensembles for a plotted Broadway musical, “Promises, Promises.” An adaptation by Neil Simon of the Billy Wilder film “The Apartment,” the musical amassed a very succesful 1281 performances on Broadway before moving to London (for 560 performances) and a fourteen-month national tour. The title song and “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again” both acheived top ten status as singles for Warwick. Critical response was favorable, with Brendan Gill of the New Yorker “telling two hundred millions of my fellow citizens … to go and see it as quickly as possible.” “Promises, Promises” was one of the first musicals on Broadway to adapt the technology of the recording studio to the live theatre, as well as adapting the totally contemporary sound of Bacharach and David’s songs to the requirements of a plot. The show was scored for electric organ, guitar, and organ and Broadway’s first pit chorus of four women was installed in the Shubert Theater. The original cast recording of the show was honored by NARAS as the best of 1969.
With hit films, a hit show, and songs all over the play list, Bacharach returned to the concert tour in 1970—this time as the composer, conductor, and featured performer. Since, as fellow songwriter Sammy Cahn put it succinctly, “he is the only composer who doesn’t look like a dentist,” Bacharach enjoyed the status of a celebrity sex symbol. He appeared with his father in a well-received series of print advertisements endorsing Jim Beam Bourbon. He performed his own songs on successful albums for A&M under a long-term contract and starred in television specials devoted to his work. In 1971, in fact, his first television special, “The Burt Bacharach Special” (CBS, 1970) beat his second, “Another Evening with Burt Bacharach” (NBC, 1970), for an Emmy.
Bacharach’s professional and personal lives changed in the late 1970s when he and David split their partnership. This led to a rift with Warwick, who had been guaranteed by contract songs for one album per year for another three years. Her suit against Bacharach and David was eventually settled out of court. Bacharach’s solo projects included Women, a recording with the Houston Symphony, and songs for Carly Simon and Libby Titus. The score for the re-make of “Lost Horizon” was praised, but the film was not succesful. His second marriage, to actress Angie Dickenson, ended.
In 1979, however, he began a new collaboration (and, eventually, marriage) with lyricist Carole Bayer Sager. Their romantic ballads, such as “Easy to Love Again” on the Sometimes Late at Night album, are markedly less complex than his works with David and more fitted to Sager’s less-vernacular lyrics and personal singing style. Sager described it as a “concept album, a song cycle in which each track ties into the next,” in People magazine. Their most succesful colaborative song, “That’s What Friends are For,” was created in 1985 as a benefit recording for a medical charity that promoted AIDS research. As performed by Dionne Warwick, it has earned millions for its cause.
Compositions
Composer (with lyricist Hal David, 1957-76; and with Lyricist Carole Bayer Sager, 1979—) of numerous songs, including “Alfie,” “Always Something There to Remind Me,” “Any Day Now,” “Anyone Who Had a Heart,” “Baby, It’s You,” “Blue on Blue,” “(They Long to Be) Close to You,” “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?,” “Don’t Make Me Over,” “I Just Don’t Know What To Do with Myself,” “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” “The Look of Love,” “Make It Easy on Yourself,” “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,” “Message to Michael,” “One Less Bell to Answer,” “Only Love Can Break a Heart,” “Promises, Promises,” “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head,” “This Guy’s in Love with You,” “Tower of Strength,” “Trains and Boats and Planes,” “Twenty-four Hours from Tulsa ,” “Walk on By,” “What the World Needs Now is Love,” “What’s New, Pussycat?,” “Who’s Been Sleeping in My Bed?,” “Wishin’ and Hopin’,” and “Wives and Lovers.”
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Burt Bacharach
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Beat It and Billie Jean are singles from which Michael Jackson album?
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Tormented daughter of Burt Bacharach commits suicide | London Evening Standard
Tormented daughter of Burt Bacharach commits suicide
Saturday 6 January 2007 22:37 BST
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The Evening Standard
Top: Nikki aged nine with mother Angie. Below: Burt Bacharach.
Songwriter Burt Bacharach is mourning the death of his only daughter with actress Angie Dickinson after she committed suicide at the age of 40.
Nikki Bacharach, who had spent years battling the brain disorder Asperger's syndrome, took her own life on Thursday night at her apartment in Thousand Oaks, California.
She died of suffocation using a plastic bag and helium, according to the coroner's office.
Mr Bacharach's spokeswoman Linda Dozoretz said: "She quietly and peacefully committed suicide to escape the ravages to her brain brought on by Asperger's.
"She loved kitties and earthquakes, glacial calving, meteor showers, science, blue skies and sunsets, and Tahiti."
Her 78-year-old father cancelled all his performing commitments until July, saying he was suffering from a shoulder injury.
Born prematurely in 1966, Lea Nikki Bacharach spent the first three months of her life in an incubator.
Her father, who won Oscars for composing Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head and Arthur's Theme, also wrote a song called Nikki about his daughter in 1969, when the full extent of her disorder was becoming clear.
It is best known as an instrumental but lyrics were written, including the touching chorus:
"Nikki, it's you
Nikki, where can you be?
It's you, no one but you for me
I've been so lonely since you went away
I won't spend a happy day
Til you're back in my arms."
The song was used as the theme for US TV network ABC's Movie of the Week slot.
He wrote a string of other hits, including What The World Needs Now is Love, Magic Moments, Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa, Walk On By, Always Something There To Remind Me and What's New Pussycat?
Nikki studied geology at Cal Lutheran University. With her father's support, she managed to complete the degree. But she could not pursue a career in the field because of poor eyesight.
Sufferers of Asperger's syndrome, a type of autism, have difficulty understanding other people's perspectives and often have narrow interests.
Nikki was the only child of Mr Bacharach and Angie Dickinson, 75, his second wife, whom he married in 1965.
Miss Dickinson, who got her big break playing opposite John Wayne in Rio Bravo and starred in the TV show Police Woman, met the songwriter in New York and agreed to come with him to London while he composed the score for the film What's New Pussycat? Ten weeks later they were married.
She said in a 1993 interview: "Marriage was wonderful for the first week and then good for about ten or 11 years. I read about the first affair he had in the newspapers.
"He said it was nonsense but I knew it was true. And, of course, he had many more.
"Why didn't I leave him after the first one? I suppose I blocked it out. It would have been different if I'd opened the door and found him in bed with another woman.
"But when you don't actually see it happening, you try not to think about it."
The couple divorced in 1980.
Of her daughter Nikki, she said: "When you almost lose a child you hold on to it even more tightly and I guess I over-compensated. I spoiled her badly."
Mr Bacharach married songwriter Carole Bayer Sager in 1982 but they divorced in 1991.
He has three other children. He adopted a son, Christopher, 21, with Carole and has two children, Oliver, 14, and Raleigh, 11, with his fourth wife, Jane Hansen.
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Which A road crosses the Forth Road Bridge?
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Forth Road Bridge
Forth Road Bridge
The Forth Road Bridge, viewed from the Fife side, straddling the Firth of Forth.
Official name
Dual two-lane carriageway, two cycle/footpaths (total width 33 m)
Clearance below
Cars - £1
Goods vehicles - £2
The Forth Road Bridge is a suspension bridge in east central Scotland . The bridge, built in 1964, spans the Firth of Forth, connecting the capital city Edinburgh at South Queensferry to Fife at North Queensferry. The toll bridge replaced a centuries-old ferry service to carry vehicular traffic, cyclists, and pedestrians across the Forth; rail crossings are made by the adjacent and historic Forth Bridge .
Issues regarding the continued tolling of the bridge, and those over its deteriorating condition and proposals to have it replaced or supplemented by an additional crossing, have caused it to become something of a political football for the Scottish Parliament.
History
The first crossing at what is now the site of the bridge was established in the 11th century by Margaret, queen consort of King Malcolm III , who founded a ferry service to transport religious pilgrims from Edinburgh to Dunfermline Abbey and St Andrews. Its creation gave rise to the port towns which remain to this day, and the service remained in uninterrupted use as a passenger ferry for over eight hundred years. As early as the 1740s there were proposals for a road crossing at the site, although their viability was only considered following the construction of the first Forth bridge in 1890.
The importance of the crossing to vehicular traffic was underpinned when the Great Britain road numbering scheme was drawn up in the 1920s. The planners wished the arterial A9 road to be routed across the Forth here, although the unwillingness to have a ferry crossing as part of this route led to the A90 number being assigned instead.
There was a period of renewed lobbying for a road crossing in the 1920s and 1930s, at which time the only vehicle crossing was a single passenger and vehicle ferry. Sir William Denny championed the expansion of that service in the 1930s, providing and operating two additional ferries on behalf of the London and North Eastern Railway that aimed to supplement the services of the adjacent railway bridge. Their success allowed for the addition of two more craft in the 1940s and 1950s, by which time the ferries were making 40,000 crossings, carrying 1.5 million passengers and 800,000 vehicles annually.
With the then-newest and nearest bridge spanning the Forth (the Kincardine Bridge, built in 1936) still around fifteen miles upstream, the upsurge in demand for a road crossing between Edinburgh and Fife prompted the UK government establish the Forth Road Bridge Joint Board by Act of Parliament in 1947 to oversee the implementation of a new bridge to replace the ferry service. The final construction plan was accepted in February 1958 and work began later that year.
Mott, Hay and Anderson and Freeman Fox & Partners designed and constructed the bridge at a cost of £11.5 million, while the total cost of the project including road connections and realignments was £19.5 million. Seven lives were lost during construction before the bridge was opened by Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh on 4 September 1964. The ferry service was discontinued as of that date. The bridge's management was delegated to the FRBJB, and remained so until 2002 when its operation was transferred to a new body with a wider remit, the Forth Estuary Transport Authority.
Statistics
High-tensile wires suspending the deck of the northbound carriageway.
The bridge's central main span is 1006 m (3298 ft) long, its two side spans are each 408 m (1338 ft) long, and the approach viaducts are 252 m (827 ft) on the north side and 438 m (1437 ft) on the south side; at a total length of 2512 m (8242 ft), it was the longest suspension bridge outside the United States and the fourth-largest in the world at the time of its construction. The bridge comprises 39,000 tons of steel and 115,000 cubic metres of concrete. Its width comprises a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction bounded by cycle/footpaths on each side. The main strung cables are 590 mm in diameter and each carries 13,800 tonnes of the bridge's load by suspending 11,618 5 mm diameter high tensile wires.
The bridge forms a crucial part of the corridor between south-east and north-east Scotland, linking Edinburgh to Perth, Dundee and Aberdeen by the A90 road and its sister M90 motorway which begins at the bridge's northern terminus. The bridge carried around 2.5 million vehicles in its first year but this figure has risen steadily over time to around 11.8 million vehicles in 2004. The bridge carried its 250 millionth vehicle in 2002.
It was awared Historic Scotland's Category A listed structure status in 2001.
Tolling issues
The bridge has been tolled since opening to pay for the cost of construction and maintenance. The current toll is £1 for most vehicular traffic, increased from 80p in October 2005. The toll for buses with over sixteen seats is £1.40, and most goods vehicles pay £2.
Initially, it was suggested that tolling would cease once the original cost of construction plus interest accrued had been repaid - this was done in 1993 and tolls were slated for removal by May 1995. However, the legislation enabling the levying of tolls has instead been renewed by Parliament (originally that of the UK but now the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament) on three separate occasions in 1998, 2003 and 2006.
Originally, a toll was paid for each direction of travel with sets of toll booths on both carriageways. In 1997, a decision was made to double the northbound toll (then 40p, to 80p) and remove the southbound toll. The belief was that almost all traffic makes a return journey across the bridge, resulting in a reduction of congestion for southbound traffic without reducing overall toll revenues.
The Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) has justified the continued use of tolls by suggesting they are necessary for a raft of maintenance and improvement works. These include the construction of defences around the submerged piers forming the bases of the main towers in the event of collision in the Firth. The main towers have also been strengthened with internal steel columns (the original tower structure having been hollow) and had hydraulic rams jack up these sections to transfer a portion of the load to the new steelwork. Also, the vertical cables suspending the deck have had their bolts replaced after a single detected failure. A new paint system required development for the bridge (the original having been phased out due to environmental concerns) and the toll plaza and booths have been replaced allowing more comfort for toll-collection staff and the introduction of electronic tolling.
Variable tolling proposals
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A90
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What is the four letter prefix which means a factor of ten to the power nine?
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Forth Road Bridge | OpenBuildings
Forth Road Bridge
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The Forth Road Bridge is a suspension bridge in east central Scotland. The bridge, opened in 1964, spans the Firth of Forth; connecting the capital city Edinburgh, at South Queensferry, to Fife, at North Queensferry. The bridge replaced a centuries-old ferry service to carry vehicular traffic, cyclists, and pedestrians across the Forth; rail crossings are made by the adjacent and historic Forth Bridge. Issues regarding the continued tolling of the bridge, and those over its deteriorating condition and proposals to have it replaced or supplemented by an additional crossing, have caused it to become something of a political football for the Scottish Parliament, which eventually voted to scrap tolls on the bridge with effect from 11 February 2008.
History
The first crossing at what is now the site of the bridge was established in the 11th century by Margaret, queen consort of King Malcolm III, who founded a ferry service to transport religious pilgrims from Edinburgh to Dunfermline Abbey and St Andrews. Its creation gave rise to the port towns, of North and South Queensferry, which remain to this day; and the service remained in uninterrupted use as a passenger ferry for over eight hundred years. As early as the 1740s there were proposals for a road crossing at the site, although their viability was only considered following the construction of the first Forth bridge in 1890. The importance of the crossing to vehicular traffic was underpinned when the Great Britain road numbering scheme was drawn up in the 1920s. The planners wished the arterial A9 road to be routed across the Forth here, although the unwillingness to have a ferry crossing as part of this route led to the A90 number being assigned instead. There was a period of renewed lobbying for a road crossing in the 1920s and 1930s, at which time the only vehicle crossing was a single passenger and vehicle ferry. Sir William Denny championed the expansion of that service in the 1930s, providing and operating two additional ferries on behalf of the London and North Eastern Railway that aimed to supplement the services of the adjacent railway bridge. Their success allowed for the addition of two more craft in the 1940s and 1950s, by which time the ferries were making 40,000 crossings, carrying 1.5 million passengers and 800,000 vehicles annually. With the then-newest and nearest bridge spanning the Forth (the Kincardine Bridge, built in 1936) still around 15 miles (24 km) upstream, the upsurge in demand for a road crossing between Edinburgh and Fife prompted the UK Government to establish the Forth Road Bridge Joint Board (FRBJB) by Act of Parliament in 1947 to oversee the implementation of a new bridge to replace the ferry service. In 1955 the authorities on either side investigated and drew up an alternate scheme for a tunnel beneath the estuary. This was known as the Maunsell Scheme, and was projected to run somewhat closer to the raiol bridge than the now road bridge. The scheme was abandoned as being too ambitious and reverted to a bridge concept . The final construction plan was accepted in February 1958 and work began in September of that year. Mott, Hay and Anderson and Freeman Fox & Partners carried out the design work and Sir William Arrol & Co. constructed the bridge at a cost of £11.5 million, while the total cost of the project including road connections and realignments was £19.5 million. Seven lives were lost during construction before the bridge was opened by Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh on 4 September 1964. The ferry service was discontinued as of that date. The bridge's management was delegated to the FRBJB, and remained so until 2002 when its operation was transferred to a new body with a wider remit, the Forth Estuary Transport Authority.
Statistics
The bridge's central main span is 1,006 m (3,298 ft) long, its two side spans are each 408 m (1338 ft) long, and the approach viaducts are 252 m (827 ft) on the north side and 438 m (1,437 ft) on the south side. At a total length of 2,512 m (8,242 ft), it was the longest suspension bridge span outside the United States and the fourth-largest span in the world at the time of its construction. The bridge comprises 39,000 tonnes of steel and 115,000 cubic metres of concrete. Its width comprises a dual carriageway road with two lanes in each direction bounded by cycle/footpaths on each side. The main strung cables are 590 mm in diameter and each carries 13,800 tonnes of the bridge's load by suspending 11,618 5 mm diameter high tensile wires. The bridge forms a crucial part of the corridor between south-east and north-east Scotland, linking Edinburgh to Perth, Dundee and Aberdeen by the A90 road and its sister M90 motorway which begins 1.67 miles (2.69 km) north of the bridge's northern terminus. The bridge carried around 2.5 million vehicles in its first year but the annual figure has risen steadily over time to around 11.8 million vehicles in 2004. The bridge carried its 250 millionth vehicle in 2002. It was awarded Historic Scotland's Category A listed structure status in 2001.
Tolling issues
On 11 February 2008 tolls were abolished on the bridge. Initially, it was suggested that tolling would cease once the original cost of construction plus the accrued interest had been repaid - this was done in 1993 and tolls were planned for removal by May 1995. However, the legislation enabling the levying of tolls was instead renewed by Parliament (originally that of the UK but now the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament) on three separate occasions in 1998, 2003 and 2006. Originally, a toll was paid for each direction of travel with sets of toll booths on both carriageways. In 1997, a decision was made to double the northbound toll (then 40p, to 80p) and remove the southbound toll. The belief was that almost all traffic makes a return journey across the bridge, resulting in a reduction of congestion for southbound traffic without reducing overall toll revenues. The Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) justified the continued use of tolls by suggesting they were necessary to fund maintenance and improvement works. These included the construction of defences around the submerged piers forming the bases of the main towers in the event of collision in the Firth. The main towers were also strengthened with internal steel columns (the original tower structure having been hollow) and had hydraulic rams jack up these sections to transfer a portion of the load to the new steelwork. Also, the vertical cables suspending the deck had their bolts replaced after a single detected failure. A new paint system required development for the bridge (the original having been phased out due to environmental concerns).
Variable tolling proposals
In late 2005, FETA's committee approved a proposal for a complete revamp of the system of toll levies. The minimum toll would be set to the existing £1 figure, but would increase dependent on the time of day, rising to a maximum of £4 for evening rush hour travel. All tolls would be halved for cars with more than one occupant, as an incentive to drivers to share cars and make fewer journeys. According to FETA's chairman Lawrence Marshall, the system would provide the most efficiency, claiming that 80% of peak-time journeys are made by single-occupant vehicles. The proposal, passed with the chairman's casting vote after the committee was deadlocked, was referred to the Scottish Executive in December 2005, and implementation planned for October 2007 subject to approval by transport minister Tavish Scott. Environmental groups welcomed the proposal, although local politicians condemned it as simply a means of raising capital. At the same time, a counter-argument was tabled by Fife councillors proposing the complete removal of tolls. The Scottish Parliament debated the proposals in January 2006, and the affair became a major political issue after Westminster-based MPs Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling ( Chancellor of the Exchequer and Secretary of State for Scotland respectively) were seen to describe the variable tolling plan as "dead in the water". Scottish First Minister Jack McConnell insisted his Labour Party colleagues were misquoted and himself refused to rule out the plan, receiving considerable condemnation from the opposition Scottish National Party. The political situation was particularly important given that by late January 2006, campaigning was well underway for a by-election scheduled to take place for the Westminster constituency of Dunfermline and West Fife in which the north end of the bridge is situated. The by-election, scheduled for 9 February, was contested by - in addition to the major political parties in Scotland - an Abolish Forth Bridge Tolls Party. It was eventually won by Liberal Democrat candidate Willie Rennie, overturning a large Labour majority on a 16% swing. In the aftermath of the by-election defeat, media speculation suggested the Executive had turned against the proposals, and Tavish Scott eventually confirmed their rejection and the retention of the existing toll structure on 1 March 2006. FETA condemned the decision, while local opposition MSPs charged the minister that his tolling review short-changed Fifers as tolls were axed on the Erskine Bridge leaving tolls on only the Forth and Tay Road Bridge, both in Fife.
Abolition
Following the formation of an SNP minority government after the Scottish parliamentary election of May 2007, a new debate on the abolition of tolls was opened by Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson on 31 May 2007, where it was agreed by a large majority. Toll levies at that point totalled £16 million annually. The Abolition of Bridge Tolls (Scotland) Bill, required to revoke legislation mandating toll collection on the bridge, was introduced to the Scottish Parliament on 3 September 2007, passed on 20 December 2007, and received royal assent on 24 January 2008. The tolls were removed on 11 February 2008 at 00:01 GMT. Ironically this immediately followed a major upgrade and reconfiguration of the tolls on the northbound carriageway (the toll on the southbound cariageway had been removed some years before, simplifying the arrangement as most journeys were, and remain, two-way) .
Structural issues
There has been concern at FETA over the structural wear-and-tear of the bridge. The planned theoretical capacity for the bridge (30,000 vehicles per day in each direction) is routinely exceeded as traffic levels have outstripped predictions. FETA predicts the demand could rise to an average of 40,000 vehicles per day in each direction by 2010 and the Scottish Executive admit that 60,000 vehicles is not uncommon for weekday travel. This has raised concerns about the lifespan of the bridge, originally planned at 120 years. 2003 saw an inspection programme launched (at a cost of £1.2 million) to assess the condition of the bridge's main suspension cables after excessive corrosion was discovered in a number of older bridges in the United States of a similar design and size. The study, which was completed in 2005, found that the main cables had suffered an estimated 8-10% loss of strength. Future projections highlight the likelihood of an accelerating loss of strength, with traffic restrictions to limit loading required in 2014 in the worst case scenario, followed by full closure as early as 2020. Further monitoring and remedial work is now under way. An acoustic monitoring system was commissioned in August 2006, which uses listening devices to monitor any further strands snapping and pinpoint their location within the main cables. Given the significance of the findings of the first internal inspection, in November 2005 the Scottish Executive appointed Flint & Neill Partnership to audit the results. The purpose of the audit was to carry out a desk study of the findings and to advise the Scottish Executive whether those findings were reached using a process of appropriate rigour and whether the conclusions were reasonable. Flint & Neill appointed New York based Ammann & Whitney to act as sub-consultants providing specialist advice using experience gained from inspections and assessments carried out in America. In January 2006, an audit report to the Scottish Executive concluded that FETA’s consultant performed the initial internal inspection and cable strength calculation in accordance with accepted practice in the United States and in general conformance with accepted industry guidelines published in 2004 by the NCHRP. Flint & Neill noted that the initial investigation by FETA “was not prompted by the discovery of any concerns with the Forth Road Bridge cables but as a prudent response to the results of findings in the USA. When the original scope for this initial investigation was determined, the severity of the findings was not anticipated.” The audit report suggested that traffic restrictions could be required as early as 2013. A number of options are being implemented to increase the bridge's lifespan. These include an extensive dehumidification programme to slow the rate of corrosion in the main cables by installing a system that will keep the air in the voids between the strands that make up the main cables at a humidity level of below 40%. Engineering consultants Faber Maunsell began work on the project in 2006. The works are planned to take two and a half years at a cost of £7.8 million. As part of the works, some of the corroded cable strands are to be spliced.
Proposals for a new Forth Road Bridge
The strategic transport importance of the road bridge, and the threat of closure by 2020 if major structural work is not undertaken have led to fears of serious economic consequences, especially as work on a new crossing may take a decade. Proposals for an additional road crossing were drawn up in the early 1990s, but met stiff opposition from environmentalists and from Edinburgh City Council on the grounds of the increased traffic it would generate. Following the Labour victory in the 1997 general election, the proposals were shelved; however, they have resurfaced as of 2005, given the concerns over the existing bridge's lifespan. A new cable-stayed bridge has been announced at an estimated cost of between £3.25 billion and £4.22 billion. There remains considerable opposition to the project on the same grounds as before, particularly from the Scottish Green Party. The funding for the new bridge is uncertain: the Scottish Government intends to replace Public-private partnership funding for such schemes with the Scottish Futures Trust, but details for this have not been agreed. Construction industry trade newspaper Construction News reports that work on the new bridge is planned to run between 2011 and 2017. The December 2008 transport blueprint from the Scottish National Party indicates that a new bridge will be operational by 2016 . The traffic levels across the Firth of Forth have also led to the building of the Upper Forth Crossing adjacent to the existing Kincardine Bridge. This new bridge, which opened in November 2008, may also take some traffic from the Forth Road Bridge. On 1 October 2008 it was announced that the new bridge would be called the " Clackmannanshire Bridge".
Forth Road Bridge variable tolling plan Start End Toll 00:00 07:30 £1 07:30 08:30 £2 08:30 14:00 £1 14:00 15:00 £2 15:00 16:00 £3 16:00 18:00 £4 18:00 18:30 £3 18:30 19:00 £2 19:00 24:00 £1 source: Edinburgh Today
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Which former cricketer, made a life peer in 2011, was the first woman elected to the full committee of the MCC?
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Rachael Heyhoe Flint: 'It's amazing … women are almost on parity with men' | Sport | The Guardian
The Observer
Rachael Heyhoe Flint: 'It's amazing … women are almost on parity with men'
The lifelong campaigner for equality discusses playing alongside men and her joy at England's women having full-time contracts
In 2010, Rachael Heyhoe Flint became the first woman to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Photograph: Ritam Banerjee/Getty Images
Saturday 10 May 2014 13.27 EDT
First published on Saturday 10 May 2014 13.27 EDT
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If the rumours were to be believed, this week could have been a historic marker for cricket and for the extraordinary polymath that is Rachael Heyhoe Flint, former England captain, ECB director, Wolverhampton Wanderers vice president and a life peer in the House of Lords. According to the whispers, Heyhoe Flint was expected to have been elected the first female president of the MCC on Wednesday.
Instead, the outgoing president, Mike Gatting, appointed the former International Cricket Council president, David Morgan. Where did the rumours come from? Heyhoe Flint laughs riotously. "They've been going ever since I've been at the MCC, since 1998 when the vote to allow women members came through," she says.
"I suppose every journalist has got a little red flag that comes up on their screen a month before the AGM. 'Let's find out who's going to be president of that male bastion' – which, of course, it was until 1998, and then: 'Oh, I wonder if one of the women might become president …'
"If it happens to me one day – fantastic – if it doesn't I'll just carry on knitting and cooking," she says, mischievously. Domestic chores? One of the greatest female pioneers in sport? Give over. "Well, you've got to make people laugh a bit, haven't you? If people think it is right that I should be appointed to one of the best positions in cricket, if I live long enough, that will be fantastic, but you don't go around lobbying for it."
In an election process "as secret a nomination as for the next Pope", not even the MCC general committee knew of Morgan's election until Wednesday afternoon, an appointment Heyhoe Flint fully endorses. "Excellent choice, wonderful administrator," she says.
A tiny woman, with huge energy and presence, the 74-year-old has become renowned for pioneering change. From securing sponsorship for women's cricket in the 1960s, to influencing the corridors of power, those who know her have invented a verb: "to Rachaelise". "Oh yes," she says, giggling, having adjusted the TV set in the Lord's Tavern. "I'm always fiddling, Rachaelising."
Over the past 50 years, the Baroness of Wolverhampton has repeatedly broken new ground – from becoming TV's first female sports commentator, for ITV's World of Sport, to being the first woman inducted into the ICC's Hall of Fame, one of the two first women appointed to the board of the ECB, in 2010, and among the first female members admitted to the MCC in 1998.
It took nine years to reach a majority vote on the latter, a process that Heyhoe Flint says required diplomacy and wit. "It was no use going in with a strident attitude saying: 'I'm a woman, I demand the right that after 204 years you have a woman member.' I just chat to people, get them on my side, with a light-hearted sense of humour – even though it's a very serious matter you're dealing with – and eventually you have people like Richie Benaud, Colin Cowdrey and Sir Jack Hayward supporting the concept of women members."
As a lifelong advocate of equality, she says that the notion of women playing alongside men at county level, a possibility raised for Sarah Taylor at Sussex last year, is not a new one.
"Enid Bakewell, who played in my day for England, she used to practise an enormous amount at Nottinghamshire with their county staff. On ability alone they used to say she could have easily got into their second XI. To be honest, the men might find it a bit more difficult to accept than the women. They may be a little perturbed at the thought of their place being given to a woman, albeit one who merited playing selection on her ability alone."
The habit of using the men's game as a yardstick for women's cricket is seen by some as unhelpful to progressing the sport, but Heyhoe Flint believes the experiment could be a real positive for the game. "If [Taylor] was selected for official matches and she did incredibly well that would be a bonus. So many people think women's cricket is a sort of watered-down version of men's cricket, I would think people would say: 'Blimey'. When one of the England men's wicketkeepers missed a catch last summer, Mike Atherton immediately referred to Sarah Taylor's wonderful catch against the Australian women the week before in commentary."
Had it been an option for Heyhoe Flint in her day, she wouldn't have had given a second's thought to joining the male playing staff at the crease. She chuckles. "I used to play for our local newspaper team, the Express and Star. I would change in the fertiliser shed with the lawnmowers. You'd be batting and you'd get the wicketkeeper chatting you up, asking you out for a drink that night, probably another way of getting a batsman dismissed. But I just treated it as terrific practice for me."
Several of the England women play in the men's leagues – Arran Brindle for Louth in Lincolnshire, and Dani Hazell for Durham, and Katherine Brunt and Taylor used to play at Darton. "There are women who can hold their own in the men's game," Heyhoe Flint says. "I wouldn't say to them don't do it, because it's very, very good practice for them. Sarah Potter [fast bowler for England in the 1980s, and Dennis Potter's daughter] played for Ross-on-Wye second XI and it brought her game on leaps and bounds."
Taylor, Brindle and Hazell will turn out, under captain and Wisden Cricketer of the Year, Charlotte Edwards, for an MCC XI versus the Rest of the World as part of a series of matches celebrating 200 years of Lord's this month. Heyhoe Flint will manage the home side. "Well," she says, grinning, "they'd hardly let me play, would they?"
The thought is not so far-fetched. Heyhoe Flint is a woman of so many accomplishments you have to wonder, even as a septuagenarian, what she wants to achieve next. Heyhoe Flint smiles. It's already happened, she says beaming. Professional full-time contracts for 18 England women players, the names of whom were announced by the ECB this week.
"That's absolutely amazing, it really brings life full circle back to the time when I would walk round the crowds collecting coppers, silver and pound coins to raise money for the team, and then drive home with it sitting in the footwell of my car. It's wonderful that those women are regarded almost on parity with the opportunities offered to men."
There is one other sporting reason for her to swoon this year, with the promotion of her beloved Wolves back to the Championship. Having supported the club since she was seven years old, "my brother and I used to stand in the Cowshed", and lived through decades of relegation and promotion across all four divisions, she is delighted to have found stability in the former Millwall manager Kenny Jackett. "He's very level-headed. No histrionics, no – how can I say this diplomatically? Well, I don't think I could live with a manager like José Mourinho."
Let's get this straight: she would rather have Jackett than Mourinho? "Oh yes," she says, seriously. "That Mourinho, some of his outbursts are really not good for the game." She pauses. Then roars with laughter. "That's one I don't think I'd be able to Rachaelise, anyway."
Spin coach Mushtaq Ahmed is to leave the England set-up, with former England off-spinner Peter Such set to take his place
Published: 10 May 2014
Peter Moores made a winning start to his second spell as England coach in a one-day international reduced to 20 overs a side against Scotland in Aberdeen
Published: 9 May 2014
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Rachael Heyhoe Flint, Baroness Heyhoe Flint
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Of which country does Brigitte Nyborg become the first female Prime Minster in the drama Borgen shown on BBC4?
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Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes to become a peer | London Evening Standard
Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes to become a peer
Friday 19 November 2010 12:14 BST
Click to follow
The Evening Standard
Cameron admirer: Fellowes with wife Emma Joy Kitchener
Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes is a surprise inclusion on a list of new Tory working peers full of showbiz flavour.
The writer of the hit costume drama enters the Upper House alongside television mogul Michael Grade and Labour-backing broadcaster Joan Bakewell.
Other celebrity names on the list include Michael Dobbs, the Tory author of the House of Cards trilogy of political intrigue and murder.
The showbusiness names will help to divert attention from more controversial appointments including some of the Labour and Tory donors who were interviewed by police during the "cash for peerages" scandal, including "curry king" Sir Gulam Noon and Tory tycoon Robert Edmiston.
David Cameron has taken the opportunity to promote his old friend and Tory co-chairman Andrew Feldman, party treasurer Stanley Fink and former MPs including David Maclean and Richard Spring as well as Ann Jenkin, the wife of Defence rebel Bernard Jenkin.
Former Lib Dem MP Susan Kramer gets a peerage from Nick Clegg while Ed Miliband has ennobled another former mayoral hopeful, Oona King.
The celebrity divorce lawyer Fiona Shackleton, who has represented Sir Paul McCartney and Prince Andrew, is another new Tory peer.
Former Services chief Sir Richard Dannatt enters the House as a crossbench peer, though he has served as an unaligned advisor to Mr Cameron.
He was previously considered for a peerage but it was delayed until he spent more time out of uniform.
As working peers, today's names are meant to serve as political activists in the House of Lords rather than simply regard their titles as honours.
Mr Cameron appointed 27 peers, Mr Clegg, 15 and Mr Miliband 10. Mr Clegg used his muscle as Deputy Prime Minister to reward long-serving Lib Dem figures, including his election organiser John Sharkey.
From the media, Patience Wheatcroft, editor of the Wall Street Journal Europe, joins the red benches on the Tory side.
Both Sir Gulam, Labour, and Mr Edmiston, Tory, had nominations blocked during the 18-month "cash for peerages" investigation.
It emerged that Tony Blair had sought to ennoble people who had made large loans to Labour, which was unable to afford its 2005 election campaign.
Scotland Yard questioned several senior figures including Mr Blair and raided the home of one of the former Prime Minister's aides but there were no charges brought.
Personalities from the worlds of sport, business, entertainment and media are ennobled
TELEVISION
Julian Fellowes
Downton Abbey creator, Conservative
The man behind the biggest costume drama hit of the year will be at home in ermine. His wife, Emma Joy Kitchener (great-great-niece of Lord Kitchener, who appeared in the First World War "Your Country Needs You" poster ) is lady-in-waiting to Princess Michael of Kent. A passionate Tory, he is the son of a diplomat, a deputy-lieutenant of Dorset and a lord of the manor in Lincolnshire. But he says he suffered "real prejudice" for years as a jobbing actor because of his politics and class. He has described David Cameron as "charming". His writing hits include the movies Gosford Park and The Young Victoria while acting credits include Monarch of the Glen and Tomorrow Never Dies.
SPORT
Rachael Heyhoe Flint
Cricketer, Conservative
Played for England for two decades from 1960 and was captain from 1966 to 1978, enjoying an unbeaten run of six Test series. In 1973 she led the side that won the first Women's Cricket World Cup. Now 71, she has been a journalist and speaker since 1982 and was in 2004 the first woman elected to the full committee of the MCC.
EX-MP
Oona King
Second black MP, Labour
A former school friend of Ed Miliband in Haverstock comp, she was "too cool" to hang around with the future party leader. The 42-year-old's political career was derailed when George Galloway defeated her in Bethnal Green & Bow in 2005. Cast out of Parliament, she was outgunned in a bid to replace Ken Livingstone as Labour's mayoral candidate for 2012.
AUTHOR
Michael Dobbs
Writer of House of Cards, Conservative
The creator of fictional prime minister Francis Urquhart learned the darkest arts of politics under Margaret Thatcher. He was an adviser in opposition and an aide at No 10, and as Tory chief of staff in 1986 was known as "the baby-faced hitman". Was his House of Cards trilogy based on real life? You might think that — he couldn't possibly comment.
BROADCASTER
Joan Bakewell
TV and radio broadcaster, Labour
Dubbed the Thinking Man's Crumpet, Bakewell made her name in the Sixties as a woman willing to tackle serious issues in the arts, current affairs, religion and ethics. In 2001 she made waves again with a TV show, called taboo, that studied pornography and four-letter words. Gordon Brown appointed her as his "voice for older people" in 2008. She is 77.
TORY
Howard Flight
MP sacked for indiscreet remarks, Conservative
The former banker was a Tory rising star until secretly recorded telling a meeting in 2005 that cuts under the party would be more severe than admitted. Michael Howard fired him and withdrew the whip, but most Tories felt he was unlucky. David Cameron tried to get him a seat for 2010 and his peerage will be viewed as a late apology.
DONOR
Sir Gulam Noon
Food tycoon, Labour
The ready-meals giant, dubbed The Curry King, began his career running a sweet stall in Mumbai. A steady donor to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, he has bankrolled Labour to the tune of an estimated £700,000 over a decade. A previous peerage nomination was blocked during the "Lords for Loans" scandal. Noon was questioned by police under caution.
LAWYER
Fiona Shackleton
Partner, Payne Hicks Beach, Conservative
Nicknamed "Steel Magnolia", the divorce solicitor has represented Prince Charles, Prince Andrew and Paul McCartney. In the divorce of Charles and Diana, Diana gained a £17 million settlement, seen as a fair outcome. Shackleton represented the former Beatle in his separation from Heather Mills, who poured a jug of water over her head.
DONOR
Robert Edmiston
Businessman, Conservative
The boss of IM, the car importer, made his fortune in the property business. He has given £30 million to Christian Vision, a charity he founded, and helped bankroll Tories with loans and gifts. In 2006 he converted a £2 million loan into a gift. His proposed peerage in 2005 was blocked when police investigated. He was questioned under caution.
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i don't know
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The city known as Titograd from 1946 to 1992 is the capital of which modern day country?
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Capital of Montenegro - definition of Capital of Montenegro by The Free Dictionary
Capital of Montenegro - definition of Capital of Montenegro by The Free Dictionary
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Capital+of+Montenegro
Also found in: Encyclopedia , Wikipedia .
Pod·go·ri·ca
(pŏd′gə-rēt′sə)
The capital and largest city of Montenegro, in the southern part of the country near the Albanian border. From 1946 to 1992, it was known as Titograd.
Podgorica
Podgoritsa
n
(Placename) the capital of Montenegro: under Turkish rule (1474–1878). Pop: 230 000 (2005 est). Former name (1946–92): Titograd
Pod•go•ri•ca
n.
the capital of Montenegro, in SW Yugoslavia. 132,290. Formerly (1945–92), Titograd.
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References in periodicals archive ?
In the diplomatic reshuffle, former National Intelligence Organization (MyT) staffer Serhat Galip has been appointed to Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, the Cumhuriyet daily reported on Friday.
United Arab Emirates : H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed meets Montenegro's Parliament Speaker
Visitors from Britain will be encouraged by the fact that budget airline Ryanair announced its first route from London Stansted to the capital of Montenegro, Podgorica, from April 1.
Join the club at the next holiday home hot spot; Montenegro is the Adriatic's best kept tourism secret and could be a smart investment, writes Alison Jones
Summary: The first meeting of the UAE-Montenegro Joint Economic Committee, which concluded in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, focused on laying the foundations for a new start of economic relations between the two countries in trade, agriculture, investment, food industries, transport, tourism and SMEs in particular.
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Montenegro
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The Swale is an inlet of sea that separates which island from Kent?
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Listing of Countries That No Longer Exist
By Matt Rosenberg
Updated July 25, 2016.
Since many countries merge, split, or just decide to change their name, there are many "missing" countries that no longer exist. This list is far from comprehensive, but it's meant to serve as a guide to some of the most well-known missing countries of today.
Abyssinia: The name of Ethiopia until the early 20th century.
Austria-Hungary: A monarchy (also known as the Austro-Hungarian Empire) that was established in 1867 and included not just Austria and Hungary, but also parts of the Czech Republic, Poland, Italy, Romania, and the Balkans. The empire collapsed at the end of World War I.
Basutoland: Lesotho's name prior to 1966.
Bengal: An independent kingdom from 1338-1539, now part of Bangladesh and India.
Burma: Burma officially changed its name to Myanmar in 1989 but many countries still aren't recognizing the change, such as the United States.
Catalonia: This autonomous region of Spain was independent from 1932-1934 and 1936-1939.
Ceylon: Changed its name to Sri Lanka in 1972.
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Champa: Located in south and central Vietnam from the 7th century through 1832.
Corsica: This Mediterranean island was ruled by various nations over the course of history but had several brief periods of independence. Today, Corsica is a department of France.
Czechoslovakia: Peacefully split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993.
East Germany and West Germany: Merged in 1989 to form a unified Germany.
East Pakistan: This province of Pakistan from 1947-1971 became Bangladesh.
Gran Colombia: A South American country that included what is now Colombia, Panama, Venezuela, and Ecuador from 1819-1830. Gran Colombia ceased to exist when Venezuela and Ecuador seceded.
Hawaii: Though a kingdom for hundreds of years, Hawaii wasn't recognized as an independent country until the 1840s. The country was annexed to the U.S. in 1898.
New Granada: This South American country was part of Gran Colombia (see above) from 1819-1830 and was independent from 1830-1858. In 1858, the country became known as the Grenadine Confederation, then the United States of New Granada in 1861, the United States of Colombia in 1863, and finally, the Republic of Colombia in 1886.
Newfoundland: From 1907 to 1949, Newfoundland existed as the self-governing Dominion of Newfoundland. In 1949, Newfoundland joined Canada as a province.
North Yemen and South Yemen: Yemen split in 1967 into two countries, North Yemen (a.k.a. Yemen Arab Republic) and South Yemen (a.k.a. People's Democratic Republic of Yemen). However, in 1990 the two rejoined to form a unified Yemen.
Ottoman Empire: Also known as the Turkish Empire, this empire began around 1300 and expanded to include parts of contemporary Russia, Turkey, Hungary, the Balkans, northern Africa, and the Middle East. The Ottoman Empire ceased to exist in 1923 when Turkey declared independence from what remained of the empire.
Persia: The Persian Empire extended from the Mediterranean Sea to India. Modern Persia was founded in the sixteenth century and later became known as Iran.
Prussia: Became a Duchy in 1660 and a kingdom in the following century. At its greatest extent it included the northern two-thirds of Germany and western Poland. Prussia, by World War II a federal unit of Germany, was fully disbanded at the end of World War II.
Rhodesia: Zimbabwe was known as Rhodesia (named after British diplomat Cecil Rhodes) prior to 1980.
Scotland, Wales, and England: Despite recent advances in autonomy, part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, both Scotland and Wales were independent nations that were merged with England to form the U.K.
Siam: Changed its name to Thailand in 1939.
Sikkim: Now part of far northern India, Sikkim was an independent monarchy from the 17th century until 1975.
South Vietnam: Now part of a unified Vietnam, South Vietnam existed from 1954 to 1976 as the anti-communist portion of Vietnam.
Southwest Africa: Gained independence and became Namibia in 1990.
Taiwan: While Taiwan still exists, it is not always considered an independent country . However, it did represent China in the United Nations until 1971.
Tanganyika and Zanzibar: These two African countries united in 1964 to form Tanzania.
Texas: The Republic of Texas gained independence from Mexico in 1836 and existed as an independent country until annexation to the United States in 1845.
Tibet: A kingdom established in the 7th century, Tibet was invaded by China in 1950 and has since been known as the Xizang Autonomous Region of China.
Transjordan: Became the independend kingdom of Jordan in 1946.
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR): Broke into fifteen new countries in 1991: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldovia, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
United Arab Republic: From 1958 to 1961, non-neighbors Syria and Egypt merged to become a unified country. In 1961 Syria abandoned the alliance but Egypt kept the name United Arab Republic itself for another decade.
Urjanchai Republic: South-central Russia; independent from 1912 to 1914.
Vermont: In 1777 Vermont declared independence and existed as an independent country until 1791, when it became the first state to enter the United States after the thirteen colonies.
West Florida, Free Independent Republic of: Parts of Florida, MIssissippi, and Louisana were independent for ninety days in 1810.
Western Samoa: Changed its name to Samoa in 1998.
Yugoslavia: The original Yugoslavia divided up into Bosnia, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, and Slovenia in the early 1990s.
Zaire: Changed its name to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997.
Zanzibar and Tanganyika merged to form Tanzania in 1964.
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i don't know
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What is the middle name, her stage name, of Barbadian born singer Robyn Fenty?
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Rihanna - Singer - Biography.com
Rihanna
International pop star Rihanna released her first album in 2005 and is known for such No. 1 hits as "Umbrella," "SOS," "Take a Bow," "Only Girl (In the World)," "We Found Love" and "Diamonds."
IN THESE GROUPS
»
quotes
“When the whole worlds turning left, it's when I'm going right. I need someone to let me be just who I am inside.”
“I believe in second chances, I just don't believe everyone deserves them.”
“Love isn't complicated—people are.”
“I'm rebellious through my music, through my fashion, tattoos and my hair.”
“I have been conservative in my love life.”
“Boys will be boys!!! 'Cause they can't be men!”
“People think because we're young, we aren't complex but that's not true. We deal with life and love and broken hearts in the same way a woman a few years older might.”
“I could never identify with that word, 'weak.' I couldn't have come out of this if I was weak. No way.”
“After being tormented for so many years, being angry and dark, I'd rather just live my truth and take the backlash. I can handle it.”
“I decided it was more important for me to be happy, and I wasn't going to let anyone's opinion get in the way of that. Even if it's a mistake, it's my mistake.”
“You know, when I started to ... have my race be highlighted, it was mostly when I would do business deals. ... And, you know, that never ends, by the way. It’s still a thing. And it’s the thing that makes me want to prove people wrong. It almost excites me; I know what they’re expecting and I can’t wait to show them that I’m here to exceed those expectations.”
Rihanna
Rihanna - Mini Biography (TV-PG; 3:04) The youngest artist to score 12 number one singles in the US, Rihanna signed with Def Jam records at the age of 16. Since then, she's become an international sensation with hit songs such as "Umbrella," "We Found Love," and "Diamonds."
Synopsis
Born Robyn Rihanna Fenty, on February 20, 1988, in Barbados, Rihanna signed with Def Jam records at age 16 and in 2005 released her first album Music of the Sun, which sold more than two million copies worldwide. She went on to release more albums and an array of hit songs, including "Unfaithful," "Umbrella," "Disturbia," "Take a Bow," "Diamonds" and "We Found Love." A global pop star with an unrelentingly edgy image, Rihanna has also won multiple industry accolades, including Grammys and MTV awards.
Early Life
Singer Robyn Rihanna Fenty was born on February 20, 1988, in St. Michael Parish on the Caribbean island of Barbados. She is the eldest of three children born to Monica Fenty, an accountant, and Ronald Fenty, a warehouse supervisor. Rihanna's childhood was marred by her father's struggles with addictions to alcohol and crack cocaine and her parents' marital problems—they divorced when she was 14 years old
Rihanna also struggled with crippling headaches for several years during her childhood, a condition she attempted to hide from her friends and classmates so that they would not think she was abnormal. "I never expressed how I felt," she remembered. "I always kept it in. I would go to school ... you would never know there was something wrong with me."
Move to U.S.
As a teenager, Rihanna turned to singing as a release from her troubles at home. She formed a girl group with two classmates; when they were 15 years old, they scored an audition with music producer Evan Rodgers, who was visiting the island with his Barbadian wife. Rogers was awed by the precociously beautiful and talented Rihanna, to the unfortunate detriment of her two friends. "The minute Rihanna walked into the room, it was like the other two girls didn't exist," he admitted.
Less than a year later, when Rihanna was only 16 years old, she left Barbados to move in with Rogers and his wife in Connecticut and work on recording a demo album. "When I left Barbados, I didn't look back," Rihanna recalled. "I wanted to do what I had to do, even if it meant moving to America."
Hit Singles on Def Jam
In January 2005, Rogers landed Rihanna an audition for Def Jam Records and its newly minted president, the legendary rapper Jay-Z . "I was in the lobby just shaking," she recalled. However, once Rihanna opened her voice to sing she regained her composure. "I remember staring into everybody's eyes in the room while I was singing, and at that point, I was fearless," she said. "But the minute I stopped singing, I was like, 'Oh my God, Jay-Z is sitting right in front of me.'" The hip-hop icon was every bit as wowed by Rihanna's commanding presence as Rogers had been two years earlier, and he signed her on the spot.
Only eight months later, in August 2005, she released her first single, "Pon de Replay," a reggae-influenced club track that reached No. 2 on the Billboard singles chart and announced Rihanna as the next up-and-coming pop star. Her first album, Music of the Sun, released later that month, reached No. 10 on the Billboard albums chart and also featured the single "If It's Lovin' That You Want." Rihanna released her second album, A Girl Like Me, the next year, spawning two major hits in "Unfaithful" and "SOS," Rihanna's first No. 1 single.
'Good Girl Gone Bad'
In 2007, Rihanna effected a transformation from cute teen pop princess to superstar and sex symbol with her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad, fueled by its smash hit lead single "Umbrella," featuring Jay-Z. "It shows such growth for her as an artist," Jay-Z said about the track. "If you listen to the lyrics to that song, you know the depth and how far she's come."
"Umbrella" topped the Billboard singles chart and earned Rihanna her first Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. The album reached No. 2 on the charts and also featured the singles "Shut Up and Drive" and "Don't Stop the Music," with the latter featuring a sample of Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'." Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded, released the following year, scored further hits in "Disturbia," "Take a Bow" and "Hate That I Love You."
Continuing her onslaught of hit albums, Rihanna released Rated R in 2009 with the singles "Hard" and "Rude Boy." Her 2010 album, Loud, was once again a commercial success behind the songs "What's My Name," "Only Girl (In the World)" and "S&M."
Besides her own laundry list of hit songs, Rihanna is also featured on a host of popular songs by other artists, including Jay-Z's "Run this Town," Eminem 's "Love the Way You Lie," Maroon 5's "If I Never See Your Face Again" and Kanye West 's "All of the Lights."
In 2011, Rihanna released her sixth studio album: Talk That Talk. The album included "We Found Love," a track with DJ Calvin Harris that won the 2013 Grammy Award for best short form music video.
Tumultuous Personal Life
Rihanna has also made headlines in her personal life, although often for circumstances beyond her control. She first made gossip column headlines in 2006 when rumors swirled that she was having an affair with her mentor, Jay-Z. Both she and Jay-Z have always dismissed such allegations as ridiculous. "At first I was like, 'Ha ha, it's funny,'" Rihanna said. "Now I just ignore it and I'm numb to it. You cannot stop people from saying what they want to say."
In 2009, Rihanna again made headlines again, becoming the center of a media firestorm after a domestic violence incident in which her then-boyfriend Chris Brown assaulted her before an awards show. The incident sparked a huge public outpouring of support for Rihanna, and she became a spokesperson against domestic violence. "This happened to me," she said in an interview with Diane Sawyer . "It can happen to anyone."
Rihanna was later romantically involved with Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp, but the pair have since split ways.
Since she first appeared on the scene in 2005, this Barbadian pop star has enjoyed a nearly uninterrupted run at the top of the music industry. For years, it has been virtually impossible to listen to the radio or enter a dance club without hearing one of Rihanna's catchy songs. But beyond the constant stream of hits, Rihanna has acknowledged that she is still a young woman who has experienced much adversity.
"I put my guard up so hard," she said of the aftermath of her domestic violence incident with Chris Brown in 2009. "I didn't want people to see me cry. I didn't want people to feel bad for me. It was a very vulnerable time in my life, and I refused to let that be the image. I wanted them to see me as, 'I'm fine, I'm tough.' I put that up until it felt real."
In 2012, Rihanna appeared to be reconnecting with Brown. The pair worked together on the song "Birthday Cake" released that year. Rihanna also spoke very candidly with Oprah Winfrey about her relationship with Brown that August. She told Winfrey that Brown may have been the love of her life and she has developed "a very close friendship" with him. The two officially dated again for a time, with Rihanna maintaining in a Rolling Stone interview that Brown had changed and that any form of abuse would be unacceptable.
Rihanna attends the 2016 Billboard Music Awards at T-Mobile Arena on May 22, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Lester Cohen/BBMA2016/ Getty Images for dcp)
'Unapologetic' and 'Anti'
On her Grammy-winning 2012 album Unapologetic, Rihanna turned out such hits as the No. 1 Sia Furler tune "Diamonds" and "Stay," featuring Mikky Ekko. (Interestingly, Unapologetic was the first Rihanna album to hit No. 1 on the pop charts.) She also worked with Coldplay on the track "Princess of China" and, the following year, reached No. 1 again with another Eminem collaboration, "The Monster." Around this time Rihanna also began to do movie work, co-starring in the sci-fi flick Battleship (2012) and later lending her voice to the lead character in the animated blockbuster Home (2015).
Known for her sexually provocative imagery and wild style, Rihanna made headlines for the sheer dress she wore to the Council of Fashion Designers of America awards ceremony in June 2014. She was there to receive the CFDA's Fashion Icon Award and told the crowd that "Fashion has always been my defense mechanism," according to an Associated Press report. Rihanna acknowledged that there were some rules to fashion, but explained that "rules are meant to be broken." Around this time, the singer made a bold professional move as well: She switched from the Def Jam label to Jay-Z's Roc Nation.
In August 2015, NBC announced that Rihanna would be the key adviser on The Voice's ninth season. That same year she contributed vocals to the single "FourFiveSeconds," a collaboration with West and famed Beatle Paul McCartney , as well as releasing "B**** Better Have My Money," a tune allegedly inspired by court wranglings with her former manager that also featured a highly controversial, violent music video. In 2015, Rihanna also became the first artist in history to have 100 million singles digitally downloaded and streamed.
In late January 2016, Rihanna released her next album Anti, allowing Jay-Z's online streaming site Tidal to exclusively feature the collection of tracks for a week. The gambit paid off for the struggling service, with one million trial subscribers joining Tidal in less than a day to partake in a download promotion for Anti. The lead single off the album is "Work," featuring rapper Drake .
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Rihanna
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In which country are the global headquarters of the professional services company KPMG?
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IMDb: Most Popular People Born In 1988
Most Popular People Born In 1988
1-50 of 4,063 names.
Sort by: STARmeter▲ | A-Z | Height | Birth Date | Death Date
1.
Haley Bennett Actress, The Equalizer Haley Bennett was born Haley Loraine Keeling in Fort Myers, Florida, to Leilani (Dorsey) Bennett and Ronald Keeling. She was raised in a small town in Ohio, and moved to Los Angeles following high school in 2006. Soon after, Haley was introduced to a small agency, KSA, who sent her on a casting for the film...
2.
Alicia Vikander Actress, Ex Machina Alicia Vikander is a Swedish actress, dancer and producer. She was born and raised in Gothenburg, Västra Götalands län, Sweden, to Maria Fahl-Vikander , an actress of stage and screen, and Svante Vikander, a psychiatrist. She is of Swedish and one quarter Finnish descent. Alicia began acting as a child in minor stage productions at The Göteborg Opera...
3.
Ana de Armas Actress, Hands of Stone Ana de Armas was born in Cuba on April 30, 1988. At the age of 14, she began her studies at the National Theatre School of Havana, where she graduated after 4 years. At the age of 16, she made her first film, Una rosa de Francia , directed by Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón . A few titles came after until she moved to Spain...
4.
Emily Browning Actress, Sucker Punch Australian actress Emily Browning was born in 1988 in Melbourne, Australia, to Shelley and Andrew Browning. She has two younger brothers. Her start in acting came after a classmate's father, involved in the acting business, noticed her "acting all ditsy" in a school play. Emily found an agent and was soon filming on location for the Hallmark TV-movie...
5.
Emma Stone Actress, The Help Emily Jean "Emma" Stone was born in Scottsdale, Arizona, to Krista (Yeager), a homemaker, and Jeffrey Charles Stone, a contracting company founder and CEO. She is of Swedish (from her paternal grandfather), English, German, Scottish, and Irish descent. Stone began acting as a child as a member of the Valley Youth Theatre in Phoenix...
6.
Melissa Benoist Actress, Whiplash Melissa Marie Benoist is an American actress and singer, known for her portrayal of "Marley Rose" on Season Four and the start of Season Five on the Fox musical comedy-drama television series Glee . Aside from her role on "Glee", she has appeared in a number of television series, including Homeland ...
7.
Nikki Blonsky Actress, Hairspray
9.
Jessica Lowndes Actress, 90210 Jessica Lowndes was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1988. She studied at the Pacific Academy in Surrey. Jessica is an actress and an aspiring Singer. She has written 4 known songs: "Never Lonely", "Break", "Fly Away" and "Goodbye". This last one was heard in an episode of the series Moonlight ...
10.
Zoë Kravitz Actress, Mad Max: Fury Road Zoe Isabella Kravitz, the daughter of singer/actor Lenny Kravitz and actress Lisa Bonet , was born on December 1, 1988 in Los Angeles, California. She is of half African-American (from her father's mother and her mother's father) and half Ashkenazi Jewish (from her father's father and her mother's mother) descent...
11.
Mae Whitman Actress, Avatar: The Last Airbender Mae was born in Los Angeles, California to Pat Musick, a voice artist, and Jeffrey Whitman, a personal manager and set construction coordinator. She began her career with a voice-over for a Tyson Chicken commercial. Whitman attended Ribét Academy, a private preparatory school in Los Angeles. She was later transferred to Whitefish Bay High School, where she graduated...
12.
Tania Raymonde Actress, Lost Raised in Los Angeles of French-American descent, Tania Raymonde began her career on "Malcolm in the Middle" and is best known for her portrayal of Alex Rousseau in the J.J. Abrams series LOST. She most recently played the title role of notorious murderer Jodi Arias in the Lifetime original feature...
13.
Chris Wood Actor, Containment
14.
Julianne Hough Self, Dancing with the Stars Julianne Alexandra Hough was raised in Salt Lake City, the youngest of 5 children. She is the daughter of Mari Anne (Heaton) and Bruce Robert Hough, twice chairman of the Utah Republican Party. Her parents met in college when both were part of a ballroom dancing team. Her parents divorced, and she has 9 stepsiblings from their second marriages...
15.
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Analeigh Tipton Actress, Crazy, Stupid, Love. Analeigh was born in Minnesota, USA, and grew up in Sacramento, California. When she was a child, she was a competitive ice skater. She gave up competing at age 16, but has taken part in charity skating events. In 2008, Analeigh appeared on cycle 11 of America's Next Top Model . She finished third in the competition. In her modeling career, she was signed with Ford Models...
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Nikki Reed Actress, Thirteen Actress and screenwriter Nicole Houston Reed was born in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of Cheryl Houston, a hairdresser and beautician, and Seth Reed , a set designer. She has two brothers. Her ancestry includes Ashkenazi Jewish, German, British Isles, and one eighth Italian. Reed's parents divorced when she was two and she lived with her mother...
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Rose McIver Actress, The Lovely Bones
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Alexa PenaVega Actress, Spy Kids Alexa Ellesse PenaVega née Vega; born August 27, 1988 is an American actress and singer. She is known for her role as Carmen Cortez in the Spy Kids film series and Shilo Wallace in the film Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008). In 2009, she starred as the title character Ruby Gallagher in the ABC Family series Ruby & The Rockits.
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Robbie Amell Actor, The DUFF Along with his sister, Robert Patrick Amell started acting when he was just six years old. At sixteen, he started to land theater roles at Lawrence Park Stage in plays such as Louis and Dave, Picasso at the Lapin Agile and The Importance of Being Earnest. The experience brought Robbie to realize that he wanted to pursue a career in acting...
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Vanessa Hudgens Actress, Spring Breakers Vanessa was born in Salinas, California. Her family moved to San Diego whilst she was still a toddler. She has a younger sister, Stella Hudgens , who is also an actress. Her mother, Gina (Guangco), an officer worker, is from the Philippines. Her father, Gregory Hudgens, a firefighter, has Irish and Native American ancestry...
24.
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Claire Holt Actress, H2O: Just Add Water Claire Rhiannon Holt (born June 11, 1988) portrays the role of Rebekah Mikaelson in The Vampire Diaries and The Originals. Her most notable roles are Samara in Pretty Little Liars, Chastity Meyer in Mean Girls 2 and Emma Gilbert in H2O: Just Add Water. Claire was born in Brisbane, Australia. She graduated from Stuartholme School in Toowong at the end of 2005...
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45.
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i don't know
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Which organisation has won the Nobel Peace Prize three times, in 1917, 1944 and 1963?
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All Nobel Peace Prizes
More options
All Nobel Peace Prizes
The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded 97 times to 130 Nobel Laureates between 1901 and 2016, 104 individuals and 26 organizations. Since the International Committee of the Red Cross has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize three times (in 1917, 1944 and 1963), and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize two times (in 1954 and 1981), there are 23 individual organizations which have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Click on the links to get more information.
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International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
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The world record for which athletics event is 8.95 metres for men?
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PEACE NOBEL PRIZE: OSLO CEREMONY, POLITICIANS AND YOUTH ON THE EU’S BEHALF” “” “ | AgenSIR
PEACE NOBEL PRIZE: OSLO CEREMONY, POLITICIANS AND YOUTH ON THE EU’S BEHALF” “” “
PEACE NOBEL PRIZE: OSLO CEREMONY, POLITICIANS AND YOUTH ON THE EU’S BEHALF” “” “
6 dicembre 2012 @ 12:21
(Sir Europe Brussels) Everything is ready at the EU for the Peace Nobel awards ceremony, with the prize awarded this year to the European Union for its efforts for peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights. The event is due to take place in Oslo on 10th December: the EU will be officially represented by the president of the EU Council (Herman Van Rompuy), the president of the EU Commission (José Manuel Barroso) and the president of the EU Parliament (Martin Schulz), and by four young people who won a special competition launched a few weeks ago (Ana Fanlo Vicente, Elena Nicoletta Garbujo, Ilona Zielkowska, Larkin Zahra). For the occasion, Van Rompuy and Barroso will give a short speech. The cash prize, which is about 930 thousand euros, will go as explained by the website europa.eu "to projects in support of children who are victims of war and conflict". The EU is the twenty-first international organisation that has received such longed-for honour: the international Red Cross won the prize as many as three times (1917, 1944, 1963), while the UN High Commissioner for Refugees won the prize twice (1954, 1981). The prize has been awarded 93 times since 1901 (in some years, it was not awarded): there have been 100 individual winners, including Martin Luther King, Madre Teresa, Lech Walesa, Nelson Mandela, Barack Obama. Celebrations have been planned in Brussels and Strasbourg to give prominence to the importance of the event.
6 dicembre 2012
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i don't know
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Which Carry On film features characters The Khasi of Kalabar, Private James Widdle and the 3rd Foot and Mouth Regiment?
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Carry On... Up the Khyber (Film) - TV Tropes
Carry On... Up the Khyber
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Film / Carry On... Up the Khyber
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"That will teach them to ban turbans on the buses!"
— Bungdit Din
Carry On... Up the Khyber is the sixteenth film in the British Carry On film series and named one of the best films out of the series, starring regulars Sidney James , Joan Sims , Charles Hawtrey , Kenneth Williams , Terry Scott , Bernard Bresslaw , Angela Douglas and Peter Butterworth , as well as Roy Castle in his only film of the series.
It is set in the glory days of the British Empire, in which the governors who have set up camp in British India struggle to befriend the Kalabar citizens on the other side of Khyber Pass. The head governor is Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond (James), along with his men Captain Keene (Castle), Major Shorthouse (recurring Carry On regular Julian Holloway) and Sergeant Major MacNutt (Scott), who are in an ongoing cold war between the angry Khasi of Kalabar (Williams) and his army general Bungdit Din (Bresslaw), who live on the other side of the Khyber Pass: a long road around a mountainside guarded by the British army, the Third Foot & Mouth Regiment — nicknamed the "Devils In Skirts".
The British governors hope to scare the opposition into surrender by making their army wear nothing under their uniforms , but after being knocked out by Bungdit, Private James Widdle (Hawtrey) has his underwear stolen, which was keeping him warm from the cold mountain winds. This makes the governors inspect all of the army, finding the horrifying sight of them all wearing underpants. Despite hoping that the enemy will not see this, the sexually-frustrated Lady Joan Ruff-Diamond (Sims) takes a secret picture of the spectacle and takes it to the attractive Khasi, hoping to have sex with him in return.
With her disappeared, Sid is constantly sent women to ravish him as he waits for his wife to be released from her "capture". Keene, MacNutt and Widdle wear disguises as they try to rescue the stolen underwear from the Khasi's palace, with the help of the reluctant Brother Belcher (Butterworth), a missionary who "rescues" women from falling out of religion by secretly making love to them, and Keene's love interest, the Kalabar princess Jelhi (Douglas).
In a lesser case, Brother Belcher.
Affectionate Parody : Has elements of Zulu and several British Empire movies.
Ambiguous Syntax : Shorthouse seems to have been in Airplane! at some point.
Sir Sidney: Under a flag of truce, eh? I wonder what that means.
Shorthouse: Well, sir, it's a piece of white material stuck to a pole—
Sir Sidney: I KNOW what it is!
Anachronism Stew : As is typical for the historical Carry On films, the script includes a few jokes that require the characters to know details of historical events still decades in the future for them. For example, when Sir Sidney is watching the polo match at the beginning of the film, he applauds the skill of Philip Mountbatten and notes that he should do all right for himself as long as he marries well. Sure enough, he did marry well, to his distant cousin Princess Elizabeth, later HM The Queen . However, the future Duke of Edinburgh was not born until 1921, twenty years after the death of Queen Victoria, who is stated to still be alive when the film is set.
Armed Farces : The 3rd Foot and Mouth Regiment is populated entirely by incompetent fools and cowards (apart from the traditionally heroic Captain Keene), who, among other things, do not live up to the legend of wearing nothing under their kilts (instead, they wear gigantic pairs of underwear as a safeguard against the cold winds blowing through the Khyber Pass).
Awful Wedded Life : Sid and Joan are implied to have a rocky relationship. At the beginning of the movie, Sid is very cold towards her and snaps below-the-belt comments at her when she asks to continue their love-making, followed by Joan running away to the Khasi's palace in hope for a passionate fling. When Sid finds out, he's not heartbroken and states that his thoughts and prayers are with the Khasi for putting up with her. And when she finds out what he's been getting up to with the Khasi's wives in his absence... They do appear to have made up by the end of the film, though.
Backwards-Firing Gun : A cannon that MacNutt hopes to use fires the ammunition backward. Turns out the enemy stuck a bung in the front.
Badass Beard : Bundgit Din is the only main character that has one and is in charge of the Arabian army.
Badass in a Nice Suit : Most of the British party from the armed services that were at the dinner party during the war. They go outside and even take part!
Blue Oni Red Oni : In a way with MAJ Shorthouse and CPT Keene. Keene is much more involved with the army unlike Shorthouse and shows much more enthusiasm, whereas Shorthouse seems to show the Stiff Upper Lip trope. It also helps that Keene has red uniform and Shorthouse has blue .
Breaking the Fourth Wall : Brother Belcher expresses his disgust over how the governors were acting in the middle of a war to the audience.
Brief Accent Imitation : The Khasi mocks the British prisoners with a Cockney accent when he talks of their punishment, and during his speech with the Arsidasian people, this moment occurs:
Bungdit Din: Do you have the photograph?
Khasi of Khalabar: [shakes his head] Yes. [Lady Ruff-Diamond] has it. [realises] OH DEAR, THEY'VE GOT ME DOING IT NOW!!
Brownface : There isn't a single Asian actor in the cast.
However, when sneaking into the Khasi's palace, Keene, MacNutt, Widdle and Belcher cover their faces with it in order to pass the guards.
The Captain : CPT Keene, and adds to his mild Badass In Charge .
Chekhov's Gun : Sid sends for Keene to tell him about a new conduct from the Army Rulebook that he's going to highlight to the army so that no one wears underwear anymore. Seems rather legit, but is never touched on again ... then much later...
Comically Missing the Point : As usual, a stock response in Carry On films.
During the climactic dinner scene, the palace is being shelled and fired on by the Khasi's men, while Sir Sidney, Lady Joan, Belcher, Keene, Shorthouse and Princess Jelhi are all eating soup to the accompaniment of a small chamber group.
Sir Sidney: [to Belcher, who is clearly rattled] Aren't you enjoying your soup then?
Belcher: Oh, delightful. [more shooting] ...Terrible noise.
Sir Sidney: Yes, it's shocking, innit? [confidentially] It's not a first-class orchestra. Mind you, they're doing their best.
Later, Chindi brings in the covered platter containing the meat course.
Sir Sidney: [smiling confidently] Ah, the meat course. You'll love this.
[Chindi uncovers the Fakir's severed head on the platter, very much alive, with an apple in his mouth. Belcher gasps with horror]
Fakir: [spits out the apple, grinning] And for my next trick...I will perform a feat...
[Chindi covers the platter]
Lady Joan: [puzzled] Well, that's not what we ordered, is it, Sidney?
Sir Sidney: Of course it isn't. Chindi, what's the meaning of this?
Chindi: I... I do not know, Your Excellency.
Sir Sidney: And I ordered sucking pig, didn't I?
Chindi: I'm very sorry, Your Excellency.
Sir Sidney: Well, take it away, go on. [to Lady Joan] You've got to get rid of that cook, dear.
Lady Joan: Ooh, yes.
Sir Sidney: [To Belcher, who is going stark staring buggo] Did you want to go somewhere, Mr Belcher?
Belcher: Mad! That's the fakir's head! They've killed him!
Sir Sidney: Well, that's dashed unsporting.
Belcher: Unsporting?!
Sir Sidney: Yes, it's the closed season for fakirs.note In hunting, the "closed season" is when it's illegal to hunt a given species for conservation reasons, as opposed to "open season", when hunting them is permitted.
Daddy's Girl : Princess Jelhi. She finds it hard to remember what her mother looks like, even though she lives in the palace (to be fair, she's down in a cellar with the Khasi's other wives).
Khasi of Kalabar: Now go to the Women's Quarters and pay your respects to your mother.
Princess Jelhi: Yes, my father. [hesitates] ...Which one is she, again?
Deadpan Snarker : MAJ Shorthouse to Sir Sidney, mostly when Sir Sidney gets involved with several of the Khasi's wives.
Sir Sidney: [dictating a letter to Queen Victoria] "... and I have also been able to have some intimate relationships with many of your subjects."
MAJ Shorthouse: [under his breath] Eleven, to be precise.
Sir Sidney: [in a slight cross tone] "MANY of your subjects..."
Later on, when it looks as though the Khasi will carry out his threat of burning down the Residency and killing them all:
Keene: Things look rather bad, sir. What are we going to do?
Sir Sidney: Do? We're British. We won't do anything.
Shorthouse: Until it's too late.
Sir Sidney: Precisely. That's the first sensible thing you've said today.
Shorthouse: Thank you, sir.
Common between Sid, Keene and MacNutt. When dealing with the army, Sir Sid will dismiss himself by saying "carry on, Captain," and then Keene will dismiss himself by saying "carry on, Sergeant-Major."
Played seriously when the Khasi insists on proof the Going Commando 'rumor' isn't true.
Drill Sergeant Nasty : S.MJR MacNutt. He even treats a normal conversation as if he was barking out commands to his soldiers.
Funny Background Event
In the introduction, the Ruff-Diamonds are riding on the back of an elephant. Because of the narration distracting the viewer, it's hard to notice that the elephant is heard passing wind, and noticing the married couple wafting the smell away with their hands.
When trying to sneak back over the border to India, a bomb backfires at the British group when they try to stall the enemy's approach, and they charge across like mad. Brother Belcher is so terrified, he jumps onto Lady Ruff-Diamond, and she carries him across screaming in terror.
Getting Crap Past the Radar : Do you really need to ask?
When advised to keep a stiff upper lip in prison, Belcher snaps that he'll never manage to keep calm because it'll take a long time "for mine to stiffen".
The Khasi's Unstoppable Rage over the British's lack of concern for the war.
Khasi of Kalabar: They think they're so powerful with their... st-starched uniforms and their... stiff upper-lips, and their dirty big flags hanging out! They think they OWN THE PLACE!!
Bungdit Din: [flatly] They do.
Sidney affectionately calls the Khasi of Kalabar a "shot" and Khasi replies with, "I hope I heard you correctly".
This moment:
S.MJR MacNutt: [spotting a hot water bottle in Widdle's kilt pocket] And what on earth is THAT doing in THERE?!
PVT Widdle: [weakly] It keeps my dangler warm!
Bungdit mentions " Francis Drake and his bowls" during the war, to which the Khasi replies:
Khasi of Kalabar: Don't talk "bowels" to me!
"Khyber Pass" is rhyming slang for "ass/arse", particularly the phrase "Show us your Khyber Pass", but the army don't actually do that. note This one was initially picked up by the radar; the possibility of calling the film Carry On in the Regiment instead of Carry On Up the Khyber was considered. It's even referenced by Widdle:
PVT Widdle: [on the topic of wearing underwear with his uniform] I was only trying to keep warm.
S.MJR MacNutt: [in mock sympathy] Oh, so you're cold now, are you?
PVT Widdle: Perishing. The way the wind whistles up the pass.
Bungdit Din is in charge of an army in Jacksy. "Jacksy" is another slang term for the bottom.
The Khasi of Kalabar is named Randy Lauw. This confuses Lady Ruff-Diamond:
Joan Ruff-Diamond: Oh! How do you know he is, then?
Sid Ruff-Diamond: [irritably] How do I know he's what?
Joan Ruff-Diamond: Randy?
Sid Ruff-Diamond: [grumpily] That's his NAME!
Princess Jelhi is confused over what made pants-less men scary:
Princess Jelhi: I don't understand, father. What is there to fear about a man with nothing under his skirt?
Khasi of Kalabar: Oh, my child — you've not met war. And think how terrifying it'd be to see a man charging at you, with his skirt flying up in the air, and flashing his big, long... bayonet at you!
S.MJR MacNutt going all Officer Jerkass on his army, saying that he's seen "better-equipped men guarding a harem". Don't get it? Harems were originally guarded by eunuchs. The film series constantly references this in some of their period-piece films.
Unimpressed by the fakir's performance, Bungdit Din shouts, "Fakir! Off!"
Whenever Shorthouse's name is shouted, it sounds like " short arse ".
Going Commando : Something that the British Army are failing to do.
Good-Looking Privates :
Keene, on account of being a respected captain of the British Army, as well as being a member of a polo team and just looking younger than the some of the other members. Also, Princess Jelhi notes of how his eyes sparkle .
invoked Possibly MAJ Shorthouse, considering that his actor Julian Holloway was commonly used as The Other Darrin for the attractive Carry On regular Jim Dale whenever he was unavailable.
Informed Conversation : A weird one, to say the least. Although we see Keene and Jelhi meet and have a secret conversation, we don't see it completely. When Jelhi creeps up on Keene and warns him of her father planning to get rid of the British army, she reasons that she told him because she loved him and she wants to protect him, however, when Keene tells Sid that he and Jelhi had met up, he tells him about the Khasi's plan, and then about Joan giving the Khasi evidence from the photograph that she'd secretly taken in a hope of sex in return, which was far from what Jelhi had told him, probably meaning that they must of gone to hide to continue the discussion far from the army lines.
Heel�Face Turn : Jelhi betrays her father by telling the British governors about her father's plans.
Idle Rich : How Sid and Shorthouse got their army titles is slightly baffling. Most of the time, Sid is sitting around in his plush office or having sex off-screen... or having sex off-screen in his plush office; Shorthouse also mostly sits around in his office, playing Sid's secretary all day. Perhaps they're taking a break after successfully conquering most of the Empire. But still...
"Join the Army," They Said : Belcher can be heard mumbling " "Come help us" they said; "It'll be fun," they said!" as the team are locked up in the Khasi's prison.
Brother Belcher, who uses this to his advantage.
Sir Sid, although that is invioked, but it fits with Sid James' typical character persona.
Lie Back and Think of England : It's heavily implied that this is the sex life of Sid and Joan. When Keene points out that Joan ran off with the Khasi willingly, Sid points out that Joan always does things "unwillingly".
Lovable Coward : Brother Belcher. He's even scared of knocking on the door of the Khasi's palace.
Major Injury Underreaction : MacNutt spends most of the last twenty minutes of the film with a giant spear sticking out of his back, although he appears not to notice it.
Man in a Kilt : The 3rd Foot and Mouth Regiment are known as "The Devils in Skirts" for their practice of wearing kilts with nothing underneath... or so the legend goes.
A Man Is Always Eager : Averted. Joan hopes for sex in return for tipping off the Khasi, but he has no interest in sex, and has her imprisoned when the deed is done.
Mighty Whitey and Mellow Yellow : CPT Keene and Princess Jelhi, although the roles of this trope seem to be inverted because the princess seems to end up saving Keene and his army by relaying information from her father's secret plans and creating ways to get Keene out of trouble.
Mood Whiplash : The death of Widdle's friend on the battlefield is taken as seriously as one would with death until Widdle covers him with a nearby tartan.
Widdle's friend Ginger: [pulls himself upright and drags the tartan off his face] Oh, THAT'S right!! Bleeding suffocate me, why don't you?! [drops dead]
No Indoor Voice : S.MJR MacNutt ranges between this and Suddenly Shouting . In many indoor scenes at Sidney's base, MacNutt's bellowing can be faintly heard outside , even if there are no open windows.
Oh Crap! : The Khasi's reaction when the British soldiers have lifted their kilts and scared his army into fleeing. Made funnier by Kenneth Williams's talent for different accents:
Khasi: [shouting at his men in a strong majestic voice] Come back, you fools, come back! There's nothing to be afraid of! [turns and sees for the first time what's under the kilt; in Williams's own nasal voice] ...Ooh, I dunno, though. [runs off]
Only Sane Man : Belcher, who is the only British character that is concerned about the war as the characters have a formal dinner while the enemy fire at the building outside.
Panty Thief : Bungdit Din, in order to show his leader that the no-underwear-under-kilt theory is just a myth.
Passive-Aggressive Kombat : Shading into Volleying Insults , when the Khasi delivers his ultimatum to Sir Sidney:
Khasi: Greetings, Your Excellency. It is most kind of you to see us at such short notice.
Sir Sidney: [beaming] You're always welcome, Your Highness.
Khasi: [respectful nod] You are most kind.
Sir Sidney: And how can I be of service to Your Highness?
Khasi: As a mark of my deep respect for Your Excellency's person, I have come to offer you and your people safe conduct out of Kalabar.
Sir Sidney: A very magnanimous gesture. And, er...if I do not wish to leave?
Khasi: [politely] Then, Your Excellency, I shall be forced, most reluctantly, to burn the Residency to the ground and kill everyone in it.
Sir Sidney: [cheerfully] Is that all?
Khasi: As a further mark of my respect, I shall then exhibit your distinguished but neatly severed head from the walls of the palace.
Sir Sidney: A very generous gesture. [They bow to each other]
Khasi: You are most welcome, Your Excellency.
Sir Sidney: Just to show that we too are capable of making a generous gesture...[blows raspberry]
Punny Name : All of the characters are this.
Brother Belcher, of course.
Princess Jelhi, or Jelly. Appropriate in that she is, among other things, the film's cheesecake .
Captain Keene: he is indeed.note Keen, that is.
PVT Widdle, which is a Baby Talk version of "little", and could describe the size of his endowment . His full name "Jimmy Widdle" is derived from "Jimmy Riddle", which is Cockney rhyming slang for "piddle", which means both to urinate and to waste time.
Sidney and Joan Ruff-Diamond, which is a play-on the phrase " diamond in the rough ", suggesting both their rough London edges, but also that deep down they're decent people.note The Ruff-Diamonds don't behave like stereotypical upper-class English people but like a stereotypical nouveau riche East End couple who've made it rich and are putting on posh airs. Keene and Shorthouse conform far more closely to the stereotypical upper-class type, with Keene being slightly more upper-class on account of being marginally more gormless than Shorthouse and less snarky.
S.MJR MacNutt, on account of his "nutty" behavior.
invoked Bungdit Din is a play-on-word of the phrase "bunged it in", which is a reference to Ass Shove .note Likely also a gag on " Throw It In ", which describes how quickly the writing department came up with the name.
Though the Khasi are an indigenous people of north-east India (the vast majority of whom live in the state of Meghalayanote And not, in fact, near the Khyber Pass, which is in the Spin Ghar mountains on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan.), the title of Williams' character is also a homophone of "khazi" , a slang term for "toilet". Lampshaded by Sid and Joan:
Joan Ruff-Diamond: Thank goodness for that; now perhaps we'll get back to our tiffin.
Sid Ruff-Diamond: Later. There's something really important I've gotta do.
Joan Ruff-Diamond: What?
Sid Ruff-Diamond: I've gotta go to the Khasi.
Joan Ruff-Diamond: Well you should've gone before tiffin! You know it's very bad for—!
Sid Ruff-Diamond: No, no. The Khasi of Kalabar.
Widdle's friend in the army is called Ginger Hale, i.e. ginger ale.
As noted above, Shorthouse's name, when shouted ("SHORT-'OOOUUUUSE!"), sounds like "short-arse", Cockney slang for a short person.
The 3rd Foot and Mouth Regiment, which is unfortunate when you know what foot and mouth is.
Royal Harem : The reason that the disguised British characters get caught by the palace guards.
Royals Who Actually Do Something
If Princess Jelhi had stuck to the Men Are Strong, Women Are Pretty trope, the British would've been run out of India at the beginning of the movie.
The Khasi himself, who turns up to watch the war and, indeed lead his own army although the sight of massed British Army genitalia in close formation scares him off in the end.
Screw the War, We're Partying! : In perhaps the film's best-remembered sequence, when the Khasi leads his army against the British headquarters, Sir Sidney declares that they shall not let it stop the higher-ups, including Captain Keene and his bride-to-be, Princess Jelhi, from having a nice formal dinner. Even as cannon fire pounds the building, causing huge chunks of plaster to fall from the ceiling and walls, they continue eating as though nothing is happening, and when a shot causes the ceiling to collapse on top of the musicians providing the evening's entertainment (a concert of Strauss waltzes) the diners simply note that they appear to have finished their performance, and applaud politely (the musicians, meanwhile, dust themselves off and begin another Strauss waltz). Only Brother Belcher behaves as though what is going on is actually going on.
Those Two Guys
The Khasi and Bungdit Din of Jacksy.
Also, Bungdit Din and a nameless member of the army. (Seen with Bungdit in the first Khyber Pass scene and in the palace meeting the real chiefs of the Afghans.)
CPT Keene and S.MJR MacNutt.
Sir Sid and MAJ Shorthouse.
Two-Faced Aside : At the beginning of the film, Sid and Joan are attending a polo match and are sitting not far from the Khasi of Kalabar and his daughter. Sid and the Khasi smile and wave politely to each other, but the former mutters to Joan that he doesn't trust the Khasi any further than he can throw him, while the latter mutters to his daughter that he is determined to kill Sid and the rest of the British soldiers — or at least run them out of India .
Undercrank : There is a sequence in the Khasi's palace in which his dancers turn out to be the British in disguise; when he orders Bungdit to arrest them, the footage is sped up as the British beat up the guards and run out of the building.
Unusual Euphemism : Played with. "Tiffin" is a legitimate Indian-English word for a light midday meal, but in the film it's used as innuendo for having sex.note Tiffin is also the name of a British chocolate bar, made by Cadbury's; at the time of the film's release, most people would have associated it with this and would have vaguely remembered that it also meant "snack". Which goes a long way to explain the following dialogue:
Keene: Major Shorthouse, I must see the Governor right away.
Shorthouse: I can't disturb him now, he's with the memsahib, having a bit of tiffin.
Keene: [ Oh Crap! ] Ooh, that is awkward. [steels himself] However, it is a matter of the utmost urgency.
Shorthouse: Well, I'll see if they've finished.
[Shorthouse strolls over to Sir Sidney's door and knocks]
Sir Sidney: [anxious] You can't come in!
Shorthouse: Certainly not, sir, but Captain Keene's here to see you on a matter of the utmost urgency.
Sir Sidney: Oh, all right, just a minute.
Shorthouse: Just coming.
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Carry On... Up the Khyber
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Who wrote the recent book for children Awful Auntie?
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Amazon.co.uk:Customer Reviews: Carry On Up The Khyber [DVD]
Carry On Up The Khyber [DVD]
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5.0 out of 5 starsThe Best!
ByIan Phillipson 16 May 2006
Carry On Up The Kyber is undoubtedly one of the very best of the series, if not THE best. Whilst most Carry on films suffered an onslaught of criticism from critics, they actually joined in praise for this entry, and rightly so.
The Khaszi of Kalabar finds information that proves that the men of The Third Foot And Mouth regiment are not "the devil in skirts" as they claim to be, so he decides to bring their presence in India to an end. With Sir Sidney Ruff Diamond's (head of "the devil in skirts") cushy job threatened to come to an end, he decides to take action against it.
The irreplacable Hattie Jaques and Barbara Windsor are missing from this entry but most of the other regulars are here such as Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Terry Scott and Bernard Bresslaw as well as featuring the talents of Roy Castle, in his only Carry On role and Angela Douglas who previously had appeared in Carry On Cowboy (1965), Screaming (1966) and Follow That Camel (1967). The best players in this historical romp are Sid James and Joan Sims as the hilarious Ruff Diamonds. Joan Sims delivery is priceless as her delicatley, well spoken voice occasionally slides into a broad cockney accent - amusing stuff!
Carry On Up The Kyber is consistently funny throughout with Talbot Rothwell's script bubbling with inventive repartee and sparkling razor sharp wit. The film boasts the best ending in a Carry On film, where the gang are all keeping a stiff British upper lip and deciding to ignore the attack that's taking place outside the building, proceed to continue with their supper whilst the building is collapsing around their ears.
Classic British comedy at its very best and fans of the series will be delighted.
3.0 out of 5 starsDidn't live up to the fond memories...
BySebastian Palmeron 22 May 2015
Fond memories of watching this as a kid were not matched by returning to it as an adult. I'm glad the DVD was cheap, as I'm not sure if/when we'll ever watch it again.
The lowbrow innuendo hasn't aged as well as, let's say, Peter Sellers more sophisticated clowning in The Party, both of which were made in 1968, and both of which feature white Englishmen pretending to be Indian. Roy 'Record Breaker' Castle appears in this film - his only Carry On (in the romantic male lead usually performed by the more cinematically charismatic Jim Dale) - alongside such familiar faces as Kenneth Williams, Sid James, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, et al.
Amongst the minor players Peter Butterworth as Brother Belcher, a randy but cowardly ecclesiastical, is one of the more enjoyable elements in this flimsy affair. The dependable Sid James is, for my money, the only major player whose character, as clichéd as ever, nevertheless makes the grade, as the equally (but more successfully) 'diplomatically' amorous Sidney Ruff-Diamond.
But some of the characters who are usually reliable Carry On stalwarts were, for me at any rate, simply cringeworthy, Kenneth Williams as The Khasi of Kalabar would be exemplary in this respect. Joan Sims reprises her usual scolding harridan role, which occasionally made my wife chortle, but is like nails on a blackboard to me.
The best Carry On films I've seen are Carry On Screaming and Carry on Cleo, which stand the rigours of time better than the vast majority of this prolific British franchise. Khyber is, according to the critics, apparently, one of the best of the series! I watched it with my wife and a regular guest, and it barely raised even the slightest of titters. Groans were plentiful.
Format: DVD
Carry On Up The Kyber is undoubtedly one of the very best of the series, if not THE best. Whilst most Carry on films suffered an onslaught of criticism from critics, they actually joined in praise for this entry, and rightly so.
The Khaszi of Kalabar finds information that proves that the men of The Third Foot And Mouth regiment are not "the devil in skirts" as they claim to be, so he decides to bring their presence in India to an end. With Sir Sidney Ruff Diamond's (head of "the devil in skirts") cushy job threatened to come to an end, he decides to take action against it.
The irreplacable Hattie Jaques and Barbara Windsor are missing from this entry but most of the other regulars are here such as Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Terry Scott and Bernard Bresslaw as well as featuring the talents of Roy Castle, in his only Carry On role and Angela Douglas who previously had appeared in Carry On Cowboy (1965), Screaming (1966) and Follow That Camel (1967). The best players in this historical romp are Sid James and Joan Sims as the hilarious Ruff Diamonds. Joan Sims delivery is priceless as her delicatley, well spoken voice occasionally slides into a broad cockney accent - amusing stuff!
Carry On Up The Kyber is consistently funny throughout with Talbot Rothwell's script bubbling with inventive repartee and sparkling razor sharp wit. The film boasts the best ending in a Carry On film, where the gang are all keeping a stiff British upper lip and deciding to ignore the attack that's taking place outside the building, proceed to continue with their supper whilst the building is collapsing around their ears.
Classic British comedy at its very best and fans of the series will be delighted.
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Format: DVD
When it comes to choosing, from a handful of greats, the greatest Carry On film of all time, opinion divides. Many people seem to go for "Carry On Cleo" and its well-known "Infamy, infamy" scene. But for my money the finest film of the Carry On oeuvre is this thrilling yarn of derring-do and Her Majesty's 3rd Foot and Mouth Regiment (the "Devils in Skirts") set in 1895, at the very gateway to India, high up in the foothills of the Khyber Pass.
From the opening montage in which an elephant breaks wind and Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond looks accusingly at his wife (Joan Sims), the tone is set for a tale of the Great Game and the glory days of the Raj, related through the, some would say, completely inappropriate medium of Panto. All the regulars are here, the classic triumvirate of James, Williams and Hawtrey, ably abetted by a fine supporting cast; Bernard Bresslaw is a gleefully plausible border chieftain; Terry Scott as Sergeant-Major McNutt is an NCO straight out of George McDonald Fraser; Angela Douglas makes an alluring Princess Jelhi ("an appropriate name," as Sir Sidney gallantly informs her, "for one cast in so perfect a mould,") while Roy Castle as the dashing and resolute Captain Keene is quite plainly on the verge of corpsing in every take. All this accompanied by kilt gags, wince-inducing puns, gratuitous cross-dressing and "it's all we had in the studio" sound effects.
Anyone seeking to understand the history of British involvement on the North-West Frontier should watch this film, not because it is remotely accurate, but because it willl cheer them up.
Format: DVD
Carry On… movies are never likely to be thought of as comedy classics, and yet they are fondly remembered by those who have seen them on a wet bank holiday Monday through the years, and the regular cast remain household names (Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Barbara Windsor to name but a few). All to often they are nothing more than Bawdy sit-coms (Camping, Abroad in particular), yet every now and again they hit the mark, often when dealing with the past. Cleo, Dick, Henry and Don’t Lose Your Head (a film that was monikered Carry On very late on in it’s inception) are great examples of this, but it is Up the Khyber that truly stands the test of time, and is arguably the very best.
There is little point in talking about plot – the Carry On’s never score highly on that in any case – this is all to do with the pitch perfect casting of the regulars (with support from Roy Castle playing the Jim Dale type role) and great performances all round. Sid James once more plays Sid, this time Sir Sydney Ruff-Diamond, with his usual flair, but it is once more left to Kenneth Williams to claim the over-acting honours as his nemesis the Khasi of Khalabar. The cast is rounded out with most the regulars including a fine turn from the inestimable Charles Hawtry as the unfortunate Private Widdle, whose choice of underwear almost brings down British rule in India. Pinewood performs admirably in it’s own role as Imperial India, as does the Welsh Valley that stands in for the real Khyber Pass.
With the Carry On films being re-visited by Carry On London ( which will feature – shudder – soap actors in the major parts), this is a good time to see the original cast at their very best.
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Format: DVD | Verified Purchase
Probably the best of the "Carry On" films. I think just about everyone must have seen this film at one time or another. The actual quality of the video is better than I remember when it was broadcast - perhaps it has been tidied up! Anyway, this particular film is set in the time of the Indian Raj and features most of the famous Carry On cast - I think Jim Dale is the only significant actor who is missing. I believe one of this film's claims to fame, is that the location shooting was furthest away from Pinewood (most of the filming was done) - in this case Snowdonia!
A nice feature on this particular edition, is the commentary track from Peter Rogers (the producer).
An enjoyable hour and a half.
Format: DVD
This is from the most hillarious period of the carry-ons, in my eyes it has to be seen if only for the dinner scene at the end of the film. The comic genius of Syd James and Joan Simms as Sir Sidney and Lady Ruff Diamond pull this scene off with results that leave you laughing long after the film has finished. I remember seeing the film as a kid and this scene has always stuck in my mind as the ultimate send-up of the days of the Raj and the English stiff upper lip scenario. No other group of comic actors could have pulled this film off with such hilarity.
A masterpiece of the carry-on genre without a shadow of a doubt.
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Format: DVD
Disaster strikes in the Raj when it's revealed that the famed British Devils In Skirts who occupy India, wear underpants under their kilts. The absence of which was something that kept the natives living in fear.
Awards and high praise for the "Carry On" franchise is like a dog that speaks Irdu, extremely rare. Granted, few of them rise above "titter me this madame" like comedy, and some are not fit to be used as coasters. But look inside this 31 film run and you find a handful of gems, a couple of which are fit to be on any list of Great British comedies from the 60s. One such film is Carry On Up The Kyber, which arguably is the best of the bunch. Directed and written by the usual Thomas/Rothwell team, Up The Kyber is a genuinely funny, knowing and original comedy.
It's pretty much a given that the best "Carry On's" were the costume spoofers. So here we be in India in 1895, in the company of The Third Foot And Mouth Regiment {snicker snicker} and Emma Walker's fabulous costumes. Innuendo is kept to a bashful level as opposed to smutty overkill, the humour more concerned with taking pot shots out Imperialism and upper crust ignorance and snobbery. Officer's chain of command and the stiff upper lip in the face of certain death, oh yes the band really will play on. There's also smart jokes such as the one in my title, and watch out for a sly Rank Organisation gag. All dealt with cunningly and sharply by the likes of Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams and Peter Butterworth. Character names remain ridiculously charming, Rhandi Lal, Private Jimmy Widdle, Bungit Din {leader of the Burpas} and Brother Belcher. While the set pieces, crowned by the now famous dinner party finale, are excellently constructed.
Subtitled "The British Position In India," this is not your standard saucy seaside postcard picture {try saying that fast three times}. Hugely entertaining for a myriad of reasons, it's actually something of a British treasure that's still delighting newcomers to it each decade. 8.5/10
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Format: DVD
director of the carry ons gerald thomas and producer peter rogers have stated that this is their favourite carry on,the british film institute ranks this film as number 99 of the top 100 british films and most people will rate this as a brilliant film in any walk of life so the fact that its a carry on film may surprise some but the fact remains this whether as a one off film or as part of the series,carry on up the khyber is a classic.
released in 1968,the films theme centres on britains colonisation of india in the 19th century,sid james plays a british governer in the province of khalabar,the british army keep the country from peace and life is grand for sid especially,his enemy is kenny williams who plays a burpa chief who resents the english rule,when an opportunity arises for the burpas to seize the country back then they take their chance but sid along with his army,whom include roy castle,terry scott,charles hawtrey and tour guide peter butterworth try and find a way to show that they are the real leaders of the country.
The film is an example of the notion of the stiff upper lip belief in england of the time when war cant weaken the brave english,the dinner table scene is priceless and is an example of that notion,the film has been deemed racist in some quarters but i would be hard pressed to believe that was the intention,carry on up the khyber is a real classic in the carry on series and a real classic film on its own legs as well.
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Format: DVD | Verified Purchase
Fond memories of watching this as a kid were not matched by returning to it as an adult. I'm glad the DVD was cheap, as I'm not sure if/when we'll ever watch it again.
The lowbrow innuendo hasn't aged as well as, let's say, Peter Sellers more sophisticated clowning in The Party, both of which were made in 1968, and both of which feature white Englishmen pretending to be Indian. Roy 'Record Breaker' Castle appears in this film - his only Carry On (in the romantic male lead usually performed by the more cinematically charismatic Jim Dale) - alongside such familiar faces as Kenneth Williams, Sid James, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, et al.
Amongst the minor players Peter Butterworth as Brother Belcher, a randy but cowardly ecclesiastical, is one of the more enjoyable elements in this flimsy affair. The dependable Sid James is, for my money, the only major player whose character, as clichéd as ever, nevertheless makes the grade, as the equally (but more successfully) 'diplomatically' amorous Sidney Ruff-Diamond.
But some of the characters who are usually reliable Carry On stalwarts were, for me at any rate, simply cringeworthy, Kenneth Williams as The Khasi of Kalabar would be exemplary in this respect. Joan Sims reprises her usual scolding harridan role, which occasionally made my wife chortle, but is like nails on a blackboard to me.
The best Carry On films I've seen are Carry On Screaming and Carry on Cleo, which stand the rigours of time better than the vast majority of this prolific British franchise. Khyber is, according to the critics, apparently, one of the best of the series! I watched it with my wife and a regular guest, and it barely raised even the slightest of titters. Groans were plentiful.
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i don't know
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In which city was Marco Polo born?
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Marco Polo - Journalist, Explorer - Biography.com
Marco Polo
Venetian merchant and adventurer Marco Polo traveled from Europe to Asia from 1271 to 1295. He wrote Il Milione, known in English as The Travels of Marco Polo.
IN THESE GROUPS
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quotes
“When a man is riding through this [Gobi] desert by night and for some reason ... he gets separated from his companions ... he hears spirit voices talking to him ...Often these voices lure him away from the path and he never finds it again."[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“I have not told half of what I saw.”
“Without stones there is no arch.”
“This [Gobi] desert is reported to be so long that it would take a year to go from end to end; and at the narrowest point it takes a month to cross it ...There is nothing at all to eat."[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“All the emperors of the world and all the kings of Christians and Sacracens combined would not possess such power or be able to accomplish so much as this same Kubilai, the Great Khan."[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“You might well say that [the Great Khan] has mastered the art of alchemy. With these pieces of paper they can buy anything and pay for anything."[on the use of paper money; from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“The Christians say that their God was Jesus Christ, the Saracens Mahomet, the Jews Moses and the idolaters Sakyamuni Burkhan ... I do reverence and honor to all four, so that I may be sure of doing it to him who is greatest in heaven."[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“When the pirates capture a ship, they help themselves to both ship and cargo; but they do not hurt the crew. They say to them: 'Go and fetch another cargo. Then, with luck, you may bring us some more.'"[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“I believe it was God's will that we should come back, so that men might know the things that are in the world."[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“So it would have been better for the Caliph if he had given away his treasure to defend his land and his people rather than died with all his people and bereft of everything."[from "Marco Polo" by Richard Humble.]”
“All things that [I] saw and did and with whatever [I] met of good or bad [I] put in writing and so told all in order to [my] lord."[from "Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu" by Laurence Bergreen.]”
Marco Polo
Marco Polo - Full Episode (TV-14; 45:45) The full biography of explorer Marco Polo.
Synopsis
Marco Polo was born in 1254, in Venice, Italy. He traveled extensively with his family, journeying from Europe to Asia from 1271 to 1295. He remained in China for 17 of those years. Around 1292, he left China, acting as consort along the way to a Mongol princess who was being sent to Persia. His book Il Milione describes his travels and experiences and influenced later adventurers and merchants.
Early Life
Marco Polo was born in the year 1254 to a wealthy Venetian merchant family. Much of his childhood was spent parentless, and he was raised by an extended family. Polo's mother died when he was young, and his father and uncle, successful jewel merchants Niccolo and Maffeo Polo, were in Asia for much of Polo's youth.
Their journeys brought them into present-day China, where they joined a diplomatic mission to the court of Kublai Khan, the Mongol leader whose grandfather, Genghis Khan, had conquered Northeast Asia. In 1269, the two men returned to Venice, and immediately started making plans for their return to Khan's court. During their stay with the leader, Khan had expressed his interest in Christianity and asked the Polo brothers to visit again with 100 priests and a collection of holy water.
Khan's Empire, the largest the world had ever seen, was largely a mystery to those living within the borders of the Holy Roman Empire. A sophisticated culture outside the reaches of the Vatican seemed unfathomable, and yet, that's exactly what the Polo brothers described to confounded Venetians when they arrived home.
Journey to China
In 1271, Niccolo and Maffeo Polo set out for Asia again, but this time they brought young Marco with them. Unable to recruit the 100 priests that Khan had requested, they left with only two, who, after getting a taste of the hard journey ahead of them, soon turned back for home. The Polos' journey took place on land, and they were forced to cut through challenging and sometimes harsh territory. But through it all, Marco reveled in the adventure. His later memory for the places and cultures he witnessed was remarkable and exceptionally accurate.
As they made their way through the Middle East, Marco absorbed its sights and smells. His account of the Orient, especially, provided the western world with its first clear picture of the East's geography and ethnic customs. Hardships, of course, came his way. In what is now Afghanistan, Marco was forced to retreat to the mountains in order to recoup from an illness he'd contracted. Crossing the Gobi desert, meanwhile, proved long and, at times, arduous. "This desert is reported to be so long that it would take a year to go from end to end," Marco later wrote. "And at the narrowest point it takes a month to cross it. It consists entirely of mountains and sands and valleys. There is nothing at all to eat."
Finally, after four years of travel, the Polos reached China and Kublai Khan, who was staying at his summer palace known as Xanadu, a grand marble architectural wonder that dazzled young Marco.
Time in China
The Polos had originally planned to be gone for only a few years. However, they were away from Venice for more than 23 years. Debate has swirled among historians as to whether Marco ever really made it to China. There is no evidence outside his famous book that he traveled so far east. Yet, his knowledge of the culture and its customs are hard to dismiss. His later account told of Khan's extensive communication system, which served as the foundation for his rule. Marco's book, in fact, devotes five pages to the elaborate structure, describing how the empire's information highway efficiently and economically covered millions of square miles.
Khan's acceptance of the Polos offered the foreigners unparalleled access to his empire. Niccolo and Maffeo were granted important positions in the leader's Court. Marco, too, impressed Khan, who thought highly of the young man's abilities as a merchant. Marco's immersion into the Chinese culture resulted in him mastering four languages.
Khan eventually employed Marco as a special envoy. As a result, he sent Marco into far-flung areas of Asia never before explored by Europeans. Burma, India, Tibet and other areas were among the places that Marco ventured into. With him, as always, was a stamped metal packet from Khan himself that served as his official credentials from the powerful leader. As the years wore on, Marco was promoted for his work. He served as governor of a Chinese city, then later, Khan appointed him as an official of the Privy Council. At one point, he was the tax inspector in the city of Yanzhou.
From his travels, Marco amassed not only great knowledge about the Mongol empire, but incredible wonder. He marveled at the empire's use of paper money, an idea that had failed to reach Europe, and was in awe of its economy and scale of production. Marco's later stories showed him to be an early anthropologist and ethnographer. His reporting offers little about himself or his own thoughts, but instead gives the reader a dispassionate reporting about a culture he had clearly grown fond of.
Journey Home
Finally, after 17 years in Khan's court, the Polos decided it was time to return to Venice. Their decision was not one that pleased Khan, who'd grown to depend on the men. In the end, he acquiesced to their request with one condition: They escort a Mongol princess to Persia, where she was to marry a Persian prince.
Traveling by sea, the Polos left with a caravan of several hundred passengers and sailors. The journey proved harrowing, and many perished as a result of storms and disease. By the time the group reached Persia's Port of Hormuz, just 18 people, including the princess and the Polos, were still alive. Later, in Turkey, Genoese officials appropriated three-quarters of the family's wealth. After two years of travel, the Polos reached Venice. They'd been gone for more than two decades, and their return to their native land undoubtedly had its difficulties. Their faces looked unfamiliar to their family and they struggled to speak their native tongue.
"The Travels of Marco Polo"
Just a few years after his return to Venice, Marco commanded a ship in a war against the rival city of Genoa. He was eventually captured and sentenced to a Genoese prison, where he met a fellow prisoner and writer named Rustichello. As the two men became friends, Marco told Rustichello about his time in Asia, what he'd seen, where he'd traveled and what he'd accomplished. His stories were soon committed to paper and eventually published as a book called The Description of the World, later known as The Travels of Marco Polo.
The book made Marco, who was released from prison in 1299, a celebrity. It was printed in French, Italian and Latin, becoming the most popular read in Europe. But few readers allowed themselves to believe Marco's tale. They took it to be fiction, the construct of a man with a wild imagination. The work eventually earned another title: Il Milione ("The Million Lies"). Marco, however, stood behind his book. He also moved on with his life. After his release from prison, he returned to Venice, where he married, raised three daughters and, for some 25 years, carried on the family business.
Marco died at his home in Venice on January 8, 1324. As he lay dying, friends and fans of his book paid him visits, urging him to admit that his book was fiction. Marco wouldn't relent. "I have not told half of what I saw," he said.
Legacy
In the centuries since his death, Marco Polo has received the recognition that failed to come his way during his lifetime. So much of what he claimed to have seen has been verified by researchers, academics and other explorers. Even if his accounts came from other travelers he met along the way, Marco's story has inspired countless other adventurers to set off and see the world. Two centuries after Marco's passing, Christopher Columbus set off across the Atlantic in hopes of finding a new route to the Orient. With him was a copy of Marco Polo's book.
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Marco Polo's Croatian roots based on solid research - London Financial Times
» Home » Published Articles » Marco Polo's Croatian roots based on solid research - London Financial Times
» Home » History » Marco Polo's Croatian roots based on solid research - London Financial Times
Marco Polo's Croatian roots based on solid research - London Financial Times
Croatian History Pilars and Pearls
Marco�Polo, Croatian merchant Marko Polo
Polo roots based on solid research
Published: December 3 2007 02:00 | Last updated: December 3 2007 02:00
From Ms Hilda Marija Foley.
Sir, Your Special Report about today's Croatia (November 12) was very interesting and informative, but Neil MacDonald's article " Island clings to Venetian roots " needs a few corrections or explanations.
The article mentions that Croatians believe Marco Polo was born in the town of Korcula on the island of the same name in Croatia. His being born there, or certainly his family coming from there, is based on solid research of the Polo Croatian family roots, by looking into the Italian (then Venetian) historical records of the time, with a number of the researchers being British and Italian.
Records show that Marco Polo's father Nicolo and uncle Maffeo Pilic were rich merchants from Sibenik in Dalmatia, then under Venetian rule, who went to Venice as established businessmen. All of the merchant and nobility class of that time used the Italian version of their names, so Pilic, which is Croatian for chicken, became Polo in Italian. The Pilic/Polo family coat of arms shows a crown and four chickens. (Your reporter mentions out of the blue that the name Polo was "Slavicised" into "Pavelic"!)
The medieval archives of Venice are among the best in Europe, yet there is no mention of Marco Polo's birth, only citizen of Venice and his date of death. There is a quay in Venice near the Duke's Palace still called Schiavoni ("Slavs") as Croatians/Dalmatians were called at that time, where many Croatian seamen and merchants arrived from Dalmatia. The Polo family lived in this Schiavoni section of Venice were the Croatians had their churches, school and Guild Hall. Today there are still Croatian families named Polo, de Polo and Pilic in Croatia, but according to Italian sources there are no Polos in Italy.
It is indeed strange to read that the tourist director of Korcula is annoyed at the Croatian national tourist brochures mentioning Croatia as the homeland of Marco Polo. Perhaps foreign reporters should keep in mind that in today's Croatia there is still a certain segment of the population that hankers for communist Yugoslavia and will denigrate anything that brings Croatia favourable attention.
Hilda Marija Foley,
Marko Polo and Korcula by dr. Zivan Filippi
Korcula and the Polo Family
The 13th century was the time when Europe lived in constant conflict between its town-states, which were still preoccupied with the Crusades. It was a time when numerous armies were crossing European soil, destroying foreign towns and killing off their inhabitants. This was a time of poor living conditions, when food and clothing were lacking, and when European inhabitants did not know much about raw materials and agricultural skills. They had no knowledge of coal, oil, paper, gunpowder, compasses, coffee, potatoes, corn, tomatoes, tabacco...all the things without which the life of contemporary man would seem inconceivable.
But while political instability and economic poverty were limiting the life of the average European, reducing it to pure survival, the stability of the Roman Catholic Church - in spite of all dynastic struggles and doctrinarian rigidity, often with perilous consequences - at the same time opened to him spiritual perspectives, giving hope and laying down the structural base for cultural development. This was the time of the most splendid Gothic building, as for example the cathedral of Chartres, begun in 1294; of Reims in 1210; of Salisbury, erected in 1220. One of the most significant political events was the proclamation of Rudolf for Holy Roman Emperor, who managed to spread the influence of the Habsburgs to Austria, thus laying the foundations of the state which would, for the next five centuries, represent the bulwark of European culture.
In that interplay - of the material and the spiritual, of violence and reconciliation, a mixture of awareness and dream - an unique position was to be held by that small Italian town-state, called Venice. Built on an island archipelago, near the mainland, it looked like an enchanted vision which emerging like Aphrodite from the Adriatic Sea. But Venice was not an apparition. Built in stone in the magnificent style of the Middle Ages with emphasized Byzantine elements and connected by a network of channels and bridges, it manifested the power of a trading and maritime force, spreading its influence across the Adriatic aquatic surface, and over to the Mediterranean as far as Constantinople itself, which fell into its hands in 1202.
The town and island of Korcula was unprotected, and indeed there were many who fought for it at that time because of its strategic position on the maritime trade routes and also because of its geographical configuration which makes it ideal for the refuge of war ships and merchant galleys. For these reasons Korcula was unlikely to escape the powerful arm of Venice. The Croat population of the island and the town of Korcula tried hard to resist the intensions of the Venetian Republic. In order to hinder Venitian plans and protect their island community, the Korculans adopted their communal statute in 1214. That statute, the oldest legal document in this part of Europe, codified the whole life of the town and the island and, in many of its decrees, set an example of the European proportions. Numerous decrees regarding maritime law, the abolition of slavery, the protection of the environment etc. witness to a high political and cultural level in Korcula at that time; though it was living as were other Dalmatian towns in the 13th century as well, in the danger due to the avaricious appetites of the powerful forces around it. The Korcula statute protected Korcula from the authoritarian reign of Venice, but at the same time offered Korcula Venetian protection from other possible aggressors as it wanted to continue its relative prosperity, especially in shipbuilding, stone-cutting and shipping. The citizen of Korcula, though under the yoke and protection of Venice could guard his rights and his lifestyle from the outside world because of the legal codex, but he wished to look beyond the borders and the limits of western metaphysics and he he began to broader his aspirations to take in the outside world, for the fulfilment of his dream regarding a better future. His sailing ships ventured in search of the unknown and, by reason of their masculine violence ploughed the Mediterranean furrows, whereas the citizen himself remained in the secure maternal womb of his city nucleus and his peasant field. Sea furrow, field furrow, and a furrow as the line of his writing, welded in the Korcula statute, spelt for the Korcula citizen the chance of a wondrous joy of existence.
Amidst the overall risks of the European insecurity, Korcula, either by force or willingly, accepts the previous duke of Dubrovnik, Marsilie Zorzi, a Venetian nobleman, as its duke in 1254. In that same year Marko Polo was born.
The Polo family is much respected in Korcula; living overr centuries in the town of Korcula. It produced over the years numerous shipbuilders, smiths, stone-masons, tradesmen, priests, and public notaries. Marko's father Nikola and uncle Mate founded their trading outpost in Korcula, and the members of the Polo family were guardians of the walls around the town of Korcula. But, for the skilful tradesmen Nikola and Mate, Korcula was only the starting point of their business trade and their adventurous life. Marko's father and uncle penetrated deeply into Asia. They erected a tower and founded their own trading outpost in the town of Sudac on the Crimea. They had their main trade centre in Constantinople, to which many Korcula businessmen and shipbuilders were travelling and for some time they were living there. Mate and Nikola Polo traded successfully with the Persians. They were cognisant with the secret ways which led through Syria and Iraq as far as the coasts of Persian Gulf. They also knew the areas where the precious pearl oysters could be found. Wherever they ventured they were made welcome as people who were "noble-minded, wise and reasonable". They knew the routes that led to the fur traders of southern Siberia. They had trade contacts with the dignitaries of various Tartar peoples, and they reached the court of the Great Kublai Khan in China. They had started their journey before Marko Polo was born. The successful Korcula tradesmen feeling secure in their centuries-old native soil of Korcula, left their family and still unborn son Marko, as they gazed towards the Far East searching there for a realization of their dream of the rich life. Their ideas of fusing the cultural structures of the West and the East also decreed the destiny of Nikola's son, Marko Polo, from the day of his birth.
Marko achieved the usual education of a young nobleman of his age. He learned a lot about classical writers, he understood the text of the Bible and knew the basic theology of the Roman Catholic Church. He spoke French and Italian, especially the trade vocabulary, and was skilful in keeping business books. The Church books and songs in Croatian from Marko's time have been preserved in Korcula, and it is most probable that Marko knew the Croatian language as spoken by the inhabitants of Korcula. That knowledge was to help him very much when he traveled with his father and uncle across south Russia, then inhabited by Slavonic tribes and under Tartar reign. The European languages which Marko learned in his youth were to be the basis for the development of his polyglot talents when he came in touch, in the Far East, with Chinese; this, too, he learned successfully.
Korcula first had a bishop in 1300, which contributed a great deal to the writing and maintenance of the archives, both Church and secular, and some well-known families kept their own archives. Thus, the always rich Korcula tradition passed on by word of mouth, received also written support for the preservation of the collective communal memory, thus giving birth to capable men ready for the adventures of body and spirit in distant worlds.
The oldest written document in which the Polo family is mentioned is a deed of gift dated March 14th 1400. The then duke of Korcula, Mihajlo Musi and three Korcula judges donated to a certain Joannis a building in the town quarter on the eastern side, near the house of Bogavaz Dupolo. It is the exact location of the present "tower of Marko Polo"; from which one can see clearly all the Peljesac Channel; the route of trading vessels from Hellenic times to the present day.
A somewhat older document, from 1430, speaks about the life and work of members of the Polo family in Korcula in the 13th century, mostly featuring the centuries-old tradition of building Korcula style wooden boats, well known in the whole of the Mediterranean. That document is to be found in the private archives of the Kapor family in Korcula. In this, Mate Polo applies to the community of Korcula for a piece of land for his ship-yard, near the place where his grandfathers were building boats. That document is concrete evidence that the Polos were living in Korcula and building the boats even before Marko Polo was alive. Korcula shipyards were situated both on the eastern and western shores adjacent to the fortified medieval town. In this a way, the shipbuilders, working in the vicinity of the city walls, and living inside them, were able to defend their town in case of enemy attack. In the list mentioning ship-builders in 1594, there are 16 ship-wrights from the Polo family, and in the 1810 list, 22. From a legal case of 1778, we learn that the name of the owner of a shipyard in the eastern suburb was Marko Depolo. As the skills of ship-building, as well as the ownership of the shipyards, were passing from generation to generation, from father to son, various families were for centuries using the same plots for the needs of their workshops. It is evident from the land-registry maps of the past century, and from photos exhibited in the City Museum that Mihovil Depolo, Nikola's son, (1864-1943) was the owner of one of the bigger shipyards on the eastern side ("Borak"), and that Lovro Depolo (1853-1943) was the owner of the biggest shipyard of all on the western side of the town of Korcula ("Sv. Nikola").
The Korculans were not only outstanding ship-builders but also experienced seamen. They excelled, too, as good warriors in many sea battles; among them, members of the Depolo family. Archive material and memorials confirm that the duke of Korcula, Andrea Zane, in 1584, entrusted, among others, Jerolim, Pavle and Nikola Polo, with finding crews for the participation of the town of Korcula in one of the sea battles.
Archive material concerning Korcula reveals also the rich religious life of the Korcul people especially notable in the founding and regular activities of the brotherhoods. These offered, to the various groups belonging to specific crafts, a spiritual refuge and place of relaxation from every day hard work. Like others, the Polos lived an intensive religious life. Bishop of Vinzenza, Mihovil Priuli issued a charter on January 28 1603, for the founding of the brotherhood of St. Michael (Sveti Mihovil). Among the founders, were listed the names of Pavle, Marko, Jakov, sons of Dominik De-Polo, and Vicko and Ivan, sons of Nikola De-Polo. The name of the Franciscan procurator (representative), Marko de Polo, was inscribed on the apple of the silver carrying cross belonging to the Franciscan monastery founded on the island of Badija, near Korcula. The cross was the work of the Sibenik goldsmith, Dobrosevic, whose name was also inscribed on it. The alter painting of St. Ann in the church of All Saints, dating from the beginning of the 17th century, reveals in the text at its base that the painting was the gift of Vinzentie de Polo, presbyter Marko de Polo, and others.
If we walk through the cemetery of Korcula we can see numerous tombs of the Depolo family, dating from the founding of the cemetery to the present day. Outstanding for its beauty is the family vault of Nikola and Rosa Depolo from 1891.
The surname Polo derives from the name Pavao. It was first mentioned in its Croatian form Paulovic (Pavlovic), then in the Latin form De Paulis, Venetian Di Polo, and afterwards remained only Depolo. The earliest mentioned medieval Identification System was the first name and, beside it, the additions, which specified the particular person, differentiating it from others of the same name. The surname appeared only when one of the additions to the name became hereditary. The confirmation of this rule, and that in the case when the surname Polo derives from the name Paulus (Pavao), is found in the following example. The public notary, Jakov Giricic, drew up a will for the ship-builder Paulus (Pavao) in Korcula on February 1st 1565. His surname is not mentioned, only his first name. The original of that will is now kept in the Historical Museum in Dubrovnik. It is evident from other documents written after the said will (contracts, wills and registers) that the sons of the testator now bear the permanent surname, De Paulis. The grandson of the will-maker, Nikola, bears the surname Di Paulo, and the great grandsons, Ivan and Vicko, whom we find among the founders of the brotherhood of St. Michael, bear the surname De Polo.
A frequent use of the surname in its Croatian form of Paulovic (Pavlovic) is evident from a review of the registers between the 16th and 18th centuries. It is last time mentioned for the February 2nd 1747 when Margarita, daughter of Ivan Paulovich and Vica Foretich, was born. The form of the surname Depolo became common with the birth of Mihovil, son of Marko and Palma, on June 18th 1771. From that time it has been listed in this form only. There is an interesting case of the brothers Marko and Andrija, of whom each uses another form of the surname. The contract made in 1525, between the Korcula builder, Marko Pavlovic and the Korcula chapter house, states that Marko obliged himself to complete the building of the northern aisle of the cathedral in Korcula. However, he died during the building in 1532, and his brother, the priest Andrija, with the surname De Paulis was proclaimed the tutor of his children.
712 persons with the surname Polo-Depolo were born in the period between 1583 and 1946. Domenego di Polo, god-father at the baptism of Vinzenza Ismaelis on June 26th 1583, appears on the very first page of the first registry of births in Korcula. The most impressive survey of the expansion of the surname Polo-Depolo is the list of priors ("gastaldi") of the brotherhood of St. Roko, founded on August 16th 1575. A review of the archives of Dalmatian town-communities reveals that the members of the Polo family, later Depolo, have lived continuously in the town of Korcula for centuries.
With regard to Italian professional literature, the most frequent opinion is that the Polo family comes from Dalmatia. Such a claim is evidenced in the manuscript chronicle about Venetian history covering the history of Venice from its beginning until 1446, and also in the book Le vite dei dogi (The Lives of the Dukes), published in Venice in 1522. The same thesis is expounded in later Italian literature, as for example in Biografia universale antica e moderna from 1882 and Storia di Venezia from 1848.
Today, there are Depolos living outside Korcula - in Dubrovnik, Split, Rijeka, Zagreb, Athens, Ismir, New Zealand, USA, Chile and Argentina. All of them originate from Korcula, and have family connections with their Korcula relatives.
All the facts mentioned lead to the conclusion that Korcula is the town of the Polo family - Paulovic (Pavlovic) - De Polo - Di Polo - Depolo g continuously in the period from the 13th century, and according to verbal tradition even much earlier, until the present day. At the same time Korcula is the town from which many members of this family have gone to other towns and other countries. Some of them return and some of them spend their whole lives in the new environment. If the above written documents, especially those printed in Venice, say explicitly that the family of Marko Polo comes from Dalmatia, all available historical sources confirm that Korcula is, without any doubt, the town of origin of the family called POLO - DEPOLO.
The centuries-old oral tradition - handed down by word of mouth in songs, proverbs, stories, legends - connects Marko Polo and Korcula; in the development of writing, the organization of authority, education, and culture. This cedes place gradually to written evidence in the form of archives, manuscripts, contracts, deed of gifts, registry of births, deaths and marriages, and, in the recent times, in the form of literary works. So the legend of Marko Polo expands ever further, and more and more it is taken over by visual and written media: television programmes, expert and popular periodicals, tourist reviews, and set books all over the world. Marko Polo and Korcula become an inseparable structural pair in which each pole enriches and ennobles the other.
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Which TV drama was set in the offices of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak?
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Drama series set in the offices of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak - crossword puzzle clues & answers - Dan Word
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Drama series set in the offices of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak
Today's crossword puzzle clue is a general knowledge one: Drama series set in the offices of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak. We will try to find the right answer to this particular crossword clue. Here are the possible solutions for "Drama series set in the offices of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak" clue. It was last seen in British general knowledge crossword. We have 1 possible answer in our database.
Possible answer:
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L.A. Law
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In which year of the First World War was the Battle of Verdun?
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L.A. Law
Victor Sifuentes (1986-1991)..... Jimmy Smits
Abby Perkins (1986-1991)..... Michele Greene
Roxanne Melman (1986-1993)..... Susan Ruttan
Elizabeth Brand (1986-1988)..... Ellen Drake
Sheila Brackman (1986-1988)..... Joanna Frank
Hilda Brunschweiger (1986-1987)..... Patricia Huston
Iris Hubbard (1986-1987)..... Cynthia Harris
Benny Stulwicz (1987-1994)..... Larry Drake
Jonathan Rollins (1987-1994)..... Blair Underwood
Alison Gottlieb (1988-1989)..... Joyce Hyser
David Meyer (1988-1990)..... Dann Florek
Dorothy Wyler (1989)..... Nancy Vawter
Rosalind Shays (1989-1991)..... Diana Muldaur
Corrine Hammond (1989-1991)..... Jennifer Hetrick
Diane Moses (1989-1990)..... Renee Jones
Murray Melman (1990)..... Vincent Gardenia
Gwen Taylor (1990-1993)..... Sheila Kelley
Tommy Mullaney (1990-1994)..... John Spencer
Cara Jean (C.J.) Lamb (1990-1992)..... Amanda Donohoe
Zoey Clemmons (1991-1992)..... Cecil Hoffmann
Billy Castroverti (1991-1992)..... Tom Verica
Susan Bloom (1991-1992)..... Conchata Ferrell
Frank Kittredge (1991-1992)..... Michael Cumpsty
Daniel Morales (1992-1994)..... A Martinez
Eli Levinson (1993-1994)..... Alan Rosenberg
Denise Ianello (1993-1994)..... Debi Mazar
Jane Halliday (1993-1994)..... Alexandra Powers
Melinda Paros (1993-1994)..... Liza Jane
Rosalie (1993-1994)..... Kathleen Wilhoite
SYNOPSIS
This critically acclaimed ensemble drama was one of the hits of the 1986 season. Created by Steven Bochco (creator of Hill Street Blues) and Terry Louise Fisher (producer of Cagney and Lacey, and a former Deputy D.A. herself), it looked like Hill Street in a fancy law office, with many characters and stories intertwined in each episode.
The high-powered Los Angeles law firm of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak took on cases of all types, criminal and civil, usually for high fees (though they also did some �pro bono� work for the poor). Leland McKenzie was the esteemed fatherly senior partner; Brackman, the vain, insufferable, balding partner struggling to fill his late father�s formidable shoes; Kuzak, the savvy but compassionate younger partner; Van Owen, the idealistic Deputy D.A. who was Kuzak's lover and sometime courtroom opponent; Ann, another idealistic attorney; Stuart, the firm's nebbishy little tax attorney, who had a heart of gold and also had the hots for Ann; Arnie, the sleazy, womanizing divorce lawyer (whose object was often to create discord in order to produce a more profitable case); Victor, the uptight young Hispanic brought into the firm to meet racial quotas, and knew it; Abby, the unsure-of-herself young intern; and Roxanne, the motherly receptionist. Added in 1987 were Jonathan, a young black lawyer, and Benny, a retarded office worker � one of the few continuing portrayals in TV series history of a retarded person.
Plenty of office politics and sexual adventures were mixed in with the cases (Markowitz and Kelsey angling to become partners, Kuzak lusting after Van Owen, Markowitz after Kelsey, Becker after everybody). Perhaps the series most publicized early episode was the one in which a bigamist-client taught Stuart a secret sexual maneuver guaranteed to melt down any woman � the �Venus Butterfly.� Viewers never learned what it was, but Ann was his.
Other continuing stories unfolded soap-opera style. Abby left the firm to set up her own shaky practice, but eventually returned. Van Owen was named a judge, then resigned to join McKenzie, Brackman. Arnie produced a best-selling do-it-yourself divorce video in partnership with Roxanne's incredibly boring husband David, a direct-mail entrepreneur. He soon had use for it himself. After years of seducing rich, beautiful women, Arnie finally �settled down� and married Corrine, only to fall off the sexual wagon with, among others, of all people, his loyal, plain-Jane secretary, Roxanne.
The most famous storyline began in 1989 with the arrival of hard-driving Rosalind Shays, a super-successful but unlikable litigator who was brought in as a partner to rejuvenate sagging revenues. Roz took over with a vengeance, wooing Leland in the process, but was eventually forced out in a battle royal that almost destroyed the firm. (Her subsequent lawsuit cost the remaining partners $2.1 million.) She met an abrupt end in March 1991 when she accidentally stepped into an empty elevator shaft and plunged to her death.
Besides its soap-opera entanglements, L.A. Law emphasized outrageous situations and trendy cases. Cases touched on such diverse subjects as the �outing� of prominent homosexuals, dwarf tossing, anti-American discrimination in Japanese firms, insurance companies that refused to cover AIDS medication, and a case involving a businessman with Tourette�s Syndrome � causing him to involuntarily blurt out obscenities at the most inopportune moments.
Major cast changes occurred in 1990. Kuzak angrily left to set up his own firm, causing yet another change in the company�s name to McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney, and Becker. (Chaney, by the way, had died at his desk in the premiere episode.) Arriving were three very different attorneys: Tommy Mullaney, an anti-establishment maverick who worked on commission because he couldn't stand �suit and tie shops� like McKenzie, Brackman; Zoey, his ex-wife, an Assistant D.A.; and C.J., a feisty, hot-shot litigator with an English accent, who happened to be bisexual.
Despite the turmoil, the practice of law did have its rewards. The opening titles showed the words �LA LAW� on a California license plate � resting securely on a Jaguar XJ6.
Later seasons brought brash entertainment lawyer Susan Bloom, charged with drumming up new business for the troubled firm; her associate Frank; Grace�s departure for New York; C.J.�s departure to join a golf tour; Rollins� campaign for city council; Markowitz�s slow emotional recovery from a beating; Benny�s marriage to Rosalie; and the arrival in the last season of Eli and Denise from ABC�s canceled Civil Wars � a rare instance of characters from one series moving to another. By this time the firm called McKenzie, Brackman, Kelsey, Markowitz and Morales. In the May 1994 final episode, father figure Leland McKenzie announced his retirement, effectively closing the doors on L.A. Law.
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i don't know
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Who was the time keeper when Roger Bannister ran the first sub four- minute mile?
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Roger Bannister Biography -Biography Online
Roger Bannister Biography
Sir Roger Bannister was born in 1929. He went to study medicine at Oxford University. In 1952, he represented Great Britain in the Olympics in Helsinki however, Sir Roger Bannister could only finish 4th in the 1500 metres. Inspired by the intensive training and the three gold medals of Emile Zatopek, Bannister decided to make a great effort to beat the magical four minute barrier for the mile. Bannister was at the time working as a doctor and only had limited time for training in the evening. He focused on short intervals, anaerobic training and the use of block training (building up for certain weeks)
For a long time the beautiful symmetry of the four minute mile had fascinated many. Some experts even suggested that such a time was impossible. In 1923, Paavo Nurmi, the Flying Finn, recorded a time of 4.10
Roger Bannister Breaks the Sub 4 minute Mile
In 1953, Roger Bannister saw an opportunity at an athletic meeting between Oxford University and Amateur Athletics Association on 6 May.
The actual day was cold, wet and windy and the record attempt was nearly called off. However, at the last moment, the wind died down and Bannister decided to take his chance. He was led out by 2 pacemakers Chris Chataway and Chris Brasher who led him for the first three laps. Then Bannister made his last effort for the line. Clearly on the verge of exhaustion, Bannister almost fainted over the line, before the time keeper (Norris McWhirter,) read out his time. McWhirter who went on to work on the Guinness Book of World Records, read out the time to create suspension.
“Ladies and gentlemen, here is the result of event nine, the one mile: first, number forty one, R. G. Bannister, Amateur Athletic Association and formerly of Exeter and Merton Colleges, Oxford, with a time which is a new meeting and track record, and which—subject to ratification—will be a new English Native, British National, All-Comers, European, British Empire and World Record. The time was three…”
The seconds were not heard as the 3,000 crowd cheered the historic moment. Six weeks later in Finland the Australian John Landy became the second person to beat the 4 minute mile setting a new world record of 3 minutes 57 seconds. But, who remembers the second person to run a sub four minute mile? Bannister held the one mile record for the shortest time.
After breaking the record, Bannister concentrated on his medical career and remained modest about his ground breaking achievement. He said there was an element of luck in being the first person to break the four minute mile. It remains one of the great milestones of athletic history
“The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win.”
– Roger Bannister
He went on to be a distinguished neurologist and Master of Pembroke College, Oxford, before retiring in 1993. When interviewed 50 years after the famous four minute mile, Bannister was asked whether he thought the sub four minute mile was his life’s greatest achievements. He said no. He felt his work in neurology was of greater importance. Bannister made discoveries in the field of autonomic failure.
The current mile record is held by Hicham El Guerrouj’s with a time of 3:43.13.
Citation : Pettinger, Tejvan . “Biography of Roger Bannister “, Oxford, UK – www.biographyonline.net . Last updated 9th August. 2014
The Four-Minute Mile – Roger Bannister
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Norris McWhirter
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What name is given to the position of the Moon in it's orbit, when it is closest to the Earth?
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Roger Bannister Biography -Biography Online
Roger Bannister Biography
Sir Roger Bannister was born in 1929. He went to study medicine at Oxford University. In 1952, he represented Great Britain in the Olympics in Helsinki however, Sir Roger Bannister could only finish 4th in the 1500 metres. Inspired by the intensive training and the three gold medals of Emile Zatopek, Bannister decided to make a great effort to beat the magical four minute barrier for the mile. Bannister was at the time working as a doctor and only had limited time for training in the evening. He focused on short intervals, anaerobic training and the use of block training (building up for certain weeks)
For a long time the beautiful symmetry of the four minute mile had fascinated many. Some experts even suggested that such a time was impossible. In 1923, Paavo Nurmi, the Flying Finn, recorded a time of 4.10
Roger Bannister Breaks the Sub 4 minute Mile
In 1953, Roger Bannister saw an opportunity at an athletic meeting between Oxford University and Amateur Athletics Association on 6 May.
The actual day was cold, wet and windy and the record attempt was nearly called off. However, at the last moment, the wind died down and Bannister decided to take his chance. He was led out by 2 pacemakers Chris Chataway and Chris Brasher who led him for the first three laps. Then Bannister made his last effort for the line. Clearly on the verge of exhaustion, Bannister almost fainted over the line, before the time keeper (Norris McWhirter,) read out his time. McWhirter who went on to work on the Guinness Book of World Records, read out the time to create suspension.
“Ladies and gentlemen, here is the result of event nine, the one mile: first, number forty one, R. G. Bannister, Amateur Athletic Association and formerly of Exeter and Merton Colleges, Oxford, with a time which is a new meeting and track record, and which—subject to ratification—will be a new English Native, British National, All-Comers, European, British Empire and World Record. The time was three…”
The seconds were not heard as the 3,000 crowd cheered the historic moment. Six weeks later in Finland the Australian John Landy became the second person to beat the 4 minute mile setting a new world record of 3 minutes 57 seconds. But, who remembers the second person to run a sub four minute mile? Bannister held the one mile record for the shortest time.
After breaking the record, Bannister concentrated on his medical career and remained modest about his ground breaking achievement. He said there was an element of luck in being the first person to break the four minute mile. It remains one of the great milestones of athletic history
“The man who can drive himself further once the effort gets painful is the man who will win.”
– Roger Bannister
He went on to be a distinguished neurologist and Master of Pembroke College, Oxford, before retiring in 1993. When interviewed 50 years after the famous four minute mile, Bannister was asked whether he thought the sub four minute mile was his life’s greatest achievements. He said no. He felt his work in neurology was of greater importance. Bannister made discoveries in the field of autonomic failure.
The current mile record is held by Hicham El Guerrouj’s with a time of 3:43.13.
Citation : Pettinger, Tejvan . “Biography of Roger Bannister “, Oxford, UK – www.biographyonline.net . Last updated 9th August. 2014
The Four-Minute Mile – Roger Bannister
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i don't know
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Edward II was murdered in the south tower of which castle?
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King Edward II’s Death – Hot Poker? | Times Higher Education
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For centuries, it has been believed that King Edward II met his end in Berkeley Castle in 13. Having been captured by an army led by his queen, Isabella, and her lover, Sir Roger Mortimer, he was forced to abdicate in favour of his underage son, Edward III. He was then imprisoned and, according to those chroniclers most biased against his usurpers, was then subjected to a series of torments, including being starved and thrown into a pit full of rotting corpses.
But it was the final torture that made Edward II’s death arguably the most famous in English royal history: a group of men pinned the deposed king beneath a mattress or table, pushed a horn into his anus, and then inserted a red-hot poker that burned out his internal organs. This grisly execution was supposedly devised to leave no visible mark on the body. Although many historians have long suspected that the red-hot poker story was just medieval propaganda, most agreed that Edward II was indeed murdered in 13.
As a result, the death has a rare status in British history: part of the nation’s consciousness of its bloody heritage and a landmark date in works ranging from the Handbook of British Chronology to the tourist guidebooks to both Berkeley Castle and Gloucester Cathedral, where Edward II is buried. This creates huge problems for the historian who discovers that the murder simply did not happen: Edward II did not die in Berkeley Castle.
That no newly discovered documents or recent forensic tests underpin this claim only increases the difficulties he faces. To challenge popular belief on such grounds is by no means unprecedented, but to challenge the consensus of academic opinion in this way is hardly imaginable.
In fact, the idea that Edward II was not murdered was first mooted in 1877 when a French archivist published the text of a copy of an undated letter purporting to be from a papal notary, Manuele de Fieschi, to Edward III.
This reported how the young king’s father had “escaped” from Berkeley Castle and, via Ireland, France and Germany, arrived in Lombardy. The great historians William Stubbs and Thomas Frederick Tout, writing in 1883 and 1919 respectively, could neither believe nor explain the text.
Years later, though, Pierre Chaplais pointed out that royal accounts dated 1338-39 refer to a “William the Welshman”, who claimed with impunity to be Edward II in the presence of Edward III at Cologne and Antwerp. Other documents were published suggesting Edward II’s survival, including the judgment on his half-brother, the Earl of Kent, who was executed in March 1330 for trying to effect Edward’s release from Corfe Castle, even though the deposed king had supposedly been dead for three years.
Against such evidence stood the chronicle reports stating that Edward II had died in Berkeley Castle. More important, a number of Edward III’s own statements attest to the murder, including records of the prosecution of the supposed murderers in the Parliamentary Rolls. The case seemed rock-solid. But recently, the evidence has been reconsidered from the point of view of the supposed murderers, and an entirely different picture of Edward II’s “death” has emerged.
The key to understanding what happened is knowing how news of the king’s death spread. A message that Edward II had died on September 21 13 was sent from Berkeley Castle to Edward III in Lincoln. A public announcement was made after Parliament broke up on September 29, and the news was accepted in good faith. Three weeks later, Lord Berkeley led the funeral cort ge into Gloucester, and the interment took place in late December. But the corpse could have been anybody’s; before leaving the castle, it had been completely covered in waxed cloth and encased within two coffins. As the only chronicler to mention the event put it: the king’s body was exhibited “superficially”.
The rule of Lord Mortimer was brought to an end in October 1330. He was hanged after being judged guilty of a long list of crimes, including Edward II’s murder. He was not permitted to say anything to Parliament in his defence. But Lord Berkeley was allowed to speak. In reply to the question of how he intended to acquit himself of complicity in Edward’s murder, Berkeley stated that he “had not heard that the man was dead until coming into this present parliament”. Many scholars have wondered what he meant by this. Perhaps they should have wondered a little harder, for the entire traditional narrative of the murder followed Berkeley’s initial message that the king had died. Yet here he was admitting that he had lied.
Furthermore, the Parliamentary Rolls confirm that Berkeley shared responsibility with Sir John Maltravers for making sure that no harm came to Edward II while in their custody. But Maltravers, who escaped capture in 1330, was never charged with failing in this duty. Edward III cannot have been trying to protect Maltravers as he was sentenced in his absence to a traitor’s death for the lesser crime of being an accessory to the judicial execution of the Earl of Kent. As one of the two men equally liable, it follows that the charges brought against Berkeley were groundless. Edward III was forced to bring fictitious charges against his father’s jailer to support his sentence against Mortimer. Subsequently, all charges against Berkeley were dropped.
Faced with a correlation of the perspectives of accuser and accused, one can no longer support the traditional narrative of Edward’s death. Those who wish to do so need to undermine the logic of the arguments concerning Berkeley’s testimony and the failure to charge Maltravers if they wish to continue to participate in the debate. Perhaps most interesting of all, there is no longer any justification for dismissing the Fieschi letter as a forgery, or the accounts of William the Welshman as the antics of an imposter. Rather, we should question the reliability of the chronicles with regard to the death, on whose misinformation so many have placed much trust for so long.
We cannot be certain what happened to Edward II after 1330. If the Fieschi letter is correct - and it seems probable that it broadly outlines the facts of Edward II’s later life as he himself understood them - he was released after the execution of Mortimer. He then travelled to Avignon to see the pope, who persuaded him to give up his attempts to regain the throne. If the revised dating of the Fieschi letter to early 1336 is correct, it would appear that he had settled at a hermitage in Lombardy by the end of 1331. It seems likely that the William the Welshman brought to Edward III at Cologne in 1338 was indeed Edward II; he was with the court at Antwerp just after the birth of Edward III’s second son, Lionel. After this, he disappears from the records. The man who presented William the Welshman to Edward III was paid for some secret business three years later that involved several months abroad, possibly to bring Edward II’s remains back from Italy. It is almost certain that Edward II’s remains were placed in Gloucester Cathedral before his son made a pilgrimage there in 1343.
The importance of this debate is, of course, what it means for those studying Edward III and Mortimer, whose tenure of power may well have relied on his secret custody of Edward II. We will probably not be able to discuss such matters until the controversy of Edward II’s survival has been fully ignited, raged and died down. In the meantime, the challenge to the academic establishment is obvious, as is its responsibility to the public in a matter of national heritage.
Ian Mortimer, former library archivist at Exeter University, is now studying for his PhD. His book The Greatest Traitor: The Life of Sir Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, Ruler of England 13-1330 was published last month by Jonathan Cape (£17.99).
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Berkeley Castle
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What is the main ingredient of the traditional Scottish soup, 'Partan Bree'?
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Berkeley Castle
Berkeley Castle
The Fortress that Saw a King's Murder?
If you like your castles with a bit of gruesome history, then you won't find many in England that can beat Berkeley Castle. King Edward II, that lover of art, music and Piers Gaveston, was held prisoner here from April to September 1327, when he was murdered by an unknown hand.
Apparently, there was no mark on the body and until this day you can listen to conflicting ideas as to how the king met his demise.
Some say that he was smothered, others that he was strangles and yet others that he was murdered with a red hot poker. Nobody knows. But it is thought that the echoes of his dying screams can be heard around the castle's dungeon on the day of his death. And if you want to check this out for yourself, then mark September 21st in your calendar.
But a royal murder isn't the castle's only claim to fame. Begun in 1153 on the order of King Henry II to secure the border to Wales and protect the Bristol road, the castle has been a home throughout 850 years, making it the oldest continuously occupied castle in England after the Tower of London and Windsor Castle.
And not only that. For over 850 years it's been in the same family. There are not many places in the world that can make such a claim! In fact, there are only three families in England who can trace their ancestry back to Saxon times.
Berkeley Castle
© David Hughes | fotolia.com
This makes Berkeley Castle a remarkable piece of history as family history and very detailed historical records have survived with the house and estate. But not enough with being a remarkable historical monument, Berkeley looks like a fairytale castle too.
It has battlements, trip steps, arrow slits and murder holes, along with beautiful wooden gates and a moat. When under attack, the land below the steep drop of the battlements would have been flooded, leaving the castle unassailable like a ship on a glittering sea.
Inside the castle, many generations of builders and home improvers have been at work. There are small towers, large towers, beautiful carved doors and plain doors and windows of every shape and size. The Great Hall is worthy of close inspection, as is the beautifully painted wooden ceiling in the surviving small chapel.
And history did not stop here after King Edward's murder, either. Queen Elizabeth I visited and - apparently - played bowls. And if you carry a torch for England's most famous pirate - Francis Drake - then you can stand before his sea chest and wonder what stories it could tell if it could talk.
But one of the greatest changes to the castle happened during England's civil war, when Berkeley was held by the Royalists.It was captured in 1645 by Colonel Thomas Rainsborough for the Parliamentarian side after a siege which saw the castle's walls being breached.
And to this date, the breach has never been repaired.
With its treasure trove of historical artefacts and its beautiful gardens and deer park, Berkeley Castle makes a wonderful day out. Depending on the day of your visit you may find re-enactors in residence or a concert or play in progress.
For information about events, opening times, re-enactments and concerts, please check out The Berkeley Castle website .
Visiting Gloucestershire?
Where You Could Stay
Gloucestershire is a great destination whether you want get-away-from-it-all peace and quiet, vigorous walking, tiny villages, high fashion shopping or a bit of excitement. Throw in Evensong at Gloucester Cathedral, a ruined abbey or two, racing at Cheltenham and some fantastic local food and you're all set for a weekend or a holiday that has something for everyone whether you're a couple in need of romance or a family in need of fun.
Gloucestershire has it's fair share of beautiful apartments and holiday cottages, and here are a couple of ideas where you could stay:
The Coach House
Gotherington
Sleeps 5
To see other holiday cottages in Gloucestershire click here . Or check out holiday cottages in other parts of England by clicking here.
What You Could See and Do
Explore the regency splendours of Cheltenham, take a walk along the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal or enjoy a long lazy lunch in the very pretty village of Frampton on Severn.
Ride on a steam train or watch some horse racing at Cheltenham's famous race course.
Visit The Slimbridge Wetland Centre . Explore its connection with Scott of the Antarctic and marvel at the variety of birds it attracts.
Spend a day meandering through the Cotswolds lanes. Stop off for ice cream at Lower Slaughter, feed the trout at Bibury, visit the Saxon Church at Duntisbourne Rouse or enjoy the wonderful garden at Hidcote Manor.
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What was the name of New York's 'JFK Airport' before it was renamed in honour of the assassinated President?
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History of JFK International Airport | eHow
History of JFK International Airport
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John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York is one of the busiest passenger airports in the United States. Yet it was designed only to relieve overflow from the nearby, crowded LaGuardia Airport. Today, JFK is one of the most recognizable airports in the world.
Idlewild Airport
The original name of JFK Airport was Idlewild Airport. It was named, when construction began in 1942, for the Idlewild Golf Course that the airport was built on. The initial planned size of the airport was only 1,000 acres. The airport was planned as a relief to the overcrowded LaGuardia Airport, already too busy for its size.
1943-1963
The airport was renamed Major General Alexander E. Anderson Airport in 1943, after a Queens resident. He was a member of the National Guard who died in World War II in 1942. In March 1948, the New York City Council again changed the name of the airport to New York International Airport, Anderson Field. Most people still called the airport Idlewild Airport until 1963.
Becoming JFK Airport
The airport was renamed the John F. Kennedy International Airport in December 1963. The renaming was in honor of the assassinated president, who was killed one month earlier. Since 1963, the airport has been known by the abbreviation JFK Airport to many travelers.
JFK Airport Today
JFK Airport is managed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the agency that oversees bridges, tunnels, bus terminals, airports and seaports in New York City and New Jersey. The airport includes eight terminals and provides services to almost 80 domestic, international and charter airlines. Approximately 50 million passengers a year pass through JFK Airport.
Economics of JFK
JFK Airport generates over $30 billion a year, including over 35,000 jobs at the airport and almost $10 billion a year in salaries.
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Idlewild
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Who was the first Soviet leader not to be buried in Moscow's 'Red Square'?
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JFK International - One of the World's Busiest Airports
JFK International - One of the World's Busiest Airports
John F. Kennedy International Airport is the one of the busiest international airports in the world. Located in the Queens district of New York City , JFK International Airport handles more international passengers than any other airport in the United States. In 2010 over 46 million passengers went through the terminals of JFK.
The airport is a city in itself. About 35,000 people work at the airport. More than 90 airlines fly in and out of New York’s JFK airport. The busiest routes from JFK lead to London , Heathrow, Madrid and Paris, Charles de Gaulle.
The airport opened in 1948. Originally , it was called Idlewild Airport. It was renamed shortly President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. At first the airport could handle planes with a weight of 300 tones. In the 1960s JFK underwent changes in order to take on the new generation of jumbo jets that followed.
Currently there are four runways on which planes take off and land. One of them is long enough for a space shuttle to land. Over 40 km of taxiways move aircraft from their holding positions to the runways.
Terminal 1 of JFK International Airport in New York - Doug Letterman
JFK airport has eight terminals with a total of over 150 gates . The buildings are arranged around parking areas, hotels and even a power plant . All the terminals are connected with each other through a train system. This train system connects the airport with downtown New York. It takes passengers about 30 to 40 minutes to get to Central Manhattan, about 20 km from the airport.
New York’s biggest airport is also an important freight hub . Most of the cargo between Europe and the United States passes through JFK and almost a quarter of all international goods to and from the USA are handled by the airport.
JFK International Airport has also been the location of several accidents and tragedies. Among them a TWA flight exploded shortly after taking off from JFK. All 230 people were killed. In April 2011 an Airbus A-380 crashed into a smaller plane while still on the ground. Fortunately nobody was injured .
accident = event in which people are killed or injured
arrange = put in a certain position
assassinate = to murder an important person
busy = here: with a lot of traffic; many passengers
cargo = goods
downtown = the centre of a city
fortunately = luckily
freight hub = the central part of a system ; goods that move on to other cities have to pass through this location
gate = place where you leave an airport building to get on a plane
handle = deal with, to move passengers
holding position = place where an airplane stands at an airport or shortly before take-off
injure = hurt
power plant = a building that produces power and electricity
renamed = given a different name
runway = hard surface on which planes can take off and land
taxiway = hard surface on which planes get to the runway
terminal = big building where people wait to get on a plane
weight = how heavy something is
Topics
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i don't know
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What is the setting for Beethoven's opera 'Fidelio'?
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San Francisco Symphony - BEETHOVEN: Fidelio
San Francisco Symphony
Fidelio, Opera in Two Acts, Opus 72
Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, then an independent electorate of Germany, probably on December 16, 1770 (he was baptized on the 17th), and died March 26, 1827, in Vienna, Austria. His opera Fidelio was finalized in May 1814 as the second revision of the opera that had been premiered under that name, in an earlier form, on November 20, 1805, at Vienna’s Theater an der Wien, and revised for its revival at the same theater on March 29, 1806, under the title Leonore, oder Der Triumph der ehelichen Liebe. In its final version, Fidelio received its first performance on May 23, 1814, at the Kärntnertortheater in Vienna, with soprano Anna Milder in the title role, Giulio Radichi as Florestan, and baritone Johann Michael Vogl (later famous as a champion of Schubert’s songs) in the role of Don Pizarro. The libretto was originally derived (in 1805) by Joseph von Sonnleithner from the French libretto Léonore, ou l’amour conjugal, by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly. It was adapted for the 1806 production by Stephan von Breuning, and in 1814 Georg Friedrich Treitschke adapted it still further for the definitive version of Fidelio. Fidelio came to the US when it was staged—in English—at the Park Theatre, New York, on September 9, 1839. The San Francisco Symphony first presented Fidelio in concert performances conducted by Herbert Blomstedt in June 1986, with Luana DeVol (Fidelio/Leonore), Reiner Goldberg (Florestan), Paul Plishka (Rocco), Günter Reich (Pizarro), Beverly Morgan (Marzelline), Gene Tucker (Jaquino), and Leslie Guinn (Don Fernando).The most recent performances were conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas in May 2004; the singers were Tina Kiberg (Fidelio/Leonore), Robert Gambill (Florestan), Paul Plishka (Rocco), Tom Fox (Pizarro), Anna Christy (Marzelline), Eric Cutler (Jaquino), and Dan Borowski (Don Fernando). In addition to the vocal soloists and chorus, the score calls for two flutes and piccolo, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons and contrabassoon, four horns, two trumpets plus offstage trumpet, two trombones, timpani, and strings. Performance time: about two hours and ten minutes.
“I follow my inner calling, / Waver, I shall not, / Strength I derive / From faithfulness and love.” This concluding affirmation of Leonore’s powerful aria “Abscheulicher!” from Act I of Fidelio sums up the heroine’s unwavering dedication to freeing her imprisoned husband. We might wonder if it ever occurred to Beethoven how apt those same words would be to describe his own steadfast compulsion to compose an opera. Independent arias, ballet sequences, and incidental music for theatrical productions run liberally through his catalogue, but when it came to creating a complete standalone opera Beethoven seemed ever hopeful but perpetually stymied. He was always on the lookout for an appropriate libretto. For about four years (1807-11) he toyed with writing an opera based on Macbeth and for three years in the 1820s he held on to the libretto for Melusine, which the poet Franz Grillparzer crafted expressly for him from a medieval fairy tale. At different times Beethoven expressed interest in creating operas from tales involving the deceived knight Bradamante and the questing scholar Faust, but these ideas also came to naught. His first real attempt at opera came in 1803: Vestas Feuer, a drama set in ancient Rome with a libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder (who a dozen years earlier had crafted the libretto for Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte). But Beethoven’s heart wasn’t in it, and he diverted most of his creative energy that year to his Third Symphony and Waldstein Piano Sonata—probably a good thing for posterity.
The one opera he did manage to sink his talons into and carry through to completion—and another completion, and yet another after that—was the work he unveiled in 1805 under the title Fidelio; revived the following year as Leonore, oder Der Triumph der ehelichen Liebe (Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love); and transformed yet again into its final form of 1814, at which point it was named Fidelio once and for all.
It was a timely opera. In the years immediately following the French Revolution, audiences in many European countries were hungry for theatrical plots involving political oppression, daring rescues, and triumphant humanitarianism. (Government authorities were less enthusiastic, but there was no stopping the tide.) The French author Jean-Nicolas Bouilly scored a success with his libretto for Les deux journées, a “rescue opera” set by Luigi Cherubini (whose music Beethoven greatly admired); and when Beethoven had an opportunity to set a different Bouilly libretto, Léonore, ou l’amour conjugal, he pounced, enlisting his friend Joseph Sonnleithner to adapt Bouilly’s text while translating it into German. Other composers had shepherded Bouilly’s libretto to the opera stage before Beethoven did. Pierre Gaveaux’s Léonore was introduced in 1798 and Ferdinando Paer’s Leonora in 1804. In 1803, the composer Étienne-Nicolas Méhul let loose an opera titled Hélène, with a Bouilly libretto that traced some of the same path that Fidelio would. These were all big names among opera composers just then.
Bouilly was just the sort of wordsmith who would appeal to Beethoven’s political sensibilities. Although Beethoven derived much of his income from the purses of aristocrats, he was a partisan of noble humanitarian principles, and he joined those who applauded the democratic aspirations of the Jacobins of post-Revolutionary France. At the head of the Jacobins was Napoleon Bonaparte, whom political idealists viewed as a beacon of hope for social enlightenment. Writing an opera like Fidelio in 1804-05 was not entirely an exercise in idealism. It seemed as if political change really was imminent. In 1803-04, Beethoven had busied himself with his Third Symphony, which was meant to honor Bonaparte. Then in the spring of 1804, just as he completed his symphonic tribute, Napoleon crowned himself emperor. Incensed that the standard-bearer of republicanism had seized power as an absolutist dictator, Beethoven furiously scratched the name “Buonaparte” from the symphony’s title-page and re-named it instead Sinfonia Eroica … per festeggiare il sovvenire di un grand Uomo (Heroic Symphony … to Celebrate the Memory of a Great Man).
Napoleon loomed in the background throughout the years of Fidelio’s composition and revision. His forces seized occupation of Vienna the very week of the work’s 1805 premiere—drastically unfortunate timing for the opening of an anti-authoritarian opera, doubly so since many of Vienna’s opera-goers were hightailing it out of town. The 1814 version hit the stage only six weeks after Napoleon and his loyalists retreated to temporary exile on the island of Elba, the beginning of his end.
The plot of Fidelio—judiciously moved to eighteenth-century Spain—centers on precisely the sort of political oppression that was part and parcel to the times. Florestan has been unjustly imprisoned by the governor Don Pizarro after disseminating unflattering information about him. Florestan’s devoted wife, Leonore, manages to get a job in the prison disguised as a boy, in which camouflage she calls herself Fidelio. Don Pizarro has kept Florestan’s name off the official prison roster and has been slowly starving him to death in solitary confinement; but he decides to execute Florestan to avoid complications in anticipation of the imminent arrival of the prime minister and a virtuous prison-inspection team. “Fidelio” intercedes and holds Don Pizarro at bay until the good guys arrive—at which point Leonore (shedding her disguise) and Florestan are reunited in their marriage and Don Pizarro’s goose is cooked.
The work’s dramaturgy can come across as odd. Partly it is a matter of mixed genres. Dark though the prison narrative is, it is entwined with a light-hearted comic story in which the prison assistant Jaquino wants to marry the jailer’s daughter Marzelline, who for her part has an obviously impossible crush on Fidelio—a secondary plot that largely evaporates at some point. Then, too, the work is cast as a singspiel, a stage genre popular in late-18th-century German-speaking lands in which musical numbers come and go within a spoken stage-play. The extensive spoken dialogue is often reduced to a nubbin in modern productions. It is true that much of the text adheres to an aesthetic that has little to do with modern tastes for the vernacular; and yet, encountered as Beethoven envisioned it, the proportions are very different from what we are accustomed to in an opera and the work accordingly has an altered feel.
Leonore was not well received at its 1805 premiere and its run ended after three performances. The 1806 revival, for which Beethoven truncated and restructured the piece, fared little better, and its run was cut short by an argument between the composer and the theater’s management. When the work was revived anew in 1814, restructured yet again, it was finally a hit.
What music lovers encounter most regularly of the score are its overtures. There are four of them; Beethoven wrote three different but related versions for the 1805 premiere, the 1806 revival, and an 1807 production that was planned (for Prague) but did not materialize—the so-called Leonore Overtures—and then composed an entirely new one for the 1814 re-write, always called the Fidelio Overture. The last arguably suits its prefatory purpose best, being shorter and generally less weighty than its predecessors—marvelous pieces, but perhaps more detailed in prefiguring the opera’s dramaturgy than is needed. In any case, a tradition evolved in the mid-to-late nineteenth century whereby the Leonore Overture No. 3 was often inserted between the two scenes of the second act, not a composer-sanctioned idea but one that at least could prove helpful by filling up time that might be required for set change onstage. Such an emendation remained practically de rigueur for the better part of a century and is still employed in some productions today. The Fidelio Overture, by the way, was not heard on the opera’s opening night in 1814. Beethoven did not complete it quite in time, so the evening began instead with the overture Beethoven had penned several years earlier for the play The Ruins of Athens was pressed into service instead. Beethoven later admitted, “The people applauded, but I stood ashamed; it did not belong to the rest.” Only at the second performance, three nights later, did the new Fidelio Overture get its first airing, to applause so enthusiastic that the composer was called to take two bows before the action of the opera proper could begin.
A number of Beethoven’s major compositions are traditionally discussed in terms of light triumphing over darkness. In the Fifth Symphony, high anxiety in C minor eventually wends through a mysterious bridge passage to burst forth to a brilliant C major finale. The Ninth Symphony moves from questing, inchoate gestures in D minor to a blazing choral conclusion in D major. The Serioso Quartet, Opus 95, maintains taut edginess until its final half-minute, which shifts to sparkling vivacity. Similar movement toward the light lies at the heart of Fidelio. References to light and darkness surface continually. The jailer Rocco describes the subterranean cell in which Florestan is hidden: “No light save for a lamp.” In her “Abscheulicher!,” Leonore (as Fidelio) resolves to descend to the cell guided by a sort of heavenly light: “Come, Hope, let not your last star be exhausted; illuminate my path, distant though you be.” In one of the opera’s most moving scenes, the chorus “O welche Lust!,” prisoners are released momentarily from their cells to step outside; returning to confinement, one among them bids farewell to “the cheerful warm sunlight,” resigned that “night again sinks around us.” Florestan, languishing at death’s door in his dungeon, sings (and partly speaks in instrument-accompanied melodrama) his heart-rending scene “Gott! welch’ Dunkel hier!” (God! How dark it is here!), and, hallucinating, imagines an angel who “illuminates my grave,” an angel who resembles his beloved Leonore. Even in the work’s musical “architecture,” Beethoven stresses the division of dark from light. Music relating to Florestan and the prisoners tends toward the keys of F minor and A-flat major, keys abundant in flatted notes that were widely felt to convey dark or heavily shadowed implications. The music for Leonore and the forces of good stands far away on the chromatic map at E major, a key signature with four sharps, each representing a degree of brightness.
The name Fidelio is derived from the Latin fides, meaning faith or faithfulness; this disguised wife indeed embodies marital faithfulness to the extremes of bravery. In the name of Florestan we spy another Latin root, flos, meaning “flower,” which made its way into modern Romance languages as, for example, the Spanish flor. (A section of the spoken text that is often cut reveals, through a reference to “Leonore Florestan,” that Florestan is actually the prisoner’s surname; but apart from that, it serves essentially as the husband’s identity rather than the wife’s.) A flower cannot thrive without nourishment, of course, and one of the most touching scenes has Fidelio (“his” identity not yet revealed) giving the nearly catatonic Florestan a sip of wine and a crust of bread. But flowers cannot live deprived of light, either. It would seem unlikely that Bouilly should have endowed the names of Fidelio and Florestan with deeply embedded meaning of that sort and not treated the name of Leonore with as much care. As it happens, he did. The name traces its lineage back through the medieval form of Eleanor to the ancient Greek name Helena (Eleni), which would be translated as “bright one” or “light one.” The very names of these principal characters subtly support the point that this opera is about faithfulness, flowering, and enlightenment.
—James M. Keller
Portions of this essay appeared previously in the programs of the New York Philharmonic and in the Santa Fe New Mexican; used with permission.
The action takes place at a Spanish state prison a few miles from Seville.
Act I
Leonore, disguised as the young man Fidelio, has taken a job in a prison. This is a bold ploy, but it is her only means of infiltrating a place where she believes her husband Florestan is being held. He is one who has disappeared. Two years before, under the pretense of national security, he was jailed secretly at an undisclosed location for threatening to expose the crimes of the governor, Don Pizarro. It is to this location that, by luck and calculation, Leonore has come.
The prison courtyard.
The curtain rises. Jaquino, assistant to the head jailer, Rocco, is in love with Rocco’s daughter, Marzelline. He wants to marry her and pleads his case. Marzelline has other plans. Ever since Fidelio arrived, she has had her heart set on him. Rocco is partial to Fidelio. He offers counsel on what makes for a good marriage, and when Leonore presses him to let her go with him down into the dungeon, to the prisoner who is being held in solitary confinement, he agrees.
A march heralds the arrival of Pizarro. Reading a dispatch from a spy, Pizarro learns that his superior, Don Fernando, plans a surprise inspection of the prison. This is bad news. Because he has told Don Fernando that Florestan is dead, he will have much to answer for if his lie is exposed. There is only one solution, and that is to kill Florestan. He sends a trumpeter to the turret to keep watch for Don Fernando’s party, ordering him to signal with a fanfare as soon as the minister’s retinue is sighted.
Pizarro enlists Rocco in his scheme to eliminate his enemy. Rocco protests that, though he will prepare a grave for the prisoner, murder is not in his job description. Pizarro, enraged, asserts that he will take care of him himself. Leonore has overheard all this. In an impassioned avowal of outrage and love, she declares herself ready to do what she must to free the man being held below, whoever he may be. Swept up in the moment, she opens the cells of the prisoners.
The prisoners gradually emerge into the courtyard.
Pizarro returns, furious with Rocco for allowing the prisoners this moment of freedom. Rocco shrewdly deflects his superior’s anger with a ruse, then reassures him that everything is set to eliminate Pizarro’s most hated enemy. The prisoners bid farewell to the sunlight and return to their cells.
Act II
Scene 1: In a dark dungeon Florestan sits chained to the wall.
In the dungeon, Florestan ponders his fate. His crime was to speak the truth. For that, he has been imprisoned. He believes he is hallucinating as he sees a light approach down the stairwell, held by someone who seems to resemble his wife. The vision is too much for his weakened constitution, and he loses consciousness. Rocco and Leonore enter. The jailer wants to take advantage of this moment and get on with excavating a shallow grave in an old cistern. Florestan comes to and asks for water. Leonore, hearing his voice for the first time, realizes it is her husband. She offers him bread; Rocco, moved by the man’s plight, gives him a sip of water. Florestan’s song of gratitude is interrupted by Pizarro’s arrival. He reveals himself to Florestan, then draws the knife. Leonore steps between them and, to the bewilderment of all, states that, before killing Florestan, Pizarro must first kill the prisoner’s wife. Pizarro is determined to do exactly that. But Leonore is quicker. She draws a pistol and Pizarro, at the end of its barrel, freezes. At that moment the trumpeter on the turret signals Don Fernando’s approach. Pizarro’s game is over. Leonore and Florestan, barely able to grasp what has just happened, declare their love for each other.
Scene 2: The parade-ground of the castle. A crowd gathers.
The citizens and freed prisoners have gathered to welcome Don Fernando. Pizarro’s crimes are revealed, and he is led off. Leonore unlocks the chains that have bound her husband. The rejoicing is general, the mood ecstatic.
More About the Music
Recordings: Nina Stemme and Jonas Kaufmann, with Claudio Abbado conducting the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and Arnold Schoenberg Choir, recorded live at the 2010 Lucerne Festival (Decca) | Sena Jurinac and Jon Vickers, with Otto Klemperer conducting the Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in a live performance in 1961, retaining a good deal of the original dialogue (Testament); also Klemperer’s studio recording with Christa Ludwig and Vickers, with the Philharmonia Orchestra and Chorus (Warner Classics) | Helga Dernesch and Vickers, with Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic and the Berlin German Opera Chorus (EMI/Warner Classics)
Reading: Thayer’s Life of Beethoven, in its revision by Elliott Forbes (Princeton University Press) | The Beethoven Compendium, edited by Barry Cooper (Thames and Hudson) | Beethoven and his World: A Biographical Dictionary, by Peter Clive (Oxford) | Beethoven, by William Kinderman (University of California Press) | Beethoven: The Music and the Life, by Lewis Lockwood (Norton | Beethoven, by Barry Cooper (Oxford, Master Musicians Series) | Fidelio, by Paul Robinson (Cambridge Opera Handbooks) | Fidelio: Beethoven, edited by Nicholas John (English National Opera Guides/John Calder)
DVD: Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony explore the composer and his world in Beethoven and the Eroica, part of our Keeping Score series (SFS Media). Also available at keepingscore.org.
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Prison
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The Isle of Man's 'Laxey Wheel' is the largest water wheel in the world. What name is it known by?
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Beethoven and Fidelio
Beethoven was living at the Theater an der Wien when he began work on Fidelio in 1804 and, although he had other commissions, devoted himself almost full-time to the opera. He produced at least 436 pages of sketches and changed Florestan's aria 18 times. The opera was ready for rehearsal in the autumn of 1805 but there were censor troubles. For one thing, they objected that the end of the opera was too much like the fall of the Bastille. Sonnleithner protested, pointing out that Paër's versionhad already been given in Dresden, and that it was set in sixteenth-century Spain. The censors were finally convinced when they learned the Empress admired the story.They approved the operas after "the alteration of the more lurid scenes".
Although Beethoven strongly objected, the theatre management insisted on changing the name from Leonore to Fidelio. They were afraid it might be confused with the other Leonores by Paër and Mayr. Overly long, the November 20, 1805 opening was not a success, and it could not have come out at a worse time. Napoleon's forces had recently occupied Vienna; other than a few of Beethoven's friends, most of the audience consisted of French officers who did not understand German. (The Court had abandoned Vienna.) The press was unenthusiastic, and Beethoven withdrew it after three performances.
Revisions were made by Stephen von Breuning, and the new version produced five months later was fairly well received. The second Act I chorus was added for this version. However, a quarrel with von Braun, the director of the theatre, induced Beethoven to withdraw it.
May 23, 1814 saw the opening of what was to become the definitive version of Fidelio at the Theater am Kärnthnerthor. Beethoven had added music so that it was less of a Singspiel. Not only was it much improved, but it benefitted from Napoleon's defeat -- he had abdicated and been sent to Elba in April of that year. It was the first opera given before the delegates to the Congress of Vienna (1814-15) and it soon appeared in many German cities and in Prague. Eight years later the very young Wilhelmine Schröder sang the role and was a sensation. Its fame spread and, in 1832, it was given in Paris (in French) and in England (in German). It was given again in England in 1835 (in English) and yet again in 1851 with the dialog in Italian! It came to New York's Park Theatre in English in 1839 and to the Metropolitan Opera in 1884.
As a footnote: Beethoven had been impressed by the story of another Leonore who acted as a soldier in the wars of Neapolitan liberation and, in 1814, he composed incidental music for a play on her story, Eleonore Prohaska, by Friedrich Duncker
On his deathbed Beethoven presented the manuscript for Fidelio to Anton Schindler saying, "Of all my children, this is the one that cost me the worst birth-pangs, the one that brought me the most sorrow; and for that reason it is the one most dear to me".
A NOTE ON THE OVERTURES.
There are four overtures associated with Fidelio. The so-called Leonore #1 was used only a few times in later productions. The 1805 performance opened with Leonore #2. Leonore #3 was composed for the 1806 version. Finally a new Fidelio overture premiered with the 1814 production.
In most modern productions it is the practice to start with Fidelio and use Leonore #3 as a later interlude, a custom usually credited to Mahler. When the current San Diego Opera production was used in San Francisco, Leonore #3 was used before the opera, and there was no later interlude.
MODERN PERFORMANCES
Almost from its inception, Fidelio has been taken as symbol of freedom and release from oppression. As a consequence, although the original was set in sixteenth-century Spain, it has since been moved to many different times and locales. San Diego's (originally San Francisco's) version is set during Beethoven's time.
Some people have objected to the spoken dialogue and set it to music. An 1851 version by Balfe became the standard such for decades.
Some examples of recent versions:
A Peter Hall 1979 production took place behind was apparently a prison farm. Rocco cultivated his vegetables and Marzelline hung out washing.
During a scene change in a 1980 English National Opera production, Rocco climbed a ladder on the auditorium wall to remind the audience that not all prisoners would be released.
Kupfer, in 1981, used a concentration camp version complete with searchlights. In the final scene Leonore, Florestan and the prisoners were removed and there was a tableau with Socrates, Che Guevara, Jesus, members of the PLO, and other "revolutionaries"who emerged from the sculpture Marseillaise on Paris's Arc de Triomphe. At the end, only Pizarro was left onstage with two coffins, presumably those of Leonore and Florestan.
The last production in San Diego took place in a Latin American banana republic. At the end, the townspeople waved small American flags after they were released by the American soldiers.
In a recent performance in Antwerp, Jaquino monitored the prisoners with a video and Marzelline was also a guard. This led to a number of anachronisms. Pizzaro still recognized the handwriting on dispatches and tried to use a knife on Florestan..
Fidelio was seen as particularly significant during and after World War II. It was shown in Salzburg just before the Nazis entered the city. During the war, the conductors Furtwängler and Karajan remained in Germany and both conducted the opera. Thomas Mann said that Fidelio under the Nazis was an obscenity, but Furtwängler replied, "Fidelio never has been presented in the Germany of Himmler, only in a Germany raped by Himmler".
Fidelio was especially significant in Vienna after the war. The Vienna State Opera House had been destroyed, but the Vienna State Opera company produced it on October 6, 1945 at the Theater and der Wien, the house where it had premiered. One of Austria's priorities was the reconstruction of the Opera House. In spite of the country's poverty, the government spent some 10 million dollars to rebuild the bombed-out building. Its reopening was a cause for rejoicing throughout the country; Karl Böhm led the orchestra in a gala performance of Fidelio; the house was sold out and thousands waited all afternoon outside for a chance to listen to the music on loudspeakers. There were few dry eyes that evening, and the Viennese tell of miracles happening during the performance.
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